The story of Kerala is mirrored in the evolution of its art and culture and offers a veritable array of performing arts. Thullal is a solo performance combining dance and the recitation of stories in verse. Introduced in the 18th century, Seethanankan Thullal is the slowest of the three forms of the Thullal.
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In South India Temple worship has been a glorious tradition; over the years there have been many schools of Temple building: the Ddravadin, Chalukya, Pallava, Hoysala and Pandya. The Temples were constructed with strict observance of the rules put down in the Agama Silpa Shastras (the book of Architectural techniques). Continue reading
Mattancherry
Art and culture are about to explode onto Kochi at a season that is already filled with color and light. Biennales have been taking place for well over a hundred years, starting in Venice and spreading throughout the world.
Just as the lost port of Muziris had been a regional gateway for the world the Kochi Muziris Biennale, the first of its type in India, has the goal of reviving the vibrancy of Kochi as a meeting point of culture and trade. Spanning the calendar period of 12/12/12 and 13/03/13, the three month long exhibition is expected to draw high international visitation in what has been designed as a cultural strategy of self-renewal. Continue reading
Theyyam are ritual filled performances of dance, music and religious worship of the people of Kerala. There are nearly 400 deities that are represented in this manner, with each Theyyam believed to be a physical manifestation of the particular god. One of the Theyyam performed in the northern regions of Kerala is Chamundi Theyyam, representing the god Durga Devi. Continue reading
Milo’s recent post got us thinking about the temptation to anthropomorphize. Tim Flach‘s photography seems to be hugging the temptation sometimes, wrestling with it at others.
His show, just opening in London, would be a good place to start with his work. The photos below help understand the riff on Milo’s post and his book looks worthy of any coffee table as a conversation-starter.
Another in the series of video-recorded conversations Doug Aitken has had with architects and artists for this exhibition:
This project is about the roots of creativity. Many of the people in this project are working in very diverse mediums and it’s that common thread that I’m interested in. Continue reading
We said in a previous post that these matters are subjective. There is no accounting for taste. Still, Gerhard Richter is an artist that can clearly be understood as an artist. He is famous, yes, and also a wealth machine. But he does not seem to be doing what he is doing for fame and/or fortune. Writers should write. Artists should make their art.
I like Joseph Gordon-Levitt.
“I feel like, Socrates, or something,” said actor Joseph Gordon-Levitt while looking out at the crowd framed by the round and columned architecture of Bailey Hall.
That’s why, several months ago, when I learned he was coming to do a show in Bailey Hall at Cornell, I committed to waking up early and facing the failing web servers to buy two of over a thousand tickets that were to sell out in less than half an hour, making the show the fastest to sell out at Cornell in a while. And I only bought two because that was the limit per student — by the time I got through to the webpage only balcony seats were left. Continue reading
crist
P.T. Barnum (perhaps apocryphally) is often quoted as having said that a sucker is born every minute. Damien Hirst, who has parted many people with their money for things that have his “brand” attached, and now boasts an estimated $350 million personal fortune as a result, could be Exhibit A in Barnum’s argument. This guy has sold some remarkable clothing to quite a few emperors.
Yes, these are highly subjective matters, and if you want to call Hirst an artist you have every right to do so. But he makes his own case for being something other than an artist in any meaningful sense of that word, and he makes it difficult for the average person from “outside the art world” to take the “art world” seriously. Is the market catching up with this slick marketer? Click the image above for the graph and short blurb version, or for the long form journalistic pin prick in the big bubble click here:
For all his celebrity, Hirst’s stock in the art market has experienced a stunning deflation. According to data compiled by the firm Artnet, Hirst works acquired during his commercial peak, between 2005 and 2008, have since resold at an average loss of 30 percent. Continue reading
In 2003 the Metropolitan Museum acquired a significant group of paintings spanning a key period in European history, beginning with the advent of the French Revolution and concluding with the reign of Louis Philippe. Assembled by the New York connoisseur Wheelock Whitney between 1972 and 2000, this collection reveals a rich tradition of painting out of doors nearly a century before Impressionism, thus amplifying the role of the natural world as a source of inspiration Continue reading
We pointed to an earlier conversation in this series. This one is about one architect’s view on story-telling. For architects, and anyone working with architects, this man’s concise but clear statement of purpose and method is an eye-opener.
The subject of this biography is the main reason to listen to this interview with the author, but not the only reason. The biographer, himself, is another: why would a professor of international relations take on such a task? He has a very good explanation in that interview.
Most importantly the interview hints at why the biography is likely worth a read: Cezanne’s intense and atypical sense of community, especially among well-regarded artists of his era, fascinates. The fact that he took up fine art relatively late in life stuns (if you did not know it already). His commitment to simple life away from the distractions of urban modernity is something we can relate to. His friend of the friendless actions inspire (except with regard to Dreyfus). The author has, according to Kirkus Reviews
researched every facet and nuance of Paul Cézanne’s life (1839–1906). His comfortable childhood in Provence, his years in Paris, where he was influenced by the Impressionists, and his dependence on the allowance from his father created the artist some suggested was “not all there.” Continue reading
Kerala offers a wide variety of performing arts, most of them springing from folk tradition. The finesse, rhythm and elegance of the classical dances of Kerala are a result of the various cultural influences that took place in the state. These dance forms are a delicate fusion of ancient classical texts and folk traditions, making them distinctive and unique.
We have a photographer friend to thank for bringing this exhibit to our attention. We have the BBC to thank for offering museum exhibitions manager Phillipa Simpson’s fresh and inspiring introduction to some of the world’s most iconic nature photography. (click on the header for the BBC link with video of a narrated slideshow)
If you happen, like many of us on this site, to be a devoted fan of Mr. Adams, you will particularly appreciate the final element of the slideshow.
‘The Scream’ at MoMA. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)
Click the image above to go to the article in full:
Until visiting The Scream two weeks ago at the Museum of Modern Art, to which it has been loaned for six months by its new, anonymous owner, I had forgotten that it has three figures: besides the alarmed man who gets all of the attention, there is another man in a top hat, his head bowed as if in deep despair, and a third man, further in the distance, who stares out at the landscape, strangely unaware—or in denial—of the fact that the world is coming undone around him. Factoring in those other two, it’s easier to follow Mr. Olsen’s thinking: when it comes to the effects that humans are having on nature, most of us are the second or third person.
In the United States, at least, most politicians and even many businesspeople (who would seem to have a vested, profit-driven interest in staving off climate change) have been incapable of addressing, or even acknowledging, the problem.
Artists of many varieties stay mum about their craft and intent, perhaps for reasons best captured in these words. Whether you are interested in the arts or not, the individual pieces in this video installation provide a unique view into the process of creativity–a subject any of us can make use of, or simply appreciate. Click the image above for the video.
Click the image above for more information on the exhibition. In case you cannot make it there in person, click the link below to see Doug Aitken’s films:
Tate Liverpool: Exhibition 15 September 2012 – 13 January 2013. Films from Doug Aitken – The Source will be published in the Channel each week… Continue reading
In honor of all those who prepared for what would have been today’s New York City Marathon, we remind you of one of last year’s participants. If Christoph Niemann cannot put a smile on the face, hope may seem lost.
But even then, it just takes a bit more effort. He drew and annotated the whole Marathon experience. He started with the pre-race sleep patterns; continued with a self-critique of the first art of the day; and he was off to the races, so to speak.
We have pointed to his wit on at least one other occasion, but we suspect today in particular there are plenty of people who will appreciate his efforts one year ago today. The visuals and verbals do not fail to entertain (click the image to the left for the whole experience). From sunrise to sunset we see the artist at work, deep in thought and sharp in perspective:
@abstractsunday Christoph Niemann
Really!?!?? That’s all I could come up with? My goal is to be creative today and this is the lamest start ever. http://t.co/LigcGCOW
Organikos 
