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Visit to Pérez Art Museum Miami to See Sackner Exhibit

This week I finally made it down to Miami with friends to visit the Pérez Art Museum Miami (PAMM). The purpose was to view the  extensive selection of works from the Miami-based collection of Ruth and Marvin Sackner.  The Perez show is titled: A Human Document: Selections from the Sackner Archive of Concrete and Visual Poetry.

Rene Morales the organizer of the show says, "Founded in 1979, this 'archive of archives' initially focused on concrete and visual poetry—including rare manuscripts and published works by international luminaries. The collection subsequently grew to encompass a broad array of historic and contemporary works that synthesize word and image. Rooted in the early to mid-20th-century European avant-garde, the collection provides a unique lens through which to examine the foundational movements of modernism, including Italian Futurism, Russian Constructivism, Bauhaus, De Stijl, Dada and Lettrisme, among others. The Sackners’ contemporary holdings are also expansive, with special strengths in artists' books and 'assemblings' (limited-edition groupings of materials by numerous contributors), as well as various subgenres such as typewriter art, performance poetry and micrography (abstract or representational designs comprised of minuscule lettering)."

 
First stop in the museum after winding our way through a large amount of construction, was the second floor gallery housing the show, making sure we allowed enough time for viewing the works. Upon entering, I was happy to see a large room filled with both wall and vitrine installations. (Hopefully the accompanying photos give you a good sense of scale.) Many of the works were historical such as the Futurist and DADA publications, and included contemporary examples of assemblings, mail art, and performance art documents. I recognized several artists' works by some of my own correspondents - Johnson, Bruscky, Baroni, Cook, Petasz - to name just a few I remember. 

I spent quite a bit of time viewing the documents in the exhibit and realized early on, for the most part the works shown did not duplicate what was on display during my visit to the archive in 2011. Ruth and Marvin put an immense amount of time and thought in their collection and this was evident with the selections at the Perez. I came away inspired and amazed by the clever creativeness artists possess.  My non-artist friends were able to "get it" and left with an appreciation for this "new art." 

Wandering into the galleries in the rest of the museum there were some wonderful artworks on display by Caribbean artists with limited funds and art supplies who made works out of things not typically used; match sticks, aluminum, glitter pens, dry wall, ship wrecks to name a few.  These were well worth the time taken to see. But the Sackner exhibit held  strong in comparison to several of the other collections on display. Perhaps this is why the exhibit has been extended into August instead of the original May date.

The trip to Miami originally planned to include multiple stops quickly became a full day at PAMM. For more info see PAMM or Sackner Web sites.

Note: Marvin sent me this link to The Atlantic review by Steven Heller here.

MUDPEOPLE Person - Mike Mollett Visits

Mike is a long time friend from Inter DADA 84 days. He is part of the LA DADA duo and is an amazing poet and performance artist. We had a chance to hangout while his wife Dee met with a childhood friend. 

I remember a couple of visits to LA when we went performance art clubbing, where Mike was well known, and paraded down Venice Beach boardwalk with other artists in costume during DADAFEST LA's early days. LA DADA includes Mike and Neal Taylor (Skooter), and sometimes Lon Spiegelman. Mike was always pushing for things to be "more political" and some days I privately viewed him as an anarchist.

Mike says of his visit to S Florida, "I did get in 5 rounds of swimming. 8 laps, 10, 12, 14, then 16 laps of getting in better shape for the MUDGIG at Highways Perf. Space." 

What's the MUDGIG? He refers to the MUDPEOPLE, a self-named "urban tribe" that eschews spoken language and most clothing for its walkabouts in local parks, the LA River, and at other public spots and events.

See this video to get the idea: MUDPEOPLE explore the Los Angeles River Mike Mollett's infamous MUDPEOPLE discover a mysterious treasure hidden in the Los Angeles River wilderness. Filmed in Los Angeles, California.

Photos of the MUDPEOPLE by Metrov
www.metrov.org

 

Addendem: Great article by Victoria Looseleaf
http://www.kcet.org/arts/artbound/counties/los-angeles/mike-mollett-la-mudpeople.html

Ex Postal Facto Videos

See videos posted in the sidebar.

Artists and their stamps was the second Ex Postal Facto discussion. Black Rock City Postmaster James Cline is joined by Ginny Lloyd, James Felter, and Harley of Terra Candella in a lively discussion moderated by Jennie Hinchcliff.
A brief history of West Coast mail art, as told by the people who made it. John Held Jr. leads a panel featuring Anna Banana, Leslie "Creative Thing" Caldera, Carl Chew, and performance artist Lowell Darling.

Sponsored by the Marjorie G. and Carl W. Stern Book Arts & Special Collections Center.

Ex Postal Facto 2014 Lecture Participant

Jennie Hinchcliff has organized a three day celebration of correspondence art, letter writing, and faux philatelics. The “Ex Postal Facto” conference will be held February 14th to February 16th, 2014, in San Francisco at venues around the city.

Kicking off the conference February 14th, the San Francisco Center for the Book hosts an opening reception for their exhibition “Mail/Art/Book.” Showcasing pieces by contemporary artists working in the genre of correspondence art, the exhibition also provides a historical perspective of Networker/ postal culture in the bay area.

The following day (Feb. 15th), a vendor expo will be held at the historic downtown San Francisco Elks Lodge, featuring small press publishers and artists whose work highlights faux postage (a.k.a “artist stamps”), postal art, and/or letter writing.

Rounding out a weekend of events, the San Francisco Main Library hosts two different lectures in the Koret Auditorium.  I will be participating in the lecture titled "Artistamps and Their Makers: Seeing the World in Miniature" will feature artists working in the field of faux philatelics, also known as "artistamps". The work of James Cline (Founding Postmaster, Black Rock City Post Office), James Felter (Postes Mraur), Harley (Terra Candella), and me, Ginny Lloyd (Gina Lotta Post Artistamp Museum) will be highlighted. The lecture will be moderated by correspondence artist and Ex Postal Facto organizer Jennie Hinchcliff.

For more information on the Ex Postal Facto 2014 conference, please visit ex Postal Facto

Pop Art: A Contemporary Perspective

The Lighthouse Art Center located in Tequesta, Florida (next to Jupiter and Jupiter Island) founded in 1964, emerged along with the controversial Pop Art Movement. In keeping with a 50th anniversary celebration, an exhibit of a new perspective reminiscent of Pop Art with a contemporary twist was formed - a modern take on Pop and homage to the masters of the era! This curated exhibit includes two of my Pop influenced artistamp prints:

It's humble beginnings was located in the former Tequesta Post Office building. Today the gallery is known as Lighthouse ArtCenter Museum & Gallery. It hosts private and public receptions and a Museum Gift Shop and Art Supply Store.

Exhibition will be on display from February 20 through March 15, 2014.

For more info see lighthousearts.org.

Fluxjob Exhibit at Minnesota Center for Book Arts

It might be cold this winter but things are heating up at the Minnesota Center for Book Arts. Fluxjob is an exhibition of Fluxus art, a non-movement that expanded the definitions of what art can be. Fluxjob is an exploration of contemporary artists who continue to create interdisciplinary anti-art that is ephemeral, inexpensive, and interactive.

A couple of my early lettepress works and a score print are included in the exhibit.

February 7 - July 6, 2014
MCBA Star Tribune Foundation Gallery
Opening reception Friday, February 7; 6-9pm
Free and open to the public

For more info see MCBA.