Garçon-- a 'soupçon' of modernism!

..Recently at the guggenheim in NY, I saw a charming exposition on the work of Louise Bourgeois (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louise_Bourgeois), some of which reminded me of Franklin's own epic doors (or portes-épiques).

I was told I might find some Brancusi pieces there, but instead found breasts and balls. And her mother, the giant spider. And la femme maison.


So although Franklin and Louise Bourgeois both have an affinity for old doors as frames for their "tableau's" -- they also seem to share an obsession with spooky shapes and body parts. For very different reasons - 'certes' - but they share them none-the-less (see pictures below)


And spiders too...







Now Franklin's work while more provocative does not imply as much; Louise Bourgeois' work has a reason behind everything. That doesn't make her art more valuable (the fact that it's exposed in Canada's national gallery, tate modern and guggenheim does, however). I don't believe the intention the artist had should have any effect on the price of a piece of art. It's not the point.
So Bourgeois's spider is named after her mother - because her mother and the spider were very, very patient (her father used to cheat on her mother, and the woman would endure it). Amzallag's spider on the other hand is just spooky.

If you believe that it's a commentary on modern times and their effect on men, children -- you're wrong. It's just for fun.

And who would want art that is so loaded with social meaning anyway?

Would it not be more fun to pay a little less for a piece of art - knowing that you're not buying into one cause or an other?

I don't know about you -- but most art collectors I know have enough stress during the day. They don't need to be reminded of the plight of women at the turn of the 20th century when they come home from a hard day's work (women or men. Women especially).

1 door, $10 000.00

But if you're in NY - I highly recommend this show at the Guggenheim. 12$ for students, 15$ for adults.

Show & Tell

Well hello there ! Ok class, for today's session of show and tell -- an African skull smasher !!


Looking like a work of art taken from the new Musée du Quai Branly* (Paris 7ème--?, Rive Gauche --- see picture below), this slick looking instrument of death in the right panel is assembled from an ebony African statuette and a gazelle or antelope's horn.

If you're in any way an animal rights activist, or vegan -- please rest assured that no furry quadrupeds were hurt before, during or after the creation of these doors, or as a result thereof. (The bipeds on the other hand were savagely beaten with just such blunt objects).

So anyway, to give this skull smasher an extra air of authenticity, Franklin added some little bones on strings, a blade made from a larger bone, and some feather / fluff. This is so we can get away with calling this art and not weaponry, really.

You see our strategy is esthetically pleasing skull-clubs today, sleek weapons of mass-destruction tomorrow. (Obviously, that's where the money is. Doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure that out.)


Also, the little warrior boy is there for comic relief. It's not a social commentary on boy-soldiers in Africa. Don't read too much into this -- the fact that he's naked only means that Franklin couldn't find him a mini-tuxedo in all the garage sales he ravaged.

The horn btw (that's "by the way" btw), is for stabbing the brain once the skull has been *ahem* tenderized.


As for the little doll hands betting their little shirts on the bingo board, well this is just clever design.

So the door panel is actual linear from top left to bottom left, to right: When kids gamble (top left), they are forced to take up arms to get out of debt (small spartan boy with shield ans spear, bottom left). As a result, they are forced to resort to hard core violence just to survive (necessity is the mother of all invention, skull cruncher).


And it's our own socially conscious way of saying: "Kids you better stay in school, don't resort to violence and don't gamble. And drugs are bad."

*

Use bronzer with great caution!

So it's occurred to me that I posted the same picture twice last time. It's only my pleasure then to add a couple more to make up for that oversight...


"J'aime les bonbons", french for "I adoor candies", large overcoat buttons, and the back of a violin (it's certainly a Stravinsky). The edge of the frame is padded along the inside with ivory piano keys which were collected from an abandoned piano off of Commercial Street, Provincetown (Cape Cod, Mass).


The metal molds are actually to make 'madelaines' - a sweet little brioche cake. The musical score folded like a geisha's fan is a piece from Igor Stravinsky's Petrushka (... I just put that in there but it's probably not true.)


More from that 'Petrushka' ballet... An ancient and enchanted flacon of 'bronzer'. All those who have applied this mysterious bronzer at around the third Sunday of July are said to have become recluses, mangy and prone to random and unpredictable fits of epileptic seizures. Also, there is an old thermometer, a parchment, and buttons, among other things.

Hey does any one know how I can let people leave their email addresses?

The people must be notified of upcoming portes epiques exhibitions!!

More door

Hello, j'espère qu'on se "porte" bien...


What is the value proposition of purchasing expensive pieces of art?

Is it in the amount of time one can stay looking at it without loosing interest -- is it the cleverness -- or is it aesthetic appeal?

Is it for investment purposes? If so, is there risk?

These questions are only relevant to the extent that a buyer is willing to entertain them...! This is why fashion houses advertise. This is also why grocery stores have got various magazines, chewing gum and pop cans at the super market checkout.

Clever marketers of non-essential goods know that while things like customer service, brand identity, price and perceived relationships between consumer and brand are important, what is most essential is found at a much more primal level.

My point: 30 years ago the only businesses who could charge big bucks for their products were big, established brand name companies. The same went for art/ artists (and often deceased...).

Today SMB is competing fiercely (and often beating) large enterprise, for the same reason that lesser known _ or "out" artists _ can also attract the big bucks.
Till next time !

J'adoor

It's kind of a play on words, in case you hadn't noticed. A little pop, but also a little classy (first of all it's french-- so one might assume that you speak it, and second, it's a clear allusion to the the Dior "J'adior" campaign).

Personally I prefer the french one better "Portes Epiques" which in french sounds like Porc Épic (porcupine). Portes Epiques literally translated means Epic Doors, but it is interesting because a couple of the doors actually have porcupine quills in them. And it's totally the type of material you would find in one of my dad's (we'll here on out refer to him as Franklin) doors.


Old turn of the century keys from french country "brocantes" (flea markets), bones (many bones), skulls, pieces of musical instruments, fabrics, old printing press impression pieces, crab shells (clean..), animal tusks and horns, skins, children's toys (and random pieces there of), buttons, circuitry.

You can always find very smart social commentary in each door... It's just too bad Franklin didn't mean for it to be there (or so he says). And if you get too intellectual with him, he'll likely slow his movements, tilt and cock his head back a little, squint his eyes at you with a strange look (as if you were no better then a second class art critic), and say something like "...No. That's not what I was thinking when I put those 19th century pocket watch mechanisms with peacock feathers behind the front side of a turtle shell which is cut open along the middle." .... Usually followed by a enthusiastic:

"It's kind of spooky huh?!"

Portes Épiques

Of course, this is not how one is supposed to write "adore". But my father could never resist a good pun. Or any pun for that matter...

An other thing he could never resist was showing off his awesome art... So you could imagine my surprise when upon his retirement around the age of 54 -- he wasn't even considering showing his doors let alone selling them !!

(he's now made about 40 over the span of 35 years)


To all those who might have had the chance of passing by one of his 3 houses in Montreal, St-Germain-en-Laye, or Truro (Quebec, Yvelines and Massachusetts* respectively) then by all means invite your friends to come take a look !

The rest of you can just sit tight.

Now... where was I? ...Right.

While all the walls are scattered with his own artistic black and white photography of nude women (who may or may not have been ex's too... "O-M-G no WAY!"), creatively designed family photos and random antique artifacts & ephemera, the real sticking points for visitors were always the doors.


Can you picture a wrinkly wombat wearing a miniature football jersey, way-farer ray-bans, and a straw stetson hat on stilts?

Well .. neither can I but I thought we could try.

Then picture a collage of African Dada-like Native-American FOLK Art framed in a big wooden door... Assembled in the mind of a deeply disturbed French-Moroccan Canadian immigrant.

...Yes, well I liked the wombat too.