Thursday, October 18, 2012

Art and more of the same

So...
International art news.

Aside from the theft of the seven (!!!) paintings from the Netherlands museum earlier this week, the art world has been abuzz with news of Damien Hirst's most recent sculpture which has been hoisted into place in the little known British idyll called Ilfrascombe.
Named "Verity", the gigantum statue of a pregnant woman has aroused much ire and controversy. For Hirst, this is nothing new. In fact, if all the locals and visitors alike had loved it, one would have said Hirst was going soft or had lost his ability to offend, outrage or shock. This after all is his signature flair, his mark of showmanship.



There is something to be said about outsize work, from Tinguely to Gormley to Koontz and Saint Phalle, the large scale sculptures will always emote something visceral in the public, be it hate or horror or anger, or maybe even delight, it is public art and so I would contend that it must make you feel something. Yes, anything but mundane or indifferent would be good.

I found it rather ironic that someone should compare this new sculpture to Gormley's Angel of the North and actually deem the latter better, especially as Gormley's piece was once greatly rebuked and when it was first unveiled, it met with serious opposition.



While Verity is unlikely to leave anyone indifferent - from that towering stance, to the upraised sword and oh yes, the peeled back flesh - one is not going to view it without feeling some measure of subjective sentiment  - whether it is negative or not cannot be entirely predicted.

But returning to the (shocking) thefts at the Kunsthal Rotterdam, what is so fascinating about it is how easy it seemed to simply haved hoicked the paintings from the walls and sauntered off with them.
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/10/16/world/europe/netherlands-art-heist/index.html

Later, the story was followed up with reports of how similar thefts are committed globally. These stories, like delicious morsels of gossip, hit the newstands and the fascination with the underbelly of illegal art dealings blossomed yet again. Words like "disappeared" and "considerable value" were brandished in the same sentence. Before you knew it, newspapers and online media were swapping stories about past thefts and experts were explaining how difficult it is to know who, why, where or how.

Art theft of itself is of course, nothing new. The FBI even has a website page specially dedicated to it;
http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/investigate/vc_majorthefts/arttheft. It is possible to read about what works are missing and the stories about recoveries (few and far between if you ask me). That some should only show up forty years later is rather telling.

Friday, October 12, 2012

Post-Vernissage

The day of the opening party came and went.
The cow was popular and I got an earful about stuff I could do. On the whole, an excellent evening.
Thanks mucho to all those who came and supported my show!

Sunday, October 7, 2012

Le Jour J

Like oh my gollygoshsmog! Can't believe the day is finally here!

Spent the day (earlier - oh wait, yesterday now) preparing for this breaking dawn event (no, has nothing to do with film). You know the feeling, it's like when you have put everything you own in your backpack and climbed into the last boat sailing out into the Future and you start to panic 'cos you've lost sight of shore and realise it's too late to jump overboard 'cos you are more likely to drown faster than reach the shore? Yes, that's the feeling.

Anyway, had to drop anchor (pun intended) before the big day. There has been a swirl of mixed emotions all battling for domination - and what feels like a gastric ulcer forming and yet...and yet... hope.

A boy once cast his last shiny coin into the magician's box and prayed rust wouldn't gush out. Imagine his surprise when the magician conjured up a dove instead of giving him the secret behind the trick.
Am rambling...must be fatigue.



Le Jour J est arrivé - finalement. Il amene des sentiments comme l'espoir, la peur et la doute.
Comment procéder sans se bruler les doigts?

Avant, j'ai voulu faire une traduction directe de ce que j'avais dit en haut mais vu le temps passé, je dois malheureusement aller me coucher. Le grand jour est finalement arrivé est je dois mettre tout en place avant de fermer mes yeux.

Tout ça (les préparations, les emails et autres) viennent avec la sensation de glisser entre deux mondes. C'est comme...un sentiment bizarre mais c'est lié à un autre sentiment; de l'espoir.
On verra bien comment la journée allait se dérouler.

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Things heat up in the countdown to the exhibition

Am going solo.

Yes, I am a solo artist at my exhibition in October. This is the first time in forever that I should be showcasing my art alone. The pressure to present my best work in a creative manner and also to tell a story is always at the back of my mind.

As you can imagine, I am still finishing canvases and making sure the organisational aspects are in order.
So what can the intrepid visitor expect? Colour! Lots and lots of vibrant colours!


Here's a mock up of my first invite. It's work in progress.



LIFE, COLOURS AND TRADITIONS
Oid

EXHIBITION OF CONTEMPORARY ART
DATES: OCTOBER 2012
VERNISSAGE:  ....OCTOBER 2012, FROM …………
VENUE: WIPO
CHEMIN DE COLOMBETES 
GENEVA

Tel: +41 22...............




                                                                           ***

Ah mes amis, j'aimerais bien tout traduire mais faute de temps, je suis dans l'obligation de faire une sommaire. En effet, je suis en train de finaliser les préparatifs pour l'exposition à l'OMPI en octobre. Les tableaux ne sont pas tous terminés et j'ai toujours pas mal de choses à organiser avant le jour J - comme par exemple les affiches et les matos pour l'expo. Heureusement, j'ai encore quelques jours et j'espere bien pouvoir en profiter pour vérifier les dérniers détails avant de tout envoyer à l'imprimerie.

En tout cas, voici un autre exemple (non-terminé!) de mon invitation/flyer. Oui, cette fois-ci, c'est en français.
A +



LA VIE, L’ART ET LAGOS
Oid
UNE EXPOSITION DE L’ART CONTEMPORAINE ET AFRICAINE
......octobre 2012

VERNISSAGE LE .......OCTOBRE 2012, à  partir de 18:00h

OMPI, CHEMIN DES COLOMBETTES, GENEVE
Tel: +41 22 ................... 




Tuesday, August 21, 2012

The Beauty of the Mundane



Am loving city objects at the moment. From the strange to the mundane, there is something about the things we see everyday that seems to have its own bespoke beauty. I am talking in particular about construction objects, architectural edifices and cityscapes.



It also reminds me to take a moment to appreciate things around me, not to get too caught up in the busyness and stresses of daily living...and to take the time to photograph them.





Friday, February 3, 2012

The animals / Les animaux

The exhibition at the WIPO is fast approaching. Scary! After recent suggestions from my brother (more like an insistent nudge!), I have started working on other ideas, trying out new things and new materials.
Now, some of my new work includes animals like amphibians and birds. It has been an exciting change for me if at first a bit difficult as I was not sure I was going to like the experience (this was a radical change in direction) because one often likes what one can control, no? It's been years since I’ve so much as drawn an animal!

Anyway, here is one example of my work. It is not finished yet as there’s still a lot of detail that needs to be added. Bear with me.  

                                                                           **
 
 
Mon exposition à l’OMPI n’est plus si loin! Mon frère a suggéré récemment qu’il faut peut-être essayer de peindre d’autre images et non seulement des visages/personnages. Donc, j’ai commencé à chercher des nouvelles influences. Au début c’était difficile car je n’étais pas sûre que j’allais aimer l’expérience (un véritable changement de direction) car on aime bien ce qu’on peut contrôler, non ?
Maintenant, j’ai commencé des tableaux avec des animaux, des amphibies et des oiseaux. Ça fait des années que je n’ai pas dessiné un animal.

En tout cas, voici un exemple d’un de mes œuvres. Ce n’est pas terminé car il y a beaucoup des détails qu’il faudra encore ajouter. Soyez patient.