Olafur Eliasson in New York

New York City seems to like Olafur Eliasson and I actually do too. First "Take your time: Olafur Eliasson" was on display at the MoMA from April 20–June 30, 2008 and it was a very impressive show. This exhibition is now over but I felt like telling you how great it was anyway.

"Take your time: Olafur Eliasson" was the first comprehensive survey in the United States of works by Olafur Eliasson, whose immersive environments, sculptures, and photographs elegantly recreate the extremes of landscape and atmosphere in his native Scandinavia, while foregrounding the sensory experience of the work itself.

Drawn from collections worldwide, the presentation spans over fifteen years of Eliasson's career. His constructions, at once eccentric and highly geometric, use multicolored washes, focused projections of light, mirrors, and elements such as water, stone, and moss to shift the viewer's perception of place and self. By transforming the gallery into a hybrid space of nature and culture, Eliasson prompted an intensive engagement with the world and offers a fresh consideration of everyday life.

Olafur Eliasson was born in Copenhagen in 1967, and grew up in both Iceland and Denmark. He attended the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen and currently divides his time between his family home in Copenhagen and his studio in Berlin. Studio Olafur Eliasson is a laboratory for spatial research that employs a team of 30 architects, engineers, craftsmen, and assistants who work together to conceptualize, test, engineer, and construct installations, sculptures, large-scale projects and commissions. He is perhaps best known for The weather project (2003) at Tate Modern in London, a giant sun made of 200 yellow lamps, mirrors, and mist that transformed the museum’s massive Turbine Hall and drew over 2 million visitors during its five-month installation. His work is currently the subject of a major mid-career retrospective at The Museum of Modern Art and PS 1 Contemporary Art Center in New York, on view through June 30.

Photo: Vincent Laforet for The New York Times

The second project in New York is the Waterfalls exhibition in various places of the City. The Public Art Fund commission involves four towers of scaffolding, ranging from 90 to 120 feet, situated in NYC's East River, including locations under the Brooklyn Bridge and on Governors Island. Olafur returns to his sources with these installations which focuses on water and their relationship with the New York landscape.

To learn more: http://www.nycwaterfalls.org/

Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2008 designed by Frank Gehry

Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2008 designed by Frank Gehry


20 July – 19 October

The Serpentine is really active this summer. First there was Richard Prince and an exhibition that attracted a lot of celebrities, especially at the glamourous dinner organised by LVMH the night before the opening for press and some vips. Apparently Radiohead attended, and I saw myself Valentino...

In fact the construction work has begun on the Serpentine Gallery Pavilion 2008, which will give England the first built project by legendary architect Frank Gehry, opening 20 July. Gehry and his team took inspiration for this year’s Pavilion from a fascinating variety of sources including the elaborate wooden catapults designed by Leonardo da Vinci as well as the striped walls of summer beach huts. Part-amphitheatre, part-promenade, these seemingly random elements will make a transformative place for reflection and relaxation by day, and discussion and performance by night.



Frank Gehry said: "The Pavilion is designed as a wooden timber structure that acts as an urban street running from the park to the existing Gallery. Inside the Pavilion, glass canopies are hung from the wooden structure to protect the interior from wind and rain and provide for shade during sunny days. The Pavilion is much like an amphitheatre, designed to serve as a place for live events, music, performance, discussion and debate. As the visitor walks through the Pavilion they have access to terraced seating on both sides of the urban street. In addition to the terraced seating there are two elevated seating pods, which are accessed around the perimeter of the Pavilion. These pods serve as visual markers enclosing the street and can be used as stages, private viewing platforms and dining areas."

Julia Peyton-Jones, Director, and Hans Ulrich Obrist, Co-Director said: "It is an exciting moment that work has begun on Frank Gehry’s visionary scheme. His Pavilion is remarkable and will be a landmark for London this summer."

The Pavilion will be the architect’s first built structure in England. He is collaborating for the first time with his son Samuel Gehry. Since 2001, Peter Rogers, Director of Stanhope, has donated his expertise to all aspects of the Serpentine Gallery Pavilions and he continues to play a major role. The Pavilion is a fully accessible public space in the Royal Park of Kensington Gardens, attracting up to 250,000 visitors every Summer and is accompanied by an ambitious programme of public talks and events.

To learn more: www.serpentinegallery.org/2008/03/forthcoming_summer_2008serpent.html

Christian Dior Haute Couture Fall Winter 2008/2009

I have to say that even if I am not a big fan of Dior or Galliano, the Haute Couture Fall Winter 2008/2009 fashion show was absolutely stunning and beautiful.

Here is it is...



To learn more: http://www.dior.com/

Richard Prince at Serpentine

"I always tell the truth about what I do. But no one believes me"- Richard Prince

Richard Prince: Continuation 26 June - 7 September 2008

Richard Prince (born 1949) is one of the world’s most celebrated artists and artistic innovators.
Prince came to prominence in the 1980s through his celebrated series such as Cowboys, Jokes and Hoods, which appropriate images from magazines, popular culture and pulp fiction to create new photographs, sculptures and paintings that respond to ideas about American identity and consumerism. These works have been critical in challenging ideas of authorship and raising questions about the value of the ‘unique’ artwork.

Prince is, himself, a voracious collector of art, furniture, memorabilia and books, which he houses in a group of buildings alongside his own artworks. His exhibition at the Serpentine is a direct dialogue with his spaces, mirroring the installation of Prince’s work in his own buildings as well as responding to the Serpentine’s unique scale and location. Prince’s diverse collection ranges from books and artworks by artists and writers to classic American ‘muscle cars’. Paintings, photographs and sculptures spanning Prince’s 30-year career are featured at the Serpentine, including new work created especially for this exhibition.

Richard Prince: Continuation follows his recent retrospective, Spiritual America, organised by the Solomon R Guggenheim Museum, New York, and is curated by Richard Prince and the Serpentine Gallery.

I have to say that this exhibition is a highlight of this summer's programme of exhibitions and follows the Gagosian's show. A nurse painting can also be seen at Sotheby's a few weeks ago for the Impressionist and Modern Art sale.

The private view for the event was quite interesting as I bumped into Mario Testino, Valentino, and François Pinault (nice rime)... yes I think I really like Richard Prince, and not only because he collaborated with Marc Jacobs. The exhibition at the Serpentine is by the way sponsored by Vuitton.

http://www.serpentinegallery.org/