Sunday Six 6/26/22
Frédéric Bruly Bouabré: I picked up this book about Ivorian artist and writer, Frédéric Bruly Bouabré, and became mesmerized by his drawings which are now up at the MOMA and part of the Frédéric Bruly Bouabré: World Unbound exhibition. They possess a naiveté and charm that is extremely fascinating, consisting of 401 characters known as the “Alphabet Bété” that the artist created as a reflection of daily life of the Bété people on the Ivory Coast. In 1948, Bouabré had a transcendental vision and saw seven suns dancing around a central star, which led him to dedicate his life to celestial knowledge. My favorite drawings are a representation of his vision with eight suns, “Vision divine du 11 mars 1948”, made in 1991. I enjoyed this enlightening review of the MOMA exhibition.
Dehd: One of my oldest and dearest friends just turned me onto Dehd, the Chicago-based indie band on Fat Possum Records. I went to see them play in New York last month and can’t stop listening to their new album, Blue Skies. On heavy repeat is the track “Bad Love” and it’s become my Summer anthem.
Peter Saville for Kvadrat: As co-founder and art director of the greatest UK independent record label of all time, Factory Records, Peter Saville designed some of the most iconic album covers that are burned in my mind for life. I’ve been exploring his collaboration with Kvadrat, the esteemed Scandinavian textile company, and it’s nothing short of inspiring. Titled Technicolour, it launched last year as a “craft-oriented, sculptural collection that visually and haptically translates the industrial processes in textile production.” The name refers to the spectrum of colors used to mark flocks of sheep in pastoral settings that Saville would see in North Wales. Upholstery, three rugs, and two curtains are part of the collection and “offer an experience of texture and color, ranging from the expressionistic to the subliminal.”
Online Ceramics x Alice Coltrane: One of my go-to brands for all things weird and wonderful in the world of t-shirts and sweats is Online Ceramics. Their newest collaboration with the estate of Alice Coltrane speaks to me real loud. This is the only pair of sweatpants you’ll ever find me wearing. Om Shanti.
M.C. Escher at MFAH: On a recent trip to Houston, I stopped by the Museum of Fine Arts to check out the M.C. Escher exhibition and was completely and surprisingly blown away. I always associated the Dutch artist with the mainstream art I came to know in high school, and never took an interest until now. To see his lithographs in person and attempt to understand the mathematical wizardry that went into each creation was mind bending. What I loved the most and can’t stop thinking about is a large woodcut of bats on black satin, made in 1926 as a wall hanging. The bats are gold, silver, and black with metallics overlaid in transparent red, blue, and green to give the effect of six colors. Next Level. It’s hard to believe that Escher was neglected in the art world and didn’t have a retrospective until the age of 70.
Official Competition: I cannot wait to see the new Gastón Duprat and Mariano Cohn film, Official Competition, starring my two favorite Spanish actors - Penélope Cruz and Antonio Banderas. I love a good satire.
