A bit of delicious art news: Damien Hirst’s iconic piece The physical impossibility of death in the mind of someone living (1991), which consists of a shark suspended in a tank of greenish formaldehyde, is rotten. Well, not exactly, quote: “The animal suspended in formaldehyde has deteriorated dramatically to the naked eye since it was first unveiled at the Saatchi Gallery in 1992 because of the way it was preserved by the artist. The solution which surrounds it is murky, the skin of the animal is showing considerable signs of wear and tear, and the shark itself has changed shape.” So essentially the shark is rotting. Perfect irony considering the title of the piece don’tcha think? The piece sold in late 2004 for £6.5m, one of the highest prices ever paid for a work by “someone living.” Hirst is evidently in talks with the buyer to replace the shark. The dealer Larry Gagosian said: “The shark is a conceptual piece and to substitute a shark of equal size and appearance, in my opinion, does not alter the piece.” I agree with him, though what the truth of such a statement really portends for the value of a piece of art…

Picked up a slim exhibition catalogue at the Strand bookshop yesterday, put out by Taipei Gallery in 1993, for a show they mounted of Chinese photographer Chin-san Long’s work. He was born Zhejiang Province in 1892. In 1927 he became one of China’s first photo-journalists when the Shanghai Eastern Times, where he was employed, brought in the country’s first color printing machine. In 1939 he perfected a compositing method which allowed him to combine multiple images in the dark room. The results were photographs which incorporated the methodology of traditional Chinese ink-painting, creating a synthesis of Chinese aesthetic and western photographic technique. With a career spanning nine decades Long helped to popularize photography in China. As it turns out his work is not at all well represented on the net so I’m happy to be able to offer you the following 16 examples of his beautiful, pre-digital-age, photo compositing work. See below.

Above the Clouds, 1953.

Pavilion on the Mountain of Immortals, 1955.

A Lone Pavilion by the Cliff, 1962.

Spring Messenger, 1957.

Standing in Solitude, 1945.

Foggy River, 1936.

Longevity, 1961,

A Recluse Under a Pine Tree, 1963.

Fishing Under the Snow, 1969.

Clouds Encircling Mountains, 1942.

Spring by the Riverside, 1934.

Sailing Through the Gorge, 1985.

Foggy River, 1937.

Old Pavilion, 1936.

A Pair of Deer, 1951.

Rising Clouds, 1937.

For some more information on early photography in China see here. To see 215 early Chinese photographs see here.

Hope you enjoyed these. Anyone with further knowledge of Chin-san Long is encouraged to contact me.

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Came across an interesting oddity yesterday, The Feather Book. Made in 1618 by Dionisio Minaggio, Chief Gardener of the State of Milan, it is a book depicting 112 birds and 44 human figures, each composed entirely of natural, undyed birds’ feathers. It is separated into 4 sections themed: birds, hunters, tradesmen, musicians and Commedia del’Arte figures. This book contains some of the earliest efforts to depict behavior rather than simply showing birds sitting in profile, and the feathers used are among the oldest preserved samples in existence. Neat. The images themselves strike me as having what we might today call an “outsider art” kind of feeling, whether due to the difficulty inherent in the materials, the meticulous obsessiveness certainly required to complete them, or the apparent lunacy of some of the subjects, I’m not sure. They’re pretty amazing. See below for a sampling.

Feather art was first introduced to Europe by the Spanish explorers who had traveled to Brazil, Mexico and Peru.  The majority of these works are ecclesiastical in subject and use tiny feathers to imitate embroidery work. Minaggio uses feathers of different sizes, cut to the appropriate shape and glued to a paper foundation. He seems to have been the only artist who created primarily secular scenes. 

Regrettably, very little is known about the history of the Feather Book. It must have taken Minaggio, and possibly his assistants, several years to complete.  Most of the birds represented are indigenous to the Milan region but a few (such as the parrots) may have been presented to the Court as gifts, perhaps by a returning explorer. Due to the considerable political chaos of the time the archival records in Milan for that year are poor. We know nothing for certain of the book’s whereabouts between the time of its completion and its probable location in the early 1700s.

From the Lichomezi or Comedians section. This is Leander a celebrated “lover” played by actor Benedetto Ricci of the “Fedeli” company.

From the Tradesmen section. The apron and brush attached around his waist indicate this may be a chimney sweep. He is leaning on a staff and playing a flute while waiting for his dog to finish defecating. There is a small finch perched on the top of the tree.

From the Birds section. The Rooster (Gallus gallus)

From Comedians. Chocholi (Cocolin) better known as Magnifico or Pantolone, was the stock character of the old man who makes a fool of himself by chasing after a young girl or by his excessive suspiciousness or miserliness.

From the Hunters section. A man with a three-pronged pike for boar hunting.

From Birds. A woman carries a basket in her right hand and balances another, on which a Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis), perched on her head.

From Birds. A Hobby (Falco subbbuteo). The landscape shows a waterfall flowing through an crenellated building down to a mill and bridge, as well as a church with belfry, and a fortress with a tower.

From Hunters. A hunter returning from a rabbit hunt, carrying his catch on a pole and leading a hunting dog on a leash.

From Tradesmen. Standing on a table between an open coffer and his professional insignia - an enormous tooth hanging from a pole - a dentist holds up the tooth he has just extracted from a suffering patient, who sits holding a blood-stained cloth to his face.

From Birds. There is an Italian Sparrow (Passer italiae) at the top, a Great Tit (Parus major) on the left and the Long-tailed Tit (Aegithalos caudatus) on the lower right.

From Birds. A Golden Oriole (Oriolus oriolus) in a tree overlooks a man fishing with a pole.

From Hunters. A hunter shooting an arquebus at a duck swimming in the river.

From Comedians. Chola Napolitane was a clown figure created by Aniello di Maure of whom this is probably a portrait. Coloo is dancing while making clownish facial expressions. This is an example of the clownish character of the Commedia de11 ‘Arte.

From Hunters. A man loading an arquebus for duck hunting. The dog has already retrieved a Mallard. Two ducks are flying overhead.

From Birds. A landscape showing a group of buildings under three entwined trees. This is the only picture in the collection that does not contain any birds or people.

All of the images from the book are digitized and on display in large scale at the McGill Library Page: Il Bestario Barocco. Some further information is available here. Hope you enjoyed.

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David Hensel, 64, from East Grinstead, West Sussex, was told his sculpture of a laughing head (title: One Day Closer To Paradise) would be part of the Royal Academy of Arts summer exhibition. But at a preview he found that just the piece of wood which was intended to support the head was on display. Mr Hensel assumed staff had accidentally left the sculpture in the basement where it was being stored. The Academy said the judging panel assumed the two pieces (the sculpture and its supporting base) were separate and decided the support was better. Link. Fucking hilarious.

An old friend of mine by the name of Brett Farkas, an illustrator and painter, recently showed some new work and, as seems to always be the case, I missed it. He was kind enough to send me some images so I could have my own private viewing. I’ve decided to put them on display here and share them with ye shadowy millions. I’ve always admired the tight, controlled, style of his characters and in this new work he plays them against more organic shapes and textures. Most of the pieces here are pencil on tracing paper, back-painted with acrylic, house paint, or paint marker. There is some rubber stamping and linoleum block-printing in evidence and it’s all topped off with a healthy topcoat of resin and/or polyurethane. Hope you enjoy…

Boots

Flower Monster

Bass Boy

Solitude

Pancake Goblin

Skate Boy

Dentist

Love Monster

Hand Girl

If you’ve got any comments or question for Brett feel free to leave them below, perhaps he’ll come down from his lair, drop by the site, and answer them in person, and if not I’ll do my best. 

 

 

 

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