AMP

I really like Torbjørn Rødland’s book ‘White Planet, Black Heart‘, but I hadn’t seen any of his video work. Good news for the interweb, it’s online:

Torbjørn Rødland - Non-Progress - 2006

I knew my friend Michael Leonard was a lot of things; a letterpress operator, a beer brewer, and a future lawyer, but I really didn’t think he was much of a stop-animation guy (especially after our terrible films in college). Lo and behold, he can add that to his resumé, too:

Mike and his family are about to move to Chicago so Mike can attend law school. The thing is, they could really use the money. Mike produced the video above for a contest so he can win some money. But, the only way he can win money is if you vote.

So, please, VOTE for Michael Leonard. Every day. With every single email address you have.

My new body of work ‘All Buildings Dream in Blueprints’ is opening this Friday, July 18th. Check it check it out if you can. Info here, quick write-up here.

‘Student Art Show’ - diazotype, 2008.

Wolfgang Tillmans - Freischwimmer 40

Joerg wrote an interesting piece over on Conscientious, and I feel like I should provide a slight counterpoint. Joerg makes some good points regarding the large-format, toy camera, and alternative process cults. All of those camps are watered down a bit by hobbyists who are involved because of the processes and equipment, not necessarily those bent on making great images.
However, I feel Joerg thinks art and craft are separable things–”For me, photography is an art form and not a craft…”. This is where I disagree. Art and craft, much like form and content, are just two parts of the same thing. No matter how great the image is, there is still craft in it’s output, i.e. the quality of it’s delivery. Granted, when a lot of things are being delivered via computer screens (a somewhat craft-less medium), craft is significantly diminished. In the end, though, there is no mistaking the difference between a quality print and a shitty one, and I’m sure Joerg would agree. As much as photography is about the image, it’s also about the craft. In fact, through working for a fine-art photographer, I’ve begun to realize how underestimated the craft is in some parts of the art world (notably in emerging artists + graduate students). When people are paying $$$ for your work, they expect quality, in both idea & form.

Just got a pleasant package in the mail from the kind folks at The Holster. I ordered a variety of zines from them, but so far the most rewarding has been David Horvitz’s ‘Public Sex Acts’. At the risk of repeating a visual joke, Horvitz’s images actually build upon one another, climaxing in an understated punchline.

I should also mention ‘May 10, 2008‘ by Sam Friedman and Gary Fogelson. Feeling a bit worn down by projects and series that seem to go on for years, I’ve been more attracted to short-term projects, like, really short-term. In Friedman & Fogelson’s case, it’s one afternoon of stacking rocks in a park. I think Fusco’s ‘RFK Funeral Train‘ is the holotype in this case, and it’s a stunning example. Not so stunning: Robert Adam’s ‘Questions for an Overcast Day‘. That’s just boring, and not in a good way.

My roomie works at a skateshop and so we have a seemingly endless supply of cultural by-products and ephemera around our place. One particular waste product caught my eye: Juxtapoz magazine’s photography issue. It is what it is–there are plenty of photographs in it (like many magazines), but most of them are garbage and come off as advertising anyway. Not selling a product, but a lifestyle. Another gripe: Each photographer only gets one image, and they all are double-page spreads. Who’s the layout genius who planned that? Seriously, the best (and most provocative) image is on the cover, and if you go to your local magazine stand, you can see that for free.

< /end rant >

I’ve noticed that, for the most part, I don’t really care for the blogs by other artists (myself included). But as much as I’d like to argue to leave it up to the professional bloggers, I know from history that some of the best surprises come from outside the field. However, it wouldn’t hurt if we all took a breath and thought about what they hell we are doing before we go and do it. Lately I’ve found the overall quality of blogs (mine included) to be somewhat lacking–I don’t think it’s the thought that there are too many, but rather the majority of blogs lack focus. My favorite blogs (and I would argue most consistent) are those that focus their posts tightly around one central thesis. For example:

Modern Art Notes - news about contemporary art collections
Art Fag City - tech art reviews
Sartorialist - on the street fashion
101 Cookbooks - new recipe every day
5b4 - photobook reviews
Stereogum - indie rock music news

Of course there are exceptions to the rule–Alec Soth’s blog (RIP), Jason Kottke, and my friends at Boing Boing prove this point. The weakest blogs for me are the ones that simply gather together other posts/links found elsewhere on the web (something both Boing Boing and Kottke do but manage to do well). At it’s worst, it becomes a cluster-fuck of self-referential in-clique bullshit (thankfully not often the case). This is something I refer to as ‘piggy posting’ and is essentially no more useful than a friend nudging you and telling you to check -insert cool band/photographer/movie- out. The problem with blogs, however, is that these people aren’t your close friends, and they’re telling to you check something out that they think is cool, which may not be something you’re interested in.

So, in an effort to focus my blog, I’m going to be limiting my posts–i’ll try to focus on moments where art, music, and photography combine to form a Voltron-esque experience. Also, in an effort to add something new to the interweb, I’ll only be illustrating my posts with my own drawings and music videos. Booya.

This weather is suffocatingly cold–I’m a born-and-raised Midwesterner–but this shit is too much. Umber Studios put up some great shots of the Decoupler opening and has a lot of the work from the show on their site–check it out.

You have a few more weeks left to bask in the glow of Sunburn at the Rochester Art Center. Send me a SASE and I’ll send you a catalog/poster from the show–they look pretty amazing.

Finally, I’ll be exhibiting some new/old work called 1,000 leaves along with the talented Kerri Jamison at IFP. More details as they become available.

Thanks to everyone who made it down to Rochester for the opening last weekend–I was a bit nervous, but I feel like I pulled everything off without a hitch. I really don’t have many pictures–hopefully tucker will post some. But i did make a short clip of the video, so you can check that out. In the coming month I plan to release a limited edition EP/DVD of the video and it’s accompanying soundtrack - I’m sure I’ll post when it’s ready.

So, I sold my car today. Not necessarily because I wanted to, but because it died, and I live in the city and don’t have a place to store a 2,000 lb piece of garbage (we actually don’t have a place to put any of our garbage). I put it up on craigslist (I LOVE craigslist) and within 15 minutes I had 15 people offering me my asking price, some offering more. Within an hour I had exchanged the title and keys for money. Beautiful. Actually, the response was so strong that someone located my car using the pictures I had posted on craigslist and put this note on my window.

Kind of cool, kind of scary. If I hadn’t already have sold the car, they totally would have gotten it. E for effort.

So, I’m a busser and a biker now. My friend Brian mentioned that I should get a motorcycle and I got kind of excited about that. I think I could get into that.