Notes and Observations

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Curating Online

I've been overwhelmed these days with teaching and writing, but it has been immensely enjoyable as well.

That said, I've had no time to issue regular installments of Facebook curations but do hope to return to them in the very near future. However from what I can glean, the online sphere is a perfect space for art viewing. The only problem is that one person risks getting lost in the crowd just like any other. So volume is the challenge.

The curatorial concept is evolving in an interesting way. On the one hand, Robert Gober has curated a show at the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles and Jeff Koons has embarked on doing the same for the New Museum with a private collection. And yet Alex Williams' recent article for the New York Times titled "The Word 'Curate' No Longer Belongs to the Museum Crowd," shows how this once-exclusive practice has been deflated and commodified for other areas of the retail market.

Sunday, October 4, 2009

Andy Warhol and Art & Text

I read two books over the weekend - both incredibly well-written. The first is The &-Files by Paul Foss, charting the development of the art magazine Art & Text as it continued to garner international interest while many of those close to the venture found themselves battling with the spread of HIV/AIDS.

The second book is Arthur Danto's new book titled Andy Warhol, revealing the artist as a historically relevant figure to the trajectory of contemporary art, all while simplifying his mythical, complicated personality.