5/16/2006

Wangechi Mutu

23 comments:

Painter said...

Wangachi Mutu @
Sikkema Jenkins and co.
530 West 22nd Street
New York, NY 10011

amy boras said...

Too fantastical for me. I do like the flowers, but in an illustration sort of way.

no-where-man said...

over it.

pinkandlacepony said...

How can you be over it this is her first solo show in NYC?

no-where-man said...

& + cirque de soleil

flesheater99 said...

My family had a number of cats growing up. One cat in particular had a fondness for the fake green easter grass (Holla Gentiles!) One easter w/o our knowledge she got to eating a bunch of it. We found out b/c there was a piece of it hanging out of her asshole. No one wanted the job of pulling it out so Thumper went 'round for days with a piece of green easter grass hanging out of her ass.

The hunched character (leftish)reminds me of this very special holiday. (Never mind that the other chick is eating it.)

pinkandlacepony said...

I think these ladies might have a hard time finding a date.

flesheater99 said...

those LavaLife ads are dope--> Alex Katz meets 'Waking Life' (@ a singles bar then maybe they'll catch a movie or something...)

flesheater99 said...

p.s chimacho, it only gets worse.

Pretty Lady said...

Michael Parkes on a bad trip, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

And I LOVE those Lavalife ads. Very pedestrian of me, I know. ;-)

Stelios Argiros said...

I love this artist. Finally someone found a way to create surreal figures in a new and fresh way. This piece is gorgeous really. I love the way she used a kaleidoscopic palette but muted it just enough to make it seem organic.
There's isn't a single thing I would change about this work. Perfect. Shows you don't have to be ironic or dark to make a great painting. You can hang this next to a Dali and it would hold it's own. Ha, there I said it, bring on the iDaliiests. I'm ready for ya....

Stelios Argiros said...

Bravo bada. Someone put a little thought to their comment. That 'carnival' comment is just silly and really isn't an informed response if you have seen her whole body of work.

Here is a note from the Saatchi gallery on a piece from last year.
Wangechi Mutu
Cancer of the Uterus
2005, Glitter, fur, collage on found extremely fragile medical illustration paper
46 x 31cm

http://www.saatchi-gallery.co.uk/imgs/artists/mutu/wangechi-mutu-cancer-uterus.jpg

"Wangechi Mutu’s collages seem both ancient and futuristic; her figures aspire as a super-race, by-products of a troubled and imposed evolution. In Cancer of the Uterus, her figure is an ominous goddess; pasted over a pathology diagram, her portrait is diseased at the core. Mutu uses materials which make reference to African identity and political strife: her dazzling black glitter is an abyss of western desire, which allude to the illegal diamond trade and its consequences of oppression and war. From corruption and violence, Mutu creates a glamorous beauty; her figures empowered by their survivalist adjustment to atrocity, made immune and ‘improved’ by horror and being victims."

Professor Mouth said...

Bada,
I'm not really super-invested in praising Mutu or tearing her down. But I must say, your rant is really unconvincing as argument. You claim that people admire George Condo for no good reason, and then proceed to categorize every skeptic of Mutu's work as hopelessly 'western', 'patriarchal' and implicitly anti-feminist. Yet, you don't say one single thing to articulate these sweeping generalizations. This is a nice way to bully your opponents(Bill O'Reilly would approve of the method, if not the content, of your screed), but a very poor way to persuade and outfox those who disagree with you. Where are your 'good reasons', sir or madam?
Sorry if I sound too 'Western'.

And Vlahos, are you actually quoting a gallery press release as an argument for an artist's work? This says nothing about Wangechi's work, but it sure says a lot of unfortunate things about you. Talk about 'patriarchal and western'. And yet Bada wholeheartedly approves of your comment. Huh.

no-where-man said...

ok has anyone been to cirque de soleil? ok maybe the s and m one with the lazy suzan of sex.. i have been to them all - love me some vegas, it hits the same fantastically vibe. - or maybe i see it to much over at the top banner on the saatchi site...

over it

Stelios Argiros said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Stelios Argiros said...

Vlahos Boyiajees said...
Professor said..."And Vlahos, are you actually quoting a gallery press release as an argument for an artist's work? This says nothing about Wangechi's work, but it sure says a lot of unfortunate things about you. Talk about 'patriarchal and western'. "

'Professor," you don't start a sentence with And. I quoted a press release because that person actually described her work with more detail. Unlike some of the momo comments that appear in here about her work being about 'Cirque De Solei' and other people saying they are 'over it.' Yeah, I know, it's that too-jaded-to-think New Yorker thing. I'm over THAT. I'm also a New Yorker. I am a mix of Western and Eastern, but since I live in the West, I do tend to think more Western. DUH! Being 'Western' is not a bad thing as 'Professor' seems to suggest. I also don't fetishize Eastern culture. Nor am I 'patriarchal.' What a preposterous comment to make. It's so easy to call people names when you are not face-to-face with them isn't it?
So take it easy 'Professor.' Maybe you need to get some fresh air. This is not a gladiator arena. Nor is it a battle of the intellects. Sometimes it can seem like the battle of the idiots. It is a forum to talk about painting. Let's stop saying what is 'unfortunate' about others and criticizing them personally because you really don't know who is in here do you? It's not personal. Let's talk about the work.

youth--less said...

and let's not forget where these "ideals" of fashion and style come from...none other than the west....

Are you kidding? you know nothing about the history of fashion my friend. Africa has had a huge influence on fashion since forever.

Lets put it this way. Fashion--like many things--is a double edged sword. A lot of it is HIGHLY CREATIVE. Then a lot of it is about conformity. East west north or south.

youth--less said...

very narrow def. of fashion.

frivilous personal expression?

you are a puritan thru and thru

zipthwung said...

Uhm.

Yeah.

Great comments.

Tapeworms? I mean, the association is not too far out here.

Guinea worms?

Parasites in general?

"fashion, that is clothes as personal expression, was started in europe, somewhere in the 1600's "

Complete bullshit.

Fashion - style as an expression of the individual, is not purely western nor modern.

What book did you get that idea out of?

kelli said...

Jan Huizinga - The Waning of the Late Middle Ages. Fashion was already a pretty big deal at that point for people on various class levels. Brown was the color of mourning. Do you guys really think about fashion in relation to this? I'm thinking of revival of a certain kind of decoration or P&D.

youth--less said...

not sure I see a critique of the "evil" fashion industry in this work.

She could be pointing out the confluences of body adornment past and present. Modern tribes?

Nobody's wearing kimonos? You obviously missed Spring 06. Have you ever cracked a Vogue? Dude?

youth--less said...

If you dont see people wearing kimonos, or versions of kimonos, you arent looking. How bout that artist in the Whitney Bi who wore the kimono to the opening?

Fashion is more deeply felt, creative, vital, and meaningful than you give it credit for. Since way before the 16th cent. til today. For Africans as well as westerners. I don't use fashion as a perjorative and you did. That's all I'm pointing out.

youth--less said...

article about her in June VOGUE