February Tweevenings: Bill Shipley Shares Stories About Art Collectors

February's Tweevenings speaker was Bill Shipley, Tweed Museum docent and lifelong artist who spent most of his career in the Big Apple, occasionally rubbing shoulders with some of the most famous artists of the past fifty years. His topic had to do with collecting art.

After being introduced by museum director Ken Bloom, Shipley prefaced his remarks with a little background on how the Tweed Museum came about.

George P. Tweed and his wife Alice were themselves art collectors. For three decades they collected art until he died 1946. In the 1950s Mrs. Tweed opened her home on Sundays to share the collection with the community. Eventually she developed the funding to build the museum, which opened in 1958, making the collection more accessible still.

In its early years Bill Boice guided the museum and began adding to the collection. The Sax brothers purchased work and added still more. Over time others contributed and today the Tweed maintains an extensive body of work.

By means of storytelling Shipley introduced us to different kinds of collectors.

Four Kinds of Collectors

1. Eugene Victor Thaw

"Lincoln in Dalivision" -- Dali

Born in 1927, Eugene Victor Thaw died just last month. Thaw was a major collector and art dealer. Every museum in country has a portion of their collection that passed through this man's hands. His master drawings went to the Morgan. After meeting Lee Krasner he eventually became the man who wrote the catalog on Jackson Pollock.

Thaw collected bronzes, French ceramics and was a major force in collecting world. When Georgia O'Keefe died he went to Southwest to evaluate her work, but then began collecting Native American work. He was on cusp of everything that was happening.

Though he started with little money he managed to amass a fortune, then gave it all away to the Fenimore Museum.

Shipley noted, "You don't need a lot of money to be a collector." The three things necessary to be a collector, he said, are an Eye, Education and Experience.

2. Dorothy & Herbert Vogel

The Vogels bought minimalist art. Tiny things, small, portable. Tthey talked to artists and collected artists who were working small. (In contrast to the massive Motherwells at the MoMA.) They were so into collecting that they got rid of all their furniture so they could have more room for art. They lived like monks.

Herbert died in 2012. When he died, it took five moving trucks to carry it all away, donated to the National Gallery in D.C. This gift was a work of art in itself because of the way they amassed it and kept it. Bill noted that he got to know them through his late partner.

3. Judith Rothschild

"Cervantes" -- Etching by Salvador Dali

Nanette and Herbert Rothschild were her parents. They built an amazing collection of European works. When the parents died she inherited it.

She liked to hang paintings in her apartment without identifying the artists. Her collection included Mondrian, Milton Avery, Brancusi sculptures…

Judith got zoning for a large glass structure atop her building. She never advertised her collection. An artist, too, she had a studio above Carnegie Hall. Metropolitan wanted her collection so badly, they gave her a show of her own paintings, with a lavish dinner opening… the best champagne, and all the rest. They pulled out all the stops. But the next day the NYTimes called it a scandal.

Judith used some of her money to set up a foundation to help under-recognized artists.

4. Hudson Walker 

"Three Angels Entertained by Abraham"
Marc Chagall

Walker separated himself from his grandfather, and collected American modernists. He gave his work to the University Gallery, which later became the Weisman (U of MN).

Shipley told a story about a controversial event involving a large Motherwell in his collection. Katherine Ordway bought the Motherwell and hung in the Kirby Center at UMD. Evidently it was too modern for some peoples' 1957 tastes because the students protested and were not going to attend graduation unless the Motherwell was taken down. (Student protests evidently didn't begin with the Viet Nam War.)

Hudson Walker modeled his collection after the Frick Collection. The Walker fortune came from lumber industry. An interesting trivia bit: some of the Walker collection was left hanging in his home even after it became a rental home.

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Art displayed on this page is from the Tweed show "Treasure From Home."

Do you collect art? There is plenty to go around. Enjoy it.

Richard Brautigan's "All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace"

While in college I was introduced to the writings of Richard Brautigan, novelist and poet who shortened his life in 1984 by suicide. In the 60's he was a fresh voice on the scene, producing books like Trout Fishing In America and In Watermelon Sugar which spoke to disenfranchised youth.

Having grown up in poverty Brautigan's painful childhood experiences are heartbreaking to read about. In his early twenties he threw a rock through a police window in order to be arrested so he could have regular meals. Instead of jail he was committed to a mental institution and treated with shock "therapy," one of the most bizarre and inhumane forms of therapy that I can imagine. He would later be described by a friend as "a gentle, troubled, deeply odd guy."

In a world that worships charisma and winning smiles, Dale Carnegie energy and can-do spunk, this kind of brooding misfit demeanor isn't the marketable commodity publishing houses clamor for. Nevertheless, Brautigan had a following, for his words connected with a generation that resonated with much he had to say.

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This past week I've been reading The Innovators by Walter Isaacson, a book about the history of innovation that preceded computers and the internet, from Charles Babbage's Difference Engine thru the Turing's Enigma Machine to the development of silicon wafers, chips, internetworks to A.I. and learning machines. Isaacson cites Brautigan's poem along the way, and I share it here, a dreamer's dream.

All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace

I like to think (and
the sooner the better!)
of a cybernetic meadow
where mammals and computers
live together in mutually
programming harmony
like pure water
touching clear sky.

I like to think
(right now, please!)
of a cybernetic forest
filled with pines and electronics
where deer stroll peacefully
past computers
as if they were flowers
with spinning blossoms.

I like to think
(it has to be!)
of a cybernetic ecology
where we are free of our labors
and joined back to nature,
returned to our mammal
brothers and sisters,
and all watched over
by machines of loving grace.

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RELATED LINKS

My 2016 reference to the book Machines of Loving Grace.
Intro to the life and works of Richard Brautigan.
Surviving A.I. by Calum Chace

"Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn't go away." 
--Philip K. Dick

Local Art Seen: /FINE, Re/FINE De/FINE UMD Faculty Show at the Tweed

The answer is "Yes, there is always more to see."

This week I visited the Tweed Museum of Art with the aim of viewing the UMD Faculty Show titled /Fine Re/Fine De/Fine. Without reading anything about the show, I suspect /Fine has a double meaning or more, being a reference on the one hand to Fine Art and on the other "Fine work." Ideas get refined, and concepts defined when the final pieces are completed for display.

The exhibition, on the balcony level, will be on display through August 5. If you get any chance at all, I recommend making a trek to the Tweed at this time. There are several shows to see from Kathy McTavish's Chance to the Modern(ism) show to Treasures from Home, which is a wonderful display of paintings and pieces from within the extensive Tweed collection.

The faculty show is an annual feature, I believe, always interesting. While there be sure to take in whatever student show is taking place in the corner gallery.

Alison Aune's intricate "Mandala" is striking for its scale.

"Eve Is The Apple, Adam Is The Worm" by Jeffrey Kalstrom

Detail from Kalstrom's piece.

"Real-Unreal/The Rigor of Harmony" by Darren Houser

This is a snapshot of a moment in time in Joellyn Rock's
Remixing Shakespeare.

This shows the morphing taking place.

And a third from that work of experimental video.
Rock's work rocks!

Wanda Pearcy's Bows of Promise; coffee toned cyanotype.

As you can see here the faculty work in a variety of media, the students get stimulation from a variety of instructors and the public gets to enjoy the bi-product of their explorations.

When classes are in session at UMD parking can be a problem, but I've never had a problem on weekends (open 1-5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday). The Tweed is also open on Tuesday evenings till 8:00 p.m. and the parking lots have more space, and no expense.

Meantime, life goes on... 

Local Art Scene: Vern Northrup Discusses Ishkode -- The Role of Fire in Native Culture

Early last week author Judy Budreau, DAI Director Christina Woods and I met with Vern Northrup at the Dr. Robert Powless Community Center to learn more about his exhibition of photography and especially the manner in which traditional Native culture has utilized fire as a tool. The exhibition of Northrup's photographs in the AICHO Gallery is titled Ishkode, which means "Fire" in the native Ojibwe tongue.

Vern Northrup, brother of the nationally recognized poet Jim Northrup, began his talk by noting his own background as a professional firefighter, as in forest fires. But his interest in fire has deeper historical roots. Generations of native tribal peoples used fire as a means of land management.

The current focus for Ishkode is the Apostle Islands off the coast of Wisconsin on the South Shore of Lake Superior. According to Northrup, the Apostle Islands served as a refuge in the Western migration of the Anishinabe from the East. On these islands there was an abundance of pines and blueberries, as well as game.

To put his Ishkode exhibit in perspective Northrup shared a few details about the Native culture. The clan system was a means of protection for tribal peoples. They also had fairly sophisticated means of delivering information. Birchbark canoes were a breakthrough… faster, lightweight. Innovation and technology developed, resulting in tools that made hunting or building easier. Traditions evolved, but some things were constant. The people strove to follow the path of their elders, because it was important to remain connected to the traditions. "Becoming removed from the traditions makes life hard, and life is not meant to be hard," he noted.

One of these traditions was the process of land management, or Ishkode. Ironically, the U.S. government squashed this tradition in the 1930s by making the burning of land illegal. Legislators did not understand the function of the burning, which helped in growing one of Algonquin food staples: blueberries. The Algonquin were practicing forestry. Planned burning helped keep the bugs down and reduced disease as well. In fact, according to Northrup, there were 70 different benefits to the managed burns in various areas every five to seven years.

"Fire is another spirit, another one of our grandfathers," Northrup said. "We have to venerate it. Fire has always been a part of me. My grandfather was a fire warden for Minnesota."

Northrup was modest about his work. He brought with him a portfolio of more than 100 additional photos, many capturing nature's most exquisite beauty. He expressed himself with warmth and authority, and seemed to take pleasure in sharing, perhaps in part because he had such an attentive audience. Our attentiveness was, in part, due to the sense that we were in the presence of something profound, the manner in which the native peoples lived a life fully integrated with respect for the land.

* * * *

The context for this talk was the larger display of Northrup's photos reproduced on anodized aluminum. Vern Northrup began doing photography just 3 years ago in 2015. His tool of choice is a Galaxy S7. It's easy to transport and takes vivid images, to which these photos on the walls of the AICHO Gallery  attest.

Northrup has a keen eye, and understands that the best stories unfold by focusing on small details. Here are my own iPhone reproductions of his S7 shots. You can be certain that the original photos are far superior in person, just as the Grand Canyon is superior to post cards of the same.

It was interesting to see this same split in the shoreline rocks in various seasons.

RELATED STORY: Read Judy Budreau's "How far is the far?"

* * * *

For more information about AICHO, visit aicho.org 

Tonight the community center in Trepanier Hall will be hosting 

a special presentation of SKIN(S), a dance program 

by Seminole dancer Rosy Simas.

Doors open at 7:00 p.m. Program begins at 7:30.

* * * *  

Call For Art: Phenomenal. Plus, AICHO to Honor Women of Color

Phenomenal
ART EXHIBIT & AWARD CEREMONY HONORING WOMEN OF COLOR
MAY BE THE FIRST OF ITS KIND IN DULUTH

DULUTH, MN - The American Indian Community Housing Organization (AICHO) is excited to announce that they will be hosting an open call art exhibit honoring phenomenal women of color. The exhibit will open with a reception on Saturday, March 10th at 5:30 p.m. in the Dr. Robert Powless Cultural Center and will remain on view through April 9th. There will be a $10 suggested donation at the door of opening night, but no one will be turned away for lack of funds.

Alongside the art show, AICHO will be honoring 10 women in what will be their first annual AICHO Phenomenal Woman Awards, including Karen Diver, Marlene Diver, Victoria Ybanez, Mary Ann Walt, Laurel Saunders, Wendy Savage, Karen Savage, Tawny Smith-Savage, Sarah Curtiss, and Jara McLarren. The women are being recognized for their consistent support of and involvement at AICHO, as well as their efforts to address various barriers in the community.

For this exhibit, AICHO is seeking artists who identify both as women and individuals who are Indigenous, Black, Latinx, and/or Asian. Artists who fit this criteria are asked to submit artwork inspired by women of color, representations of womanhood as related to their culture, and/or equity in feminism within communities of color.

Visit THIS PAGE for info regarding how to submit artwork to Phenomenal.

Selected artists will be notified prior to the drop-off deadline. Artwork must be ready to hang and dropped off by March 5 at AICHO (202 W. 2nd Street, Duluth, MN).

Artwork will be curated based on the following criteria:
-- Overall artistic quality
-- Connection to show theme
-- Diverse representation of artists from different backgrounds

Approximate Timeline:
-- Submission Deadline: March 1
-- Drop-Off Deadline: Monday, March 5
-- Opening: Saturday, March 10
-- Closing: Monday, April 9

For more information, contact Moira Villiard at moira.aicho gmail.com or 218-722-7225.

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Friday Evening: February 16

ONE NIGHT ONLY

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What Makes Life Worth Living? Magnolia Salon Prepares to Explore Hygge, Mindfulness, Creativity and Flow

Two weeks ago the Oldenburg House, in conjunction with Magnolia Cafe, kicked off a concept they've dubbed the Magnolia Salon, stimulated in part by the salon-style meeting places featured in late 20s Paris and re-created in films like Midnight In Paris. Here are few notes I've gathered on the topic that is swirling around for exploration tonight on hygge, mindfulness, creativity and flow.

Emily said to me recently that she and Glenn 'have had endless conversations about what we call 'the slipstream' and creating the optimal environment for flow and creativity." These are conversations that many others might wish to become part of.

She went on to say that they have been  pondering the role of limits, struggles and discontent in sparking creativity. "We often have had great things happen because we believe in 'loving our constraints'," she explained. It's another way of saying "necessity is the mother of invention.

Emily then cited a TED Talk by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi, author of the book Flow, who asks, "What makes a life worth living?" Noting that money cannot make us happy, he looks to those who find pleasure and lasting satisfaction in activities that bring about a state of "flow."

This led to some thoughts about the Danish concept of hygge, the Swedish focus on lagom, Scottish belief in còsagach, the Japanese focus of wabi-sabi and ikigai, the Dutch phrase gezelligheid and the German term gemutlicheit. If that string of words is a bit too much, the notion of mindfulness, of coziness, and maybe satisfaction are all part of it. (I'm guessing.)

What I do know is that these are idea starters that our Salon group will strive to investigate more deeply, especially as it relates to creativity, appreciation for beauty, and the mutual enrichment of exploring the possibilities that come from dialogue. 

Here's the opening of a blog post titled The Hygge Connection. It's from a blog called "Not Quite Superhuman." I love that name.

THE HYGGE CONNECTION

According to author Marie Tourell Soderberg (2016), at one time Denmark claimed much of northern Europe, even parts of Britain, as part of their territories. However, after losing the last bit which consisted of Norway in 1814, Denmark was left with nothing more than a small, flat landscape of a country. Therefore, they promoted a strong sense of community among people with shared interests. The characteristics of hygge are the epitome of the Scandinavian welfare state and Danish identity. Demark ranks as number two on the current World Happiness Report (2017) and was previously rated as number one in the world. Many researchers have pointed to hygge being the reason for this high rating (Soderberg, 2016).

Hygge (pronounced Hoo-ga) is a term that somewhat defies translation into English. In a sense, it is a feeling of family and friends, conversation, openness, and warmth (Soderberg, 2016).

The author goes on to write about Hygge & Mindfulness, Hygge Themes and Hygge and Mindset, perhaps more than you ever wanted to learn about this word, though I suspect you'll find it more of a catalyst to do further thinking on this topic. It may even prod you to think about moving to Denmark sone day.

You can read the rest of this excellent essay here at Not Quite Superhuman.

* * * *

At this point I hope to have accomplished my purpose, which is to make you want to join us tonight for a stimulating discussion and the mutual exploration of themes we often think about only privately. If you already have other plans, then plan to join us next week or any future Thursday that you have open. We'd like to get to know you. Oldenburg House is located at 604 Chestnut Avenue in Carlton, about 15 minutes South of the Proctor exit. (I promise to time this for you at some point soon.)

* * * *

Magnolia Salon was initially organized by Oldenburg House, Oldenburg Arts and Cultural Community (OACC), and Magnolia Café. The first season of The Salon will be held on Thursday evenings from 6-9 p.m. in the Carlton Room at Oldenburg House through May 31, 2018.

Boredom Escapes Us: A Philosophy Abstract, Illustrated

"Against boredom the gods themselves fight in vain." ~ Nietzsche

This is the Abstract for a paper that I stumbled upon titled

BOREDOM ESCAPES US: 

A CULTURAL COLLAGE IN ELEVEN STOREYS 

 Doctor of Philosophy, 2009 

Lesley Kenny 

Department of Sociology University of Toronto

Few sociologists have addressed the concept of boredom despite interest in the subject and experience of boredom from psychology, philosophy, the arts and popular culture. Classical sociological concepts of alienation, anomie and disenchantment are related to boredom, but do not address it directly. The history of the word boredom itself is not clear, though it appears it was first used in the late 19th century. Most authors agree that an increase in individualism and the concomitant rise in secularization, combined with industrial changes in labour and increased bureaucracy, help to explain a perceived increase in the experience of boredom. This dissertation is a phenomenological exploration of boredom, informed by the writings of Martin Heidegger and Walter Benjamin on the subject. Inspired by Benjamin's method of literary montage, from his monumental Passagenwerk, I construct a cultural collage of the subject of boredom. I use the metaphor of storeys (the levels of a building) as an organizing device to construct the empirical work of this project. These storeys include a consideration and analysis of: billboards, internet advertising, the reflections of an overseas development worker, art installations, a poem, a greeting card, a play, song lyrics and Kafka's short story character, the hunger artist. Each storey serves to inspire a sociological meditation on the subject of boredom, all of which are grounded in the historical, social and philosophical reviews in the first four chapters. These extensive reviews, as well as the eleven storeys, contribute a preliminary sociological analysis of the ambiguous yet ubiquitous experience of boredom in modernity.

* * * *

“Boredom may become Western man’s greatest source of unhappiness." --Robert Nisbet

* * * *

“... millions long for immortality who don't know what to do with themselves on a rainy Sunday afternoon.” ~Susan Ertz

* * * *

"I am convinced that boredom is one of the greatest tortures. If I were to imagine Hell, it would be the place where you were continually bored." –Erich Fromm

 * * * *

Bric-A-Brac

Little things that no one needs
-- Little things to joke about --
Little landscapes, done in beads.
Little morals woven out,
Little wreaths of gilded grass,
Little brigs of whittled oak
Bottled painfully in glass;
These are made by lonely folk.

Lonely folk have lines of days
Long and faltering and thin;
Therefore -- little wax bouquets,
Prayers cut upon a pin,
Little maps of pinkish lands,
Little charts of curly seas,
Little plats of linen strands,
Little verses, such as these.

Dorothy Parker

Find a pdf of the full PhD Thesis here.  
ILLUSTRATIONS by ennyman

Are we living Passionately with Purpose

or are we simply keeping busy to stave off boredom?