In between working on getting the calendar going again, dealing with MaeX’s email list, doing web design and maintainence, I visited two exhibitions that may be of interest. Here’s one of them.
A couple months ago I got an email from Daniel Siedell, curator of the Sheldon Memorial Art Gallery, Univ. of Nebraska-Lincoln, asking me to check out the work of Enrique Martinez Celaya he curated heading for the Museum of Art, Fort Lauderdale. I’ll admit I was skeptical. He offered to send a catalogue so I could understand his passion for this work. I agreed to both ideas but found the prospect somewhat awkward since the museum has in recent years abraded me in the wrong way. Most of it doesn’t not need to be shared however, I will say the Museum of Art, Ft. Lauderdale needs to reexamine their admission fee policy (*hint*). I was treated with much respect on this occasion.
The first thing you see at the top of the stairs is a huge wall drawing. Scrolled in handwriting are Celaya’s words, “You may read other things about the “October Cycle” but you shouldn’t trust them including whatever I’ve said.” After leisurely strolling the gallery spaces, with beautiful high ceilings, I wandered around trying to position myself to SEE the paintings.
From the “October Cycle” texts:
My work consists of poems, paintings, photographs, works on paper, sculptures, performances, and writings.
My approach to art relies on my interests in science, philosophy, and literature. Although, I began to paint very early, I intended to become a scientist.
The October Cycle is an extended metaphor exploring the relationship between the seasons and the transitions in human life. The emulsified tar on canvas combined with oil paint and solvents generates a compelling surface with colors ranging from blacks and browns to warm, rich tones of amber and rose.
The average viewer of the work wouldn’t know what those words are unless they were previously familiar with Celaya’s work or had any of his texts on hand. Celaya is of Cuban ancestry but, he’s not well known here in S. Florida.
It was a good thing I had the catalogue ahead of the show because it seemed two things were going on there: 1), the work was not as interesting as it appeared in the catalogue or, 2), the Museum’s installation didn’t allow me to get past the surface of the paintings.
The paintings were reliefed with lumpy tar and heavy brush strokes however, the glaring lights forced me the find an angle where I could see something beyond that glare. I tried over and over but found only that frustrating glare from the textured surface and, with paintings as large as these it left a lot of painting not seen. The images in the catalogue allowed me to see nuances that I couldn’t see in person.
The Univ. of Nebraska’s site has the images but, they are so dark they cannot be seen very well. Black paintings and drawings are extremely difficult to photographically capture well. They should have used the same scanned images as were made for the catalogue.
Needless to say it was a disappointing experience.
from: © MAeX Art Blog