what is in in Scandinavia
Lauri Levanto
analyst like John Haber. However, as I live
in a safe distant from N.Y. someone may be interested
to hear what is in here.
A week ago I made a museum tour. I'm
not in position to evaluate what I saw, I rather
give a reportage. It may cast some illumination
to the "realistic" debate.
In Stockholm, Sweden
Millesgaard Museum had apparently very comprehensive
show of Malevich. A nice range of the development in style.
Moderna Museet had a special show on "After the Wall"
East European art of last decade.
For me it was too much of Video, multimedia and
performance. There must be an strong urge to catch up.
It seemed not to have deep roots in what I know of
east European culture. The show more confirms what I
understand as Erik's notation that art is what we learn to regard as
art.
I concentrated to the basic collection
that is displayed extensively after the enlargement.
Plenty of stuff that looks different in vivo from the
reproductions in books.
National Galleriet had a large collection of Hill's works.
The emphasis was in the works before and during of his mental illnes.
A travel from impressionism to inner visions.
Magasin 3 displayed Per Kirkeby.
Denmark:
Louisiana, a place worth of visiting even without the artworks.
A large exhibition on Magritte.
Statens Museum for Kunst,
reopened after renovation, the Danes know how to build
art museums.
They had a fascinating show on
trompe d'oel paintings from 17th century.
The other show was a private collection of drawings.
Not very recent works, the collector lived in the
middle of 18th century.
Special thanks, while the photography was restricted as usual,
they gladly borrow portable chairs to those who want to make
drawings.
Helsinki, Finland:
This years name is Edward Munch. In summer a great show of painting
at the caves of Retretti. Now the graphic works at Riihimäki Museum
and paintings of the German period in the State Museum in Helsinki.
Norvegians are well represented. Amos Anderson displayed Odd Nerdum
and erotic sculptures of Vigeland.
To sum up. Symbolism and surrealism are In. The Kirkeby in Sthlm
was the only major sign of Abstract painting. We have a boom of
representational but not naturalistic art.
- lauri
A tiny ps. remark: In Louisiana was a Magritte ( the feet with
the bootsraps) borrowed from Moderna Museet Sthlm.
I saw the piece also in Sthlm the day before. Apparently the Swedish
museum displayed a copy, with no reference to unauthentity.
I was surprized.
Erik A. Mattila
mental note of "Leif Salmgren" and let me know if his name ever pops up
on the art scene rosters.
I met Leif and his wife Elenore (French) in the States in 1979, and we
became great friends. When he returned to Sweden (Nordmaling) we
corresponded for a while, but eventually lost contact. We were exchange
ideas about old Nordic art motifs (Horror Vacui - fear of empty space)
when we were last in contact. At the time of our meeting, Leif was well
established as a painter, and exhibiting regularly in Sweden. Oh, by
the way, he is from that area where Finland and Sweden confront each
other, and is actually half Finnish, bilingual etc. He told me some
great stories about working in the woods with a couple of pretty rugged
Finnish loggers. My favorite was when his co-worker had a bad
toothache. He dug around in his toolbox and came up with a pair of
pliers, all covered with power saw oil, woodchips, and grease, and
handed them to Leif and said "Here, pull this one out" pointing to the
bad tooth as he stretched the corner of his mouth back. Leif wouldn't
do it, so the other partner said "I'll pull that son of a bitch out!"
And he did. The patient then broke out in a great, but bloody, smile.
"Whew, that feels a hell of a lot better now!"
Your survey of art in S. is very interesting. Eight or nine years ago
there was a flash of interest in Soviet art forms made in the
pre-stalinist era in the San Francisco area. What I found interesting
was the industrial arts -- sort of a recapitulation of the Bauhaus
idea. For example, on a distant gallery wall you could see some very
beautiful textile print displayed, and as you came closer you could see
that the designs were composed of tractors and other heroic farm icons,
rather than flowers or what ever. But from the distance the 'look' of
the textile was indistinguishable from an evil capitalist motif. (just
joking). But what is interesting is that artists of the calibre of
Malevich and Tatilov were the ones coming up with these designs that
were applied to everyday manufactured objects.
Erik
Marilyn Welch
Lauri,
Thanks for the Scaninavian overview!
Is the Danish painter Vilhelm Hammershoi
(a big show at the Guggenheim NYC 1998)
shown, or
is he highly regarded in art history books,
or is he lost in obscurity? He loved Whister's
work and tried to meet him at one point but
they missed each other.
Anyway, if anyone loves neutral colours and
a very limited palette, classic forms and
technique with a modernist lack of detail
- check out his work.
"VILHELM HAMMERSHOI : 1864-1916 Danish Painter of Solitude and Light"
ISBN0-8109-6915-0
Marilyn