Gurrrlll!

My co-worker sent this photo to me today. It has definitely inspired me.

Hiro Yamagata... What?

- I found this document on my computer tonight when I was organizing my files. What the hell is this? The depressing part is that I really thought that I knew what I was talking about at the time of writing this review. Depressing still, is the fact that I got an "A" in this class.

Reviewer: Joshua A. Tjaden
Artist: Hiro Yamagata
Title: NGC6093
Gallery: Ace Gallery
Location: New York City
Purpose: Contemporary Art Class, Marymount Manhattan College

As introduction to his official website, Hiro Yamagata declares that he is “especially focused on the elemental force of light…as manifested by the sun.” The singular experience of Yamagata’s new installation exhibition at the Ace Gallery in New York City exposes his inclination toward illumination.

The entrance to NGC6093 is through a space with high ceilingsand adequate lighting, unequivocally the opposite environment to that behind two onerous iron doors, each weighing in at close to half a ton. As viewers, and unknowing participants, the audience is given no clue as to what lies beyond these barricades. But after entering into the space behind the doors, each individual must make the choice to either sink or swim, as it were, and this viewer made the decision to submerge himself in the experience.

The frenzied display was quite overwhelming at first, with flashing fiber optics of many different colors throughout this first space. Making a direct line to the back of the room, it was possible to orient yourself with the environment. After taking a few moments in this neutral zone you realize that much, if not all, of the entire space at the Ace Gallery has been used for Yamagata’s latest exploration into light, space, and the relationship between the two.

Holographic Mylar panels cover the walls, floors and ceilings of each room, refracting the light given forth from laser beams, cyberlights, fiber optic cables, strobe light fixtures, ETC Source four par lamps, and studio and xenon spotlights. Complementing this array of light fraction and refraction are cubes made of plastic mirror material, hung from the ceiling throughout, in a variety of sizes at differing heights by nearly invisible monofilament lines. All of these elements forge together through the use of laser and lighting computer units run on a specially designed show control system.

The result is a conflagration on the visual sense, with perception of depth, space and light being at best heightened, and at worst confused or even strained under the pressure to focus on the surroundings. I found the only thing more intriguing than the tremendous amount of time, technology and timing necessary to execute such a display, was a wayward dumpster rat having a seizure to the right of the exit. My only question to Mr. Yamagata is this:

“Was NGC6093 tested on animals before its exposure to humans?”

Roar!

This post goes out to my friend Wes, who, as it would turn out, is fascinated with the "bear" rainbow sticker phenomenon.

Wes (and anyone else), for more information on "bear" culture from around the world, you can visit this fantastic wikipedia posting. It's a one-stop shop to keep you in the know on those fat ole' ho's.

Later,

Josh's Attendance Made Known at Hiro Ballroom (two weeks later)

I started a new blog this weekend called Word of the Gay. It's a fun way to get my feet wet in the blogosphere. You should check it out if you can, and send in some suggestions for new posts!

I received a few text messages tonight alerting me to the fact that my photograph is in the back of Next magazine this week. Thanks to those of you who let me know!


This photograph was taken at Hiro Ballroom two Sundays ago with my good friends, Wes and Im in attendance (Wes didn't make the photo unfortunately!)...

But Wes and I did have our photograph taken with Christian from Project Runway, as well as for the magazine. Looks like just one photo made it in, but oh well!

W. Eugene Kleinbauer, from "Modern Perspectives in Western Art History"

W. Eugene Kleinbauer would have liked to disagree with my aforementioned approach to analyzing works of art, calling me an "aesthetician" instead of an "art historian."

"The disciplines of aesthetics and art history are humanistic endeavors of learning that differ primarily in their emphasis. The term "aesthetic" was coined by the German philosopher Alexander Baumgarten (1714-62) in his Meditationes of 1735 . . . Aesthetics is that branch of philosophy that deals with problems of value arising out of the existence of works of art as physical entities; it is concerned with the processes and abilities involved in the creation, use, and enjoyment of art, and with the response of the beholder to the qualities inherent in works of art. To a large extent, it deals with recurrent patterns and the validity of standards of evaluation. The aesthetician seeks to establish categories of thought ans systematic definitions in order to express particular points of view about the arts. He is interested in the various complex interrelationships of all the arts - music, literature, cinema, theater, and the dance, as well as the visual arts. The art historian is also interested in these interrelationships, but only insofar as they illuminate meaningful historical aspects of specific works. While the aesthetician arranges and classifies his material and hypotheses according to the theories they illuminate, the art historian always deals with his material historically, usually setting it up chronologically, but occasionally ideologically. The aesthetician tries to learn the nature of art, to evolve a (nonhistorical) theory of art, to define such terms as "beauty," "aesthetic value," "truth," and "significance." The modern art historian avoids all such metaphysical speculations. In much of the Western world, and especially in the United States, art history today is nonphilosophical." - W. Eugene Kleinbauer

Statement

In his essay, "The Search for the Real: In the Visual Arts", Hans Hoffman begins his deliberation on the nature of art by stating: "Art is magic." The concept being that this magic exists within every work of art and is embedded in its physical make-up. The chronicle of art history and criticism as autonomous fields of study have centered upon this supposition.

I am involved in and fascinated with the creation of art, and have been from a very young age. Likewise, through work as an art historian, I have studied the nature of artistic expression and creativity. The most rewarding aspect of being an art historian is having the ability to reveal the magic - or meaning - that exists in works of art for others. This process has a metaphysical quality and inspires me to question how the means by which works of art are created relate to the artists' intended meaning.

Therefore, I aim to provide an analysis of how the physical characteristics of works of art relate to their conceptual attributes. To achieve this, I have a unique style of analytical study that engenders the conventional methods of art history and criticism with my own experience as an artist. As a result, my written work is accessible to most readers while still being aligned with conventional academic standards.

Outrageous Fortune

Hello out there...

Has anyone found Outrageous Fortune on DVD? I have been searching for it high-and-low to no avail...

Later,

Hello Again!

After a recent conversation with my garlic-butter-obsessed, dangly-jewelry-wearing, vocabulary-enhancement-inclined, kick-ass-bitch, friend, Anasua Chowdhury - I have decided to give my blog the breathe of life.

I am currently in the middle of a multi-tasking shuffle. I have eighteen different applications open with multiple four or five different projects going at-once, and my poor PC trying to keep up with the pace of my furious keystrokes. This is the usual work day of someone like me, who is working their way up through the ranks in the non-profit sector.

Don't get me wrong, I thoroughly enjoy my work and feel blessed every day that I am able to give back to society at my 9-5 job. For those of you out there who have never worked in the non-profit sector - who are you anyway?! - there is a certain amount of "getting it done with no resources" involved. So, having a little bit of patience and a lot of creativity can go a long way.

Last night, I took part in an interview for the AIDS Walk at QPTV (Queens Public Television) at the Time Warner recording studio in Flushing, Queens. The show is called "Talking About" and features community activists and leaders. I was able to speak with the host, JC Alvarez, about AIDS Walk New York (Sunday, May 18, 2008) for an hour, take phone calls from viewers, and give the viewing public more information on how to get involved. It was my first appearance on live television, and it was fascinating, albeit a little nerve-wracking.

To view a snippet from the show, CLICK HERE.

I don't have much else to say. Hello out there! And Anasua, link me to your blog already.

Later,

Blog Without Words...

Well not really...

but after seeing "play without words," at BAM today, then watching "ray." with leigh and aaron tonight, it's got me thinking about losing one's senses.

walking home from leigh and aaron's tonight, listening to music through only one headphone i noticed that by muting the ambient noise to my walk home with the music, it heightened what i could hear outside the headphones...the rustling of the ground under my boots, the wind blowing garbage and branches stuck on telephone and electrical cables over my head...it was really surreal and it got me thinking

how would it feel to move without seeing, without speaking

how would it look to move without sound, how would it sound to speak without being able to hear....
some different scenarios sprung into my mind on the way home and I just wanted to jot them down...

movement without sound
sound without sight
sight without sound
touch without sight
light without sound

while bret and i were waiting for the train in the 42nd Times Square station today on our way home from Brooklyn, i mentioned that one my biggest fears would be to lose my sight...the thought of that is crippling almost...and it is so intriguing at the same time! sometimes when i am walking around my apartment, or even out in the street, i close my eyes and try to imagine, or get a sense, of what being blind would be like. maybe this is strange, maybe a lot of other people do it, i don't know...but it is really coincidental that i would be thinking about that so much today and watch a bio-pic about Ray Charles...