THE COLORFUL LIFE OF A NEURON

One of the things I have always loved about New York is that it engages you. Choices abound and art lovers like me literally have something new to go see every day.

This time, my inner nerd came to surface and suggested a show that gets in your head - literally. Created by ARTECHOUSE Studio in partnership with Society for Neuroscience (SfN) to commemorate the 50th anniversary of SfN, the show is the first of its kind to use data to bring key neuroscience principles to life. The show allows visitors to walk into a real-life 3D model of a human prefrontal cortex neuron — the “thinking cell” of the brain — and see it grow from birth through death.

While I have been to Artechouse’s tech-powered shows before (last year they had a great one co-created by Refik Anadol), this one felt even more mesmerizing. Watching an artfully presented depiction of the goings-on of a human brain is interesting enough on its own, but combine it with vivid, pulsating color, ever evolving shapes, simple yet evocative sound cues and mesmerizing digital animation and suddenly, you’re transported into a whole new world. Neural pathways coming to life in front of your eyes resembling Brazilian rainforest, forming and re-forming, reflecting joy and play and changing again at signs of stress and trauma. It is fascinating and I loved it.

ARTECHOUSE, located in NYC’s Chelsea market, is the nation’s first innovative art organization dedicated to the intersection of art, science and technology. It produces technology driven exhibitions using the largest seamless megapixel count projections of any cultural institution and integrating Hyperreal Sound technology. The current show runs through November 13.

THE IMAGINATIVE LANDSCAPES OF FRENCH PHOTOGRAPHY

Corinne Mercadier: Angels

Sometimes you want to step out of your daily reality and explore a different world. For me, the answer lies in the imaginative landscapes of French photography. I have admired it ever since I brought one into my home. Let me introduce you to one of my favorites.

THE WORLD THROUGH THE EYES OF CORINNE MERCADIER

I first came across Corinne Mercadier’s work a few years back when I discovered the dreamy scenes of her 2009-2015 Solo Series. The darkened images, staged and shot on the Southwest Mediterranean beaches of Corinne’s childhood evoke memories and are full of playful props. The almost monochromatic landscapes reminiscent of lunar surfaces can feel solitary, but they still pull you in. Step in and see if you, too, can push that ball, twirl that stick, make magic. It’s only appropriate in a world where photographs carry mysterious names such as “Fata Morgana” and “Toute Pensée”. I fell in love with “Magnetik” and it still brings me joy every time I look at it in my home.

A few years later, I had a chance to revisit Corinne’s work. (Well, I never really left it, I kept returning to her website to see what she’s been up to.) She’s added more color while keeping the mystery and intrigue. The more recent (2015-2017) series aptly named “Le ciel commence ici” (“The sky begins here”) is busier, more theatrical and full of energy. Your eye can’t help but notice all the action: A sphere flying through the space, geometric objects that cast double shadows, nondescript people moving through the space. At times, it’s hard to see what’s suspended in the air and what’s moving at full speed. I like it just as much, if not more, than her previous work. I have a feeling I will be adding to my collection. The only hard choice is figuring out which piece I like the best.

In recent years, Corinne’s moved back to a more monochromatic theme with her “Espace second” work that walks you through emptied mansions, down darkened hallways and past imposing doorways that invite you to take a peek what lies behind. And, as is now to be expected from Corinne’s work, throughout it all, your companion and guide remains anonymous, leaving you to imagine what story they would tell if only they could speak.

Corinne Mercadier started her photography career with a Polaroid SX70, which she used until 2008 before moving to digital photography. Her work continues to captivate audiences and she’s won awards for her celestially inspired work, including the Prix Altadis in 2001 and a finalist position at the Prix de l’Académie des Beaux-Arts Marc Ladreit de Lacharrière. Her photographs are in the collections of the Maison Européenne de la Photographie, Paris; FNAC, Paris; the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris; and the Polaroid Corporation Collection. You can also find her work at the Galerie Les Filles du Calvaire in Paris, and at the Alan Klotz gallery in New York. You can also explore it directly on her website. I love Corinne’s work and I hope that you will, too.

All photos in this post are by Corinne Mercadier.

WHAT PARTY? KAWS PARTY!

If you, like me, enjoy walking around New York City, you might have noticed them too. Sometime in the fall a set of familiar larger than life characters started appearing in the streets. The Michelin-man-like puffed up black and shiny CHUM caught my attention first. It is perfectly positioned against the stark geometry of Mies van der Rohe’s Seagram building. Whoever placed it there is a genius - the building, impressive on its own, provides a spectacular glowing backdrop at night.

Just a few blocks down on Park Avenue, the Pepto-Bismol pink BFF popped up. This one is more playfully located inside a glass and marble lobby. There, it can loom over visitors and “pose” for pictures during the day (judging from instagram feed, it is quite popular) and playfully peek out of its glass and steel “cage” after hours. It’s practically irresistible.

Turns out, there is more to their recent appearance than a simple public art placement effort. These familiar characters gave us a preview, a taste, of the show that has just opened at the Brooklyn Art Museum.

BROOKLYN ART MUSEUM: WHAT PARTY

The latest show, “What Party”, summarizes over a hundred KAWS works, from graffiti drawings and notebooks, paintings and sculptures, to smaller collectibles, furniture, and monumental installations of his popular COMPANION figures. It also features new pieces made uniquely for the exhibition along with his early-career altered advertisements. Read more about the show here.

BRIAN DONNELLY, AKA KAWS

Kaws has come a long way since his beginnings as a street artist in New Jersey and NYC. Always straddling the art and commercial line, his characters with X-ed out eyes and exaggerated skull and bone structure have become iconic. His art comes big and small - from collectible toys barely a few inches high to some of the largest sculptures to stand (or float, as was the case of the Companion in the Hong Kong Harbor) on the Earth. And he continues to evolve. More recently, he’s jumped into the digital space, teaming up with Acute Art, an augmented reality digital art platform that allows you to virtually explore his sculptures and create personalized experiences through an app on your smart phone.

His commercial success is pretty impressive, too. The toys based on his characters continue to sell out and command pretty hefty premiums on the secondary market and serious art buyers are now scooping up his work in droves. KAWS continuously breaks auction house records and in 2019 his works sold for $112 million. Earlier in the year, the Art Angle podcast predicted that i this year’s auctions, KAWS will outsell every old master other than Sandro Botticelli.

If you still want to learn more about KAWS, here and here are a couple of articles you might like.