MIMMO ROTELLA Retrospective

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Mimmo Rotella was perhaps the very first street artist. His art is shown and exhibited around the world, but in 1951 Rotella (born in Catanzaro, Calabria, 1918; died in Milan 2006) was one of the first to turn the language of art upside down by using materials from the urban environment, particularly advertising posters, which he collected then changed by lacerating them. Mimmo Rotella is thoroughly avant-­‐garde. In 1949, while he was searching for new forms of self-­‐expression, he even invented a phonetic poetry made up of sounds and words without any sense, for which he coined the term “épistaltique language." He spent time as an artist in residence in the United States, where he met Rauschenberg, Cy Twombly, Pollock and Kline. He was later to meet de Kooning and Rothko in Rome in 1960. But in 1953 he underwent a crisis during which he stopped painting, saying that “everything in art has already been done." It was in 1954 that he had what he called a “Zen illumination." He discovered the advertising poster as a means of expression and invented the tearing method that he was to use for the rest of his life. By carrying out what he called “double décollage” – first detaching the poster from the wall, then tearing it in his studio. A retrospective of Mimmo Rotella will be on view at the Tornabuoni Art Gallery in Paris from March 30 to June 9, 2012

Bob Dylan 1961 to 1966

Bob Dylan With Top Hat Pointing In Car, Philadelphia PA 1964 © Daniel Kramer

An exhibition on view at the Cité de la musique in Paris retraces the important moments of Bob Dylan between the years of 1961 to 1966, during which Dylan radically changed his artistic approach and sparked a musical revolution. Created by the Grammy Museum of Los Angeles, Bob Dylan, Rock Explosion presents, through previously unpublished photos, objects, rare documents and audiovisual archives, the astonishing story of a personal evolution that marked a societal earthquake. On view until July 15 at the Cité de la Musique. 

Cass Bird: Rewilding

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Over the past ten years, Cass Bird has established herself as one of the foremost portraitists of contemporary America. Her photographs of young women and men casually draw attention to the fluid expression of gender roles and androgyny in today's youth culture, and to what she has described as the convergence of alternative lifestyles with accepted conceptions of motherhood, nurturing and family. In the summers of 2009 and 2010, Bird traveled to Sassafrass, Tennessee, with a group of young women, a wardrobe of diaphanous dresses and a camera. These women - studio assistants, friends, or women cast from the streets of New York - had been selected by Bird for their ease with their sexual identities, but also for their relative awkwardness in front of the lens. The result was Rewilding, published by Damiani, a joyous portrait of modern femininity and a frolicking celebration of women's camaraderie. Book signing this Thursday at Leadapron Gallery in Los Angeles, 8445 Melrose Place Los Angeles, CA

Warhol and Cars: American Icons

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Warhol and Cars: American Icons is the first exhibition to examine Warhol’s enduring fascination with automotive vehicles as products of American consumer society. This exhibition features more than forty drawings, paintings, photographs, and related archival material spanning from 1946 to 1986 include the famous BMW M-1 racing car that was hand-painted by Warhol. Warhol and Cars: American Icons is on view at the Andy Warhol Museum on May 13, 2012.

ELIZABETH PEYTON at Regen Projects

Elizabeth Peyton, What Wondrous Thing Do I See (Lohengrin; Jonas Kaufman), 2012

Regen Projects announces a solo exhibition of new works by Elizabeth Peyton. For her sixth show with the gallery, Peyton will show paintings, works on paper, and prints (etching and monotypes). Her work has included portraits of artists, musicians, historical figures, occasional athletes, and more recently still lifes, all derived from life or from photos. The show will be on view April 6 to May 12 at Regen Projects - 9016 Santa Monica Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA.

Love, Life, & Fashion

Two of the most important people in fashion and design today, Ruben and Isabel Toledo have just released a book which "is a rare look into the mind, life, and journey of one of our generation’s most coveted fashion designers, Isabel Toledo. From the nostalgic and permanent in­fluence of her upbringing in Cuba and the serendipitous love that materialized her vision and fueled her conviction, to the timeless mark she continues to make on the fashion industry....." Ruben who translates Isabel's visions into illustration which then bring her designs to life, first laid eyes on each other since they were thirteen, have been collaborating for over two decades and their romance and love has offered an explosion of creativity. The book, entitled Roots of Style: Weaving Together Life, Love, and Fashion is available now.

Clifford Owens Demands Sex from Audience at MoMA PS1

MoMAPS1_CliffordOwens2011_Anthology(Dave-McKenzie)

This is the last weekend to see Clifford Owens first exhibition, entitled Anthology, at a New York museum – MoMA PS1 – which is comprised of photography, video, and live performance. Anthology features performances scores—written or graphical instructions for actions—that Owens solicited from a multigenerational group of African-American artists. Twenty-six major artists have contributed scores, nearly all of whom composed new works specifically for Owens and his project. This weekend will prove especially challenging when he will "demand sex" from the audience/viewer. This Sunday, for his last performance, Kara Walker has written the score: "French kiss an audience member. Force them against a wall and demand Sex. The audience/viewer should be an adult. If they are willing to participate in the forced sex act abruptly turn the tables and you assume the role of victim. Accuse your attacker. Seek help from others, describe your ordeal. Repeat."  Clifford Owen's performance commences at 3 p.m. on the second floor of MoMA PS1 this Sunday, March 12. 

[LITERATURE] What We Lose In Flowers

Karma bookstore‘s in-house publishing house just released a novella, entitled What We Lose in Flowers, by  art dealer and curator Bill Powers which tells the story of a Peter Beard, an artist in a failing relationship with a younger woman who used to date his son. The book opens with a quote from John Currin, “Culture is for old people. When you’re young you have your body, and that’s all you need,” and is dedicated to the recently deceased John McWhinnie, who introduced the artist Richard Prince (who designed the incredible DVD sticker cover) and Mr. Powers. This is actually a second book from Mr. Powers, a former editor at Blackbook, whose first was a novel titled Tall Island. You can purchase the book here.