A Surprise Steinbach, Michael E. Smith's Sublimity, Lucy Lippard, etc. [Collected]

Installation view of Haim Steinbach's Mothers, Daughters, Children (with 37 Stories About Leaving Home by Shelly Silver), 1997-2011. Metal shelving, sand, wood and metal tables, wood and metal chairs, LCD TV, galvanized bucket, and latex balloon, dimensions variable. In "Entertainment" at Greene Naftali, New York, March 3, 2011.Photos: 16 Miles [more]

• "His first exhibition was with André Breton ... and his last years were spent with Keith Haring and George Condo," curator Laura Hoptman says of "idea machine" Brion Gysin in a conversation with Marina Cashdan in a new La Revue Blanche-inspired publication. [The White Review]

• "We can't help but be impressed by the three shows produced thus far by the former Citibank art advisor and freelance curator Jeffrey Deitch in his closely watched new space on Grand Street," John Good writes in "Nari Ward at Jeffrey Deitch Projects," an Artnet review published in 1996. [Artnet via Edward Winkleman]
  
  
• Four hours at the Armory. "You can drink champagne from nine in the morning until four at night," says one gentleman. Adds a lady, "The contemporary is very fresh, very alive." [Paper Monument]
  
  
• Chris Sharp on Michael E. Smith's recent exhibition at Clifton Benevento, one of my favorite shows of past last year: "It seemed as if the entire exhibition had issued from some defunct civilization whose resources had been entirely exhausted, and the artist, sifting through the rubble, had taken it upon himself to experimentally explore potential alternative resources. [K A L E I D O S C O P E]
  
  
• William Powhida, An Incomplete and Biased Guide to Some Critics, 2011. [Hyperallergic]
  
  
• Paddy Johnson points out that the two artists who took Gavin Brown's car for a spin, mistaking it for part of Rirkrit Tiravanija's current show at GBE, do not seem to have been too apologetic about the mistake. Writes Johnson, "... I’d make sure my apology was front and center..." [Art Fag City]
  
  
• Greg Allen reads Richard Prince's deposition from Cariou v. Prince, which stems from his 2008 "Canal Zone" show at Gagosian. In it, the artist mentions to Cariou's lawyer that he gave a copy of Spiritual America IV (2005) to Brooke Shields because "I'm a, you know, agreeable guy." [Greg.org]
  
  
• Here is a really nice style guide from the Association of Arts Editors. Dropping articles in titles to preserve syntax still terrifies me, but I'm going to do it in the item below. [AAE Style Guide via Image Conscious]
  
  
• In case you haven't heard, which is doubtful: Tyler Green's Art Madness has begun. I'm voting frequently for Claes Oldenburg's Store (1961), which is seeded number 39. [Modern Art Notes]
  
  
• Lucy Lippard is presenting a lecture on the evening of Thursday, April 7, at the School of Visual Arts. Its title is "Ghosts, the Daily News and Prophecy: Critical Landscape Photography." [SVA]
  

Josh Smith, "On the Water," at Deitch Studios, Long Island City

Works from Josh Smith's On the Water, at Deitch Studios, New York. Photos: 16 Miles [more]

After this show, Deitch Projects will close and Jeffrey Deitch, its owner and guiding light, will become director of the Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles. I wish he had found a more assuring way to say goodbye.

– Roberta Smith, "Art in Review: Shepard Fairey," The New York Times, May 21, 2010

Roberta Smith's assessment of Jeffrey Deitch's farewell show seems to match the general consensus among those that care about these things. His decision to end his nearly fifteen-year run as a consistently interesting New York dealer with a Shepard Fairey show is a bizarre move, but one hopes (and suspects) that he is rolling in cash from the adventure. (There are a lot of paintings to sell from the show and, one imagines, lots of prints available as well.) Still, for a master of theater who has hosted some remarkable shows over the years, it feels like a sad, tepid way to end.



I'd prefer to remember the Josh Smith show that Deitch hosted at his cavernous Long Island City space as his final official exhibition, (even though the show closed on May 2, 2010). It was, in a sense, as unusual as the Fairey show: a series of forty-seven paintings completed on the warehouse walls, partially funded by Luhring Augustine, Smith's gallery. It ran against many of Deitch's tendencies: it was subdued instead of spectacular, handmade instead of slickly produced.

Smith's quiet installation suited that strange LIC space, which almost always felt deserted except for a friendly gallery assistant and Dzine's 1993 "Pimp Juice" Cadillac Fleetwood, which sat for what seemed like years in the large garage that one first entered from the street, one half of the warehouse that often felt a little bit too big for even as ambitious a curator as Deitch. (The stunning 2008-09 Keith Haring show in the space was a clear exception to that statement.) Nevertheless, one could always count on some combination of entertainment, annoyance, and pleasure out there. ("The Pig" show — with its moving, stuffed-animal-covered Gelitin cars, its Paul Chan drawings, and its old Koons sculpture — comes to mind.)

Barbara Gladstone has apparently procured the space to use for private viewing rooms, and one of her most prized artists, Matthew Barney, uses the warehouse next door as a studio, so there will probably be some fine events out there, along the East River, in future years. Regardless of what happens, memories of the shows that Deitch presented out in Long Island City should provide plenty of material for those who want to make sense of his legacy and just may cause a few people to overlook the embarrassing Fairey show.

Shopping for Tauba Auerbach [Updated]

Tauba Auerbach-designed ad for Comme des Garçons from Vanity Fair, October 2008.

Luxury good manufacturers have long been smart about selling products at a variety of price points to attract different types of consumers. At Coach, for example, you can start out with a cheap key chain (like this cute $38 lobster piece that Jeff Koons may want to examine) and work your way up to their more epic, expensive handbags (like, say, this decadent $6,000 garden set).

Most artists have been slower to embrace this paradigm completely. You could always buy a painting (the highest price), a drawing (the middle), or a print (the low), and maybe a cheaper artist book, but things have started to become a bit more interesting. Hirst has expanded high (maybe too much so) and low, releasing products to meet almost any price point. David Shrigley has a massive series of books and postcards that seem omnipresent at museums and book stores around the world. Artists are catching on.

Tauba Auerbach, whose work is crisp and wonderful, is working this model perfectly. She's appeared in shows around New York for the past few years (New Museum, The Journal Gallery, The Drawing Center), has a solo exhibition scheduled at Deitch this year, and has been involved in all sorts of great things. It would have been smart to start buying two years ago, but here's what's available now.

1. Advertisement. $0.00

The image at the top is an advertisement from October 2008's Vanity Fair. Dig up a back issue, slice out the page, and pin it up to your wall. If you want to disguise your new poster's origin, you can easily chop out the Comme des Garçons references.

Effi Briest's Mirror Rim 7" designed by Tauba Auerbach.

2. Record Covers. £3.50 ($5.75) or $15.00

Auerbach has a few nice record covers floating around. The Effi Briest (super dark and danceable, featuring a member of Psychic Ills) Mirror Rim 7" is sold out, but the Long Shadow record is still available and almost as cool. She also produced a beautiful three-layer silkscreen for Glasser's Apply (clear vinyl) record. There's a fun video of its elaborate construction. Bonus: If you get tired of the art, you'll own some nice songs.

3. Books. $30.00 $21.46 or $60.00 42.00

Take your pick. How to Spell the Alphabet and 50/50 are both published by Deitch, about 100 pages, and gorgeous. They're also relatively cheap at Amazon. A solid buy if you're getting more serious or don't have a ton of money to spend.

Badges for sale at Partners & Spade. Photo: 16 Miles

4. Badge. $25.00

These quirky little badges, released to commemorate the release of How to Spell the Alphabet, are available at Andy Spade's new pop-up store, Partners & Spade. It's a fun little trinket to pin to your wall or, if you're feeling especially bold, wear out to an opening: You're a winner.

5. T-Shirt. $100.00

I missed these when I stopped by Asia Song Society's pop-up store, Everything Must Out Going!, but Ms. Auerbach apparently had some shirts printed in partnership with Comme des Garçons. Like the records, you're getting two things for the price of one: a new shirt and a pleasant new picture to enjoy. You can't really do both at once, and you need to make the tough choice about whether to actually wear (and wash) the shirt, but it's still a solid deal.

6. Print. $1,200.00

[Greg.org has a great post about the mechanics of producing the Paulson Press series.]

Anyone, as Dave Hickey says, can be a looky-loo: "They paid their dollar at the door, but they contributed nothing to the occasion - afforded no confirmation or denial that you could work with or around or against." Buying a print, at least, you're throwing some more money at the issue, taking on some risk, and investing in the artist. Her very crisp aquatint at Park Life is sold out, but Paulson Press appears to have some available. There's some Ellsworth Kelly, Bridget Riley, and Tibor Kalman all thrown together and made really fresh.

7. Original. $8,000.00

There's a little bit of a digitized abstract-Richter feel in Static 11 (2009) from the Brooklyn Queens show at The Journal Gallery. Four figures for a nice, big photograph isn't a bad deal. They'll be more expensive after the Deitch show opens: buy in now.

Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe, Black Acid Co-op , at Deitch [Photographs]

Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe, Black Acid Co-op [installation views], at Deitch Projects. Photos: 16 Miles [more]



















Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe, Black Acid Co-op
Deitch Projects
18 Wooster Street
New York, New York
Through August 15, 2009
[more photographs]

The Pig at Deitch Projects Long Island City [Photographs]

The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]

The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]

The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]

The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


The Pig [installation view], Deitch Projects, Long Island City. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]

The Pig Presents Jim Drain, Paul Chan, Jeff Koons, Mario Grubisic, Paolo Pivi, Gelatin, Simon Martin, Roberto Cuoghi

Deitch Projects

4-40 44th Drive

Long Island City, New York

Through August 9, 2009

Ryan McGinness, Ryan McGinness Works., at Deitch Projects [Photographs]

Ryan McGinness, Ryan McGinness Works. [installation view], 2009. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


Ryan McGinness, Ryan McGinness Works. [installation view], 2009. Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


Ryan McGinness, Ryan McGinness Works. [installation view], 2009

Ryan McGinness, Untitled (Black Hole, Black-on-Black), 2008.  Photo: 16 Miles   [more]


Ryan McGinness, Untitled (Sculpture Study 1), 2009.  Photo: 16 Miles   [more]

Ryan McGinness, Ryan McGinness Works.
Deitch Projects
18 Wooster Street
New York, New York
Through April 18, 2009

Keith Haring, The Ten Commandments, at Deitch Projects LIC [Review]

Keith Haring, The Ten Commandments [installation view], 1985

Long Island City is pretty much deserted on most Saturday afternoons.  You can walk from the Queensboro Plaza subway stop to Deitch Projects without seeing more than one or two other people walking the warehouse-lined streets.  Desolate and empty, the neighborhood is actually home to some of the city's most interesting art spaces: P.S.1, SculptureCenter, and the Fisher Landau Center.  Matthew Barney has a massive studio nearby.  You feel disconnected from Chelsea, but you're actually in the heart of the art world.

You might feel the same way looking at Keith Haring's work.  He looked like an outsider when he first became a star in the 1980's.  Though he never really got canonized or copied, most people with some interest in art can still spot a Haring today.  That said, I've never met anyone who claims to love his art.  Jeffrey Deitch does, though, and has recently decided to devote some of his considerable energy to the artist, releasing a luxurious book, reinstalling a mural on Houston and Bowery, and showing the largely unseen series of monumental canvases The Ten Commandments.

Originally painted for a 1985 show in Bordeaux, Deitch and company have taken good care of the works.  They're clean and crisp; the trademark bright paint looks fresh.  All the classic Haring figures are present in these visual depictions of their title: cartoon people, televisions, dollar signs.  Most of the constructions are pretty straightforward - a hand plucking a dollar bill from two other waving hands, two heads fellating a cross.  Haring has clever moments, but they're certainly not here.  Still, the show is worth seeing.  Unlike most the artist's work, the form here wins over the content.  It's fun looking at painting this massive and paint this bright.  They're simple, sugary curiosities, only barely cloying.

More photographs.  

Keith Haring, The Ten Commandments [installation view] [detail], 1985

Keith Haring, The Ten Commandments [installation view], 1985

Keith Haring, The Ten Commandments
Deitch Projects
4-40 44th Drive
Long Island City, Queens, New York
Through February 15, 2009

Video Art 5 - Raymond Pettibon and David Markey, Citizen Tania (1989) [Excerpt]

Before Gondry and Deitch, the original Be Kind Rewind. The full version is 87 minutes.

Defending Matt Greene

Deitch Projects was recently showing works by Matt Greene in an exhibition entitled Surrender! that I think warrants notice. (It just closed, but you can check out most of the works at the Deitch site.) If you look at the paintings for a few seconds, you're probably not surprised that Roberta Smith is pissed. She says:

"They seem conservative, thin and calculated to appeal to young, straight, male hedge-fund managers with a yen for lap dances and a taste for magazine illustrations from the 1960s."

First of all, all young, straight, males have a "yen" for lap dances. I don't think that should really be held against them. Second, what young hedge fund managers have a "yen" for 1960s magazine illustrations? I mean, I'm sure some do, but is that really a viable cultural stereotype? Those two points aside, these young men are apparently the target audience, according to Ms. Smith.

Smith is most upset that the women depicted in the majority of the paintings appear to be "vamping for the male gaze." Superficially, that may be true. The women bend over and prostrate themselves in various ways for the viewer. But it's over the top and almost comical. In some, the women jump in the air laughing; in others, they hold gigantic swords, caricatured phallic symbols. I don't think that any young male (or young male hedge fund manager, to continue using Smith's words) would feel comfortable purchasing one of these to look at for pornographic purposes, as she seems to suggest, especially given the massive witches in many of them.

With all of that said, they (and we) should feel comfortable purchasing and hanging them for another reason: they're tremendous fun, inhabiting that exciting line between irony and pure pleasure. It's that element of fun that seems to really bother Smith. Everyone's conscious of the concept of the gaze today, and Greene seems to be playing with that in much the same way as Richard Prince in his Nurse paintings (on which the market, at least, has definitely ruled). Matt Greene may or may not end up exploding into popularity - Deitch hasn't made up his mind; he's showing but not representing him at the moment - but these works seem to add some points to the former possibility.