It was great to visit the Modernism Show, a show I did for years when it was promoted by a man I really respected, Dennis Boses. I don't know the new owner but Dennis is a very special cat. It was strange walking in as a civilian. The show was beautiful and like in most of business today, the survivors were working really hard. I respect all of these people so much, all giving their soul for the cutting edge. And it's difficult right now. These people are my comrades as are the guys who put up the walls and lights. I hope that they all kick ass this weekend.
Modernism is really a word most probably coined when the caveman first rolled a color coordinated stone across his cavedoor. It has become generally accepted as a wave that started in the 1920's and slimmed down a lot of the previous era's excessive ornamentation. Of course everything gets balkanized and now we have midcentury modern, post modern, nouveau, machine age, op, Eames, danish, sixties and a host of other fractious factions.
A guy I know told me recently that he foresaw trouble on the horizon for decorative arts in general. Due to the cyclic nature of things, he said that starts of new centuries portend trouble for business. I don't know about the 18th century, if pewter went suddenly outre or not but the turn of the 19th was murder I hear. I remember reading Auntie Mame where Mame is reeling on about those hideous Tiffany Lamps, that had been so popular 20 years prior. Ghastly things. That you could buy for a few hundred dollars in the early sixties.That now can cost half a million. Movements go out of favor, especially with the young. Things come back around but never in exactly the same way. I don't know that victoriana or eastlake can ever come back? But who the hell knows? I like Empire and early 18th century american furniture. Very well made, beautiful and extremely undervalued. But wood doesn't seem to resonate that well in our present plastic culture. I am a classicist and a good design freak by nature but not what you could call a modernist. I like what I like, like most of us. The question today is do the kids have any affinity for stuff? If they do, they are throwing very few clues.
Millard was exhibiting at the show as was Steve and Mitzi Maras and Roger Genzer. The Dhamamas. All kinds of old friends. Gerard at Reform always has great material as does Roger. A great band. Good noshes. Leslie put the hammer down and we were back in an hour and a half.
Man Ray - Autoportrait
5 comments:
speaking of modernism, i just checked out a book from the library, a collection of Gertrude Stein's writings, largely because it contains a novella "Ida", which was also my mother's name; anyways, Stein fascinates me; i find her prose strangely liberating, with it's disregard of conventional syntax, etc; as a reader, it really pulls you in, makes you work; i like that...so when is the next installment of Clarksdale?
I haven't been visited by the muse lately. Rolled my ankle yesterday playing frisbee golf and leaving to New Mexico in a few days. Feeling blah with my writing of late. I will pick it up when I can do it justice. thanks.
careful drivin' across AZ, you could be mistaken for an illegal alien or a taliban or a liberal..
That funky colors you mentioned are the racing colors of the famous Gulf Oil Race team of the 60's. They raced Ford GT40's at Le Mans, etc. The colors are being used today by another team. With your wealth of knowledge in so many areas, I don't want you to be labeled a philistine on this count. JS
Gads, unmasked as a formula one fraud. Thank you JS.
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