The Continued Adventures of Our Editors in the World of Art
"Who-o-o are you?"
"Is that you singing?" he asked.
"I guess I was," she said. "It's such a mystery, just like on CSI.
'
Indeed they were presented with quite the puzzle at a fashion week benefit 2 days before Valentine's day, surrounded by myriad works of pop art that was new to them, yet somehow familiar - all on an impressive scale.
Upon discovering that the setting for the event was the not-yet-open Mr. Brainwash exhibition "Icons," and, upon learning that artist was Mr. Brainwash, they found themselves no more enlightened.
"What do we do now?" he asked.
"What they do on CSI, get samples."
They collected a few of the free postcards and returned to the lab, - er - studio, to consult Google.
What their research revealed, via the Wall Street Journal, was a curious connection between the mysterious Mr. Brainwash and Britain's elusive and renowned guerilla artist, Banksy. The former began a film of the latter, which then became a film by the latter about the former, with the final result having its premiere at Sundance.
Finding none of this evidence either exculpatory or incriminating, they decided to investigate further on Valentine's Day.
At the official opening, none of the usual suspects from the art scene were to be found winding their way through a forest of pop props - giant painted buckets, human-sized aerosol Campbell's soup cans (how original to think of that! - they thought), and a larger-than-life Michelin Man. The exhibition fills 15,000 square feet in the Meat-Packing District with various sections of mainly screen-printed portraits, grouping icons by their pursuits.
Visitors streamed up and down a flight of stairs to view the "music" room - where so many mainstays of 20th Century sound - under the watchful eye of a wall-sized boom box - were depicted in collages made of broken vinyl records.
"Kind of cool," he said.
"Kind of sad too," she said. No one will play those records again...
While the presentation was impressively and expensively put together, they wondered what this work contributes to the discourse of style and subject between say, Warhol, Haring, Colette, Basquiat, Faile and most recently Banksy?
"Pure schmaltz?" he speculated.
Understanding the art is often enhanced by understanding the artist, but even standing a few feet from Mr. Brainwash while he signed the give-away prints, that man with the bushy hair and beard, wearing oversized shades, could have been anyone, from a movie star to moving man...had he risen from obscurity or was he himself an icon in disguise?
Finally revisiting their favorite part of the show - the wall of famous artists, something seemed amiss.
"When was Friday Kahlo born?" she wondered.
"1907," said her HTC handheld.
"She's the only woman artist," he said.
"Not a female icon born to the art world in 100 years!"
She thought that Helen Frankenthaler or Kiki Smith or Kara Walker would come and throw paint on this, like Shafrazzi on Guernica. Or maybe she should do it herself...but someone had beaten her to it!
"Look," she said,"There are huge splashes of paint across the portraits of Rockwell and Magritte."
"Buckets - a giant must have done this - look at the size of that..."
She shook her head. "There are no drips going down. Did they take the wall down and lie it flat?"
"Get this," he said, examining the surface of Magritte's framed likeness. "This 'splatter' was stroked onto the piece. Some giant!"
"Fee-fy-faux-fum."
Maybe Mr. Brainwash is really just Mr. Brainwash...
Editor's note - While I do have a pet theory as to the identity of this artist, I am sealing it in an envelope and mailing it to Mark. No peeking. Additionally, I am not Banksy. - LD
Other Editor's Note - Yes Linda, I think you are right, Mr. Brainwash is Joachin Pheonix! - MW
Links:
Mr. BrainWash
http://www.mrbrainwash.com/
Wall Street Journal
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704140104575057350802155846.html
Warhol
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andy_Warhol
Colette
http://www.colettetheartist.com/
Jean-Michel_Basquiat
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Michel_Basquiat
Faile
http://www.faile.net/site/
Banksy
http://www.banksy.co.uk/
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