SFMOMA

My second visit to SFMOMA in 2006 featured seeing Matthew Barney at a press review prior to the opening reception. He came down the main staircase into the foyer with a crowd of reporters, answering questions about his Drawing Restraint exhibition. I could not help but search the crowd for Bjork (who was not present). I always remember the remnants of this piece below that he created for that show and this time sought out the exhibition placard to read the details.


Matthew Barney, Drawing Restraint 14, 2006

From the wall card: "The remnants from Barney's performance inside the museum's turret. He scaled the wall and navigated a system of carabiners under the bridge until he reached the opposing wall and commenced drawing. He was dressed as General Douglas MacArthur, who oversaw the American Occupation of Japan after WWII... A plastic cast of the general's corncob pipe rests at the foot of the climbing wall; the pipe also figures in the drawing."

The 2012 visit to SFMOMA resulted in meeting Alexis Pike and some of her 27 students that she brought from Montana State - many of whom I had met during my visiting artist gig last November. Another surprise visitor was Laurie Blakeslee who I hadn't seen since 2008. Here's a BSU (as in Boise State University) portrait of the three of us in front of the Dijkstra exhibit by Amelia Morris.



One of my favorite works of video art ever: Rineke Dijkstra's Buzz Club. It is a two channel video installation depicting teenagers dancing in a make-shift studio at the back of the Buzz Club in Liverpool. It was utterly mesmerizing. Alexis, Amelia and I learned some new dance moves from this participant at the beginning of the video clip which were featured prominently during the last evening of the SPE conference.



Jim Campbell's Exploded Views in the foyer was an equally fascinating installation reflecting the traffic and pedestrians outside the museum onto a light show that resembled the decoration in the conference hotel (coming soon).





Yet another instance of old technology elevated to a higher status as previously seen in Luther Price's slide carousel installation at the Whitney Biennial. Needless to say, Alexis and I both wanted this device from Tris Vonna-Michell's GTO: hahn / huhn, variation 1.



I also fell in love with Colter Jacobsen's watercolors in the 2010 SECA Art Award Exhibition. Check out more of his work here (particularly the photo influenced drawings on book covers).



Colter Jacobsen, Bridal Veil Falls, 2007 [Image via.]

Upon returning to Indiana, I immediately purchased the Rineke Dijkstra catalog and The Elements of Style Illustrated so I will never forget when to use "whom" vs. "who" (and so on). Plus who could resist a book cover that looks like this?