Personism

Paired: Laura Letinsky + Frank O ' Hara

#60, Chicago, from Hardly More Than Ever by Laura Letinsky

I'm always happy for an excuse to post a poem from Frank O'Hara or a photo by Laura Letinsky. Fast Company, in this week's New Yorker, is nominally a review of Mark Ford's new Selected Poems by my crooked-nosed hero; it's also a good read in and of itself.

And on account of having been given an excuse, below a poem by Frank O'Hara, one that I haven't posted before, which made me think of the photograph above that's by Laura Letinsky.

For Grace, After A Party

You do not always know what I am feeling.
Last night in the warm spring air while I was
blazing my tirade against someone who doesn't
interest
           me, it was love for you that set me
afire,
        and isn't it odd? for in rooms full of
strangers my most tender feelings
                                                    writhe and
bear the fruit of screaming. Put out your hand,
isn't there
               an ashtray, suddenly, there? beside
the bed? And someone you love enters the room
and says wouldn't
                            you like the eggs a little
different today?
                       And when they arrive they are
just plain scrambled eggs and the warm weather
is holding.

- Frank O'Hara

Train of Thought

Rice paddy art, after Hokusai, which I'll readily admit has a most tenuous connection to the subject matter of this post.

This:
Several factors are contributing to the steep rice in prices. Rising affluence in India and China has increased demand. At the same time, drought and other bad weather have reduced output in Australia and elsewhere. Many rice farmers are turning to more lucrative cash crops, reducing the amount of land devoted to the grain. And urbanization and industrialization have cut into the land devoted to rice cultivation.
Which came from an article in today's NYT: High Rice Cost Creating Fears of Asia Unrest

Reminded me of this:
But it’s true. We are running out of farmland and some people, like finance guru James Cramer in his recent column for New York magazine urging readers to invest in farm supply equipment, are suggesting — only a little facetiously — that housing developments may need to be razed to clear the way for more farmland.
from an excellent article by Allison Arieff about urban farming, Cows Grazing in the Rumpus Room.

Bats Perish, and No One Knows Why. (God we are seriously fucked, aren't we?)

Which took me on a brief, mournful tangent of thoughts about the dying bats* and the missing bees.** After that mental detour (detailed below) I resumed thoughts of urban gardening, which got me to thinking about parking lots all covered with daisies:

(Nothing but) Flowers by The Talking Heads. Damn, that David Byrne is a handsome man.

And from there I went back to this, for reasons that I am not even going to get into:

Abracadabra by the Steve Miller Band. Hairstyles were different back then.

* Sub-tangent to the bat tangent: I bought some of Katz Coffee's incredibly delicious Bat City Blend beans when I was in Bat City (aka Austin, TX) itself. If their web site were working I'd buy more in a second, because it's just that good and besides, what about the bats? A portion of the proceeds benefits Bat Conservation International, which organized a bat watching trip to the Zambia that my friend Antony Van Couvering went on several years ago.

* Sub-tangent to the bees tangent: Yes that is another seemingly useless domain that I own. Speaking of which, the NY Post has a not-to-be-missed photo gallery of hookers made famous by Eliot Spitzer. Just what you expect from the Post, nonstop class!

Change. Good. Yes.

Watch, listen and learn. Let's hope it's history in the making.*

I <3 Obama more and more with every passing day. If you haven't seen the speech on race that he recently delivered in the city of brotherly love, you can watch it online. Alternatively, you can just read the transcript.

I bought one. You can too.

Also, if you missed out on the the first one, there's a new Shep Fairey print for sale on the Obama '08 site, albeit in a much larger edition of 5000. (The first one, sold through Shep Fairey's own site, was an edition of 350. Unsurprisingly it sold out in about a millisecond.)

*All the other clips I've been sent were really lousy quality with that interminable CNN crawl on the bottom of the screen. Thanks to Liz Kuball for the link to this fresh, crispy, crawl-free version.

What I Saw of Houston

Garden gnomes in the courtyard of the Doubletree Downtown in Houston, Texas. Unlike the photographer, I didn't even get to see these little fellas head-on, as I never once had an opportunity to descend into the courtyard during our brief breaks between reviews. (Used without the express permission of the artist, but I think he'll be ok with it.)

I am just back from Houston, Texas where I spent four days at Fotofest, reviewing portfolios and riding in charter buses like the one below. There is lots to say, but one doesn't know where to begin.

My overall assessment? INTENSE. 4 days straight of 14 reviews a day, plus tightly scheduled evening activities... it was overwhelming at times. In spite of the grueling schedule, I had a terrific time. It's like photography sleep-away camp for grownups. I got to spend quality time with a lot of fabulous people, and formed some strong (and what I hope to be lasting) connections with all kinds of photo world sorts - photographers, editors, curators and publishers were all in the mix.

I really enjoyed the international flavor - I saw great work from all over the world. The theme of this year's edition was Chinese photography, and I saw some fantastic stuff. I'd never really been interested in traveling to China, but now I'm trying to figure out how to get there and soon. There were also lots of European photographers, publishers and curators (I get the sense that this is always the case) as well as a big contingent from Korea. All the international visitors seemed as bewildered by Houston as I was. (It's a seriously weird city.)

My one major criticism is that there was just not enough unscheduled time. I had my best interactions with fellow reviewers and photographers while hanging out in the lobby and chatting over drinks.

The charter bus which carted us to destination upon destination. Sadly, it has no affiliation whatsoever with first class art blog Art Fag City.

I'll try to write more about it when I'm better rested, but right now I'm still reeling from Texas times two, plus last night's lovely opening reception for Ian Baguskas' exhibition of big luscious c-prints, Sweet Water. God the show looks gorgeous. Yes, I'm biased, but it's truly stunning.

I'm looking forward to a travel-free stretch from now until late-April, as is the otter who apparently missed me like mad while I was gone. (But has been decidedly blasé about my return.)

Two Structures, Death Valley, CA (2007) by Ian Baguskas (30" x 38.5" C-print | 1 of 5) is so much better in person. The sky has this wonderful buttery hue that you can only really coax out of traditional process c-prints. Any digital output would've been full of noise. Not so here - it's pure bliss.

I Am a Fucking Steamroller (.com)

Oh seemingly useless URL, I had such big plans for you! (And for you too.)

But never this. Not this, no.

MoCP ' s Prints for 2008

Lincoln and Log Cabin RV, 2000 by Greta Pratt. (11x13 Lambda print, Edition of 50, $300)

The Museum of Contemporary Photography has just announced their 2008 Fine Print editions. It's a great selection of prints as always and they're all $300. My favorites: Greta Pratt (above), a diptych by KayLynn Deveney and a Simon Roberts shot from his Motherland series.

Pressing Matters

Holly Lynton, Brad Moore and Diane Meyer photos in my apartment.

Easing the Pain of Collecting, which appeared on the front page (holy smokes!) of last Thursday's New York Times Home section, answers all your burning Jen Bekman questions. Does she have a trust fund? Did she graduate from college? Can she make a bed? No, no and, um, clearly no. (Pictures don't lie.)*

Seriously, it's actually a thoughtfully written piece that I'm very pleased with and flattered by. Staff reporter Julie Scelfo frames out my history using my apartment to shape the tale. We talk about my art, my various collections of things (pottery, stuff from eBay), how I got started in the art business and how everything in my life is totally and completely perfect now. Woo!

Don't miss the audio clip (all "likes" and "ums" miraculously edited out!) In the clip I give some tips on getting your art on. There's also sidebar that includes many of my recommendations on places to get awesome art affordably, online and off.

In other media news: 20x200 is the best! The best of New York that is. Their big fat Best of double issue is on newsstands now, and 20x200 is proclaimed to be the best Starter Art Collection.

Ok, that is all. I will now return to my glamorous New York life of takeout, heavy-footed upstairs neighbors and pet hair.

*I also don't do dishes.