2009 Artopolis

 

Anthony Eyton (b. 1923) "Benares" I feel like a quail hunter when I walk through big shows like this. My camera is cocked and loaded, and when a painting seems to jump into the air I pull the trigger and fire. Not enough time for thought or contemplation, just point and shoot at whatever I want to remember. This painting (by an aging Royal Academician) must have caught my eye because I've been immersing myself in India lately, and I instantly recognized it as such. Robert Dukes "After Corot" The same British gallery also had this delightful piece. A study after Corot? How Chinese of him, to make something so fresh and alive in response to an historical painting. But now, I have to record that I was wearing the above as I traipsed through the show this year, and soon was told that after 34 years of service, the dean of Chicago art critics, Alan Artner, had just been laid off by the Chicago Tribune. (along with about 50 other staffers, in a series of major blood lettings as the paper stumbles through bankruptcy) And, he's not going to be replaced. The marriage of daily journalism and art criticism appears to be over. Of course, there's still that posse of un-paid opinionators like myself who publish in blogs or in New City, and it's better to have a bunch of people looking at the fragmented art scene. For example, I will never set foot into the Museum of Contemporary Art, and apparently, though Alan Artner was willing to pay it lip service, he was not very enthusiastic about that genre either. Read here how he answered the question: What Constitutes Quality in Contemporary Art? His conclusion? "In the 21st Century the finest contemporary art is the art that makes the most money." Yikes ! How Cynical! Back on August 10, 2008 when that "Ask the Critic" essay was first published, the Tribune's website allowed readers to respond online, and being the pest that I am, I asked him : "Then what is the role of an art critic?" Apparently, he couldn't come up with an answer, because my question was soon removed from the site, and readers were never again invited to respond. But, on this day, May 2 I actually had a chance to ask the critic that question in person, because there he sat, right next to me in the "Press Lounge" (to which the above badge gave me access) I had never met this graying eminence before, and here he was holding court on his last weekend of his life as an art critic. But I asked him nothing. (while recalling that it was just a few years ago that I asked him to retire ) I have to admit that occasionally I appreciated his recommendations, like the ones he made regarding certain pieces in the big tapestry show last year. But the art critic's #1 job is to identify the great (though under-reported) artists of his own time and place, and at this job he failed miserably. Nothing about Milton Horn, Richard Schmid, or Enrique Santana. He was apparently blind to the living traditional arts, while merely lukewarm to the contemporary artworld. Though offering helpful (and safe) commentary about the past, he was a fence sitter regarding the work of his own time, and one may recall the horrible punishment that awaits such people in Dante's Inferno. So, no I'm not going to miss him except that .... He was a very handy source for news about small historical exhibits in out-of-the-way places (like a recent show at the Italian consulate) And I like what he had to say, in his very last review, about how the Art Institute of Chicago changed direction regarding the contents of its new wing in response to the flow of money it got from collectors of contemporary art. That's the kind of information, about public art institutions, that's only going to come from a professional art journalist who can make such observations a matter of public record. Morris Topchevsky (1899-1947) Here's a Chicago painter taking us to a dry goods market (Maxwell Street ?) Manierre Dawson (1887-1969) An uncharacteristic nocturne by Chicago's most famous abstract modernist. (painted on a roofing shingle) Reminds me of an urban background from the Quattrocento Richard Schmid (1934-) And here's a typical nocturne from Chicago's most famous living Romantic (and former president of the Palette and Chisel) Bo Bartlett There always something mischievous from this painter, who's been in every Art Chicago of this decade. Bo Bartlett and here's his self portrait as Harry Potter. Javier Marin (b. 1962) Here's the most dramatic figurative sculpture I've yet to see in these shows. Big - ugly - grotesque. Yes. But, wouldn't they look good in a tropical garden ? Hugo Robus (1885-1964) "Dawn" I wonder if Robus is as popular elsewhere. He seems to be appearing regularly in Chicago. Moses Soyer (1899-1974) I like the Soyer twins, and especially this nude from 1945. Not to get too incestuous here, but this exactly how I image my mother must have looked at that time. Jeremy Long (b. 1971) I'm becoming a fan of this local painter who makes enormous paintings (the above is 6 foot high) I like the power, but might have had enough of his Steven Spielberg vision of American middle class life. Ben Tinsley Who is this guy? One of my favorite paintings at the show, selling for about $1600. Hong Purume This is the second year I've stumbled across the work of this Korean painter. And a quick search of the internet reveals that she is just as beautiful as her paintings. Franz Kline 1957 Allegedly, Franz Kline had no special interest in the schools of Asian calligraphy. What a tragedy that he didn't found his own. That's the problem with Modernist ideology: it doesn't give much respect to followers. China Square Gallery Here's a Manhattan gallery's take on contemporary art in China. (more enjoyable, for me, than the show currently at the Chicago Cultural Center) The sculptor (of the nudes) is Cai Zhisong, the painter is Xu Weixin but here's the kind of Chinese sculpture that I really like. So little can say so much. (very considerate of Art Chicago to include a gallery of ancient Chinese art) ********** Note: this year marked the return of Arcadia Gallery but I wasn't really thrilled because by now, I've already seen Jeremy Lipking, and the paintings they brought this time were a bit disappointing. 

 

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The "Next" exhibit (of younger galleries and artists) is mostly a vast wasteland for me - one MFA project after another. But I did like a few things, like this head painted by the German artist, Christian Schoeler. John Copland (b. 1975) And here's an amusing young American painter. The large, 8 ft. painting doesn't quite hold together except as a gag. but I enjoy its details Claire Sherman and I like this large scale painting, that seems to be architectural in ambition. She should be painting murals for a zoo cafeteria.