Not Grandma's Landscapes
Dan covered most of the good stuff at NOVA while the news was still fresh. I just wanted to add a few items I noticed.

I think my favorite piece in the whole show was by Kathleen Vance, part of her series of "traveling landscapes." It was so very appropriate for the grim little hotel rooms at the show (they really, really need serious redecorating).

But you can put up with anything if you can bring a landscape with you, and put it on your night stand next to the bed:



I can't remember the gallery she's with, but you can google it, I'm sure.

Also appropriate for the walls of a city hotel was "Robotic Grass" (I think is the name) by Ryan Wolfe, possibly at the same gallery. If you have no view of a lovely field of waving greenery, just plant your grass seeds in containers on the wall and make them move yourself. (My pic is bad, since, of course, the grass was moving).



Speaking of "country" (bad segue, but so what) -- Listening to the new Dixie Chicks album streaming for free on MSN today (thanks, Atrios, for the heads up). Is quite good. A mix of angry tunes, only vaguely political (despite the hype), and Chick-like ballads and somewhat generic rockers, very radio-friendly, tho somewhat over-arranged on some tracks, with soaring "strings" etc. They will make a bundle off this.

Thinking of soundscape (I know you weren't, but anyway), if you sat in the stairwell at NOVA you could listen to a wonderful piece by Mark Booth (who I last saw at Bodybuilder and Sportsman) that was digitally triggered by the feeble light coming thru the skylight. He read deadpan pieces, most quite absurd, keyed to the theme "today and tomorrow", reminiscent of Tony Oursler's talking video heads. Booth does wonderful drawings, largely text, that are strange and often hilarious, so it was a treat to experience this piece. I hope it's repeated somewhere.



Finally, what would a country landscape be without a horse walking thru the gallery:

Here he is:



There he goes:



Am thinking about landscapes again because summer is nearly here and I like to paint outdoors in the summer. And so once again am trying to figure out what new I can bring to the genre, other than an ego that says, "Well, if I do it, it's new and good, so there."

Until I do, guess I'll just have to keep plugging along. Planning to go out with a group tomorrow, rain or shine.

And yes, will be bringing some new work down to Sacred Art (on Roscoe just west of Damen) soon, thank you for asking. The squares are still up at John Galt (on Clark, just north of Belmont), so check them out. No web sites for either of these places yet, unfortunately, tho they are promised for Real Soon Now.
- posted by Cynthia @ 12:42 PM | | | Link |