The Value of Stupidity

This will just knock your socks off.

You should really read it but I'll give you a quick rundown:

Private collector buys amazing Picasso Le Rêve in 1997 for $48.4 million.

Steve Wynn, super rich owner of various Las Vegas casinos and art collector, acquires amazing Picasso in 2001.

Earlier this year, Steve Wynn agrees to sell amazing Picasso to Steven Cohen, super rich hedge-fund mogul and art collector, for a record $139 million ($4 million more than the Klimt Lauder just bought).

A few weeks ago Steve Wynn is showing off his amazing Picasso to guests and, while gesticulating, puts his elbow through the canvas of the amazing Picasso, once valued at $139 million.

My favorite quote: Steve Wynn - “My feeling was, It’s a picture, it’s my picture, we’ll fix it. Nobody got sick or died. It’s a picture. It took Picasso five hours to paint it.”

Pompidou Admits Art Destroyed By Human Error

The initial story is here. At first, the Pompidou had argued that the two works, Craig Kauffman's "Untitled Wall Relief," and an untitled piece by Peter Alexander, had been destroyed as the result of inherent instability of the materials or as a result of a visitor, however, the museum has now admitted that the works in fact fell off the wall as a result of poor installation.

I can't see how this is comforting to future lenders but I suppose it's good that the Pompidou is willing to admit their errors.

Next: Rauschenberg's combines???

"The Scream" and "Madonna" Recovered!

The good news is here.

Although Norwegian authorities have declined to say how the two Munch masterpieces were found, initial speculations that the theft of the two works may be connected to an earlier bank heist still seem plausible. The paintings were found to be in very good condition and are expected to on display again in the near future.

"Little rooster crowin', there must be something on his mind"

Apologies for the unannounced hiatus. I'm glad to report that new posts will increase in frequency at Elective Affinities!

I have a few things I could kick off the new season of posts with but I particularly enjoyed this one which was reported today by Reuters: "Bob Dylan says modern music is worthless." The article is short and features a few quotes from Dylan who sounds off on, well, sound. His critique is basically that modern music is filled with extraneous sounds and recording effects that dilute the actual music. He notes that even his soon-to-be-released album Modern Times, is not entirely immune to the overproduction that occurs in recording and editing studios which pump out today's music. The subtext of Dylan's harsh words against the current music industry is this: Go to concerts. This is something that Dylan has promoted throughout his career. If you want to understand music and experience it the way the artist truly intended, you need to see it and hear it played live. For your convenience, here is the schedule for the remainder of his latest tour. It's well worth the money.

In His Own Words: The Life of William S. Rubin

The Art Newspaper's article is here. It is a wonderful inside look at one man's impact on the art world and his methods of collecting during his tenure at MoMA. The article speaks for itself however, I must comment on the title of the article, "The memoir MoMA declined to publish," which I think unnecessarily attempts to weaken Rubin's legacy with MoMA and undermines the passion Rubin had for the Museum. An excerpt from the article provides MoMA's explanation:

When asked to comment, MoMA publisher Christopher Hudson said: “The Museum’s publishing programme presents books that are mission-related in nature, i.e. with specific art historical or educational content. The Museum therefore does not publish personal memoirs of past or current staff or Trustees, no matter how influential and/or long-standing their relationship with the Museum has been.”

It is hard to find fault with this line of reasoning. MoMA could not possibly risk compromising their very important relationships with trustees and other wealthy individuals by having to determine which memoirs are worthy of publication and which are not. Remember, memoirs are generally written by old people. In this case we are talking about wealthy and important old people, the sort of old people you don't want to cross, particularly when you've spent years cultivating a relationship with them that will ultimately yield an important and valuable bequest. Indeed, it is just these sorts of longstanding relationships that Rubin sought out, developed and nurtured over many years, which is evident by the incredible works he brought to the Museum of Modern Art. The current policy protects the Museum from having to make judgments of quality, importance, etc. about memoirs, and the decision to reject all such books in order to avoid risking important relationships should be commended, not criticised.

On Duchamp's Fountain

I don't always agree with Jerry Saltz, art critic for The Village Voice, but his insightful explanation of one of art history's most important and controversial works is worth reading. Since its inception, Duchamp's Fountain has fueled the philosophical debate about the nature of art and what constitutes an original work of art. Saltz's interpretation gives the artist the benefit of the doubt.

Visitors on the Rampage

First I'll apologize for the unexpected and unannounced hiatus from posting. I'm hoping to continue posting with some regularity soon.

Back to business...

Two recent acts of visitor damages to works of art in museums have been covered by the media. The first involves a special event gone awry at the Milwaukee Art Museum that left a trail of booze, food and vomit throughout the museum, which purportedly included damages to works of art. For reasons including security and the general welfare of art, I am typically very against these types of events at museums. Unfortunately, they provide a significant portion of the museum's annual revenue and potentially bring in an otherwise untapped population of visitors with the hope that they will return as a paying customer in the future. Ideally, museums will open themselves up to large corporations or very wealthy individuals when they allow their spaces to be rented, the expectation being that the attendees are an intelligent and responsible group. Other methods of limiting who attends special events include attendance by invitation only and ticket prices that might deter undesireable crowds. The Milwaukee's biggest mistake was opening the event up to a younger crowd which paid a mere $30 to get in for unlimited martinis (Ok - New Yorkers, do the math).

The other damage occurred at the sticky hands of a 12 year old school kid who decided he had to take his gum out of his mouth and stick it on a painting at the Detroit Institute of Art. As annoying as school groups may be, it is good that kids are getting exposure to art and museums and are encouraged to think about the visual arts. That said, educational programming is a tremendously expensive endeavor for art institutions and they cost far more money than they might ultimately generate. They are provided by museums, in part, with the hope that encouraging an appreciation for the arts at an early age will plant a seed that will further develop into their adulthood. They are a privilage, not a right. Although most museums provide them, there is no requirement, as a non-profit institution, that they must. As dumb as some kids may be, its hard to come down on them entirely when something like this happens (and it does happen, more often that you think). This incident is the result of poor supervision. The Detroit Press felt that "boys will be boys," essentially shrugging off the seriousness of the situation. The boy is 12, not 6. A 12 year old boy knows exactly where he should put his gum and where he should not. Improper supervision around extremely valuable, if not priceless, works of art is inexcusible.

The New Republic Blasts MoMA

The New Rupublic's Jed Perl provides a lengthy diatribe about the new MoMA and the future of the museum.

Museum Relies on Public to Destroy Cultural Heritage

Nothing like getting up close and personal with art.