Jasmin Singer from Our Hen House has just put together this great interview with Sue Coe. There is a lot to admire in the process and product of Coe’s work. I am also struck by the inventiveness of Our Hen House and imagine their message of “… a new world for animals” as a glimpse toward our evolution as better humans.
An exhibition of large drawings by Robert Morris is on view in NYC. “1934 and Before,” is currently at the Leo Castelli Gallery and will remain through the end of June. Some of the works will be rotated during the course of the show so you may want to consider more than one trip to the gallery.
Robert Morris, 1934 Mid-West Dust Storm, epoxy on aluminum panels, 96 x 144″, 2010.
Eight large works make up the exhibition. The artist refers to these epoxy and acrylic pieces as drawings, referencing the practice over the medium. Sea sponges were used to apply paint to the large aluminum panels. The perforated texture mimics the newsreel quality inherent in the images of the time period.
Robert Morris, Distant Relative (Before 1934), acrylic on aluminum panels, 96 x 144″, 2010.
Robert Morris was born in 1931. He chose 1934 as the date of his earliest memories and the imagery is derived from sources predating this awareness instead of personal experience. He may very well be claiming the past as manifestations emanating from his being. A theory that carries weight through science, theology and art. Nostalgia, good and bad, is such a powerful force because it draws on our shared dimension.
Robert Morris, 1934 Nuremberg Rally, arcrylic on aluminum panels, 144 x 144″, 2010.
Robert Morris
1934 and Before
3 May – 30 June 2011
Leo Castelli Gallery
NYC
The first exhibit in Canada showing the charcoal drawings of Renie Spoelstra is on now and continues through April 2nd at the Nicholas Metivier Gallery in Toronto.
Renie Spoelstra, Recreation Area, charcoal on paper, 95 x 138″, 2010.
Renie Spoelstra crafts her charcoal drawings in studio working from video stills and other photographic material. It can be a challenge to translate photographs into other media but the artist manages to breathe the sort of life into her compositions that you may expect from a plein air situation.
Renie Spoelstra, Car #3, charcoal on paper, 12 x 16″, 2010.
Spoelstra often selects imagery that captures the asides of life. Drawings from photographs taken whilst driving offer another look at the mundane that gains appreciation with examination. Darkness broods in a very literal way through this work. The shadows within the shadows enlighten the viewer to the subtle power that teems through our periphery.
Renie Spoelstra, Driving #2, charcoal on paper, 16 x 20″, 2010.
Renie Spoelstra
10 March – 2 April 2011
Nicholas Metivier Gallery
Toronto
