Tag Archive "surrealism"

Catalog Reviews – Alina Szapocznikow, Made in L.A., Now Dig This!

Elena Filipovic, Joanna Mytkowska, et al. Alina Szapocznikow; Sculpture undone (Museum of Modern Art, New York and Mercatorfonds, Brussels: 2011) ISBN 978-0-87070-824-4 This catalog accompanies the first substantial exhibition of the Polish sculptor,  Alina Szapocznikow (1926-1973) to be seen outside Poland, and is a thorough and considered introduction to her work. The exhibition was organized jointly by WEILS Contemporary Art Centre, Brussels, and the Museum of Modern Art, NY (MOMA), where it is currently on view. I saw the exhibition in Los Angeles this winter. It is a stunner, and a reminder that the dominant theme in the history of ... More » »

Holiday Books 2012 Part 2

Makoto Azuma and Shunsuke Shiinoki Encyclopedia of Flowers (Lars Muller Publishers, Zurich: 2012) ISBN 978-3-03778=313-9 This extraordinary volume will certainly appeal to connoisseurs of flowers, but should be of equal interest to anyone susceptible to the seductions of color and form. Azuma is considered an haute-couture florist (whatever that may be), but the wonderous photographs, by Shiinoki,  show no actual arrangements as they might exist in life.  All are details in which groupings of flowers are freed from gravity and the need to be grounded in a vase or on a kenzan (flower frog). Some photographs are taken from surprising ... More » »