Cai Guo-Qiang

It was hard to miss Cai Guo-Qiang's installation a the Guggenheim, probably because he suspended eight cars in the middle of the place.  His installations were presented under the title "I Want To Believe."  At first I was amazed by the sheer spectacle of suspended cars, 'exploding' with electronic light bars extending out from the center of each car, in vibrant colors.  Despite the normal tendency to find multiple cars above you as slightly dangerous, this piece portrayed them in a fantastic and surreal way.

It seems like a comment on american values, referencing the constant barrage of violence and other vivid imagery in the media and culture.  The high level of stylization is and has been a part of our art and media culture as well.  That, and the suspended cars are made by Chevy.

Also the clay figures that he constructed, which fell apart as they dried in the gallery, were really cool.

Famous Artist Run-In

Do YOU know who this is?

Jasper Johns

In the Met today I checked out one of their exhibits, that of Jasper Johns' work during his 'grey' period.  Yes, these paintings were close to, if not exclusively completely neutrally unsaturated grey.   "Two Flags," made in 1959, was one that included his theme of the American Flag.  This piece had two flags, one on top of the other, that from a distance looked exactly the same.  Close up though, one finds that the different levels of grey shaded areas are made up of both tight and loose brushstrokes, that differ a great deal from each other.  Some of the figures of the stars are close to representative of the American flag stars, others only reference the shape abstractly. One was an X shape.  The texture is both rough and smooth, some parts flat and others raised up by thick layers of paint.  In some parts the canvas shows through, especially around some of the borders.  All of these dynamic elements create a very lively piece, but a surprisingly static one from a distance.  Whoa!

Lofstel

OK now we're at the loft/hostel, which looks like an Ikea and has some other travelers staying.  Just got back from an Über von trendy thai restaurant named Sea.  Super great food!

Portland Airport

Ah, PDX.  I sat down for a Laurelwood IPA before heading to the terminal, where two men were vehemently arguing.  I decided to move down past the shaking heads of onlookers to the other side of the terminal, and sit down.  Here I join up with half a dozen of other art students taking the same flight to York (the new one).

I have the exquisite pleasure of sitting next to one of the guys who was arguing in the terminal, who holds up his argumentative steez throughout the flight.  Super great!