This will be an attempt to chronicle some shows and items I saw last weekend. I already told you about the Gross Clinic music video, which was a high point.
First off, an announcement: There’s art in City Hall courtyard!
Two of Jun Kaneko’s giant “Heads” — the ones that graced the median strip on Park Avenue last year in New York as a temporary public art installation — are here. Actually, the two pieces in City Hall, which square off against each other as you walk through the center of the courtyard, were just completed so they weren’t in New York but they are here. The works are “over 11 feet tall (including bases) in cast bronze and steel, showcasing Kaneko’s signature elaborate glazes.” One head is bubblegum pink; the other is chess board black and white. And they are already a hit. I saw one woman take pictures of her daughter posing in front of the pink face.
The faces which show an androgynous human head with no ears or hair and with eyes closed are quite the objects. Are they Buddha? They are serene and formidable.
I like the placement of the pink one (whose backside is cobalt blue) next to the orange sign for the Broad Street subway line. “Heads” will be up until Oct. 24, part of a new celebration of Kaneko’s art co-sponsored by the Opera Company of Philadelphia, the PMA, Locks Gallery, the City of Philadelphia and the Kimmel Center. Kaneko has works coming in to all those venues this fall, including costumes and set design for the Opera COmpany’s Madama Butterfly, Oct. 9-18. You may remember that I wrote about Kaneko’s sets and costumes for the OCP’s 2008 production of Fidelio. The opera was great and Kaneko’s sets and costumes were pretty darned interesting.
More information about Kaneko here.
