Wood Brain Benders

Until this weekend, the only ones fail art I never had been at were at New York. When I discovered that I had reserved fortuitment a personal trip to Santa Fe during The ART Santa Fe, I was very excited to see that I foresaw would be a menu tasting different galleries of art -- certainly more of expositions of the American southwest, maybe a more of representation of few the south of the border. And certainly another question I was anxious to challenge retrieved to my own snobisme of New York: how the scene of art that compares here New York? The work quality will it hold a candle to one of the art hubs the most important ones in the world?

On the walk in fails it art, one entered a hall a type of, with some pieces that seemed a promising preamble before to enter fails it himself: of grade was Franasois Morellet the sculpture to the neon without title, of Santa Fe gallery Zane Bennett local Contemporary Art, just like the Gift (2009), an archive characters on appears it Fuji by Kathleen Wilke, Of Decorazon (Paved, TX). But, I found, as I entered the true space of exposition, the work quality covered certainly the range.

Before I go any ampler, maybe I should explain that I have two essential and maybe evident conditions when I contemplate an art work: first, the piece must draw me in aesthetically -- it must oblige visually. The definite principles of color, the composition, the conception, the size, the form, the texture, etc, must be solid. This can be in agreement subjective because I think that the this is rather intuitive: when an object of art is not definitely solid, you know it just. Deuxia¨mement, the work must have higher ambitions: after its definite qualities brought back me, the work must keep engaged me with food for the thought. It should not is a headache crushing state of humanity; often the piece will evoke a certain sensation in me, and I take a moment to wonder why it evoked this special sensation and that that means, why I can like that the sensation or the hates. I encourage also these two very basic principles of art-regardant in any collector: your collection is your, it should begin with your personal interaction with the art object, not which some gallerist or the consultant one says you work of art.

A decent quantity of the work that I found to the ART Santa Fe I found the full step an of my process of recognition of art, but lacked completely in the step two. Certain of these pieces hail often of a people or do the tradition, that do not inhale to the conceptual ends, as certain of the selections of the Gallery Ten472 (California). In this direction, you cannot say exactly the work of spoiled art, but personally, this art type does not do it for me. Certain of the pieces to fails it were so generic that they well very could have been exposed next to Jack Vettriano "Singing Steward" in a supervision store. I hate to be hard, but there it this is.

Jack Vettriano Steward that sings of 1992, ubiquiste in the windows of exposition of inexpensive gallery.

There was also some strong galleries with irresistible work. One of the first pieces that I was drawn to were pictures by Robert Sagerman (the Cintreuse of Renate of Gallery, Munich). Expressionnisme abstracts meets Pointillisme in its pictures that suppose the dimensionality of sculpture of relief (sees the detail of a picture, to the under). The title of its pictures came from the number of brands of paint it does to pile up them: a 12 x's 12 pieces of thumb is called 2,411 while a 41 x's 71 pictures of thumb is 16,710, Underlining of this manner the process of the picture as a complete dimension of his direction. The effect is a work of very texturized and voluptuous art with a sturdy and living presence.

I appreciated also the sculpture of David Henderson (The Gallery of Siegal of William, Santa Fe), that exploited the means of fiber of carbon to the acrobatic ends. Considering the size and considering the piece texture (that evokes marble or polite granit) they seem to have an unbelievable weight, but to the crucial points of structural integrity, the sculpture is necessary to disappear to dilute and the delicate kernel. These balance acts are attained because of the same lightness of the fiber of carbon (the biggest sculpture on the view, 70 x's 18 x's 28 thumbs, weighed six books and could be held in a hand). I should mention also as these pieces attach to the wall in the innovative manners, allowing installation flexibility. Same vulnerability (, pretence well vulnerability -- the gallerist mentioned that one of the smaller pieces had been banged on the night of opening of floor, brought down the corridor and did not always break) and piece tension stirs simultaneously the worry and the fear in the spectator.

A little more of artists lit my luxurious one: The busts of Long bin of Chen fascinated completely (the Plum Blooms the Gallery, Hong Kong). The long can appreciates using the text media based (the magazines, the books) and exploring them in the new manners -- first matter of piled up, Long directories Can cuts busts of faces celebrate, as the presidents and as legendary American Buddhas. Just as with a piece of wood or of rock, the varied, the models of chance of directory lend of the essential unforeseen one and the beautiful texture to every piece.

Left: Long Chen bin Lincoln

At last, David Buckingham's THE DECHIRURE of pug Dog of george Etait a clever and poignant addition to fails it art. The pieces of "words" of Buckingham are composed completely of the fragments found inscription and signs that it except around L.UN. the sector. His piece of DECHIRURE of pug Dog of George was a string of more explanatory, more witty and more offhand one and, as his other work found on his site internet (buckinghamstudio.com), challenges the height of high art with his funny dry noise cultivates aesthetic one and references.

The latter work by Buckingham was also one of the few red points as I noticed in fails it art. I chatted with the gallerist represents Buckingham, and it noted that the sales were extremely slow. It added also as the half has a lot of galleries had recorded to expose to the ART Santa Fe as the last year. This did not astonish me -- fails it was a lot smaller one than I foresaw. Apreds some relieved reports as for the fail art earlier this summer (as Bacle of Art) I had hoped that the ART Santa Fe could have success, but the this can be fail them art more of the garden and modest that are the true injureds of this recession.

The final verdict: am I for the snobs, or a justified critic? I hope the last one -- yes, I found a good party of the art to be the second or it even third row, but I must point out also as all the essential ones as I did not mention came from the galleries of New York. I all was impressed to does that certain of the local galleries of Fe of Santa have completely an eye for the artistic talent. Usually the it was pleasant to see one fails art non-New York, and now I have my eyes on another destination for the comparison: South America maybe?