Sleeping under Statues

Holly Harmon's art blog - sharing artwork and artists that move me. Title taken from a joke by stand-up comedian Jesse Joyce, which refers to the fact that I'm doing what I love: Art History. As a result I may soon be "sleeping under statues in the park, but I'll know who made them, and that's important."

[fer1972]

[artchipel]

Cesar del Valle Portraits III 7. Pencil, paper / 40,5 x 29,7 cm (2008) Portraits II 7. Pencil, paper, thread, 25 x 17,5 cm (2007)

[found at 7knotwind & fer1972]

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[misswallflower]

A screenprinted room installation simulating the Hall of Mirrors from the Palace of Versailles

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In LOVE with this one.  Click through to see more installation shots.

[amare-habeo]

Max Ernst - The Yellow Sun (Soleil jaune), 1964

Oil on canvas

Galerie Ludorff

[sleepingunderstatues]

This is quite lovely.  That Max Ernst really doesn't have a signature style, does he?

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Thanks to allie g, I may be obsessed with this song.  The video is pretty arty, too. 

[sleepingunderstatues]

Vermeer. Woman Holding a Balance. 1664.

I have a real fondness for Vermeer. One of my first courses in graduate school was based on his work. Of the Dutch Golden Age artists, he is certainly my favorite. I do really appreciate his ambiguous iconography and particularly his color sense. His paintings have a lot in common--like that window to the left, and a focus on a female figure--but somehow, he keeps me entranced. 

This work is particularly great because of the parallel symbolism. The woman holds up the balance (which is level for the moment) and there is a painting of the last judgement hanging behind her (the ultimate measure of a human's character in the eyes of Christians). Some have suggested that the whole painting is symbolic of predetermination, because the woman's unborn child (although it's unclear if she's actually pregnant; see Van Eyck) is already having his/her fate decided before entering the world. 

[sleepingunderstatues]

Yves Klein. Here Lies Space. 1960.

This was one of my favorite pieces in the Klein show a couple of years ago. I really like it for what it represents more than the aesthetic itself. At first glance it looks a bit kitchy. But the elements of the work were very symbolic for Klein. The three colors--rose, gold, and blue--are those that he represented most often in his work, generally in paintings that solely feature that color. The three together represent a kind of spiritual trinity for the artist. And this piece, displayed horizontally and low to the ground, is intended to represent a kind of grave stone. Thus the title "Here lies space." Because he saw himself as the "painter of space" this is many ways represents Klein's own tombstone. And I think that's quite profound. 

[sleepingunderstatues]

I'll post more tomorrow but for now, I'm just going to post this gorgeous installation shot of the Yves Klein show at the Hirshhorn. I really like this one.

[sleepingunderstatues]

Karen Knorr. The Return of the Hunter. 2012.

Just stumbled across this on flavorwire and I think it's fantastic. I love the juxtapositions of the natural pattern of the animal and the manmade patterns of the setting. What a gorgeous setting at that. Really great. 

[sleepingunderstatues]

Roberta Smith is my favorite NY Times critic.  I will read whatever she writes.  This one is quite good though.

[sleepingunderstatues]

Orazio Gentileschi. Annunciation. 

That's right, I fell in love with annunciation scenes while I was in Italy. This was the one that started things off for me. I love this representation of the annunciation. The drapery is fantastic. I love the swath of red drapery in the background and the blue wrapped around Mary's shoulders. I also really love how humble she is depicted here. I also love the way that he uses the lilies here--which stands for Mary's purity--a really nice touch. 

[ilovecharts]

-artemisiafields 

The only way to win is not to play.

[sleepingunderstatues]

Looks like I'm a snob.

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Andy Warhol. Clouds. 

A couple of weekends ago I went to Pittsburgh and was able to visit the Andy Warhol museum there. This was the highlight of the museum. It's a small room that's filled with these floating silver balloons. And I think it manages to fill most of my qualities of what makes a great work of art: 

ephemeral

creating an experience 

aesthetically beautiful

viewer interaction

This one was truly memorable. I loved it. This also explains my new profile picture.

[orthelious]

Really digging these salt installations by Motoi Yamamato

[sleepingunderstatues]

Incredible.

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Louise Bourgeois. The Couple.

I love Bourgeois' work. I think this sculpture is really beautiful and quite enigmatic. The message of the work is a bit unclear. Is the relationship smothering these figures or are they simply trying to break out of their current situation in order to be together? I tend to lean toward the former interpretation, merely because I know that Bourgeois' work tends to be a bit darker. But I love that you can't be sure. 

[ahrtsnob-blog]

Alan and Michael Fleming

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Brilliance! Love it.

[sleepingunderstatues]

Richard Serra. Between Torus. 

I have a major art crush on Richard Serra (as evidenced here). I think his work is really brilliant. I love how he plays with space and our expectations. These works are made from huge sheets of metal and they look like they could fall over at any moment. But they don't.  That's part of the genius. I also like his use of materials--they are cool and industrial but they also appear to be used, with some history to them because of the rusted texture. I really enjoy the way he plays between these seemingly opposite ends of the spectrum, at least when it comes to the tenants of minimalism and post-minimalism.