In mid-March, the art scene all over New England — and slowly afterwards, much of the United States — came to a standstill — or at least its institutions. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, many galleries moved to appointment-only viewings. An overwhelming number temporarily closed altogether. Cultural backbones like the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston are closed to the public, with its date for reopening being extended to further and further dates. The communal feeling that art brings has been thrown out of synch. Even imagining the empty halls of museums or a gallery with its lights out brings a disconcerting mood. But some institutions are defying that mood. Standard Space in Sharon, Connecticut, has launched “Art in Place,” a rolling virtual exhibition focused on art relating to the ongoing pandemic. The idea for its development came to curator Theo Coulombe two weeks ago: “My art … [Read more...] about ART IN PLACE ONLINE AT STANDARD SPACE
Visual Arts
LUCIAN FREUD: THE SELF-PORTRAITS
Two self-portraits by British painter Lucian Freud (1922-2011) are the first works one sees when entering the Museum of Fine Arts Boston’s "Lucian Freud: The Self-Portraits” exhibition. The most recent of the two shows Freud at close to 80 years old, while the other dates towards the end of the Second World War. The self-portrait of the older Freud is a delicious blend of pink and greys that faintly mellows his face. In the one in which he is young, his image is amateur, flat and everything is just ever so slightly out of proportion. His left hand is far larger than the right. His eyes are not level to one another and his mask-like facade is reminiscent of the skulls engraved on colonial tombstones. The exhibit consists of 40-odd self-portraits, ranging from his time in various art academies to shortly before his death nine years ago, at the age of 88. The collection is filled with … [Read more...] about LUCIAN FREUD: THE SELF-PORTRAITS
“A HORSE WALKS INTO A BAR” AND OTHER CURIOUS NOTIONS AT HAMPDEN GALLERY
D. Dominick Lombardi’s curation of whit is unmistakable. In a fine arts show at UMassAmherst’s Hampden Gallery featuring works by 26 artists, and with a theme as broad as humor, cohesiveness is not a given. And yet, while “A Horse Walks into a Bar” contains a myriad of mediums and styles, its parts come together to form a wonderfully silly, provocative and subtly nostalgic whole. Perhaps the most exciting aspect of “A Horse Walks Into A Bar” is the innovative and unique use of materials and methods to achieve a sense of playfulness and absurdity. Among the most intriguing of these is Lucy White’s Band-Aid prints, “Sex Pistols,” 2005, “Peace Panty,” 2006, and “I Hate You Brief XL,” 2006. In her signature minimalist style, with an edge of art-poking-fun-at-art, White offers viewers an easy avenue into weighty issues like gender inequality and gun violence. Other exciting uses of … [Read more...] about “A HORSE WALKS INTO A BAR” AND OTHER CURIOUS NOTIONS AT HAMPDEN GALLERY
VIRTUAL MUSEUM TOURS OFFER ESCAPE FROM COVID-19 LOCKDOWN
Save yourself from social interactions while saving the admission fee while seeing great local, national and international art exhibitions. Artscope Magazine has previewed a wide collection of shows and picked the best for you to hunker down and watch in this time of social distance. MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS, BOSTON, HIGHLIGHTS TOUR. See the latest show and the permanent exhibit with great graphics and video without braving the traffic, human and auto. https://mfa.org/visit/mfa-guide/highlights NEW ENGLAND AIR MUSEUM VIRTUAL TOUR. While air traffic slowly comes to a standstill, look at the beginnings, middle and latest in air travel. http://www.neam.org/shell.php?page=virtual_tours BOSTON CHILDREN’S MUSEUM VIRTUAL TOUR. A great tour to keep the kids busy at home. Interactive and easy to navigate. https://www.bostonchildrensmuseum.org/museum-virtual-tour GOOGLE ARTS AND … [Read more...] about VIRTUAL MUSEUM TOURS OFFER ESCAPE FROM COVID-19 LOCKDOWN
THE NEW WORLD TOUR — ARMORY SHOW 2020
The Armory Show, held on Piers 90 and 94 in New York City from March 5 through 8, was incredible. The lack of the usual crowds allowed up close looks at the work and talks with artists. Although the most talked about work was a car (Ed and Nancy Kienholz, “The Caddy Court,” 1986-87, presented by L.A. Louver, Venice, California), Armory showed a significant amount of art focused on social justice and art by, and portraying people from, ethnic groups not seen before. The takeaway is that work at Armory was more specifically ethnic rather than global, but all groups were represented. It was like a world tour with stops everywhere. Has art become the new world tour, all in one place, since it is difficult to physically travel? It seems so. That car was stationary but promised travel. The show delivered on that promise. Directly behind that very popular car was a much more significant … [Read more...] about THE NEW WORLD TOUR — ARMORY SHOW 2020
OFF THE PIER: SPACE AND LIGHT: VOLTA 2020
No longer on the Pier, after last year’s loss of its space and retreat to David Zwirmer’s Gallery on West 21 Street in New York’s Chelsea district, Volta 2020, which closed on Sunday, was a pleasure to explore. Held at Metropolitan West, it was not glitzy and not crowded, the work shone in quality and patina, resulting in navigable floors of excellent and varied work from all over the world, as well as local galleries. The work was diverse, using materials I have rarely seen, like mud-like applied paint, pennies, shaped canvases and artists’ books. Some of the best work was by Boston artist Lavaughan Jenkins (represented by Abigail Ogilvy Gallery), winner of the 2019 Foster Prize at Boston’s ICA gallery. His figures, made of oil paint applied in rough, thick impasto with a palette knife, looking claylike, stand proud and tall and green in some instances, sporting yellow and lime green … [Read more...] about OFF THE PIER: SPACE AND LIGHT: VOLTA 2020