THE YEAR OF THE ROPE

Performance art has been on our minds ever since the incredible Marina Abramovic retrospective opened at MoMA. It's the biggest exhibition of performance art the MoMA has put on in its history. Below are photos from Marina Abramovic's original performance pieces, some of which were re-created for the MoMA exhibition.

We've also been revisiting some memorable performances from Tehching Hsieh, Joseph Beuys, and Matthew Barney.

MARINA ABRAMOVIC

Nude with Skeleton (2002-5)

Skin and bones.

Rest Energy (1980)

Taut bow and arrow aimed at Marina's heart.
Perfect weight distribution maintains tension.
The accelerated heartbeats measured.

Imponderabilia (1977)

A fleshy entrance.

TEHCHING HSIEH

Tehching Hsieh is another wildly influential performance artist who says his one-year-long performances are about "wasting time and freethinking". Maybe so, but his performances are also about entangling art and life, poetically exposing how we relate to one another, how we struggle, adapt.

Art/Life: One Year Performance 1983-4 (Rope Piece)

Hsieh and collaborator Linda Montano were tied together by an eight foot rope. For one year.

Read about the how their relationship evolved over the course of the year and how they think it was easier than actually being "tied" to a bad job or unhealthy relationship.

JOSEPH BEUYS


German artist Joseph Beuys spent his first trip to America in a East Broadway Gallery with a coyote.

I Like America and America Likes Me (1974)

MATTHEW BARNEY

Blood of Two (2009)

More recently, Matthew Barney and Elizabeth Peyton collaborated on this ceremonious performance on the Greek Island Hydra, involving local fisherman unveiling artwork from a sarcophagus submerged in the sea.

Not as gritty and personal as the performance art in the 70's/80's, but still mesmerizing.

PLACES III

fnp architektur

a super cool project. thanks Camille!

PARTNERS & SPADE

One of Andy Spade's recent collaborative endeavors is Partners & Spade.  

It's a storefront, gallery, and studio that produces films, books, garments, and conceptual products.  It's playful and quirky and wonderful. You'll find our favorite axes (yes, we have ax preferences) from Best Made Co, cacti, terrariums, and even backdated confidence trophies that will be sure to make you feel like a winner. 

Plus, Partners & Spade are good hosts... last night we were there sipping red wine and watching Thurston Moore play an improv guitar set alongside a super-star saxophone player.

Always interesting to see how Andy Spade mixes retail, art, and advertising together and serves it as a perfectly refreshing dish. 

 

PLACES II

Ahhh, NYTimes Slideshows. We love 'em.

Meet Mr.Butch Anthony. Butch began building his log cabin from salvaged heart pine, using only cables and pulleys strung from surrounding trees. Take a look at the full slideshow.... pretty fancy log cabin, eh? Oh! Also, Butch dresses exclusively in Liberty overalls (he owns 25 pairs). Our kinda guy.

OUT AND ABOUT

Emmett Kelly and Will Oldham are extraordinary together.

They played The Wonder Show of the World for us at Monster Island Basement

and we melted.

THE FUNCTIONALITY OF GRAY

Eileen Gray

[Images from Eileen Gray, TASCHEN]

LEONARDO DREW

A couple weeks ago we were in Greensboro and were lucky enough to attend the opening/ artist's lecture at the Weatherspoon Art Museum for Existed: Leonardo Drew. It's always nice to hear the voice behind the work. What was also nice, we think, is that he wasn't there to divulge all of his deepest, darkest secrets or dwell on his less-than privileged upbringing- he was all about 'looking ahead'. In fact, he was funny about the whole idea of doing a retrospective. On the whole, he didn't care much about his old works, he had no idea where most of them were but he knew what he had personally learned from making them, and that was good enough for him. It was refreshing. This attitude is also reflected in the method of naming his works chronologically by their date of completion- #1,#2,#3.....it's simply a record, the viewer should make/take from it what they want. I mean, it's not hard to see a number of pronounced themes in his work, but in Leonardo's opinion that is for you to find, not for him to tell you.

#94

#90

#123

#25

DISCUSSION NO. 2

What We Talk About When We Talk About

George Esquivel

I spent a good part of 2009 researching cordwainers and their craft. George Esquivel is a shoemaker that I had come across and that Heidi and I keep revisiting. We like his quiet role in the fashion world, of which he has recently become a part. He seems to be a pioneer in the movement from fast-fashion and freakish consumerism towards artistry, tradition, and quality.

He has a small team that handcrafts beautiful shoes using leather procured from the tip-top tanneries in the world. 

We love his dedication. 

And his shoes.

 

He has an interesting story--from spending his childhood in hotels to constructing a $70K bespoke and bedazzled shoe. Read about it here.

George's bespoke shoe shop in Los Angeles.

Lasts.

For New York Fashion week, George created shoes for Maria Cornejo's first menswear collection and also collaborated with Loden Dager's fw2010 runway show. Both are incredible labels to team up with.

Other honorable cordwainers and their bespoke shoe shops: 

E. Vogel Custom Boots and Shoes in our very own New York City, two skips and a jump from dear Opening Ceremony.

John Lobb Bootmaker in London.

 Emma the Shoemaker in distant Melbourne.

PLACES

RED HOOK

So we have fallen in love with our new neighborhood. Ok, so we don't live in the heart of Red Hook... more on the the border with Carroll Gardens, but still. The one thing that every single person says when you mention Red Hook is something along the line of, "oh yeah, great area but soooo far away". There may be some truth to it, but that is probably why it is as great as it is. If it were easily accessible there would be ten story new 'lofts' lining the water and chain coffee shops lining the streets. So thank you, MTA, for keeping the subway a comfortable distance away.

Some interesting facts...

-Red Hook is named for the red clay soil and the point of land projecting into the East River.

-In the 1990s LIFE named Red Hook as one of the "worst" neighborhoods in the United States and gave it the prestigious title of "the crack capital of America"

-Red Hook is the only part of NYC that, on land, has a full frontal view of the Statue of Liberty (which is oriented to face France)

-Rappers Hell Razah and Shabazz the Disciple, of the hip-hop group Sunz of Man, are from Red Hook

Here are a few of our favorites if you decide to make the trek:

Home/Made

Sunny's

Fort Defiance

Fairway

Good Fork

Erie Basin

Bait & Tackle

Dry Dock

Rocky Sullivan's

Alma/ B61

Pictures coming!

PATTERNS