What's a Museum?

Rethinking and Redoing Museums,

For a month I and 8 other students took Rethinking and Redoing the Museum with the artist Filip Noterdaeme, who is the director of the Homeless Museum (HOMU in BKLYN). We visited 8 museums and 2 galleries (which you can read about if you scroll down). We listened to the postmodern critique of museums and the museum establishment everyday from 1-5. I also spent my nights listening to Rush Rankin talk about how to make Formalist art in my Writing and Thinking class. Rush’s argument won out. At times Filip talked too much. At times I wasn’t paying attention, or tuned out. Filip lives and breaths his museum and it took him awhile to let go of his model and let us create are own. That said it was a great experience and a great group of people I got the opportunity to work with.

My opinion hasn’t changed on museums:

They need more space for art, and need to showcase animation, performance and more contemporary art.

For more on Fiip Noterdaeme go to www.homelessmuseum.org

Leila's Hair Museum

In the heart of Independence, Missouri stands the Leila Hair Museum.

It has hair, lots of it.
Many generations in fact.
It has a Cosmetology school attached to it.
It is kind of Morbid.
Wreaths and jewlrey made of human hair.
You are not allowed to take pictures.

World War One Museum

The National World War One Museum in Kansas City.

State of the art Museum.
You can make your own war poster and
e-mail it to yourslef.
Otherwise war is everywhere.

America Starts Here

America Starts Here, Kate Ericson and Mel Ziegler
At the H&R Block ArtSpace,

This traveling show brings brings the art of Kate Ericson and Mel Zeigler into focus. These two artist worked together for a period of ten years working on community based conceptual projects. There collaboration was cut short by Kate's death in 1995.

Glore Psychiatric Museum

Glore Psychiatric Museum, St. Joseph, Missouri

Glamor maniquinns in wooden cages.
Odd instruments for human conditioning.
random and kwirky ilustrations.

Delightful images of human obsession include:

108,000 cigarette packs filling a cage.
A TV filled with personal notes.

Odd but still Delightful, well kind of:

1,462 objects removed from a women's stomach.

Would have liked to have seem more documents
of obsession, but still not too bad of a place to spend a Friday afternoon.

Bloch Viewers

Bloch Critique Planning By Filip Noterdaeme Class

For the past two-weeks I've been in a Class taught by the New York City artist Filip Noterdaeme. The class is called Rethinking and Redoing the Museum and we will design three Museums in 3 groups of 3 in the next two weeks.

Yann designed these labrinyths to view the art at the Nelson-atkins new bloch building.

I will be posting more about our experinces and Our Museums soon.

Nelson-Atkins New Bloch Building

Well Its finally here. Kansas City is on the map and getting attention.
But the attention is on the architecture and not the art.

I went straight to the gift shop. It's junk.
Except the books, which there were to few of.

The art was good, typical and packed in.
with a few surprizes:

Harry Callahan's photos were a nice addition.
Felix made me want to cry.
Lewitt was lonly.
Guston was a happy surprize.
kiki was breakable.

The people were curious.
and they were looking.
Hoping they were seeing.

Happy to see the growth, and attention on Kansas City.
Hoping the Nelson-Atkins can keep the momentum going.

New Animation, 75% Less Vaginas

This is my most recent Animation. It has really taken me in a lot of new directions and has given me a great focus for the next few months.

Lester Goldman

Lester Goldman at Review Studios.

Review Studios Exhibition Space
1708 Campbell St.
Kansas City, Missouri
May 11-June 15, 2007

It was nice to finally get the chance to expose myself to Lester's work. Having moved torwards abstraction in the past year I can see that Lester was into some of the same subtle lines and shapes as myself. I enjoyed the opening but when I went back to take pictures and show a friend I got the impression that Review was to busy to give us the time of day, let alone open the door.

From the Fat of the Land

From the Fat of the Land: Alchemies, Ecologies, Attractions, April 7 - July 27

Grand Arts
1819 Grand Boulevard
Kansas City, MO 64108


This show is worth checking out. While the majority of the work's were in progress, it was still worth being exposed to. I found Micaela O'Herlihy's film the most enjoyable, with the film looping itself back and fourth on spin wheels around the room, the color and grainess of the film, and the music lifting me into another realm. It was nice to see a work in progress by Spurse, who I got the chance to hear speak last year, but it left me wanting more. Adam Zaretsky's pFarm video with is blending of S&M themes, and organic farming and biology was odd and sexual which I enjoy but a little too campy at times. The closing reception on July 27 should be interesting with some of the artist speaking and live experiments. Make sure to check it out.

New Animation, Metaphors for Bringing Dicks and Vaginas Together

Through the mediums of animation, sculpture and performance I’m exploring issues of masculinity, confidence, and desire as they pertain to individuals and society. I’m interested in issues of personal growth and questioning, and how they relate to confidence and contemporary ideas of masculinity. I follow my own desires, and try not to hold myself back. By revealing my own narcissism and weakness I’m trying to reflect others. I start with questions and let the work guide me to conclusions.

In drawing and animation I’m exploring my sexual desires visually using basic formal issues of line, shape and form, combined with a cartoon abstraction. Using simple lines to convey the voluptuous shapes of the female body abstracting into vaginal and phallic forms creating an ambiguous time and space. The resulting animations are then projected onto a wall with various sounds made with my body. The process of drawing the animations on a single sheet of paper allows a dialogue with the past and the present. While the act of projecting the animations reveals both my process and desires.

I approach my images, objects and films with a seriousness and honesty that often comes out being absurd, awkward and humorous.