La Disputa

Ok, so you know that program on tv where people go on to determine if some object they own is crap or something that costs millions of dollars?  It is all in sadistic fun; you can watch how people’s faces fall when they discover their mother’s old treasure box costs $200.  However, once in a while, someone brings something that is actually worth something.  Some old lady brought in a what looks like an authentic Brueghel the Younger painting (d.1620).  Apparently, she had bought for less than a thousand bucks in the 1950′s from some idiot dealer who had no idea what he had.  And so it goes.

Perhaps like some of you, I’ve been following the story of University of Iowa: Museum of Art. If you haven’t, here’s what’s been happening. Recently, the museum has experienced some terrible flash flooding. It was so unexpected that people got evacuated mid-day, leaving the art on the walls and in the storage to fend for itself. After some panicked jumping around, the executive officers got approval to get the most valuable art out of the temple of doom. Still, there was $231 million dollars worth of damage on the art and the museum itself.

There were a few options laid out to fix the museum, however the one that would bring back most of the money sparked controversy. Although the art world looks on with sympathy as the museum shakily tries to build itself back up, the looks turned to horror when the Iowa Museum ventured the option of selling their most prized work: The Mural by Jackson Pollack. This work, given to the museum as a gift by Peggy Guggenheim, has become the cornerstone of the museum’s collection. Much of the culturists in Iowa consider the $150 million work to be their state’s most important treasure. It is also looked quite unfavorably upon an art institution that sells its art to fix itself.

The Museum of Iowa may have lost its roof, but if it sells the Pollack, it may lose much of its respect. And thus, the unfortunate situation stands.

Next weekend, I’m really excited to be going to D.C.’s Book Festival, where Neil Gaiman is doing a signing.

I discovered Gaiman’s work when I was traipsing through my local library one day and found a book called Mr. Punch featuring the artwork of Dave McKean.  Since then, Dave McKean, became one of my most favorite contemporary artists.  His work is dark, strange and always different.  He uses mixed media of photography, digital art, painting, collage and even sculpture.  He is one of the most creative artists I’ve ever seen.  After having an affair with the art of Mr. Punch, I paid attention to the writing and discovered that it was written by Neil Gaiman, who was just as brilliant as the artwork beside which he was writing.  These days, I can’t get enough of either of them, and I hope you get to check both these truly talented people out!

Here’s a link to a video that Dave McKean did, featuring Sonnet 138 by William Shakespeare.

Here’s a really fun site if you like strange and lovely illustrations.  I’ve been looking at this site for a couple of months now and it never failed to excite me in some way.  Book By Its Cover includes children’s illustration, fine art and comic book drawings.  Julia Rothman, the owner of that blog, is an illustrator and pattern designer herself, and wants to share her love of handmade books.  She also interviews some of the artists!  Check it out, I really think she does a wonderful job!

Graphic novels are an interesting way to explore the culture and opinions of our world, and recently they’ve been doing just that. Lots of interesting books are being written in the form of the comic book, filled with amazing artwork and an increasingly better writing style. I’ve gotten to know the genre through fantastical tales such as Sandman (Neil Gaiman) and Fables (Bill Willingham), but recently I’ve become more intrigued with the stories that reflect real life.

(more…)