Megan and Murray

Keith Edmier at CCS Bard

Keith Edmier: 1991 - 2007, installation view of Bremen Towne, 2007 [source]

A few weeks ago, we took our first trip to the Center for Curatorial Studies at Bard College for the opening of its two fall exhibitions, Keith Edmier 1991-2007 and Exhibitionism: An Exhibition of Exhibitions of Works from the Marieluise Hessel Collection.

In the most comprehensive survey of the Keith Edmier's work to date, the artist has created "a full-scale sculptural reproduction of the interior spaces from the ranch house where [he] grew up in the southwest Chicago suburb, Tinley Park." Edmier's new work is layered with the simulacrum of the remembered colors and textures of his early life. By no means sentimental, this reconstituted "home" is meticulously catalogued with his trademark tongue-and-cheek authenticity. Like in his collaborative portraits with Farrah Fawcett, the artist both throws himself wholly into his own labor and allows the more awkward labor of others to speak without censorship, like the reproduced wall-hung paintings "after" Salvador Dali and "in the style of" Renoir.

With Bremen Towne as a literal frame of reference for the exhibition, it is enlightening and challenging to approach Edmier's earlier work with fresh eyes. To see Beverly Edmier, 1967 (1998), the artist's portrait of his mother while transparently pregnant with himself, just outside the context of her conjured home, which features Edmier's reproduced portrait of his mother's own painted reproduction of Renoir's Child in White, is to travel alongside the artist in a strange and articulate meta-journey "home."

Keith Edmier: 1991-2007
Sat. Oct. 20, 2007 – Sun. Feb. 3, 2008
The Center for Curatorial Studies and Art in Contemporary Culture at Bard College
http://www.bard.edu/ccs/

Channelbone in Art in America

Channelbone, 2007, Megan and Murray McMillan, installation overview

Channelbone, our show at White Flag Projects in St Louis last April, is reviewed in the November issue of Art in America by critic Margaret Keller.

We blogged the whole process of working on the piece here.

Thinking About Dance

Maya Deren, Alexander Hamid, Meshes of the Afternoon, 1943

Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly, Singin in the Rain, 1952

Alvin Ailey, Revelations, 1960

Bill Viola, The Reflecting Pool, 1977-79

Pina Bausch, Café Muller, 1978

Dumb Type, Memorandum, 1998

Dancer in the Dark, 2000

Brothers Quay, Institute Benjamenta, 1995

Michel Gondry, White Stripes: Fell In Love With A Girl, 2002

New Standards for Digital Art Portfolios: Part 2

[image source]

If web sites become the new standard for viewing artists' portfolios, then a standard portfolio web site design protocol is needed. Some artists will prefer to create their own user interfaces, but I imagine the overwhelming majority have better things to do than learn web design or spend money hiring a specialist.

The portfolio web site should not be the art, except where it is the art. The portfolio web site should serve to easily communicate artists' works. The more predictable the interfaces is, the easier it is for viewers to get to the art. Portfolio web sites should be invisible. Viewers should think about the art and nothing else.

A commonly used standard portfolio site design would accomplish this, however no standard will work if it is not easily available or at reasonable cost.

There are two design methods that could become a new standard for digital art portfolios. One is a lesser known feature of Adobe Photoshop and the other is Apple's iWeb.

Few realize that Photoshop has the built-in ability to create portfolio web sites. Simply place your artwork in a folder, create a folder for the new site to be placed in and select "File"/"Automate"/"Web Photo Gallery..." A box comes up that lets you select one of twenty site styles. You then select your source and destination folders (the folders you've already created), surf the color and size preferences and click OK. Upload everything Photoshop sticks in the destination folder (using programs like Transmit, which is free from the Apple site) to your hosting service provider (we like pair.com which is about $10 a month) and boom: instant portfolio web site. It's so easy I made an example with our work just for kicks (the hardest part was selecting which files to put in the source folder).

Note: if you need more text and want to use Photoshop, simply include the text under the image files (as part of the actual image file itself) or include the text as a separate image file.

Photoshop is extremely limited though, iWeb is a solid step up. IWeb is almost as easy to use and allows greater freedom in site design. It also has the advantage of being free for anyone who has a newish Mac. If you've bought a Mac in the last couple of years, chances are you already have it on your computer. Although it took about 5 minutes to make this — which is 4 minutes longer than Photoshop took — here is our work in an example iWeb site.

Note: in iWeb, all content is easily arrangable by dragging it around. My example site was done quickly with no real attention to spacing, etc.

Note to artists who don't have a Mac: consider getting one. Put it on your credit card next to the Japan trip. Macs are no longer more expensive than PCs and they work the way artists think.

Read Part 1

New Standards for Digital Art Portfolios: Part 1

[source]

I don't miss slides. They were expensive to create, were constantly deteriorating in quality and were difficult to view without a projector. That said, they were glorious when projected and efficient to organize. For good reason, photographic slides were the universal standard for visual artists to share portfolios.

There are many obvious advantages to working with digital portfolios. Yet, since there are so many formatting options for how digital portfolio files can be viewed, a universal standard seems to be needed.

To start off this series on new standards for digital portfolios, here is a list of top 7 current common strategies for sending digital images to art institutions, with the pros and cons of each:

7) CD with image files (no user interface)
Pro: universal media, easily forwarded, image info can be included as part of image
Con: difficult to view, managing lots of files at once can be tricky for the viewer

6) Traditional Slides made from Digital Images
Pro: familiar
Con: expensive to create and send, requires a slide projector

5) iPhoto Book
Pro: efficient, high quality
Con: somewhat over the top, expensive to send and expensive SASE, difficult to show to a group

4) Inkjet Prints
Pro: easy to view and handle, disposable
Con: relatively expensive to create and send, not easy to show to a group

3) DVD
Pro: best format to view 4D artworks
Con: requires the most patience to view

2) CD with User Interface (Flash, Powerpoint, Keynote, etc)
Pro: a delight with good interface
Con: requires artists to have interface design skills (Flash), requires viewers to be familiar with software (Powerpoint and Keynote) or requires artists to be savvy with export features

1) Email with a Website link
Pro: the easiest to send and share, easy for others to share
Con: requires web and interface design skills

Read Part 2

10th International Istanbul Biennial: Nightcomers Screenings

Our video, The Stepping Up and Going Under Method is currently showing in the 10th International Istanbul Biennial (Sept 8 to Nov 4, 2007), as a part of the Nightcomers exhibition.

For the 10th International Istanbul Biennial, five curators from Turkey have been invited to select over 150 short video works from an open-call to the public. During the nights, the program, under the title of "Nightcomers," will be projected in public spaces in different parts of the city, from the centre to the periphery. The Dutch artists couple Bik Van der Pol have researched and selected about 25 spots and have designed the mobile projection device.

For the first time in the history of İstanbul Biennial, a real open participation of the public has been made possible so that thousands of people living in areas without access to "high culture" can have direct contact with contemporary art. Or, contemporary art is brought to the frontier of a true public gaze.

Remaining Screening Dates and Locations:
Oct 18: Tugay Yolu Caddesi, Maltepe
Oct 21: Mecidiyeköy, Şişli (Otobüs duraklarının arkası)
Oct 23: E5 Tem Okmeydanı Bağlantı Yolu ile Kağıthane Caddesi’nin Kesişimi, Köprü Ayağı, Kağıthane
Oct 25: İtfaiye Caddesi, Zeyrek, Fatih
Oct 27: Kısıklı Caddesi, Altunizade, Üsküdar
Oct 30: Kanlıca Hisarı Caddesi, Kanlıca, Beykoz
Nov 02: Karamük Çayevi, Asmalımescit, İstiklal Caddesi, Beyoğlu

Related: Release01's Report; Art News Blog; and Saatchi Gallery's Blog

Tools for Video, Photo and Installation Art

[source]

Here's a list of the most common tools we use in the order we use them:

Apple Safari
Microsoft Word
Pen or pencil
Cellphone
Adobe Photoshop
Paint roller and brush (someday to be replaced by a HVLP sprayer)
Scissors
Image Camera (low end)
Station wagon or pickup truck
Tape
Apple Final Cut Pro
Drill (battery powered)
Tape measure
Extension cords
Brad nail gun and air compressor
Apple Aperture (Much better than iPhoto)
Video Camera (Panasonic, Sony or Canon)
Drill bit index (I prefer brad point)
Eye and ear protection (always)
Square
Table saw (the older the better)
Laser printer (we like the workhorse Brother HL-5240)
Miter saw (we like Delta and Makita)
Screwdriver
Xacto blade (most dangerous tool in the shop)
Quicktime Pro (perfect for quick import/exports)
Paper shredder (peace of mind)
Apple Compressor (the trick to quality DVDs)
Image Camera (high end)
Pry-bar
Apple DVD Studio Pro (MUCH easier than it looks)
DVD burner
Dozuki saw (I swear by these)
Wrench set
Hot glue gun (some day we'll get an industrial one)
Random orbit sander (Festool and the Festool vacuum)
Jig saw (Bosch or Festool)
Industrial staple gun (save money: go to Harbor Freight)
Tripods (we like Bogen)
Knife
Adobe Flash (unintuitive to learn, but easy afterwards)
Tie Wire (some call bailing wire)
Dremel
Industrial heat gun
Circular saw (We like Festool and Porter Cable)
Industrial vacuum (buy the best you can afford)
Broom
Inkjet printer for DVD labels (not cost effective, but better than a sticker)
Level (don't get the cherry version: buy one you don't mind beating up)
Drill press
Adobe Dreamweaver (old versions are fine)
Wire strippers
Hammer (almost never use it since switching to air nailers)
Chisels (not an everyday tool, but handy when necessary)
Sawzall saw (good to buy used)
Hammer drill (waste of money: consider renting, not buying)

The Visionaries: A Compilation of Contemporary Architects

Jean Nouvel, Koncerthuset, Copenhagen [source]

Thom Mayne, Phare Tower, Paris [source]

Thanks to A Daily Dose of Architecture for finding this compelling top 11 list of contemporary visionary architects.

Playboys of Design Circa 1961

Jens Risom reflects on a 1961 cover shoot for the Playboy article "Designs for Living" in today's Design Notes Newsletter from Design Within Reach (here).

When we gathered that day for the Playboy photo shoot, we probably all wanted, as I did, to have the opportunity to relax over a drink and compare notes. But it all took so much more time than expected. Too bad, for I had hoped it would be our chance to get to know each other better. In my opinion, Eames, Saarinen and Bertoia were the most interesting, and we could have learned a lot from them.

Around the time the Playboy article was published, my wife and I visited Ray and Charlie in California. They had expanded beyond furniture design into filmmaking. Charlie routinely photographed during the design process, so it was a natural progression that they move into film.

DWR has a pretty nice blog as well.

Two Lectures Tonight

Nick Cave, Soundsuits, 2006 [source and source]

At RISD Auditorium, 6:15pm

Carolee Schneeman, Body Collage , 1967, performance on 16-millimeter film [source]

At RWU (CAS 157), 6:00pm

Press releases after the jump.