MIERCOLES, EL DIECISEIS DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Another idea, galvanized. Sorry for the bad image on the right, its taken from a general studio shot. I'll post the new retablo on this site once it's complete.
MARTES, EL QUINCE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE The 'galvanized' idea from yesterday's post came from the 1836 image below. After visiting Bologna in 2004 and seeing Galvani's statue there, I did a bit of research and reading on him and his frog legs experiment. Of course, there's lots of parallels with Frankenstein and I like the analogy with reinvigorating worn -out art ideas. In the case of Galvanized Hand, I was wanting to reinvigorate the use of lightbulbs with owls on them (see below). An inanimate cast of my hand, painted in a mortuary-green colour, provided a successful foil to the lightbulb
LUNES, EL CARTORCE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE I've got a sculptural piece titledGalvanized Hand in '90 Years, 90 Works' at the Sarjeant Gallery, Whanganui. The work was part of my exhibition, The Museum of Inherent Vice at the Sarjeant in 2007. There's some text that goes with the work, written by Senior Curator, Greg Anderson; which I'll post on this site soon. I must say, it's pretty nice to be grouped with Ed Ruscha.
DOMINGO, EL TRECE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE I've been working on a more adventurous ceramic piece over the last 3 days - St. John the Baptist head on a platter. I've never thrown a plate before with clay, so I'm getting Paul Maseyk to throw one for me. The head is based on the Gregorio Fernández ‘Dead Christ’ that I post posted about last week. I'm thinking of making a Holofernes companion piece. Also, Paul has his ceramics shop up and running now, so if you're heading along Putiki Drive, look out of the white 'pottery' sign.
VIERNES, EL ONCE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Here's a couple of installation photos of my work at Mark Hutchins Gallery in Wellington. The exhibition is called Secondary Practice and features works from several artists who have alternative processes in their art practices, usually using different mediums. The exhibition runs until the 24th of December. I've got a group of crucifixes (you can see them in context here-try page 12 & 13) in the show, along with a painting on feathers. The crucifixes are aptly displayed behind a Gerda Leenards screen, using the gold-leaf surface as a backdrop.
JUEVES, EL DIEZ DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE The Creation of Adam (section of Sistine Chapel fresco ceiling) Michelangelo Buonarroti c. 1511
MIERCOLES, EL NUEVE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Still from the Zucker Brothers' 'Top Secret!'.
MARTES, EL OCHO DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Another ceramic piece in its second stage - white underglaze (two coats) ready for the colour. It's kind of like a jewelry box, with a high gloss prussian blue inside the box. I haven't quite decided how to glaze this new set of ceramics. Many of them have flames (animas - as below, phoenixes and scenes of hell) but I really don't want to use red and I'd rather glaze them monochromatically so that I don't lose any of the form, as that's the main reason why I'm making these ceramics. Although I've just finished a few retablos that are monochromatic. That's the problem with art, It doesn't matter how much you plan out something,(especially painting) it ends up being the muse calling the shots, not you.
LUNES, EL SIETE DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE If I had a spare couple of grand, I'd be heading over to London to see 'The Sacred Made Real' at the National Gallery in London. I've had a look through the catalogue and although having had seen some of the works already in the Prado and Nat Gall, it would be educational to see all the works together in the space - the paintings playing of the polychrome carvings and vice versa. I emailed a friend in London the other day and he mentioned he'd been to see it a couple of weeks ago, "...was fascinated, not just by the technical skill but the morbidity (the Spanish still have it in shovelfuls) which I loved..." I'd also been keen to see how the curator organises the work in the show, whether it recreates how the art relates to the each other as it would in a church, or pairing them up by their saintly identity, or by pure aesthetic similarities.
DOMINGO, EL SEIS DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE A drawing of mine on a friend's wall (you have to scroll down a couple of images)
SABATO, EL CINCO DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Andrea du-Chatenier at Mary Newton Gallery, Wellington. There's better quality images on MNG site, but this is my favourite work from her Earthseed exhibition. The 'primitive' African-type sculpture (made out of polystyrene, covered in flocking) is wearing a pair of Jimmy Choos. This is the type of exhibition and work that I love - work that pinpoints a specific culture, asssesses contemporary art/fashion and combines the two in a new context to create a new reading from the pattern-recognitions brought by the viewer. It reminds me of the scene in Cannibal Holocaust when the film crew discover the Yanomamo tribe using the film reels of the previously cannibalised film crew around the necks of the tribesmen and hanging on poles as signifiers of prevailing evil. This is an excellent show, probably the most excited I've been in an art gallery all year. Get in to see it before it closes (24th of Dec).
VIERNES, EL CUATRO DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Robert McLeod has an exhibition opening this Friday at PAULNACHE in Gisborne.
JUEVES, EL TRES DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Jo's in this two exhibitions, the first one (This Is Not A Rock Shop) opening 6pm Thursday at DAF106, then Women Of The Whang at ReStore, 137 Riddiford St, Newtown, Wellington - 12 pm.
MIERCOLES, EL DOS DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE
MARTES, EL UNO DE DICIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Hello All,
Just to keep you up to speed with some group exhibitions that feature my work. Opening this coming Wednesday is: Secondary Practice at Mark Hutchins Gallery, 216a Upper Willis St, Wellington, 2 - 24 December, 2009
Below are photos of each work exhibited. You can view larger versions of each artwork on my website (link to the right) or by clicking on the links to each gallery website on my homepage.
Hasta pronto, Matthew Couper
LUNES, EL TRIENTE DE NOVIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE I took this photo last Thursday of a carved wooden bust while waiting for a friend in the wrong pub, at the wrong meeting time.
DOMINGO, EL VIENTINUEVE, DOS MIL NUEVE Painted-over graffiti blobs on Furness Lane, the past site of Janne Land Gallery, where I used to show my artwork.
SABATO, EL VIENTIOCHO, DOS MIL NUEVE Four of my artworks on my cousin's wall, three yellow paintings from 1998 (Masonic Taniwha series) and a Gordon Walters-based vinyl record. As you can see, my cousin collects crucifixes too.
VIERNES, EL VIENTISIETE DE NOVIEMBRE, DOS MIL NUEVE Meta-Sweetman at about 3 in the morning.