LOOK INTO MY OWL

“You’re My Favorite Kind of American”, a survey of recent photographs, video and sculpture by Luis Gispert is on view at the Rhona Hoffman Gallery in Chicago. The display forwards Gispert’s absorption with shared obsession.

Luis Gispert, Untitled (Scion), c-print, 2009.

The photographs glorify the customization of transportation. Fashioning one’s environment is a natural activity that is celebrated in these detailed compositions. The sci-fi landscapes exaggerate an endless search for the impossible ideal.

Luis Gispert, Greengrocer’s Apostrophe, wood, fiberglass and audio components, 2009.

An addiction to depletion is examined in the sculptures. The urban desires of menthol cigarettes, high-end footwear and crack cocaine are mashed up into a romantic pitfall. The heart shaped woofer set into the piece literally crowns the enchantment.

Luis Gispert, René (installation view), three-channel hd video, 2008.

“René”, a three channel video projection is also being screened in the middle gallery. The work immerses the viewer in the daily tasks of the artist’s close friend. René’s mechanical occupation is dramatized through careful editing and time compression. It is this heightening of simplicity that runs through the art in it’s various media. More than a wholeness of design, these works bond in possibilities available to the familiar.

Luis Gispert
You’re My Favorite Kind of American
11 September – 17 October 2009
Rhona Hoffman Gallery
Chicago

“Chasm – Sakeme”, a photographic series by Emi Anrakuji, is the current exhibition at Miyako Yoshinaga Art Prospects in NYC.

Emi Anrakuji, Untitled 051 (CHASM – Sakeme series), 2009.

Emi Anrakuji takes on roles of both performer and photographer for this work. When viewed in their current context, her daily routines are transformed into meaningful meditations of self.

Emi Anrakuji, Untitled 18A (CHASM – Sakeme series), 2009.

In reference to this series, Anrakuji states, “I am not eloquent about my work. All I can say is ‘chasm’ is a stronger expression than ’scream’; If you are in deep trouble, mentally and physically, you cannot even scream.”

Emi Anrakuji, Untitled 051 (CHASM – Sakeme series), 2009.

Emi Anrakuji
CHASM – Sakeme
10 September – 17 October 2009
Miyako Yoshinaga Art Prospects
NYC

A series of photographs from Juergen Teller is currently showing at Lehmann Maupin in NYC. The work was initially commissioned by the French magazine, Paradis and will be encapsulated into a limited edition book at the end of the month.

Juergen Teller, Paradis, c-print, 2009.

The images were accomplished in a single session after hours at the Musee du Louvre in Paris. Juergen Teller had worked with models Charlotte Rampling and Raquel Zimmermann previously but perhaps not in such an extraordinary setting.

Juergen Teller, Paradis, c-print, 2009.

Visitors to art museums expect to be confronted with bare flesh so the concept seems almost wholesome. The sanctity of the location begs for a large crew and sophisticated lighting scheme. Teller took the opposite approach, meandering alone with his subjects taking candid photos complete with harsh flash and crooked horizon. The guerrilla approach captured the sensation of disbelief from the participants and positions the viewer as accomplice to their sublime prank.

Juergen Teller, Paradis, c-print, 2009.

Juergen Teller
Paradis
10 September – 17 October 2009
Lehmann Maupin
NYC

“Dark Stores” a selection of photographs from the “Copia” series by Brian Ulrich is on display at the Robert Koch Gallery in San Francisco.

Brian Ulrich, Circuit City, photograph, 2008.

The subjects of Ulrich’s photographs are vestiges of the commercial downturn. Wreckage like this is now becoming common in the suburban landscape. These vast hulks were the shells of promise for the American dream. Now, be it slow sales or an accident for the insurance company to handle, they are ghost towns and the artist is exploring and documenting the detritus.

Brian Ulrich, JC Penney, Dixie Square Mall, photograph, 2009.

The once thriving, now empty spaces allow the viewer to indulge in nostalgic sentiment or imagine creative repurposing. Interpretation is completely subjective in this work. One may feel a sense of loss while another appreciates a path that no longer supports generic experience.

Brian Ulrich, Kids ‘R Us, photograph, 2008.

In a brilliant move, the gallery is showing photographs of ruins from the mid 1800’s by the French explorer Claude-Joseph Désiré Charnay. It’s a bold statement that disarms with a straightforward look at the cyclic nature of human culture.

Claude-Joseph Désiré Charnay, Uxmal: Egyptian facade of the Nun’s Palace, from Cities et Ruines Americaines (pl. 38), albumen silver print from glass negative, mounted on card, ca. 1850s.

Brian Ulrich
Dark Stores
10 September – 31 October 2009
Robert Koch Gallery
San Francisco

“Periodical Photographs”, a series from Dan Winters is currently being shown at the Fahey/Klein Gallery in Los Angeles.

Dan Winters, Roller Girls (Right), Seattle, October 6, 2006, archival pigment print.

The work in the exhibition spans from 1992 to the present. The artist tackled a wide array of subject matter during that time and strong examples of each are on hand. The work was selected from Winters’ first publication which bears the same name as this exhibit.

Dan Winters, Chewing Gum on Theater Seats, Electra, Texas, March 27, 1995, archival pigment print.

Dan Winters is enchanted with celebrity and examines the phenomena on all levels. From the athlete turned actor installed in political office to the intimate fame of the photo booth, his concepts brim with clever objectivity.

Dan Winters, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Los Angeles, April 21, 2003, archival pigment print.

Dan Winters
Periodical Photographs
30 July – 5 September 2009
Fahey/Klein Gallery
Los Angeles

“Ephemera”, a solo exhibition of photography by Ayoung Kim is up at I-MYU Projects in London.

Ayoung Kim, Headless body found in Thames, 21 April, 2007, Digital C-Type Print, 2007.

These intricate constructions were made with the intent to photograph. The arrangement and lighting of the two-dimensional pieces present the illusion of an uncanny dream space.

Ayoung Kim, British teacher found buried in bathtub of sand, 28 March, 2007, Digital C-Type Print, 2008.

The content is pulled from some of the more gruesome headlines that unfortunately occur with regularity. Kim chooses to photograph angles that parallel our detachment from these events but also draws us in with the vantage point of the onlooker. The artist is in control of this world, at once personalizing the tragedies and shaping our response.

Ayoung Kim, Mystery of the poisoned spy, 1 Nov, 2006, Digital C-Type Print, 2007.

Ayoung Kim
Ephemera
24 July – 15 August 2009
I-MYU Projects
London

An exhibit of twelve “Cameras” by Tom Sachs can be seen at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Connecticut.

Tom Sachs, ConEd NASAblad, 2008.

These sculptures employ a wide range of materials including wood, clay and electronics. The cameras display the rising predilection of consumers toward precision technology. The tools have become the art, recast as idols to progress.

Tom Sachs, Untitled (Bronze Leica M6), 2003.

Sachs has been making these tributes for more than three decades. Included in the body of work is a clay Nikon the eight year old artist presented to his father in 1974. Note the thoughtful inclusion of two rolls of film.

Tom Sachs, Untitled (Nikon), 1974.

Make arrangements with the Museum to get your portrait shot by Tom Sachs. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Aldrich.

Tom Sachs
Cameras
21 June – 16 September 2009
The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum
Ridgefield, Connecticut