Raymond Pettibon, Desire in Pursuyt of the Whole, 2011. Image via Re-Title.

In his current solo exhibition at Regen Projects, Desire in Pursuyt of the Whole, Los Angeles-based artist Raymond Pettibon shows a range of his works, from the more recent densely-woven collages to his well-known heroic surfers. Pettibon is one of the few artists whose work moves fluidly between the pages of Juxtapoz magazine and the walls of the Whitney Biennial, sustaining both the criticality of a conceptually-oriented practice and the cool ease of a graphic novelist.

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‪‬MoMA PS1 announces ‘Young Architects 2012’ shortlist for courtyard installation, one NYC finalist [AO Newslink]

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Franco, Ryan McNamara, and Nakadate, Three Performances in Search of Tennessee (2011)

In a one-time only, Performa 11 new commission, James Franco and Laurel Nakadate presented Three Performances in Search of Tennessee at the Abrons Arts Center on November 13, 2011. A loose interpretation of Williams’ famed work, The Glass Menagerie, Franco and Nakadate acted as directors and judges for the series of performers that participated in the work. Both an experiment in performance and a tribute to the renowned playwright, the work was divided into three distinct sections.

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An interview with stalwart gallerist Marian Goodman: “I promised myself I would not be swayed by an artist’s popularity or their money-making abilities” [AO Newslink]

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Installation view. All photos via Pace Gallery Site and the New York Times.

1941 marked both a beginning and ending for Alexander Calder. The artist was forced to give up aluminum as one of his key materials in support of the war effort—but not before having one of the most productive years of his life. That year, Calder dug into a number of approaches and techniques he had explored over the past ten years to create some of his best work. Now, the Pace Gallery in Manhattan is hosting a large-scale retrospective on Calder’s work from 1941, featuring some of his most well-known pieces as well as some rarely shown.

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‪‬Frieze New York announces its list of nearly 170 exhibitors for the fair in May 2012 on Randall’s Island [AO Newslink]

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Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe, image from “Shadow Pool: A Natural History of the San San International” slide lecture. Courtesy of the artists.

Last Wednesday evening the Masonic Temple at the well-known Hollywood Forever Cemetery was filled with major Los Angeles art world players, including Jeffrey Deitch, MOCA trustee Jeffrey Soros, MOCA donor Karyn Kohl, curator Shamim Momin, Hammer curator Ali Subotnick, and gallerist Maggie Kayne, as well as artists Mark Hagen, Nate Lowman and Hanna Liden. All had gathered under the night’s full moon for the most recent project by New York-based artist duo Jonah Freeman and Justin Lowe, Shadow Pool: A Natural History of the San San International, an event organized by the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles. Freeman and Lowe are known for their immersive environments, such as Hello Meth Lab in the Sun, Black Acid Co-op, and Bright White Underground—and Shadow Pool proved to push their engagement tactics to the next level.

MOCA Director Jeffrey Deitch with the Towel People from Shadow Pool fashion show. Image courtesy of Daniel DiScala.

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‪‬Raymond Pettibon lends imagery to Red Hot Chili Peppers music video [AO Newslink]

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‪‬Ai Weiwei speaks on video about paying government tax, feels as though “being robbed” [AO Newslink]

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Frank Stella, Red Scramble (1977). All images courtesy of Haunch of Venison.

Frank Stella: Connections is a mini-retrospective of Stella’s extensive career currently on display at the Haunch of Venison in London. Covering over 50 years of work characterized by dramatically changing styles, the exhibition could easily be mistaken for one of multiple artists on display.

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‪‬King’s Cross, London opens nine year art program called ‘Relay,’ beginning with two year installation of Jacques Rival’s 9-foot rainbow cage ‘IFU’ [AO Newslink]

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Wolfgang Tillmans, TGV, inkjet print on paper (2010). All images courtesy Gallery Chantal Crousel.

Wolfgang Tillmans returns for his second solo show at Gallery Chantal Crousel, presenting new works from the past few years. Images of both public and private nature are displayed in typical Tillmans style; unframed works hanging either directly on the wall or by the use of his infamous binder clips.

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‪‬Marina Abramović continues to develop her direction of the LA MoCA 2011 Gala, including controversial human centerpieces [AO Newslink]

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‪‬Modigliani Portrait of Marevna in Pushkin Museum disputed as fake based on tests by Swiss Institute for Art Research [AO Newslink]

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Clyfford Still, 1949-A-No. 1, 1949 (est. $25-35 million, realized $61.6 million), via Sothebys.com

The evening sales at Christie’s and Sotheby’s this week left little doubt about the appetite for, and willingness to spend on, Contemporary art, regardless of how the financial markets may be performing. Tuesday’s sale at Christie’s brought in $248 million for 82 of 91 lots sold, and Sotheby’s auction the following evening realized $316 million against a high estimate of $270 million. Several artists records were set over the two nights, including those for the painters of each sale’s top lot – Clyfford Still and Roy Lichtenstein.

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‪‬Damien Hirst teams up with Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers for a spin bass guitar [AO Newslink]

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Cy Twombly, Untitled, 2006 (est. $8-12 million, realized $9 million), via Phillipsdepury.com

Phillips de Pury kicked off the week of Contemporary art sales on Monday night with two back-to-back auctions. First came a 22-lot benefit auction with all proceeds going to the Guggenheim Foundation, immediately followed by the 44-lot evening sale of Contemporary art. The Guggenheim sale was estimated to bring $1.5-2.2 million and realized $2.7 million (the buyer’s premium was eliminated for that sale), and the evening sale brought in $71 million against a high estimate of $97 million. The evening’s top lot was an untitled Cy Twombly canvas that fetched $9 million against estimates of $8-12 million.

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‪‬Christo’s 42-mile installation ‘Over the River’ approved after 2 years for Arkansas River, Bureau of Land Management assures “steps have been taken to mitigate the environmental effects of this one-of-a-kind project” [AO Newslink]

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Roy Lichtenstein, I Can See the Whole Room!…and There’s Nobody in it!, 1961 (est. $35-45 million), via Christies.com

The November sales continue this week as Sotheby’s, Christie’s, and Phillips de Pury offer over half a billion dollars worth of Contemporary art over the next few days. After uneven results during last week’s Impressionist and Modern sales, the performance of these auctions may be a truer indication of the state of the art market. Phillips inaugurates the week on Monday with their 45-lot evening sale, which is immediately preceded by a 22-lot benefit auction for the Guggenheim Foundation. Christie’s will also host two back-to-back sales on Tuesday evening. First are 26 lots from the Peter Norton Collection, which will be followed by the 65-lot evening sale. Sotheby’s wraps up on Wednesday with a 74-lot sale.

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Georges Braque, Woman at an Easel (Yellow Screen), (1936). All Georges Braque images courtesy of Acquavella Galleries

Acquavella Galleries‘ exhibition “Georges Braque: Pioneer of Modernism” is an homage to the other father of Cubism, most often associated with Picasso. Curated by Dieter Buchhart, the exhibition features more than forty paintings and papiers collés culled from various international collections. “Georges Braque: Pioneer of Modernism” is the first major retrospective of the artist’s work since the late 1980s, and is open through November 30^th.

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Photo on site for Art Observed by Tara Sheena.

In a production for the Performa 11 Biennial, co-commissioned by the Royal Danish Theater and the Bergen International Festival, the artist duo of Elmgreen & Dragset presented their satirical theatre work, Happy Days in the Art World. A
referential collage of Samuel Beckett’s Happy Days and Waiting for Godot, as well as Elmgreen & Dragset’s own play, Drama Queens, the work effectively combines a stream-of-consciousness humor with a bare bones set to reveal a contemporary commentary on the sociopolitical implications of the art world.

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Turner Prize winning British Artist Martin Creed announces ‘Work No. 1197: All the bells in a country rung as quickly and as loudly as possible for three minutes’ to herald the start of the 2012 Olympic Games [AO Newslink]

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All photos on site for Art Observed by Samuel Sveen.

In 2007, Urs Fischer used a jackhammer to tear up the floor of Gavin Brown’s enterprise in Chelsea, leaving the room an enormous pit of dirt. With his return to the gallery for a joint show with Cassandra MacLeod, Fischer has sought to “build” on the past show both literally and theoretically. The press release refers to the “inverted pyramid of excavated earth,” the natural next step of invention being a flat surface above the earth—the table, with which Fischer has filled the three gallery spaces. Paintings by MacLeod cover the walls of the gallery, making for an intriguing dialogue between the two artists’ work. Stacks of tables, some three or four high, perhaps even offer a better view to the paintings mounted high above.

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Overzealous cleaning lady scrubs away part of $1.1 million Martin Kippenberger sculpture in Dortmund, Germany [AO Newslink]

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