The Surrealism Exhibit at the Guggenheim
Kevin Filan
I just saw the Surrealism exhibit at the Guggenheim
Museum (living in the cultural center of the world
does have its advantages), and figured I'd take a
break from beating up Jill, Chris and Yiggie long
enough to talk about some more serious issues.
I've always loved Dali, but until you see his paintings
up close you can't understand what a technical MASTER
he was. This man did some truly amazing things with
paint; his figures are amazing not only because they
are so bizarre and dreamlike, but because they appear
so real and tangible.
Max Ernst was also well-represented. He's always been
another favorite of mine. There's a passage in Lovecraft's
"Pickman's Model" where the narrator talks about how some
artists know the angles of horror; when I see the best
Ernst work, I think of that passage. His line drawings/
etchings are amazing for their meticulous detail and
their juxtaposition of the mundane and the horrific.
(Like Dali... and unlike many of the sloppy 2nd raters
who see dream-images and weirdness as an end in itself...
Ernst's worlds frighten not because they are so odd,
but because they are so real),
There were some amazing Magrittes there as well; I've
never been a particular fan of Magritte, but a few of
his works really stood out. There was one image of a
nest of birds/rock which was breathtakingly beautiful;
a couple of his other paintings were equally impressive.
I may have to rethink ol' Rene; I've always found him
pretty and clever rather than Great in the way a Dali
or a Beethoven is Great. He was certainly a great
technician with a paintbrush, and some of his images
have that same unsettling beauty which you find in the
best Dali or Ernst.
(Speaking of Lovecraft: I also noted that many of the
Surrealists, who were working around the time Lovecraft
was producing his Cthulhu Mythos material, used odd angles
and strange, non-Euclidian shapes to produce unsettling
effects. I don't know if anyone has done any study of the
connections between Lovecraft and Surrealism, but it
definitely would seem to me to bear closer study.)
The exhibit included a couple of interesting works
by the Mexican painter Frida Kahlo, as well as
work by Man Ray, Roy Connell, and some lesser-known
but worthy Surrealists like Unica Zorn and others
whose names escape me at present but whose images
resonate in my mind and in my back teeth with the
power of myth and magic.
Bottom line: if you're in New York, go to this exhibition.
If you're not in New York, and it comes to your town, go
to this exhibition.
Peace
Kevin Filan
(Oh: the Guggenheim's Tannhauser collection of 19th c. art
includes some brilliant work by Picasso, Gaugin, Monet
and Van Gogh.)
Ygraine
>I just saw the Surrealism exhibit at the Guggenheim
>Museum (living in the cultural center of the world
>does have its advantages), and figured I'd take a
I told ya it was great, Kevin!
>I've always loved Dali, but until you see his paintings
>up close you can't understand what a technical MASTER
>he was. This man did some truly amazing things with
>paint; his figures are amazing not only because they
>are so bizarre and dreamlike, but because they appear
>so real and tangible.
>
>Max Ernst was also well-represented. He's always been
>another favorite of mine.
In all honesty, while those works were magnificent, I would say Hans Bellmer
stole the show. The use of mixed and multi-media in his works is the first
time I've seen the technique used without it looking contrived.
Also, Dorothea Tanning's work stopped me in my tracks, from sheer power.
>There were some amazing Magrittes there as well; I've
>never been a particular fan of Magritte, but a few of
>his works really stood out.
Ba! Rene is the MAN! There was an exhibit strictly of Magritteat the Met
about 5-6 years ago that defied imagination. His ability to animate the
mundane, well, wouldn't that be a useful tool here!
Glad ya liked it.
Ygraine
- wolf -
news:19990801194016...@ng-cl1.aol.com...
>
> Ba! Rene is the MAN! There was an exhibit strictly of Magritteat the
Met
> about 5-6 years ago that defied imagination. His ability to animate the
> mundane, well, wouldn't that be a useful tool here!
>
I agree totally here. Magritte's "identitylessness" is magnificently
portrayed in his paintings.
- wolf -
--
* There is nothing new under the sun. *
The email address has been spamproofed.
The real email address is dnai at dnai dot com.
Kevin Filan
>
>>(Kevin Filan)
>
>>I just saw the Surrealism exhibit at the Guggenheim
>>Museum (living in the cultural center of the world
>>does have its advantages), and figured I'd take a
>
>I told ya it was great, Kevin!
You weren't joking. Well worth the $12.
>
>>I've always loved Dali, but until you see his paintings
>>up close you can't understand what a technical MASTER
>>he was. This man did some truly amazing things with
>>paint; his figures are amazing not only because they
>>are so bizarre and dreamlike, but because they appear
>
>>so real and tangible.
>>
>>Max Ernst was also well-represented. He's always been
>>another favorite of mine.
>
>In all honesty, while those works were magnificent, I would say Hans Bellmer
>stole the show. The use of mixed and multi-media in his works is the first
>time I've seen the technique used without it looking contrived.
Was he the artist who painted the various doll figures in all
sorts of contortions? He was very interesting; he reminded me
of a more technically skilled Austin Osman Spare.
>Also, Dorothea Tanning's work stopped me in my tracks, from sheer power.
I'm trying to place her name to the painting, but am drawing
a blank. I may well go back and spend the $50 to purchase the
book re. the exhibition.
The Kahlos did that for me, and Ernst's sphinx painting
actually made me back up a step. I don't know why; it wasn't
the most overtly spooky work there, but there was just
something about the way Ernst combined the various elements
that sent a cold chill up my spine.
>>There were some amazing Magrittes there as well; I've
>>never been a particular fan of Magritte, but a few of
>>his works really stood out.
>
>Ba! Rene is the MAN! There was an exhibit strictly of Magritteat the Met
>about 5-6 years ago that defied imagination. His ability to animate the
>mundane, well, wouldn't that be a useful tool here!
I always found Magritte's work very pretty and very clever
but it never *resonated* for me in the way that, say, Dali does.
But again, my experience of Magritte had been mostly limited
to posters and reproductions. You have to see these paintings
up close to really appreciate them. My estimation has risen
several notches.
(Speaking of Dali: I've never seen ANYONE who captures the
color of the sky on canvas as accurately as Dali does. His
feel for the luminescence and tones of blue is unparalleled;
again, this is a large part of what makes his dream images
so unsettling).
Peace
Kevin Filan
Julia
>I've always loved Dali, but until you see his paintings
>up close you can't understand what a technical MASTER
>he was. This man did some truly amazing things with
>paint; his figures are amazing not only because they
>are so bizarre and dreamlike, but because they appear
>so real and tangible.
I haven't seen the exhibit yet, mainly because I just returned from a week in
the land where white met bread (NJ). However, I will check it out.
Your comment about Dali is very astute. Most people do not realize that to
create a truely dreamlike effect on canvas, it is necessary to make everything
appear to be completely real. The effect should be one of looking at an
irrevocably distorted reality, not the scribblings of a demented two year old.
As an art student (I hesitate to say artist, because, having seen so many
people better than me, I try to be very very humble when talking about my
abilities) I am often frustrated with the misguided emphisis placed by art
teachers on creativity as opposed to technique. The expectation that
masterpieces will come without a complete grasp of perspective, anatomy, and
composition is ridiculous and leads to much frustration on the part of
students, but seems to be rather widely held by teachers.
Just a thought. More comments to follow once I see the exhibit
---
Julia
send all hate mail to Juli...@hotmail.com
"Sincerity is just a pose, Basil, and the most annoying one I know"
-Oscar Wilde
The Long Shadow of Auschwitz.
Reminds me of these rare moments at #coscentral :)
D. J. M.
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