Artist George Condo is featured on CNN this week, as he prepares to open an exhibition of new work at Sprüth Magers in LA, his first show in Los Angeles in 20 years. “I think the legacy of my painting will be the fact that they maintain a life beyond the artist,” he says. “That they are alive, that there’s really somebody real inside of these kind of abstract figures, that you can feel the soul of somebody.” (more…)
Carroll Dunham, Mound A (1991-1992), via Art Observed
Flexing his curatorial muscle at both Skarstedt Gallery locations in New York, David Salle has compiled an intriguing collection of recent paintings by a vastly diverse group of artists, and examines their shared interests in the grounds of abstract painting: formal concerns of size, scale and focus, in combination with the compositional elements of color, contrast and hue. (more…)
The Financial Times has published a profile of painter George Condo, tracing the artist’s early work in New York, his early meetings with Andy Warhol, and his dedicated approach to his practice. “I can’t stand a white canvas,” Condo says. “If someone wanted to drive me insane, they could put one in front of me and not give me any art materials to work on it. That would be the perfect torture.” (more…)
From Figuration (Installation View), via Skarstedt Gallery
Currently on view at Skarstedt Gallery’s London location is a compelling exploration of figurative sculpture, titled From Figuration. Welcoming a host of high-profile names, including George Condo, Thomas Schütte, Jonathan Meese, Rosemarie Trockel, Rebecca Warren, and Paul McCarthy, the exhibition seeks to capture a broad range of approaches and themes expressed by this particular niche in the field of sculpture. (more…)
A large banner featuring one of George Condo’s Jesters has been unfurled outside of the Metropolitan Opera. The banner promotes the Opera’s current production of Rigoletto, as well as Condo’s current show of work in Gallery Met, the exhibition space in the Met’s south lobby, which opens Monday. (more…)
Jessica Chastain has participated in work by four artists for W magazine: George Condo, Rineke Dijkstra, Chantal Joffe and Mickalene Thomas. Each made a work using Chastain as part of the piece, where she posed for a photograph or a painted portrait; in the case of George Condo, she inspired a work that is neither: “I wanted Jessica to become part of the painting and then appear to come off it, as if she were breaking free and leaving behind an empty space,” he said. (more…)
Christie’s saleroom photo by ArtObserved
Christie’s Post-War & Contemporary Art Evening Sale broke the record for the highest ever grossing Contemporary Art auction in history, totaling over $412 million in sales. The auction came on the heels of Sotheby’s Postwar & Contemporary Art Evening Sale, which broke its own record for highest-grossing auction in Sotheby’s long history ($375 million). Christie’s achieved an astounding 92% sell by lot and 93% sell by value – of the 73 lots offered only 6 failed to sell.
Records at auction were broken for Richard Diebenkorn, Jeff Koons, Richard Serra, Franz Kline, George Condo, Jean- Michel Basquiat, and Mark Grotjahn. Additionally, Jean Dubuffet, Cy Twombly and Jean-Michel Basquiat set new records for their artworks on paper. A record was set for an Alexander Calder wire sculpture at auction with Policeman, which sold for $4.2 million.
Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Olympics (1984) which sold for a record-breaking price of £6 million
This evening in London, Phillips de Pury‘s Contemporary Art Evening exceeded pre-sale estimates of £15.1- £21.1 million, with sales totaling £23.4 million. Andy Warhol and Jean-Michel Basquiat‘s Olympics (1984) at £6 million broke the record for a Warhol-Basquiat collaboration. With three pieces in the auction selling for over a million pounds, the take was over twice the amount received just a year ago for the auction house. Of 30 original lots, 2 were withdrawn (including a Cindy Sherman piece) and 4 were passed on. Although the total sum was not as large as the sales of either Christie’s or Sotheby’s, it was the only auction house to surpass pre-sale estimates for this week.
George Condo‘s cover art for Kanye West‘s new single “Cold” released.
George Condo, Ghost Figure (1991). All images via PRISM LA.
Fresh on the heels of the large-scale solo exhibition at the New Museum last year titled George Condo: Mental States, the work of George Condo has traveled to the west coast and is currently on view at PRISM. A survey of the artist’s paintings, drawings, and sculptures, the exhibition gives those in Los Angeles a rare chance to see the “fake old masters” for which Condo is so well known. Through gestures of the paint, of the body, and of the expression, Condo finds a means to investigate psychological space and the archetypal symbols connecting the human experience.
‪‬George Condo confirmed as artist of Kanye West’s new single ‘Theraflu,’ the image tweeted Wednesday night; it is Condo’s second work for West [AO Newslink]
All photos by Art Observed by Aubrey Roemer
The “Third and a half” Brucennial opened last night in New York City, the 2012 edition titled, “Harderer. Betterer. Fasterer. Strongerer.” At 159 Bleecker Street, the high-ceilinged art-filled space reached its capacity of 15,000—with a line around the block—shortly after opening its doors at 6 PM. Organized by the anonymous Bruce High Quality Foundation and Vito Schnabel, a large main room, balcony, and basement, were covered with paintings, sculptures, video-works, and other installations by artists both established and less so. Running the gamut from friends of the Bruces to a Damien Hirst spot painting, exhibiting artists of note include Mike Kelley, Cindy Sherman, Damien Hirst, Sigmar Polke, Julian Schnabel, Anselm Reyle, Francesco Clemente, Aurel Schmidt, Dan Colen, David Salle, George Condo, Rashid Johnson, Dash Snow, Terence Koh, Richard Prince, Joseph Beuys, Scott Campbell, Keith Haring, Jean-Michel Basquiat, Tom Sachs, Andy Warhol (collaboration), and Dustin Yellin.
George Condo, Purple Compression (2011). All images via Skarstedt Gallery.
George Condo is currently showing eleven new works from his ongoing series Drawing Paintings at the Skarstedt Gallery in New York. Combining techniques of spontaneous drawing and more calculated painting, the series blends charcoal lines with pastel acrylics in Condo’s signature figurations. The large colorful canvases are busy with eyes and teeth, bowties and breasts, with the series-within-a-series, Compressions, leaving small stretches of blank canvas outside the compressed scenes. Condo says of the series, “They are about freedom of line and color and blur the distinction between drawing and painting. They are about beauty and horror walking hand in hand. They are about improvisation on the human figure and it’s consciousness.”
Allora & Calzadilla, Umbrella and Bell (2011), front; Anish Kapoor, Untitled (2011), behind. At Lisson Gallery, booth J1. All photos on site for Art Observed by Caroline Claisse.
International collectors and art enthusiasts filled the Miami Beach Convention Center for the Wednesday preview of Art Basel Miami Beach 2011. While the maze of gallery booths could seem overwhelming, buyers were able to navigate through for a solid day of sales and works placed on reserve. Larger galleries such as Gagosian, David Zwirner, and Sprüth Magers sold several works and editions thereof. Speaking with Neil Wenman of Hauser & Wirth, “We’ve had a great response on the opening day. In particular for works by Thomas Houseago, Rashid Johnson, Paul McCarthy, Matthew Day Jackson, Richard Jackson—all works sold and all available editions.” Jenny Holzer’s new paintings at Sprüth Magers sold for upwards of $300,000, as well as Condos and Krugers at the booth. Lesser-known galleries were pleased to gain the exposure the fair offers; if not selling right away, interest was high and therefore also prospects for the remainder of the fair. Gallery Arratia Beer said the crowd was very engaged and informed, also saying, “The fair feels very international. It’s also good to see young internationals here too.” The newer Latin American presence was reportedly strong, both exhibiting and buying, as expected in Miami as opposed to the Frieze or FIAC fairs across the Atlantic earlier this year. Celebrities on hand included Julian Schnable, Eli Broad, Brett Rattner, Naomi Campbell, and Sean Combs/P. Diddy.
Paul McCarthy, Cultural Gothic (1992). All photos on site for Art Observed by Caroline Claisse.
Art Observed was on site for the private Tuesday evening preview of the Rubell Family Collection/Contemporary Arts Foundation show American Exuberance. Throughout 28 gallery spaces in a 45,000 sq ft museum, 190 works by 64 artists explore the American condition today through art, dissecting the paradoxical arenas of culture, economics, and politics. A 244-page catalog includes written commentaries by 13 of the artists from the notable roster, as follows: Thomas Houseago, Richard Jackson, Rashid Johnson, Nate Lowman, Richard Prince, Sterling Ruby, Haim Steinbach, Ryan Trecartin, and to name a few. About a quarter of the works were made in 2011 specifically for the show. Also, Art Observed returned the next morning on Wednesday for Jennifer Rubell’s 11th annual breakfast, which is presented every morning throughout the week, treats visitors to a small jar of fresh yogurt, to be ‘anointed’ with honey dripping from the ceiling.
Collecting dripping honey at Jennifer Rubell’s Incubation yogurt and honey breakfast.
Yves Klein all photos by Caroline Claisse for Art Observed
This year marked the 2nd iteration of the House of the Nobleman, a privately sponsored exhibition which took place at the Boswall House, 15,000sqft mansion at 2 Cornwall Terrace, overlooking Regent’s Park and the Frieze 2011 Art Fair. Art Observed was on site for the private viewing. On view were works by Claude Monet, Auguste Rodin, Peter Paul Rubens, Edgar Degas, Max Ernst, Damien Hirst, Marlene Dumas, Yves Klein, Lucio Fontana, Sigmar Polke, Christian Boltanski, Anish Kapoor, Nick Hornby, Matthew Day Jackson, Cecily Brown, Lucian Freud, Peter Fischli and David Weiss, Yayoi Kusama, Robert Longo, Alexander Calder, Eugenia Emets, Francesco Clemente, Salvador Dali, Peter Doig, Olafur Eliasson, George Condo, Takashi Murakami, Hiroshi Sugimoto and Gerhard Richter.
Monet, Claude “ Chemin dans le brouillard”, (1879)
more images after the jump…
George Condo, Homeless Harlequins (2004). Via New Museum
Over eighty paintings and sculptures fill two floors of the New Museum with a survey of George Condo’s work from the past thirty years, the opening drawing celebrities like Marc Jacobs and Kanye West, for whom Condo recently painted an album cover. The characters in Condo’s portraits maintain a human quality despite their oversized ears and exaggerated expressions. He attributes his ability to draw up absurd yet empathetic portraits to his mimicry of classic techniques—careful color choice, appropriate brush strokes. Through his impeccable technique, he has gained a follower: Eneas Capalbo is marking his tenth year of copying Condo’s work. His exhibit, a token of how much he admires the artist’s work, opened at the Half Gallery the same day as Condo’s.
Installation view. Via New York Times
More text and images after the jump…
Being, George Condo (2008). All images via Galerie Andrea Caratsch.
On view through July 30th at Galerie Andrea Caratsch in Zurich is an exhibition of sculptures and silkscreen paintings by New York artist George Condo. ‘The Lost Civilization’ refers to the group of nine sculptures cast in bronze and finished with a white patina, giving the works the appearance of ancient sculptures recently recovered from the ground. Included in the show is series The Birth, The Triumph and The Death of Insanity, along with six busts and five paintings which further exemplify Condo’s unique vision.
More text and images after the jump…
Team Gallery Booth at Art Basel 2010, Image via Art Basel.
AO is on site at Art Basel, Switzerland, where Wednesday marked the official, public opening of the international show. On the roster was an inaugural Conversation Series speech by Paul McCarthy, an Art Film at Stadtkino Basel, and an Artist’s Talk with Rodney Graham at Kunstmuseum. If the congenial and thronged atmosphere hadn’t tipped us off to the anticipation surrounding this year’s exhibitions, Tuesday’s sales would have been a clear indication. A $15 million Picasso 1960 plaster maquette, Personnage, was snatched up immediately from Krugier Gallery by one of the VIP guests (an American collector) invited to Basel’s early opening, as was a line drawing by the same artist, one by Egon Schiele, and paintings by Max Ernst and Paul Klee. Sara Kay of the Geneva- and New York-based Kugier Gallery was unable to disclose the buyer of yesterday’s Picasso sale, but ten minutes after the purchase’s confirmation noted to Art Info that “[The] piece went to a very important collector with the best modern masters. This is museum-quality, not trophy-level. It’s a very serious piece.” Skarstedt Gallery also enjoyed a meritorious patronage yesterday, with sales including a Christopher Wool painting, Untitled, for $800,000, a Barbara Kruger photograph for $700,000, a Cindy Sherman piece for $500,000, and two works by George Condo: The Madman and The Colorful Banker, which fetched $375,000 and $225,000, respectively. Hufkens Gallery sold a Louise Bourgeois etching, A Baudelaire (#7), which the late artist completed several months before her death in May, for $650,000 to a European collector. Cheim & Read boasted a lucrative afternoon as well, with sales including a $2 million Joan Mitchell abstraction, a $125,000 Sam Francis drawing, a $100,000 Ghada Amer painting, Paradise, and a 28-strong Bourgeois watercolor series, Les Fleurs. Lisson Gallery sold two Anish Kapoor‘s for $742,000. Richard Prince‘s Student Nurse brought Gagosian $4.2 million, and Paul McCarthy’s bronze suites–Sneezy and Dopey–yielded Hauser & Wirth a combined total of $3 million. Blum & Poe sold a dyptich by Takashi Murakami for $1 million. White Cube reportedly sold six of Damien Hirst‘s new paintings, as well as Hirst’s “Memories of Love,” valued at $3.48 million. Lehmann Maupin sold two neon works by Tracey Emin, each for $74,000.
Damien Hirst, ““Memories of Love,” at White Cube’s booth, sold for $3.48 million. Image by Art Observed.
More images and text after the jump…
–>
George Condo, Cocktail Drinker (1995) All images via Luhring Augustine
In commemoration of their 25th anniversary, Luhring Augustine is hosting an exhibition titled, “Twenty Five.” The show pulls together works from the gallery’s past and present by artists including Janine Antoni, Nobuyoshi Araki, Janet Cardiff and Georges Bures Miller, Larry Clark, George Condo, Gregory Crewdson, William Daniels, Günter Förg, Zarina Hashmi, Johannes Kahrs, Jon Kessler, Martin Kippenberger, Ragnar Kjartansson, Luisa Lambri, Glenn Ligon, Paul McCarthy, Yasumasa Morimura, Daido Moriyama, Reinhard Mucha, David Musgrave, Cady Nolan, Alberta Oehlen, Ed Paschke, Jack Pierson, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Stephen Prina, Pipilotti Rist, Josh Smith, Joel Sternfeld, Tunga, Guido van der Werve, Rachel Whiteread, Christopher Williams, Steve Wolfe, and Christopher Wool.
Installation view, Brucennial 2010: Miseducation (image courtesy of The New York Times)
Thought you missed your chance to see what the artist group known as the Bruce High Quality Foundation claims to be “the most important survey of contemporary art in the world. Ever.”? Fear not – the Brucennial 2010: Miseducation has been extended until May 22.
The exhibition’s opening in February was greeted with snow, but visitors were not deterred by the weather, and the entry line extended far beyond the block. Boasting to exhibit 420 artists from 911 countries working in 666 disciplines, the Brucennial 2010 is not to be missed. The BHQF, as they are called, were a highlight in this year’s Whitney Biennial. Their video installation piece entitled “We Like America and America Likes Us” featured a 22-minute video projected onto the hood of a white hearse.
We Like America and America Likes Us by Bruce High Quality Foundation
Along with celebrated artists the likes of David Salle, Francesco Clemente, Ron Gorchov, George Condo, Donald Baechler, James Nares, Rita Ackermann, and Julian Schnabel, hang works by younger artists without privileged connections. To make sense of the chaos, use, as your map, Hyperallergic’s piece-by-piece guide to the works in the exhibition.
More text and images after the jump…
Strange Attractors, Aki Sasmoto – all photographs by Oskar Proctor for Art Observed.
This week the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York opened its doors for the 75th edition if its defining exhibition: The Biennial. Simply titled, 2010, the show rejects an organizational theme and instead uses time as its marker in a matter-of-fact cross-section of American art today. The show is one of the smallest in the Biennial’s history – works by only 55 artists and collaborative teams are displayed on four floors of the museum’s ‘Breur Building’ in Manhattan’s Upper East Side. This year the entire third floor of the building has been taken dedicated video installation – first exhibited at the Biennial in 1975 – a sure sign that video work has now reached maturity, worthy of recognition as an independent art form. In addition, the museum’s fifth floor is devoted to artists in the Whitney’s permanent collection who have shown in past Biennials.
Francesco Bonami, Curator of Whitney Biennial 2010
Whitney Biennial 2010 – Interview with curator Francesco Bonami via VernissageTV
More text, images and related links after the jump….
(more…)
The Bus Driver, 2009 ,oil on linen ,71,1 x 60,9 cm via Sprüth Magers Gallery
Sprüth Magers Gallery in Berlin is hosting “Family Portraits” – an exhibition of new works by American contemporary artist George Condo. Condo’s most recent exhibition at Sprüth Magers took place in 2008, at the inauguration of Sprüth Magers’ new Berlin premises. In 2010, Condo brings to Sprüth Magers a series of figurative oil paintings. His collaboration with this renowned German gallery began as early as 1984 in Cologne, where Condo was briefly a member of the group “The Young Wild” (Die Jungen Wilden), whose colorful palette and highly expressive pictorial style starkly differed from then-popular Conceptual art and Minimalism. Drawing the inspiration from classic art ranging from Diego Velasquez to Pablo Picasso, the members of the group incorporated the elements of graffiti and comic books into their work. Condo’s genre of choice is grotesque portraiture, where Cubist-like distorted facial features successfully co-exist with imposing compositions reminiscent of the 17th Century Old masters.
Family Portraits, George Condo via Sprüth Magers Gallery
More text, images and related after the jump…
Curators Francesco Bonami and Gary Carrion-Murayari announce the artist list for the Whitney Biennial, 2010 – video by Pierce Jackson via Whitney.org
Today the Whitney Museum of American Art announced the list of fifty-five artists who will participate in the upcoming Whitney Biennial, 2010, which is to take over the Museum from February 25 through May 30 2010. The Biennial is the Whitney’s signature panoramic survey of the latest in American art that blends well established artists together with a predominance of emerging artists from all over the country. This is the 75th in the ongoing series of Biennials and Annuals presented by the Whitney since 1932. Traditionally the Whitney Biennial seeks to reflect the way in which art is shaped by the particular historical moment in which it was created and so in 2010 the curators, Francesco Bonami and Gary Carrion-Murayari, have told us to expect works reflecting diverse responses to the anxiety and optimism of the past two years.
More text, related links and a full list of participating artists after the jump…..
