Declaration - Venice To Lose Another Landmark

Most people in Venice see the big "V" Mark di Suvero sculpture nearly every day since 2001 on their trips down to the beach. Declaration has been a meeting spot at the beach ever since, as you tell visitors and friends to meet you at the big metal V, as it's the biggest, easiest thing to find. This landmark is about to be taken away, according to an article in yesterday's New York Times.

The L.A. Louver represents di Suvero, who loaned the sculpture to the city of Los Angeles, in the hopes that the city would eventually acquire it permanently. The Louver paid for its installation and upkeep, and though the sculpture is valued at six million dollars today, they have tried to work out a reasonable deal for the city, but that hasn't happened. Obviously, there are much bigger problems in Venice today than losing a sculpture, but it would definitely be sad to see it go.

Donors ponied up a billion dollars in like one day to rebuild Notre Dame, and Venice is teeming with big money these days, judging by the McMansions and BUBs everywhere. Maybe one of those people can be a hero for once, and save something in Venice instead of destroying it. Or maybe the group of concerned citizens raising money to fight bridge and affordable housing could instead do something positive with their money? Just thoughts ... and hopes.

The move of Declaration back to di Suvero's Petaluma studio is meant to happen "by the end of this year," so there seems to still be time for donors and the City of L.A. (who make a ton of money off of Venice, by the way) to step up. Mark di Suvero is 85 years old, and having a new exhibit at the Louver May 1-June 8 ... (with a celebration on June 5 honoring him and the Venice Family Clinic) what a delight it would be to let him know in person that his Venice landmark will stay ... !

It would be a shame to see yet another symbol of the art and artists in Venice go away. Man.

New David Hockney & Alison Saar Works At L.A. Louver!

There was a packed house at the L.A. Louver last night for the opening of David Hockney: Something New In Painting (and Photography) [And even Printing] ... Continued as well as a new sculpture from Alison Saar almost exactly a year after their dual show this time last year. The crowd was abuzz with anticipation to see the new work from one of the most celebrated living artists in the world, but certainly in Los Angeles, which is almost always the star of Hockney's work. Bright colors and swimming pools made his name, and we were all here to see the latest.

It was almost intimidating to arrive to see the absolute longest line to get in I've ever seen stretching down Venice Boulevard all the way to Speedway. Indeed, it was too much for some who chose to sit it out at James Beach or the Canal Club rather than wait in line, but that's too bad because the line moved very quickly, and the reward was great once inside the door of the Louver.

The first floor was all Hockney, with large scale murals depicting "photographic drawings" of people in chairs taking in the more familiar, colorful works from Hockney. The drawings of mostly men were a little creepy to me, but it's cool to see such a range from someone so known for the almost tropical hues of his beautiful paintings of the great and sunny outdoors.

I've loved the Australian artist, Ken Done, since I was a little kid, and several of the bright new works from Hockney reminded me of those gorgeous visuals from the hemisphere to our south.

This will be a show worth revisiting, as there was really no way to take it all in with so many people crammed in there to see and be on the Art Scene. You couldn't take two steps without running into a longtime Venetian art lover, and that's really the best part of these show openings. That, and the confirmation that ART is still very much alive and well in our fair town. I overheard a girl in line saying in her Millennial drawl, "It's smart that they're putting art galleries in Venice now, there's so much money here." I had to step in and let her know that this venerable gallery has been here in Venice since 1975 ... and that Venice has always been about art, money or none. And always will be, if we the People have anything to say about it. And we do.

The upstairs gallery featured more of the bright works, and a series of drawings of Hockney friends, from Ed Sheeran to this lady that I thought was Jane Goodall, but was really a woman called Erica Bolton.

I loved the piece called The Walk To The Studio, 2018, as it features the wonderful flora and fauna outside of Hockney's Hollywood Hills studio. Lucky fella!

In the Skyroom outdoor galley, there was the new sculpture from Alison Saar called Grow'd, depicting one of her Topsy characters based on the girl in Uncle Tom's Cabin. It is pure power, and the now grown girl/woman commanded the room beautifully. I love Saar's work, and I'm not alone, because there was a hushed and reverent aura over the room from everyone who entered. The importance of good art cannot be understated.

What a great show! And night - as the party continued on to James Beach, the Venice Art Crawl mixer at Canal Club, and then an extra fun whiskey tasting party over at The Stronghold. This was one of those Venice nights that make all the rest of the things going on here all the way worth it. Kind of like standing in the line to get into this show ... there's hassles, sure ... but the art and community you get once you're here is WHY you're here. I love you, Venice. I love you, Art. Thank you!

David Hockney Something New in Painting (and Photography) [And even Printing] 
Alison Saar : Grow'd
L.A. Louver
Venice
February 7 - March 23, 2019

David Hockney And Alison Saar At The LA Louver

I couldn't make the big opening for the new shows at the LA Louver last Wednesday evening, as I had a prior engagement, but I'm not mad. I just went to check out the art the next day, up close, sans crowd, where I really got to appreciate it. Downstairs at the Venice Boulevard gallery is showing Topsy Turvy from Alison Saar, and it is excellent. "Topsy" refers to the character in Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin, and the wood sculptures and paintings on vintage linens portray the slave girl as a symbol of defiance.

The room is dominated by the five life-sized girls holding tools that were used in southern plantation crops: a machete, tobacco knife, hoe, sickle, and bale hook. They are going after the masters and are camouflaged by cotton branches. Someone had called my friends at Fiore Designs to order an arrangement to gift Saar on the night of the opening, and had asked for something featuring cotton blossoms, and now I understood why.

The Wrath Of Topsy sculpture shows off the little pigtails that remind one of Medusa  ...

... and High Cotton has the young girls ready for war.

From the press release, "For Saar, these works summon the collected rage and frustration for our current times" and were inspired by the poet Audra Lorde, who said that, "Racism and homophobia are real conditions of all our lives in this place and time ... I urge each one of us here to reach down into that deep place of knowledge inside herself and touch that terror and loathing of any difference that lives there. See whose face it wears. Then the personal as the political can begin to illuminate all our choices." That is so heavy, and so true. Kudos to Saar for portraying these truths in such a beautiful and touching way.

Upstairs is the new David Hockney show, in celebration of the classic L.A. artist's 80th birthday. It's a lot lighter fare, both in theme and colors used. Each piece was created on either an Ipad or an Iphone, showing just how far technology has advanced in the art world. As Hockney has said, "Anyone who likes drawings and mark-making will like to explore new media."

All of the work was done between 2009-2012, and the Louver show marks the first time they will be on view in Los Angeles. The portability of the phone and Ipad gave Hockney the means to create anytime, anywhere, and as his proficiency on the technology grew, so did the drawings. It's extra impressive, considering many of his generation have trouble just sorting out how to text. Hockney gets it.

With subjects ranging from oranges to ashtrays to his own self-portraits, Hockney turned his screen drawings into prints, which are what you will see at the Louver. Some of the works were originally shown in Paris at the Musée Yves Saint Laurent, where they were actually displayed on phones and pads. The prints make it much easier, I imagine, to view all the subtle strokes and colors of Hockney's vision.

Those saturated colors cheer you up the moment you reach the room at the top of the stairs, and make one want to have them all, as it's pretty hard to choose a favorite from such a bright and sunny collection. If pressed, I'd go with the bowl of oranges or the sunrise from Hockney's bedroom window. I love the quote in Hockney's press release - "I draw flowers every day on my Iphone and send them to my friends, so they get fresh flowers every morning ... and my flowers last." Well, if Hockney is still accepting new friends ... please count me among them. I love eternal flowers. 

It's Good Friday, and checking out this wonderful exhibition could make it a Great Friday. In fact, it kind of goes with the holiday weekend ... the darkness and uncertainty of Good Friday (and our current world), followed by the beauty and hope of Easter Sunday (with the optimism that things can be reborn and light will come again).  Wherever you are, I hope you will feel that hope.

David Hockney Iphone and Ipad Drawings 2009-12

Alison Saar Topsy Turvy 

Both showing at LA Louver now through May 12, 2018 

New Shows At LA Louver - Starring Matisse

I hadn't been to an opening at the L.A. Louver for a while, so it was lovely to head over there last night and see both new art and a bunch of familiar faces to wish a "Happy New Year" to (I'll say it until I see you the first time in it). I love it when everyone comes out in the name of art.

The ground floor held a group show called "Elemental" that featured sculptures by a variety of diverse artists from Carl Andre to Yoko Ono, all in materials that were in some form raw - elemental. Richard Deacon's Siamese Metal #6, 2012 was next to Peter Alexander's I Remember When It Was All Orange Groves that conjured no pastoral landscape that I could tell. Art. It was all rather cold, dark, and metallic ... reminding me a bit of the Trump's Christmas decorations.

A lot of people packed in to check it all out, and it was a mix of longtime Venetians and dudes that probably rode in on Bird scooters (Please don't. They make you look like SUCH tools. Thanks.). Art lovers and scenesters congregated in the main room around a piece by Richard Long called Trastevere Spring Line, 2012.

The piece I liked the most downstairs was Sundog by Peter Shelton, mainly because I had recently seen a magical rainbow sundog in the sky back in Minnesota, and this brought back a fond memory. All reactions to art are personal, if you think about it ... and sometimes you really have to search for that connection ...

... as in the altered fridge that Josh Callaghan titled Monument To World Peace made one wonder just how a household appliance could accomplish such a thing, but kudos for trying.

The upstairs skyroom held more sculptures, centered around a little ceramic dude by Matt Wedel that was fun and whimsical, and it gave one a breath of fresh air while checking it out.

The best in show/s was a wonderful display of art by Henri Matisse, showing works on paper from 1913 - 1948.  The drawing, etchings, and lithographs were almost all female, and almost all nude, and all highly covetous (and they're all for sale!). They're all so simple and sultry, conjuring up what felt like an easier, breezier time. La Sieste, 1938 was particularly dreamy, and kept distracting me from all of the conversation happening around.

These shows are all on display until March 3, and it's always a lovely addition to any day to take in the art at L.A. Louver, whatever they are showing. Venice is nothing without its art.

Venice Cultural Corridor Happenings

We zoomed up and down the "Cultural Corridor"(which I so dubbed it because of the art galleries, Pacific Resident Theater, Beyond Baroque, SPARC, etc, of the main artery) of Venice Boulevard last night to catch art works that ranged the gamut from hippie to posh and back to hippie again.


Beyond Baroque & Gerry Fialka hosted the re-lighting of the neon 7 Dudley sign (and the continuance of 7 Dudley Cinema) that used to hang in our dearly departed Sponto's Gallery. When my gang arrived via bike, bells a-dinging, it was to join the crowd gathered out front of Beyond Baroque singing, "This Land Is Your Land" together. Then at 4 minutes and 20 seconds after 7:00 pm, after the now-obligatory chant yelled at any Sponto Memorial of "SPONTO, GET ME HIGH!!!", the old red light was re-lit to much applause and happy shouting. I felt a little choked up from missing all the good times back at Sponto's Gallery, but then one of his friends, Shirley, approached carrying, well, Sponto. His ashes. So he was kinda there after all. Oh, Venice ... how we love you.


Then it was off to the other end of Venice Blvd, to the LA Louver to catch the latest opening, Tom Wudl's "immensities and infinities: further specimens from the flowerbank world". It explores the "Avatamasaka Sutra/Flower Ornament Sutra", and they were lovely in their detail. It was all pretty cool, with a lot of familiar local faces in attendance.


Upstairs were sculptures, works on paper and a new painting in the Wormwood series of works by Enrique Martinez Celaya. Again, pretty cool ... just nothing that moved me to my core to want to gush over.


The best piece of the whole evening was saved for last ... I mean, check out this sunset! It was more special than normal ... it was more golden and just bigger somehow. It felt good just to be alive and able to look at it, with scores of like-minded folks outside celebrating the approach of official Summer (though it was CHILLY!), love, and being right where you want to be.


I get these little Notes From The Universe messages that are always so right on, and while thinking about all the art and hijinks of the day, this one came in, and reiterated what I was feeling ... about everything:

Have your preferences. Go where you're drawn. And dwell upon all that is good.

LA Louver - Art Amid The Madness

One of the biggest ever earthquake/tsunamis in Japan. Mom calling at 4 in the morning to tell me to evacuate Venice or be swept out to sea (all was fine). Dirty government (redundant, I know) screwing the people of Wisconsin. Libya blowing up. Revolutions popping up all over the place. What the heck is next?!

Who knows, so have a good time while you can, is my working m.o. of late. Perhaps take in some art, and appreciate all the beauty you can possibly squeeze into your life. A good start on that would be the wonderful show/s that opened last night at the LA Louver. It's great.


Downstairs you are greeted by the arresting pieces by Terry Allen, with his "Ghost Ship Rodez" and "The Momo Chronicles" works.


Video screens, books, regular framed works, all requiring far more time for me to absorb (had to be at a surprise party for Miss Stephanie, but I'll return, Louver, I promise!), as each piece just sucked me in until I had to tear myself away.


Upstairs, it felt like going to a stationary chick flick directed by someone cool for once. Rebecca Campbell's "Romancing The Apocalypse" show of oils on canvas is bright, beautiful, thought provoking, light and dark at once. Favorites were her spectacular Epidemic, 2011:


Boom 1, 2010:


With that nuclear explosion series facing the loveliness of the rainbow series featuring Bow 1, 2010:


And her show's title piece, Romancing the Apocalypse, 2011 - featuring a fully dressed woman letting herself have a bath AND a cake ... as an end of days terror zone burns outside her window. Eek. Almost a bit TOO timely. And exactly what I'm talking about.


Loads of familiar Venice faces filled both levels, and though we had to dash in and out, it cemented the thought - even pre-tsunami possibility - that we are lucky, lucky people. People that recognize and celebrate beauty and intelligence on a daily basis ... People that GET to.

Go now, and find some for yourself. You won't have to go far.



Enjoy these shows from now until April 16th.

LA Louver
45 North Venice Boulevard
Venice, 90291