PHILIP TAAFFE

On Friday night I made the familiar trek to Bushwick for the Philip Taaffe (b. 1955) opening at Luhring Augustine.  I've long been a fan of Taaffe's work (peep my ancient blog post inspired by his work), and the way he is able to combine so many elements into a large canvas.  His canvases feature a myriad of processes, including silkscreen, collage, stain, and paint, and imagery drawn from broad sources such as religion, popular culture, and media.  According to his gallery, "Taffe strives for an optical vibrancy and visual energy that integrate the decorative with the narrative, the natural with the man-made, the ancient with the modern - entwining cultural lineages and histories to create something authentically new from these interwoven sources."

The exhibition continues through April 26th at 25 Knickerbocker Avenue in Brooklyn.

Vintage Dress: No Relation, NYC

Leather Boots: Goodwill, VA

Poncho: Brooklyn Flea

Photos by Kathy Paciello.

ART HISTORICAL HALLOWEEN

For Halloween this year, my friend (and faithful art lover) Kathy and I decided to go all out art historical.  She was Picasso's Woman in a Hat with Pompoms and a Printed Blouse from 1962 and I was Warhol's Turquoise Marilyn from 1964.

I even ran into an Andy at a party that night, and couldn't help being reminded of the quote by the man himself: 

"My idea of a good picture is one that's in focus and of a famous person."

I'd love to hear what you're going to be for Halloween!

Dress and Wig: Amazon.com (search "Marilyn dress" and "Marilyn wig"--easy!)

Body paint and makeup: Ricky's NYC

Picasso and Warhol images from about.com

CAMPBELL'S SOUP

I'm afraid that if you look at a thing long enough, it loses all of its meaning.

This quote from Andy Warhol applies to many aspects of life, but is specifically relevant when it comes to art.

Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup cans had, unfortunately, fallen into the "familiarity breeds contempt" category for me, until I received an email from a friend last week with the photo above attached. Suddently, I was newly inspired by the familiar work and created four outfits to correspond with the color scheme of the cans' counterparts.

Synonymous with the Pop Art movement, Warhol's Campbell's Soup cans symbolized mundane commercialism, compounded by both the subject and the method of these works. Not only was Campbell's Soup marketed and distributed to mass consumers, but the method by which these works were created--silkscreen--was connected with mass production as well. These works are infinitely important art historically because they signify the move away from the idea of the artist as creative, expressive genius and simultaneously encapsulate the increasing commercialization of society in the 1950s and 1960s.

To view more photos and details of the rest of the outfits, visit my facebook page!

[Warhol image from gypsyart.yolasite.com.]