06
Jan
2020

Seattle Art Museum – Olympic Sculpture Park

I’d been wanting to visit the sculpture park again for some time, to see new additions to the collection and to revisit works by three of my favorite artists, Serra, Calder, and DiSuvero. I went on a brisk, overcast day just before the new year.

I was reflecting on the first time I saw Richard Serra’s Wake, 2004, just after it was installed. It is first seen from a long distance, from above, and as you approach the work it grows and grows; by the time you reach it, you are immersed within it.

Seattle is fortunate to have a classic Alexander Calder, from 1971, Eagle. It is a sculpture worthy of repeated visits, to see how it captures northwest light in the different seasons and times of day.

It was exciting to see Mark di Suvero’s, Schubert Sonata, 1992, with Eliot Bay as a backdrop. As with all of DiSuvero’s signature work, it is like a drawing in steel, and I look forward to spending more time with it during upcoming visits.

Posted by Thomas Alix Johnston in Blog, Words, 2 comments
29
Dec
2019
Flesh and Blood – Seattle Art Museum

Flesh and Blood – Seattle Art Museum

 

Currently on view at the Seattle Art Museum is a beautiful exhibition of Rennaisance & Baroque painting and sculpture from the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte in Naples, showing through January 26, 2020. I’m including some phone images to whet your appetite. If you live in the area and haven’t had a chance to see it yet, or if you’ll be in Seattle soon, it is a great opportunity to see some beautiful art that isn’t often on view in the Pacific northwest. The exhibition includes works by Titian, Raphael, Gentileschi, de Ribera, Reni, Cavallino, and others. Visit the website for the exhibition here Flesh and Blood: Italian Masterpieces from the Museo e Real Bosco di Capodimonte in Naples.

 

Posted by Thomas Alix Johnston in Blog, Words, 1 comment
22
Dec
2019
NYC – 2019

NYC – 2019

When I was in NYC recently, I saw a lot of great shows, including the Whitney Biennial, which I was able to visit a couple times in the final days it was on view.

Many of the 75 artists in the Biennial were new to me; among those whose work I was already familiar with, I was especially looking forward to seeing Jeffrey Gibson’s and Nicholas Galanin’s work. I saw an in-depth survey of Gibson’s work in Like A Hammer last winter at Seattle Art Museum, which I wrote about here. As for Galanin, I first became aware of his work in a show curated by Lara Evans some ten+ years ago. Among the many powerful works in the exhibition I thought his tapestry, White Noise, American Prayer Rug, worked extremely well on many levels. For a good review of the Biennial see Zachary Small’s review at Hyperallergic. Continue reading →

Posted by Thomas Alix Johnston in Blog, Words, 2 comments
17
Dec
2019
Richard Serra – Reverse Curve

Richard Serra – Reverse Curve

Reverse Curve, 2005/19 is on view at Gagosian – 522 West 21st Street, NYC through February 1, 2020. It is a unique  opportunity to see this magnificient work in an interior space. Reverse Curve is comprised of two 2″ thick steel plates, measuring approximately 13 feet high by 99 feet in length.

Forged Rounds, is a grouping of forged steel cylindrical forms of varied height and diameter, each weighing 50 tons. They are on view at the 555 West 24th Street gallery, through January 11, 2020. This link will take you to the Gagosian website which features Forged Rounds.

 

Posted by Thomas Alix Johnston in Blog, Words, 2 comments
14
Dec
2019
Kehinde Wiley – Rumors of War

Kehinde Wiley – Rumors of War

We were in NYC this past September; The Whitney Biennial was in its final days, Greta Thunberg spoke at the Global Climate Conference at the UN, and as expected, there was a wealth of exhibitions and cultural events to see and experience. There were several shows we had specifically planned to see, Amy Sherald, Vija Celmins, Sarah Sze, Richard Serra, the Biennial, as well as several visits to The Met. We stopped in to see a show at the Ford Foundation, as well as several shows in galleries in Chelsea, including the inaugural exhibitions at Pace Gallery’s new building, one of which was a survey of works by Alexander Calder.

This post features Kehinde Wiley’s Rumors of War on the day it was unveiled in Times Square. Much has been written about this artwork, its beauty and significance. I’m including links to articles, from among many, about this powerful artwork: Hyperallergic and My Modern Met

Rumors of War was on view in New York through early December and has just been installed at its permanent location at The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts in Richmond, Virginia. See Washington Post article.

 

Posted by Thomas Alix Johnston in Blog, Words, 1 comment

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