Tag Archives: painting

Plaited Thorns

Posted on April 13, 2020 by JMN

Before reading the article I scanned this painting as a king and courtier munching a corona-bat monster that has been spitted and roasted. The courtier picks his teeth and licks his fingers while the king gnaws a bone ruminatively and … Continue reading →

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“Painter of Disquiet”

Posted on March 23, 2020 by JMN

Roberta Smith remarks that by a certain point in the show “it becomes clear why [Félix] Vallotton is not considered a first-rate painter. Perhaps he was excessively skilled with too many options at his fingertips.” It struck me as a … Continue reading →

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For Núria

Posted on March 16, 2020 by JMN

Te pongo aquí un cuadro reciente, tonto y burlón, mal logrado por supuesto, de ejecución turbia, hiciera lo que hiciera. Está pintado sobre otro cuadro que hizo tu abuelo, mi papá. El suyo fue un desnudo masculino sentado, visto de … Continue reading →

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Davy’s Grey

Posted on March 9, 2020 by JMN

“Boston’s Apollo” celebrates McKeller’s role in Sargent’s work but does not hide the artist’s racism. In her essay for the exhibition’s catalog, Professor Greene cites racial slurs Sargent used. “He’s an amazing painter — that doesn’t go away,” she said. … Continue reading →

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Gerhard Richter Voiced

Posted on March 8, 2020 by JMN

For 60 years, he has treated uncertainty as an ethical duty. … That is the priceless example he offers today’s young artists, whose every mistake or hesitation gets pounced on by digital Savonarolas. So much dogmatism out there, so much … Continue reading →

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Matthew Wong

Posted on February 20, 2020 by JMN

Matthew Wong took his life on October 2, 2019, in Edmonton, Alberta. He was 35. His obituary in the NYTimes described him as “a promising self-taught painter whose vibrant landscapes, forest scenes and still lifes were just beginning to command … Continue reading →

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“Tiepolo Meets Mad Magazine”

Posted on February 15, 2020 by JMN

The 61 works in this exhibition… span the career of an American painter whose art has, for more than half a century, both diagnosed national maladies and been shaped by them. The result is work that’s virtuosically bizarre in style … Continue reading →

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Goya on My Mind

Posted on January 30, 2020 by JMN

http://www.theguardian.com/artanddesign/2019/dec/28/goya-paintings-many-not-work-of-spanish-master-studio-assistants She spoke of her “trepidation” about challenging attributions as Goya’s pictures change hands for millions of pounds: “If a picture turns out to be by an assistant, of course the value collapses. “Artists in the shadow of a great … Continue reading →

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Vija Celmins

Posted on January 13, 2020 by JMN

Vija Celmins (pronounced VEE-ja SELL-mins) was born in 1938 in Riga, capital of Latvia. Fleeing the Soviet invasion of 1944, her family immigrated to the United States in 1948. She earned an undergraduate art degree in Indiana and an M.F.A … Continue reading →

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Feminized Heroes

Posted on January 10, 2020 by JMN

Images of historic persons have been depicted recently in novel ways by artists in Mexico and in Canada. Both cases have a gender-fluid slant; the contrast in public reaction in each country is notable. Emiliano Zapata, betrayed and killed in … Continue reading →

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