Art Of The Day Weekly
#176 - from 27 May 2010 to 2 June 2010
Maxxi Museum in Rome, architect Zaha Hadid, photo Roland Halbe.
IN THE AIR
Something new in Rome
For once Rome has not made the headlines because of archaeology, medieval pavements or Baroque art. This time there is a revolution in the capital of classic art as two new institutions totally dedicated to contemporary creation pop up, the MAXXI (museum of the XXIst century) and the MACRO (museum of Contemporary Art of Rome). And as if to belie their reputation of being disorganized, the Italian authorities managed a major feat and inaugurated them simultaneously rather than begin their careers by opening rivalries. The two museums – which are actually extensions of existing institutions but which today take on a completely different dimension – are the masterpieces of «starchitects» Zaha Hadid (for the MAXXI, Odile Decq for the MACRO). The permanent collections, in spite of the ambitions published high and low, are still at the stage of embryos, so we will judge them first of all according to their temporary exhibitions, that will be numerous: five at the MAXXI, among them the unclassifiable Gino De Dominicis (see here below), and nine at the MACRO. Roman agendas are suddenly going to get heavier …
•The MAXXI and the MACRO open on 27 May 2010.
EXHIBITIONS
Georges Dudognon, Greta Garbo in the Club St. Germain, Paris ca. 1950s, Gelatin silver print, 17.94 x 18.1 cm, San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, Members of Foto Forum, 2005.200, © Estate of Georges Dudognon, Courtesy Tate Modern, London.
Underneath voyeurism
LONDON – In the past no political or other type of incident was caused by one’s being photographed without knowing it: we can all well remember the photograph in which Prime Minister Aristide Briand, in the midst of a cabinet meeting, pointed his finger towards photographer Erich Salomon, and smiled at the «king of indiscretion». Legislation on the right of image has become terribly strict while the channels and speed of broadcasting have experienced exponential growth, in particular over the internet. The Tate Modern approaches this fascinating subject of non-authorized photographs by cutting across eras and genres, from the anonymous in 1900 to Brassaï, Guy Bourdin, Nan Goldin or Harun Farocki. Bourgeois eroticism of the Roaring Twenties slowly gave way to the cult of «famous people» and to surveillance mechanisms present everywhere, confirming the advent of George Orwell’s Big Brother.
•Exposed at the Tate Modern from 28 May to 3 October 2010
Alexandra Exter, Study for Salome’s Costume. 1917 Gouache, bronze- and silver-plating on cardboard; 66.5x52.6 cm. A.A. Bakhrushin State Central Theatre Museum, Moscow. Courtesy MMOMA, Moscow.
Exter in all directions
MOSCOW -She painted, drew, left manuscripts, designed theatre and movie sets and even produced costumes for the Red Army. This versatility harmed the posthumous reputation of Alexandra Exter (1884-1949), as if she had spread out over too many fields. She was nevertheless one of the greater actors of the Russian avant-garde at the beginning of the XXth century, the designer of Cubo-Futurism and an exceptional go-between between Moscow and France, where she often resided (she died at Fontenay-aux-Roses) and where her friends were Apollinaire or Picasso. The exhibition is the first to pay her a «transversal» tribute (with a particular accent on the theatre aspect), and the organizers opened doors to people who loaned works and items from all over Russia. We will surely never see again so many pieces from Yaroslavl, Saratov, Astrakhan, Vologda or Krasnodar…
•Alexandra Exter at the museum of Modern Art from 29 May to 22 August 2010.
Gino De Dominicis, Senza titolo Silhouette, 1988-90, courtesy MAXXI, Rome
Gino tonic
ROME – In order to truly mark its arrival in the field of modern and contemporary art, the MAXXI needed to hold an exhibition that would remain a reference. Among the five that will open on 27 May, it is undoubtedly the one dedicated to Gino De Dominicis (1947-1998) that will uphold this responsibility. Designed by Achille Bonito Oliva, the «inventor» of the Transavanguardia movement, it brings together close to 130 works by this solitary and polymorphous artist. An improbable fusion of Salinger, Dada and Duchamp, De Dominicis was remarked by some installations that created a scandal, of which the most famous are his Mozzarella in carrozza, in which the humble cheese from Naples is placed in a wrapping in the shape of a carriage, or his Seconda Soluzione d’Immortalità, in which he exhibited a mongoloid during the Biennale in Venice in 1972. He is capable of showing invisible squares (simply drawn on the ground), or of announcing his death a few years in advance, and cumulates approaches of conceptual art and the theatre of the absurd. The exhibition mixes all of these «periods», and includes the giant, 24 meter long Cosmic lover.
•Gino De Dominicis at the Maxxi, from 27 may to 7 November 2010.
Artoftheday also recommends...
The MoMU (the Fashion museum) in Antwerp studies in Noir the passion for the color in textiles. Until 8 August 2010.
At the Albertina in Vienna, the focus is on Axel Katz, the American figurative artist born in 1927, his net lines and his prints. From 28 May to 19 September 2010.
The New York MoMA dedicates a retrospective to Lee Bontecou (born in 1931), a represenative of XXth century abstraction and influenced by Pollock and Raucheshenberg. Until 30 August 2010.
AUCTIONS
The branding of Bibliography
If your initials are C.C., L.A. M.B. or !, you can get crowned monograms starting at 100 €. And the quality is faultless since these irons used for gilding – actually they were in bronze with a wooden handle – are from the René Simier (1772-1843) workshop, the favorite bookbinder of Napoleon, of Louix XVIII as well as of wealthy amateurs from the province. They were used to brand the morocco of beautiful bindings in the XIXth century. The fund now put up for sale includes irons for counts or marquis (for those who want a low-cost noble connotation) as well as irons with the number of well-known individuals such as Louise d’Artois or Marie-Caroline, duchess of Berry, heraldic or ecclesiastic irons, or with the French fleur-de-lis, or the American eagle. They are all admirably finished. Note that for a masterpiece such as the majestic iron with the royal coat of arms of Louis XV (lot 37), you will need to pay a lot more (estimated at 15 000 €). As for the superb hand-operated press by Pierre-Alexandre Gaveaux (lot 127), it could easily go for more than 100 000 €.
•L’atelier Simier on 2 June 2010 at Drouot-Montaigne (SVV Lafon-Castandet)
ARTIST OF THE WEEK
Hamish Fulton, Chomolungma Tibetan flag, 2009, Giclée print, 50 x 62 cm. Courtesy Galerie Patricia Dorfmann et Romain Torri.
Hamish Fulton's long marches
He is a cross between conceptual art and Land Art. His production maintains a special link with Nature and landscapes without allowing his art to be easily classified in the usual categories of drawing, painting or sculpture. Basically, the artistic act of Hamish Fulton (born in 1946 in London) is to walk in the most diverse spots in the planet, from the Mont-Blanc to Tibet. He feels that the simple fact of moving is a work of art in itself, without any need of changing the nature that surrounds it (which characterizes in particular the representatives of Land Art). Nevertheless, to transmit to the public the contents or rather the philosophy of these «artistic walks» he has been carrying out for nearly half a century, Fulton unfolds a complete series of means that includes photographs, note books, sketches, gouaches or… simple words.
•Hamish Fulton is presented at the galerie Patricia Dorfmann (61, rue de la Verrerie, 75004 Paris) until 26 June 2010.
BOOKS
Impressionism day to day
We all knew the Roman vrai de la Ve République (The real story of the Vth Republic) by Gilbert Guilleminault. Here we have the one on Impressionism. The idea is rather good, consisting in emerging oneself in the daily life of the movement rather than produce yet another version of its history. A few key events are placed in the front of the stage and then dissected. Some are very awaited, such as the various exhibitions organized by the group, from the first one in 1874, to the sixth in 1881, in which Degas presented his scandalous Dancer at 14 . There are other lesser-known, like the obscure Impressionist auction on 24 March 1875 at Drouot, a real flop that ended in a pitched battle but saw the birth of the vocation of a great collector, Victor Chocquet . There was also the crash of gallery owner Durand-Ruel, a collateral victim to that of the Union générale bank on 1 February 1882 – he got over it! For those who are discouraged by the massive and intimidating aspect of a movement that was once subversive and today has been over transfixed it is a good idea to approach the story by a roundabout way.
•Le roman vrai de l’impressionnisme, 30 journées qui ont changé l’art (The real novel of Impressionism, 30 days that changed art), by Thomas Schlesser and Bertrand Tillier, Beaux Arts éditions, 2010, 208 p., 23 €.
IN BRIEF
BRUSSELS – To celebrate the 50th anniversary of the independence of Congo, the «Afrique visionnaire» festival, including a section dedicated to visual arts, will be held from 30 May to 26 September 2010.
BUENOS AIRES – The Teatro Colón, a jewel of Argentine heritage and one of the most respected opera houses due to its acoustics, reopened on 24 May 2010 following ten years of works.
CHAUMONT – The 21st festival of posters and graphic arts will be held from 29 May to 20 June 2010.
PARIS –The event Nocturne Rive droite, with the opening of art galleries in the Elysée district until 10 PM, will be held on 2 June 2010. As for the 120 antique dealers of the Carré Rive droite, they will present selected objects from 27 to 30 May 2010.
ON ART-OF-THE-DAY.INFO
This week, do not miss
FROM DEGAS TO PICASSO, The Jean Planque Collection
SAINT-LOUIS – The Espace d’Art Contemporain Fernet Branca invites visitors to discover the extraordinary collection gathered by Jean Planque (1910-1988). The 130 works presented, including Klee, Dubuffet and Auberjonois, show the foresight of the man who would be Beyeler’s courtier.