Troy Lovegates, 2011
Two is too few to call it a Canuck jag, so hold your horses.
Troy Lovegates/Other (Derek Mehaffey) belongs in here so much I can’t believe we haven’t posted him before. Lovegates does trains and he does galleries (despite finding indoors work “a bit pretentious and limited to an audience that is already interested in art hidden behind some walls out of reach.”) Also there is a book, thanks to what is surely the last era of the Canada Council funding this sort of thing for a while, until the electoral system is overhauled or more voters realize they care about this sort of thing or more of those who care about it start to vote dammit.
He’s been at it since 1988, in so many locations that he may not even count towards a Canuck jag (I joke). This “rainbow shoeshine box cover” is the only painting among Lovegates’ recent sales funding his travel from Europe to his first NYC opening this fall. It is painted on found wood. The rest of the marvelous offering comprised drawings and a limited edition linoleum print. He sold these direct out of his flickr without even a Tiny Showcase or 20×20 or Little Paper Planes, at prices nearly anyone could afford. In other words, one of life’s cynicism antidotes.
troy-lovegates on flickr
Decynicalize Here the original on EML
"Grace Throckmorton", Torin Stephens 2010
“images found on the internet of people who have died…downloaded and projected into a space that was either important to that person in life or was the site of their death…”
I saw this on Wooster last week, and took the time to learn more. I was surprised by what I learned. There are few other words posted with this work on Stephens’ site. I found I didn’t care, and learned instead that some things are better experienced without knowing how it is to project onto a horse.
The Artwork of Torin Stephens.
We are uptight about our regular online destinations. With limited time and limitless destinations, decisions on whether to view something even once are made hastily and with enormous anti-click bias. Decisions on whether to subscribe or follow or bookmark or otherwise invest repeated time in a site are made with less haste but even more reticence.
The Os Gêmeos blog reassures me that we have not gone too far with the filter. It’s not in English and includes something that prevents Google translate from working. It’s not part of any of our existing “follow factories” like Tumblr or Posterous or Flickr. (There is a link to Flickr but it returns a locked or possibly empty account). It appears not to be designed, not even mediated by the designs of a blogging platform. Yet we visit regularly, using that clunky old school system of memory and bookmark.
The contents range from the expected (documentation of their work), to the classic (“watch this music video we love”), to the whimsical (snapshots of their travels, some with Portugese commentary that would have to be clipped offsite for translation). Scrolling the page, the overall feeling is – surprise - Os Gêmeos: colourful, human, joyful.
And perhaps the absence of bells, whistles, or even helpful features is part of the experience that keeps us coming back. It’s not a gallery with perfect light and soft seating. It’s a wall viewed from inside a speeding train.
Os Gêmeos.
“The Infinity Forest is a green oasis amongst the hard, vertical walls of Penfold’s and Hosking Place.” Sydney. As there is no mention of any sound component to this intervention, I imagine the sound inside the box is much the same as outside, and I wonder if this adds or detracts from the Infinity Forest experience.
Infinity Forest Project / Scale Architecture | ArchDaily.
ROA!’s images of piled up critters are interesting, but none moreso than the ones of rats. Taking a normally endearing animal image, the “puppy pile”, and applying to a reviled beast, provokes the kind of thought I like to entertain.
Wait – they are asleep, aren’t they???
London-Groupshow Brick Lane Gallery on Flickr – Photo Sharing!.
This Wooster post drew me in, and I followed the link to the Flickr account from whence it came, then I sought information from the profile, fruitlessly, then through Google, also fruitlessly. Then it occurred to me that enjoying the art without any knowledge of the artist is a more “street art” experience anyway.
Wooster Collective: Shit We’re Diggin’: The Art Of Vera.
Jen Grant collects garbage, and with it, sculpts political commentary in public spaces. The projects are pleasing, sometimes by virtue of their materials (a hammock made of jewelry!), sometimes by virtue of their inventiveness (chairs turned into steps up and over a fence), and sometimes by virtue of their environment (a swing hanging from the Botanic Gardens bridge), but always by virtue of their politics, expressing notions about freedom, waste and capitalism.
Learned of her at Wooster Collective. See her work, read her ideas:
jen grant: hammock.
From WebUrbanist via PSFK, comes my awareness today of Compagnie Willie Dorner. Apparently it is more concept than a set troupe, as performances around the world feature locals. Contemplating this on a screen, at least, pleasure arrives from two directions: the hideaway appeal of the nook and cranny, and the simple aesthetic cheer of multicolor!
“Living Sculptures” Squeeze Human Performers into Unexpected Spaces – PSFK.
Saw this image through Wooster Collective and was instantly captivated, in no small part by the setting. Clicked through to its original home in Flickr, and read the amazing tale of this Belgian village Doel. Please follow my lead.
street art Doel – Roa vs Resto on Flickr – Photo Sharing!.
