On the radio

Today on the radio I'll have my second attempt at talking about the new exhibitions at the Adam Art Gallery, look at new research on the makers of ancient cave paintings, and attempt to gloss the legacy of philosopher and critic Arthur C Danto.

UPDATE We didn't make it to Danto, I'll save that for next time.

Design and imagination

An interesting article/spread (I do like their constant layout innovations, though the image cut-offs in this one are a bit strange) in the New York Times on Rain Room and its brethren: products, objects and experiences that sit in the liminal area between art and design. Features a way to make music using the human body from the suspension cables on bridges and a light sculpture that explores the phenomenon of entrainment.

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This week I've been writing a bit more than usual, and going back to my romantic minimalism as a result. Timely then that Nils Frahm has a new album out in a few weeks. You can listen to one of the tracks, 'Says', now
 

Cross-posting.

A write-up of my talk with Bill Culbert at The Dowse last weekend, over on the work blog. What an incredible privilege.

Trawlers

I often hear people say, "Ugh, the art world is not interested in what I do!" And I think, "No, it probably isn't. You don't seem that interested in what the art world does, from the look of your work."

Grayson Perry, on the possibility of the unknown genius in the western artworld and other questions

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Three songs I've been playing in conjunction this week ...

Haerts' 'Hemiplegia' - kinda Young Galaxy, a bit glittery but also a little bit anthemic



I am unsure about the movie adaption, but I'm quite sure about Jon Hopkins' score for How I Live Now and his remix of Daughter's 'Home'



And I've shared this before, but it's part of this triplet: Wolf Alice's 'Blush'

On the radio

Today on the radio I'll be talking about the exhibition of John Panting's work and Peter Robinson's new installation at the Adam Art Gallery; the effects of the shut-down on American museums; and evidence to suggest cave paintings were made by women.

UPDATE: So, I totally got bumped by a live cross to Man Booker Prize winner Eleanor Catton. I couldn't have been more pleased, and I'll catch up on the above in my next segment.

On the other radio

Reminded by Julia Turner through the Slate Culture Gabfest endorsements, this weekend I went back to Planet Money for my ironing podcast accompaniment. In a long-running series on producing the Planet Money t-shirt, this week they were covering a topic that has long bewildered me: why does it take so long for money to be transferred between banks? 

While I was there, I saw that they were repeating an episode from three years ago on the economics of the art world - or specifically, the pricing of artworks on the primary and secondary market. This is a topic I spend a lot of time covering with non-art world friends, usually very rational people who are often left aghast as what they see as the vagaries of value when it comes to art works. When you're familiar with the system (one version of which dealer Ed Winkleman outlines, for pricing emerging artists work, on the podcast) it starts to make sense, but at first blush it's just as bewildering as money transfers. The podcast doesn't get deep into the topic, and focuses for too long on one of the aspects I find least interesting (stocks or art works?) but it's a typically stylish piece of reporting. 

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The two albums I've been thrashing this past week: Danny Brown's Old and Freddie Gibbs' Cold Day in Hell. But when it comes to singles, let's go for remixes and unexpected appearances....

Alice Boman's 'Waiting' is one of my favourite songs of the year - 1987 make it colder, less intimate, but still haunting



Shlohmo's 'Bo Peep' feat Jeremih is another doozy from the past year - here he chops up and runs out Laura Mvula's powerful 'She'


Can't figure out how it happened, don't know if it makes sense, doesn't really matter: Flume feat Freddie Gibbs

Rainy day

It's a grey, windy, rainy day. I'm watching the Imagination Playground get a thrashing from visiting families seeking respite from the weather through one set of windows, and below the window in my office, the next exhibition (drawn from the Chartwell Collection at the Auckland Art Gallery) being installed. Bill Culbert's Light Plain is looking particularly magnificent - even without the room it's in blacked out yet, the floating lamps are magical.

When I'm not looking out the windows, I'm reading about the Queens Museum of Art's rather extraordinary ArtAccess programme. In particular, I'm looking at the work they're doing with families affected by autism, such as this six-week sensory art programme, 'Beautiful Oops!'. An open letter from one of the parents who has participated in these programmes shows what a difference they make.

From day one, AJ has been allowed to just be himself. The staff members have been accommodating to his sensory sensitivities. They have done their best to keep him focused and engaged in what works for AJ in accomplishing the project at hand with flexibility and with LOVE. As special as my son is, I will say that this treatment is not singled out just on him – this treatment is given to and shared with every child that enters the room.

All of this amid a bunch of secret-project emails and some Wordy templatey stuff. And all accompanied by this rainy day playlist.

On the radio

On the radio today I talked about the six proposals for London's Fourth Plinth, skated through Christchurch's SCAPE public art festival, and danced over City Gallery Wellington's 'New Revised Edition'.

Image galleries are available at the bottom of the show page on the Radio New Zealand site.