modern?

Annie and i went to the frist today to see the modern exhibit. and we got in for FREE, son! students are free until december 31st, if y'all are interested in going. and yes, i still have my oberlin i.d..

i have to say, as a person who is educated about art and is comfortable viewing it critically, emotionally, intellectually, etc., and as an artist myself, i think modern art is a bit drab and takes itself far too seriously. i think Anne was with me on this one- a lot of the pieces looked terribly similar, to the point that individual artists (other than Mondrian since they're all some form of black, white, red, yellow and blue in blocks and lines) failed to stand out or break new ground within the movement. there were the front runners who blew minds, yes, but i've not experienced this stagnation with other "periods" of art. many of the pieces were so abstract that it was as though they were trying to confuse the viewer permanently without a valid point in doing so, or just had no talent and slapped some colors up- and keep in mind that Mark Rothko is one of my all time favourites (color field artist), so me not going with those is saying something. granted, that work is time consuming and meticulous, but art should make you feel Something- when you spend your viewing time looking for the purported 'seated woman' you can't find the feeling. Anne and i set out to find a balance between those we saw in the modern exhibit and those in the upstairs gallery, which were finished works by artists who've recently graduated from the area universities. many of them were So Bloody Obvious- oh, grainy digital photograph of a flower with a face of a child stuck to a television is a comment on media? ya think? soulless tripe.

however. there were saving graces. they did have a few of Marcel Duchamp's pieces, and i love his forced pretension to make points about the importance of commonplace objects being level with that of art- and that pretentious people don't get it [he turned a urinal upside down, signed it with the fake name R. Mutt and called it art. dada!] they also had several Man Ray photographs, and i adore his work with lovely ladies. and some of the upstairs college work was Great. GREAT. there is one piece of a series of white blocks with a woman painted on them, and then they are arranged in her shape. also some anti-war pieces, as well as a sewn one, which i loved. the pieces from Fisk were the best- they had the clearest cultural background and viewpoint, which is understandable, but they've got some talented budding artists over there! Annie and i met Anna and Bryan for lunch, and i took her to el airopeurto. si.

i freakin' baked today! no, really, i did! i made some cookies last week for Sabrina's exchange, but forgot my extras (and my big tupperware, damn!) and forgot that i promised to save some for Tinkerbell, so i made more. that's right.

thanks to this amish home study course, i'm doing quite well.


xoxox