Some rules and hints for teachers and students

By Corita Kent
Whole Earth Catalog
Spring 1986

RULE ONE: Find a place you trust, and then try trusting it for awhile.
RULE TWO: General duties of a student - pull everything out of your teacher; pull everything out of your fellow students.
RULE THREE: General duties of a teacher - pull everything out of your students.
RULE FOUR: Consider everything an experiment.
RULE FIVE: Be self-disciplined - this means finding someone wise or smart and choosing to follow them. To be disciplined is to follow in a good way. To be self-disciplined is to follow in a better way.
RULE SIX: Nothing is a mistake. There's no win and no fail, there's only make.
RULE SEVEN: The only rule is work. If you work it will lead to something. It's the people who do all of the work all of the time who eventually catch on to things.
RULE EIGHT Don't try to create and analyze at the same time. They're different processes.
RULE NINE: Be happy whenever you can manage it. Enjoy yourself. It's lighter than you think.
RULE TEN: "We're breaking all the rules. Even our own rules. And how do we do that? By leaving plenty of room for X quantities." (John Cage)
HINTS: Always be around. Come or go to everything. Always go to classes. Read anything you can get your hands on. Look at movies carefully, often. Save everything - it might come in handy later.

SOFA

I saw the SOFA Show in New York at the Armory last week. I was somewhat appalled by the overall lack of real quality or inovation in the show itself, seemed like a glorified craft fair. Lots of jewelry and very highly polished pots. There were a couple of acceptions, though. The highlight, in my humble opinion, was Goro Suzuki's wonderful tea bowls at Gallery Gen. Like a quilt, they are reconstructed fragments of simply glazed ceramic, joined with Kintsugi, a traditional method of repairing broken pottery by laying gold on the adhesive in the crack. Aparently this is especially true of tea bowls. His use of this technique with great intention exhibits a real flare for reinventing an impossibly old and used form. So poetic. I was reminded of Cezanne in their gorgeousness and true innovative vigor.

Another breath of fresh air was Jun Kaneko, my old mentor. His famous Dungos, always bold and undeniable were on display at Chiaroscuro Contemporary Art.

Marcia Lyons had these cool cubes dripping with paint on view at David Richard Contemporary.

I look forward to the day when "art" and "craft" end their meaningless war.

Daniel Weiner

I have been meaning to write about Dan Wiener's work for a while and am finally doing so now. I have know Dan for close to 20 years, having met him at the suggestion of Saul Ostrow, my erstwhile studio spy that often suggested relevant artists for me to meet and talk to. Those suggestions have led to winning friendships and lifelong acquaintances. Dan is one of those happy encounters.

I was drawn to Dan's work in the late 80's because of it's high quirk factor. Always on the lookout for work that resonated with my own, I felt a kinship with Dan's unusual visual language, one seemingly drawn from an Ursula Leguin novel or something. His inventive sense of form and otherworldliness is quite fantastic. I love the way he makes works on paper, then sculpture, not as exact replicas of the paintings, but as sisters and brothers. Friends in a small tight knit community. Dan's work has a playful, humorous quality that invites you into his narrative. I feel transported when I look at one of Dan's watercolors. His sculpture makes me smile and sometimes laugh out loud.

See his current show at Lesley Heller in New York City for one more week.

Bart Gulley

Mona Mark and I ventured further afield last week to see a show of work by painter Bart Gulley. The show was held at the Foreman Gallery at Hartwick College in Oneonta, NY.

Bart's work is a sophisticated blend of collage and design. He utilizes swathes of color torn or cut and lays them in a random collective of overlapping layers. The outcome hints at architectural thoughts; monumental slabs of colorful substance leaning against structurally impossible lines of contrasting material. Some of the work is raw cardboard and flotsam acquired in vaguely memorable ways, adhered to the surface of each piece with care.

Bart's work is handsome and striking, formal and almost beautiful. It was well worth the trip.

Art Fairs, NYC : Wrap Up

Yayoi Kusama, 2010, acrylic on canvas

Paul Villinski, 2010-2011

OK, so I went to New York last week to take in some art during what really needs to be called New York Art Week. I went to Pulse, The Independent, The ADAA Show and the Armory Show. I know I missed some spectacular shows, but I saw enough art to keep me going for a while. My favorite piece, if that is even a reasonable declaration, is this wonderful cello spilling butterflies by Paul Villinski. This was found at the booth of Morgan Lehman Gallery and took my breath away.

Another favorite was this simple painting by Yayoi Kusama.

Art Fairs

Am getting ready to head into the city tomorrow, or town as I also call New York City. From my perch up here in the hill, "town" is all too much of a contrast with where I spend most of my days.

I am particularly looking forward to Volta. As a fair that focuses 100% on artists, I suspect it may be extremely dynamic. This will be my first time at this relatively new show.

New Work

These paintings were completed in the past month. I began this series 12 years ago or so in New York as a means to further my exploration of the relationship between 2 dimensions and 3 dimensions. It also serves as a place to ponder a more personal paradox, the juncture of art and life. These painting/sculpture hybrids allow me to develop my relationship with color, pattern, ceramics and painting in a relatively concise format. I plan on expanding these ideas into room installations.

More New Beginnings

After one and half years of trying to make my blogging strictly about business, I have decided to return here for more spontaneous blogging, more personal and perhaps more about my art. My art tends to be more fragile, more risky and scarier than my dishes, which I view as the revenue stream of my reality. All that said, I also want to speak frankly somewhere in a kind of open forum, which the blog allows me to do. Thank you for reading this and for possibly entering into a new phase of my online experiment in being. I will use this blog for publishing images of new work, as well as rants and thoughts about art and life and things which might be more controversial than selling simple dishes.

In other words, I plan to use this blog to grow. As a person. As a citizen. And as an artist.

BTW, this decision was based on this recent blog post by an old friend.

Expired Passport

Although I am missing being in Toronto at my own opening at Tinku Gallery, I am going to be there in spirit and virtually, on Twitter. Follow me. BUT, I am going now to wear the outfit I agonized about yesterday as I packed. Including this amazing scarf by John Krynick.

technorati tags: tinkugallery, canada, passport

Tinku Gallery

I am leaving shortly for the airport and off to Toronto for my first one person show in 5 years. I will be showing with Tinku Gallery, the brain child of Amrita Chandra, gallerist extraordinaire. I look forward to working with Amrita and am honored to be selected for representation by her gallery. This is a new time for art in the world. I hope to learn as much about its role in the 21st century working with Amrita as I have in all my years in the field. I have written a Manifesto with the title "The Role of Art in the 21st Century". hehe. Can't figure out how to post a PDF here on Blogger though, so that will have to wait until I change to my new WordPress platform, launching soon!!! Stay tuned...

technorati tags: art, Toronto, Tinkugallery, ceramics

International Women's Day

Participating in this on Saturday. More local information here.

technorati tags: internationalwomen'sday, womenarts

still waiting for spring...

Having survived yet another nor'easter this past Monday, another snow day, I continue my commitment not to complain about the weather. I chose to live in upstate New York, it is here I intend to stay. Early March, still over 2 weeks until the official start of spring. And the brilliant white in the stronger sunshine is lovely. Can't help wanting it to warm up a bit, tho'.

Some neutral plates for a change. Suits the time of year, I think. Gentle and just before color comes in the way of early blooms.