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The Power of Place
This post is a bit of an experiment but I have been thinking a lot about the way a photo can tell a story a about specific time and place. The photograph becomes an embodiement of an idea that is sometimes separate from the work itself. This essay is a study about the way that certain photos become more than just about the visual records of experience that exist in the worlds of art and architecture.
At the same time, I would like to add that the photograph undermines any emphasis on any geographical location outside of the field of view of the camera. Images are one of the few things that available to everyone because all you need to have is a camera and access to the internet. The reason that I chose these images in the post is that they all convey a story. They seem to be closer to conveying an idea about a person or work rather simply documenting an experience. The ideas in these photographs seem to me to be essentially about place.
A camera is extremely specific, it can only record what is in its field of view. If it is outside the field of view of the lens, it wouldn't be recorded. For me, that means that a camera is essentially about a specific place at a specific moment. The great thing is that that place can be anywhere now and availible to anyone. Everybody has the opportunity to participate. In a world that is becoming increasingly universal, there is still something compelling about the specific. The camera also separates the viewer from the event. The image can be used to convey a specific idea which might be different than the experience of the actual event.
This post is probably closer to a slide lecture that happens to be on the internet rather than a normal post. There are plenty of artists with a few architects and architecture thrown in. It is worth noting that a piece of architecture is not easily relocated. Unless people make the effort to visit it, it will only exist for most people as an image. For me that is important lesson for artists. Within the confines of a camera you can create your own world that may or may not have anything to do with where you live on the planet. The camera is a great equalizer.
As I was doing research for this post I was surprised that artists and architects have been using images this way since the very beginning.
A self portrait of Brancusi in his studio. The idea behind the photo is the integration of a man and his work. In this photograph he is completely subordinate to his work, his figure barely fills up a third of the image. It is a photograph about the juxtaposition about his sculpture Bird in Space and himself. The rest of the studio comes into focus through our periperal vision and the long exposure also gives the studio an otherworldly light. He is literally one with his work. More...
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Posted by Arcy Douglass
on July 23, 2008 at 12:10
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Meet Cat Clifford
Cat Clifford
Cat Clifford, one of the recipients of the recent Contemporary Northwest Art Awards, will be speaking as part of the NW Film Center's Northwest Tracking series. She'll discuss, and screen excerpts from, her influences, from Joan Jonas' Wind (1968) to The Wizard of Oz.
Artist lecture • 6pm • July 24 • $7
NW Film Center • Whitsell Auditorium • 1219 SW Park AVE
Also, for you early birds: Happening today: Interested in learning more about Portland's alternative art venues? Rererato is chatting with Cyrus Smith on KPSU this afternoon. They'll be talking about the art space, Rererato the movie, Rererato TV, and more...
Rererato on the air! • NOON - 1pm • July 21
KPSU • 1450 AM or streaming on their website
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 21, 2008 at 11:19
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Monday Links
Guernica
suffered a lot of wear and tear during it's travels... but this time the
condition report has a political angle. IMHO, Guernica and Jimi Hendrix's Star
Spangled Banner are the two most successful pieces of political art ever.
Powerslice
enjoys some cool things.
Edward
Winkleman is clamping down on his comments... in the past his site has had
some of the most lively debates about art in his comment section, but lately
its gone south. It's true, moderating comments is a drain on time but there
is an interesting dynamic to having reader feedback; it often reveals more facets
to the story. About this time last year I was seriously considering removing
comments altogether from PORT but after a period of clamping down I think people
have gotten the gist... strong opinions are fine but no personal attacks.
Last but not least mayor elect and current transpo comish Sam
Adam's liked my post on a better bridge design. A lot of other
people did too.
My post was simple
common sense from an aesthetictician, with the added power of some decent
pictures. Even the Oregonian's editorial board has started to play
catch up (Calatrava is good but we need something more radical like Hadid,
UN Studio etc., Calatrava has already peaked and less likely to reinvent the
bridge for the 21st century... he already reinvented it for the late 20th.).
Actually what the O really needs is an architecture critic. Hire Brian
Libby, simply using him freelance isn't enough, it's the difference between
a personal body guard and a rent a cop... for the O to do it's job during this
major design upheaval in Portland it needs someone who would take a bullet.
Randy Gragg did heroic things like insist on a design competition for the Tram.
BTW that's exactly what we need for the I-5 bridge, scrape together a couple
of hundred grand and invite Hadid, UN Studio, Foster, Cloepfil, Toyo Ito and
Monolab etc. The ideas and
buzz it will generate will be more than worth it, giving the finalist and all
of us a
much better bridge. If an architect from outside the area is chosen no big
deal, most big jobs have a local firm partnered as well.
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Posted by Jeff Jahn
on July 21, 2008 at 10:59
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Rearranging at PAM: Newman, Murakami, Dunham etc.
Barnett Newman's Canto #7, full set on display now
The Portland Art Museum has shuffled more than a little bit around with some very
distinguished guests including Barnett Newman and Andy Warhol (a more sweeping
rehang of the nearly 3 year old Jubitz Center for Contemporary Art should be expected
an a year or two). Also, There's the new Marc
Dombrosky show at Apex (I found it underwhelming; crafty sewing + human desperation
has been done with more legitimacy and
personal investment by Tracey Emin). Check it out though, it's kinda fun to
sharpen one's teeth on (BTW what's with all the attention paid to weak examples
of Seattle art at PAM lately?). That said the Contemporary
Northwest Art Awards and the awesome Ed
Ruscha show are absolutely worth a trip, even from out of state.
Besides the programming you gotta check out:
A complete set of
Barnett Newman's 18 Cantos 1963-64. These are no ordinary prints, this is
a complete set of the most important prints in the last 108 years. Simply sublime,
they are fittingly are on display in the Greenberg room of the Jubitz Center beneath
the Calder.
Ursula Von Rydingsvard's P's and Q's is a compelling addition to PAM's strong
sculpture collection (nice that PAM has made a point of collecting from artists
in its two solo show exhibition series).
There is also a tiny Andy Warhol shadow painting on the third floor of the Jubitz
center.
Other things worth ferreting out:...(much more)
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Posted by Jeff Jahn
on July 19, 2008 at 14:20
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Disjecta: Rematerializing?
It's Disjecta, again... and again... and again. Long time Portlanders are probably pretty familiar with this promotional routine, and have already formed their opinions. For those of you who don't know the history, PORT takes a look back and a look forward after the jump. (More.)
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 18, 2008 at 8:45
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Experience into Art: Robert Rauschenberg's The Lotus Series at Blue Sky Gallery
Robert Rauschenberg
Lotus V, 2008
Pigmented Ink-jet and hand painted photo-gravure on Somerset velvet
45.75 in. x 60 in. x 1.75 in.
Print edition by ULAE
Rauschenberg was a great photographer.
The first works he sold to the Museum of Modern Art in New York were photographs. The surprising thing is that even though he could capture whatever he wanted in front of a camera, it was never enough. Perhaps it was not real enough because the life and energy that would swirl around him seemed much richer and more complex than a single image from a camera. He needed something more, something different. He found that by collaging images along with the artifacts of a life he was able to create something richer, something as vibrant as the experiences he was trying to translate. Just as the image on the camera will be exposed onto a negative, at least it used to be before digital cameras, Rauschenberg wanted to insert himself into the process, to let all of the energy and experience to be exposed onto himself before being translated to the work. These new prints are extremely complex and bring together a lot of themes that Rauschenberg spent a lifetime developing. All of this comes together in a show of his last prints called The Lotus Series at the Blue Sky Gallery in Portland, Oregon.
When we are looking at The Lotus Series, like most of Rauschenberg's work, we never see a photograph in isolation. Even though Rauschenberg was an excellent photographer, at some level he must have felt that a single image would not be real enough. It would not be able to convey all of the life and energy that he saw spinning around him. The single image was too fixed, too stable, too much about one-point perspective. By contrast, he wanted to convey what it felt like to be alive. He was not trying to make art with the prints, but he was trying to show you the art that surrounds us everyday. Almost anything can be art; you just have to look at it in a certain way. Rauschenberg was opening himself to the world around him, trying to be open to the potential for art latent in his every experience. More...
Robert Rauschenberg
Lotus II, 2008
Pigmented Ink-jet and hand painted photo-gravure on Somerset velvet
45.75 in. x 60 in. x 1.75 in.
Print edition by ULAE
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Posted by Arcy Douglass
on July 16, 2008 at 12:24
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AiR: Promenade
From Promenade, photo by Yalcin Erhan
Bill Will, July South Waterfront Artist in Residence, has collaborated with AiR director Linda Johnson on an "an unrepeatable episodic performance event." Featuring dance and lighting against Will's installation "set," they have prepared "a thoroughly orchestrated and singular event in which every gesture and offering, explicit to nuanced, is performative." The event is free, all ages, and picnics are encouraged.
Live Performance • Gathering an hour before sunset • July 19
South Waterfront Neighborhood Park • SW Moody & Curry
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 16, 2008 at 12:20
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Talking Points
Melody Owen, "useless, incorruptible, secret"
In addition to her current show at Liz Leach, Melody Owen is exhibiting useless, incorruptible, secret at Caseworks in Reed's Library. She'll be lecturing on her work this week at Reed College.
Artist talk • 7pm • July 17
Reed College Theater • 3203 SE Woodstock Blvd. • 503.777.7251
We're notorious around Portland for our struggles with money management. This weekend: Come to Newspace for It's Not About the Money, But Let's Talk About it Anyway, a lecture by Erik Schneider of Quality Pictures. The talk explores the photography marketplace, and from the perspective of both artists and collectors.
Fiscal Lecture • 11am-1pm • July 20
Newspace Center for Photography • 1632 SE 10th AVE • 503.963.1935
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 15, 2008 at 11:55
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Public art + publicity
I'll have a pretty complicated review for you later today (*I lied, but its coming soon). Till then here are
some links:
Tyler Green is excited about
Fritz Haeg, we are too and he will be showing at
Reed this Fall. His talk
at PSU was one of the highlights year last year, he's a major artist. (Aside)
during undergrad I had a nasty habit of planting delicious swiss chard in my
alma mater's many flower beds... let's just say the food service on campus did
not provide a lot of things I found edible!
Jerry Saltz is Jeff Koon's greatest advocate (besides Koons himself). Jerry
takes a look at his retrospective here. Ill be seeing this show for myself
in a bit.
The Expanded Field discusses Public Art in LA. We have 2% for art up here...
but we are a long way from being Chicago, which IMHO
has the best collection of recent public art on earth. How good? the last
time I was there my more vocally inspiring GF and I spontaneously broke into
a version of the Everly
Brothers "All I have to do is Dream" replacing that lyric with
"Bean"... the nickname for Anish Kapoor's incredible Cloud
Gate sculpture. No other public art has even a remote chance of provoking
public song! (thankfully)...
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Posted by Jeff Jahn
on July 15, 2008 at 10:31
| Comments (6)
Pearl Installations
Pearl District "Art Boxes"
Orlo is a non-profit organization that uses a creative arts approach to environmental issues. They publish Bear Deluxe, an environmental magazine, and have launched a new project in the Pearl and Alphabet districts. Artboxes are boxes containing Bear Deluxe magazine that have been decorated by local artists, including Chris Haberman, Jennifer Mercede, Lukas Ketner, Jason Lockett, and Annette and Joe Thurston. ("Read more" for locations.)
Also currently installed in the Pearl District: The RACC presents an installation by Scott Sonniksen. Falling Light, which is incorporated into the structure of the MachineWorks building, is constructed of concrete blocks coated with colored epoxy glaze, installed in such a way that it creates a surface that subtly reflects light. The installation looks at the interplay of light created by dense downtown building, and the use of red is "a nod to the many historic brick buildings that once populated this district."
Downtown installation • Through July 25
MachineWorks • 1455 NW Northrup
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 14, 2008 at 11:39
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Community Building
First, a party: MoCC is hosting their second annual Craft PDX Block Party this weekend. The free event features demonstrations by local craft artists, live music, lectures in MoCC's "Lab," and lots of kid-friendly activities. Last year's was a lot of fun, so make sure to come down and celebrate the beginning of MoCC's second year in the DeSoto building.
Block Party • 11am-6pm • July 13
Museum of Contemporary Craft • North Park Blocks, NW 8th & Davis • 503.223.2654
Next, some discourse: Bridges are a big deal in this city. Just as the Willamette defines our geographical (and in some ways cultural) boundaries, its bridges, as well as that "little" one to the north, define much of our city's urban landscape. PORT has long advocated for creative, aesthetic bridge design: See our bridge design contest, and recent coverage of the urgent need to build a beautiful and "green" new I-5 bridge. This Monday, Portland Spaces magazine invites you to learn more about the proposed bridge from OMSI to OHSU. It will be the first new bridge across the Willamette in "a generation," and play an important cultural role in connecting our two major science institutions. OHSU Provost Lesley Hallick and OMSI President Nancy Stueber will be presenting their proposals for the bridge, and how this relates to both institutions' future expansion plans. This is part of the magazine's "Bright Lights Discussion Series."
Bridge lecture • Doors at 5:30, Talk at 6pm • July 14
Portland Spaces Magazine Hosted by Jimmy Mak's • 221 NW 10th AVE
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 11, 2008 at 11:15
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Listen Up
Gregory Grenon, "Unspeakable Hair"
Husband and wife team Mary Josephson and Gregory Grenon are exhibiting (individually) at Laura Russo this month. In Full Length Feature, painter Josephson has expanded her media to deepen her exploration of narrative and storytelling traditions. Grenson's Unspeakable Hair is a survey of lithographs and prints that take an "incredibly honest" look at the human form and character. They'll both be presenting lectures on their work this weekend.
Artist talk • 11am • July 12
Laura Russo Gallery • 805 NW 21st AVE • 503.225.2754
Cat Clifford, "Two Chairs"
The Contemporary Northwest Art Awards will be on view at PAM through September 14. They're hosting a unique event in for the exhibition: An open to the public celebration, featuring the exhibition, live music, light refreshments, and a no-host bar. The best part? It's free! But space is limited, so reserve your ticket ASAP.
Exhibition celebration • 6-9pm • July 25
Portland Art Museum • 1219 SW Park AVE • 503.226.2811
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Posted by Megan Driscoll
on July 10, 2008 at 10:42
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