In Seattle. Yesterday, went to Seattle Art Museum to see the exhibition, "B2V: Baja to Vancouver: The West Coast and Contemporary Art."
Immediately I was taken with the concept of the exhibition. Would a New York museum organize show around the fact that all the artists live on the Atlantic Coast? Probably not.
Standout work (sorry, I didn't take notes on who did what, bad of me) included sculptures reminiscent of Native Northwest tribal masks, but made entirely out of white, red and black Nike sneakers. Beautiful, immense pencil and ink drawings based on what the artist sees when he looks at the stars though a telescope, but with an edgy attitude (they include the urban glow that blocks out the stars in some cases, and little words worked into the drawings that not only celebrate GALAXIES but also note the POISON IVY on the ground beneath his feet). Also, a wonderful art mockumentary, "The Accidental Art of Graffiti Removal" by a Portland artist (Mark McCormick?), narrated by Miranda July and shot in Portland's southeast industrial district. Graffiti removal: the Northwest's advancement of suprematism, a hundred unknown Mark Rothkos daily covering tags in subtle tones of "snow," "halation," and "dove" colored paints?
It made me homesick for Portland. I'll be there tomorrow.
Posted by Emily at November 12, 2003 02:27 PM