THE PIT:

Before the holidays

Well, it's nearly the holidays, and that of course will mean less posting from me. So, to keep you busy until I return from Thanksgiving in LA, here is some light reading:

-Art Reality show TONIGHT on BBC
-The Pope asks for more 'beautiful' art.
-Art Fag City keeps us all posted on the 'douchebags' in Chelsea. This posting sounds like it should be on How's My Dealing.
-How perfect would this be for art fairs?! You could ship your desk + chair w/ your portfolios.
-New curatorial appointments at The Whitney (and just when you thought your mailing list was up-to-date)

-PLEASE READ The Miami shuttle schedule--you'll need to make the Convention Center your main base since the satellite fairs do NOT have shuttles between them. Yowsers. Separate shuttles for Pulse, Nada, and Scope-but you can pick up these shuttles at or near the MBCC.

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Rob Carter Award

The ROB CARTER AWARD is awarded to ROB CARTER for his exhibiting excellence in the building of a travel frame for shipment to Miami.

***I'll take this opportunity to also mention this wonderful Flavorpill review of Rob's most recent video piece "Stone On Stone", currently on view at ebersmoore in Chicago. YAY!

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Naughty or Nice TONIGHT @ Mixed Greens

above: Mark Mulroney's These Things Are Good For You, 2009 [black bar is my addition, fyi]

JOIN US TONIGHT, Thursday Nov. 19th, 6-8pm
Naughty or Nice (a mini exhibition)
@ MIXED GREENS

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Intangible: Performance Art Panel

Last night's panel, "Intangible", at F.I.T. was geared up to be a discussion on new media and performance art in the art market. As someone who works in a gallery that does deal with new media, I was eager to hear Thea Westreich, Jeffrey Deitch, Clifford Owens, and Cara Starke's take on it all.

Unfortunately I left the discussion more confused than I had arrived. The topics of preservation and documentation, when questioned, were usually responded to with an "I don't know, we'll just have to see what happens in time" sort of answer. The overarching point all of the panelists tried to get across was that performance art:
1. is something that has been around for quite a while
2. will probably develop in another direction as technology and society develop
3. has a value. Even if they found it impossible to explain the breakdown of that pricing process. (Although Deitch did suggest that simply asserting the price could be in itself part of the artist's performance)

I was totally perplexed by Ms. Westreich's story of a performance artist who requested to perform alone--in the collector's house, but alone. Which got me thinking about that old philosophical riddle, "If a tree falls in a forest and no one is there to hear it, does it make a sound?" If a performance must either be experienced live, or understood through documentation, what on earth do we do with a scenario that offers neither of these options?

Mind. Boggling.

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Naughty on Thursday

above: Joan Linder's Tax Write-Off, 2004-2007, ink on paper , 8 x 8 inches

Naughty or Nice
THIS THURSDAY, 6-8pm
@ Mixed Greens
531 West 26th Street, 1st floor
NYC

Join us for an informal, mini exhibition of works (some nice, most naughty) by Mixed Greens artists, including Mark Mulroney, Kammy Roulner, Joan Linder, Dirk Westphal and others...

*You might just find the perfect holiday gift for that someone who has everything.

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Kimberley Hart's "Scout"

In Scout, Hart's alter-ego stores all of her necessities and little luxuries in "The Bank".

Detail of Kimberley Hart's The Bank, 2009

And vultures accumulate around the ill-fated "Sparkle"...more pictures of that installation still to come...

Above: installation shot Spectre, 2009

Kimberley Hart's Scout, on view at Mixed Greens through December 23, 2009. Mark your calendars for an artist talk on Saturday, December 12th, 2pm @ Mixed Greens.

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Moving In Together

I'm sure you've all heard the news--that Freight + Volume and ATM gallery are moving in together.

I'm sure that moving in together will act as a lifeline for smaller, struggling galleries, but is it the best option? I have all sorts of theories as to how this arrangement will work (I can only imagine that they will be trading off months to exhibit in the space), but more perplexing are the mundane, operational questions. Will they share a receptionist? How will they store double the inventory? Will they share office supplies? I'm sure my questions sound silly, but aren't these the very types of questions that, if not addressed pre-move-in, are what lead to the dissolution of most roommate situations?

I also find myself wondering about these seemingly unimportant details simply because I wonder how popular this model will become. Will a standard be established? How do they deal with things like insurance? How does one insure their artwork within a shared space? Ahhh, it boggles my mind.

I did a little research on advice for unmarried couples moving in together, and it seems to me that this advice might apply nicely to businesses in the same boat:

1. Have a plan to merge possessions (well, one can only assume they'll be sharing a printer and cleaning supplies)
2. Be meticulous about money. (a/k/a/ in matters involving money, have a written agreement)
3. If one party is financially supporting the other, there should be no expectation of payback (this is probably good advice to follow--no one gets burned this way)
4. If you split up get a lawyer. oy. Still, good advice.

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Naughty or Nice @ Mixed Greens

Beginning Thursday, November 19th, 6-8pm, Mixed Greens is unveiling Naughty Or Nice: a teensy exhibition of "naughty" and "not so naughty" artwork by Mixed Greens artists. Mark your calendars for some pre-holiday fun.

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