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| Richard Serra's "Cycle" 2010 © Richard Serra. Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery. |
ART
FALL SEASON, 2011
GAGOSIAN GALLERY
NOW SHOWING:
Richard Serra:
"Junction" & "Cycle"
Gagosian Gallery,
Chelsea - 24th St. NYC
Jenny Saville: "Continuum"
Gagosian Gallery, Uptown
Madison Ave. NYC
"Bob Dylan: The Asia Series"
Gagosian Gallery, Uptown
Madison Ave. NYC
Gagosian Gallery is one of the elite galleries of the world, owned by art superstar Larry Gagosian. His gallery has exhibition spaces in New York City, Paris, Beverly Hills, La Jolla, Rome, London, Athens, Hong Kong & Geneva. The gallery is considered by many artists and collectors as the top rung of the contemporary art gallery system in New York City. Here are the shows Gagosian has chosen to kick off the fall art season in NYC.
RICHARD SERRA:
"JUNCTION" & "CYCLE"
Through November 26, 2011
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| RICHARD SERRA - "Junction" (2011) weatherproof steel 13' 1/2" x 75' 1/2" x 49' 9 15/16" © Richard Serra. Courtesy Gagosian Gallery Press Release. Photo by Lorenz Kienzle. |
"I consider space to be a material. The articulation of space has come to take precedence over other concerns. I attempt to use sculptural form to make space distinct."
– Richard Serra
Gagosian Gallery's NY Chelsea venue is presently showing two new sculptures by Richard Serra: "Junction" (2011, rounded pinched shapes) and "Cycle" (2010, three interlocking "S" shapes). Serra has pushed his 13 foot high, ocean liner sized bent steel plates to a new haughtiness with these two complex and challenging works. Over the past fifteen years, the artist has developed his unique sculptural approach which has evolved into huge, curving, rusted steel slabs forming negative spaces made to walk through and around. It is difficult to visualize the actual shape of these pieces without an aerial view.
Born in 1938, Richard Serra is one of the most significant artists of his generation. His groundbreaking works in both sculpture and drawing have been celebrated with major retrospectives at The Museum of Modern Art (NYC) and at The Metropolitan Museum of Art (NYC). This year, the Met show will travel to SFMoMA and the Menil Collection in Houston. The artist has produced large-scale, site-specific sculptures for architectural, urban and landscape settings around the world.
The sculptures are intended to feel architectural and to be experience from ground level, where one gets a sense of the mass, curves, shapes, color, texture and play of light created by the steel structures.
At a future date ARTSnFOOD will take an in-depth look at Richard Sarra's phenomenal sculptures and drawings, but if you have the space and want to buy a gigantic sculpture today, drop in at the Gagosian Gallery in Chelsea. (Gagosian does not disclose their prices except to serious buyers.)
Some of the museums which include one or more Richard Serra works in their collections:
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL Albright-Knox Art Museum, Buffalo, NY DIA Beacon, Beacon, NY Guggenheim Museum, New York, NY Guggenheim Museum, Bilbao, Spain Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden, Washington D.C. Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MA Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, San Francisco, CA Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY |
Gagosian Gallery
555 West 24th ST.
NY, NY 10011
212-741-1111
newyork@gagosian.com.
JENNY SAVILLE: "CONTINUUM"
Through October 22, 2011
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JENNY SAVILLE, "Red Stare Head IV", 2006-2011 Oil on canvas, 99 3/16 x 73 13/16 inches © Jenny Saville 2011 Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery, Photo: Mike Bruce. |
"(Flesh) is all things. Ugly, beautiful, repulsive, compelling, anxious, neurotic, dead, alive."
-Jenny Saville
Gagosian Gallery, Uptown, is showing recent paintings and drawings by Jenny Saville, her first exhibition in New York since 2003.
Fascinated by the endless aesthetic and formal possibilities that the human body offers, Saville paints highly sensuous and tactile surfaces in her monumental oil paintings. In the compelling "Stare" paintings she renders the contours and features of the face and the nuances of skin texture and color in strokes both bold and meticulous. Enlarging the facial features of her human subjects to a vast scale and rendering them in layer upon layer of paint, she shows a sense of mass and weight that is almost sculptural and at times abstract. Intense pinks, reds, and blues erupt through the pale skin tones, disclosing the internal workings of the painting like the flesh and blood of a living organism.
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JENNY SAVILLE: "Continuum", Installation view, © Jenny Saville 2011 Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery, Photo by Rob McKeever |
In her other series, Saville portrays the intimate relationship between mother and child in life-sized drawings directly inspired by Renaissance nativity portraits, ie: Leonardo da Vinci’s cartoon of "The Virgin and Child with St. Anne and John the Baptist", an atypical scene in which the Virgin contends with a lively Christ-child. Also by a Michelangelo’s "Virgin and Child" – a pregnant woman and young child are shown in a dynamic parenting moment. Multiple impressions of each figure are drawn, erased, and superimposed again. Saville gives powerful graphic life to the anatomical details and expressive movements that animate her paintings.
Jenny Saville was born in Cambridge, England in 1970. She studied at the Glasgow School of Art. Her work has been included in exhibitions worldwide. Her first solo U.S. museum exhibition will open at the Norton Museum in West Palm Beach, Florida later this year.
Gagosian Gallery
980 Madison Avenue
NY,NY 100075
212-744-2313
"BOB DYLAN:
THE ASIA SERIES"
Through October 22, 2011
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The Exhibition Catalog comes with a choice of four covers. "BOB DYLAN: THE ASIA SERIES " © Bob Dylan 2011 Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery |
"I consider myself a poet first and a musician second. I live like a poet and I'll die like a poet."
– Bob Dylan
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| © Bob Dylan 2011 |
Bob Dylan is one of the most influential cultural figures to come out of the Rock and Roll Era of the 1960's. Over the last 48 years he has released over 45 albums and written over 500 songs including “Blowin’ in the Wind,” “All Along the Watchtower,” “Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door”, "Like a Rolling Stone", etc. - selling over 110 million records around the world. His accolades include global honors and recognition plus numerous Grammy Awards, a Golden Globe and an Academy Award. In 2008 Dylan received a special Pulitzer Prize Citation, for his "profound impact" on American culture through his poetic music.
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"BOB DYLAN: THE ASIA SERIES" © Bob Dylan 2011 Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery |
Dylan has used his creative talents as a poet, singer, songwriter, musician, author, film director, actor, radio broadcaster and now as a painter. As an author, his memoir, "Chronicles: Volume One" - stayed on The NY-Times Best Seller List for 19 weeks.
With his visual art, Dylan has only recently started showing. He has exhibited his "Drawn Blank Series" in Germany’s Kunstsammlungen Chemnitz and his "Brazil Series" is currently up at The National Gallery of Denmark in Copenhagen.
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"BOB DYLAN: THE ASIA SERIES" © Bob Dylan 2011 Courtesy of Gagosian Gallery |
Last week New York's Gagosian Gallery opened "Bob Dylan: The Asian Series" at their Uptown, Madison Avenue location. This exhibition is a visual journal of the songwriter's travels in Japan, China, Vietnam and South Korea. Dylan has had many successes in his lifetime and his exploration of the visual arts will be looked at as a way to gain insight into his music and it will be compared to that exceptional talent. For certain, the "Poet Laureate of the Baby-Boom Generation" has started his art career at the very top and he should consider this invitation to mount an exhibition at Gagosian as one of the highest honors a visual artist can be offered in today's art world! A 100 page catalog of the show is available through the gallery for $80.
Gagosian Gallery
980 Madison Avenue
NY,NY 100075
212-744-2313
newyork@gagosian.com
(Sources: Gagosian Gallery's press department, the Bob Dylan website.)
Dance
Sir Paul McCartney
Creates a New Ballet
The New York City Ballet produces the World Premier of OCEAN'S KINGDOM. Music by Paul McCartney, Costumes by Stella McCartney and Choreography by Peter Martins.
Sir Paul McCartney is still "PLAYING" and making music intuitively. His new ballet opened last week in New York, adding another major work to his portfolio, written to be performed by an orchestra.
“Ocean’s Kingdom“ is McCartney's first ballet score and libretto. The choreography was created by New York City Ballet’s Master-in-Chief, Peter Martins. The gala premier was at Lincoln Center on September 22, 2011.
How does this pop star switch from writing relatively simple rock music to writing orchestration? The technical part, ie: the meter, actual notes and any musical notations are written by his computer or by a professional musical notator. McCartney simply composes the music on his keyboard. He plays by ear, finding his way through the music alone. Composing this intuitive way, with just his instrument and a piece of paper for notes, is the same approach he has used since his first songs written with John Lennon and the Beatles. It keeps the focus on the music and obviously works in the classical realm as well.
There are four movements in Ocean's Kingdom, the Ballet:
Movement 1: Ocean’s Kingdom
Movement 2: Hall of Dance
Movement 3: Imprisonment
Movement 4: Moonrise
The album, "Paul McCartney’s Ocean’s Kingdom", is scheduled to be released on October 4, 2011, performed by the London Classical Orchestra and directed by John Wilson. It will be available through Amazon.com. Both a CD and a vinyl versions will be available. It is on the "Hear Music / MPL / Telarc" label.
(Source: Ocean Kingdom press release and YouTube video)
FOOD
Pollo Asado
Puerto Rican Style Roasted Chicken
at the Puerto Rican Restaurant, Cabo Rojo in NYC.
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Farewell to Cabo Rojo Restaurant (now closed) in New York's Chelsea Arts District. |
The decoration around the cash register consisted of old Puerto Rican money taped to the wall, along with the first US dollar they ever made, plus a plastic saint draped with rosary beads, pictures of the Virgin Mary, ancient post cards of Puerto Rico and a mason jar for tips. The middle-aged Puerto Rican waitresses were always friendly and pleasant to the customers, but in the next breath they would bark sternly in Spanish to the men cooking in the kitchen or to the male manager (owner?) at the register. Cheap dinette chairs were tucked under the three tables and the long, worn linoleum counter was lined with chrome stools topped with cracked black leather seats. When you received the menu the waitress also brought a 1960s, pastel colored, plastic refrigerator pitcher of ice water and clear plastic water glasses. No matter the day of the week, their most popular offering was their juicy broiled chicken, Pollo Asado, accompanied by a mountain of yellow rice and a big bowl of black or red beans. I never ordered anything else, and if with someone, I always split the dish - it was far more food than one person could possibly eat. If you just drank the ice water, two people could eat a fantastic lunch for under $10. This is unheard of in NYC. After the meal, when I had the time, I would order "Cafe con Leche", a dark, rich Puerto Rican espresso with steamed milk, served in a thick, white, old school restaurant coffee cup, giving customers ten minutes of pure pleasure.
During the last 15 years, this section of west Chelsea has changed from a forgotten outpost of Manhattan, full of gas stations, auto repair shops, car washes, cold storage buildings, diners and bodegas into the center of the universe for the white box contemporary gallery scene. Rents for business spaces have gone from barely rentable to astronomically priced, top shelf locations. The best galleries in the world have moved in, along with expensive condominium projects, bringing with them the "rich and famous" collectors who now walk up and down 10th Avenue and down the blocks of cross streets from 19th through 29th, over to 11th Avenue and West Side Highway.
It is only a matter of time before all of the above mentioned older tenants will have closed or moved-on from this new "chic" area of New York City.
I bid a fond farewell to "Cabo Rojo", an enjoyable and authentic "Nuyorican" dining experience and to their classic Puerto Rican lunch (below):
Pollo Asado / Roasted Chicken
1/4 chicken $7.25
1/2 chicken $9.50
Arroz Amarillo / Yellow Rice
included with meal
Habichuelas Rositas / Negras
included with meal
Pitcher of ice water
included with meal
Puerto Rican Cafe con Leche $2.50
Recipe for Pollo Asado,
Puerto Rican Roasted Chicken:
2 broiler fryers, 3 lbs each, each split in half
(or 6 lbs of skin-on chicken legs, thighs & breasts)
1/2 cup olive oil
Salt & ground pepper to taste
1 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp dried tarragon
2 tbs cider vinegar
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- Wash chicken and pat dry with paper towels. Place in a large bowl.
- Mix oil, salt, pepper, oregano, tarragon, vinegar and crushed garlic and pour over chicken, rubbing the seasoning thoroughly into the skin. Cover bowl, refrigerate and marinate overnight.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove chicken from marinade and place in a shallow roasting pan, skin side up. Brush or pour marinade over chicken and roast for 30 minutes or until golden brown and the juices run clear.
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To Broil:
- Place chicken skin side down on a lightly oiled, edged baking sheet, no less than 7 inches from the heat source.
- Heat marinade to insure safety.
- Broil for 15 minutes, brush frequently with marinade.
- Turn chicken skin side up, broil an additional 15 minutes, brushing frequently with marinade.
- Juices must run clear.
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To Grill:
Grill marinated chicken over moderate coals for 15 minutes, skin side down, basting often with marinade, turn and grill 15 minutes skin side up, basting often with marinade.
Serve chicken with yellow rice, black beans and pan drippings.
Yield: 4 to 6 servings.
Recipe for Puerto Rican
Baked Whole Chicken,
Pollo al Horno,
Ingredients:
- 1 whole roasting chicken
- 2 sprigs of fresh thyme
- 1 onion cut into wedges
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 tbls butter
- 1/2 cup chicken broth
- 1/4 cup water
(Make basic Puerto Rican rub)
- 16 cloves garlic
Remove garlic's brown end tip and crush in a mortar with pestle,
Add 2 tbls salt and work into the paste
Add 1/2 tbls black peppercorns / crush into the mixture.
Add 3 tbls of oregano
Add 1/4 cup olive oil (or chili oil)
Add 1/4 cup sour orange juice or cider vinegar
You can also add some lime or lemon juice
Mix ingredients well to make rub.
Directions:
- Rinse Chicken inside and out under cold running water. Pat dry with paper towels.
- (Suggestion) Anchor your cutting board with a damp paper towel on the table which creates friction so the board does not slip.
- Place the chicken on the cutting board, and spread the "rub" under the skin of the breast & leg & thigh of the chicken - massage it into the meat and smear the "rub" inside the cavity also.
Place the bay leaf and thyme inside the cavity.
- Preheat oven to 425 degrees
Truss the chicken.
- To truss: put the center of a trussing string in front of neck and pull over the wings, then around and under the legs, drape over the legs and pull the drumsticks together, wrap to keep them together, then cross over the top of the wings and tie underneath. Trussing the bird forms a neat football-like package.
- Put the chicken into a shallow roasting pan. Rub olive oil over the entire chicken.
- Place the chicken on its side and scatter the neck, gizzard, liver and chopped onion halves around it.
- Roast for 20 minutes, basting occasionally. Turn the chicken on its other side and roast another 20 minutes, basting occasionally. Remove as much floating fat as possible. Place the chicken on its back and put pats of butter on chicken and add chicken broth and water. Roast for at least 20 minutes longer , check for doneness - the internal temperature should be 165 degrees in thickest part of the thigh and juices should run clear. If needed, finish cooking in the up-right position. The chicken should be golden brown all over.
- Take chicken from oven and let it rest for 10 minutes.
- Remove and discard the trussing, bay leaf and thyme. Carve.
Scrape up bits in the roasting pan and stir. Pour into bowl. To serve, mix and ladle pan drippings over chicken and rice.
To carve:
- Cut the leg with thigh attached from the breast.
- Remove the backbone, by making a cut in the cartilage where breasts meet, push apart and cut out the keel bone.
- Pull out the cartilage at bottom, near the tail.
- Trim off the wings.
- Loosen bones from meat and hand pull the breast meat off of the bones.
Serve chicken with yellow rice, black beans and pan drippings. (Yield: 4 large servings. Sources: Recipes adapted from Daisy Martinez, Puerto Rican TV personality & Oswald Rivera's "Puerto Rican Cuisine".)
Until later,
Jack
ARTSnFOOD, All rights reserved. Concept & Original Text © Copyright 2011 Jack A. Atkinson under all International intellectual property and copyright laws. Images © individual artists, fabricators, respective owners or assignees.
POSTSCRIPT
The poetry of Bob Dylan:
Bob Dylan was born Robert Allen Zimmerman on May 24, 1941. American singer-songwriter, musician and poet. He has been a profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960's when he was the reluctant figurehead for social unrest. A number of his songs, such as "Blowin' in the Wind" and "The Times They Are a-Changin'", became anthems for the US civil rights and anti-war movements of the day. Dylan's first big hit, recorded with him singing was in 1965 "Like a Rolling Stone". His thoughtful lyrics incorporated a variety of political, social, philosophical, and literary influences and appealed to the burgeoning counterculture of the 60's. He was inspired by the songs of Woody Guthrie, Robert Johnson, and Hank Williams. His 50+ year recording career has explored numerous distinct traditions in American song—from folk, blues and country to gospel, rock and roll, and rockabilly, to English, Scottish, and Irish folk music, even embracing jazz and swing. Dylan performs with a guitar, keyboards, and a harmonica. Backed by a changing group of musicians, Bob Dylan has toured steadily since the late 1980's on what has been dubbed the Never Ending Tour. His greatest contribution to American culture is generally considered to be his poetic songwriting.
A sample of Bob Dylan poetry:
The lyrics for "Like A Rolling Stone"
Once upon a time you dressed so fine
You threw the bums a dime in your prime, didn’t you?
People’d call, say, “Beware doll, you’re bound to fall”
You thought they were all kiddin’ you
You used to laugh about
Everybody that was hangin’ out
Now you don’t talk so loud
Now you don’t seem so proud
About having to be scrounging for your next meal
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be without a home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone?
You’ve gone to the finest school all right, Miss Lonely
But you know you only used to get juiced in it
And nobody has ever taught you how to live on the street
And now you find out you’re gonna have to get used to it
You said you’d never compromise
With the mystery tramp, but now you realize
He’s not selling any alibis
As you stare into the vacuum of his eyes
And ask him do you want to make a deal?
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone?
You never turned around to see the frowns on the jugglers and the clowns
When they all come down and did tricks for you
You never understood that it ain’t no good
You shouldn’t let other people get your kicks for you
You used to ride on the chrome horse with your diplomat
Who carried on his shoulder a Siamese cat
Ain’t it hard when you discover that
He really wasn’t where it’s at
After he took from you everything he could steal
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone?
Princess on the steeple and all the pretty people
They’re drinkin’, thinkin’ that they got it made
Exchanging all kinds of precious gifts and things
But you’d better lift your diamond ring, you’d better pawn it babe
You used to be so amused
At Napoleon in rags and the language that he used
Go to him now, he calls you, you can’t refuse
When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose
You’re invisible now, you got no secrets to conceal
How does it feel
How does it feel
To be on your own
With no direction home
Like a complete unknown
Like a rolling stone?
The rights to the above Bob Dylan lyrics are currently owned by Special Rider Music - Original copyright © 1965 by Warner Bros. Inc.; © renewed in 1993 by Special Rider Music.
