[Previous entry: "TRIBUTE TO YONA FRIEDMAN - “You do your city”"] [Next entry: "Murray Miller: Portrait Painter and Teacher"]
03/31/2008: "THE ARMORY SHOW 2008" by Michael Corbin
It was 11:53 a.m. on Saturday, March 29, 2008 and there I was grazing outside Pier 94 with the rest of the art cattle. It was yet another round-‘em-up moment as we waited in line for the opening of The Armory Show 2008. It would be my very first Armory Show on what was a chilly spring day, but fortunately the sun was shining, reminding me that the tropics would soon get their way in Manhattan.
People in line! Please step aside so that these folks can get through!" yelled the security guard behind me.
"Those are the important people, I guess!" said the guy ahead of me in line. It turns out that guy is New Zealand born artist James Robinson. Robinson now lives in Williamsburg, Brooklyn which is the new hot spot for art in New York City. While we waited in line, we chatted briefly about the art world and why events like the Armory Show have become so commercial. Good guy, nice chat. If he’s willing, I may write something about him in the future.
Anyway, the wait wasn’t that long and upon entering Pier 94, I got out my pad and pen, checked my vision and hearing and got right to it.
Before I get to meat of the matter, would you like some "dish" on your art show menu? Hmm, I thought you might. Get off your high horse.
Early on, I spotted artist Chuck Close wandering the fair in his motorized wheelchair. I’d seen him at another fair in the past but left him to his privacy. Not this time. He looked friendly enough and I certainly wasn’t going to pass up this chance to meet him so I went for it.
"Mr. Close, I’m glad to see you here! My name is Mike," I said, shaking his somewhat feeble hand. "Hello," he said. I asked him if he had any works in the show to which he replied, "No, I hate to be in art fairs!" "Why?" I asked. "Does it feel like you’re in Wal-Mart or something?" For the record, an art dealer once told me that she thinks art fairs have become like Wal-Marts. Here, I thought, was a chance to test this theory on Close. "I just think they’re disrespectful of art!" he replied. With that, he politely took leave. Chuck Close seems to be a very nice man, but I must say that I disagree with him. More on that later, but first, a little more dish.
I also saw Calvin Klein and Bianca Jagger at the show. I was looking at a big painting then turned around and there they were about twelve feet away peering in my direction. She looks just as lovely in person. Both were wearing dark sunglasses and scarves around their necks (like me ... hmm). I don’t know how they actually saw the art with those shades on. Perhaps they were really there to add some glitz. Surely they could’ve gotten a private preview. Anyway, she was wearing a white pantsuit with her long orange scarf. Mr. Klein was wearing grayish-blue jeans and a dark blazer topped off with the scarf. These are fashionable people so surely you knew I’d mention their appearance. After all, this WAS an art fair! Art fairs are visual affairs. Anyway, I must say that Calvin Klein is the thinnest guy I’ve ever seen in my life. I’m talking tall, stick figure. Not that there’s anything wrong with that … I’m just saying. Funny, because right after I caught a glimpse of them, I turned and the woman next to me was also staring at them. Our eyes met and she had this puzzled look on her face. I said, "Yup, that’s them!" She replied by saying, "Oh my God! He’s so thin! And he looks SO old!" In Mr. Klein’s defense, he looks great for his age … whatever that may be. In short, Jagger and Klein were definitely turning heads and they knew it.
Now … let me give you a few quick observations about the Armory Show 2008 and then I’ll mention some of the art that grabbed me. First, the crowd wasn’t as culturally diverse as I thought it would be … not as diverse as Art Basel Miami Beach, anyway. Perhaps the United Nations arrived after my departure. All I got was a three-hour snapshot. Also, it wasn’t as crowded as I thought it would be either, although the crowd did build during my time there. Another thing … as I strolled through gallery after gallery, I kept wondering if I had seen some of these works before. Of course I did. That’s fine … I’m just saying. In addition … it really seemed like female artists were well represented. I saw so many great works by female artists. Rock on, ladies. Oh and another thing … what’s the deal with skulls? It seems that SO many artists are using depictions of human skulls in their work these days. Perhaps Damien Hirst’s $100 million diamond-encrusted skull has something to do with it? I don’t know, but enough already.
Now, onto the cool art. In my book, there were two stars of the show … the first was Thomas Hirschhorn’s "Tool Table 2007." It was such an inventive sculptural piece … two, long wooden plank-like tables that had dozens of mannequin arms standing on them with the hands holding tools like screwdrivers, wrenches and mallets. Many of the mannequin hands also held books, some open, some closed written by authors like Henry David Thoreau and Friedrich Nietzsche. Clever. Oh, the dealer told me the piece was priced at $180,000. I kicked myself for not bringing my checkbook. Would a $200.00 down payment suffice?
The other pieces that I loved were done by Jenny Holzer. They included "Bar 2008," "Stave 2008" and "Thorax 2008." These are long, flashing, ticker-tape like LED signs mounted onto the corners of walls. Each installation carries different messages in various colors. I didn’t bother to ask the price. Your power bill alone to keep those things running would have to be fairly hefty.
There were so many great pieces to see. Mickalene Thomas’ ghetto-fabulous, rhinestone-encrusted ladies are getting more and more play at these art fairs. Also, Norbert Bisky’s "glamour shot" boy paintings got plenty of exposure. I saw several Julian Opie pieces that I love. His traffic sign installations of chicks with swaying hips are so cool ... and hot. By the way, Opie had several of those installations in my home city. A lady actually complained about them. She called them "suggestive." My guess is her hips are as tight as lockjaw.
Describing the works that I see at art fairs is difficult because there’s just no way to do the art justice in writing. You just have to go and see for yourself. I always just save my pennies and GO.
Which brings me back to Mr. Close and his lukewarm feelings for art fairs. You know, I totally understand the disdain that so many artists have for them. We needn’t rehash all of the reasons, but let me just say that art fairs are really the only way that everyday people can see available art (if you’ve got $180,000 to burn). Needless to say, I don’t go to art fairs thinking that I’m going to buy something. That’s not the point. The point is that by going to art fairs you simply get to see what’s out there. Knowledge is power. Culture is enlightening. Even Mr. Close acknowledged that much to me. He’s not on such a high horse. Commercialization and artistic integrity don’t always co-exist, but they certainly can.
Yes, art fairs (large or small) are about commercialization and one-stop shopping, but isn’t everything these days?
MICHAEL CORBIN IS AN AVID ART COLLECTOR AND AUTHOR OF THE NEW BOOK, "THE ART OF EVERYDAY JOE: A COLLECTOR’S JOURNAL." CHECK IT OUT ON HIS NEW WEBSITE AT WWW.ARTMAESTROGALLERY.COM
