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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:16:24 GMT -8
Hi. I'm a new collector, just starting out in the past few years, and I'm very impressed by others' collections on this forum. I live with my art, and as possessions go, it's what I most cherish. I inherited the collecting bug from my dad, but I want to take it to the next level. I look at a lot of art, and in terms of collecting, I've always been finicky, but as my walls get filled up I'm becoming even more so. In terms of collecting, talent and quality aren't enough. I'm looking for artists doing unique things with media that I haven't seen before or who have a very fresh view. I'm very disappointed to see inconsistency in an artist's work, and that has been the source of some regret in my collecting. I may not want to own every piece, but it's important that I recognize something of the artist's genius in every piece. That's my philosophy. Common theme to my art is the depiction of light. Haven't read that much about others' philosophy about why certain art speaks to them, and I'd be interested in hearing more of that in this forum. Here's an indication of my broad style (beyond what's apparent in my collection here): Favorite artist of all time: Vermeer Favorite painting of all time: Grotto in the Gulf of Naples by Karl Blechen Current top of my collector's wishlist: Equally ElMac/Retna collaboration piece, Chris Berens portrait, Kate McGuire scuplture, Hem, Heiko Mueller and another Annie Lapin Dead artists I like (off the top of my head): Dali, Calder, Sargent, Klimt, Schiele (Egon), DeHooch, Rembrandt, Brancusi, Velasquez, Dix, Bacon, Picasso, Millet... Living artists I like (off the top of my head): Chris Berens, Boxi, EVOL, Kate McGuire, Jinyoung Yu, Lee Bul, Kristen Schiele, Wayne Thiebaud, Herbert Baglione, Roland Peterson, David Choe, Antony Micallef, Ian Francis, Edwin Ushiro, Andrew Hem, Ian Strawn, Tony Phillipou. I'm also interested in the works of BestEver, Yoksay Yamamoto (sculpture), Brendon Monroe (scupture), John Park and Bumblebee. To start, this is my very large Vhils (aka Alexandre Farto) from the Compro Logo Existo series ("I consume, therefore I am..."). Acquired from Vera Cortez Gallery in Lisbon, Portugal. Why I acquired it: Alex is so talented, really unique and I believe he is really just at the very earliest stages of his evolution as an artist. I so look forward to the future of what he's going to do. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:19:59 GMT -8
This is my most recent add, a Chris Berens, titled "Corridor 0." Acquired from Alix Sloan Gallery, NYC. Chris' work has such a luminosity and depth. And his method of working is unique. Vhils is from Lisbon, Berens from Amsterdam, and so most of my pieces are from artists outside the US. Can't explain why. Why I acquired it: The technical aspects of Chris' work, and the dreamlike elements that are hyperreal in that they are even more vibrant and crisp than reality. What did it for me with this piece is the hand reaching out from the light to grab at the bat and the distorted polar bear/bison/white parrot shape that the woman is riding that's also seems to have female faces in it. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:40:50 GMT -8
Avery Palmer. Acquired from the artist. A kid up in Mendocino who's getting etting some traction up in the Bay Area. Heard he's moving to San Jose to get a graduate degree in art, which should help raise his profile. Why I acquired it: I almost didn't, but came back to it over and over and realized that the quality was there, and there was something highly effective about the distorted scale and perspective. The pose and posture are great, too. This is one of several pieces I acquired at the Natsoulas Gallery's hosting of the California Conference for the Advancement of Ceramic Arts (CCACA) in my hometown of Davis, CA each May (Arneson, Thiebeau, Peterson, etc. taught there). Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:47:20 GMT -8
Tony Phillipou's "Drive By Judas." Acquired from Thinkspace Gallery in LA. Why I acquired it: Tony uses such rich, vibrant colors, his works really pop. They look great from a distance, and they draw you in to observe the detail. The subject matter is edgy but also has a comic book/illustration sensibility. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:49:10 GMT -8
Tony Phillipou's "Birds Don't Fly on their Own." Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:50:43 GMT -8
Tony Phillipou's "Judas Priest King Serpentine." Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:53:20 GMT -8
Ian Strawn's "For the Love of Sandwich." Acquired from Hespe Gallery, San Francisco/Carmichael Gallery LA. Why I acquired it: Ian's juxtaposition of photorealism and graphical representation in a seamless whole is just incredible, as is his use of color. His work dominates the room, and it always gets a reaction. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 20:55:51 GMT -8
This is a collaboration called "Holy Ghost" by Tony Phillipou and Marion Bolognese. Acquired from Thinkspace Gallery, LA. Why I acquired it: This piece haunted me for days before I bought it. It really moved me in a way I can't explain. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:01:02 GMT -8
Eric Zener's "Above the Sea." Acquired from Hespe Gallery, San Francisco. Why I acquired it: This is the first piece I bought in 1997! It spoke to me because Eric lived in my neighborhood in SF (Marina), and he utterly captured the color of the evening sky in this. It ended up being a very smart buy as a first piece, and Eric has really evolved over the years as an artist, and he's still evolving. Working with different media, but also always identifiable as an artist. Evolution of talent is what makes an artist for the ages. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:03:59 GMT -8
Nikolai Makarov, untitled. Acquired from Mimi Fertz Gallery, NYC. Why I acquired it: I lived in Germany and this Russian artist out of Berlin spoke to me. The luminosity is like Vermeer. The photo doesn't do the optical illusion justice. You really feel like you can reach through the frame. This is the second piece I ever collected. It took me a whole year to pay for it, and when it arrived, it felt that much more special-- worth the struggle and the wait. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:06:51 GMT -8
Nikolai Makarov, Central Park in Winter. Acquired from Mimi Fertz Gallery, NYC. Why I acquired it: I Love the subtlety of his work. Up close, you only see subtle differences in the blue paint and there's no discernible image. Only at a distance does the picture develop. Makarov's optical illusions make work that's otherwise so serene surprising and fun. The blue is warm and cold at the same time-- beautiful-- and an unexpected choice for a winter scene. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:13:53 GMT -8
Kate Mauldin. Bought these at a student show at SF Art Institute. Why I acquired it: The facial expressions capture something readily identifiable in people who you know, so they're like portraits of strangers who aren't. And the expressions suggest a knowing ridiculousness of the Monopoly money bunny ears that's a nice touch to these. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:15:10 GMT -8
Kate Mauldin Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:41:47 GMT -8
Gennady Mironov. A surrealist from Minsk, Belarus. Acquired directly from the artist. I brokered this purchase by email but wanted to see the work live before I bought it. Gennady sent it and another piece to his niece or something who was studying in Freiburg. I travelled 8 hours out of my way to do the transaction in my hotel room, stripping bills from a wad of Euros, the niece haggling with her uncle by cell in Russian, her burly German boyfriend loitering outside to make sure I was legit. The strange adventure of the acquisition notwithstanding, I've really enjoyed the piece. And I've since recommended Freiburg as a great place to visit, much as it may be out of the way of things. Why I acquired it: The light and the composition. It felt like you were looking up at the sun under water or in some other strange environment. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:43:00 GMT -8
Mironov. It's like the birth of light or something. Attachments:
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Post by sleepboy on Mar 7, 2010 21:44:44 GMT -8
Welcome to the forum weezy. Like the Vhils, Berens and Tony Phillipou's. Nice mix of artists in your collection. I too don't like seeing inconsistency in artists.
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:48:37 GMT -8
Viktor Verhovod. Pilfered it from my dad's collection because I loved the form of this. You're compelled to touch it. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:50:06 GMT -8
And this is by me! I dabble and fail enough to know how hard it is to create great art-- which is why I respect great artists' talent so much. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 21:56:34 GMT -8
Vhils, hand finished print from his Scratching the Surface Show at Lazarides London. Was happy with the framing I had done on this one-- very consonant with the "street art" genre. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 22:01:20 GMT -8
Self Portrait from the Iranian tagger/artist SOT. Acquired from Crewest Gallery in LA. Why I acquired it: The jpeg doesn't do this justice. It's black and silver in high gloss. He has this piece as his Facebook portrait, which I saw randomly when he commented on some street art site. Cool. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 22:04:31 GMT -8
John Zurier, untitled. Acquired from a charity auction, piece contributed by Gallery Paul Anglim in San Francisco. Why I acquired this piece: Great composition and John was showing at the Whitney Biennial that year. Jpeg doesn't give you a sense of the greens and grays in this piece. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 22:08:07 GMT -8
Better shot of the Vhils (as it hangs at home). It takes up the whole wall, layers of cut up and painted poster in fiberglass. Amazed it made it from Lisbon intact. Attachments:
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Post by Weezy on Mar 7, 2010 22:21:16 GMT -8
Silkscreened fabric piece I picked up at Seed Gallery in Auckland, NZ. Why I acquired it: As a souvenir, and it it was vibrant and fun. It was also one of the best pieces in an incredible installation at the gallery. Attachments:
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Post by rkitek on Mar 7, 2010 22:27:10 GMT -8
Better shot of the Vhils (as it hangs at home). It takes up the whole wall, layers of cut up and painted poster in fiberglass. Amazed it made it from Lisbon intact. Nice and interesting collection! I really like this Vhils and your Berens. |
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Post by svenman on Mar 8, 2010 3:55:45 GMT -8
Nikolai Makarov. I lived in Germany and this Russian artist out of Berlin spoke to me. The luminosity is like Vermeer. The photo doesn't do the optical illusion justice. You really feel like you can reach through the frame. This is the second piece I collected. welcome to the forum weezy - you've been busy with your collecting, and also with the posts last night! thanks for sharing your wonderful and varied collection. i love the first marakov you posted, and hear you about reaching into the frame - this piece has a wonderful depth. have seen some of those large scale vhils pieces at his laz show last year and wondered myself how successfully they would have been shipped, but i guess the resin this pretty thick. i enjoyed how laz hung them on the wall spaced off so that that you could see the layers and textures that go into these pieces. thanks for sharing. |
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