Taryn Simon "Paperwork and the Will of Capital, Tel Aviv Museum

Taryn Simon "Paperwork and the Will of Capital, Tel Aviv Museum

When entering “Paperwork and the Will of Capital”, Taryn Simon’s first solo exhibition at the Tel Aviv Museum in Israel, visitors might become seduced by the 16 large colorful prints representing floral centerpieces. It therefore might be surprising that one of the starting points for the show was a picture of Mussolini and Hitler from 1938 signing the Munich agreement and separated by a floral centerpiece. The second inspiration was 17th century Dutch still life painting and the notion of the “impossible bouquet”, where artists were aiming to represent flowers together that could not grow naturally in the same geographical place.

The flowers represented in the show were present at different international conferences, where world leaders signed treaties, decrees and accords—many of which revealed themselves not long after as false promises. The prints, framed with heavy mahogany wood reminiscent of boardroom furniture, are accompanied by an explanatory text about the agreement which was signed in their presence. 

Simon imported 4000 specimens from Holland’s biggest flower auction and worked with a botanist to identify the types of flowers.  In the center of the space, Simon placed five sculptural elements, pedestals that contain the same flowers used for the prints, which Simon had dried and sewn on archival herbarium paper.  

Visitors to the show might wonder why Simon chose these floral arrangements as the center of her exhibition. The flowers act like silent witnesses to lost promises. Like many of her previous research-based projects, here, Simon tackles questions surrounding international politics, economics, the notion of the archive, memory and time.

Until January 28th, Tel Aviv Museum of Art

- by Sarah Peguine

Interview: in conversation with London-based artist Scarlett Bowman

Interview: in conversation with London-based artist Scarlett Bowman

Scarlett Bowman’s work addresses material culture and modern craft. Her approach is directed through craft and industry where she takes mundane, everyday materials and re- contextualises them to remove their intended use, instead creating a new, tactile and aesthetic appeal. London Art Insider, Marine Tanguy sat down with the artist to discuss her practice. 

Marine Tanguy: Your works rethink our consumer's habits and very much what materials we use on a daily basis, why such an obsession? 
Scarlett Bowman: Medium has always been at the core of what I do. The readymade has always carried so much in terms of weight and meaning – hence why much of the materials I use can be purchased from my local supermarket as opposed to my local art shop.
I feel like I can only express my concerns and anxieties through materials. Their once utilitarian value gives way to a more symbolic value, inviting us to think about the complex process involved in taking a raw material to its final form. To think about abundance, banality, process, labour, dependency, industrialisation, consumption, fetishism.


 
MT: How do you choose the materials you use to create new body of works? 
SB: I always try to create a dialogue within a new work. I incorporate old and new materials, recycling them into works and thus incorporating the notion of prolific production that underlies modern life. Much of what I acquire I find or come across unintentionally. I prefer this as it provides less of a choice - I feel that, in the face of unlimited choice, certain boundaries are important to implement, else you can drive yourself mad. It’s sort of like an unconscious scavenging… I’m a serial hoarder so I am constantly collecting materials, and then I start the editing process when I feel I have enough.

MT: Do your works take inspiration from specific writings? 
SB: Very much so - they change all the time. Currently; ‘Plasticity: An Art History of the Mutable’ by Dieter Rubel, ‘Reading Things: The Alibi of Use’ by Niel Cummings, ‘Materials against Materiality’ by Tim Ingold, ‘Thinking Through Craft’ by Glenn Adamson, and always ‘I, Pencil’ by Leonard Read.

MT: How far will your experimentation take you?
SB: In so much as taking my practice further, experimenting is vital. More so in terms of expanding my material use down directed trajectories, ones specific to particular industries, cultures and countries. I have an upcoming residency in Senegal that will involve a very different approach to acquiring materials, and consequently a very different aesthetic. It will be interesting to take the same concerns and approaches to a drastically different community, where resources and materials are extremely limited and harder to obtain. 

Weirdest artistic hub ever

Weirdest artistic hub ever

The Central bus station TLV, a place where I give art tours and also just hang out and explore, is probably one of the strangest places in the city. You won’t believe what’s going on in this weird place. Amongst the various shops, marginal hangouts and underground activity, this amazing and strange bus station became a hub for contemporary art. Artists studios, art theaters, performance school and even institutionalized street art are all to find in this special venue. 

The Central bus station’s story begins in 1963 with the initiative of construction contractor Arie Piltz. Piltz imagined a new modern building that will not only replace the exciting old bus station of TLV but will also be a huge mall. His vision was that 1 million people will pass in the station each day! That was outrageous since at that time Israel had only 3 million citizens living in it. But he managed to recruit not only the money but also Ram Karmi which was the most important Israeli architect at the time. Together they planned a modern labyrinth made to make people wonder in the six floors of the station/ shopping mall.

Pic: Alon Arshov

The construction began in 1967 but soon after it went through budgetary problems, making the owners sell 750 out of 1,500 stores built in the center. That brought up even more problems trying to make common decisions with all of them. Besides that citizens of the south TLV neighborhood started to protest against the enormous building being raised in their back yard. Construction stopped for six years and eventually it took almost 30 years for the bus station to be open for the public. It was a major disaster from day one. Nobody needed such a big shopping mall and so many buses. Many of the stores never opened and two of the six floors are deserted until this very day. 

Such a strange place this is, mysterious and leading to disorientation, hosting various little shops and oriental restaurants. But it’s also full of color and a great inspiration for the art growing amidst it. Such inspiration took the “Mystorin Theater group”, specializing in site specific performance. They created “Seven” – a show running in all the floors of the station (even the deserted ones). It is a non-verbal show inspired by the seven deadly sins as portrayed in Dante's poem The Divine Comedy. The audience is led by the actors as they dance and sing with the central bus station as their décor.

"Seven"- pic: Oz Madar

Today at the station you can also find about two dozens of artists studios and a main gallery for contemporary art. There is also a Yiddish museum and library in which shows and lectures take place. A school for performance art and a second, more traditional theater portraying even Shakespeare’s writings.  On the 7th floor (yes there are seven floors today… it’s a long story), you will find the biggest indoors exhibition of street art in Israel. It began in 2013 with about a hundred street artists that were invited to decorate the walls. But since then it grew and today the whole floor is filled with beautiful murals with different and exciting styles. 

Street art on the station's 7th floor- pic: Mati Ale

There is much more to say about the central bus station and the art within it, but it is better to go and explore for yourselves. Or join my tour  Each visit is mysterious and full of surprises.

- by Shani Werner 

Upcoming Exhibitions: LA Winter

Upcoming Exhibitions: LA Winter

Matthew Marks Los Angeles
Ron Nagle
Ice Breaker
January 21 - April 8, 2017
 
The intimate ceramic miniatures of Ron Nagle are surrealist landscapes that generally measure no more than 4x4 inches. They explore a variety of fascinatingly complex textures: epoxy resin to polyurethane, automotive paint to airbrush techniques. Pulled from relative art world obscurity into the roster of dealer extraordinaire Matthew Marks, the SF-based artist has been enjoying quite a bit of attention with the dealer’s recognition of the artist’s oeuvre. There is something quite meditative about the little pieces, similar to meticulous artisan-crafted bonsai-tree terrariums, except with otherworldly vibrant colors.

Night Gallery
Claire Tabouret
January 27 – March 4, 2017
 
Claire Tabouret only recently caught my eye at FIAC 2016 in Paris this past October. I had seen her fiery figurative portraits in private collections, but this single artist presentation was like a strikingly refreshing solo show amid the haphazard displays throughout the fair. The sharp, penetrating gazes of her subjects expose a darker temperament. Smeared with makeup, the elegant dispositions turn askew and yet still possess a poise and elegance.

 
Francois Ghebaly
Dates TBD
Kathleen Ryan gained momentum when she unveiled her large-scale ‘reclining nudes’ series of concrete grapevines, strew upon pillars of marble like drunken Bacchants. It was a perfect fusion of the Classical and the Contemporary. Her quirky, abstracted ceramic parrots were also a fun interpretative element that she added to a huge, discarded chandelier. Curious to see what new works she will unveil in her upcoming exhibition with Francois Ghebaly.

A glimpse into what's happening in the San Francisco arts scene

A glimpse into what's happening in the San Francisco arts scene

San Francisco, the worldwide hub for tech innovation and entrepreneurs, has been excitingly gravitating towards an upward momentum of art and design. 

2016 was an extremely exciting year for the San Francisco arts scene.  Along-side the incredible existing cultural institutions, such as the De Young Museum, Legion of Honor, Pier 24, and Asian Art Museum, 2016 brought the re-openings of the SFMOMA and BMFA as well as the openings of the Minnesota Street Project and new high profile international galleries such as Gagosian and PACE. Thus, solidifying San Francisco's place on the map as one of the top destinations to view world-class art. 

The area of San Francisco known as the Dogpatch, located on the waterfront and once home to large warehouse and shipyards, is fast becoming the hub for local artists, designers and makers. Since the opening of the Minnesota Street Project in March 2016, (which alone brought over 15 galleries, 30 artists studios and offices for arts related organizations and businesses) various galleries, artists and arts related organizations are quickly migrating to the half industrial and half residential neighborhood.  A perfect outing for a Saturday: head down to the Dogpatch either by car or muni, start by wandering around the 13 galleries at 1275 Minnesota Street, stroll down a few blocks to 22nd Street to enjoy the quaint shops filled with local crafts and artisanal products and finish with a stop at one of the many incredible restaurants such as Piccino , 'Aina or Serpentine. 

As we welcome in 2017, January is a big month for the arts in San Francisco.  Along with the openings of more than 30 shows at local galleries and museums, those of us in the art world are filled with excitement for the 4th year of what many people think is San Francisco's best art fair FOG Design + Art, the inaugural presentation of UNITITLED in San Francisco as well as several ancillary art pop-up events starting January 11th taking place in various locations throughout the Bay Area.  

- by Marissa Halbrecht