Fair Hike

Well, about now just about everyone has headed down to Miami for the big old cluster fuck. "Art Basel Miami Beach Scope Nada Aqua and so on." Art or Idiocy? is keeping it real up here in the windy, blustery snowy Midwestern and minor outlying islands of Chicago. There are lots of epileptic seizures, psychotic rants and live blogs all weighing in on the special event across the internet (no, I am not going to say “blogosphere”). I am suspicious. Maybe this is like when one mobster finds out where are the other mobsters are having their big meeting, and then goes there and rubs 'em all out in a glorious rain of hot lead of tommy gun tears. We should do that. We should go down there and make 'em all disappear. Maybe I am just channeling Chicago’s mobster roots. Anyway.

Art or Idiocy? is representin’ down in Miami with a special correspondent. So expect a report when she returns. Photos, fun, revelry. It should be good.

In local art fair news, Michael Workman announced on the NOVA Advisory listserv that he will be down there too. Networking, handing out business cards and so on, as we are all wont to do, could any of us afford to go down there.

Workman also touched on NOVA’s current plans for next year’s venue. NOVA is still searching. They are looking into Michigan Avenue hotels, which would put it closer to Art Chicago in the Park. Personally, I felt the derelict garage and office of this past May was actually quite a good environment. It's best for art fairs to be as far from the trade show format as possible. There’s just something really lame about booths in tents. No matter how big the tent and how expensive the booth. It screams science fair, craft fair and convention.

Now let’s warm ourselves by the artLedge...

- E. Wenzel, Fairly Good Fair Commentator

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.3)

Navigation: 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 2 1

Art or Idiocy? asked artLedge to create a TOP TEN list. In their own words:

artLedge is an experimental platform committed to presenting projects created specifically for the unique parameters of the Ledge and beyond. Exhibitions are celebrated with a festive one-night social nexus for artistic contemplation. Originating from the top of a spiral staircase that connects two floors of an apartment at 1638 N. Western, the artLedge initiative lends itself to an endless number of exhibition possibilities.

artLedge’s newest project, transcengressdension, opened recently at 40000, one of the spaces in the WestTown Gallery Network. Clever as ever, artLedge came up with a list of the top ten top ten lists. So check back here everyday, as a new number (and new list) will be unveiled.

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

# 3 Top Ten Most Dangerous Cities


A two-alarm fire in the #1 city. HINT: it's in New Jersey.

10) Birmingham, Alabama

9) Richmond, Virginia

8) New Orleans, Louisiana

7) Hartford, Connecticut

6) Washington DC

5) Gary, Indiana

4) St. Louis, Missouri

3) Atlanta, Georgia

2) Detroit, Michigan

1) Camden, New Jersey

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

• Info on artLedge at 40000

• Visit WestTown.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.4)

Navigation: 10 9 8 7 6 5 3 2 1

We are back, after the long Thanksgiving break. Let's get down to business. Art business.

So please enjoy artLedge's Number 4 TOP TEN List...

Art or Idiocy? asked artLedge to create a TOP TEN list. In their own words:

artLedge is an experimental platform committed to presenting projects created specifically for the unique parameters of the Ledge and beyond. Exhibitions are celebrated with a festive one-night social nexus for artistic contemplation. Originating from the top of a spiral staircase that connects two floors of an apartment at 1638 N. Western, the artLedge initiative lends itself to an endless number of exhibition possibilities.

artLedge’s newest project, transcengressdension, opened recently at 40000, one of the spaces in the WestTown Gallery Network. Clever as ever, artLedge came up with a list of the top ten top ten lists. So check back here everyday, as a new number (and new list) will be unveiled.

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

# 4 FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted List

10) Jorge Alberto Lopez-Orozco

9) Diego Leon Montoya Sanchez

8) Genero Espinosa Dorantes

7) Victor Manuel Gerena

6) Richard Steve Goldberg

5) Usama Bin Laden

4) James J. Bulger

3) Robert William Fisher

2) Glen Stewart Godwin

1) Donald Eugene Webb

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

• Info on artLedge at 40000

• Visit WestTown.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.5)

Navigation: 10 9 8 7 6 4 3 2 1

It is quite possible that this may be the last artLedge TOP TEN for a couple of days. You see, tomorrow is Thanksgiving, and not much work gets done on that day. And then all the big sales are on Friday. And most of our editorial staff is heading out to make off with some big bargains. The lucky ones are flying out to New York and heading to Chelsea. Gagosian is having a 6 am - 11 am sale. All the Damien Hirst paintings MUST GO! DRASTICALLY REDUCED PRICES! Deitch Projects is having a HUGE Slacker Sale Close Out. All that "of the moment" hipster art made for Deitch's zeitgeisty NYC survey shows is taking up space, gathering dust, starting to smell and is pretty much past its "moment". So much for trying to be young and cool by association. The Asume Vivid Astrofocus wallpaper is a STEAL when you use your frequnet buyer card.

Those not able to make it out to Manhattan are planning on raiding the West Loop here in Chicago. Should we make the joke? OK... Alright... Since you REALLY want to hear it... Monique Meloche is offering a BUY ONE, GET TWO FREE deal on all the work from Rashid Johnson's latest show.

So please enjoy artLedge's Number 5 TOP TEN List...

Art or Idiocy? asked artLedge to create a TOP TEN list. In their own words:

artLedge is an experimental platform committed to presenting projects created specifically for the unique parameters of the Ledge and beyond. Exhibitions are celebrated with a festive one-night social nexus for artistic contemplation. Originating from the top of a spiral staircase that connects two floors of an apartment at 1638 N. Western, the artLedge initiative lends itself to an endless number of exhibition possibilities.

artLedge’s newest project, transcengressdension, opened Friday at 40000, one of the spaces in the WestTown Gallery Network. Clever as ever, artLedge came up with a list of the top ten top ten lists. So check back here everyday, as a new number (and new list) will be unveiled.

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

# 5 Top Ten Worst Jobs

10) Poultry Processor

9) Sewing Machine Operator

8) Farm Laborer

7) Mississippi Prison Inmate/ Forced Labor

6) Nanny On Temporary Visa

5) Laundry Worker

4) Roofer

3) Recycling Plant Worker

2) Street Prostitute

1) US Soldier Active Duty Iraq

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.


• Info on artLedge at 40000

• Visit WestTown.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.6)

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

Navigation: 10 9 8 7 5 4 3 2 1

# 6 The Top Ten Rated Living Artists

10) Andreas Gursky

9) Georg Baselitz

8) Edward Ruscha

7) Robert Rauchenberg

6) Louise Bourgeois

7) Cindy Sherman

4) Sol Lewitt

3) Sigmar Polke

2) Gerhard Richter

1) Bruce Nauman

You Haven't visited the HARSH CRIT?

What the hell is wrong with you?

We are starting off Thanksgiving week right. We haveartLedge, and their lucky number seven Top Ten top ten. But first...

Be sure to visit fnews magazine for Erik Wenzel’s column THE HARSH CRIT.

This edition looks at James Elkins’ pamphlet/book What Happened to Art Criticism? Also discussed is the situation of art criticism in general. It all relates to the recent States of Art Criticism symposium held at the Art Institute. View Art or Idiocy?s post on Dave Hickey here. THE HARSH CRIT piece kind of addresses a commentor's question of "what do [I] think?"


So anyway, enjoy number seven.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.7)

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

Navigation: 10 9 8 6 5 4 3 2 1

# 7 The Top Ten Worst Beers

10) Molson Ice

9) Rolling Rock

8) Beast

7) King Cobra

6) Sam Adams Cranberry Lambic aka Cough Syrup

5) Yanjing - 'The National Ale of China'

4) Naty Ice

3) Schlitz

2) Aspen Edge

1) Falstaff

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.8)

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

Navigation: 10 9 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

# 8 Late Show with David Letterman Top Ten 5/27/04

Top Ten Things You Don't Want To Hear At A Gas Station

10) "You're filled up. That'll be 600 bucks"

9) "Maybe it's the gas fumes talking, but you're kinda hot"

8) "I forgot if this is premium or regular" (drinks) "Regular"

7) "For an extra ten bucks, I'll pump your gas without pants"

6) "Hope you don't mind - - I just put an Al-Qaeda bumper sticker on your car"

5) "Take me to Mexico and don't ask any questions"

4) "We were out of gas so I filled you up with coffee"

3) "You know, you got a bike messenger wedged in your front grill"

2) "Good luck figuring out what I did to your engine"

1) "I checked your fluids. Now you check mine"

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.9)

Navigation: 10 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Art or Idiocy? asked artLedge to create a TOP TEN list. In their own words:

artLedge is an experimental platform committed to presenting projects created specifically for the unique parameters of the Ledge and beyond. Exhibitions are celebrated with a festive one-night social nexus for artistic contemplation. Originating from the top of a spiral staircase that connects two floors of an apartment at 1638 N. Western, the artLedge initiative lends itself to an endless number of exhibition possibilities.

artLedge’s newest project, transcengressdension, opens this Friday at 40000, one of the spaces in the WestTown Gallery Network. Clever as ever, artLedge came up with a list of the top ten top ten lists. So check back here everyday, as a new number (and new list) will be unveiled.

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

# 9 The Top Ten Favorite Numbers 1-10

10) 8

9) 10

8) 9

7) 1

6) 2

5) 4

4) 6

3) 5

2) 7

1) 3

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

TOP TEN: artLedge (No.10)

artLedge’s Top Ten Top Ten Lists List

Navigation: 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1



# 10 The Top Ten Steps to Success

10) Report your results.

9) Recognize and thank both donors and campaign volunteers for participating in the campaign.

8) Implement your campaign plan by ensuring that each employee has an opportunity to participate.

7) Promote your campaign and educate employees, results, strengths, weaknesses and opportunities.

6) Train the campaign team.

5) Determine appropriate campaign strategies and set campaign goals.

4) Meet with representatives from the other participating nonprofit organizations.

3) Recruit your campaign team.

2) Analyze last year's campaign.

1) Meet with your chief executive officer and get his/her commitment to support the campaign and to become actively involved with the program.

Top tens selected from the worldinterwidenetweb.

I Deaccessioned two masterworks of Art & Alls I Got Was This Lousy 4.6 Million.

• BMOMA 3 In it's last weekend!

emailing can be fun: artoridiocy@yahoo.com

---

Art or Idiocy? recently reported on the Art Institute of Chicago's plan to sell Marc Chagall's painting, The Juggler (1943).  The more we thought on it, the more absurd it seemed.  The Juggler is one of Chagall's better works, and certainly iconic.  Unlike the boring and a-typicalBirth (1911/12) which remains in the collection along with a Jewish crucifixion* (weird, huh???), The Circus Rider (1927), which went well with the juggler, and Praying Jew (1923, copy of a 1914 work). Oh, and of course the Chagall Windows (actually America Windows, 1977). View them here.

*Does "White Crucifixion" (1938) mean Chagall was a "Jew for Jesus"?

Renoir • Portrait of Jean Sisley • 1875

The combined profits of the dreamy birdman Juggler and Pierre Auguste Renoir's Portrait of Jean Sisley (1875) were 4.6 million dollars.  Chagall picked up a cool 4.05million, which means Renoir is responsible for .55 of the total.  If we were really rounding things off, we could say the AIC got 5million to go towards acquisitions.  Specifically the department of "Medieval to Modern European Painting and Modern European Sculpture."  Which means more (Post)Impressionist acquisitions?  Not for a paltry 4.6M.  The Chicago Tribune's article on the auction results noted that a Toulouse-Lautrec was also on the chopping block.  A piece lent to AIC for the recent Lautrec show and one in 1979.  It went for 22.4M.

The article states that Chagall and Renoir were sold on rich-man's ebay after their value to the collection had been assessed by AIC.  Now the Renoir seems kind of minor, which is reflected in its low earnings and low estimate (400-600K) but the Chagall has been on view pretty consistently for a while.  Despite the claim that "neither had been on regular view in the galleries."

Well, what can you do?  At least the money can't go to buy another god-awful mirror painting by Lichtenstein.

Bruce Nauman at Donald Young Gallery

More troubles for the Guggenheim as a major lender withdraws support

Buren BMOMA & Bodybuilder • Dave Hickey + Awesome Comments


• BMOMA 3 Through Nov 13

emailing can be fun: artoridiocy@yahoo.com

---

Donald Young is one of the very few galleries in the city that has A-list artists showing work with them. Specifically art made on the occasion of the show. Not second market art, or editions of prints. Also Donald Young is one of the few that makes it in/to the art fairs that matter. Sure it’s shitty, but art fairs are where it’s at. Specifically Art Basel Miami, The Armory Show and The Frieze Art Fair. Art Chicago and Nova don’t count in the wide scope of jet-setting fair-hopping. (Either anymore or yet)

The gallery recently took out a two-page spread in Artforum. No Chicago galleries take out big ads, and hardly any at all do two page ones. That is heartening to see, I think. A gallery in our fair outpost playing in the big leagues. Usually it is only the Chelsea’s with full-page ads in the Vogue of the art world. Perhaps this is shallow and all. But this stuff matters, especially in the current money and recognition climate. I am much more interested in this than in hearing about the how self-appointed rulers of Chicago’s cloistered art community are planning on getting more isolated by moving into a down-home art barn.

That said, Bruce Nauman recently had an installation of sculptural fountains and drawings at Donald Young Gallery. Here is a write up of the show:

The sculptures were a fresh and contemporary approach to the fountain. Squirting at high power, slowing and shutting off like cycles of rainstorms. The ceiling and the floor were connected with the objects in the middle. Tubes ran up from pools to the sculptures. Wires hung down suspending them.

The raw edges showed, as is typical with Bruce Nauman. It is a well thought-out aesthetic which is absent from the drawings. With the sculptures the look was at once refined and crude. The pumps showed, the wires were hastily twisted; the black rubber lining the pools flopped about the floor, all of which are more about utilitarianism than about looking good. And this made it look good. These things all ended up being carefully postured elements of the composition.

The author's cat, Woody, stares in silent contemplation at the NAWnAN ECnRB two-page spread Artforum.

The drawings, in theory, nicely set off the noisy, wet, sculpture installations, but really did nothing. They were bland and refined in such a way as to be gallery fluff. Seeing the completed and much more captivating fountains is enough. We don’t need sketches. The gallery of drawings was aptly and humorously referred to as “the gift shop” in the Bad at Sports podcast review. It is understandable why the gallery would have the drawings up. The gallery of drawings was superfluous and only distracted from the main focus of the exhibition.

The main gallery was filled with One Hundred Fish Fountain (2005), which was actually only 97 fish. Which is kind of cool that it is three short. The fish swam in space. And the water squirting everywhere was like a simulation of being in a tank with the fish. The wires suspending the fish were twisted around the fins or threaded large eyelets. These came from a huge suspended metal grid structure. Again, the goal is hanging the heavy bronze fish more than making it look good. So the sloppy wires were juxtaposed with the highly detailed cast fish. And that results in an aesthetic of sorts.

In the smaller gallery were two sculpture fountains on the same theme of hanging over a rubber basin and squirting water. But they were also organized on the theme of epoxy resin heads Nauman has been working with for a while. Both fountains consisted of a group of three heads.

The heads hung as lifeless objects squirting water as though they’d sprung leaks. Who did these head’s belong to? Were they the artist’s head? No, they were people Nauman knows. One group of heads gallery was called 3 Heads Fountain (3 Andrews) (2005) was three casts of Andrew Peters. The heads are familiar because they have cropped up a lot in Nauman’s work. The Andrew body of work started in 1989.

The other sculpture of the pair was 3 Heads Fountain (Juliet, Andrew, Rinde) (2005). So again was Andrew, and also Juliet Myers, the artist’s studio assistant. And Rinde Eckert, an opera singer Nauman collaborated with on the sound piece Anthro/Socio (1991)

The show didn’t really have anything to say. And the fact that Nauman has been working with rubbery heads for 15 some years doesn’t count as meaning. Bruce Nauman is a favorite of graduate students and elitist academics of a certain vein. England also loves Nauman. There is always a significant amount of his work up at the Tate Modern. This makes sense because he is one of the spiritual godfathers of Young British Art. Nauman is good, but he is also over rated. And the incessant in-depth over analyzing of his work and its purported profoundness is a disservice. This is probably why he moved to a ranch in New Mexico. It is a problem when an artist such as Nauman is crowned as an infallible art genius. When this happens there is no distinction between good and bad works by the artist. There is no success or failure, only a meaningless squirting of fluids.

The drawings in the Donald Young show were total rubbish anyway you look at it. But the sculpture fountains were great. Maybe they didn’t say much. Maybe if a PhD in contemporary art theory was there to school me on the works’ finer points it would have meant more. But what I do know is that the work was engaging. The sights and sounds of the huge contraptions cycling on and off was strangely peaceful and meditative. And he is a famous artist, so I was also a little bit star struck.

E. Wenzel