When visiting a packaging factory in Yorkshire England, Smyth watched the conveyer belt arm drop down and whisk away odd carrots. They were pushed aside and discarded. As the process continued he wondered, who defined which carrots were “beautiful enough” to be merchandised for sale and which of them became destined for pig feed!
27 June 2011
Obiettivo Charleston
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| www.scarfiotti.com |
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| www.scarfiotti.com |
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| www.scarfiotti.com |
What: 40 plus photographs on exhibit
Who: Bill Struhs, Gian Luigi Scarfiotti, John Brewton and Jack Alterman
Where: Via Visiale 1, Spoleto (historical center near Piazza Mercato)
When: 24 June through 10 July 2011
Three Americans and one Italian have 4 things in common; they are all men, photographers, exhibiters of their works and in one way or another involved with the Festival dei 2 Mondi, here in Spoleto Italy and Charleston South Carolina, USA.
During our Spoleto Italy’s festival right now, some 40 plus black and white, sepia toned and colorfully rich works are being shown. The intent was to introduce to Spoleto Italy to what her sister city looks like. These photographs span from Charleston’s historical southern architecture to its nature, wildlife, swamp and boating areas.
Gian Luigi Scarfiotti, the international artist photographer, I had the opportunity meet, got to know Charleston’s charm through a different means than being born, raised, or schooled there like the other three.
Gain Luigi took one of Charleston’s lovely ladies for his bride, not just being charmed the city’s beauty but through the striking beauty of his life, his lovely American wife, Terry. Interesting enough, he then exported her back to Italy where they both live in Tuscany.
The images that spoke to me were the wildlife. Being a global wild tiger advocate with WWF and art, the images of these osprey nests, egrets nesting with eggs and fishing boats drew me in. There are sunsets to
Charleston’s festival performances.
The works amongst the four photographers are diverse but thoroughly allowing us here in our “little old Spoleto Italy” to so see their culture from afar.
The relationship between Spoleto and Charleston started in the late seventies and is now starting a new.
Since Gian Carlo Menotti’s death, the relationship between these two sister cities has been sabotaged by the Menotti family heirs to either maintain power and control over or destroy festival’s relationship between the 2 countries. Spoleto
Italy‘s commune and volunteers of the festival have been worked diligently to repair and mend these severed ties.
The Italian saying, “All the worlds a country” rings true in this struggle to repair this global relationship. Damage was achieved to separate these two artistic forces but these four artists are doing their share to help rebuild the ties that remain.
The official recommendation and worldly advice from Frankly Francesca's www.YOURARTESCORT.Blogspot.com says lets repeat and expand this global opportunity of sharing images of these two sister cities, continuing this effort that these 4 photographers started in an annual event between Spoleto and Charleston. Next round we need some Spoleto Italy photos in Charleston.
BRAVI, BRAVI, BRAVI!
The determination to move forward while looking back…
What: 20 portrait photographs
Where: Café Letteraio-Palazzo Mauri Spoleto
Who: Virgilio Massani
When: Now through July 15, 2011
Little by little in these past 4 years I’ve had the opportunity to get to know Virgilio Massani. I would see a man swaying in a restricted but precise gait through Piazza Liberta’, one hand clutching a portfolio and the other a cane to balance his stride. His goal was clear… to arrive… his determination was clear, to arrive at Bar Canasta where his external office for private portfolio viewings could begin. This is how we first met by the chance the first time to do a visual history re-pass.
His signature style is black and white, MOMENTS OF THE PAST. The majority of his portfolio revolves around the Festival dei 2 Mondi, Spoleto’s international art explosion.
Virgilio was born in Terni, 7 April 1937. His parents arrived in Spoleto when he was 14. He grew in up in this small village or (my village as I call it) between two worlds, the world of Spoletini Umbrian culture and the world of the international artistic guests arriving each summer.
In his early twenties, a friend lent him his camera. Within these moments of snapping the camera’s buttons a new found love was found, photography. Off he went to buy his first camera, a PENTAX. That was nearly fifty years ago.
From that moment on, images no longer needed to be recorded and filed mentally as his Pentax became his external memory. He has a room dedicated to his some 40,000 images there.
One of his earliest memories was being struck by the beauty of a young beautiful Spoletina girl dressed simply in mini dress. The image so penetrated his mind, he asked her if her could photograph her, and she agreed. This ignited a passion of a life time. For the last 30 years he has been published and exhibiting throughout Europe in art shows, magazines and journals, not to forget his favorite model being Bridget Bardot.
He is now 75 and a bit wiser after experiencing a stroke 4 years ago and currently suffering from Parkinson’s disease. We learned that we both had experienced strokes and both suffered from incurable diseases that wreak havoc on our immune, neurological, and our bodies' failure to comply with our mind’s wishes. We share in common experimental drugs from the USA to relive our symptoms and help us moves forward. It seemed a simple thing to deepen our appreciation and respect for one another…
What I saw in this brief interview is what I have gotten to know about Virgilio and his aficionado for photography, a sheer determination…. a determination to move forward (despite his significant physical restrictions) while ensuring the past is told, told and told again.
He is a visual historian documenting transient glimpses from the past where two worlds converged into one, Spoleto, Italy.
This photo exhibition is well worthy of a visit with some time to reflect, to look back at half a century’s glamorous past lives, with likes of Morgan Freedman, Ellen Stewart, a.k.a La MaMa and other famous musicians and performers amongst the 20 simple but striking works.
26 June 2011
Bravissima! Marina Ripa di Meana Pissy Art Masterpiece!
Here's the video link to Marina Ripa di Meana's PISSY ART MASTERPIECE!
We here in Spoleto are still running around in the excitement for the creation of such a masterpiece!
I invited Pier Luigi over to help clarify precise details of this escalating conflict.
At Sgarbi's opening Spoleto ceremony June 25th, Marina Ripa di Meana calmly and tranquil like walked over to Sgarbi being interviewed. She opened up a wide mouth jar and poured about 8 ounces of yellow liquid down Sgarbi's dress shirt, drenching his front left side. She in the meanwhile is heard repeating "The Artist's Piss, that's what old farts make, Artist's Piss" over and over again calmly and very matter of fact.
Sgarbi as seen in the video was at first stunned thinking it might be a humorous stunt which could be funny but quickly realized he was being insulted.
Marina Ripa di Meana's joke was a referral to Italian artist Piero Manzoni's art work labeled: Artist's Shit in a can from 1961.
Sgarbi begins to panic thinking it may actually be someones urine. At this moment whether it really was urine or not has not be confirmed, though the Italians NO DOUBT that is was in fact urine, knowing Marina style. I am suspect as it was too yellow.
Sgarbi begins his standard tirade but actually is under more control than normal, but shortly escalates to his infamous repertoire of vulgar name not limited to "whore, slut, imbecile, idiot, take it in the ass and a few more action verbs" with direct translation from Italian. Marina proceeds to hang around just a bit to exchange some verbal name warfare and then the video ends...
Marina's underlying issue was when Sgarbi wanted to hang 4 photos at the Venice Biennial 2011 that included her husband and another high profile person. Sgarbi upon seeing the final choices hung, which one included Marina in the photo too, Sgarbi ordered one of his worker bears (no joke intended with this link) to remove it saying, "do not give any more space to these old farts." Sgarbi in defiance left the wall spot blank as an insult to Marina for weeks on end during the Venice Biennial. Marina asked him politely to reconsider his position several times and he refused her request. This obviously infuriated Marina to implement revenge.
Italians either love him or hate him... ITALY's infamous art critic Vittorio Sgarbi. Personally I make no calms about it, I fall on the latter side... I believe in the ANTI SGARBAGE Task Force trying to clean up Italy's tarnished image.
An inside source who says "Sgarbi is stressed these days with money problems, too many winning lawsuits against him and too many bills to pay"... Poor, poor baby, I really feel for him.... NOT!
From what I have read, Sgarbi has been found guilty of plagiarizing literary writings by the chapter full into his own book, guilty of uncountable defamation of character suits, being a mayor of a Sicilian city full of Mafia and vulgar violent language rage attacks with arm flailing.
This behavior in the USA is treated with hard core medications and some time put away where you sport a white coat with arms wrapped from behind for your own safety. For some unknown reason, this type of bad, very bad behavior is rewarded in Italy. You get paid TV interviews comanding higher pirces and honorary fake title to feel important, i.e. the Venice biennial curator and presenter position, when you are know to hate all art starting from Modern art and later.
The children's card game we know as "Go fish" in America becomes the real political game of "go figure" in Italy.
These rages displayed by Sgarbi are so numerous that the anti-sgarbaging task forces have complied videos episodes available for your enjoyment on YouTube called SGARBI'S GREATEST HITS I and GREATEST HITS II.
I promise to keep you all abreast of this once the clarity is out on this issue. In the meanwhile, I rate Marina Ripa di Meana's Pissy Art a REAL Masterpiece! How about you?
20 June 2011
art time lines
Here we start with a very simple art history concept above. Next we gently glide and slide you in further. The theories and style are in masses.
I personally have settled into the MODERN ART PERIOD and forward as my specialty and are of profound studies. Being at the moment in a relapse with my illness, XMRV + and CFS, when I feel better, I am going to create an art timeline that better handles some outside world events and attitudes.
07 June 2011
MOMA’S QUESTION: Does an artist's personality effects our way of thinking about their art?
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| The morning after the moment that changed my life... YOUR ART ESCORT'S RESPONSE: Absolutely … YES. When I first approached art school, I did not like Van Gogh’s art work. I could not figure out why he was so important and why all these other guys were important too. The old cliché, “My kid could paint better that.” I felt safe enough with this one teacher to tell her how I really felt. She was clearly a mature woman and I was too, going back to school for art around 40ish. Barbara, my teacher explained it’s what we learn about their lives that make us so convicted or compelled to move emotion within ourselves. Over the next few years I set out on adventure, to reach this point of personal comprehension of why what appears to be sometimes just outright ugly art becomes a master piece. Where it led me I never thought I would have gone. What I saw and personally experienced during this 2 years period would be so consuming that reading and learning about artists who had suffered seemed my only way out. During this extended period of HELL, with suicidal ideation, the life stories of other artists was one of my saving grace, and the care taking of my 20 year old to lead my life for me for a while... It’s sort of funny now that adding then another two years of trying to climb out of hell with multiple therapies and rehabs, the one I wrote my own prescription for… turned out to be the one that has shaped the reconstruction of my new life. I became intimate with so many international artists and settled in on my love for the modern art movement as my favorite. The impressionist pieces prior to my illness could not satisfy my hunger or squelch my thirst. It was the artists’ details of their lives, what made them tick? Why they needed to be driven to paint something that would never sell but they kept doing it. What kept them from the edge of suidice or let them fall to succumb? Now when I see works that I like, or that are different, weird or just ugly, I research the artist’s life deeper than others to see if I can see what I can find. To see how I may have aligned myself with whom they were expressing themselves to be. now are your all wondering what the hell happened to her that she write such crazy nonsense, knowing the depths of hell? Sept 2006 Informed I have 1 to 3 months before my heart valve blows, Oct 15, 2006 Legal divorce is finalized, my little daughter is 5 years old Nov 6, 2006 Open heart surgery mitral valve repair Dec 5, 6, 7, 2006 Suffered 3 mini strokes, one each day Dec 13, 2006 Suffered Ventricular Tachycardia or VTAC for short Dec - April 2006 Coumadin resistant needing multiple blood draws every week, arm veins scarred and collapsed Dec 26, 2006 Entered a multiple year phase of suicidal ideation Jan 2007 Body Memory Flashback started raging for 9 months May 2007 Diagnosis of Complex Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Nov 2007 Amnesia broke and night terrors started for 6 months June 2008 The bombing stopped and it was a wait and see Aug 2008 The first therapy started for stroke rehab. Progress was slow at best Jan 2011 Chronic Fatigue Immune Disorder was diagnosed and a whole new treatment plan was started April 2011 Started an experimental drug for my CFS neurological brain virus attacking my auto immune system June 2011 Registered for a MOMA online course… to help gather, organize and make sense of the past 4 years of my life through other artist’s stories and suffering |
MOMA AND MODERN ART
REPRINTED FROM: MOMA
Alfred H. Barr, Jr., 1930. The Archives of The Museum of Modern Art, Chart of Modern art
A video about women in MoMA's early history with commentary by Michelle Elligott, Museum Archivist.
ALFRED H. BARR, JR., AND THE MUSEUM OF MODERN ART
The Museum of Modern Art was founded in 1929, and from the beginning to the present day it has been the foremost museum of modern and contemporary art in the world.
Alfred H. Barr, Jr.
The Museum's founding director, Alfred H. Barr, Jr., was only 27 years old when he took the post. He had previously designed and taught the first modern art course in the United States, at Wellesley College in Massachusetts.
The Museum's founding director, Alfred H. Barr, Jr., was only 27 years old when he took the post. He had previously designed and taught the first modern art course in the United States, at Wellesley College in Massachusetts.
The Museum started out in 1929 in a few rented rooms in a midtown Manhattan office building at 57th Street and Fifth Avenue. In 1939, just 10 years after the stock market crash of 1929, the Museum was transferred to a new building on 53rd Street between Fifth and Sixth Avenues.
From the very beginning, Barr wanted multiple departments, so he established the first art museum departments of photography, cinema, architecture, and industrial design.
In 1933, Barr drew his "'Torpedo Diagram of Ideal Permanent Collection" to suggest that the collection moved like a torpedo through time, with its nose representing the present and its tail being the past. The goal was to have most of the collection focus on the early part of the 20th century.
For the cover of the Cubism and Abstract Art exhibition catalogue in 1933, Barr designed his famous diagram charting the "isms" that preceded, coincided with, and followed World War I. The art historian Robert Rosenblum wrote in 1986:
Amazingly, even now ... Cubism and Abstract Art maintains its fundamental authority. ... Barr's text survives to this day in a strangely timeless and undated way, a combination of historical chronicle with an unfailing ability to single out that work of art whose description will make the most salient points. ... This level of distilled excellence is so consistent that, for the past half-century, most scholars have been refining, amplifying, or diluting Mr. Barr's initial presentation of the Gospel of modern art in 1936.
With our class, we will examine many of these "isms" and look at their relationships to each other. Each week, one main artist will be used as a lens to focus our understanding of key concepts.
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