AO Art Observed™

Artist Richard Serra poses for photographers beside one of his works entitled ‘Fernando Pessoa’ during the unveiling of his new exhibition at the Gagosian Gallery in London October 3, 2008 via Reuters

Richard Serra, widely regarded as the ‘greatest living sculpture’ has a two concurrent exhibitions at the Gagosian Galleries on Britannia Street and Davies Street in London. Simply titled, ‘Sculpture’, the Brittania Street exhibit displays three new large-scale steel installations and four smaller wall hanging pieces, while the Davies Street gallery houses new works on paper. This is the first time that Richard Serra has exhibited in London since Weight and Measure at Tate Gallery in 1992. The 70 year-old artist has not slowed down in the recent years with a critically acclaimed installation at the Grand Palais in Paris this summer, a “40 Years” retrospective at New York’s Museum of Modern Art in 2007, and the widely recognized “Matter of Time” installation at the Guggenheim Bilboa in 2005. The sculptures at the current Gagosian show weigh over 300 tons and will occupy the gallery space until December 20, 2008.

Interview with Richard Serra, Man of steel [GuardianUK]
Serra Recalls 9/11, Shipyard as Steel Labyrinth Opens in London [Bloomberg]
Richard Serra shows off his rings of steel [Economist]
Serra brings giant steel sculptures to London [Reuters]
Super slabs and steely nerves and Heavy metal: Richard Serra exhibition for London [GuardianUK]
Richard Serra: Sculpture [Gagosian Gallery]

Previously:
Go See: Richard Serra - Thinking on Your Feet [ArtObserved]

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Yvonne Force Villareal from Art Production fund (left) and others attend the opening reception for Cecily Brown at Gagosian New York via Art Observed

Gagosian New York is currently showing a collection of new and recent work by British painter Cecily Brown. The exhibit, entitled Cecily Brown 2008, displays her signature style in which bold figures are covered in abstract layers. The displayed work mirrors Brown’s previous work in its attempt to expand abstract expressionism, combining the influence of Willem de Kooning with figurative influences Nicolas Poussin and Edouard Manet. The exhibit also includes a series of uncharacteristically small scale paintings which marks a unique transfiguration for the artist who is best known for her large-scale works. Art Observed was at the opening reception along artists John Currin, Francesco Clemente, and Hope Atherton, Art Production Fund’s Yvonne Force Villareal, Tim Hunt from the Warhol Foundation.

Cecily Brown Press Release [Gagosian]
Reading Between the Linens: Cecily Brown at Gagosian Gallery [NYSun]
Cecily Brown Exhibition [NY Art Beat]
Galleries Awaken From Summer Slumber [NYSun]

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Contraband Room, United States Border and Customs Protection via Wired

Opening September 13th, Taryn Simon unearths the unseen images behind America’s closed doors. Images of a cryopreservation unit in Clinton Township, Michigan; a nuclear waste encapsulation and storage facility in Southeastern Washington State; a mentally retarded white tiger in Eureka Springs, Arkansas; and a Braille copy of Playboy Magazine in New York City are just some of several vibrant recordings included in Simon’s calculated cross-country venture.  Referred to as “occult glamour” in her publication’s foreword, Simon’s photography is procured by a large format 4×5″ camera to take a single negative which mimics the formalized aesthetic of traditional portraiture.  At age 33, Simon has celebrated national and international success with previous exhibitions at The Whitney Museum of American Art, New York and Kunst-Werke Institute of Contemporary Art, Berlin among others.

Lens Crafters by Kathleen Kingsbury [TIME]
No More Secrets [The London Telegraph]
Access All Areas [Frieze]
Taryn Simon Official Website

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Red, Andy Warhol, (1978) via Gagosian

Gagosian’s spacious Chelsea gallery presents 13 contemporary artists in ‘Retrospective’: Chris Burden, Marcel Duchamp, Tom Friedman, Piero Golia, Douglas Gordon, Richard Hamilton, Jasper Johns, Roy Lichtenstein, Takashi Murakami, Piotr Uklański, Andy Warhol, Martin Kippenberger, and Ed Ruscha. Keeping in company with several thematic group shows this summer, this one has been assembled by Andisheh Avini, Gagosian curator, and artist.

Press Release [Gagosian]
‘Retrospective’: Been There, Sold That [NYSun]
Some Shows For Escape, Some For Introspection [NYTimes]
View video of the Retrospective group show here [Gagosian]

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Roy Lichtenstein via Gagosian Gallery

From May 12 through June, 28 Gagosian Gallery in New York is hosting the exhibition of Roy Lichtenstein, “Girls.” The works are a series of images of women, taken directly from newspaper and romance comic books from post-war in America.

Gagosian Gallery
Roy Lichtenstein, “Girls” [Time Out]
Lichtenstein’s Primary Ladies [NY Sun]

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Palmsonntag via Gagosian

Gagosian Gallery in Los Angeles features the new exhibition of Anselm Kiefer in two parts from March 29 until April 26. It will be his first exhibition in Los Angeles in more than a decade. The Beverly Hills gallery will present recent paintings, sculptures, and innovative photo-collages.

Anselm Kiefer at Gagosian Gallery [Gagosian Gallery]
Anselm Kiefer’s exhibition [ArtDaily]

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Gustav Klimnt, Beethoven Frieze via secession.at

Klimpt’s historic ‘Beethoven Frieze’ to be reconstructed at Tate Liverpool [NY Times]
Old master stolen by Stasi (East German secret police) valued at $2 million [Bloomberg]
The architectural intelligence of the New Museum [Financial Times]
Update: Goat farm video, other favorites, at Whitney Biennial [Bloomberg]
Brooklyn and Manhattan street art gains fans, collectors [NY Times]
A case against art for Trafalgar Square’s Fourth Plinth [Financial Times]
Gagosian’s Uptown Gallery Expands, with a new director (former Picasso biographer) [Art Info]

Tagged Murakami Billboard via Boing Boing

Murakami Billboard in Los Angeles tagged [Art Fag City] and subsequently kept by Murakami [Boing Boing]
Russian Art Prices continue to grow [FT]
London Auctions buoyed by Expressionists [NYSun]
Detailed Summary of LACMA and Eli Broad Controversy [NYT]
NYC Evening Museum Party Schedule [NYT]
Gagosian maintains Schnabel Oscar plans despite writers strike [NY Observer]
Proenza Schouler inspirated by Donald Judd on MARFA, Texas trip [Style]
Richter’s “Zwei Liebespaare” sells for £7.3M, exceeds expectations [Christies]
Art forced out of Britain by Tax Laws: 40% of work’s value [Times Online UK]
Auction houses are increasingly financiers versus exchange agents[Economist]

Kehinde Wiley’s St. Sebastian II (Columbus), 2006 via Columbus Museum of Art
Michael Jackson via MJsite

Michael Jackson planning collaboration with Kehinde Wiley?[PR Inside]
UK’s planned taxes on incoming art from non-domiciled residents could discourage wealthy donors and supporters [Financial Times]
London’s February auctions prove that despite shaky financial climate, demand is still high for Impressionist, Modern and Contemporary works [NYTimes]
Recap of Jeff Koons talk at the 92nd St. Y [Art Fag City]
Salander O’Reilly Gallery in NY goes bankrupt: Ownership of works held at gallery still yet to be determined [Bloomberg]
Ed Ruscha talks about new show “Ed Ruscha: Paintings” on view at Gagosian London [Gaurdian]
Banksy’s Kate Moss/ Marilyn Monroe portrait fetches $191,000 at Bonhams [Bloomberg]

Ed Ruscha via US Department of Art & Technology

Ed Ruscha will exhibit five pairs of paintings at the Gagosian Gallery, Britannia Street in London from February 5 - March 15. Ruscha’s work often centers on ideas of American life and the urban landscape bringing issues of time, memory and perception into the forefront.
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Former Dia Building via The Observer

Former Chelsea Dia Art Foundation building slated for apartment rentals and gallery space [The Observer]
How to preserve Paul McCarthy’s chocolate Santa [C-Monster]
Hudson Morgan covers Gagosian’s gallery festivities in Rome [Men's Vogue]
Parisian home of Pierre-Auguste Renoir is for sale [The Wall Street Journal]
The Times UK arts critic interviews Zhang Xiaogang [Times UK Online]
Guardian Unlimited UK interviews Peter Doig [Guardian Unlimited]
Suspect reports Saudi collector possibly behind Sao Paulo Picasso Theft [Art Forum]

Julian Schnabel at Gagosian Gallery via Bloomberg.

The Gagosian Gallery will host an exhibit of large-scale digital paintings from the artist turned film director Julian Schnabel. The concept was conceived during the production of his latest film “The Diving Bell and The Butterfly”. The digital paintings are based on human X-rays that were scanned and enlarged on a canvas. The exhibit will begin on February 21st and will coincide with the Oscars scheduled for February 24th. The scheduling is not coincidental due to rumors that “The Diving Bell and The Butterfly” will be nominated for an Oscar.

Gagosian gallery [Gagosian]
Schnabel Show at Gagosian [Bloomberg]

“Athenian Moon Owl” by Joseph Beuys via Tate

More on Gagosian Opening Gallery in Rome [Artnet]
Even More on Gagosian in Rome [TAN]
Coverage of The Fanciest Sattelite Parties at Art Basel Miami Beach [NYT]
The Insider - Profile of Gallerist Melissa Bent [The Moment]
New MoMA Acquisitions Include Joseph Beuys Pieces [NYT]

Michael Craig-Martin, Self Portrait 1 via Bloomberg

Damien Hirst’s Mentor, Michael Craig-Martin, Makes a Comeback at Gagosian [Bloomberg]
Richard Zeisler donates countless Masterpieces to Numerous American Art Institutions [NY Times]
Hirst’s, “Mother and Child Divided” Sculpture, leaking in Oslo [FT]
Species of Basel-ites per T Mag [T Magazine]
Christie’s fails to hit their marks with Phillips Family Collection in London [Bloomberg]

Rubell Family Collection booth at Art Basel Miami Beach
Photo by Charlotte Southern via Bloomberg

Collector’s Guide 2008 [Forbes]
Who Bought What at Basel [NYMag]
New York Galleries Plan to Open Sundays [NYMag]
DIA sells 22nd Street building for $38.5 Million [ArtsJournal]
Art Basel considers Branching out to Beijing [FT]
Kinky Puppets to Basquiat, Miami Fair Staged Exhilarating Show [Bloomberg]
High Prices, Robust Sales, Hangers-On Dominate Miami Art Fair [Bloomberg]
C-Monster Finds Echoes of Neckface in Artwork at Basel Miami [C-Monster]
Art Basel Diary [Radar via Gawker]
Video Footage of Art Basel Miami [NYTimes via Portfolio]
Gagosian May Open Office in China [NYMag via Portfolio]
Chelsea During Art Basel Miami Beach [Portfolio]

Michael Craig-Martin, Hearing Things, 2003 via Tate Modern

Christie’s Sale of Rubens, Old Masters, Shows Guarantee Risk [Bloomberg]
Craig-Martin, Damien Hirst’s Mentor, Makes Comeback at age 66 with Show at Gagosian, London [Bloomberg]
Guide to Art Fair Stereotypes [T]

Tank Inspired Bronze wins Inaugural Kandinksy Prize for Russian Contemporary Art [Bloomberg]
Gagosian’s Take on the Russian Art Scene [Men's Vogue]
Britain to invest $100 Million into Tate Organization [Xinhuanet]
LA Contemporary Art Fair to debut January 2008 [Espaces]
Gap Founder to Open Contemporary Art Museum in San Francisco’s Presidio [SF Chronicle]