Ledger painting lost or worse fate?

It seems during transportation to another museum during remodeling of it's home, this painting by French Cubist Ferdnand Ledger has gone missing. 

While Wellsey College's Davis Museum was remodeling they loaned the painting to the Oklahoma City Art Museum. Somehow when it was returned it was misplaced and may have been thrown out. (!)

The museum has filed an insurance claim which has been paid but not disclosed. In fact they don't want to talk about it at all. Seems it is a bit embarrassing to realize that you may have thrown out a painting by an artist that fetches on average $2.8 MILLION dollars. 

Wow. How does that happen? Never underestimate the incompetence of the general public. I wouldn't talk about it either if this had happened under watch.

A new acquisition

This piece was purchased by my Mom at the Ann Arbor Art Fair this year. My Mom doesn't make investments of this kind often, so I was excited to see it.

It is light in weight, as the kayak is made from canvas over a light wood frame. I really like this piece. It was not at all what I had envisioned. 

I've been interested in kayaking for a while now, this only peaks my curiosity! 

Graffiti vacation ends in arrests

These photos are examples of graffiti done by Jim Clay Harper (Ether) and Danielle Bremner (Dani). They toured Europe this summer tagging public property along the way. They left their mark in London, Spain, Paris, Frankfurt, Hamburg and other places they visited including New York City.

They caused thousands of dollars of damage and where arrested when they arrived back in the states. Due to the high value of the amount of damage, they are being charged with felonies and could spend up to seven years in jail. 

The charges for the alleged paint spree are being pressed in New York City. The NY authorities are working with European authorities to determine if more charges will be pressed overseas as well. Yikes!

Looks like this couple should have stuck to canvas' that they had permission to paint on. Destroying public property or property owned by others should never be permitted. As much as I enjoy well done graffiti, is is ruined for me when it is done without consent. Shame! 

Wall Art

Room 411 at the Hotel Des Arts in San Francisco. This wall was created by a L. A. artist named Kinsey.

I've always loved wall art, meaning art that has been painted or papered onto the wall. 

This is what I would do in my bedroom if I had the talent or money to paint something along these lines. Although I've always envisioned that the installation would involve wildlife. 

As a child I spent Thanksgivings at a home that had a black and white photo of a remote beach with large boulders along two of it's walls. I loved this image. I imagined that I would go to sleep in this room, dreaming of small waves softly cascading onto the beach. It is still a dream of mine. The images change, but the concept remains the same. Maybe some day....

Fish Bicycle

When I found this, there was no information about it. Hence, I am unable to credit the artist or cyclist or both. But I liked it enough that I wanted to share it anyway. 

When I googled it, I found lots of Fisher Bikes and variations of the saying "A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle." The saying is generally attributed to Gloria Steinem, but in reality is unsubstantiated. In any case, the search was almost as fun as the photos.

I also found a giant fish bike in motion with a few other smaller fish in tow. This is an excellent way to spend 52 seconds of your life. Click here!

Guidelines Established to Prevent Stolen Art Acquisitions

Interestingly enough, this post follows the one about stolen artwork.

Museums are establishing guidelines that are designed to suppress the market for looted archaeological treasures. They are encouraged to establish their own clear collections policies and require documentation that new artifacts have not been illegally exported from their countries of origin. 

Many museums are already in compliance with the guidelines, said American Association of Museum President Ford Bell. "The harder thing will be looking at existing collections, which is a big job", he said. The ownership histories of antiquities and Nazi-era artwork are perhaps the hardest to determine. 

The new guidelines do not prevent anonymous donors, but they will be required to provide all available information on the artwork or artifact. 

Sounds like a good start to me!

Stolen Art: Is It Yours?

When William M.V. Kingsland, a threadbare eccentric and an amateur genealogist of the Upper East Side in New York, died in 2006, officials found an apartment full of stolen artwork, including works by Picasso, Copley, Fairfield and Giacometti. The F.B.I. continues to search for owners of more than 100 works of art. 

Here is a sampling of the work that was found. There are four first cousins and an uncle claiming to be relatives that would be happy to divvy up the proceeds from the pieces that he did own.

Art in unusual places....

I'd heard about a person that had placed ceramic chard's into poured concrete around town, but had never encountered one until the other day. I was walking to the post office and came across this piece. I was so excited I pulled out my camera to snap this shot. 

When I was done, I looked up to see several people with puzzled looks on their faces. They, no doubt, had not idea what I was doing! Why was that crazy lady taking pictures of a curb? This is why! Kind of fabulous in an unexpected way I think.

A fun find!

Nature as art once again. I found this bird nest after a rain storm. It fell out of a tree and was adjacent to the path in the courtyard behind my home. I placed it atop this stone and it was left in place for weeks. It eventually fell off and is next to the rock. I've left it as is. It is beautiful to look at in detail as it it constructed of twigs, mud and other small found items. Finally, I'm happy to report that when it fell, the family had long since grown up and moved on.

Bomb It!

Bomb it! 

For those not in the know, this is a term used by graffiti artists. It refers to moving in and quickly making your mark. It is also the title of a documentary about graffiti artists around the world. 

It begins in Philadelphia with Corn Dog, the daddy of graffiti. It quickly moves around the world from Tokyo, to South Africa, to Sao Paulo and many places in between. It discusses why people participate in the art and discusses distinctions about the art. The one thing it doesn't do enough of is actually showing the art. Fortunately there are other avenues to do this.

I highly recommend this for those interested in the art and it's evolution!

The artist shown here is named Lord Leigh. I prefer graffiti that does not use the artist name as the piece. Give me images any day over stylized letters.

Giant Cattle!

There is nothing that catches my eye quicker than art placed in unusual places. Discovering an unexpected piece in non-traditional surroundings is pure joy for me.

These large cattle sculptures, by Peter Woytuk, are fabulous! I love animal art and the bigger the better! If I had the money and space, I would  have a huge piece of land full of fauna and sculptures. 

The closest I've come to mimicking my ideal, is at a gallery in Saugatuck, Michigan that has just such an area. The home functions as a traditional gallery and the backyard is a garden that has winding paths with outdoor art interspersed. It is unusual, beautiful, calming and I am envious. That would be one of my biggest dreams, to live in a home like that. Hmmm.