Hint: Use 'j' and 'k' keys
to move up and down

ZZZzzZz... If you were perfect,

I'd be bored out of my mind.

"The way to get started is to quit talking and begin doing."
- WALT DISNEY

CLAES OLDENBURG

THURSDAY.  MARCH 22, 2012.  11:38 PM

Oversize me.  

I have a long list of things I’d like to see and places I’d like to visit during my travel around the world.  For instance…

Cologne, Germany:

Minneapolis, Minnesota:

Paris, France:

Kansas City, Missouri:

Cleveland, Ohio:

Kassel, Germany:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claes_Oldenburg

"Art is the lie that enables us to realize the truth."
- Pablo Picasso

ROMANCE PROPER

TUESDAY.  FEBRUARY 14, 2012.  1:09 AM

Just south of befitting, a little northeast of circumstance, and three steps away from liaison, today we’ll find Belgian surrealist Rene Francois Ghislain Magritte.  In short, it’s Valentine’s Day.  Would it be proper to confess? I think my romances have come to somewhat resemble these paintings.  That’s a good thing.  The only thing.  Mystery and honesty. Comfort and temperament.  Passion and complacency.  Imperfect and true.  It’s a dream and it’s actual at the same time.  You can never really pinpoint it, but you enjoy it for its beauty.  You appreciate it for it what it is.  And you live in the now.  These works have been misinterpreted as “surreal”.  The truth of all truths, this is hyper reality.  

The Lovers, 1928

  

Magritte with his wife and muse, wallpaper artist Georgette:

He fell in love with painting and Georgette in the same year and the three were happily married for 45 years.  

I mean, this guy was real.  Get into it.  http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/art/art-features/8565656/Rene-Magritte-surrealisms-straight-man.html

"I Want To Spend the Rest of My Life Everywhere, with Everyone, One to One, Always, Forever, Now."
- DAMIEN HIRST

R.I.P. MIKE KELLEY

SATURDAY.  FEBRUARY 4, 2012.  2:23 AM

Day Is Done.  Extracurricular Activity Projective Reconstruction(s).  Destroy All Monsters.  Kandor.

http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-mike-kelley-20120202,0,1424613.story

WATCH PBS’ art 21; Mike Kelley: Bad Boy

Kelley’s Deodorized Central Mass with Satellites, 1991-1999 sold for $2.7 million at Phillips, de Pury & Company in 2006 :

BARBARA KRUGER x JOHN McENROE

MONDAY.  JANUARY 16, 2010.  4:16 PM

CONSUMPTION. 

Watch Consumption on PBS. See more from ART:21.

TAKASHI MURAKAMI

WEDNESDAY.  JANUARY 4, 2012.  3:28 PM

FACT:  In 2008, Murakami was named one of Time magazine’s “100 Most Influential People”, the only visual artist included.

Color vomitorium.  Pattern sensory overload.  Jump rope lactophilia.  Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.  Louis Vuitton.  Kanye West, Graduation.  Palace of Versailles, France. 

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

Bruce Nauman

What’s your damage??

WEDNESDAY.  DECEMBER 14, 2011.  2:15 AM

Just came back from Jay-Z and Kanye’s Watch The Throne Tour at the Staples Center tonight.  Front row and backstage and all that. So Good. You know what else is really good? Heathers.  Is that a punctuation mark nightstand?!?!?  And a monocle?…In the same frame??  Hot. 

Heathers, 1988.  Director: Michael Lehmann

HISTORICITY OF DAVID

SATURDAY.  DECEMBER 10, 2011.  9:53 PM

DAVID LYNCH:


Sailor & Lula: Bande Annonce (Wild at Heart) VOST by pitchbrioche

DAVID FINCHER:

Fight Club Ending Titles from Andrew Young on Vimeo.

DAVID CRONENBERG:

FLUXUS MANIFESTO

WEDNESDAY.  NOVEMBER 23, 2011.  1:30 PM

Manolo Blahnik x Damien Hirst

THURSDAY.  NOVEMBER 10, 2011.  9:55 AM

“Dot” Boots, 2002.  White cotton canvas with polychrome polka-dot print.  

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.  

Barf. I think I’m gonna Barf.

SATURDAY.  NOVEMBER 5, 2011.  9:02 AM

Since we all know that Google has the answers to all of life’s inquires,  I decided to finally make an attempt to satiate a lingering curiosity.  For the past couple weeks, I have been wracking/racking my brain to place a name and identity with some sort of performance/video art/installation pieces that involve string and vomit as seen at the 4:02 mark of Rihanna’s ubiquitously awesome “We Found Love” (featuring Calvin Harris):


Rihanna - We Found Love (Official Video) by rnbpromotv

Ribbon vomit. I have seen it before.  Do you know who the artist is that does ribbon representations of vomit and blood?  Do you know that the bleached-blonde, alien adonis in this video is Dudley O’Shaughnessy, a London-born boxer turned model, who she hand picked and has supposedly, allegedly fallen in love with??  Do you know that when you Google “art, vomit yarn” a large number of loosely related results appear?  Such as:  Knitting websites, inquisitive ponderings like “Why does my cat swallow string and vomit?”  Videos, like:  Guy Uses Vomit to Make Works of Art  and this gem:  YarnVomit.com.  I am equal parts offended, bemused, and thrilled by such Interweb offering as my future New Year’s Resolution was to get rid of all my clothes and replace them with only sweaters of that nature.  

Guy uses vomit to make works of art?  I’ve seen that before.  Dean Cain is so cheesy and how 90’s is that video clip?  Isn’t there a girl that gets all high-fashion and barfs all over the place to make art?  Oh yeah, Millie Brown.  I’ve seen that, too.  What was particularly interesting to me was a viewer comment,  ”If I barf watching this, will it be considered art, too?”  Oh, the tiniest parade in the world exists for your clever wit.  But, that’s a really good question.  My answer is yes… and no… but, ultimately yes.  I think.  

Why?  Well,  if, in fact, the viewer does barf from watching the video, the barf- as a tangible, material result of a strong visceral reaction, indicates a genuine biological response.  This accomplishes two things.  One, it proves the original work is art because one of my qualifiers for “What Makes It Art?”  is that it incites an answer.  A verbal or a physical one.  Love or hate, but none in between.  And if aggressively losing your lunch isn’t apparent enough of a strong opinion, I don’t know what is.  Two,  the second generation barf becomes art as well because the attempt is sincere.  Sincerity, being another qualifier on the “What Makes It Art?”  List.  Though you may say that the sincerity is debatable, the definition of “sincere” is straightforward, honest, and actual.  I’m quite sure this viewer knew he/she was being a facetious brat, so regardless of being aware of my qualifiers,  he/she would try all they could to not validate the work with a real response.  On a basic level, any publicity is good publicity and any response is a good response when it comes to the Art World.  Here are the facts:  1) Vomit is uncontrollable and honest.  2)  The vomit in this theoretical situation would’ve actually happened.  So,  honest + actual = sincere.  Math.

The “no” part of my answer stems from my reservations on subjectivity.  You can’t consider art without examining aesthetics.  What are references that stimulate emotional, cerebral, or subconscious feedback?  Color, texture, consistency.  Materiality.  To really asses if a piece becomes art in an individual, illustrative sense,  more questions must be asked.  For instance,  is something really working for you or is the whole thing just totally forgettable?  What are these “somethings”?  How are these things pleasing/disgusting to you?  Are those same things that are pleasing/disgusting to you, universally pleasing/disgusting?  Almost impossible to absolutely label it “art” in this way because perspectives vary so greatly from one person to another.  What we can analyze are fundamental characteristics that make up the detectable details of the work itself and decide whether or not we like it as art.      

In this case, let’s examine the vomit of both parties.  The first party completely unaware and unaffected by the second parties’ existence.  Pure.  The second, having produced the material as a direct result of the first parties’ performance.  Slightly influenced.  As far as looks go, I’m sure this is obvious, but it depends on whether or not you approve of how the stuff looks.  Do you favor the pigment or do any bubbles have a cool shape?  Is the puddle and any corresponding spatters to your liking?  So on and so forth.  Materials used are a huge factor that can greatly sway our general impression of a work.  For this purpose, however, the two works of vomit are equally as unpredictable and intrusive and the only things that can provide measurable variables are what each person had for lunch… but those possibilities are infinitely endless and the combination and outcome speculation can go on forever…so.  Eh.  But, I guess if all systems are go for you— and you’re really into what you see,  then it is safe for me to reinforce that you can individually label it as art on your own “aesthetic” merit.   

So, even though I’m not into the expelling liquids and solids from your mouth thing,  I will say that it is art.  Also, if anyone can call Rihanna and ask her where she got that idea, I’d really like to not take anymore Melatonin to cure my sleepless nights.  

DEAR DIARY

WEDNESDAY.  OCTOBER 26, 2011.  12:17 PM

A Note on Self-Awareness:  

“I think, therefore I exist, as a thing that thinks.”

1.  Sometimes, I cry.  Sometimes, I laugh.  Then, I’m Like : Ugh.  Whatevs.

2.  Sometimes, you just have to man up and push through.

Social Cognitive Theory of Gender Development aka The Breakdown of CalArts Feminist Structure: (an overview) aka wisdom, life lessons, and pretense 

“Painting is passe”

MONDAY.  OCTOBER 17, 2011. 3:29 PM

…they would groan at school.  Is that so?  Then why, when I look at a Chuck Close piece, do I feel like all my wild ideas are useless and just plain crazy in comparison to the mind-jarring, awe inspiring exactness his hyperrealist hand delivers?  Not to undercut myself, but when I think about how much we all try to bring something new and exciting to the table,  it’s comforting to realize that taking a step back with something so seemingly archaic and flaccid as portraiture carries great potential for newness.

I love Chuck Close.  This makes me want to make portraits all day, sipping Arizona Green Tea from a plastic waffle cone cup with a straw, in my Canadian Tuxedo.   But I digress.  In this day and age, questionable; though, I would like some simplicity in life.  Don’t you?

   

Big Self-Portrait, 1967-68.  

Acrylic on canvas.  107 1/2 x 83 1/2 ”  (273 cm x 212 cm).  Walker Art Center, Minneapolis.

Close and my all-time favorite (for those of you that know.  I mean, really know how I feel about all those Moneyball billboards).