SOME WORK DOES NOT WORK........
After an exhibition, I usually come home and jump onto the computer as really inspired by whatever I have seen. This week there have been three exhibitions and frankly I have not spent too much time in any of them. At the most an hour.
First of all…..
More than a century after Van Gogh’s suicide,(1853-1890) the Musée d’Orsay is staging an extensive exhibition, with a provocative theme: Did society drive Van Gogh to shoot himself in the stomach at 37? Before his death in 1890, Van Gogh created nearly a painting a day. In little more than two months, some 70 landscapes and portraits where completed with a final burst of thick brush strokes of blue and yellow.
The exhibition, titled “Van Gogh/Artaud: Suicide by Society,” revisits the theories put forth in 1947 by the French writer Antonin Artaud, who argued that Van Gogh’s work disturbed society, which shunned his art and provoked his despair and suicide. The central question of the exhibition is posed by Artaud: “Van Gogh, a madman? Let anyone who once knew how to look at a human face take a look at the self-portrait of Van Gogh.”
Artaud, who was treated for mental illness over nine years, blamed the treatment ordered by Paul-Ferdinand Gachet, Van Gogh’s physician in the last weeks of his life. Gachet specialized in homeopathy and treated a number of Impressionist painters. In recent years, researchers have theorized that Van Gogh suffered from a hereditary disorder that led to fits and hallucinations.
All this is very well and frankly doesn’t motivate me to rush off and see another exhibition of Van Gogh. It had just started and the crowds were there. As usual I dodged heads realizing that I had already seen at least 70% of the work. What was interesting though was the staging. The first room was filled with his self portraits and a progression could be followed. Madness? Melancholy perhaps but with the vibrant colors in all his work, he doesn’t come over as mad to me - not in his paintings anyway. The little of Artaud’s work which was on display certainly was « mad » and not too interesting. Van Gogh’s room of landscape also showed the progression in his brush strokes - and that was fascinating….no photos of course and none really to be seen on Internet relative to the exhibition. But, you know them all.
Out of one gallery and into the next. Gustave Doré. A few friends had greatly appreciated the exhibition. Would I? You have the answer to that question. There are some of his illustrations and cartoon which are fun, but no more than that for me.
A little about him though:-
Two hours had gone by and there was that stale taste in my mouth of frustration.
Today I went off to see Bill Viola. I first came into contact with this video artist in the late 80’s. A set up in the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital Chapel.
I can’t remember exactly what it was except there was a shadow of a man flying around, up and down. I do remember being fascinated. In the same year, Mother and I also saw a presentation of his in Avignon. Very similar but again interesting. Not surprising then that I was looking forward to seeing what he is doing now. Viola is without doubt the most celebrated exponent of video art. The retrospective was focusing on both intimate and universal experiences, life, death and transfiguration…. Well that’s the last time I will look out for Viola. I will not stand in front of a video (which goes on for 30 minutes and there must have been more than ten of them) waiting for something to happen - and when it does, my reaction is quite simply « so what ». He was born with the video - I was not. Three or more hours would have been needed to watch everything - I was out in 40 minutes.
What a disappointing week…….
First of all…..
More than a century after Van Gogh’s suicide,(1853-1890) the Musée d’Orsay is staging an extensive exhibition, with a provocative theme: Did society drive Van Gogh to shoot himself in the stomach at 37? Before his death in 1890, Van Gogh created nearly a painting a day. In little more than two months, some 70 landscapes and portraits where completed with a final burst of thick brush strokes of blue and yellow.
The exhibition, titled “Van Gogh/Artaud: Suicide by Society,” revisits the theories put forth in 1947 by the French writer Antonin Artaud, who argued that Van Gogh’s work disturbed society, which shunned his art and provoked his despair and suicide. The central question of the exhibition is posed by Artaud: “Van Gogh, a madman? Let anyone who once knew how to look at a human face take a look at the self-portrait of Van Gogh.”
Artaud, who was treated for mental illness over nine years, blamed the treatment ordered by Paul-Ferdinand Gachet, Van Gogh’s physician in the last weeks of his life. Gachet specialized in homeopathy and treated a number of Impressionist painters. In recent years, researchers have theorized that Van Gogh suffered from a hereditary disorder that led to fits and hallucinations.
All this is very well and frankly doesn’t motivate me to rush off and see another exhibition of Van Gogh. It had just started and the crowds were there. As usual I dodged heads realizing that I had already seen at least 70% of the work. What was interesting though was the staging. The first room was filled with his self portraits and a progression could be followed. Madness? Melancholy perhaps but with the vibrant colors in all his work, he doesn’t come over as mad to me - not in his paintings anyway. The little of Artaud’s work which was on display certainly was « mad » and not too interesting. Van Gogh’s room of landscape also showed the progression in his brush strokes - and that was fascinating….no photos of course and none really to be seen on Internet relative to the exhibition. But, you know them all.
 |
| Starry Night |
 |
| Self portrait of course |
Out of one gallery and into the next. Gustave Doré. A few friends had greatly appreciated the exhibition. Would I? You have the answer to that question. There are some of his illustrations and cartoon which are fun, but no more than that for me.
A little about him though:-
He is without doubt one of the most prodigious artists of the 19th century. At barely fifteen years of age he began a career as a caricaturist and then professional illustrator – which brought him international fame – before embracing all areas of creativity: drawing, painting, watercolour, engraving and sculpture.
Doré also applied his immense talent to different genres, from satire to history painting, delivering in turn, enormous canvases and more intimate paintings, flamboyant watercolours, virtuoso washes, incisive pen and ink drawings, engravings, fanciful illustrations, as well as Baroque, humorous, monumental and enigmatic sculptures.
As an illustrator, Doré set himself the challenge of the greatest texts (the Bible, Dante, Rabelais, Perrault, Cervantes, Milton, Shakespeare, Hugo, Balzac, Poe), which turned him into a real purveyor of European culture. He thus occupies a special place in contemporary collective imagination, from Van Gogh to Terry Gilliam, not to mention his undoubted influence on comic books; there are many aspects that this first retrospective in thirty years will explore.
 |
| Caricatures |
 |
| Puss in Boots |
Two hours had gone by and there was that stale taste in my mouth of frustration.
Today I went off to see Bill Viola. I first came into contact with this video artist in the late 80’s. A set up in the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital Chapel.
 |
| The Chapel |
I can’t remember exactly what it was except there was a shadow of a man flying around, up and down. I do remember being fascinated. In the same year, Mother and I also saw a presentation of his in Avignon. Very similar but again interesting. Not surprising then that I was looking forward to seeing what he is doing now. Viola is without doubt the most celebrated exponent of video art. The retrospective was focusing on both intimate and universal experiences, life, death and transfiguration…. Well that’s the last time I will look out for Viola. I will not stand in front of a video (which goes on for 30 minutes and there must have been more than ten of them) waiting for something to happen - and when it does, my reaction is quite simply « so what ». He was born with the video - I was not. Three or more hours would have been needed to watch everything - I was out in 40 minutes.
What a disappointing week…….
Commentaires
I lived several months In and around St Rémy and walked his paths, smelled, felt, touched lived, embrassed that southern France. Oh yes his colours are so!
( I even picked up L.Zaninger from the sanitary he last lived in and therefore visited it too: severely controlled though picturesque (!) calm and quite beautiful...outside)
I am so touched by U.Michael's point of view... I may not be so mad either then....
Love ur Blog M... Never tell u enough