I generally have a hard time giving a lot of credit to op art. It appeals to the part of my brain that will always be 12 years old, and it often just looks too cool for me to take too seriously. In other words, Dude! But here we have Demon Hill, an installation by [...]
The University of Texas’ Videogame Archive was begun three years ago, and the center has amassed more than 1,500 video games and about 200 linear feet of design documents, game proposals, correspondence and concept art about the 30-year old art form. Struggling with obsolecence of the equipment needed to run some of the earliest software, [...]
And just like that, the world’s first contemporary art reality TV competition (whew!) comes to an end. Adbi Farah is officially The Next Great Artist. Abdi. The nice guy. The man who, in the words of Entertainment Weekly’s Dalton Ross, "might just be the most likable reality contestant EVER." Abdi was probably the [...]
"In the end most of us are forgotten, and I don’t want to be forgotten." So true, Jaclyn, so true. The drive for fame, creative or otherwise, is ultimately a quest to cheat death, right? Too bad you can only take advantage of the groupies when you’re alive. And you won’t be forgotten, [...]
Ah geez, Ryan. You were so gone. You got so much airtime – Jehovah’s Witness, huh – that it was pretty clear you were the one. Same with no-talent guy last week. And that brings us to the question of the week: What’s the deal with Work of Art‘s editing? We got a little glimpse [...]
Well, no one saw that coming. Except me. And probably everyone else. Erik is gone, and just in case his all-around suckitude and very specific lack of talent weren’t enough, the producers and editors really made sure to amp up the tension between him and Miles there at the end. Adios, Erik. I bet you [...]
Oh lord won’t you buy me a Mercedes Benz… – Janis Joplin You ever watch an awesome commercial and not remember what it was advertising? That’s how I felt about last night’s episode of Work of Art and its many, many references to Italian automaker Alfa Romeo. From the talk of "how much fun it [...]
"That’s original to have your first erection because of Walt Disney. I had my first one because of Renoir." On last night’s Work of Art: The Next Great Artist, already kinda creepy auction guy Simon de Pury said those words to token dreamy guy Miles while the two looked over the contestant’s totally original (totally) [...]
Have you been watching Bravo’s Work of Art every Wednesday and felt alone…so, so alone? Never fear, Twitter is here. Every week the Internet’s self-expression machine lights up with as much commentary and snark as folks can squeeze into 140 characters. All you have to do is search for the hashtag #workofart and you [...]
At stake for the winner, a solo show at the world famous Brooklyn Museum and $100,000… The week between the airing of the first and second episode of Bravo’s Work of Art: The Next Great Artist was a tough one for the Brooklyn Museum. Critical backlash against the century-old institution was to be expected – [...]
First off, the title sucks. Seriously. Why not just stick with The Next Great Artist? What’s this Work of Art business? Second, the show Work of Art: The Next Great Artist ain’t bad. Bravo’s new art reality program, produced by Sarah Jessica Parker, features fourteen artists competing against each other for $100,000 and a solo [...]
Austin native Daniel Dove’s latest solo show at Los Angeles’ Cherry and Martin features eight oil paintings that hint at apocalyptic aftermath, their subjects fractured, stripped down and reconstructed, giving rise to novel narratives. We get desert landscapes, playground tunnels and theatrical sets, all painted in a realistic style and all with a sense [...]
This place used to be off limits, man, ‘cause some drunk freshman fell off. He went right down the middle, smacking his head on every beam, man. I hear it doesn’t hurt after the first couple though. Autopsy said he had one beer, how many did you have? – Slater, Dazed and Confused Currently [...]
Will I make it through this quick review of Shawn Smith’s "Vicious Venue" at Lawndale without referencing Jean Baudrillard more than once? I think so, but it might be difficult. Walking into Lawndale’s third floor project space feels like getting sucked into a video game of the Tomb Raider variety. First off, it’s [...]
It’s time for Halloween, and do we even have to finish this introductory paragraph? You know what’s coming. Let’s get to it. Sharon Kopriva In the pictured work from this Houstonian, we have a pope in a wheelchair with a…what the hell is that thing in his lap? Luz [...]
So I’ve been playing Hi, How Are You, the iPhone game based on the drawings and music of Daniel Johnston, for a couple weeks now. The game debuted near the end of September, and the Internet gushed. That’s what it does whenever anything related to the Waller artist and musician is released. Much [...]
In honor of Clint Willour’s look at what Lawndale’s been doing in the past five years, a.k.a. “Lawndale Art Center 30th Anniversary Exhibition,” I thought it’d be fun to cruise the local art publications and see what the city’s critics have said when talking about the place over the same time frame. Here [...]
In honor of the opening on Thursday, August 13, of Perspectives 167: Jason Villegas at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston, I thought it’d be fun to post a few of the artist’s videos. And I think “fun” is the right choice of words here, even though “disturbing,” “cracked-out” and “my God what the fuck is [...]
By now you’ve probably seen Dan Lacey’s paintings of President Barack Obama, naked, with a unicorn, among other things. But I just wanted to take the opportunity to remind everyone Lacey hasn’t limited his brilliance to Illinois politicians. He even paints the occasional Texas one too. [...]
