5441 Ca Object Representations
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(1) Robin Winters and Christy Rupp at the (2) Arleen Schloss at the opening reception for (3) Anton van Dalen, Two-Headed Monster (4) Dave Sander and Ethan Swan at the opening reception for “Come Closer: Art Around “Come Closer: Art Around the Bowery, 1969– Destroys Community, 1981. Aerosol paint on opening reception for “Come Closer: Art the Bowery, 1969–1989,” New Museum, 1989,” New Museum, New York, September 19, paper, 29 x 23 in (73.7 x 58.4 cm). Installation Around the Bowery, 1969–1989,” New New York, September 19, 2012. Photo: Jesse 2012. Photo: Jesse Untracht-Oakner view: “Come Closer: Art Around the Bowery, Museum, New York, September 19, 2012. Untracht-Oakner 1969–1989,” New Museum, New York, 2012. Photo: Jesse Untracht-Oakner Courtesy the artist. Photo: Jesse Untracht-Oakner Published by When we announced that the New To date, the Bowery Artist Tribute has We are indebted to Hermine and Museum would construct a freestanding conducted over seventy interviews David B. Heller for funding the research, building on a parking lot at 235 Bowery, with artists, curators, and authors who development, and presentation of this one of our first concerns was finding a helped build the creative community archive, and for providing endowment newmuseum.org way to acknowledge the rich history of of the Bowery for the past seventy funds for its future. We are also grateful creative activity in our new neighbor- years. We’ve encountered artists who to a number of individuals who have Editor: Ethan Swan Designer: Chelsea Amato hood. We thought about 222 Bowery, were grateful for the opportunity to tell been instrumental in the research and Copy Editors: Frances Malcolm and Olivia Casa Printed by: Linco William Burroughs’s “Bunker” that shel- their Bowery stories for the first time, coordination of these efforts over the tered Lynda Benglis, John Giorno, Mark and others who weren’t convinced past nine years: Ethan Swan, Eungie Cover: Sylvia Plimack Mangold on the roof of her Grand Rothko, and a dozen more. And CBGB, there was anything interesting about Joo, Irving Sandler, Travis Chamberlain, Street apartment building, 1965. Photo: John Sherman a birthplace for American punk. Every this “depressing” neighborhood. We’ve and NYU fellows Matthew Israel, Jovana conversation about the neighborhood heard from artists who felt cheap rent Stokic, and Matthew Levy. Most im- © 2015 New Museum, New York revealed more history: Sol LeWitt’s near- was the only draw, and artists who were portantly, we owe many thanks to the All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted daily lunches at Moishe’s on Bowery lured instead by the promise of commu- artists, relatives, and friends who have in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, and Grand; Diane di Prima’s formative nity. For us, the most important part of shared their studios, photographs, and photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publisher. years at 35 Cooper Square; the Ornette this project has been providing a space memories of the Bowery. (1) The Bowery Artist Tribute is made possible by an Coleman Quartet making its New York for artists to share these impressions (2) endowment from Hermine and David B. Heller. debut at the Five Spot, just above 4th and memories, to reveal how the view Street. It seemed that every strain of out a window, the trash on the street, Lisa Phillips avant-garde production found a home or the World War II veteran who slept Toby Devan Lewis Director on the Bowery. in their doorway affected their practice. At the same time, this history was largely The great limit set by this structure, uncollected. Exhibitions and histories of of course, is that oral histories confine neighboring SoHo and the East Village us to the individuals still with us. The absorbed the artists while neglecting Bowery Artist Tribute will forever be the specific qualities of the Bowery. The haunted by its missing voices. While popular image of the Bowery was as a these poignant reminders run through- site of homelessness and addiction, a out this project, they also underscore vision that didn’t allow space for the the importance of every interview long-standing community of artists. conducted for the Bowery Artist Tribute. Even photographers and filmmakers Repetition is scarce—the multitude of who lived and worked on the Bowery stories only expands the variety of often turned their lenses outward, away experience offered by the Bowery. With from their own neighborhood. How this in mind, we encourage anyone with could we reconstruct this narrative? We additional information about artists who decided the best way to excavate this have lived or worked on the Bowery, history and discover why the Bowery past and present, to share it by email drew so many artists was to ask the ([email protected]) artists themselves. or by completing the form on the last page of this publication. (3) (4) (1) Bowery and Delancey Street as viewed from (2) Marilyn Ganeles, New York, 1965. Courtesy (3) “New York’s Changing Scene,” in the New (4) Ed and Sheryl Valentine at 217 Bowery, (5) Dinah Maxwell Smith in her studio (6) Robert Mangold, Sylvia Plimack Mangold, the windows of Stephen Aiken’s third-floor loft at Marilyn Ganeles-Colvin York Sunday News, May 14, 1967. Courtesy 1985. The painting in the background is The at 2 Spring Street, circa 1971. Photo: and James Mangold on the roof of their Grand 186 Bowery, 1976. Photo: Stephen Aiken Marilyn Ganeles-Colvin Temptation of St. Anthony’s Cartoonist by Ed George Bennett Street apartment building, 1965. Photo: John Valentine, 1984. Oil on canvas, 60 x 60 in Sherman (152.4 x 152.4 cm). Photo: Cliff Beringer (7) Dinah Maxwell Smith in her studio at 2 Spring Street, circa 1971. Photo: George Bennett (2) (1) (6) (7) (3) (5) (6) (4) (1) Martha Diamond in her studio at 268 (2) Martha Diamond, Cityscape With Indian (3) Martha Diamond, City With Red No. 1, 2004. (4) Martha Diamond, Cityscape With Blue (5) Martha Diamond and her neighbors on the Bowery, circa 1972. Courtesy the artist Yellow, 2001–05. Oil on linen, 96 x 48 in Oil on linen, 72 x 48 in (182.9 x 121.9 cm). Shadow No. 1, 1994. Oil on linen, 96 x 48 in Bowery, circa 1980. Courtesy the artist (234.8 x 121.9 cm). Courtesy the artist Courtesy the artist (234.8 x 121.9 cm). Courtesy the artist (2) (3) (2) (1) soon returned with two large shopping of the street there were many empty bags full of damaged tubes of oil paint lots. Sammy’s Bowery Follies used to be he had gotten from the Bocour [Artist next to where the Whole Foods is now. PG. 06 Colors] paint factory. Leonard Bocour It was a bar where old ladies would would give artists damaged tubes for perform burlesque and where I would (4) free. The tubes might have been dented buy my cigarettes. Gambling would or soiled on the outside, but the paint take place in bodega basements, and was fine. Howard thought oil paint drug dealers would stand at the corner would better suit my efforts. He was of Bowery and Houston. correct, and he gave me enough materi- als to experiment freely. He opened the We did have some stores: three butch- paths for me. Thank you, Howard! ers, a hardware store, three bodegas, MARTHA DIAMOND a doughnut shop, a pharmacy, and a Many local people would hang out in few Italian bakeries. There were also 268 BOWERY (1969–PRESENT) garden chairs on Elizabeth Street with Bella’s Café and Buffa’s Luncheonette open fire hydrants when the weather that had been there since 1927. There was warmer. They would barbeque were no clothing stores and nowhere in the hallways indoors. The building to buy newspapers or yoghurt. It was a north of me was mostly empty, and neighborhood. There were no general Martha Diamond (b. 1944) is a painter who is best known for her large, sweeping Excerpt from the Bowery Artist Tribute when I went to a party of theirs. They homeless people would make fires on art supply stores, but you could buy portraits of urban architecture. These gestural cityscapes explore the intersection interview with Martha Diamond, May lived three doors south in a building the wood floors in cold weather. paint and brushes locally from people of abstraction and representation, pushing skyscrapers and bridges to the edges 13, 2014. Video available at with four other painters, one sculptor, a who manufactured their own. of familiarity. In her New York Times review of the artist’s solo exhibition in 1988, boweryartisttribute.org. dancer, and two children. You couldn’t Nights on the Bowery were very dark. Roberta Smith wrote, “Ms. Diamond’s whole approach to painting is deceptively tell from the outside, but painters, poets, There were almost no cars and very few One day I came across a few overturned simple, full of hidden skills and decisions that only gradually reveal themselves, I moved into my loft on the Bowery musicians, and students filled up the streetlights. When it was late at night cardboard boxes on the sidewalk, and along with a good deal of humor and very little pretension.” in 1969. Half of the space I used as a next two blocks. The rent was so low. you would walk near the curb, never up on top was a pink floral glass pitcher painting studio. There are still marks At night there were terrific artist parties against the buildings or doorways, so and four matching glasses.