hyde or die

I am now an official contributor to HAHA Magazine, which launched today, with my first entry for my column “Art Rant” which can be found under the title, The Snob.  Here’s a taste:

It was recently announced at a lovely shindig in his studio in New York that the newest BMW art car will be created (or painted or metallicized or flowered or ballooned) by chronically overfunded contemporary artist Jeff Koons. Koons could be seen soaking up the press, grinning as if his fee for the project was already in the bank and accruing interest.

Before I address my disillusionment with BMW’s decision, it bears to point out that during the announcement event, while the A-list guests were sipping on delicious wine and eating canapés by the one and only Thomas Keller, Koons’ assistants were busy toiling away at their paint-by-numbers canvases.

Interested? Of course you are! Read the rest here, and let me know what you think.

Also, peruse the whole website, there is some top notch art writing going on there, and I wouldn’t want you to miss out!

February 15, 2010, 5:03pm  

Jeff Koons Girl with Dolphin and Monkey 2006

So, BMW picked their new art car and they went with…JEFF KOONS!!! Ugh. Could you be more predictable and publicity hungry? No, you probably couldn’t. After all the great art cars of the past, especially Olafur Eliasson’s that I actually had the pleasure to see, this is super disappointing.  I will probably expand upon this later when I have had more caffeine.

Ugh, I’m in a foul mood now.

February 04, 2010, 9:36am  

On the occasion of the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen (COP15), the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art in collaboration with BMW Group, invites the public to an open symposium comprising international names in the fields of architecture, design, contemporary art and technology. The one-day symposium will, among others, discuss the new challenges pertaining to the environment as well as issues of sustainability in the creative sector. A number of the world’s leading innovative personalities will present their ideas and visions for the future in lectures and discussions.

The participants of the symposium “Where do we go from here?” are the artists Olafur Eliasson, Sissel Tolaas, Shilpa Gupta and Ann Lislegaard; the engineer Matthias Schuler, Transsolar; the environmental entrepreneur Kresse Wesling, Elvis & Kresse; the designer and architect Patricia Urquiola; Ulrich Kranz, Head of “project i”, BMW Group.

Moderators for the day are: Peter Weibel, artist, curator and theoretician; Hans Ulrich Obrist, Co-Director of Exhibitions and Programmes and Director of International Projects, Serpentine Gallery, London, whom the English art magazine ArtReview has recently named the world’s most powerful person in contemporary art in 2009. The symposium has been initiated as a collaboration of Louisiana Museum of Modern Art and BMW Group.

It’s times that I see this that I remember that Richard Branson STILL hasn’t contacted me and I have an absolute zero chance of getting to Coppenhagen to see this. My mind can’t even wrap around the idea of all these people in the same room.

Also, the champagne is flat and the caviar is all gone.

December 10, 2009, 9:09am  

STAGES: Lance Armstrong launches a global art exhibition to raise funds and awareness in the fight against Cancer at Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin

on view July 16 - August 8, 2009.

Lance Armstrong launches a global art exhibition and sale that provides a new way to support the Lance Armstrong Foundation and its LIVESTRONG Global Cancer Campaign.

“Stages” brings together close to thirty of the world’s most creative and diverse artists to create original works of art inspired by Armstrong and his mission to raise awareness of the global cancer burden. This unique project brings together the worlds of art, philanthropy and sport, in a way never before seen, to create artwork that represents the power of human potential in overcoming adversity.

“Stages” will debut in Paris on July 16th during the Tour de France at Galerie Emmanuel Perrotin and run through August 8th. The exhibition will then travel to New York City for an October showing before moving to Los Angeles in November.via…

It’s not that I’m against fundraising, I just don’t particularly want to see a bunch of “decorated bikes” in one of my favorite gallery spaces for so long. I just don’t see it being as interesting as say, the BMW art cars.  And I think that Lance Armstrong is a jerk. There, I said it.

Of course, all of this is moot if Aaron Young decides to show up to the opening and I will pretend I never said any of this and do my best to not get kicked out for sexual harrassement.  No promises on the latter part though.

July 21, 2009, 11:53am  

The 1st BMW Art Car by Alexander Calder.

I have blogged about the BMW art cars before, but besides Olafur Eliasson’s, I have never seen any in person, until February 12-24 when they will be showing right down the street at LACMA! I am super excited for this one.  It is only 4 out of 16 but the one’s included are Calder’s (above), Robert Rauschenberg, Frank Stella and Andy Warhol’s.

Should be a good show!

February 04, 2009, 3:26pm  

Alexander Calder’s BMW Art Car, 1976

Calder was the inaugural Art Car, BMW has commissioned artists like Warhol and Eliasson to do them since.

December 11, 2008, 5:08pm  

Alexander Calder’s art car for BMW in 1975.

June 16, 2008, 5:21pm  

olafur eliasson’s commissioned bmw.  they do this with many different artists.  it’s a fully functioning bmw, but the outside is all ice. they keep it in a room that is temperature controlled between 5-10 degrees farenheit.  i saw it at sfmoma, it is something else. 

it also looks a little like a snow-armadillo, which is ok w/ me.

February 29, 2008, 9:19am