A Stimulating Day

Yesterday I spent the day in NYC visiting two renowned art shows with a stop at the historic Chelsea Market.  With a multitude of stimuli throughout the day, I marveled at the creativity of the artists but also questioned whether freedom of art gives you permission to be politically incorrect. 

This wonderful day trip was sponsored by The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield and was attended by RMAC students as well as students from Ridgefield and Danbury High Schools.  The trip was offered for free thanks to a grant from The Aldrich.

We started the morning at The Armory Show, which is a leading international contemporary and modern art fair.  Celebrating its 100^th anniversary, the show takes place in three locations:  Manhattan, Chicago, and Boston. The Armory Show can be credited for the introduction of Van Gough, Gaugin, Cezanne, Picasso, Matisse, and Duchamp to the USA.  

In New York, the exhibition is located on Piers 92 and 94 on the West Side. Many of the world's leading galleries are there to present their artists.  

Student docents who accompanied us facilitated deeper discussions of select pieces as we ambled through the aisles trying to see as much as we could.  We came across a plethora of cardboard Brillo boxes, Andy Warhol style. The plaque invited us to take a box for free.  People started taking them from the stack, only to find their awkwardness walking around a gallery of art to be a conundrum.  Before long, one by one, keys and pens were taken out as people started flattening the boxes in order to carry them under their arms.  

An interesting thought.  I did not favor the idea of bothering with it throughout my day so I did not take one.  I also had no idea what I would do with it at home and my husband might likely mistake it as recyclable cardboard and put it at the curb the following Thursday anyway.  So on we went.

Andy Warhol original

Original Picasso drawing

 There were so many mediums used in the pieces that really brought to mind how creative artists could be.  One artist created two tower-like sculptures using cameras.  One included a material that looked like ice dripping from it while the other sported a hat and purse.  One member of our group joked that they could have gotten their materials from cameras left behind at the show. 

Another interesting piece was a sculpture on a wall, in and of itself was nothing exceptional.  It was when you realized that the shadow created from this sculpture reflected that of a person that you really appreciated the complexity of the piece.  I have no idea how one would figure that out.  Trial and error?  Math?

After a few hours on the two piers, the bus brought us down to Chelsea Market for lunch. What I loved most about this old factory was the atmosphere.  The National Biscuit Company originally purchased it in the 1890s.  They baked many items, including Saltines and Oreos.  

A National Biscuit Company painting is still on the brick wall, along with an Oreo one (below).

Today the site is a plethora of newer ovens offering many items for visitors. In all, there are about three dozen eateries and specialty shops.  As you wind your way down the central hall, you pass old elevators, original signage on brick walls, and a jumble of nooks and crannies. 

One of many specialty eateries included this  bakery.

Although mostly eateries, there were a few places to do some funky shopping.

Our last stop was the Volta Fair in SoHo, which is another platform for emerging, mid-career, and established contemporary artists.  Much smaller than the Armory Show, an hour was enough time to see most of this exhibit.  One of the sculptures that impressed me most was a bust.  I carefully examined it to try to determine if the artist used marble.  After walking around the back of it, I was shocked to see a row of magazines.  Pressed together and carefully carved magazines resulted in a fabulous bust.  That was impressive. 

The back shows the rows of magazines pressed together, the material for the sculpture.

There were of course modern art pieces that we all should admit to saying to ourselves, ‘I could have done that if I had thought of it first.’  For example, nails in a coconut on the floor...  I know I could have done that, but it never would have dawned on me.  Other pieces just made me smile.

Pipes on a floor....

...so why not colorful hoses on a wall?      

I don't know what this piece was titled, but I call it Donut Head.

We were careful not to step on the cat, playing on the floor.  

One artist there made me question freedom in art.  He had many pieces in the show all with the same theme.  Two examples were ‘207 niggas on linen’ and ‘A bunch of niggas in the dark', which you can see below.  Is it okay to use the ‘n’ word if you call it art? 

Then there were pieces that made you think about environmental awareness, like this map of the USA with all our trash, aptly titled Beautiful Disaster.

We thought this was an interactive piece, until we realized the girl was a sculpture.  It was a little creepy, as was the caveman with his arms sawed on the floor.

I think the good tired feeling I had at the end of the day was a combination of hours of walking and also the on-going stimulus on my eyes and brain.  Art is supposed to get you thinking and it certainly did for me.  It always wakes up my artistic juices and makes me pledge to myself to set aside more time to do the creative things I enjoy doing.  The thought and question I will leave you with is this.  Should artists be politically incorrect under the guise of freedom of art?  If yes, does it benefit anyone other than themselves?