The Dream Realised (courtesy of me)

Some great news just in at Channel 4 HQ – the Big 4 sculpture on the doorstep of the Richard Rogers designed home of C4 has been given an extension of 5 years by the planning department of Westminster City Council.

The public artwork – a 50-foot-high metal ‘4′ – was originally constructed in 2007 to celebrate both the Channel’s 25th anniversary year and the launch of the Big Art Project and was granted planning permission for one year, during which 4 artists were to decorate it. The installation is based on the Channel’s on-air identity, with metal bars forming the logo only when viewed from a particular angle and distance. It is basically a framework over which to date photographer Nick Knight, Turner Prize nominee Mark Titchner, Ghanaian sculptor El Anatsui and recent art graduate Stephanie Imbeau have added a skin.

Nick Knight, known for his work with Kate Moss and Bjork among many others in the realm of fashion & music, covered it with bare chest skin of various hues, adding the sound of a beating heart at its core. I recently did an Amazonimpulse and bought Knight’s new book, imaginatively entitled ‘Nick Knight’ – at £32.50 one of the most expensive tomes I’ve ever shelled out on. From an Allen Jones-like Suede album cover to exquisite nude shots of Kate Moss, it’s a lively spectacle.

Mark Titchner skinned the Big 4 with panels inspired by trade union banners and advertising, the slogans questioning the on-going role of television: Find Your World in Ours, Find Our World in Yours. He came in one lunch time to talk to C4folk about his work, shades of The Waterboys’ Mike Scott about him. My second encounter with him was a great rum cocktail-fueled chat with at the Tate Summer Party this year. Guardian photographer Vicki Couchman took a top class photo of me in front of Mark’s Big 4 for a Guardian piece on the inaugural Media Guardian Innovation Awards in 2007 (which Big Art Mob won).

El Anatsui paneled the 4 with metallic newspaper colour printing plates. What I remember most about when El (as he’s known to his friends) came in to chat about his career in The Drum, the basement space beneath the Big 4, was his generous championing of young, emerging artistic talent from Africa like Nnenne Okore.

Stephanie Imbeau won a competition to provide what was to have been the final iteration. Her Shelter saw the Big 4 fleshed out with umbrellas of a myriad colours. This is the version currently in place – it’s best viewed at night when it is illuminated from within [see below]. The umbrellas all come from London Transport Lost Property Office so no pissing away of public money there then.

The Big Art Project from which the Big 4 sprang started life as a regular, if very ambitious, TV documentary series. In the original visually rich proposal for the project from Carbon Media a space was left for the cross-platform treatment. Into that space went the Big Art Mob and a bunch of interactive ideas I put together inspired by the wonderful public art works that punctuated the proposal. The Big Art Mob was born of my messing about for 18 months with Moblog’s mobile picture blogging software after an initial encounter with Alfie Dennen in the basement of Zero-One in Soho. I was on the look-out for the right project to which to apply Moblog and Paint Britain which evolved into the Big Art Project proved the one – the first use of moblogging by a broadcaster and one of the first uses of Creative Commons licensing by a UK broadcaster (the first use was PixNMix, a VJ project I commissioned in 2004).

Besides the TV, web and mobile stuff, at the core of the Big Art Project was the creation of six actual works of public art, seed funded by Channel 4 and the partners we gathered. One of these was Dream by renowned Catalan artist Jaume Plensa, located high up on the site of the old Sutton Manor colliery overlooking St Helens, a 20-metre-high north-western rival to Gormley’s Angel on the opposite side of the country. It is the head of a nine year old Catalan girl with her eyes closed (I found that out by asking Plensa directly at the capping off ceremony, he was very cagey about who she was and reluctant to reveal much in that particular respect). Dream was Plensa’s response to a brief developed through conversations with ex-miners and other members of the local community. Initially he came up with a huge miner’s lamp but the miners themselves pushed him out of his comfort zone or at least nearer his true self

Dream most deservedly has recently picked up a couple of major prizes. Last month it won the prestigious annual Marsh Award for Public Sculpture which is given to a work of permanent public sculpture erected in the UK or Ireland. The definition of public sculpture is loose, but the location must be openly visible to the public without having to enter a building or gain prior permission. The award was presented at the Whitechapel Art Gallery.

Plensa also picked up the British Creativity in Concrete Award for 2009 for Dream at a special ceremony at Southwark Cathedral. This award is presented each year to an architect, designer or artist in recognition of a particular achievement for the creative use of precast concrete. It’s difficult to convey the photograph-like subtlety of the face, no more than a pale reflection in photos like above.

The moment I walked round the corner of a forest path and first saw Dream in April was one of the high points of this year and indeed of my career at Channel 4, and made every second spent on the Big Art Project over the 5 year lead up worth it. It was a moment shared with my former colleague Jan Younghusband (ex-Commissioning Editor of Arts at C4, now Head of Music at BBC) who proved so open to the multiplatform dimension. It was indeed a dream come true.

Night Shelter (courtesy of Tom Powell)

More on Big Art:

The launch

The mobile dimension

Mark Titchner’s iteration

Thanks to the Armenian-American businessman and philanthropist Gerard Cafesjian and the Cafesjian center for the Arts, the former Soviet monument in the center of Yerevan, Cascade has been renovated and will now be open to the public as one of the world’s prominent contemporary art centers.

The monument occupies 13,000 square meters including a Visitor Center, Museum Store, Special Events Auditorium and an exhibition hall occupying 1,100 square meters’ space.

The Cafesjian Sculpture garden adds a unique harmony to the monument. It is located at the base of the Cascade demonstrating one of the world’s most amazing collections of monumental sculpture.

Such world known designers as Fernando Botero, Lynn Chadwick, Jaume Plensa, and Barry Flanagan have taken the responsibility of designing the garden’s unhampered walkways, long vistas, and formal paintings.

Works by an international array of glass artists, including Czech artist Jaromir Rybak, the Japanese artist Tadashi Sumi, and the Swedish artist Bertil Vallien will be demonstrated. The exhibition will also include Mr. Cafesjian’s comprehensive collection of contemporary art.

The lovers of Arshil Gorky art are welcomed to admire the demonstration of works of the hero of Abstract Expressionism , as an art critic once called Arshil Gorky. 7 paintings and 16 drawings are exhibited from L. Cafesjian’s Collection of Arshil Gorky paintings.

On view is an eclectic collection ranking from a 28-foot model of a ship on board which Mr. Cafesjian served in the Pacific during World War II, to a unique model N Ford Runabout and a working model of Wabash steam locomotive.

A hall titled Yesterday and Today represents 50 photographs of George Harrison, Eric Clapton, The Beatles, and Pattie Boyd herself. The famous New York architectural studio Diller Scofidio+Renfo exhibits Swarovski “Light Socks”

The Center’s full-blooded exhibition schedule contains a distinct program of visiting lecturers, classic films, concerts and various educational programs, specially for adults and children.

This wonderful and unique event will be open to the public Saturday evening, November 7^th and will be accompanied by an impressive firework just near the Cascade monument at 10:30 pm. On Sunday, November 8^th Armenians and guests from different parts of the world are welcomed to admire the renovation that has taken place inside the Cascade and also to admire exhibitions, lectures, book-signing and events. On this and only on this day The Cafesjian Center of the Artists will be free to the public.

Yerevan, Armenia, 26 October 2009 – The Cafesjian Center for the Arts is proud to announce that after seven years of renovation the Cascade – a former Soviet monument in the center of Yerevan – has been completely transformed into one of the world’s outstanding contemporary art centers. Virtually every aspect of this 13,000 square meter monument has been transformed, and it now houses a Visitor Center, Museum Store, Special Events Auditorium and over 1,100 square meters of exhibition space. The center bears the name of its principal benefactor Gerard L. Cafesjian.

Located at the base of the Cascade is the Cafesjian Sculpture Garden, which presents one of the finest collections of monumental sculpture found anywhere in the world. The Garden’s unobstructed walkways, long vistas, and formal plantings have been specially designed to provide a modern setting for large-scale sculpture by such internationally recognized figures as Fernando Botero, Lynn Chadwick, Jaume Plensa, and Barry Flanagan.
Inspired by the vision of its founder, Mr. Gerard L. Cafesjian, the Center offers a wide variety of exhibitions, many of which are derived from Mr. Cafesjian’s own extensive collection of contemporary art.

Particularly noteworthy is a Persian installation by Dale Chihuly, a leading figure of avante-garde glass art. On exhibition in the same gallery are works by an international array of glass artists, including the noted Czech artist Jaromír Rybák, the Japanese artist Tadashi Sumi, and the Swedish artist Bertil Vallien. A large-screen media projection area provides a unique place for informational videos and for the work of video artists living in Armenia and abroad.

• The Gerard L. Cafesjian Collection has one of the largest collections of glass found in any museum, and its collection of work by the Czech glass artists Stanislav Libenský (1921–2002) and Jaroslava Brychtová is undoubtedly one of the finest in the world. The exhibition For Armenia demonstrates the abstract power of Libenský Brychtová’s work, making clear why they are viewed as the single most influential force in the world of glass today.

• Also on view in the center is the first major exhibition of original work in Armenia by Arshile Gorky, an artist once described by a critic of the time as a “hero of Abstract Expressionism.” Arshile Gorky: Selections from the Gerard L. Cafesjian Collection exhibits 16 drawings and 7 paintings by the man who would become known as the most monumental presence in American twentieth-century art.

Another gallery in the center demonstrates Gerard L. Cafesjian’s passion for collecting areas lying outside the arena of contemporary art. His varied interests are on continuous display in an exhibition entitled In the Mind of the Collector. On view is an eclectic collection ranging from a 28-foot model of a ship upon which Mr. Cafesjian served in the

• Pacific during World War II, to a rare 1906 Model N Ford Runabout, and a working model of a Wabash steam locomotive.

• Pattie Boyd: Yesterday and Today lends an intimate view into the lives of George Harrison, Eric Clapton, The Beatles, and Pattie Boyd herself. This unique body of 50 photographs represents 40 years of work and has garnered attention from art critics internationally.

• In a gallery specially constructed for large-scale glass work, the center exhibits an installation of Swarovski “Light Socks” by the well-known New York architectural studio Diller Scofidio + Renfro. Accompanying this piece in the same gallery is the monumental work Sitting Tatoo IV by Jaume Plensa and the glass piece Column #39 by Howard Ben Tre. Immediately adjacent to this gallery is the center’s Special Events Auditorium, which exhibits at its entrance a stunning Dale Chihuly Pergula Ceiling.

A diverse program of visiting lecturers, classic films, concerts, and numerous educational programs for adults and children augment the Center’s vigorous exhibition schedule.

The Cafesjian Center for the Arts Grand Opening Celebration will begin on the evening of Saturday, November 7th, with a spectacular fireworks display near the Cascade monument at 10:30pm. On Sunday, November 8th, the Center invites the public to view all the renovations that have taken place inside the Cascade and to enjoy its outstanding schedule of exhibitions, lecturers, book-signings, and events. For this one day only, the Cafesjian Center for the Arts will be open to the public with no admission fee.

Aquest matí les he vistes i encara no se si m’agraden. Ara bé,  si les comparem amb “l’armari” que havia abans, si que hi hem guanyat. Son tres figures masculines de bronze, assegudes abraçant un arbre i que porten escrit per tot el cos els noms de distints compositors. L’autor és l’escultor local, Jaume Plensa, autor també de l’Armari del Desig que havia abans.

Així a primera vista, “el cor dels arbres“, que es com s’anomena el conjunt, penso que no encaixen gaire en un entorn de plaça dura com és la Plaça de la Vila, me les imaginaria millor en un parc sobre la gespa,…

Més informació

We recently went to see the huge sculpture in St Helens sited on a former colliery. Dream was made in consultation with local community groups by the Spanish sculptor Jaume Plensa. Born in Barcelona in 1955 I first saw his work in a highly influential exhibition at oriel 31 in newtown, Powys in 1994 as part of a uk wide festival of Spanish arts. There are also fine examples of early work at the Yorkshire sculpture park. One of the defining aspects of his work is it’s poetic quality and nowhere is this more clear than in dream.

The walk up to this incredible work is most unpromising. You walk across the post industrial landscape of the mine, to the soundtrack of cars on the nearby m62. The artificial woodland that has been created adds to the sense of the unreal as you come to the top of a hill and turn the corner to be confronted by this fairy tale face, benevolently, calmly waiting for you. There is something immediately calming about her. She radiates inner contemplation. On the rainy day we went we sheltered under her chin as she faced out from St Helens towards widnes and the river Mersey. She is a powerful innocent, a beacon of hope

Gary Connolly, a former miner, was talking about the project on BBC radio 4s midweek programme, which I think is available to download from iTunes. The process of commissioning took 4 years. The sculpture is 60 feet tall and is a far cry from the traditional mining memorial. It is a nine year old girl’s face which has then been elongated by a third. It is made from White self cleaning marble composite. 1.9 million pounds was raised for the project, none of it tax payers money.

The sculpture has become an icon for St helens. It shines out of the darkness of a struggling recent past. When I was at school in the 80s thatcher was in the process of destroying what had been a community. This piece seems to take into account all that St Helens was, has been, is, and will be in the future. The piece is guaranteed for 100 years. I wonder what St Helens will be like in 2112.

Link to Dream website.

Besides our great theatre, there’s so much more to do in the great world-class city of Chicago.  One of my favorite places in the city is Millennium Park.  Check it out:

Millennium Park is an award-winning center for art, music, architecture and landscape design. From free concerts in the Frank Gehry-designed Jay Pritzker Pavilion, to Jaume Plensa’s interactive Crown Fountain, Millennium Park has something for everyone. Tour the Lurie Garden; or have your photo taken by Anish Kapoor’s hugely popular Cloud Gate sculpture. Admission is FREE. For more information, visit http://www.millenniumpark.org.

Site specific art is a public art work that is made for a specific place. The artist will consider the site when making the artwork and the work usually connects to or reflects aspects of it’s site. The term ’site specific’ was first used in the late 1960’s , Robert Barry said in 1966 “(site installation) is made to suit the place in which it was installed. They cannot be moved without being destroyed.”

“The works become part of the site and restructure both conceptually and perceptually the organization of the site. Richard Serra, 1989.

Site specific art can be many things from permanent sculpture, temporary sculpture, performance art, to land art.

Spencer Tunick’s, tableaux are carefully composed events using volunteers and take place at a specific site. A group of naked volunteers metamorphosize into a mass covering and echoing their surroundings. This temporary work is documented in photographs. Nudity is not new in art and it highlights the contrast between the human body and the environments we create to live in. Tunick has infact been arrested 5 times for indecent exposure but states “I feel that my nudes are not controversial. The controversy lies in the fact that I’m using the city as my landscape”.

Anish Kapoor Cloud Gate, 2004

Anish Kapoor is an Indian born Brittish sculptor who became established in the 1980’s. His work, often with spiritual qualities reflects his knowledege of both Eastern and Western culture. This huge sculpture is a permanent site specific artwork in Chicago’s Millenium park. It reflects the Chicago skyline and also enables the viewer to interact with and become part of the art. He is known for using natural materials which reflect the landsape around the object. The mirrors reflect not only the people viewing the sculpture but also reflect the site so the site becomes part of the art.

Another example of Site specific art at Chicago’s Millennium park is Jaume Plensa’s The Crown Fountain. This interactive sculpture combines video technology and water sculpture to produce a reflective piece of work for Chicago. Ever 12 minutes a person’s face appears on the giant screen, every person featured is a member of the Chicago community and vary in age race and sex. The giant sculptures imitate the buildings seen in the skyline behind and the technology reflects modern life and the diversity of the community. The faces act as giant gargoils as they spout streams of water from their mouths ever so often and this allows the people to interact and play in the water. I think the aim was to also bring the community together and have a place for people to have fun.

There is so much public art and site specific art out there and I think it can be a great way of bringing the public and communities into the art world and I love seeing and hearing people’s reactions to different artworks in the public domain.

The ‘Dream’ sculpture is a public art project in St. Helens, Merseyside, England. This 400-tonne 66ft high sculpture represents the face of a girl with her eyes closed, a girl dreaming about the future. It is erected at the site of the Sutton Manor Colliery that closed down in 1992. About fourteen ex-workers of the mine decided to preserve the memory of the colliery and hence came upon the idea of erecting something impressive, so people would enquire about the sculpture and subsequently about the place where it stands.

Jaume Plensa’s Masterpiece
The £1.8m sculpture, designed by the Spanish artist Jaume Plensa and constructed by Cheetham Hill Construction Ltd., was unveiled on April 21, 2009. Plensa is famed for his other creations – the Crown Fountain in Chicago and the BBC’s illuminated sculpted glass dome at its Broadcasting House in London. He describes this artwork as one “trying to talk about the future;” he was convinced that the idea of the future could be excellently represented by this unique creation. However, before hitting upon the subject, Plensa, on examining the site, had already decided the sculpture needed to be “something coming out of the earth.”

A New Rival for the Angel of the North
Made from 90 pre-cast concrete models, workers had to fit each piece with unique precision, which was a challenge. The sculpture has 54 units that have been bolted together horizontally and vertically to help it withstand high winds. The sculpture can be viewed from near M62 motorway’s Junction 7. The project was funded by many organizations including the Arts Council England and The Art Fund. The former miners have been actively involved in the project throughout. They wanted the sculpture to rival the Angel of the North located in Gateshead. The ‘Dream’ could become a gateway for Merseyside and the Greater Manchester region.

Artists Blank Canvas sell art canvas in pairs or bulk box quantities, exclusively stocking the brand new range of Britannia ‘Standard’ (19mm) and ‘Deep-Edge’ (38mm) stretched canvas.

El passat 27 d’abril es va inaugurar la nova seu de la Fundació Vila Casas, Can Framis, que s’ha ubicat al districte 22 @. Aquest nou espai de 5800 m2, datat del segle XVIII i que antigament era una fàbrica de llana, recull una vasta col·lecció de pintura catalana contemporània. Un catàleg d’unes 600 pintures d’artistes catalans contemporanis que el farmacèutic Antoni Vila Casas (Barcelona, 1930) ha reunit durant 40 anys.

El projecte Art de la Fundació Vila Casas té 5 espais repartits per la geografia catalana (Espai Volart i Espai Volart2, Can Mario, Palau Solterra i el nou Can Framis) i constitueix una col·leció personal que aplega un obres d’artistes catalans contemporanis, amb el principal objectiu de promoure i difondre l’art contemporani català de la segona meitat del segle XX. El nou centre només acollirà pintures que s’aniran canviant per tal que es puguin exhibir obres com les de Jaume Plensa, Serra de Rivera, Assumpció Mateu, Robert Llimós, Agustí Puig i Arranz Bravo, entre d’altres.

Per a més informació podeu consultar el web de la Fundació Vila Casas.

EL MERCADO DEL ARTE Y LA CRISIS FINANCIERA EN FRANCIA

“Nosotros”  2008 de Jaume Plensa a la entrada de la Feria Art Paris 09

En París se celebró del 19 al 23 de marzo, la Feria de Arte Moderno y Contemporàneo ART PARIS 09, undécima edición de éste evento de las artes visuales. Desde hace varios años, se organiza en los espacios de exposiciones del Grand Palais. Visité éste sàbado la Feria. Reservé el billete por internet pensando encontrar las largas colas de otros años. El billete electrónico suponía evitar la cola, pero para sorpresa, el sàbado a mediodía no había gran cantidad de público y luego en los espacios de las galerías, la visita podía hacerse relajadamente, sin los tumultuosos grupos de visitantes. La crisis se ha hecho evidente en el flujo menor de espectadores, en la ausencia de los grupos de artistas y asociaciones que instalaban sus espacios en carpas en los Champs Elysées y en la constatación del desplazamiento de pocas obras de los maestros modernos, màs caras en sus precios de salida y también màs caras en los valores de los seguros.

Leo a Lorenzo Rudolf, director de desarrollo internacional y que ha sido organizador de ferias importantes como Art Basel, de 1991 al 2000 y creador de la edición Art Basel Miami Beach, su anàlisis es consciente del peso de la crisis económica y financiera en el mercado. En su opinión la dirección del mercado en los últimos años se había dirigido hacia la obra de artistas muy jóvenes con una estética que define como lifestyle de nuestra sociedad. Para Rudolf ésta variante del mercado creó una visión « monocroma » del arte si lo comparamos con el período de los años 60 o 70, concluyendo en su anàlisis que ésta tendencia se ha desvanecido y que la nueva línea serà una estructuración hacia valores màs estables. La crisis también està resintiendo la red de galerías dedicadas a difundir y comercializar el arte, por lo que muchas se veràn obligadas a cerrar sus espacios. Otro elemento importante de la crisis que influye en el mercado del arte es su globalización y, el hecho de que las ventas no se concentren solamente en Europa y los Estados Unidos. El principal accionista de la Feria Art Paris es un grupo de dimensiones internacionales « Luxrule » que està interesado en la organización de la feria Art Paris en Abou Dhabi. La idea que expresa Rudolf es la de crear una escena artística que no existe, un mercado y un destino turístico. Leyendo éste fragmento he pensado en la crisis financiera y en lo abstracto que son los valores de mercado, y tengo ya la completa seguridad que el arte y el mercado son dos mundos totalmente diferentes. Abou Dhabi se convertirà en el centro del mercado del arte moderno y contemporàneo en ésta región del medio oriente. Para ello serà necesario crear una estructura cultural artística, digamos: los « artistas productores » de la zona, de lo contrario serà una feria occidental instalada en el Oriente y aprovechando la avidez de unos inversores y coleccionistas totalmente improvisados y neófitos, en mi opinión pura especulación que posiblemente siguiendo las leyes màgicas y misteriosas del mercado logre dinamizarlo. Resumiendo la feria, las expectativas y las condiciones del mercado, Lorenzo Rudolf se mantiene optimista y sus argumentos para ello son: « la tradición del coleccionismo francés que es sólida y, la ausencia de especuladores »

Antonio Seguí en la Feria Art Paris 09

Una de las mejores muestras individuales dentro de la feria, fue la exposición organizada por la galería Hélène Trintignan con la obra de Antonio Seguí, sus obras llenas de humor siguen desarrollando el tema de la ciudad y los personajes urbanos que se mueven en una serie de pasteles de pequeño formato y de obras sobre tela de 46 cm x 55 cm vendidas a 8000 euros. Así, las galerías parisinas han apostado por valores seguros correspondientes a movimientos bien reconocidos como: la Abstracción lírica o concreta, el arte cinético y el surrealismo, desplegando piezas de artistas como Le Parc, Seguí o Hartung. Entre las galerías destacan las dedicadas a la fotografía, grandes y pequeños formatos, y temas diversos: retratos, paisajes, ciudades. En total diez galerías reúnen piezas de reconocidos maestros de la fotografía, fotógrafos profesionales que vienen de la moda, la publicidad o el fotoperiodismo los precios de salida son de 1000 euros para llegar a piezas de hasta 15 000 euros. Una nueva cita ha sido la idea de dedicar una exposición a la bande dessinée y al street art. Jean Marc Thénevet especialista de la BD y que ha dirigido el Festival de Angulema en Francia, ha invitado figuras como: Moebius, Loustal, Miles Hyman o Joanna Hellgren «una de las raras mujeres en ese mundo de hombres.» Una de las ideas para crear un ambiente festivo en la Feria, ha sido la creación de una programación de animaciones que incluían por primera vez mantener abierto el Grand Palais hasta medianoche, una maravilla en éste sàbado de cielo azul, limpio, poder disfrutar de la estructura imponente de hierro atornillado y de sus bóvedas de cristal, dibujadas contra un cielo profundo salpicado de estrellas.

© 2009 Maite Díaz

09-01-2009 Ayto de Madrid

Los beneficios de “Encuentro con el Arte Actual. Pintores y escultores españoles” se destinan al desarrollo de una de las zonas más pobres de India

• La apertura de la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de Madrid supuso un revolucionario proyecto urbanístico e intelectual

• Josef Svoboda, conocido como el arquitecto de la luz, creó más de 800 escenografías

El intenso programa navideño ha dejado paso a exposiciones serenas, conmemorativas y de reconocimiento al valor artístico y humano de los protagonistas. La exposición a favor de la Fundación Vicente Ferrer en El Museo de Arte Contemporáneo, la conmemoración de los 75 años de la inauguración de la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de Madrid, y la muestra “Josef Svoboda, escenógrafo de la luz” componen un menú cultural ascético para digerir la sobrecarga de los días pasados.

La exposición a favor de la Fundación Vicente Ferrer permanecerá en el Museo de Arte Contemporáneo hasta el próximo 11 de enero. “Encuentro con el Arte Actual. Pintores y escultores españoles”, una muestra organizada por Angélica Guevara, reúne un conjunto de obras de artistas pertenecientes a las distintas generaciones que se sucedido en España a lo largo precisamente de las décadas en las que Vicente Ferrer ha desarrollado su acción solidaria. Los beneficios obtenidos de las ventas de las obras se destinarán a la Fundación Vicente Ferrer, la ONG española que desarrolla su trabajo en Anantapur, una de las zonas más subdesarrolladas de la India.

La exposición reúne una selección de nombres entre los que se encuentran Esteban Vicente y José Guerrero, Antoni Tápies y Albert Rafols, Jorge Oteiza, Eduardo Chillida, Rafael Canogar y Luis Feito, que remiten a la escena española de los 50. El catalán José Beulas, el manchego Antonio López, el extremeño Eduardo Naranjo y los andaluces Cristóbal Toral y Félix Revello de Toro, así como un representante de una generación más joven, el vasco Alejandro Quincoces, ofrecen una muestra de los distintos modos de entender el realismo. Por su parte, el valenciano Equipo Crónica, integrado por Manuel Valdés y Rafael Sólbes, el también valenciano Juan Genovés, junto al madrileño Eduardo Arroyo y al andaluz Luis Gordillo, se adentran en los años 60 y en las poéticas pictóricas sixties y figurativas.

Con los pintores mallorquines Ferrán García Sevilla y Miquel Barceló, y con dos escultores, el catalán Jaume Plensa y el madrileño Juan Muñoz, ya desaparecido, la selección de este “encuentro con el arte actual” se abre a la contemporaneidad, en la que los artistas españoles se introducen en la esfera internacional.

Cumpleaños de Filosofía

Este año se cumplen 75 años de la inauguración de la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras en la Ciudad Universitaria, y el Ayuntamiento de Madrid y la Sociedad Estatal de Conmemoraciones Culturales han querido conmemorar esta efeméride con la organización de la muestra “La Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de Madrid en la II República. Arquitectura y Universidad durante los años 30″, que permanecerá en la Salas Juan de Villanueva y Pedro de Ribera del Conde Duque hasta el próximo 15 de febrero. El Consorcio de la Ciudad Universitaria colabora en la muestra, que reúne más de quinientas piezas entre documentos, fotografías, planos, dibujos, manuscritos, mobiliario, maquetas, periódicos, revistas, libros…

El domingo 15 de enero de 1933 el presidente de la República, Niceto Alcalá Zamora, en compañía del jefe de Gobierno, Manuel Azaña, inauguró el edificio de la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras en la Ciudad Universitaria. Dicho acto fue enormemente simbólico y tuvo gran repercusión en la prensa y en los medios intelectuales. Hasta la Guerra Civil, la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de Madrid vivió una auténtica edad dorada. De hecho, de todo el revolucionario proyecto urbanístico e intelectual de la Ciudad Universitaria, este edificio sería el único que llegaría a funcionar plenamente durante la II República. El edificio sobresalió por novedades tecnológicas punteras, valiosos elementos decorativos y un mobiliario de esmerado diseño del propio Agustín Aguirre a partir de modelos estudiados en un viaje que hizo por Europa con este objetivo.

El cambio al nuevo edificio coincidió con la implantación de un innovador plan de estudios impulsado por el Decano de la Facultad, Manuel García Morente, quien se quejaba de que “los exámenes por asignaturas convertían a la Facultad en una oficina administrativa, donde lo importante era la matrícula, el examen a fin de curso y los requisitos para la obtención del título”. Por ello, el nuevo plan suprimía los exámenes de cada asignatura y establecía dos pruebas de conjunto, una a mitad de la carrera y otra a su término.

Durante la Guerra Civil, la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras de la Ciudad Universitaria se convirtió en cuartel de la XII Brigada Internacional y sufrió considerables daños, y los libros de su valiosa biblioteca fueron usados para construir barricadas. Aunque esta obra de Agustín Aguirre se reconstruyó después del conflicto y fue reinaugurada por Francisco Franco en 1943 muchos de los profesores fueron depurados o se exiliaron, y esa “nueva vida” de la Facultad de Filosofía y Letras quedó truncada.

Escenógrafo de la luz

Josef Svoboda, escenógrafo de la luz

La exposición “Josef Svoboda, escenógrafo de la luz” recorre el trabajo y las creaciones del famoso escenógrafo a lo largo de su trayectoria profesional. Su hija, Sarka Polak-Hejnová, ha estado en Madrid para presentar la muestra que recoge obras procedentes del Teatro Regio Emilia, La Linterna Mágica de Praga, El Teatro Picolo de Milán y del Festival de Masarata.

En el Teatro Fernando Fernán Gómez se exponen una veintena de maquetas de distintos tamaños, algunas de ellas móviles, otras gigantes realizadas por el propio Svoboda y se reagrupan fragmentos de decorados de sus espectáculos con los que se recrean espacios de fuerte presencia perceptiva. También se proyectan documentales realizados con todo el material fílmico disponible hasta el momento, se incluyen filmaciones de grandes directores cinematográficos como Milos Forman. Destacan las escenografías de Svoboda a modo de instalaciones accesibles y practicables, que crean un conjunto de efectos dramáticos visuales reforzados mediante el espacio sonoro basado en la música original de los espectáculos para la obras de Wagner, Mozart y Verdi.

Nacido el 10 de mayo de 1920 en Caslav (Bohemia central), Svoboda fue creador y arquitecto de más de 800 escenografías. Introdujo en la escenografía procedimientos modernos, basados en una novedosa percepción del espacio, tiempo, movimiento y luz como factores dramáticos. En 1967 creó uno de sus efectos especiales más famosos, un pilar de luz en tres dimensiones. Es responsable de la famosa cortina de luz blanca creada por unos focos diseñados por él que se han llamado ‘Svoboda’. Murió en Praga el 15 de abril de 2002 a los 82 años./

a3mj.hace, soluciones y marketing on-line

Location: Gateway Park, Des Moines, Iowa, USA

Sculpture by Jaume Plensa, stainless steel, 2007

Quoted from sculpture.net:
Venture capitalist and philanthropist John Pappajohn has purchased a 25-foot-tall sculpture by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa as the signature piece for the sculpture garden Pappajohn wants to create in Des Moines’ downtown Gateway Park.

The piece, titled “Nomade,” is being shipped to Iowa from Florida, where it appeared…in Art Basel Miami Beach, an international art show… The sculpture is made of randomly arranged stainless steel letters that are painted white and welded in the shape of a person sitting with knees drawn up to the chest with arms around the knees. The artist has said the shape was based on a position that his son sometimes assumes.

“It will be so interactive with people,” said City Councilwoman Chris Hensley. “You can go in and walk around inside the sculpture and sit inside it. The lighting will make it spectacular at night.”

Nomade is lighted from the ground inside the sculpture…causing the inside of the letters to reflect the white enamel paint and the outside to take on a ghostly, dark presence.

flickr pic originally uploaded by broox

flickr pic originally uploaded by Don3rdSE

flickr pic originally uploaded by Erin Go Braugh 84

flickr pic originally uploaded by mondolind

flickr pic originally uploaded by cwwycoff1

Jour après jour, la mobilistion dans l’Education Nationale se poursuit et s’amplifie. Depuis une semaine, les parents d’élèves ont pris le relais des enseignants. Jeudi dernier, l’école Rosalinde Rancher, en bas du Vieux chemin de Gairaut (dans le 7e canton), était occupée, comme d’autres écoles à Nice, dans notre département et partout en France.

Ce mercredi soir, même le froid et la pluie n’avaient pu démobiliser ces parents inquiets pour l’avenir de leurs enfants, qui se battent notamment contre le démantèlement des RASED (Réseaux d’Aides Spécialisées aux Elèves en Difficulté). Ces personnels qui interviennent dans les écoles primaires n’ont jamais eu des moyens suffisants. Et c’est alors que les besoins se font de plus en plus pressants que l’on supprime des milliers de postes avec comme objectif leur disparition pure et simple du paysage scolaire. Parents et enseignants ont bien compris l’importance de leur présence dans les classes ordinaires des écoles pour les élèves en difficulté, mais aussi pour tous les autres.

En plus des amis de Gauche Autrement, le rassemblement organisé à l’appel de la FCPE sur la place Masséna m’a permis de retrouver des parents élus au Conseil d’administration du collège Matisse et de faire connaissance avec d’autres, notamment de l’école Rosalinde Rancher qui semblent en pointe du mouvement (leur action a été relayée en fin de semaine dernière par Nice-Matin).

Le lieu était bien choisi, au milieu des illuminations de la place, des sapins, et de l’animation du marché de Noël, sous le regard bienveillants des hommes translucides et lumineux de Jaume Plensa, qui partageaient leurs “conversations” avec nous. Tout cela nous a (presque) fait oublier la pluie un brin glaciale dont nos parapluies nous protégeaient bien mal.

Last weekend I was in Des Moines, Iowa again. It is beginning to feel like my second home. (my fiance is from Urbandale, a suburb of Des Moines, so I guess it kind of is like home.) In September and October this fall I will be there nearly every weekend! Every time I visit I love it more and more. Everyone I met from there is amazing and Andrea and Tommy were no exception!!

I met Andrea the last time I was in Des Moines in April. We met for coffee and I knew right away that we would get along great. I think we would have talked all day if our schedules allowed it. Since the moment I met Andrea and heard all about her and Tommy I could not wait for their engagement session! Andrea was full of fun ideas for the photo shoot. -I think she actually looked at more magazines and photography sites than I have. Which if you know me this is very hard to do. I am a magazine junkie, especially wedding and photography ones. I used to be bad before, but now that I am a bride-to-be myself its ridiculous! Well I loved that she knew what she wanted. She sent me examples so I really got to know what style she liked and a vision she had for the day. Andrea had scouted the locations, she had a list of where we were to go. At first I wasn’t sure her large list was possible. However, in the end we had so much fun the time seemed to fly by! Thank you Andrea and Tommy for a fun filled Saturday! I hope the photos live up to your visions Andrea.

My apologies for the long post, but I had such a hard time picking my favorites, there were so many!

After meeting at Dairy Queen we headed to downtown Des Moines. There is a bronze looking building across from the Capitol Building that has a great reflection of the Capitol Building and a beautiful green lawn.

I love reflections!

And I love shadows!!

After hanging out at the Capitol, it was off to Gray’s Lake-but first a detour! Its always great when I can ride with the couple so that I can scream, “Pull over there!” when I see something cool. In this case I saw a decorated wooden wall.

As an added bonus it was across the street from the new Western Gateway Park in downtown Des Moines which includes the “John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park,” named after the donors of the sculptures. Here we are having some fun in the Nomad by Spanish artist Jaume Plensa. Fun fact: Plensa also designed the Crown Fountains in Chicago’s Millennium Park.

Then I got to see Des Moines’s “beach” at Gray’s Lake.

I thought the giant people outside the bathroom walls were so funny. I never seen anything like it. So Andrea and Tommy humored me by taking some photos with them.

So we really were lucky, it seems like everything was perfect for the engagement session. We had perfect weather, mid to high seventies, mostly blue skies and sunshine, and a little wind for fun movement. And every where we went we found little gems! Like at Gray’s Lake we found this beautiful patch of tall grass (something I look for in every shoot-it’s really a Tina Jean shoot when I am laying on my stomach photographing through the grass!). It was a little marshy like, but Andrea and Tommy were troopers and sat on the ground anyway. Thanks guys! I think it was worth it!

Then we went across the street to Water Works Park. I was hoping to find an Apple tree or Crab Apple tree with the blossoms, and my fiance’s aunt, Denny, suggested Water Works, she said it was in full bloom. I was not prepared though to find possibly the most beautiful Crab Apple tree I’d ever seen with pretty pink blossoms! It was breathtaking. Andrea (and myself) couldn’t stop smelling it!

I found out later, according to the Water Works website, the park has one of the world’s largest collections of flowering crab apple trees. I recommend everyone in the Des Moines area see the trees in full bloom! And call me next Spring, I’d love to photograph there again!

And finally we went to Ankeny, a town north of Des Moines, to Andrea’s aunt’s place. She had a beautiful piece of land and there was an old farm nearby. Sadly most of it is under construction, because the town of Ankeny is trying to build a ramp from the interstate right through the property! It was sad to know that in a short time the beautiful land would be filled with cars and highway. I wish Andrea’s family the best in their fight for the preservation of the land.

Sometimes people will ask me to recreate an image I made or they saw somewhere. Which is always interesting. I love when people share ideas and I keep them in the back of my mind. However, each love story is different. And no two photos are the same. But sometimes when you are trying to recreate something-as was the case with one of my own photos that Andrea loved-you get something else that’s just as great and it’s something unique to the couple. You may see a resemblance to a photograph from Jenny and Eric’s session on my website and on the blog’s banner, however I love them both for their differences too!

And here is maybe my favorite one from the day (although that’s tough to choose)

Andrea and Tommy I had so much fun! I can’t wait for your wedding in September in the Rose Garden at Greenwood Park behind the Art Center!

About Jaume Plensa : english text on daxdax blog

Elodie wants to talk about Jaume Plensa…

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I discover this artist with the new installation in Place Massena, a bigger public place in Nice, where I come from. With the new tramline, artists are invited to invest the railway line with sculptures, lights, or writings…

We went to the MAMAC (Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, of Nice) with Florent and Lionel, for the Jaume Plensa Exhibition. It was a short but very interesting exhibition, with few but effectives pieces. The sculptures or installations are almost larges, and must be seen in a big space. So, it was like a breath of air to visit.

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About Jaume Plensa…
He was born in Barcelona in 1955. He lives and works in Barcelona and Paris (he has taught in the Ecole Nationale des Beaux-Arts). It’s a important sculptor of contemporary art, more known since 1980.
He works with many materials : fist with metal, bronze, copper, recovers materials… Also, resin and light, aluminium, brass, high steel, glass… it depends on pieces needs. He introduces sounds and writings too.

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In the exhibition, we were in front of a big transparent character, with light inside. He was huddled up on himself, he seems to be peaceful, like a wise man or a buddha.
Some sculptures were put down on the soil, and others fixed upon the wall, to the side (we can pass below, and observe closely), raised like a gib gargoyle.

Characters are always covered with letters or words. Sometimes, the writings give some indications on the sculpture signification, and are related to the title. The letters are added like a material. They link with the human figure.

The installation with 10 gongs is very interesting and fascinating. It’s different of the others pieces who are showing.

In a long space, many gongs were suspended in two lines, face to face. It’s working with couples. A word was graved in each gong. Two words who are opposites, have a contrary or opposed meaning ; like hate and love, sex and religion… The installation is at ease, and wait the spectator intervention for run the action. Each gong is equipped with a stick. We are free to hit it, to make a sound, deep and round, with lot of vibrations. The sound gives a reel presence, nearly religious. The noise is so high and we feel all sounds like beats, to the ears at the chest. If many gongs are hitting, the intersection of sound is more special. The sound crosses over me and I could better feel the space around me. The vibration is a reel thing, a new material created by the spectator.

Also, I kept a pleasant remember of one piece. It was again a character, bigger than the last others, who stayed seated, and held his knees with his hands.
We arrived in a hall, and saw a light on the background, which changed colors. I was caught by the light. The character produced a radiance, like a glory (aura). I was totally absorbed by the colors, and was kept by the switching of light. This peaceful object gives to think.

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great interviews (in french!) here and here.

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Please Alice, can you correct me ?