Sculptor David Smith is strongly associated with the abstract expressionists, as he
used welded metal to suggest the gestures and slashes of the New York School
painters. “David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy” at the Whitney Museum demonstrates
that he also employed geometric forms from the start. The show unnecessarily
starts with Smith’s geometric work from the 1960s and moves backwards; it would
have provided greater context had it started with the precursors rather than
the culminating sculptures (including, above, "Cubi XXI," 1964, and
"Cubi I," 1963, both stainless steel). Such precursors include 1950s
work reminiscent of African totems (see "The Hero," 1951-1952), which influenced many artists at the
time. Still, the exhibit broadens our conception of this major 20th century
American sculptor.
“David Smith: Cubes and Anarchy” continues through January 8, 2012, at the Whitney Museum of American Art, 954 Madison Ave. at 75th St., NYC. (Listen to an audio guide of the exhibit.)
The 2010 Biennial at the Whitney Museum of American Art (NYC) followed the
tradition of showcasing the work of young, up-and-coming American artists. The
exhibit made evident the continued trend in mixed media environments, with
certain wings resembling an artistic video arcade.
The other hallmark is
an emphasis on the ominous and disorienting. Josephine Meckseper's video of Minneapolis's Mall of America casts the mall as a
vast, forbidding, endless temple of materialism, set to a discomforting
soundtrack. James Casebere depicted another common feature of the American landscape, the
suburban housing development, as an alien locale, with strangely lit photos of
homes that he constructed as models.
Curtis Mann's distortions of photos taken during the 2006 conflict between
Israel and Hezbollah were meant to cast the media's representation of war in
doubt. On the other hand, Nina Berman's photos of former Marine Sergeant Ty Ziegel, severely disfigured
as the result of a suicide bombing in Iraq, portray the real cost of war–and
cause one to reflect on the price of a war prosecuted for dubious rationales by
those who avoided military action in their youth.
In the video
"Patron" by Marianne Vitale, the artist stared straight ahead and obsessively and loudly
demanded that the viewers take certain absurd actions, seemingly parodying both
authoritarianism and artistic movements. One exception to the focus on
disorientation and provocation was the work of Suzan Frecon, whose large, abstract, contemplative shapes recall the
minimalist paintings of Ellsworth Kelly.
The 2010 Whitney
Biennial is on view through May 30, 2010. For further information, call (212)
570-3600 or visit www.whitney.org.
In the following video, curator Francesco Bonami discusses the exhibition:
"Signs &
Symbols" at the Whitney Museum of American Art focuses on the work of
postwar American artists before the triumph of the "all-over"
canvases of Pollock, de Kooning and other abstract expressionists. Following World War II, artists and sculptors created
works filled with symbols and calligraphy influenced by African, Native
American, Eastern and surrealist art. I was particularly drawn to the
"oceanic" forms of painters Theodoros Stamos and William Baziotes,
the scrap metal totemic "Kabuki Dancer" by sculptor Richard
Stankiewicz, and the mask imagery in Adolph Gottlieb's "Vigil," 1948
(above). The exhibition provides an illuminating look at an important period in
the development of American abstract art.
"Signs & Symbols" will run
through Oct. 28, 2012, at the Whitney Museum of American Art, 945 Madison Ave. at 75th
St., NYC, (212) 570-3600, whitney.org.
"I, You, We"
at the Whitney Museum displays art from the 1980s and the early 1990s reflecting the period's cultural and social turmoil, especially as it affected
New York City. Paintings, posters, photos and sculptures portray the age of
Reagan and growing economic inequality, the city's gentrification and
displacement of longtime residents, the AIDS crisis and identity politics. This was a
period when activist art collectives placed posters throughout the city
reflecting their concerns. One poster, "SOS Tompkins Square Park," is
an artifact of the August
1988 riots following a curfew
imposed in that East Village park. A series, "We Are Not Afraid"
(1981), was ubiquitous throughout the subway system during a period of high
crime. Photos reflecting the AIDS epidemic are particularly wrenching. "I,
You, We" reminds us of upheavals that took place not long ago and the
creative response they inspired.
“I, You, We” runs through September 1, 2013, at the Whitney Museum of American Art,
945 Madison Avenue, at 75th Street, NYC; (212) 570-3600; whitney.org.
Robert Indiana is most
famous for his LOVE paintings, works that actually obscured more controversial
themes in his art. The exhibit "Robert Indiana: Beyond LOVE" at the Whitney Museum of American Art demonstrates the
full breadth of this prominent pop artist's engagement with contemporary
issues. "The Red Diamond American Dream #3" (1962), left,
suggests a game board or pinball machine and contains the words,
"Tilt," "The American Dream" and "Winner Take
All," a comment on the greed that is the undercurrent of the nation's enterprising
image. A series of paintings castigates four southern states for their
oppression of African Americans and brutal response to the Civil Rights
Movement. Indiana has a penchant for bright colors, hard edges, geometric
shapes and lettering. These elements are associated with roadside ads and are
combined with trenchant commentary that indeed go "beyond love."
“Robert Indiana: Beyond Love” continues through Jan. 5, 2014, at the Whitney Museum
of American Art, 945 Madison Ave. at 75th St., NYC, (212)570-3600, whitney.org.
