JERRY SALTZ 
Now, I love the writings of Jerry Saltz, did I mentioned that? Well, I do, don't I. Although pushing the limits of logic, I very much enjoyed reading his "NO NEXT CHELSEA" in the October issue of Modern Painters. He applies Darwinist methodology on the art scene by claiming not only that most art is bad, and that when you react positively to one show, he might react differently, and he does so with bravura(??) debating that NY will experience problems when the prices in Chelsea will raise the next decade or so and force everyone to learn German. Anyway. He tries to explain that most shows are bad in a 6:1 ratio, 85% are bad and 15% might be ok. Without any further ado he states that this ratio may very well be a natural law, "brilliant, absolutely Darwinian survival mechanism."
Anyway, he makes a fantastic argument for this as he explain how this good: bad ratio of show have to be true, because if not "([...] the Leipzig scene would be the best in the world since, according to the moneybags who buy every painting made there simply because it was made there, no bad painters exist in Leipzig.)"

I rest my case.


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some thouhgts 
During the job interview I had the night before last, some interesting subjects were brought up: why does so many curators/critics etc. turn commercial? why not be in a institution and then just work their way through life having different jobs?
There are some disadvantages working for some institutions: You are expected to have a higher circulation of artists then a commercial gallery. This means that an institution might have a bit of this "hit and run" feel to them as they bring artist in and dumpst them when done. Like a one night stand, being an artist working without at least one commercial gallery might be like that: running around all the time in order to find new projects for new collaborators.

Working with a gallery you have to option to follow an artist over a strech of time, and you do not have to concider problems with the board (you have the bank and the collectors instead, but it seems like they are preferred by some art workers over politicans and boards etc.)

Me, I had a talk about this with artist Řystein Aasan on the phone today. In his opinion can commercial galleries take more chances than almost any institution as they don*t have to concider the audience. He claims that there are no need for a commercial gallery to see if the audience are adapted to the type of art the given artist might produce - and that this is a type of freedom.
FurtherI believe that the museum can also be a laboratorium just like the way it was depicted by Alfred H. Barr and the way Hans Ulrich Obrist have been claiming through greater parts of the 90ties. I believe firmly in the option but viewer, artist and institution have in choosing, and I do not belive that the gallery are less concervative then a institution, they might be more concervative, just look at the situation in Leipzig, the local contemporary art msueum are more up to date then most of the galleries here.

But I have accepted offers to curat shows for galleris in the next comming years, and that is not a problem, and it might actually show that Aasan is right: there are no, not one single, institution that will take a chance on me, not even those in norway, but by the end of 2007 I have, if everything goes as planned, curated 3 shows as I like in three different commercial galleries in three different countries. Strange.




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since last 
OCA gives out the second Edward Munch award. (very good choice).

Jan Mot have series of screenings organized by Nina Möntmann

Swede living in Norway Artist turned Critic Tommy Olsson goes berserk in London (Norwegian only)

jill mentioned a interactive art work at the University in Bergen that scares people

I am going to norway for a job interview.

PHILIP got support from OCA

André Gali wrote about the latest seminar at UKS in Oslo.

I bought a great catalogue by Lene Berg in Berlin, just learned that she spent her summer in Weimar at the ACC Galerie. Short prestentation of the project here (PDF file) - I am looking forward to see the exhibition at the "No.9 i Exil" in the st.Olavsgate nr. 7 in Oslo.



FRED [London] opened a small space in Leipzig (actually where I wanted to start a small art-book shop two years ago). right now they are showing a Simon English show. Going to have a look at it today.

thats it.


[ 1538 comments ] ( 10725 views )   |  [ 0 trackbacks ]   |  permalink  |  related link  |   ( 3 / 2010 )
d21 
D21 , my space in leipzig are experiencing growth problems. We are low on following:
- cash
- manpower

Both are crucial. We got money from EU through a program called Urban to renovate our space. We get 10.000 € if we spend 14.000, so in principal we should have 14.000 or et least 4.000 on our bank account, but this is just not doable. So we do not know how to move on. Also, I am in Norway most of the time now days due to studies (journalism in Bodř). But I will know on Monday if I can continue there, they want to ban due me being away all the time.
But D21 is opening two exhibitions today, Isabelle Cornaro and Reto Pulfer. I like both. Different and good. Not the usual thing to see in Leipzig none of them.


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hate 
i HATE both this blog-program and Opera [the web browser, not the singing technique, although I am not to found in that either]. After writing a long, very long update for this blog, I hit the wrong combination of ctr+[another button] and ended up ending opera, of course, the text was not saved and is now for ever lost. Update on following things:
- Manifesta mess (nothing new, just me publishing some words about it finally)
- me and Heman Chong's project Philip is going to be realized at PROJECT ARTS CENTRE in Dublin later this year.
- D21 making and possible breaking (a grand success in the eyes of the art scene in Leipzig)
- other stuff

will come later.




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