As far as I know right now (Wed. afternoon), we'll be meeting in the classroom tomorrow, Thursday morning.
Eighth Class, 10/17/12, Field Trip to Chelsea
5Meet at Starbucks on 23rd Street at 8th Avenue at 10:15. Leave yourself nearly an hour travel time- take the C/E, not the A train.
Note that some of these shows are closing on Oct. 20th.
Galleries visited:
West 26th St.:
513 - Claire Oliver: Beth Caverer Stichter
blog review
West 25th St.:
541 - Betty Cuningham: Rackstraw Downs
545 - Marlborough: Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe
530 - Stux: Thordis Adalsteinsdottir
508 - Pace: Lucas Samaras
West 24th St.:
541 - Mary Boone: Ai Weiwei
519 - Metro Pictures: Andreas Slominski
Hyperallergenic review
515 - Gladstone: Andro Wekua
West 20th St.:
529 - Bitforms: Rafael Lozano-Hemmer
Note that some of these shows are closing on Oct. 20th.
Galleries visited:
West 26th St.:
513 - Claire Oliver: Beth Caverer Stichter
blog review
West 25th St.:
541 - Betty Cuningham: Rackstraw Downs
545 - Marlborough: Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe
530 - Stux: Thordis Adalsteinsdottir
508 - Pace: Lucas Samaras
West 24th St.:
541 - Mary Boone: Ai Weiwei
519 - Metro Pictures: Andreas Slominski
Hyperallergenic review
515 - Gladstone: Andro Wekua
West 20th St.:
529 - Bitforms: Rafael Lozano-Hemmer
Sixth Class, 10/4/12, field trip to 57th Street
Meet at 10:15, no later, at Mangia, a restaurant/deli at 50 West 57th Street near 6th Avenue.
The F train goes right there, to 57th St and 6th Avenue. Give yourself almost a hour to get there.
Also, if you're interested, check out Frank and my excellent Ottawa adventure here.
Galleries visited:
Marlborough, 50 W. 57th St. Richard Estes
Forum, 730 5th Avenue, Group show self portraits
Nohra Haime, 730 5th, Olga De Amaral
Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, 730 5th, Judy Fiskin From The New Yorker: The small black-and-white photographs in this survey of Fiskin’s work from the seventies and eighties are drawn from series (“Stucco,” “Long Beach,” “Dingbat”) that focus on vernacular architecture and landscaping. Fishkin’s oeuvre falls somewhere between Ed Ruscha’s and Bernd and Hilla Becher’s, with particular attention paid to vintage Los Angeles kitsch, although it rarely feels nostalgic. Her pictures are crisp, absorbing, and so intimately scaled that looking at them can feel like peering into a peephole. In a short film titled “The End of Photography,” the camera cruises past sites in L.A. as a female voice lists what the medium has lost with the obsolescence of darkrooms. Through Oct. 27
Mary Boone, 745 5th Avenue, Wilhelm Nay: from Time Out New York
"This three-gallery survey at Michael Werner and Mary Boone's spaces both uptown and down focuses on German postwar abstractionist Ernst Wilhelm Nay (1902–1968). As a young artist, he was influenced by the figurative Expressionism of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, but in the years following World War II, his style evolved into a purely nonobjective one, distinguished by a bold use of color. Note to young painters: There are ideas here ripe for the borrowing."
David McKee, 745 5th Avenue, William Tucker
Pace, 32 East 57th, Robert Irwin From The New Yorker: 'The master of California’s Light and Space movement cements his storied career with this two-part exhibition focussing on early and recent work. In Chelsea, three clear acrylic bevelled columns, conceived in 1969 and realized last year, seem almost to hover, like futuristic monoliths beckoning the landing of a spacecraft. Uptown, the gallery reprises a show from the spring: contrasting milk-white and jet-black wall-mounted panels underwhelm next to the cutouts in the gallery windows, allowing the bustle of Fifty-seventh Street to come flooding inside. Lawrence Weschler, in his landmark book on the artist, “Seeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees,” which began as a two-part Profile in this magazine, wrote, “He is perception’s gadfly, annoyingly prodding the taken-for-granted, relentlessly combining the ordinary and uncovering its hidden wonders.” Through Oct. 20.'
The F train goes right there, to 57th St and 6th Avenue. Give yourself almost a hour to get there.
Also, if you're interested, check out Frank and my excellent Ottawa adventure here.
Galleries visited:
Marlborough, 50 W. 57th St. Richard Estes
Forum, 730 5th Avenue, Group show self portraits
Nohra Haime, 730 5th, Olga De Amaral
Greenberg Van Doren Gallery, 730 5th, Judy Fiskin From The New Yorker: The small black-and-white photographs in this survey of Fiskin’s work from the seventies and eighties are drawn from series (“Stucco,” “Long Beach,” “Dingbat”) that focus on vernacular architecture and landscaping. Fishkin’s oeuvre falls somewhere between Ed Ruscha’s and Bernd and Hilla Becher’s, with particular attention paid to vintage Los Angeles kitsch, although it rarely feels nostalgic. Her pictures are crisp, absorbing, and so intimately scaled that looking at them can feel like peering into a peephole. In a short film titled “The End of Photography,” the camera cruises past sites in L.A. as a female voice lists what the medium has lost with the obsolescence of darkrooms. Through Oct. 27
Mary Boone, 745 5th Avenue, Wilhelm Nay: from Time Out New York
"This three-gallery survey at Michael Werner and Mary Boone's spaces both uptown and down focuses on German postwar abstractionist Ernst Wilhelm Nay (1902–1968). As a young artist, he was influenced by the figurative Expressionism of Ernst Ludwig Kirchner, but in the years following World War II, his style evolved into a purely nonobjective one, distinguished by a bold use of color. Note to young painters: There are ideas here ripe for the borrowing."
David McKee, 745 5th Avenue, William Tucker
Pace, 32 East 57th, Robert Irwin From The New Yorker: 'The master of California’s Light and Space movement cements his storied career with this two-part exhibition focussing on early and recent work. In Chelsea, three clear acrylic bevelled columns, conceived in 1969 and realized last year, seem almost to hover, like futuristic monoliths beckoning the landing of a spacecraft. Uptown, the gallery reprises a show from the spring: contrasting milk-white and jet-black wall-mounted panels underwhelm next to the cutouts in the gallery windows, allowing the bustle of Fifty-seventh Street to come flooding inside. Lawrence Weschler, in his landmark book on the artist, “Seeing Is Forgetting the Name of the Thing One Sees,” which began as a two-part Profile in this magazine, wrote, “He is perception’s gadfly, annoyingly prodding the taken-for-granted, relentlessly combining the ordinary and uncovering its hidden wonders.” Through Oct. 20.'
Fourth Class, Trip to Chelsea, 9/20/12
2nd Field Trip to Chelsea. Galleries visited:
West 24th Street:
Mike Weiss at 520: Marc Seguin
Gagosian: Richard Phillips, Anselm Kiefer Richard Phillips interview NYTimes
Lyons Weir at 542: Fahamu Pecou Review 2010, ART IN AMERICA
Mary Boone at 541: Ernst Wilhelm Nay NY ART BEAT review
West 22nd Street:
Sikkema Jenkins at 530: Leonardo Drew
Matthew Marks at 522: Tony Smith
Newman Popiashvili at 504 (lower level): Javier Arce
From THE NEW YORKER:
On April 26, 1937, German bombers destroyed the Basque village of Guernica, killing thousands of people, a horror immortalized by Picasso in what may be the most famous political work of modern times. Arce, a Spaniard making his New York solo début, grapples with the devolution of that masterpiece into a symbol in a group of engravings, a mural, and a sculpture, which document its fraught history. (The show takes its title, “Kill All Lies,” from the phrase that Tony Shafrazi spray-painted on the canvas, at moma in 1974.) The only work in which Arce offers a glimpse of the image itself is a large drawing—a one-to-one scale reproduction—which lies in a crumpled mess on the floor, reinforcing the idea that the painting’s travails now overshadow the event it was conceived to commemorate. Through Oct. 6.
Second Class, 9/6/12, Trip to Chelsea
Field trip to Chelsea, list of galleries seen:
Pace, 510 W. 25th St. Robert Irwin
Press Release for Irwin Show
Review of Irwin's "Part 1"
Stux Gallery, 530 W. 25th, Summer Group Show (ending Sat.)
At 529 W. 20th St:
Howard Scott Gallery, 7th Floor, Rick Klauber, Robert Thiele
Press Release, Rick Klauber section written by me.
Elizabeth Harris Gallery, 6th Floor, Carolanna Parlato
Ricco Maresca, 3rd Floor "Kindergarten"
New York Times on "Kindergarten"
David Zwirner Gallery, 525 W. 19th, Toba Keedoori, 533 W. 19th, James Welling
From New York Magazine: "Idiosyncratic visionary Khedoori specializes in quasi-disembodied images of fences, furniture, chimneys, and walls floating in monumental expanses of barely smudged but otherwise blank paper. The result: quiet storms of awe, elegance, and visual poetry."
Elad Lassry,18th St. and 10th Avenue High Line Billboard,
From New York Magazine: "The Israeli artist is the latest to take over the monumental billboard overlooking the High Line. His contribution: a vivid, bold, and elusive image of two young women staring out of small portholes into a sea of green. Make up your own narrative."
Pace, 510 W. 25th St. Robert Irwin
Press Release for Irwin Show
Review of Irwin's "Part 1"
Stux Gallery, 530 W. 25th, Summer Group Show (ending Sat.)
At 529 W. 20th St:
Howard Scott Gallery, 7th Floor, Rick Klauber, Robert Thiele
Press Release, Rick Klauber section written by me.
Elizabeth Harris Gallery, 6th Floor, Carolanna Parlato
Ricco Maresca, 3rd Floor "Kindergarten"
New York Times on "Kindergarten"
David Zwirner Gallery, 525 W. 19th, Toba Keedoori, 533 W. 19th, James Welling
From New York Magazine: "Idiosyncratic visionary Khedoori specializes in quasi-disembodied images of fences, furniture, chimneys, and walls floating in monumental expanses of barely smudged but otherwise blank paper. The result: quiet storms of awe, elegance, and visual poetry."
Elad Lassry,18th St. and 10th Avenue High Line Billboard,
From New York Magazine: "The Israeli artist is the latest to take over the monumental billboard overlooking the High Line. His contribution: a vivid, bold, and elusive image of two young women staring out of small portholes into a sea of green. Make up your own narrative."
First Class, 8/30/12, Class Syllabus
Class Syllabus:
This class is a seminar, defined as a meeting for discussion. The
artwork we see, what you’re thinking and reading about re. art’s connections to
current politics, social trends, economics, family dynamics, the environment,
globalization, issues of public vs. private—anything relating to art (even
tangentially) can be discussed in this class.
Class
Requirements and Grading: Your grade will be based on the following areas:
1. Weekly,
on-time attendance.
Any absence must be discussed with me, and you are responsible
for any information and assignments missed. Note that you should be ON TIME for
class. I will have class assignments, field trips, gallery lists, etc. posted
at wilkinsonseminar.blogspot.com. Please sign up as a follower of this website
and feel free to make posts yourself.
A good part of your grade for this class depends on classroom
participation. While it is
difficult for some people to speak in public, please understand that we need
your thoughts and comments.
2. Preparation
and class participation.
Read the web article links, and be prepared for discussion of
these, and discussion of our field trips. Your input is vital.
3. Field trips
and reviews.
Field trips will be announced (at least) the week before they
happen, and on field trip days, be aware that the class might meet at a
designated address, not necessarily in the classroom. The field trips will be
followed up the next week by classroom discussion and you will hand in a
400-500 word written review two weeks later about what was seen. There will be
three reviews due by the end of the semester—if any one is missing, it will lower
your grade, usually one grade lowered per missing review. (See the review-writing handout for more
information.)
4. Openings
and Art Events
One extra-curricular essay of a minimum of 150 words will also be due. This should be about an art gathering of some sort, such as
an art opening or lecture that happens off of the Pratt campus.
5. Artist’s
Statement
This is a vital part of every artist’s life—you will be
continually updating it for various purposes: competitions, exhibitions, grant proposals, press releases, catalogues, internet sites, etc. During the
semester there will be a tutorial on writing a 3-paragraph artist’s statement.
You will write one during that class, revise and polish it to hand out to the
class during your final presentation.
6. End of
semester oral/visual presentation with artist’s statement
There will be a 15-20 minute digitally-projected presentation by
each student at the end of the semester. You should have digital photographs of
your work that can be brought to the class on a flash drive, hard drive,
computer, or disk (flash drive preferred). This presentation will be a minimum
of 12 images including your own work and can also include the work of artists
who inspire you. You may also
refer to books, writers, philosophers and any other influences on your work.
You will also have ready an artist’s statement and have copies to hand out to
the rest of the class for reference during your presentation.
There may be a presentation on artist’s websites and online
resources at some point during the semester.
Most
information about the class will be posted on the blog (wilkinsonseminar.blogspot.com) prior to the class.
Please check it regularly.
Check
list of things to do during the semester:
___
Field trip essay 1 - 400 words
minimum
___ Field trip essay 2 - 400 words minimum
___ Field trip essay 3 - 400 words minimum
___ Field trip essay 3 - 400 words minimum
___Art
event essay – 150 words minimum
___Artist
statement and digital presentation during the last four weeks of semester –
there will be a sign-up sheet.
REVIEW SPECIFICATIONS
Three reviews, each a minimum
of 400 words, due two weeks after field trips to see artwork in NYC.
There
will be four or five field trips—you may choose which to write about.
Be
aware that each review is due two weeks after the relevant field trip,
whichever one you choose, i.e., if you write about the first field trip and
hand it in a month later, it will be considered late.
The 150 word art-event essay
is meant to be a summing up of your experience - where, what, when, who - and what you thought of it.
Emailing Policy:
I
prefer to get your reviews on paper, handed to me during class. But if you have to email me a review:
1. Put your last name and “Pratt Review”
in the title of the email.
2. Send it to jwilkins@pratt.edu .
Three
part grading process:
1. Timely completion of
assignment
Early:
+ (plus); On due
date: ok;
Late: — (minus)
2. Technical aspects (letter
grade)
Word length, Grammar, Spelling,
Composition/organization
Watch out for run-on sentences and using
non-descriptive words and superlatives like “interesting,” “powerful,”
“really,” “incredible,” “enjoyed,” etc.
As in “I really enjoyed this incredibly powerful and
interesting show.”
3. Concept/Creativity
(letter grade)
Personal (could anyone have written this?)
Descriptive (can I see the artwork in my mind?)
Connections (how does the work described relate to
other artists, writers, philosophers, trends?)
Interesting to read
Be specific. Name the artist, gallery, and artwork. Single out an artwork and discuss it; bring in specific
connections and references to individual pieces or to the body of work. Compare and contrast the artist and
artwork with other works. Read
other reviews to see how artwork is discussed and judged.
Be descriptive. What does the art look like? What are the formal qualities of the work? How does the artist use his/her
materials?
Be perceptive. What are the expressive qualities of the work—does the art
cry, yell, chat, murmur, stay silent?
Does it invite you in, push you away? Is it saying anything to you personally? Can you feel the artist in the
work? Does s/he have an agenda—political,
social, personal—that comes through the art? Do you think about the artist when you look at the work, or
is the work making its own statement?
Be accurate. Check your spelling, and
use correct grammar. If you have
any questions about your writing, or would like to polish your skills, contact
the Writing and Tutorial Center at North
Hall,
1st floor
(across from the bank),
(718) 636-3459,
wtc@pratt.edu. They are very helpful and friendly.
Avoid using the first person, as
in “I think that…”; or “It seems to me…”
Read art reviews for ideas about
how to construct your essays. There
are numerous art sites on the web and in newspapers and magazines.
Analyze, theorize, make your writing
come alive!
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