The Matrix, the Mythology, and the Man
Constructing Personal Meaning in the Work of Ellsworth Kelly
Constructing Personal Meaning in the Work of Ellsworth Kelly
Is it these parlous times where the world appears to be breaking free of the certainties -- or at least the Cartesian sureties of the old new "world order" of our recent past -- that ignites a fresh look at mid-century Abstract/Non-Representational art? Is it my personal journey that invites it as well?
In recognition of both energies, I'm working my way slowly through a monograph by Benjamin Buchloh about the artist Ellsworth Kelly. The scholarly work was prepared and published in conjunction with a show by the artist held in 2002 at Matthew Marks Gallery in New York. Although familiar with Kelly, I find myself drawn to mid-century Abstract and Non-Representational art with a new interest and curiosity these days, and even more so after a recent visit to the Dallas Museum of Art.
Now when I hit on the words "dialectic" and "episteme", especially in the same paragraph, I am usually resolved to find to grab my dictionary -- and my discretion hat. But as I work through the author's prose, I'm most taken with the artist's words as quoted by Buchloh to illustrate his key themes.
"I wanted my work to look as if no one had done it." - Ellsworth Kelly, quoted in "Matrix"
Timelessness vs. the Readymade
We don't think of the design-builder of the pyramids or the Great Wall, and for that reason I hear that as a reference to "timelessness", and not the readymade of found objects like Duchamp who like Kelly, also broke out of the received context of "art". I'm still reading, still feeling my own way to a response. So stay tuned...
In recognition of both energies, I'm working my way slowly through a monograph by Benjamin Buchloh about the artist Ellsworth Kelly. The scholarly work was prepared and published in conjunction with a show by the artist held in 2002 at Matthew Marks Gallery in New York. Although familiar with Kelly, I find myself drawn to mid-century Abstract and Non-Representational art with a new interest and curiosity these days, and even more so after a recent visit to the Dallas Museum of Art.
Now when I hit on the words "dialectic" and "episteme", especially in the same paragraph, I am usually resolved to find to grab my dictionary -- and my discretion hat. But as I work through the author's prose, I'm most taken with the artist's words as quoted by Buchloh to illustrate his key themes.
"I wanted my work to look as if no one had done it." - Ellsworth Kelly, quoted in "Matrix"
Timelessness vs. the Readymade
We don't think of the design-builder of the pyramids or the Great Wall, and for that reason I hear that as a reference to "timelessness", and not the readymade of found objects like Duchamp who like Kelly, also broke out of the received context of "art". I'm still reading, still feeling my own way to a response. So stay tuned...
