Revisiting the Guggenheim

A few weekends ago, I had the pleasure of revisiting the Guggenheim Museum in New York. It has been years since my last visit, and the experience this time around remains singularly pleasant. The Guggenheim has always lent itself to solo-exhibits like no other - the enormous spiraling structure provides precious continuity for visitors who enjoy viewing works of a single artist without interruption.

This time around, the "solo-exhibit" is really a collaborative effort of many designers and artists, and incorporates everything from a hotel suite that is rented out nightly, to a theater showing previously banned films. Aptly entitled theanyspacewhatever, the exhibit uses the single path offered by Guggenheim's unique architecture to carry the visitor along in a fluid manner while throwing across his path various stimuli (from illy cappucino to corrugated walls) - resulting in a subtle yet transformative experience. Indeed, if the goal of the exhibit is to celebrate art as it finds itself taking over exhibition spaces at the risk of losing its objectified worship status and delineation, then it has succeeded. The exhibit closes on January 7, so if you are looking for a place to spend a few hours walking around indoors (with free coffee and movies), be sure to make a stop here.


Link of the day: Shiba Inu Dude Cam
So in case you have not been caught up in the Shiba Inu frenzy, here's the link that made these Japanese puppies famous all over the web (and via it, the world). Although many of the pups have grown up and a good number have found homes, they were certainly so very cute a few months ago. Well, the link of the day is just a funny human version of the puppy cam. Enjoy!

Artist of the day: Catherine Opie
Although the main corridor at the Guggenheim is great for single exhibits, the museum does generally showcase other artists in its side halls. One of the artists I came across during my visit is the photographer Catherine Opie. I have seen Opie's works briefly in my history of photography course in college (most notably her self-portrait with "Pervert" tatooed across her bosom), but the exhibit was a real eye-opener. The window-sized prints lined up neatly next to each other really helped me better appreciate Opie's aesthetic sensibilities and talent.

Many photographers are well known for portraying American sub-cultures, yet few produce works that also clearly articulates the artist's mastery of photographic techniques and knowledge of formal design. Opie's photographs, on the other hand, manage to convey messages, capture reality, and celebrate beauty all at the same time. This is another one of those cases where seeing the works in person will a great deal more than seeing it via google image search. Want to get lost in beautiful photographs AND have food for thought? Get off-line and head to the Guggenheim!

Sweet Stuff

Some experiences are meant to be once in a lifetime, even if there are plenty of opportunities to repeat. I had one such yesterday when I went for brunch at a chocolate bar - essentially a dessert buffet with everything from cakes, candy, to chocolate liqueur. I was at the place for 3 hours. Towards the end, I was pretty sure I hit my sugar quota for the year, not to mention feeling queezy at the thought of any kind of sweets. It was nevertheless worth the trip, if only once in a lifetime. I am proud to say that I ate about half of what was pictured (my bf ate the rest)...


There were some more cakes and chocolate liqueur martinis but I think the above was more than enough to make my point.

Link of the day: www.rrrrthats5rs.com/games/dont-shoot-the-puppy
What is it: a very random and quite pointless game, but in a sense, aren't all games ultimately just things that take time and get us to forget a bit of reality? I suppose there are games that teach things as well, but I can't say if people ever approach games with the intent to learn. In any case, this one's quite amusing as it tests your curiosity and constraint.

Artist of the day: Frida Kahlo (1907-1954)
Who is she: a Mexican artist who is perhaps most well known for her surreal self-portraits. She has been the focus of much popular attention, including amovie entitled Frida starring Salma Hayek. Kahlo's turbulent marriage to the famous Mexican muralist Diego Rivera and her numerous affairs easily made her an interesting woman to study.

As I expressed in my post about Pan Yuliang, the personal struggles an artist goes through should not be the sole basis for elevating his or her art. Like Pan, Kahlo's art should not be dwarved by her life, however sensational it may have been. All the same, the pain and sufferings Kahlo went through (including very physical deformations and trauma) are very visible in her works. And somewhat ironically, I like her paintings precisely because she so clearly articulated her feelings through surrealistic means, a genre most often associated with a sense of detachment (the dreamscapes of Dali, Chirico, and Margritte, even when they deal with the grotesque, generally portray things through a veil of perplexing relationships). While Kahlo also used dreamlike logic in her art, the combination of objects she chose often elicits very visceral reactions and makes her paintings much more proactive and intense - Kahlo reaches through the protective film surrealistic works often lend their subjects to connect viewers to her pain.

In this way, Kahlo's experiences contributed to the greatness of her art. Am I being hypocritical? I don't know and I hope not. There is a fine line between valuing artworks shaped by the unique experiences of their creators and elevating art of interesting artists. I feel like art historians constantly juggle with these concepts as they analyze works of art. Should they focus more on theory, biography, aesthetics, or history? I don't think there is a clear answer but I would like to think it is a balance of both context and content. Great art should be able to stand on its own artistic merits and at the same time, offer insights when its background (artist, time period, intent, etc.) is revealed.

Self-portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird, Frida Kahlo, Nikolas Muray Collection, Harry Ransom Center, The University of Texas at Austin