New York Centric (Jan/Feb 2013)

n.y. centric | arts January - February 2013

625 W 27TH ST / NY, NY 10001 / 212.989.0156 BAILEYGALLERY.COM

GEORGE LITTLE

January 10 - February 16, 2013 Ana Cristea Gallery

521 West 26th Street, New York, NY 10001, T: 212-904-1100; F: 212-904-1171, www.anacristeagallery.com

SEUNG-PYO HONG February 2013

Greater Happiness II , Hanji and Other Mixed Media on Panel, 59 x 94.4 in, 2012

322 Grand Street, New York, NY 10002 • www.shin-gallery.com • (212) 375-1735 • info@shin-gallery.com

n.y.centric | arts magazine

January - February 2013

contents

onview 12 | siri berg at hionas 13 | niko luoma at bryce wolkowitz

19 | jimmy raskin at miguel abreu

14 | bubi canal at munch

20 great women artists at mary ryan

15 | three artists at horton

departments

16 | stephen pusey at guided by invoices 17 | renata poljak at stephen stoyanov

8 | jewelry amanda keiden

18 | tamar zinn still at kathryn markel

Bradford J. Salamon 38 Roberta Carasso profiles the artist and his work

columns

10 | art alison van pelt

A Roadtrip through Europe 44

Herbert Bayer: Bauhaus 60

with two pre-war ski runs. Paepcke and Bayer were instrujust an art director, contributing in management decisions, mental in initiating the changes that would make Aspen a including the design of buildings and interiors. cultural oasis in the 1950’s and beyond. The Aspen Institute The Great Ideas of Western Man was a Herbert Bayer Hugo Anderson atand the for Humanistic Studieschronicles was founded by Paepcke in 1949, advertising campaign of looks the 1950’s 60’s. These ads had Laura Grier her withjourney Herbert Bayer working as architect and design consulnolegacy sales message, againgreat workingartist on the concept that a good of the in words and photos tant. He designed a complex of buildings for the institute, corporate image was also good for business. The ad conintegrated within the natural landscape of the mountain cept was an out- growth of discussions at the Aspen Instivalley. In 1955 he created a work called grass mound, a fortute for Humanistic Studies. ty foot grassy place for relaxation, years before the concept The Institute worked to bring business executives and of “earthworks” became popular. He also created marble managers together to discuss ideas in a relaxed setting and garden using discards from an old marble quarry. In 1963a cultural environment. The Aspen Institute was as respon64 he designed a new tent for the Aspen Music Festival. sible for putting Aspen on the world map as was skiing. It With his return to mountain living, mountains and was also a great concept for expanding the year past ski seacontour map elements began to emerge in his artwork from son, with many of its programs in the summer months. the late 1940’s on, as in his lithograph mountains and lakes It was through connections at the Aspen Institute that (1948). He designed a series of ski posters, including ski Bayer met Robert O Anderson, founder of Atlantic Richbroadmoor (1959). In 1953 the Container Corporation field Oil Company. In the early 1950’s they became friends; published world atlas with graphics designed by Herbert Anderson bought Bayer’s house in town when Herbert Bayer. His goal was to put together an atlas with clean moved his studio onto Red Mountain, overlooking Aspen. graphics that was easy to read. The interaction between fine Along with the house, Anderson also began to buy artwork art and commercial art again shows in Bayer’s paintings and

by Bayer, providing the beginning of a relationship of paprints with continuing use of weather related symbols, such tron and friend that would last until the end of Bayer’s life. as arrows, flow charts and contour maps.

After Walter Paepcke’s death in 1960, Bayer began working The Container Corporation employed the talents of for ARCO as an art and design consultant, starting in 1966. on Man the Ray cover: and Fernand Leger as well as Bayer in the late Bayer oversaw the design of corporate offices in New page 20good design, corRed1930’s.

Deb Itby Deborah Kass was their concept that See through York and Philadelphia, as well as Los Angeles when the corporations could influence good taste and profits. Bayer, porate headquarters moved there. He designed the artwork cover background: advertising info: with his Bauhaus ideals, was a natural to work in this colfor ARCO Plaza in Los Angeles: double ascension, two rkpublisher@gmail.com page 13 text was limited RADIUS #1ofby LuomaIn See laboration artNiko and industry. their ads, linked staircases in a pool| of(561) water. 542-6028 He also advised ARCO to fifteen words of copy in order to put the emphasis on on the development of its large corporate art collection and

66 | art collecting how to start a collection

68 | food justine freeman reviews the nomad; talde

72 | dating.pool when eve met king kong

6 ny centric jan/feb 2013

lacentricmagazine.com

E.E. Smith DIVERSIONS Michael Lipkin SACRED SPACES

February 14 - March 16, 2013 Reception: Feb 14, 6 - 8 pm

KIM FOSTER GALLERY

529 West 20th New York 10011 www.kimfostergallery.com

n.y. jewelry

AMANDA KEIDAN

Jewelry designer Amanda Keidan has become known for her exclusive, privately-commissioned engagement rings, designed under the name Amanda Keidan Jewelry. Her recently released new limited edition collections designed under the name AKJ. She has been designing for eleven years, and can count among her clients some very well known leaders and tastemakers. After trying her hand in a few creative positions in fashion and editorial in New York City, Amanda ended up in the metal studio after hours as a form of meditation. According to her, “Working with my hands, whether painting, sculpting or metal working is a process that takes me inward and clears my head. I carved a tree into a disk pendant with a tiny jewelry saw and I wore it out, and it got people'sattention. One of those people was an editor of a magazine and before I knew it, stores were calling and the business was born. I never considered it work, until people offered to pay me for it. This was in 2001.�

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n.y. jewelry

Since then, Amanda has designed hundreds of privately commissioned diamond engagement rings. She is incredibly attentive to detail, drawing out the individuals’ story and ideals, inserting elements that are personal to the recipient: “I take pleasure in meeting my clients and hearing what they want and what they respond to. I like seeing them light up when they fall in love with an idea”. From afar, the piece may look classic, but up close details set the work apart — the way a particular diamond is held, the way a pendant is attached to a chain, or anunexpected stripe of pave diamonds. Every piece is hand made and created in the studios in New York and Los Angeles. The entire process is overseen by Keidan, from concept to sketch and design to fabrication — the end result is a truly memorable, delicate, personally-designed treasure that tells a personal story and intrigues from every angle.

Her limited edition collections of jewelry draw broadly on her inspiration from world travel, interior design, and a love of architecture.

As she says, “Design ideas are always flying around in my head. The ready to wear collection is the three dimensional version of my ‘personal inspiration’ sketchbook.”

Amanda Keidan currently resides in Venice, California, and makes frequent trips to New York and London to visit clients, hold trunk shows, and to deliver commissions. See amandakeidan.com

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 9

n.y.art

For the past 30 years, I have been preoccupied with the act of painting. For most of this time, I have been captivated by the blurring of paint. I like to streak it to imply motion, or finesse the paint until the image is hidden a bit, or drag the brush aggressively until the image is almost obliterated. My favorite blur, the gentle, steady, repetitive blur, seeks to create the illusion of a tangible, three-dimensional apparition, like a hologram. Because this result is not always achieved, and because the pursuit of this enterprise can be strenuous, and must be meticu-

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ALISON VAN PELT

lous, it is important to find joy in the process of painting. The blur has become more than a means to an end. I love to watch the paint change as the brush passes over it. It is mesmerizing to watch an image gradually develop and reshape. I am comforted by the repetition of brush strokes and entranced by the transformation of colors and textures.

While the conclusion of a painting may not be the realization of the desired objective, I find that the more time I spend immersed in the practice of painting, the more I come to value the act of painting itself.

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 11

onview

“Phases”, a new solo exhibition from lauded abstract artist Siri Berg, is curated as something of a prequel to the artist’s previous show at the gallery, which was a redux of her 1986 solo exhibition Black & White: 1976-1981, Phases is comprised of minimalist canvases created between the years 1970 and 1975. The artist isolates and expands upon her familiar motif of perfect geometric forms, this time rendered in brilliant color, all while channeling the words of W.B. Yeats, in particular the poet’s esoteric 1925 work, A Vision.

In this book-length study, Yeats explored his burgeoning interest in occult astrology, which as one could imagine placed a great emphasis on semiotics as well as the study of lunar phases. In just one example, Yeats’s reflections are brought to visual life in Berg’s Phase 22 (1975), a diptych of stunning clarity and simplicity, wherein sunlight and shade gradually trade fractions of space. Her use of comple-

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SIRI BERG thru Feb 17 Hionas

mentary colors—turquoise and orange—from opposite ends of the spectrum don’t so much collide as maintain a delicate balance, off set by increments of grey. Says Berg, “To paraphrase Yeats, all our lives we are either walking in the sunshine or we are walking in the shade."

Many of the works that comprise Phases were originally exhibited at New York’s The View-

ing Room Gallery in 1974. In his review of the show, New York Times critic Holland Cotter, then writing for New York Arts Journal, wrote of Berg’s careful coloration: “Of this marriage, within the systematic division of the circle, Berg’s canvases are composed.” He later continued, “the components are simple but the structures produced are inexplicably poetic.”

Siri Berg, Phase 22, 1975, diptych (shown separated), acrylic on canvas, each 30 x 52 in.

NIKO LUOMA Bryce Wolkowitz thru Feb 16

onview

Niko Luoma, whose exhibition, And Time Is No Longer an Obstacle is part of a larger exhibition,“New Wave Finland: Contemporary Photography from the Helsinki School�, which features over 40 recent works by nine photographers and video artists from Finland's distinguished Helsinki School. Established in 1995, the Helsinki School comprises selected alumni and faculty from the Aalto University School of Arts, Design and Architecture and is internationally recognized for its innovative approach to photography and inspiring roster of artists. Considered one of the premier photography schools in the world, the Helsinki School is not defined by a specific discipline, nationality, or geographic region. Rather, it represents an approach, an innovative way of thinking, that has evolved out of a process of teaching at the university. Here the camera is simultaneously a conceptual tool and thinking eye; each generation of artists is encouraged to reinvent itself and push the boundaries of the photographic process.

Nko Luoma: (clockwise from top) RADIUS #1, 2011, Diasec / archival pigment print, 55 x 67 in; LIGETI #4, 2012, Diasec / archival pigment print, 67 x 53.5 in; ENTROPY #2, 2012, Diasec / archival pigment print, 67 x 55.13 in

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 13

onview

BUBI CANAL Feb 10 - Mar 10 Munch

Bubi Canal’s solo exhibition “Special Moment” presents several of the artist’s most recent photographs, as well as select objects and video work, highlighting the singleminded focus of his aesthetic over a range of media. His photographs are exercises in saturated color and geometric form, a glimpse of a fantastical reality populated by benevolent monsters, playful mashups of human, animal and muppet. His creations are simultaneously plastic pre-fab and meticulously handmade, eerie and familiar, a fever dream from childhood. Chrystelle, Canal’s video is set against the striking natural landscape of his native Santander, his main character’s slick, vivid costuming surprisingly resonant with the vibrant elemental surroundings. At once alien and native, much like the artist himself, his work mimics life and his life is his work. He puts it best himself: “I like to create a new reality that remains connected with my life. I like opening doors onto the unknown and building something new.” Born in Santander, Spain, Canal studied in Bilbao and worked in Madrid for several years before coming to New York in 2011. His visual references range from the angular patterned sweaters and nostalgic toys of the 1980s to his icon, Michael Jackson. Canal mines his own experience, dreams, and pop culture for content and works primarily with those closest to him, not models or actors; an interior playland within an insular world.

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Bubi Canal: (from top) Chrystelle, 2013, Lambda print, 24 x 26 in; New Eyes, 2013, Lambda print, 18 x 24 in.

NATASZA NIEDZIOLKA AND JAMES HYDE & JESSICA LABATTE

Horton thru Feb 3

onview

Proceeding to work both in the tradition of Dada textile artists who embraced the irrational such as Jean Arp and Hannah Hoch and with the democratized folk technique of sewing, Natasza Niedziolka’s recent embroideries continue to combine whimsical abstractions with implied still life compositions, though now with the focus shifted onto the work’s constructed form. Only hints of color appear in these compositions, issued from delicate lines of colored thread on untreated cotton. The subtle variation of line color and density in the artist’s stitchwork demonstrates that Niedziolka’s embroideries have become increasingly concerned with relating to drawing on paper techniques. The result is a simplicity that resembles the contemplativeness of sketches and underpaintings utilized throughout the history of painting. By reducing the spontaneous forms and colors characteristic of her past work Niedziolka emphasizes both the physical embroidery technique as well as this historical tradition of working out complex compositions by drawing with minimal elements. Also exhibited are works from Niedziolka’s new series of photo exposures.

Photographer Jessica Labatte’s work has been involved with the liminal space between photography, sculpture, and painting that can be generated through studio experimentations with reflective surfaces, light, color, and scale. Labatte creates color inkjet photographs of sculptural assemblages set up in her studio, but the resulting prints are never straightforward renditions but sophisticated abstractions that avoid the appearance of mindless Photoshop reverie by skillfully juxtaposing complex shapes and colors and by offering hints of the physical materials of her assemblages. Generating a revisionist model of painting, James Hyde’s “Glass Box” paintings appear simultaneously illusionistic and literal. The paint, paper, wood, and other materials used to make the painting aren't so much painting materials as physical surrogates for painterly activity. To imagine Hyde's “Glass Boxes” as sculpture would be to see them as slap-stick contraptions caught in the act of painting themselves into being. Also on view are works from Hyde’s “Istanbul Papers,” a series of a small works on paper completed over a two week period that the artist spent in Istanbul in 2011. These artists are clearly united by their bold challenges to the boundaries of two-dimensional representation, abstract painting, and sculpture.

(top) Natasza Niedziolka: Still Life. Embroidery, 2012, embroidery on fabric, 54x40 in & 58 x42”; (below) Jessica Labatte, Cross Processed (Green To Blue And Blue To Green), 2012, archival inkjet print, framed, Ed. 3+1Ap, 11 x 14 in.; installation view of James Hyde & Jessica Labatte, Horton Gallery, back gallery.

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 15

onview

An underlying concept of Stephen Pusey's current paintings and drawings is signature. This may be interpreted literally as a calligraphic mark or by extrapolation to signify an expression of being that is at once unique and commonly shared. Pusey's work is simple in premise and complex in form: it commences with broadly drawn gestures to which the artist autonomically responds carrying the information of the initial strokes through the work until a matrix resembling a neural network is formed. While his current work is Abstract

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STEPHEN PUSEY thru Feb 9 Guided by Invoices

there is a biological inference in the entwined forms which never actually coalesce into figuration. The paintings also have an optical contradiction of a flat plane and a perspective space effected by his vibrant and exacting use of line and tonal color. To quote the artist, “I am interested in the duality and dialogue of opposites - the tension between chaos and structure - of progression and regression and of a biological shape-shifting and persistence of similarity that resonates throughout existence.�

Stephen Pusey was born in London and graduated from St. Martins School of Art. Between 1977 and 1981, he painted monumental public murals around London in a Photo-Realist style.

In 1986, he moved to New York City and was

invited to exhibit at PS1. During the following years, Pusey experimented with various forms including digital and networked media.

In 1996, he co-founded the online art and discussion hub Plexus (plexus.org) with curator Yu Yeon Kim. He was a founding member of the Foundation for Digital Culture (1996) and a contributing artist to Arsdoom (with Peter Weibel, et al) for Ars Electronica (1995). In 1997 he co-curated OMNIZONE, Perspectives in Mapping Digital Culture, which featured on the Guggenheim Museum's Cyberatlas website. Concurrent with his explorations in the digital realm, Pusey continued working with physical material. Between 2003 and 2004, he created a 9 x 20 foot Abstract graphite mural at the Slought Foundation, Philadelphia. The following year his Abstract paintings and graphite installations were shown at Hermes, New York. His work is included in numerous public and private collections.

Stephen Pusey, The Significance of Disparate Frequencies, 2012, Acrylic on Canvas, 35.5 x 58 in

RENATA POLJAK Stephan Stoyanov thru Feb 24

“Uncertain Memories”, a solo exhibition by the Zagreb, Croatia-based artist Renata Poljak curated by Zeljka Himbele, presents the artist's works in video, photography and film made between 2007 and 2012, including here acclaimed multimedia series Staging Actors/ Staging Beliefs (2001/2012). The title of the exhibition underlines continuous thread in Renata Poljak's work: preoccupation with how ideologies and political agendas are being formed and disseminated, and how memory and history are constructed and recorded.

The artist starts with her personal experiences, often portraying contemporary society of her

home country of Croatia. Yet, the works resonate on much wider scale. In Staging Actors/ Staging Beliefs, the artist uses different media to investigate two iconic films of Yugoslav cinematography: Bosko Buha (1978) and Train in the Snow (1976). Through their continuous screenings both in theaters and on the national television, the communist ideology and belief in socialist system were extensively spread and influenced generations of people. Poljak examines what is currently happening to the actors who took main roles in these once popular films, and accordingly, how the Yugoslav political, social and cultural agendas transformed

Renata Poljak: (clockwise from top) Staging Actors/Staging Beliefs (Set photograph), 2012, c-print, 78.7 x 35.4 in; Uncertain Memories This is not me, 2012, c-print, 33.5 x 23.5 in; Alice, 2002, c-print, 39.5 x 39.5 in.

onview

and mutated since the early 1990’s when Yugoslavia disintegrated and Croatia (one of the former Yugoslav States) gained its independence. In Poljak’s most recent work, a photograph titled Uncertain Memories: This is not me, 2012, the history of cinema is again both a resource and a motif. The artist appropriates a frozen frame from Andrei Tarkovsky’s documentary Voyage in Time (1983), made during the director’s research trip through Italy for his famous feature film Nostalgia, to contemplate on entanglement of real and fictional in her investigation of remembering and identity.

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 17

onview

TAMAR ZINN STILL thru Feb 2 Kathryn Markel

“Dancing�, an exhibition of new works by Tamar Zinn Still, presents a group of paintings in which she responds to the structure and energy of music through the lens of geometric abstraction. Music, specifically jazz, is often heard in the studio while Zinn is at work. Her paintings are imbued with forms that are rhythmic and melodic, sensual and yet highly structured. She works without a preconceived endpoint and each painting is a unique representation of ever changing moods and atmosphere. Forms are loosely painted in, may be abandoned and then re-emerge in the process of sanding, scraping and repainting the image. The palette of deep reds and blues and paler tonal variations serve to create a balance between activity and calm, complexity and stillness. The process driven works emerge organically, as reconciliation between seemingly disparate states, and the paintings provide an interval for contemplation. Zinn believes that, "without moments to pause, what surrounds us becomes a cacophony of blurred experiences", and her goal is to provide her viewer with these moments.

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Tamar Zinn: (from top): broadway 103, 2012, oil on panel, 24 x 36 in; broadway 101, 2012, oil on panel, 28 x 33 in.

JIMMY RASKIN Miguel Abreu thru Feb 17

In his third one-person exhibition for the gallery, Jimmy Raskin returns to one of his beautiful obsessions, Arthur Rimbaud’s Vowels (circa 1870), the inspiration of his previous show, “Inseparability vs. Simultaneity”. In the opening verse of the poem, Rimbaud assigns a color to each of the vowels in the alphabet, “A black, E white, I red, U green, O blue: vowels”. Raskin considers this simple linguistic gesture to be a pivotal point in the history of poetry, the very moment the author acknowledges the arbitrary nature of language. There is a before, and there is an after this event that changes everything: one exits the place where the poem “of necessity” was a possibility and enters a new world where “simultaneity” and “infinite juxtaposition” becomes the norm, the new paradigm of expression, if you will. For this puzzle of an exhibition, Raskin produced

five monochrome, circular paintings on wood following the poet’s suggested bright colors. At the initial graphic stage, he overlapped small segments of the circles to generate not only the shapes of a petal, an ear, or a tear, but also a muted mix of five intermediary colors, thus giving himself a palette of maroon, aquamarine, navy blue, gray, and pink, along with a decisive form to work with. The second major motif structuring the show, the cone, has a long history in Raskin’s visual vocabulary.

It first emerged as Pinocchio’s nose in his attempt to resuscitate the dead tightrope walker from the prologue of Friedrich Nietszche’s Thus Spoke Zarathurstra. The tightrope walker was the emblematic figure of the poet, the one inseparable from his line, devoid of the capacity for critical distance. He was also the subject of the philosopher’s first metaphor as a

Jimmy Raskin: (clockwise from top right) Almost Altars (The Five Noble Ruts), 2013, wood, steel, latex paint and mixed media, 77 x 120 x 120 in; A Black Eye, 2013, fire stencil, latex paint on MDF 64; detail of Almost Altars.

onview

poet, but had fallen and died. He needed to be brought back to life at all cost. The stakes were high in this theater dedicated to the diagnosis of the life of expression. “Pinn,” as Raskin named his hybrid character when he set him on his path to survival, became a piñata and remains a representation of the spirit of the restless poet, but he also later turned into the cone of memory, or the streamlined shape of intensification itself. His function here is that of a precarious pedestal, a prop-like sculptural formation made to receive and display what the child might need to make and show. The apparently irresolvable tension between the conceptual dimension of cool design and the glitter of play stays decidedly active. The resulting risk is that one kills the other, but it seems increasingly clear that these opposing forces might simply need one another. If this is indeed the case, the question then becomes one of apprehension, of looking for and finding the proper line of demarcation between the two.

On March 1st, in the context of Bookmachine, organized by Christophe Boutin and Mélanie Scarciglia at the Centre Pompidou in Paris, Jimmy Raskin will present and perform his Lisbon Lecture.

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 19

onview

“From Provincetown to Now: 100 Years of Women in Prints” is organized by defining movements and important themes. The earliest works are white-line woodcuts, known as Provincetown prints, from the early 20th Century that depict the Bohemian village of Provincetown, Massachusetts by Maud Hunt Squire, Ethel Mars, Edna Boies Hopkins, and Ada Gilmore. Highly prized, these works were groundbreaking for their time and exhibited internationally. Mars and Squire

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“FROM PROVINCETOWN TO NOW” Jan 26 - Feb 23 Mary Ryan

frequented Gertrude Stein’s salon, Color linocuts

by Sybil Andrews represent the British Grosvenor School prints from the 1920s and 1930s.

These dynamic prints distill the repetition and movement of daily life into vividly colored, distinctly bold images. Included in the exhibition are contemporary prints by women of women, turning the male gaze on its head. Inspired by Andy Warhol’s Liz Taylor, Deborah Kass depicts herself as Liz in Red Deb, dealing with issues of

beauty, gender, and appropriation in a bold and pointed manner (see above). Mickalene Thomas sets a dynamic scene of a woman, inscribing references to 1970s film iconography and feminism. Alternatively, Lesley Dill is interested in language and texture, constructing Head, an editioned androgynous bust, out of delicate material. Also included in the exhibition are works by Kiki Smith, Elizabeth Catlett, May Stevens, Joan Snyder, Louise Bourgeois, and Yvonne Jacquette.

Deborah Kass, Red Deb, 2012, silkscreen, edition of 60.

Courtesy the artist and Mary Ryan Gallery, New York.

From many tribes come one.

uncom m onr ox.com

PAUL PRETZER

FEBRUARY 13 - MARCH 17, 2013

2012 - 2013 SEPTEMBER CHARLES HINMAN OCTOBER ULF PUDER MARCIN CIENSKI NOVEMBER JEFFREY GIBSON JANUARY MARIN MAJIĆ FEBRUARY PAUL PRETZER MARCH LEONARDO SILAGHI MAY JOHN NEWSOM

MARC STRAUS

2 9 9 G r a n d S t r e e t , N e w Yo r k , N Y 1 0 0 0 2 www.marcstraus.com • 212.510.7646 • info@marcstraus.com

BRADFORD J. SALAMON

a profile by Roberta Carasso, Ph .D

Painting from a live sitter, a photograph, a forgotten artifact, or filming his artistic process while painting portraits of exceptional artists, are energizing sources for Bradford J. Salamon. Tapping into a rich palette of information, the artist transforms the essence of direct painting through layers of skill, memories, emotions, and soulful passions. His art overflows with vibrant possibilities; a 21st century vision rendered through multiple and diverse processes, media, and tools.

Salamon is known for his figurative paintings and drawings of individuals and groups who engage in profound human scenarios. Currently, he expands his repertoire to include intimate portraits of vintage objects of yesteryear, as well as films about artists and the nature of creativity. Knowing that content cannot be conveyed in just one work of art, or expressed in only one medium, Salamon has found his personal solution. While portraiture is one of the oldest subjects, Salamon brings a newer dimension to the tried and true art. He renders in-depth views of each sitter, a biographical approach, a dialogue as he captures the many aspects of the sitter through multi-media in various sessions.

The artist, who never lacks for commissions, prefers to choose a sitter, rather than have some-

24 ny centric jan/feb 2013

one ask him “to do” a portrait. Those he decides to portray in depth are people he highly admires – creative artists, writers, and musicians. In this approach, the artist builds a stockpile of reflections, capturing ever-evolving nuances of character, personality, drama, and story. Thus, Salamon gets into the psyche of the sitter, painting a more accurate reality of each person he portrays.

Combining traditional techniques with documentation, Salamon celebrates a person’s life. His biographical approach results in a rich bounty of art that deepens the relationship between sitter and artist. Once the many works of art concerning one person are assembled, the soul of the sitter and the soul of the artist can more truthfully emerge.

Among his subjects is a portrait of Eric John-

son, the contemporary sculptor who is a master at capturing scientific concepts in abstract sculptural form. In his work Johnson uses super bright colors with space-age surfaces that are clean and smooth. Salamon, however, paints the sculptor in deep browns and grays as if he portrays him in Rembrandt’s time. In this way, Salamon shows that an artist of Johnson’s caliber creates timeless art that is connected to all art history, not just to our era of slick modernity.

With pencil, charcoal, paint, or camera, Salamon meets the sitter as if for the first time, finding fresh qualities, which may not have been revealed in previous sessions. Working with several portraits over extended and various lengths of time, Salamon states that painting many intimate renderings of the same person: “Deepens

my relationships with other human beings that no other act would accomplish. The process of painting is an interaction which cannot be done from memory. Human beings are three-dimensional. In order to portray the real person, the artist must interact. Spending hours and hours cannot help but deepen the connection and affect the art. This close kinship brings out the intimate details of the sitter and his or her creative nature; and the artist’s response to it.”

The stereotype of the artist and sitter is that the artist paints while the sitter remains immobile. However, Salamon is interested in portraying a flesh and blood human, an energetic individual, a multidimensional alive person rendered through multiple media. Consequently, Salamon allows the viewer to move and talk, ensuring that the art never becomes stale. As he blocks in color, bone structure, light and dark and overall contour, the person dialogues with him, turning, moving, and animating a range of gestures. As Salamon applies washes of color, he builds up planes where corners of planes shift or come together, and body structures alter.

Add to this that Salamon is aware of the three-dimensionality of color, light and temperature, the heat and cool that color emits. The artist does not stop in the process. He makes alterations, color adjustments, determines how clothing relates to each other, or how the background dialogues with the foreground. Continuously talking, moving a brush rapidly, mixing paint, and checking the person in front of him, he monitors all phases of the emerging painting.

Using his iPhone while working is an added bonus; when there is a stop in the action, he not only takes a picture of his painting, but soon develops a collection of stages in the painting’s progress. For Salamon, reducing the painting to a smaller image, along with different views helps him be aware of the many facets of the process.

Looking at an image he may have created minutes before allows him to transcend time, to be in more than one time zone as he builds the image, like an architect aware of all phases and dimensions of a building being erected.

Salamon blocks out specific details and makes determinations to check edges, hard edges, soft edges, or contrasts, such as in the mouth and corners of the mouth. Color of hair, skin, eyes, merge along with the soft edges as bodily planes meet, as he continuously works outward in, going from large to smaller areas and then to subtle details.

At times, he works from a static image such as a photograph. To overcome the possibility of becoming dry, he returns to his life drawings for reference. He does not draw while he paints, but looks at the many sketches such as those on his iPhone to review their essence more quickly.

Asked why he now is drawn to vintage objects such as a discarded oil can, an outdated typewriter, or unknown gadgetry, he responds: “I will paint people forever, as they are always important to me. But my fascination with inanimate objects and the stories they tell bring me back to a different time when it makes me move into the mindset of a designer or inventor who thought with 1920 references. Old glass bottles, iconography, out-of-date sewing machines, their shapes and how they work stimulate me to see the world with fresh perceptions.” Salamon’s choice of vintage is the well-designed and wellmade detritus that was once revered. For him, these objects have an edge that connects the past with the present and expands the artist’s range of perceiving the world around him. For Salamon this is what the art process is all about.

Knowing his voracious appetite for finding ways to understand people, ideas, and the essence of art, it is natural that Salamon also has successfully taken up filmmaking. He works

with significant artists and art critics to produce 15 minute films that give an audience an intimate look at the nature of an artist and the art produced. At the moment, Salamon has created about 10 short films of Los Angeles artists under the theme of “Looking for Genius.” These include Alex Schaefer, Matt Gleason, Don Bachardy and others. Salamon’s dream is for each artist to recommend another artist as he forges links that connect artist to artist in places beyond the known, discovery a hidden genius, who creates really great works of art.

Over the years, Salamon has had many exhibitions as his work is sought by fine collectors.

His art is largely shown in California and New York. In early Fall 2013 he will have a solo exhibition at the Brett Rubbico Gallery in Newport Beach, California. The title is Trans-Portraits as he will be painting various objects of transportation as well as showing portraits of fellow artists.

In ending the interview, it was poignant to consider the source of Salamon’s passion for art, how his work has evolved dramatically, and how several in the Salamon family gravitate towards creating imagery. The artist explains that his father had always wanted to draw and paint, but found himself lacking. Instead, he opened a frame shop where he could be close to art each day. His eldest son, Salamon’s brother was the artist in the family. It was so easy for him that eventually, he gave it up. Secretly wishing he could be an artist too, Salamon persevered in drawing and painting. One day, he meekly showed his father a drawing, and as a compliment to his son, his father framed it, acknowln.y. edging the emerging of his talent.

For more information on Bradford J. Salmon, visit his website at www.bradfordjsalamon.com Roberta Carasso can be reached at roberta.carasso@gmail.com or visit www.carasso.com/roberta

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 25

Wanderlust:

European Road Trip

by Laura Grier story and PhotographY

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Walking into the BMW factory in Munich, Germany, is like walking into something from the “Jetson’s” cartoon. The entire building is all different shapes of glass and steel twisted together to look like a cyclone, and you are in the eye of it. They greet you, serve you beer, let you climb into a simulator to “test drive” your new car, and then reveal your new car on a spinning platform with spotlights on it. This was how my boyfriend, Jason and I picked up our new ride to go on our epic European road trip. We picked up a shiny, new, space gray 5 series and had a European license plate that made us look and feel like spies in James Bond. Thus our adventure was born.

The idea for our road trip started months ago. Jason wanted to have a stick shift BMW, which you have to special order from Germany. My sister, Marisa, was about to move to the south of France and have a baby. The Euro Cup Soccer matches were happening in June. And last, but not least, I had been dying to go back to Italy since I studied abroad there as a freshman in College; vowing to come back so I could get married there someday…determined to marry an Italian man. Now, 14 years later, I have returned with my Italian man and we both have a strong desire to find a place to get married someday in Italy. So for me, this trip turned into an adventure to scout our dream wedding location in Italy.

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When Jason first mentioned wanting to drive through Germany, France, Italy, and Austria in two weeks, I thought he was crazy. In my mind, it takes me 7 hours just to drive from Los Angeles to San Francisco and I have barely even crossed the state and I have definitely not changed languages or currency, but when you look at a map and realize how close everything is in Europe and that Europeans pretty much all drive like they are on the Audubon, I started to think maybe we could actually pull it off.

I of course threw a complete tantrum on day one, because I really wanted to detour a bit to go see Neuschwanstein Castle, which most of you would recognize as the castle that Walt Disney based his famous Sleeping Beauty Castle on at Disneyland. Jason overruled my demands and said that it would take us hours off our course to get to the south of France. So, I pouted…I really wanted to see a castle. Little did I know, that we would see about 20 different castles in the next five hours as we drove through the mountainous roads through the Austrian alps. It was beyond breathtaking to drive through these majestic mountains, and equally frustrating, because all I wanted to do was take photos and there is nowhere to stop and no way to shoot quality through the windows…I guess there are certain things that are meant just for memories.

It’s hard to believe that in eight hours from departing Munich, we were pulling into the

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quaint town of Menton, France, just over the Italian border. I had been to the south of France before, but I was not prepared for all that Menton had to offer. I had no idea that there were so many Medieval Mountain Villages between Nice and Italy. Most Americans think of the South of France and think of the Cannes Film Festival, P-Diddy’s Yacht parties in St. Tropez, or the Grand Prix in Monaco, but there is so much history and culture in this region that it is staggering to comprehend.

Jason and I met my new little niece, Olivia, which was so exciting and as a family with my sisters and their husbands we all strolled along the cobblestone streets of Menton, having gelato and perusing the farmer’s markets and the many aisles of cheese..mmmm. Everywhere around you, you heard multiple languages being spoken, one of the things that make me realize how much Americans live in a bubble…spoiled to only have to learn one language. I learned that this region, the Cote D’Azur, has always been fought over for centuries. It is no surprise to me why. One look around you at the crystal, clear, turquoise water with a dramatic mountain backdrop and views of Corsica and Italy, and you realize you are truly in paradise. So many different countries have conquered it over the years, that there is such a diverse clash of cultures, evident not only in the languages, but in the architecture.

We found ourselves walking through path-

ways and sidewalks in the old, medieval part of town, large enough only for a donkey cart to pass through. We would happen upon a church with paintings dating back to the 1100’s and people still living and worshiping there as it was hundreds of years ago. We also hiked up to the highest point in Menton, now a cemetery for the fallen that fought to protect the castle from a siege from pirates in the 1300’s. The highest point in Menton, is not the highest point in the mountain region by far though. My sister told us about St Agnes and Eze, two nearby villages high up in the mountains only 15 minutes away.

So we decided to go explore them. Basically, these two towns were built from the people that fled the pirates and chose to live by escaping even higher into the mountains and building a new village with a new castle and church. It was like they were all trying to outdo each other…. bigger, higher, safer, better.

Eze and St. Agnes took our breaths away!

These towns still look and function as they did centuries ago. Their old castles have been converted into a boutique Hotel/ artist colony, where all of the tiny stone rooms of the caste have been converted into artist studios. So as you walk around and explore the narrow winding cobblestone walkways of the castle, you can stumble into a painter’s workshop, or a weaver’s studio. I felt so enchanted being there and the view of Menton below was like we were in

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a plane looking down on the town, because we were up so high. It was hard enough to hike around the village, let alone try to fathom what it took for people to climb up there and build these towns with their bare hands stone by stone during the Dark Ages.

After a few days of relaxing in the warm waters, hiking around, and just soaking in the sun and culture, we were off again to discover Lake Como. Jason and I had never been to Lake Como and we were so beyond excited to drive there and stay for a few days. Both of us have always talked about wanting to get married in Lake Como and even though we had never been, it has held a special meaning for us both. I believe that everything happens for a reason, and one week before the trip I was asked by a wedding magazine to photograph and write about local places to get married at in Lake Como. So that request led us to the fabulous Valentina at Hotel Grand Tremezzo, where we were invited to come stay and were treated like royalty. Honestly, I don’t think even George Clooney himself could have shown us a more lavish time. We were given their penthouse, lakeview suite, with a private hot tub on the balcony. Our living room opened up completely to the balcony and our view was of their floating pool in the lake and the Bellagio beyond. It was so spectacular we didn’t even want to leave our room!

We were given a tour of the property, the entire time giddy and practically putting a deposit

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down for our own wedding, because we were so in love with the place. The Grand Tremezzo is unique on Lago di Como, because it is the only hotel originally built as a hotel on Lake Como.

All of the other hotels on the lake were once Villas and have been converted into hotels, so they are smaller and older. Hotel Grand Tremezzo is more boutique, modern and chic, with colorful modern furniture modeled after 19th century furniture and décor. It still had the “old school” charm, yet with modern luxury and amenities.

They even have a private garden with a table for two, called the “Dis Moi Oui”, or “Tell me Yes” garden, where they can organize engagement proposals with a private dinner and violinists to serenade you. They sent chocolates and champagne to our room and Valentina even organized a private tour of the lake in their old-fashioned wooden boat, so typical to Lake Como.

Lake Como is a microclimate and palm trees are indigenous here. This was so strange to me to come from California and still be seeing palm trees here in the mountains of Italy near the Alps. The lake is in the shape of a wishbone, so getting to the other side is deceiving. It looks close, but could take hours to drive around it, so there are ferries and water taxis to cross over to the other side of the lake. All around you are mountains and what makes Lake Como so special is that the lake is so narrow, that you feel like you are in canyon and have spectacular

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views no matter what direction you face. I had no idea that Lake Como is 45 minutes from Milan, 2 hours from St Morritz in the Swiss Alps and 4 hours from the South of France. So you have luxury relatively close in every cardinal direction. Driving our huge German car around the lake was quite frightening to say the least.

Again, these roads were built most likely with a donkey cart in mind, so imagine windy curves that are one lane wide and a cliff on one side.

That was an adventure.

There are only three places in Lake Como where you can be legally married outside of the church, the Town Hall, Villa Carlota and Villa Balbianello (the location where the wedding scene from Star Wars was filmed). I became obsessed with the idea of having our wedding ceremony someday at the Villa Balbianello, because it is this private estate on its own peninsula not accessible by the road that circles the lake. So the only way to get to there is by boat and that idea in my head seems so romantic. I started getting stressed out just trying to figure out the logistics of how to get all of our friends and family out to Lake Como for our future wedding and then I had to back up and remember that Jason and I are not even engaged yet, so I am getting WAY ahead of myself:) After three days of pure luxury in Lake Como, we sadly said our goodbyes, but were excited to continue our Italian adventure in Verona and Venice. It is only 4 hours to Venice

and I wanted to stop for lunch in Verona, but also go to seek out the famous balcony from Romeo and Juliet. Many couples from all over the world come here to find love, locate lost loves, or even to leave messages for Juliet. Years ago, you could write a letter to her and leave it in the wall, but now times have changed and for your convenience (and a small fee of one Euro) you can leave her a voicemail on the payphones provided…seriously.

When we reached Venice I was already thinking like the Wedding Photographer I am.

I was like, “Honey, how cute would it be if we got married in Venice? Since we met and live together in Venice, California, we could have a “Venice” theme..From Venice to Venice” etc… I had all but designed our table cards by the time we reached the port in Venice where we had to leave our trusty BMW steed and proceed to shlep all of our bags for an hour, getting lost in 100 degree weather, and carrying our bags over 20 bridges, before finding our little Pension. After that, as much as I LOVE Venice and it’s charm, it made the thought of getting our guests to Lake Como seem like a piece of cake.

I fell in love with Venice when I was 18 years old studying abroad in Italy. There is something about the energy there that is electrifying. Its funny, because Venice, Italy is similar to Venice Beach, where it has been a haven for artists over the years and is a melting pot of food, music, culture and the arts. As touristy as it was, we

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took a gondola ride through the older parts of the city and had a romantic dinner in one of the plazas where a quartet was performing, but the highlight was our orchestra performance inside of a 600 year old church later that night. We saw a flyer for Vivaldi’s 4 Seasons, one of my favorite pieces, and I felt like we couldn’t leave Venice without seeing some type of performance in an old church. Venice is known for teaching artists their craft as it was taught centuries ago, so there was even a Harpsichordist performing. I felt like we had been transported back in time.

As we rounded the corner of our trip and had to head back to Germany to drop off our car and drive home, we decided to take a different route home through the Austrian Alps and stop for a night in Salzburg. There we did as the locals did and ordered massive beers and pretzels and watched a Euro Cup Game in an outdoor beer garden. Watching soccer in Europe is a completely different experience than watching it in the United States. No one in our country appreciates the sport or lives the obsession as they do in Europe. That was such a highlight of our trip to pop into a different bar or pub in every country or city we were visiting in to watch a soccer match. Soccer, or Football, is the Universal language in the rest of the world. Something that transcends the language barrier and a way you

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can always find friends no matter where you are.

We finally returned to Munich after two weeks that felt like two months in some ways and two seconds in other ways. We had barely seen anything in Munich other than the BMW Welt and I wanted to see something memorable or photo worthy there before we flew out the next day. Jason’s German friend mentioned the “Endless Wave” in the heart of Munich, where people from all over come to surf. I thought he was making a joke, since we came from California the surf capital of the world and I can never quite get the humor of Germans anyway, but sure enough as we neared the center of town, we started to see people in wet suits carrying surfboards walking across the street. It may be one of the coolest things I have seen in an urban city. It’s a water pipe that spews out water in a way that it creates this permanent, surfable wave. When people wipe out they get washed down the river and the next surfer jumps on and it’s like watching a video game where the river keeps eating surfers one after one and they just disappear and float away. I love coming across strange places like this when I travel. It is one of the reasons I am a photographer, because I wouldn’t believe some of the things I have seen myself if I had not captured it with my camera.

I always feel like I can’t leave a place unless

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I am excited by at least one photo I have taken there. My surfers in Munich did that for me.

After I took those photos I remembered feeling ready to go home. As much as I loved every second of our adventure and we were already planning multiple trips back before we had even left, there is something to be said about going home,

not living out of your suitcase, and just jumping back into your own life again. I felt inspired to learn another language better, to find a way for Jason and I to live in Europe for at least one month a year, and, well, to hopefully come back again soon for another epic European Advenn.y. ture called “Destination: wedding�.

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Herbert Bayer: Bauhaus

by Hugo Anderson

Bauhaus and our very sense of what is modern in twentieth century art and design are practically synonymous. We are surrounded in our everyday lives by the designs and theories put into practice by the Bauhaus. While the school of the Bauhaus existed only from 1919 to 1933, its principals and influence resonate today because of the achievements of the artists and architects associated with it: Walter Gropius, Paul Klee, Vassily Kandinsky, Joseph Alpers, Lyonel Feininger, Laszlo MoholyNagy, Warner Drewes and Herbert Bayer.

By definition Bauhaus means construction or architecture (bau) and house (haus) in German. It was the creation of Walter Gropius, who in 1919 assumed control of the Weimar School of the Arts and Crafts and the Weimar Academy of Fine Art. He combined the two into the Weimar Bauhaus School. It was Gropius’ intention to create a new generation of craftsmen without the class distinctions between craftsmen and artists. No doubt it

“No institution has affected the course of twentieth century art and design so profoundly as the Bauhaus. Its impact is staggering. Bauhaus precedents provide sources for everything from the appearance of our urban skylines to the modern dinnerware on our hard-edged, contemporary tables. They are found in virtually every functionally designed object and graphic today.”

- Gwen Chanzit

Curator, Herbert Bayer Archive at the Denver Art Museum 18 Art Colorado Nov/Dec 2011

was an attempt to build something new and positive out of the ashes of World War I when Gropius stated “Let us desire, conceive, and create the new building of the future together.”

The central concept was that no one art form was inherently better than any other and that the fine arts and applied arts must be studied and used together. Through good design the new artist/craftsman would create a better world. The very fact that easel painting was replaced in the curriculum by mural painting showed Gropius’ commitment to integrate all the arts within architecture.

Of all of the artists associated with the Bauhaus during its brief 15 years, it is Herbert Bayer (1900-1985) who actually devoted a lifetime to a career which incorporated the ideal of total integration of the arts, in design, advertising, architecture, public sculpture and painting.

Herbert Bayer was born April 5, 1900 in Haag am Hausruch, Austria. Because of a book he read by Vassily Kandinsky (Concerning the Spiritual in Art) he enrolled at Weimar Bauhaus at the age of 21. He actually arrived at the Bauhaus six months before Kandinsky began teaching. Bayer studied at the Bauhaus for two years, taking a leave in 1923 to travel through Italy. He had arrived at the Bauhaus with almost no prior background in art, and thus offered the perfect “blank slate” upon which to create the essential Bauhaus artist. Since the Bauhaus offered no art history in its curriculum it made sense to expand his firsthand knowledge of art architecture and design by spending a year traveling in Italy, sketching and painting. To support himself he painted houses and stage sets during his travels, thus applying the integration of craftsman and artist at the first opportunity.

In 1925 he was offered a position on the faculty at the Bauhaus, as Master of Typography. It was then, in conjunction with the ideas of Moholy-Nagy, that Bayer developed a “universal alphabet” using only lower case letters. This was designed to be a practical typeface, which was large enough to read and free of distortions and curlicues, sans-serif type.

Bayer applied this type design to ad copy, posters and books throughout his career.

In 1928 Bayer left the Bauhaus to pursue a design career in Berlin. It was his desire to put the theories of the Bauhaus into practice in design and advertising. In 1933 he produced a “bayer type”. During his Berlin years, in addition to his design work, Bayer ventured into photography, which he used in both commercial (ads and posters) and fine art production. With Maholy-Nagy, Hebert Bayer was an early creator of photoplastic or photomontage. The altering of photographic imagery through the use of multiple

negatives and collage meshed well with Surrealist imagery, as in self-portrait (1932), lonely metropolitan (1932), and metamorphosis (1936).

The later 1930’s were difficult times for free expression.

Artists were among the many groups who felt the need to find exile outside Nazi Germany. The Bauhaus had closed in 1933 and many of its artists/faculty had already emigrated to the United States, finding work teaching at Harvard and at the New Bauhaus in Chicago. Bayer had traveled to the U.S. in 1937 and became involved in the design of an exhibition on the Bauhaus at the newly created Museum of Modern Art. In 1938 he moved to New York City. Deposition (1939) while depicting the tools of Christ’s crucifixion, also portends the dark future of a Nazi victory in Europe, a victory that seemed quite possible in 1939.

The exhibition Bauhaus 1919-1928 opened at the Museum of Modern Art and later traveled around the United States. It provided an introduction to modernist design to a country slow to accept abstraction in painting, much less in advertising, which required client acceptance. During his tenure in New York, Bayer’s graphic work prospered, but when the opportunity arose to move back to a mountain environment he took it, moving to Aspen, Colorado in 1946. He accepted a position as design consultant for Walter Paepcke and the Container Corporation of America, whose headquarters were in Chicago.

The Aspen of 1946 was a small mountain town of less than 800 residents and only the beginnings of a ski town,

jan/feb 2013Feature ny centric19 37

with two pre-war ski runs. Paepcke and Bayer were instrumental in initiating the changes that would make Aspen a cultural oasis in the 1950’s and beyond. The Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies was founded by Paepcke in 1949, with Herbert Bayer working as architect and design consultant. He designed a complex of buildings for the institute, integrated within the natural landscape of the mountain valley. In 1955 he created a work called grass mound, a forty foot grassy place for relaxation, years before the concept of “earthworks” became popular. He also created marble garden using discards from an old marble quarry. In 196364 he designed a new tent for the Aspen Music Festival.

With his return to mountain living, mountains and contour map elements began to emerge in his artwork from the late 1940’s on, as in his lithograph mountains and lakes (1948). He designed a series of ski posters, including ski broadmoor (1959). In 1953 the Container Corporation published world atlas with graphics designed by Herbert Bayer. His goal was to put together an atlas with clean graphics that was easy to read. The interaction between fine art and commercial art again shows in Bayer’s paintings and prints with continuing use of weather related symbols, such as arrows, flow charts and contour maps.

The Container Corporation employed the talents of Man Ray and Fernand Leger as well as Bayer in the late 1930’s. It was their concept that through good design, corporations could influence good taste and profits. Bayer, with his Bauhaus ideals, was a natural to work in this collaboration of art and industry. In their ads, text was limited to fifteen words of copy in order to put the emphasis on visual images. Lengthy texts were out; clean copy was in.

Advertising was seen as good public relations with consumers and buyers at other corporations. Bayer used collage and photomontage, elements from his fine art, in his early advertisements. He became chairman of Container Corporation’s Department of Design in 1956. He was more than

38 denver centric dec 2012/jan2011 2013 20 Art Colorado Nov/Dec

just an art director, contributing in management decisions, including the design of buildings and interiors.

The Great Ideas of Western Man was a Herbert Bayer advertising campaign of the 1950’s and 60’s. These ads had no sales message, again working on the concept that a good corporate image was also good for business. The ad concept was an out- growth of discussions at the Aspen Institute for Humanistic Studies.

The Institute worked to bring business executives and managers together to discuss ideas in a relaxed setting and a cultural environment. The Aspen Institute was as responsible for putting Aspen on the world map as was skiing. It was also a great concept for expanding the year past ski season, with many of its programs in the summer months.

It was through connections at the Aspen Institute that Bayer met Robert O Anderson, founder of Atlantic Richfield Oil Company. In the early 1950’s they became friends; Anderson bought Bayer’s house in town when Herbert moved his studio onto Red Mountain, overlooking Aspen.

Along with the house, Anderson also began to buy artwork

by Bayer, providing the beginning of a relationship of patron and friend that would last until the end of Bayer’s life.

After Walter Paepcke’s death in 1960, Bayer began working for ARCO as an art and design consultant, starting in 1966.

Bayer oversaw the design of corporate offices in New York and Philadelphia, as well as Los Angeles when the corporate headquarters moved there. He designed the artwork for ARCO Plaza in Los Angeles: double ascension, two linked staircases in a pool of water. He also advised ARCO on the development of its large corporate art collection and the performing arts programs it sponsored. He designed carpets and tapestries for the corporate offices.

He designed a sculpture for the 1968 Olympics in Mexico City. A similar sculpture resides at the Design Center in Denver, Colorado. He also developed a seriesof sculptures for ARCO that were designed to hide/beautify the Philadel-

phia refinery area. These were among a number of sculptural projects that were never created and exist only in the form of maquettes. Currently the Bayer family is working to try to realize some of his models as larger works in Denver and other cities.

Bayer moved from Aspen to the Santa Barbara area in 1976. He lived there for the last ten years of his life. A fine collection of his work can be found in the Santa Barbara Museum, while The Herbert Bayer Archive is at the Denver Art Museum, with over 9000 artifacts in the collection.

During the last four decades of his life, Herbert Bayer was well employed in design positions with the Container Corporation and ARCO. In addition to his corporate responsibilities he developed a significant fine art portfolio during these years. Artistically Bayer is probably better known for his earlier photomontages from the Berlin years (1928-1938). Having two significant patrons in Walter Paepcke and Robert O. Anderson, there was little need for Herbert Bayer the fine artist to go through the normal routine of gallery exhibitions and reviews necessary for artwork to find its way into important private and public collections.

The town of Aspen is full of Herbert Bayer paintings that moved directly from studio to private hands. To a certain degree his reputation as a painter, printmaker and sculptor never received the critical acclaim that exhibitions and reviews would have allowed. He suffered a bit from being too successful.

In his later years Bayer used his graphic skills to create fine art prints, using lithography and silkscreen, the same mediums used in his commercial work. A skill learned in one area is used in another.

In these graphic images, as in his later paintings, he returns to geometric design and abstraction in a se-

ries of works he called “anthologies”. In these works the Bauhaus artist has returned to basics: color, geometry and design. The sculpture he produced during these same years still maintains a freshness today, thanks to his combination of clean design and primary colors. His surrealist photomontages from the 1920’s hold as much shock value today as they did then.

The success and legacy of Herbert Bayer are the combination of Bauhaus ideas and American optimism from the post WWII period applied to a work ethic and career which lasted until his death in 1985. It is the combination of clean design and a fresh palette of primary colors that explain the continuing appeal of his artwork. His work is optimistic and easy to live with, the result of his lifelong adherence to good design. More than any of his contemporaries, Herbert Bayer stayed true to his Bauhaus ideals through his n.y. sixty-year career.

Hugo Anderson is the Director of Emil Nelson Gallery, which represents the works of Herbert Bayer from the Bayer Family Collection.

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fineart

how to build an art collection

by Astrid Oviedo Clark This is the first in a series of articles that will demystify the act of collecting in today’s world.

Each article will address a different aspect and give you not just basic knowledge but practical ways to think and begin collecting and maybe even become the next great collector.

When people think about art collecting, they envision white walls and concrete floors with unapproachable sales peoples wearing black designer head to toe, or packed auction floors, like Christie’s, full of billionaires vying for a Picasso that will break auction records at $106.5 million. There is a belief that this is an arena only open to the very wealthy and very knowledgeable. However, on both counts, this is a false. The fact is that most great art collectors began with neither.

One of the best examples of this is the wellknown story of a couple, Dorothy and Herbert Vogel from NYC who lived off her librarian salary and bought art with the husband’s post office salary. They amassed a minimal and conceptual art collection of over 2500 items. They began by going to galleries and buying the work of unknown artists, following these artists, befriending them, learning from them. Many are considered the most important artists of that period.

Having an art collection is not directly related to how much money you have. There are works of art at every price point, for every budget.

And no matter what budget you have, you can make savvy choices as to what you are buying. Why buy a framed poster for $2,000 when you can instead own an original work of art by an emerging artist who is doing something unique and is getting the attention of curators and critics. In other words, becoming an art collector begins simply by caring about the art you surround yourself with and not settling for decoration for your home. All you need is a budget and ability to live with a clean, empty wall when you begin your journey.

You do not need a formal art education. Nor do you need an art consultant. Art consultants are aides who will fast forward the process in a guided manner. But as the Vogels demonstrate, all you need to do is open your eyes, see as much art as you can, read about artists, talk to artists, and ask lots of questions.

The one piece of knowledge you will need is to know that no great artist existed in isolation. Every artist needed to be supported by a network of other artists, curators, critics, collectors and dealers. Vincent Van Gogh for example did live in Arles alone, but his brother was an important art dealer and his best friend and frequent visitor was Paul Gaugin. Pablo Picasso arrived to Paris and his best friend was an avante-garde critic at the time. He had the best dealers and visionary collectors like Gertrude Stein when he first began. One could say that they were associated with the right brands. This still applies today. This column will explain to you: 1) how to hedge your risks on an artist by being able to discern which galleries (from blue-chip to emerging) are the best ones that will help nurture an artist’s career, and 2) how to read an artist’s bio and know that important curators are looking at this artist and that critics are reviewing them. This is not to say it is an insider’s world. But like anything there is a system that is easy to crack once one knows the method. This column will help with this.

But to start, begin looking and training your eye. Museums are a great place to start. There you will see what museum curators have chosen as

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Christie’s Auction of works by Picasso

the best examples by an artist of any time period, works that are worthy of being in art history books. (They are in there because they broke new ground in terms of subject matter and the manner they were created. Go to the museum lectures and tours. Ask questions. Read. You will not only be subconsciously training your eye, but you will get a sense of what strikes you over everything else.

For example, after a visit to a museum, you may decide the 1913 paintings of Wassily Kandinsky, the father of abstract art, really made an impression on you on how it looks and how it reflects the period it came from. However, owning a Kandinsky is prohibitive in price. There are artists who have since turned to abstraction in an altogether different way, moving forward the lineage of abstract painting. (Think Jackson Pollock in the 1950s, or Mark Bradford today.) The fact is, the best work is conceptually and technically important and they support each other. And yes, there are emerging artists who are doing this now at the lowest price points.

Visit galleries and even auction previews. These are free and open to the public. They want you there. And don’t forget to look! With the internet, you can visit theses galleries in other cities virtually to see if they have an artist that strikes you. Be patient though; do not jump and buy the first thing you see. Again this is all about building what I call your “mind’s eye” — the ability to see work that is visually striking and is supported by the conceptual underpinnings of the work.

Go to online art websites with reviews, news, and even gallery guides.

Two of the best are www.artinfo.com and www.artnet.com. These sites are the best for the most up-to-date art news, analysis, reviews, and even to plan for upcoming exhibitions. Print publications are good as well. There is Artforum, whose esoteric writing is frequently ignored by the experts in the field as they look carefully at the advertisements. Not only do they act as a preview of what the top galleries in the world are showing but the most influential galleries can be assessed by the placement of their ad. (Yes, really.) It is political.

Others publications include Art in America, ARTnews, Modern Painters, and Art & Auction (best for articles on collecting overall.)

This may sound daunting…but this is just a broad introduction to the collecting art. I hope to offer you a more detailed no frills guide to understanding the art world, the basics to start looking at art and collecting it…. at any budget. You will learn how to ask questions, what to watch out for…and pitfalls to avoid. These will be tools that even the greatest art collectors did not have when they started.

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245 Broome Street New York NY 10002 212 228 1600 munchgallery.com

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Justine Freeman North of Madison Avenue, in an unexpected corner on Broadway and 28 Street stands a fully restored, turn of the century Beaux-Arts building in all of its original splendor. Chef Daniel Humm and Will Guidara (the powerhouse behind the 3-Michelin star rated Eleven Madison Park) have opened these grand doors to welcome us to their first solo venture, The NoMad Hotel.

French designer Jacques Garcia kept the interiors classically Parisian and the 168 rooms timelessly styled with original artwork. Since the first Maison KitsunĂŠ boutique in America can be found at the hotel, I had to pop in and see it for myself. Then I strolled past the lobby and into the restaurant for lunch where I was delighted to find tables basking in daylight from the surrounding glass atrium. It underscored the soaring ceilings and created a warmth and glow through the space.

At once light and airy, hanging ivy gently fell from terra cotta columns and whisked my imagination to a forlorn romance somewhere off in a vineyard. But the wistful dining room also remained exquisitely refined, with chairs draped in luscious silk and heavy curtains adorning the doorways.

The menu achieves this same balance of refined yet approachable items, featuring rustic, French-inspired fare from this James Beard winning chef. The first thing I did was order a Bloody Mary. I had to get my daily dose of veggies! It was perfectly sweet and spicy and didn't need any tweaking at all.

Before I could even batt an eyelash at the waiter, he brought over this gorgeous loaf of bread, still warm from the oven, and baked with onions and potatoes. I practically devoured the entire thing and really couldn't help myself with such soft, flavorful bites topped with delicate, crispy onions. This is just the amuse!

The Poached Egg with quinoa and asparagus arrived in a rich and creamy brown butter sabayon that created a delicious soup with which to coat the asparagus and crunchy quinoa. The quinoa had a medley of preparations: some boiled,

42 ny centric jan/feb 2013

THE NOMAD NoMad

some dehydrated, and all of it fried to get that textural crunch. And to amplify the dish? Slivers of parmesan melted into the golden egg yolk and parmesan foam swirled around the plate.

A truly exceptional dish, and probably not unheard of to sop up some buttery sabayon with any remaining crumbs of that onion bread.

The Lobster Tagliatelle was stunningly supple and easily some of the freshest tasting pasta I have ever had. Prepared in a simple sauce of butter, Meyer lemon and black pepper, the sweetness of the Alaskan king crab became perfectly pronounced. Each bite was velvety with butter and the soft noodles held the freshness of the lemon. This dish was beyond incredible in its simplicity and was definitely not easy to share.

The seared scallops with sorrel, lemon and lightly braised maitake mushrooms were drizzled in a pea puree and fennel. I loved the lemony scallops and how the dish showcased some great seasonal ingredients.

I will have to come back here to try the very expensive roast chicken. And so should you.

Apparently it has foie gras, truffles and morels tucked beneath the skin for an unforgettable experience. And although the chicken arrives fully in tact, the dark meat and white meat are each cooked separately before regaining their place on your plate. (Maybe that $78 price tag doesn't sound so crazy after all... especially for us Californians who for better or worse must endure a ban on foie gras!)

Finally, your waiter will present to you this very tempting dessert cart filled with lemon curd meringue tarts, raspberry macaroons, and chocolate carmel confections sprinkled with fleur de sel. Don't be mad at him for gently gliding by with a cartful of temptation. Sometimes it's enough just to take a looksie...

In case you weren't already mad with desire, the 24 foot mahogany bar next to the library is run by the award winning mixologist, Leo Robistchek. Since The NoMad opened in April, the only madness you will find there are the maddening crowds scrambling to get a table.

food

TALDE Park Slope

When you decide to eat where the Top Chef judges eat, head over to Park Slope in Brooklyn and try Dale Talde's Asian American restaurant, Talde. The menu covers all the bases, from Thai to Vietnamese, to Japanese and of course, takes inspiration from Talde's own Filipino heritage. And all of this is done with a nod to classic American cuisine.

Wedge salads and Texas style brisket grace the Asian influences with a taste from the States.

Talde opened the large, high ceilinged, corner space with the two owners of Thistle Hill Tavern(also in Park Slope) David Massoni and John Bush. And because Talde has made a name for himself on several seasons of Top Chef, on most nights you can expect to wait before getting a table. The restaurant doesn't accept reservations unless you are dining with Padma Lakshmi herself. Her favorite dish?

The Korean fried chicken.

At your table you will find 19th century Japanese mahogany frames carved with exotic dragons and elephants and plenty to distract you from the menu. So take your time before you get seated to study your options or just have a reasonably priced drink at the bar.

Hooray for Brooklyn!

The Pretzel Pork and Chive Dumplings with Spicy Mustard were a perfect example of fusion at its best. I imagine a NYC hot dog cart met a Hong Kong night market stand and made these delicious pups. The evenly crispy pretzel was never too greasy and kept the juicy ground pork perfectly warm and pink.

The chives and spicy mustard made it a home run, and to cheer even further for the mustard is this quote from the New Yorker, "they’re served with the kind of spicy mustard that comes with Chinese takeout...too often relegated to the kitchen junk drawer".

Char Siu Smoked Pork Spare Ribs with Watermelon and Thai Basil were slowly smoked ribs combine typical barbecue elements with gorgeous Asian flavors. The ribs hold a rich smokey flavor after being smoked for about 8 hours, and are tender and sweet with a hint of tang. The watermelon reminds you of a day in the park, but with thai basil the park might actually be a beach in Thailand.

The Market Vegestables (Chinese Long Beans) were Smothered in ginger, lemongrass, and other piquants did not take away from the freshness and flavor of the bright and crispy green beans. These were a delicious and healthy choice with the basil and other ingredients so fresh that they seemed peppered.

In the Korean Fried Chicken with Spicy Kimchee Yogurt, Cherries & Mint, yhe spicy kimchee yogurt sauce may be the reason your

date never asked you out to dinner again.

You either licked the bowl or drooled a little bit just thinking about it. That kimchee yogurt was so exquisitely spicy and so well-paired with cherry slices and moist chicken that it completely outdid any of your wildest date night expectations anyways. Dark red cherry slices and fresh mint really were the cherry on top.

The whole branzino, roasted with tomato, garlic and turmeric in a banana leaf and topped with fresh basil and cilantro perfectly explains why Kanye's date ordered fish filet in the song "That shit Kray".This is Dale's stand-out dish, and possibly negates any of the hardships you faced getting here and waiting for a table. Beautifully presented as a whole fish, but all the bones are removed so that it arrives succulently seasoned before you wrap it in warm moo-shu pancakes and indulge.

Green Mango Salad with Crushed Peanuts and Thai Chilies: Although the dish was meant to be spicy, it turned out to be light and refreshing. The green mango was more of a ripe and soft yellow mango and the peanuts and chilies were sparse. In fact, this salad could double as a dessert if desired since Talde only offers a single wacky dessert option. Surprising for a menu of such versatility.

But then again, that single dessert is a heaping mess of halo-halo, which is served in a large metal bowl and looks like severely unappetizing stoner food.

Traditionally, it is made with shaved ice, condensed milk, and random assortment of Filipino fruits and sweets. This one features banana, shredded coconut, tapioca pearls, and even the colorful cereal Cap’n Crunch. Eaten family-style, you will be surprised to find yourself digging in for more as each bite becomes more addicting than the last. The soft gelatin of the tapioca and the cold crunch of the shaved ice are unpredictable textures to contend with in each bite, but the condensed milk and soft banana are sweet and delectable and you find yourself saying stoner things, like, "pass the bowl".

Entrées are between $15-$26 and each dish explodes with flavor and personality. It's a real pleasure to see so many culinary influences meshed into one menu and the fearlessness of the atypical flavor combinations in most dishes. Bottom line? When you are looking for bold flavors, call it a day at Talde.

jan/feb 2013 ny centric 43

dating.pool

when eve met king kong

by Mandana Yamin There is a classic Italian expression which says, “Home is where the heart is.” As I peer out the taxi window passing Mott Street, I know I am home again. BUONGIORNO Nuova York. You bella bella city.

I have a strong, unbreakable connection with you. We are amigos. Buddies. Comrades.

I would throw myself in the Hudson River for you. Well, hmmm… I would seriously consider it if it meant life or death. If Eve was hesitant to take a bite of the apple, she clearly missed Manhattan on her travels.It has come to my attention that there are over two hundred thousand, six hundred and forty-six single women stomping the streets of NYC. Don't ask me who came up with this horrifying statistic, but whatever the reasons may be, NYC is my kinda of town.

What draws people to live here? Fame?

Fortune? Power? Jay Z and Alicia Keys were on to something. “These streets will make you feel brand new, big lights will inspire you.”

Even with the hellish traffic and the constant thunder of noise, the city permeates a constant buzz, rattle and hum. It’s a catchy song you can’t get out of your head. The drive to dream big, succeed and to excel is like King Kong’s persistence to scale the walls of the Empire State Building to get to his true love.

To survive as a woman in NYC, your daily four mantras are to be: street-smart, sane, shrewd and sensational. Also, watch out for the cucarachas, and I'm not talking about the nasty looking insect you find lingering behind a dumpster in a dark alley.

Single women are like cockroaches. Wherever you go, you try to stay clear of them.

They are fiercely independent, ruthlessly self-sufficient, and here to stay. Competition runs through their veins like shards of glass. If you don’t look where you step, you might get squashed and flicked into a manhole. Manhole? Irony at its finest. Good, so that leaves us with two hundred fifty-nine...

The men in New York have little trouble finding a partner. The women of this generation have perfected the skill to hunt, gather, pursue, court and conquer. They are fully armed and prepared for battle. They could have easily defeated the Babylonians with one hand tied behind their backs if need be. The Baba... who?? Never mind. It’s safe to say that the women of New York wear the pants, and iron them. End of story.

During my visit, I dined with a dynamic couple at Il Buco in Soho. I met them at a quaint, boutique hotel while vacationing

44 ny centric jan/feb 2013

in the Dominican Republic five Christmases ago. Our friendship was immediate. Their love was powerful. One morning, while sipping my coffee at the hotel foyer, I observed them from a distance. They were exchanging their New Year’s resolutions. I got lost in their body language. She giggled and squirmed like a schoolgirl in love for the very first time. They could have been playing chess if it weren’t for the missing board. It was breathlessly romantic. I had only wished my partner who I was with at the time wanted to partake in this silly and yet meaningful game called Let’s plan a future and life together. When I suggested it to my then boyfriend; he looked at me as if I was crazy, grunted something unintelligible and walked away. Well, I was never any good at chess. Backgammon, anyone?

We live in a world amongst cynics, where we are disbelievers of instant love. Perhaps it’s because it happens once in a lifetime or perhaps we choose to avoid it. Without any warning, it happened to me. We were strangers in the night, so to speak. His luring eyes grabbed me like a mugger, leaving me shaken and stirred. I felt like an inexperienced Jedi

as he storm-trooped into my tiny existence and penetrated my body and soul. Kinda like the devil, but sweeter and without the pitchfork and mean disposition. There was something about him. Was it his sexy laugh? Or his strikingly good looks? Maybe it was his boyish charm? Or was it the way he gently embraced the small of my back? And with one subtle look, he was able to disrobe me as I skinny-dipped straight into the warmth of his eyes. I spent most nights dreaming about him even before I was asleep, skipping carelessly from cloud to moon, and on most days I wanted nothing more than to spend the rest of my life with him. You are probably wondering what happened to him, I’m still wondering myself. Love. You silly, foolish, ridiculous love..

On the day of my departure, I asked the taxi driver to take me to The Empire State Building. I gazed up, awestruck with its sheer beauty, and from the corner of my eye I saw him. King Kong and all his glory. We locked eyes, and at that very moment I knew that if I should ever trip and fall into a manhole, he would come to my rescue.

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