Tag Archive "national-gallery-of-art"

Beyond the White Cube: Martin Puryear at the National Gallery of Art

Martin Puryear Self (1978) stained and painted red cedar and mahogany, 69 x 48 x 25″, Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Museum purchase in memory of Elinor Ashton, © Martin Puryear When Brian O’Doherty famously described the white cube that is the setting for much contemporary art it was to critique its ideology, the illusion it fosters that the art it encloses is separate from all life outside, separate from history, society, labor, commerce. But the white cube is also an architectural space and that profoundly affects the art as well. This was dramatically brought home when I saw the Martin ... More » »

Good news from Afghanistan

Fragment of a bowl depicting bearded bulls, Tepe Fullol, gold (2200-1900 B.C.) National Museum, Kabul, photo © Thierry Ollivier/Musée Guimet. This was part of a burial cache accidentally discovered by farmers in 1966. The motif comes from Mesopotamia, confirming an ancient trade route. For most of us the name Afghanistan brings thoughts primarily of war. My associations prior to the past three decades’ conflicts were twofold: that most of the world’s lapis lazuli has always come from Afghanistan (in addition to its use in jewelry and precious objects the stone was finely ground to produce ultramarine, the most stable, beautiful ... More » »

Art in D.C.

The Sublime Turner and Contemporary Fibre Art J.M.W.Turner The Burning of the Houses of Lords and Commons, October 16, 1834 (1835)Philadelphia Museum of Art Billed as the largest Turner exhibition ever seen in the U.S., the retrospective currently at the National Gallery of Art is a joy even for those who know his work well (through January 6, 2008, www.nga.gov; Philadelphia viewers will have a second chance, after its Dallas venue, when the exhibition travels to the Metropolitan Museum of Art June 24 – Sept.21,www.metmuseum.org). Turner’s work is always fresh, and this wonderful selection of 146 oils and works on ... More » »