Contemporary - Pulitzer

Contemporary: CAMSTL Forever

The Museum is abuzz with activity this cumulative Friday of June.   Perhaps the rains sparked the switching of offices upstairs, some staff members wading thru piles of St. Louis and Alive Magazines.  Somebody throw Mr. Root a life raft!  Today also marks the end of the fiscal year inciting fresh beginnings within the Mesh walls.

During the course of my day, I was prompted to pop over to the City Museum.  To my great chagrin 
I noticed the imposing mark of the City, the tickets divvied out to unsuspecting west side Spring Street parkers.  As I mused about a world without borders, er, tickets, I enjoyed the sights of architectural rebirth.  Delmar is looking like it could become the darling it once was.  It is amazing to see rehab in action.  Praise all the good folks in St. Louis for working towards making the city an appealing place again. 

As I neared the intersection of Art and Life, I realized that tomorrow is the last day for the public to view the current show at the Pulitzer.  So I decided to write a haiku about it:

Portrait, homage and
Embodiment’s end is soon
Remarkable art

(a blog challenge  met by Gretchen A. Richoux, Gallery Attendant)

The Pulitzer: Serra on Charlie Rose

As I've recently posted, Richard Serra has a retrospective on view right now at MoMA.  Serra's works have often figured in to our exhibitions at the Pulitzer, and we all pay close attention to new articles and interviews that come out. Today, Camran pointed out this interview that Charlie Rose recently did with Serra about the retrospective.  It's a two-parter, with the last half hour devoted to a conversation about the exhibition between Hal Foster and Michael Kimmelman.  Here's part one:

                 
           

Here's part two:

               

Boots Contemporary Art Space, the MFA Road Show, and One Broken Chair

Last Friday Betsy (Development Associate) and I went over to Boots for the MFA Road Show; an exhibit of student work from the School for Visual Arts in New York. It’s perfect timing for this show in St. Louis because the Kemper has their MFA show up as well. It’s a great chance to consider the impact of different academic influences.

With so many people there it was difficult to really ‘see’ the work, nonetheless, I was able to look closely at some of it. First, I was captivated with the animated video work in the first room described in the accompanying gallery guide as "abortifascient" (i.e. that which produces an abortion). The animation was quite beautiful; the video whimsically depicted a controversial issue. Betsy was especially taken with the word "abortifascient" itself – which she ambivalently referred to as one of those odd "curatorial" words.

The other highlight for me was the life-sized stuffed-animal skewers wrapped in tin foil and propped up in the corner waiting to be cooked or eaten (I’m not sure what you are picturing in your head right now if you haven’t yet seen the show). This piece depicts another controversial issue made light and funny… makes me think that there must be an influence at SVA preaching "we just have to draw them in with humor… reel them in with a good time, they’ll understand the message later."

Beyond the exhibition, the evening wasn’t always so fun. Betsy and I went outside to the patio to visually unwind, we tapped from the Schlafly keg, and had a seat… and that’s when Betsy sat down and broke the chair. Bryan Reckamp, (cofounder of Boots) ran over almost immediately – we could tell he was upset. Of course he pretended it was okay – he even tried to make light of it by propping up the broken chair against the wall and pretending to sit. I can honestly say she didn’t break it on purpose, she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. So, of course that meant we were blacklisted from the after party… word spreads quick. (Rebecca, Program Assistant)

The Pulitzer: Big Brothers/Big Sisters

A few members of Big Brothers/Big Sisters had the chance to visit the Pulitzer Saturday morning.  The institution’s upcoming location in Grand Center has prompted them to explore their new neighborhood.  The matches roamed the galleries of the space where many of them had never been to, much less heard of.  Afterward, each got the chance to share their experience about the Pulitzer as well as with Big Brothers/Big Sisters.  Two members of our staff interviewed and discussed these experiences in order to share their findings with the website.  Here’s a little preview:

When I asked William, a Little Brother, to associate a work of art from the “Portrait/Homage/Embodiment” exhibition to himself, he stated that he related to the work by George Segal called “Walking Man.”  The work is seen as a part of its surroundings in a day-to-day scene.  Paula, his Big Sister could only agree with him, relating to her experience of seeing him in his neighborhood.  She told of him talking with his friends introducing her as his Big Sister and saw the respect he had earned with his friends.  Paula found a connection with Doris Salcedo’s work “Atrabilarios,” seeing the issues of justice and the individual stories within the work that Salcedo brings to light about the Colombian civil war victims. 
-Amy Blomme

I had the good fortune of interviewing three of the Big Brother matches and got a great variety of feedback.  One match, consisting of Big Brother, Tim, and Little Brother, John, both enjoyed their adventure into "Joe", our courtyard Serra sculpture.  When asked which artist they would pick to make their own portraits John answered Segal, because he thought he might enjoy the experience of being all wrapped in the plaster strips, but only when he was assured he would not be left in there.  In another match, Maria, the Big Sister, expressed a desire to have her portrait done by Cindy Sherman so she could be dressed up as a queen.  Ashley, her Little Sister, declined to have any of the exhibition artists do her portrait, but did say she would like to see herself painted by Vincent Van Gogh.  In the last match I interviewed, Big Brother Dennis declared that he'd like to have Salcedo do his portrait, consisting of ball caps instead of shoes as in “Atrabilarios.”
-Maggie Abbott      

Contemporary: Open Studios

In the past few weeks, I've purchased my first url and have tried to figure out how to start a blog that's connected to it. Unfortunately, I'm more technically-challenged than I thought. Despite my more recent and ongoing university education and the numerous blog sites I visit and write for - in addition to myspace pages, facebook and friendster accounts, etc, I was under the impression that it would be simple. Well, I had problems and that's where Christine, our resident Open Studios intern came in.  She has started a website - in the form of a blog - to let all know about the artists, the events, and the programs surrounding Open Studios.  We're still adding information - the current site - is begging for new information, but over the course of the next few weeks we hope it will be a center of information on City-Wide Open Studios and an online forum for participating artists to talk to the public about their work.  Start checking it out. (Jennifer)

The Pulitzer: Tuttle and Water

With one week left of our Portrait show, almost all our attention is focused on Water.  Here's a little tidbit to start getting you in the mood:

Richard Tuttle, it turns out, titled a large number of his 1960s constructed paintings with titles related to water.  We are going to be featuring almost all of these in our exhibition.  Here's the list of the pieces that will be included:

Sail, 1964

Sum Confluence, 1964

Wave, 1964-5

Water, 1965

Twin River, 1965

Fountain, 1965

If you're curious in learning more about the artist before the opening, check out his section on Art 21 here.  It contains wealth of info.  And expect lots more Water artwork tidbits in the coming weeks!  (Rachel)

Contemporary - The First Day of Summer!

Today is the first official day of summer.  I realized it this morning as I was searching the news on-line while trying to wake up.  Featured was a photo of thousands of Pagans gathered at Stonehenge to watch the sun rise on Summer Solstice…in the rain.  So, to celebrate the solstice in my own way, I thought it would be fun to create a top 10 list things that I love about summer in St. Louis!

10.  Late evening, standing in line for Ted Drews
9.  Free seats at the Muny with a picnic in the park before the show starts – sometimes the picnic is so enjoyable, you just never quite make it into see the show!  However, if you pick a spot close enough to the theatre, you can still hear it.
8.  Renting a paddle boat from the boathouse in Forest Park (I haven’t actually done this yet,   but I really want too!).
7.  Visiting Thies Farm and Greenhouse, 3120 Creve Coeur Mill Road.  They have a great little farmer’s market with the best produce I have found in the city!  And it is a beautiful setting.
6.  Strolling through the River Country at the Zoo.  If you are lucky enough, you may even glimpse the baby elephants, they are too cute for words!
5.  Enjoying cocktails outside.  My personal favorite is the sidewalk seating at the Dubliner.
4.  Taking the tram through Grants Farm and sip Anheuser-Busch products in the German Bier Garten.
3.  Attending a Cardinals game.  Make sure you stay through the 8th Inning when they show the Clydesdale’s Video!
2.  Bike Ride on the Katy Trail through wine country.  I suggest starting in Defiance, go 7 miles and stop at the Augusta Brewing Company, which is right on the trail, for a flight of beers.   Then continue on 7 more miles to Dutzow and Blumenhoff Vineyards, which is a short hike up the hill from the trail.  Arrange for someone to pick you up, because you won’t want to bike back to your car at this point!
1.  Get out of the heat and step into the Contemporary to take in some art!

This weekend I will kick off summer with numbers 7 and 3.  Enjoy! (Erinn)

The Pulitzer: Stripped Ads

So I'm kind of just regurgitating a post from the Walker blogs, but as we're in the midst of planning our advertising campaign for Water, I found this story so interesting and timely that I had to post it.    And just in case you don't already read their incredible blogs, here's your opportunity to find out more -- and start bookmarking them and reading them daily. 

Being involved with marketing for the Pulitzer, I'm working on or plotting out advertising all the time.  But what if St. Louis suddenly placed a ban on all public ads, including fliers, posters, etc.?  What would that be like and what kind of impact would that have?  That's exactly what happened in São Paulo, Brazil this year.  The mayor passed the "Clean City" law which banned all forms of outdoor advertising.  Take a look at these Flickr images after all the ads were stripped away.  Pretty dramatic, isn't it?  The Walker also linked to a good article in Business Week that presents the pros and cons of such a decision. (Rachel)

Contemporary: Open Studios

The big news of the day is that we've formally secured an alternative space for artists with studios outside the city to participate in Open Studios this year.  We will be using the Continental Life Building - which happens to be just around the corner - and it's absolutely stunning.  The space is huge - and can easily accommodate the 20 or so artist we have registered for the alternative space (we have more than 80 signed up for the entire event!) and there's even a built in stage and a safe (although I don't believe we'll be allowed to install a piece inside the safe).  We explored the building last week and were excited by the possibility.  And while we were there, we decided to take a look at the apartments they have available. One such space is located on the 17th floor and has a beautiful balcony that runs the entire length of the building.  There's a rumor that a falcon nests above it. The view is breathtaking and you can see all of Grand Center - out to the Arch as well as into Clayton. Each suite is named after its original occupants, and the list is quite interesting. You can read it in the lobby as you make your way to visit the space during Open Studios Weekend on July 21 and 22nd. (Jennifer)

The Pulitzer: New Finds

I got a great e-newsletter this morning from museumpods.com.  It was a list of their top ten museum related blogs in the world -- and guess who was listed at number two??  That's right!

Looking around their site a little more, I noticed a podcast from the Sackler Museum at Harvard.  I wanted to point this out because I think they approach podcasting in a great way.  In an attempt to attract students who may have never visited the museum before, and aren't the usual groups of art and art history students, they've created audio tours with commentary from students with a variety of majors and backgrounds.  I like this because it provides the listener with a more personal and peer-to-peer view of the museum.  Instead of just art historical texts on the pieces, you get alternative stories and feedback that help you relate to the art works regardless of your art historical background and knowledge. Here's a nice article on this from the Harvard Crimson as well.   

Also, when I was looking around their podcast page, I noticed a link to something else (it's been a very link-ful Monday, as you can tell). I think that this is awesome.  (Rachel)

Contemporary: ArtLink Excursions

Last night, ArtLink joined the Shakespeare Festival in Forest Park for a beer and treats pre-party prior to the Much Ado About Nothing performance. Shakespeare has had record crowds this year - more than 4,000 attended the show last night, and almost 100 of them were ArtLinkers joining us for our artsy pre-party.  Last year, I believe our small group was around 30 people - so, in just a year, we've tripled our number of people participating in our partner organization's soiree. "The world must be peopled!" and there's no reason why those people shouldn't be arts supporters.

The show was hilarious - although the Western theme was certainly a new twist on the play for me. I believe there's only three performances left this year, so if you're in St. Louis - make the most of this incredible free festival and go shake it with Shakespeare.  (Jennifer)

The Pulitzer: A Symposium with Students

Monday and Tuesday, June 11 and 12, the Pulitzer hosted an experimental symposium in relation to Portrait/Homage/Embodiment.  It was essentially a series of conversations with professors and graduate students from five schools: Harvard, Princeton, Stanford, Wash. U. (departments of art history) and Ohio State (the department of art).  The program--determined by students--allowed for some great moments of dialogue between art historians and artists.  Not least among them: a discussion on "the performance of portraiture" followed by a kind of performative conclusion by Ann Hamilton.

We should have some textual and visual documentation in the "events and programs" section of our website in the coming weeks.  Check back soon.  In the meantime, I recommend you take a look at the documentation of our Sugimoto symposium on September 30, 2006.  The interesting "reflections" on the symposium, written by four graduate students in attendance, had a considerable influence on our decision to invite so many more graduate students to this recent symposium. (Camran)

Contemporary: The activities of an intern

Hi!  This is Megan, another new intern at the Contemporary.  With all the exciting projects going on around here, I'm sure they can always use a couple of interns to help out.  During my few weeks here, I’ve been working on updating the blog archive to make it more user-friendly for you, reader.  There’s a lot of work that goes into editing the posts, uploading the photos, and updating the links – more than I realized!  After going through almost two years of posts, I’ve been surprised by just how much you can learn about the Contemporary through the blog.

Today I was fortunate enough to get to attend the Brown Bag Lunch with staff and members of the community.  Although I’ve taken a few art history classes, I’m definitely not an expert on contemporary art.  However, listening to Kathryn, the Director of Education, talk about the current exhibits really helped me to appreciate the art more fully.  I hope that you will take advantage of one of these great opportunities and attend if you can! 

The Pulitzer: Gearing Up

As I mentioned in my last post, we're currently in a phase of wrapping up the old and gearing up for what's new.  That includes the next exhibition, opening July 20th.  Which means we'll be closing Portrait/Homage/Embodiment on June 30th (and will have a few weeks afterwards that we'll be closed for re-installation).

Our upcoming exhibition is called Water.  Pretty straight-forward, right?  However, the collection of works that will be on view are anything but -- they approach the subject in a variety of unique ways.  Interested in more?  You should check out our press page, which has the press release with further detail on the concepts behind the exhibition, along with the list of works that will be on view.  And believe me, you're going to want to check out this list.  The press page will continue to be updated with images of these works, along with further background on the exhibition, etc. so check back often.  (Rachel)

Contemporary: New summer intern, Open Studios, and blogging, oh my!

Hello there!  This is Christine, the new summer intern at the Contemporary.  I have joined this organization at quite an exciting time, due to all of the wonderful events we have going on this summer!  One in which I am very excited about and have been working with is the Second Annual City Wide Open Studios!  On the weekend of July 21 and 22, over 70 local artists will be opening up their work spaces to the public, allowing the community to explore their hidden work spaces.  There will be a map available so people can enjoy self guided tours, or we are organizing guided and themed tours as well. 

Currently, I am finishing up a blog cite specifically for Open Studios, where artists and the greater public can converse about the event, the St. Louis local art scene, or anything else that applies.  Additionally, there will be samples of the artists' work available on this site, aiding in your decision for which studios you would like to see.  Or, if you want to get "up close and personal" with the works before the event, from July 17 to 22, the contemporary will have an exhibition of sample works by each of the artists.

I am so excited for this event!  Not only does it give the community a chance to discover this hidden world or local artists, but it brings together a group of people with common interests.  Make sure you save the dates and bring your friends, for this is an opportunity you will not want to miss out on.  You know I'll be there!

Until Next Time . . .

Christine

The Pulitzer: Wrapping Up

I just finished writing and sending out an e-newsletter for what we're up to during the month of June.  Other than a concert next Monday, it's a month of wrapping up this exhibition and getting ready for the next one.  Not only in terms of the exhibition itself, but with this last concert in the Portrait Series on Monday, we're also wrapping up the last of our Portrait related programming (well, other than two symposia this month, now that I think of it....though the symposia aren't open to the public, we plan to make information from these available online.  So plan to see some info from those in the future....)

Wrapping things up also means lots of planning for what's coming next.  The new art works for the new exhibition (which means installation stories for the blog!), new programs to be planned, and new collaborations to discuss.  It's not only exciting, but it means there will be lots to talk about on the blog in the coming weeks.  Which is something that I'm always a fan of.  (Rachel)

Contemporary: Summer Fun

Hey! It's Rachel, the graduate assistant here again. As a full time student (UMSL, museum studies) my summer is relatively free because I don't have any classes. At the end of the semester I headed home to KY for a while, saw old friends, and celebrated all the family holidays I wouldn't be around for (mother's day, father's day, and multiple birthdays....it was quite an event!) But now it's good to be back in St. Louis and at the Contemporary. It feels like I've been away forever. I arrived at the museum to find my desk looking cleaner than usual (maybe I should go away more often) and box after box of Great Rivers submissions just waiting to be organized and examined. You may think I'm exaggerating, but seeing all those submission envelopes was like waking up on Christmas morning to presents under a tree! Even though I've looked through our Flat Files and gone to as many gallery openings and events as I can, being new to St. Louis I am constantly amazed by how much talent is concentrated in this city. Even though the jurors will have the only say about who will be our Great Rivers winners, for a fellow artist and art lover it is wonderful to get to see what hundreds of local artists are currently producing. I guess the moral of this blog is that while I was looking forward to my lazy summer, being back at the museum has reminded me of how much is really going on this summer. By the time we get the Great Rivers submissions all sorted it will be time for the jurors to visit, then Open Studios, then the Maya Lin exhibition, not to mention some Select Nights, tours, and open laptop night. Wait! Where did my free summer go? Well, this summer may be busier than I expected, but it's sure to be fun! (Rachel)

The Pulitzer: New Buildings

Today, I received a link to a huge spread in the KC Star about the new Nelson-Atkins expansion.  A photo of the Pulitzer was featured on one of the pages that listed the many new museums and expansions that have popped up in recent years.  Check out the full spread of all things Nelson-Atkins on their site here.  The museum's blog is also a great place to keep checking for new info and updates.

Also, MAN has a nice round-up of related articles and blog posts, including a link to some beautiful Flickr photos of the building.  Now I just have to start planning my cross-state trip to check it out for myself.... (Rachel)

Behind the scenes, eating at the Contemporary

Maybe our eating habits illuminate our personalities or the real office politics at the Contemporary. Let’s see…

Mike Schuh, our Registrar, toasts an ‘everything’ bagel almost every morning/ slightly burnt, and the aroma wakens everyone’s stomach in the office. He likes to reheat leftovers for lunch. Bruce Burton, Graphic Designer, used to ritually stop at Schnucks every Friday for apple strudel that he would share with staff. For some reason he has stopped bringing it in. Last fall, Bruce was obsessed with the idea of having a staff potluck, he wanted to bring in the main course – the pot roast. Unfortunately it never happened. Kathryn, Director of Education (and Professional Chef), brings in food for staff regularly. Her food is made with only the best ingredients like fresh rosemary, saffron, and raw pistachios. Paul Ha, Director, likes to buy groceries for the office and makes sandwiches for anyone hungry, he also likes to host staff pizza parties. Erinn Gavaghan, Development Associate, is in love with cheese- but only good cheese. So, after our ‘wine and cheese’ events, Erinn polices the excess cheese; it would be a crime for it to get thrown out. She safely places it upstairs in the office fridge for staff to munch on the following day. Jennifer Gaby, PR and Marketing Manager, loves black coffee throughout the day and usually brings frozen burritos or quiches from Trader Joe’s for lunch; like Erinn, she is also an advocate of cheese. Mary Walters, Accounts Manager, faithfully heats up a frozen Lean Cuisine meal everyday- they always smell good, but I wonder how they actually taste. Ben Shepard, Education Associate, is a pizza kinda-guy; cheese and pepperoni. He also excitedly brings in Hank’s Cheesecake for staff birthdays. Betsy, Development Associate, looks in the office fridge often, but rarely eats out of it. I think she wants to find a nice, scrumptious surprise, but usually doesn’t. So, she closes the fridge door and disappointedly returns to her desk. Lisa, Deputy Director, drinks diet coke sometimes. She likes sweets too- we asked her husband what her favorite ‘indulgence’ was (to buy for her staff birthday party), it was Pepperidge Farm Milano cookies paired with ice cream.

Right now, we have old coffee and stale tortilla chips on the counter, no one is eating anything. Its just one of those days. (Rebecca Walsh, Program Assistant)

The Pulitzer: Interesting Museums, Exhibitions

Some friends just returned from a trip to Scandinavia and were telling me about a museum they visited in Denmark, called the Louisiana Museum for Modern Art.  It sounded amazing, though I wish they had more photos of the architecture and grounds on their website.  However, take a look at it here.  I found a great photo on Flickr of the Serra sculpture they have in their outdoor sculpture garden -- a much much different feel from our outdoor Serra at the Pulitzer. Take a look here and a look at another amazing photo of the work in the snow (which is interesting to compare with the photo of our Serra in the snow!).

And speaking of Serra, here's the NYTimes article on his retrospective at MoMA -- if you haven't seen it yet, check out the multimedia section on the installation.  Also along those lines, Camran just pointed out an interesting post-install interview with Serra on Studio 360--check it out here.  (Rachel)