New Pipilotti Rist Installation at MOMA NYC

http://moma.org/exhibitions/exhibitions.php?id=9760

Art we can all appreciate

Chris Jordan's works depict some staggering figures for everybody to take in and hopefully allow us to put our (actually America's, but close enough) consumption into perspective.

Running the Numbers: An American Self-Portrait

This Thursday's visiting speaker

 

click to view bigger

Amusing Film by Kent Monkman

Last year when I visited the National Gallery I was quite intrigued with a display of Cree artist Kent Monkman's paintings. His work is deeply satirical and almost every role possible is reversed resulting in quite an interesting take on many different, but all familiar, scenes. He also makes films and I discovered this one today starring the lovely Miss Chief Eagle Testickle (I believe that Monkman plays her role), the main character in almost all his work. Intrigued? Check it out at
http://www.non-compliance.ca/Garneau/videos_Monkman.html

The Big Chart

http://homepage.mac.com/clintwynn/thebigchart/thebigchart.html

Clever video with a design-y twist.. to follow up on our design filled class last week

Tonight's visiting speaker 7 PM!!!!

click for bigger version

Bring your papers all nice and stapled and with a cover page and all that.

See you then

Happy Halloween

Hey everyone,
Is everyone excited for the Halloween Howl at the School this Friday? I was wondering how many people still make there costumes? It seems like Halloween has changed a lot since I was a kid and probably it has completely changed since people my parents' age were kids. When I was younger I would always wear a homemade costume. There is a pretty cool website that has DIY projects on pretty much anything:
http://www.instructables.com/

Comfortably Numb.

So did anyone go to Laser Spectacular: Pink Floyd last night?
well in the last minute i decided to, it was sick! highly recommend it,
I'll be sporting the wicked 3d glasses all day every day.

check it out...
l a s e r s p e c t a c u l a r.

Makes you feel like god...

Not sure if this is legitimate posting material, but I figured this was far too cool to not share. In an effort to give this some relevance to the class, it's interesting to see how altering the speed and perspective of our reality can drastically change what we perceive as ordinary. I dream of a Google earth where we can see things unfold like this.


The North Wind Blew South from Keith Loutit on Vimeo.

What all the cool kids at ACAD will be doing Friday at lunch, and what you should be doing too!

So me and my friend Emily are having a art show at the Ivan Gallery (in room 118) next weekend. It is an installation with all sorts of secrets in it. The opening is on Friday from 12-2, and everyone should come down and check it out. And donate some secrets and read some secrets. I would post a picture of the flyer I made, but I can't figure out how, so I might later on.

Sorry for the shameless plug, I am just really really excited.

More Beuys

More John Cage

HI! or LO!

So last class Rick had a little spew on sneaker culture and painting / altering shoes when he brought up the topic on high and low art. I thought I'd post up my depiction of that, this is a pair of airforce hightops that I just finished up on commission. Been working on altering and painting shoes for the last few months, definetly gives a little breathe to the constant work on canvas and paper....

Something worth questioning..

Sorry for hogging all the blogging, but I have to comment on the so-called "Movement Movement". I would like to first applaud the critical audience members calling out some interesting points such as what sort of movement they are actually trying to create.

My opinion is that this is a simple group activity, nothing more. The whole idea that they are trying to challenge rules or "break" social conventions is completely out to lunch, as a few audience members illustrated. It seems that this an event about breaking the rules, as long as nobody breaks the rules that were agreed to by the event coordinators and the museum management. "Bringing your dog is a bit of a stretch" one of them said. "No spitting" was another. Ridiculous. If you want to challenge the system, you outright challenge it. You don't proceed with lengthy discussions and compromises in order to get permission. Bring on the flash mobs, I say.

As the guy in the green hat mentioned, there is an election happening as we speak. Why not make this event worthwhile and base it on a political platform? Why wouldn't they substantiate this whole project by giving it some tangible meaning? My guess is that the museum would never allow a politically aimed project in the doors.

Another ridiculous point was mentioning sponsorship from Nike as being improper due to questionable business practice but then saying they were sponsored by American Apparel. If these girls knew what they were talking about they would be well aware that American Apparel is involved in some pretty shady operating practices as well. "We were into a short shorts thing" was their reasoning. Please.

I think (or hope, rather) that the steam is being let out of this balloon really fast. It's all fine if their intentions were to simply get a large group of people together in order to have a bit of fun at the museum and run around, but to attach arbitrary meanings to the event is plain old silly.

Forgive me for my ramblings, but I have a hard time swallowing "movements" that are not based around a critical analysis of it's own intentions. So please, challenge this perspective if you will.

For those interested in Grafitti.

Saw the first documentary on TV a few months ago and it was excellent. Wicked beats as well. Included a couple other clips from different docs. that seem pretty good as well.


Next: A Primer on Urban Painting
http://www.nextthemovie.com/


Style Wars
http://www.stylewars.com/


Bomb-It!
http://bombit-themovie.com/

Message to Rick: If we can get a hold of one of these is there any way we could show one of these films in class one day?

Pictures for the words.

Did some digging around to find some of the videos relating to the videos or artists within the book "Broken Screen". Here's clips from the artists in the first chunk of the book. Just a warning, some of these are not family-friendly.

Eija-Liisa Ahtila:
Not sure if this film was discussed in the book but gives you an idea of her technique.

Robert Altman:
Live interview from the 70's(?)
A later interview from 1996. There are two other interviews before Altman, but the first one is definitely worth watching too.
Read this if you watched the first interview.
The trailer for "3 Women".

Kenneth Anger:
Mouse Heaven (2004)
Scorpio Rising (1964)
Kustom Kar Kommandos

John Baldessari:
I Am Making Art
Inventory
I Will Not Make Any More Boring Art

Matthew Barney:
Interview
Drawing Restraint 9 Clip
Couldn't find any full videos but here's some clips from the CREMASTER cycle they talk about in the text.
Cremaster 1
Cremaster 2
Cremaster 3
Cremaster 4
Cremaster 5
Cremaster 6 Haha.


That's all I got. Pretty much everything is on youtube if you want more, it is great.

Vince Musi

I went to the Vince Musi talk on Saturday. Vince Musi is a photographer of National Geographic fame. He talked about how he got started in college. I thought it was interesting how he failed his photography course. He ended up taking visual communication instead.
He says over the years he has developed a "voice" in his photographs. I think developing a voice can be applied to any medium. It will be interesting to find out what my "artistic voice" will be. I also enjoyed some of the questions at the end. One was especially funny,
Someone asked "What advice would you give someone just starting out in Photography?"
Vince says "Be a doctor."

MST Festival starts today

http://www.mstfestival.org/mst4/mst02.html

Visiting Artists October 9th

click to view bigger

Links from Thursday's class

Gilbert & George
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-Hfg7qlGd-A
http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/exhibitions/gilbertandgeorge/

Sophie Calle
http://www.tate.org.uk/tateshots/episode.jsp?item=10086

Learning to Love You More
http://learningtoloveyoumore.com/

Assume Vivid Astro Focus
http://www.vbs.tv/video.php?id=1569823360

Andrea Crews
http://www.andreacrews.com/SPIP/index2.php#

Allora & Calzadilla
http://www.pbs.org/art21/artists/alloracalzadilla/index.html

Tara Donovan

 

Nice article in the New York Times about artist Tara Donovan. 

"Tara Donovan, 38, who won a MacArthur Foundation “genius” award on Tuesday, has drawn attention over the last decade for her ability to transform huge quantities of prosaic manufactured materials — Styrofoam cups, pencils, tar paper — into sculptural installations that suggest the wonders of nature."

And a slideshow

A Song

This is the new favorite song at my work. It's a mix up of Notorious BIG's Party and the Strokes Someday mixed together by Jay-33. Check it out, it is really good.

"Hyena Men"

I remember seeing the works of Pieter Hugo a few years ago and being struck by the photos he was producing. Hugo has focused on documenting the the lives of Nigeria's "Hyena Men" who perform for crowds with the captive animal (Hyenas & Monkeys) as well as sell traditional medicines. This documentation when on for numerous months where Hugo was submerged in the lives of this men and there families His photos combine wildness in a domestic, traditional and modern elements displaying a dominant and submissive quality that is striking as well as at times disturbing. For this work Pieter has won the prestigious Discovery Award....

Check out the Hyena Men photo series here.

Story Credit - Juxtapoz Art & Culture Magazine

This week in ACAD art

The ACAD gallery space is doing some cool stuff, including an installation by musician / artist extraordinaire Peaches!

Tuesday night:
Publish or Perish: Publications Launch and Panel Discussion
http://www.acad.ab.ca/wh_2008_09_publish_perish.html

Wednesday night:
Shary Boyle in performance
+
Dark Hand and Lamplight with Doug Paisley
http://www.acad.ab.ca/wh_2008_09_sb_ikg.html

Saturday:
Peaches closing
http://www.acad.ab.ca/wh_2008_09_peaches_ikg.html

Vid From highschool Dayz

this class reminded me...

http://www.flickr.com/photos/agraphie/2838513012/

Artistic Honesty

Hey,
I have a question for everyone. How does artistic honesty work for you? If someone gives you a great idea for say a painting or if another person says something that gives you a great idea for a design project, how do you give them credit for there input on your finished work?
And, If you end up using a reference picture when you draw how do you give credit to your source?

Os Gemeos

Follow up to Mike P.'s Brazilian Painting video post.. this time it's about street artists turned gallery artists Os Gemeos. That gallery Deitch Projects is also worth a look.

i found a small video with some Beastie Boys over it.... I KNOW pretty awesome.
its all covering the Bristol May day graffiti urban and street art show. theres some real talent and some intense pieces have a look. there are two videos on the site TAKE THE 2nd ONE!, the first one is some chicks cat.........



http://video.google.ca/videosearch?um=1&hl=en&client=firefox-a&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&q=mudwig&ndsp=21&ie=UTF-8&sa=N&tab=iv#

The Premium Side of Brazil...

An in-depth interview with Brazilian Artist Bruno 9Li; he speaks on his development as an artist, the influence of his home in Sao Paulo and the symbolism in his recent shows in Spain & California.

Check out his video here

Sold!

Artstar Damien Hirst made history today by selling his whole new body of work at Sotherbys auction house.. bypassing the galleries, and going straight to his rich art buying fans, he pocketed 127 million dollars off the first session alone!

full nyt story
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/16/arts/design/16auct.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

Here's the 'commercial' :
http://www.sothebys.com/video/privateview/L08027/index.html

Art Talk

Vice Magazine has a online Video Channel that has a nice little show about artists called Art Talk

http://www.vbs.tv/shows.php?show=1213875130&source=sc

Check it out if you get a chance, we'll try to watch the Richard Prince or maybe the Terence Koh ones in class.

Black Thunder

In the spirit of all this politic-in going around US and Canada.



This is from some of the same people involved in the video we watched last Thursday

Visiting Artist this Thusday: Shelley Oullet

++++++ Some of you asked you could bring people to this, and the answer is yes, but please note that the auditorium seats 300, there are 240 students in the Art & Design classes, plus I hear Shelley is a popular Calgary artist, so I would get there earlier than later +++

+++ Also remember to find me before or after the presentation to sign the sign in sheet +++

Art and Design Now and ACAD present:
Shelley Ouellet
7:00pm Thursday, September 18, 2008
Stanford Perrot Lecture Theater

Shelley Ouellet is an artist working across a variety of medium and 
focusing on
community-based projects. Her practice is based in Calgary where she studied fine art
at the university and got an 
education when became Director of the city's Stride Gallery
in the early 90s. She has subsequently worked as an art consultant, a web designer,
and an instructor at the Alberta College of Art and Design. Her work has been exhibited
across Canada and the United Kingdom. Shelley's collective experience as an artist,
arts administrator, and educator has resulted in a professional practice which through its
commitment to accessibility has resulted in the development of large scale sculpture,
publicity, and temporary installations. Her practice aspires to recognize the importance
of collective activity in advocacy, community development, and the arts. Her concerns
relate to the relationship between citizens and their physical and social environments.
The development and production phases of each work seek to create as social
environment and economy infused with co-ownership. 

 Shelley runs the Carpet 'N Toast
Gallery; an alternative exhibition space in her home and recently joined the board of
Truck Gallery and as faculty at ACAD. She has been an Associate in Digital Imaging,
Media and Visual Arts, at The Banff Centre for the Arts, and an artist-in- 
residence in
Glasgow, The Banff Centre, Est Nord Est, The Dunlop Art Gallery, EM/Media, and at
The Untitled Art Society this September. She will be exhibiting and in-residence with the
Globe Gallery in New Castle, UK in 2009. 



http://www.shelleyouellet.com
http://www.vanitygallery.com

http://www.vanitygallery.com/cnt

CO....... STANZA

A Fair(y) Use Tale

The documentary we watched today "Sonic Outlaws" Reminded me of a video I saw this spring about fair use. The video is made with clips from Disney movies. Disney is extremely protective of its work. Check it out!

Full Screening of Warho's Empire: today/tonight! (Wednesday)

Screening of Warhol' Empire, all the info at http://www.calgarycinema.org/september.php

Wednesday September 10th, starting @ 4pm
(access permitted the entire 8 hours), The Plaza Theatre
$7 General Admission, $5 Members/Student/Seniors

From the site:

Empire consists of one stationary shot of the Empire State Building taken from the forty-fourth floor of the Time-Life Building. Jonas Mekas served as cameraman. The shot was filmed from 8:06 p.m. to 2:42 a.m. on July 25-26, 1964. Empire consists of a number of one-hundred-foot rolls of film, each separated from the next by a flash of light. Each segment of film constitutes a piece of time. Warhol's clear delineation of the individual segments of film can be likened to the serial repetition of images in his silkscreen paintings, which also acknowledge their process and materials.

Warhol conceived a new relationship of the viewer to film in Empire and other early works, which are silent, explore perception, and establish a new sense of cinematic time. With their disengagement, lack of editing, and lengthy non-events, these films were intended to be part of a larger environment. They also parody the goals of his avant-garde contemporaries who sought to convey the human psyche through film or used the medium as metaphor.

Publication excerpt
The Museum of Modern Art, MoMA Highlights, New York: The Museum of Modern Art, revised 2004, originally published 1999, p. 240

...The qualities that make Empire a precursor to reality TV-no script, elevation of the mundane-would seem to encourage sampling. But defenders of the film (which Warhol slowed down; shot at 24 frames per second, it's projected at 16) say it simply can't be cut. "It's conceptually important that it's eight hours long," says Callie Angell, director of the Whitney's Warhol Film Project. "Some people show it at the regular sound speed to make it go by faster, and I just think that's not the film." Seeing the whole thing offers surprises, she adds. "[Warhol and Jonas Mekas] were shooting it from the office of the Rockefeller Foundation in the Time-Life building, and when they changed the reels they'd turn the lights on. In three reels, they started before they turned the lights back off, so you can see a reflection of Warhol and Mekas in the window. No one had ever mentioned that before. Probably no one ever had sat through the whole thing.

Karen Rosenberg, New York Art

Empire consists of a single stationary shot of the Empire State Building filmed from 8:06 p.m. to 2:42 a.m., July 25-26, 1964. The eight-hour, five-minute film, which is typically shown in a theater, lacks a traditional narrative or characters. The passage from daylight to darkness becomes the film's narrative, while the protagonist is the iconic building that was (and is again) the tallest in New York City. Warhol lengthened Empire's running time by projecting the film at a speed of sixteen frames per second, slower than its shooting speed of twenty-four frames per second, thus making the progression to darkness almost imperceptible. Non-events such as a blinking light at the top of a neighboring building mark the passage of time. According to Warhol, the point of this film-perhaps his most famous and influential cinematic work-is to "see time go by."

Photography

A lot of you wrote on your first day surveys that you are very interested in photography. You might want to check out this great blog iheartphotograph ( also linked from our new little sidebar thing over on the right there -> )

Embroidery as Art

Hi everyone, just found this blog and I thought that I would share. I am really interested in embroidery, so hopefully at least one other person in this class thinks it's neat to. Jenny Hart runs the Blog, she is a very cool artist who does these amazing drawings though embroidery and she is also the founder of Sublime Stitching. In her blog she links to a bunch of different artist who use embroidery in her blog and there is some very cool things in there, so check it out!

The Cat with Hands

It's a very short little film that's really how do I say it "blipped up". Stop-motion animated flick directed by Robert Morgan quite possibly the most disturbing "pussy" you'll ever enounter...
Wonderful intro, and the short film cascades as a dream but with a sinister undertone...
I must admit I am a little terrified of ye' ol pussycat now, however It's a must watch!
From my opinion it's actually a bit gratifying, the night that I viewed this great little film I dreamt that some _ _upid c_w I knew got her tongue eaten. Oh was it ever glorious! Not that I'd wish that on anyone (to there face)!
Anyhow, I'll get the ball rolling I suppose on this whole "blogging" (I've never done this) idea...
Presenting The Cat with Hands.

Welcome

Omer Fast's "CNN Concentrated (excerpt)" 2002