JUNE 2016
Book of the Month
Front cover of Dave Hickey, The Invisible Dragon, Revised and Expanded: Essays on Beauty (University of Chicago Press, 2009).
In 1993, Dave Hickey published The Invisible Dragon, a virtual slap in the face regarding much of contemporary art criticism. This expanded edition includes a lengthy essay “American Beauty” (pp. 69-119). While not directly concerning textiles, his thesis on the efficacy of beauty in art, on his belief in art as “a ravishing and poignant visual experience,” validates this unabashedly object-based medium. Hickey concludes, “… the utility of beauty as a legitimate recourse resides in its ability to locate us as physical creatures in a live, ethical relationship with other human beings in the physical world.”
[Caution: Some readers may find a few of the images in this book offensive.]
Sublime Lace Paintings by Mark Flood
Mike Flood, detail of Drama in the Forest (2016).
Mike Flood, partial view of Drama in the Forest (2016).
The reason why Dave Hickey’s book is featured in my June blog is that his Essays on Beauty influenced Houston artist Mark Flood, best known for his punk rock sensibility, to begin creating lace paintings more than a dozen years ago. I happened to be in Houston recently and walked into the Contemporary Art Museum without any idea of what was on view. Monumental lace paintings, achingly beautiful, took my breath away. The canvases, thick with pigment, hold patterns and imagery from lace peeled away after Flood has painted the surface. His process seems to be like a dance, where one false step could ruin the entire piece. The effect is both ethereal and powerful, an unbeatable combination in visual art. On view until August 7.
Deborah Weir, partial view of the Chroma series (2012-2015), eight panels, each 80 inches high.
Deborah Weir Explores Color in the Chroma Series
Deborah Weir has taught deaf students for more than thirty years, making her extremely aware of the problems in translating sensory experiences. In her new series Chroma, the artist investigates color in her mixed-media textile art via weaving, printing, painting, dyeing, hand stitching, burning, foiling, applique, lamination, etc., on materials ranging from leather to bamboo coffee filters, from antique lace to plastic. Weir prefers to work in a series extending over several years, developing different aspects of her theme. Chroma, along with other textile pieces by Weir, can be seen until June 29 at the Alpert Jewish Community Center in Long Beach, California.
Star Wars and the Power of Costume
If you are near New York City, the current Star Wars exhibition would be an entertaining diversion for anyone interested in costume and textiles. With seventy costumes hand-crafted for the first seven Star Wars films, the show emphasizes how artists creating the costumes followed George Lucas’s vision to build each character for his narrative. What would Darth Vader be without his mask, Obi-Wan without his hooded robe, Queen Amidala without her regal gowns? And let’s not forget Princess Leia’s infamous bikini. They all can be better understood and appreciated at Discovery Times Square through September 5.
http://www.discoverytsx.com/star-wars-exhibition