2015.11.23 07:00 - What's in a View

The Guardian for this meeting was Eliza Madrigal. The comments are by Eliza Madrigal.

Bleu Oleander: morning Eliza :)
Eliza Madrigal: Hi Bleu, top of the mornin to ya
Eliza Madrigal: what amazing eyes
Bleu Oleander: ty!
Bleu Oleander: they are my Kapoor eyes
Bleu Oleander: from a photo of Anish Kapoor's "Laviathan"
Eliza Madrigal: wow
Bleu Oleander: I love that piece
Bleu Oleander: from a few years ago
Bleu Oleander: http://www.designboom.com/art/anish-...011-leviathan/
Eliza Madrigal: I feel I should be asking you something more interesting hah
Eliza Madrigal clicks
Bleu Oleander:

Once you enter the second part of the exhibition, the exterior of the sculpture appears to bear no relation to the interior. they co-exist simultaneously. ‘that’s what the work is about,’ says anish kapoor.

‘I think there is no such thing as an innocent viewer. all viewing, all looking comes with complications, comes with previous histories, a more or less real past. abstract art and sculpture in particular, has to deal with this idea that the viewer comes with his body, and of course memory. memory and body come together in the act of looking. I’m really interested in what happens to meaning in that process: as memory and body walk through, take the passage through any given work, something happens, something changes.’ anish kapoor
 

Bleu Oleander: sorry longish
Bleu Oleander: but I love what he says about it
Eliza Madrigal: not too long, reading....
Bleu Oleander: so kinda appropriate for my "eyes"
Eliza Madrigal: I see!
Eliza Madrigal: ;-)
Bleu Oleander: :)

Eliza Madrigal: At first I thought it was an SL exhibit
Eliza Madrigal: although I've heard his name before....
Bleu Oleander: I love his work
Bleu Oleander: have seen many pieces over the years
Eliza Madrigal: ah, bean
Bleu Oleander: yes
Eliza Madrigal: I've played around the bean... and there was something else, maybe something at the met once
Eliza Madrigal tries to wake up her memory and wonders whether she might be the exception to his baggage rule
Bleu Oleander listens
Eliza Madrigal: oh no... just that my memory is quite faulty
Bleu Oleander: ah ok :)
Bleu Oleander: then nonconscious memory :)
Eliza Madrigal: :) that works pretty well
Bleu Oleander: :)
Eliza Madrigal: scrolling through images... refreshing

Eliza Madrigal: Have you been following Ai Wei Wei?
Bleu Oleander: yes, some
Eliza Madrigal: he floods Instagram every day with several lego images of people who've faced consequences for speech
Bleu Oleander: haven't followed instagram
Bleu Oleander: fear a bottomless pit timewise there lol
Eliza Madrigal: we have a lego donation center here because lego wouldn't sell him new ones for his work
Eliza Madrigal: I wish more were on instagram, would save me from FB
Eliza Madrigal: :)

Eliza Madrigal: Hi Riddle!
Bleu Oleander: hey Riddle
Riddle Sideways: hey
Riddle Sideways: aLL
Riddle Sideways: sorry to be late
 

--BELL--

Eliza Madrigal: :) no need to join to see some of the images: https://instagram.com/aiww/?hl=en
Riddle Sideways: aiww !
Bleu Oleander: thanks will look later
Riddle Sideways: have seen the exhibition
Eliza Madrigal: oh yes?
Bleu Oleander: where?
Riddle Sideways: in Alchatrase(sp?)
Riddle Sideways: old prison
Bleu Oleander: oh yes, I read something about it
Riddle Sideways: very powerful
Bleu Oleander: ok now coming back to me ... :)
Eliza Madrigal: I missed his small exhibition here in Miami, when did you go ?
Riddle Sideways: ummmmm, last year?
Eliza Madrigal: wow nice

Riddle Sideways: what is the topic that brings Aiww up?
Eliza Madrigal: Bleu's eyes
Eliza Madrigal: upon which my noticing she shared her inspiration of Anish Kapoor
Eliza Madrigal: then (we) started looking at images
Bleu Oleander: art pops up for me
Riddle Sideways: pop
Eliza Madrigal: :)
Bleu Oleander: a lens to see with
Riddle Sideways: thousands of legos
Riddle Sideways: to see with
Eliza Madrigal: I gave away a huge container of legos a few years ago... now wish I'd lugged them to apartment
Bleu Oleander: metaphors we use to understand

Bleu Oleander: I never had legos
Eliza Madrigal: maybe they made his way to him anyway ... I like to think that way
Bleu Oleander: :)
Eliza Madrigal: no?
Eliza Madrigal: seems such a staple of childhood
Bleu Oleander: nope, just paint to play with
Riddle Sideways: just rocks to play with
Bleu Oleander: and of course dolls
Eliza Madrigal: :) I suppose you aren't the worse for legos missing
Bleu Oleander: oh yes and sand at the beach
Eliza Madrigal: I spent more time playing with the kids and legos than I did as a child.... then was just houses houses houses
Bleu Oleander: legos seemed too plastic in a way ... no subtle ... but I do appreciate what others have created with them
Eliza Madrigal: I love to see the giant structures
Bleu Oleander: when were legos invented?
Riddle Sideways: 1949
Eliza Madrigal: "The Lego Group began manufacturing the interlocking toy bricks in 1949." says wiki
Eliza Madrigal: so that is later than I thought

Eliza Madrigal: brb door
Eliza Madrigal: delivery...dog goes wild
Riddle Sideways: tend to read brb as burp
Eliza Madrigal: :)
Bleu Oleander: ha!
Eliza Madrigal catches breath from the wrestling match of accepting package while holding puppy
Bleu Oleander: know that well lol
Bleu Oleander: take all deliveries via garage since puppies :)
Eliza Madrigal: :)

Eliza Madrigal: Do you both have favorite experiences with exhibitions?
Bleu Oleander: hmmm, have many
Riddle Sideways: yes
Riddle Sideways: any exhibition or Aiww
Eliza Madrigal: finally watched the film of Abramovic last week, made me cry, and I don't cry much lately. I would have been too shy to sit with her
Eliza Madrigal: any Riddle... curious
Bleu Oleander: I saw that at MoMA
Bleu Oleander: but didn't sit
Bleu Oleander: too long a line
Eliza Madrigal: am sure there was a feeling in the room
Eliza Madrigal: yes, saw that once it became popular
Bleu Oleander: yes!
Eliza Madrigal: (saw that there was a long line - I didn't see it!)

--BELL--

Eliza Madrigal: I guess she did that just before the study came out that said if you stare at anyone, with anyone, for 4 minutes, you'll fall in love (sort of: http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/11/fa...e-do-this.html)
Bleu Oleander: the other installations on the upper floor were great too
Bleu Oleander: walking through two naked people ... very interesting!
Eliza Madrigal: must be
Bleu Oleander: http://www.moma.org/calendar/exhibit.../964?locale=en

Bleu Oleander: sorry, but must leave earlyish today ... please excuse ... take care and hope you're feeling better Eliza
Eliza Madrigal: thanks Bleu no worries
Bleu Oleander: c u later :)
Riddle Sideways: by by
Riddle Sideways: thanks for the visit

Eliza Madrigal: At one met visit there was an opera singer in a small upper room of modern wing. If you met her eye, you'd be sat down in a chair and she would perform as though to a full theater.
Eliza Madrigal: I liked lurking in the corner... that itself was amazing, but I couldn't have handled the energy of being in the chair
Eliza Madrigal: :)
Riddle Sideways: :)

Eliza Madrigal: I'm curious about how you felt coming away from the Aiww experience
Eliza Madrigal: there is a great film about him also... shows his sunflower exhibit and others... just wonderful
Riddle Sideways: probably the usual of almost everybody
Riddle Sideways: in an old prison
Riddle Sideways: seeing all those political prisoners
Riddle Sideways: the names/faces
Riddle Sideways: of living (all but 2-3) prisonners
Riddle Sideways: huge long room
Riddle Sideways: knowing that many famous political prisoners
Riddle Sideways: exist and governments have locked
Riddle Sideways: them away

Eliza Madrigal nods
Eliza Madrigal: made it very real?
Riddle Sideways: sobering
Eliza Madrigal: (odd idea...making the real real)
Eliza Madrigal: ah, sobering
Riddle Sideways: as real as lego block 8-bit art can
Eliza Madrigal: As the photos show up on Instagram, I've been trying to read each one
Eliza Madrigal: but I see myself gravitating toward the familiar
Eliza Madrigal: so I try to counter that
Riddle Sideways: yes

Riddle Sideways: the books of bios were off to the side
Riddle Sideways: and had to share with others
Riddle Sideways: or walk among the Legos
Riddle Sideways: without reading
Riddle Sideways: daughter of course was drawing them all

Riddle Sideways: favorite memory is any exhibition, museum, art show, etc. with daughter
Riddle Sideways: from about 4
Riddle Sideways: she would get into the first room
Eliza Madrigal: that is so wonderful
Riddle Sideways: and sit down
Riddle Sideways: and start drawing the first item
Eliza Madrigal: and patient dad would linger?
Riddle Sideways: well, did not want to look like bad parent
Eliza Madrigal: haha
Riddle Sideways: that leaves 7 year old
Riddle Sideways: by themselves
Eliza Madrigal: art galleries = places of positive peer pressure
Riddle Sideways: so was forced to STOP
Riddle Sideways: and study one painting

Riddle Sideways: galleries have a flow

--BELL--

Riddle Sideways: expected to keep walking with the group
Riddle Sideways: the other usual gallery partner will read every word
Eliza Madrigal giggles
Riddle Sideways: and study the art the words talked about
Riddle Sideways: often go back and reread
Eliza Madrigal: appreciative family :)
Riddle Sideways: :)

Eliza Madrigal: and you... do you have a 'style' of viewing?
Riddle Sideways: well, have made the same mistake several times
Riddle Sideways: maybe that is a 'style'
Riddle Sideways: of going in the out door
Eliza Madrigal snort
Riddle Sideways: first
Riddle Sideways: many times
Eliza Madrigal: oh
Riddle Sideways: have walked into the last gallery first
Riddle Sideways: seen the blank canvas
Riddle Sideways: or squirt gun paintings
Riddle Sideways: and paper cut outs
Riddle Sideways: and thought that that is garbage
Riddle Sideways: then go back to the first room
Riddle Sideways: go through gallery in 'correct' order
Riddle Sideways: and build up history, appreciation
Riddle Sideways: knowledge?
Eliza Madrigal: trust?

Riddle Sideways: and finally get to the last room
Riddle Sideways: and think how wonderful
Riddle Sideways: this canvas is
Riddle Sideways: then slap forehead
Riddle Sideways: realizing
Riddle Sideways: it is the same garbage one
Riddle Sideways: see anew
Eliza Madrigal smiles
Eliza Madrigal: and that humility gained becomes part of your experience
Riddle Sideways: did that couple months ago at MoMa
Riddle Sideways: Pacasso
Riddle Sideways: sculptures
Eliza Madrigal: ah, nice
Eliza Madrigal: but you scoffed at first?
Riddle Sideways: ah yes, am re-re-retaught humility over again

Eliza Madrigal: I remember the feeling when I first discovered that the artists weren't splattering because they only knew how to splatter
Riddle Sideways: discovered? or told/taught
Eliza Madrigal: mm, well it came as a discovery
Riddle Sideways: 3 year olds don't splatter either, ask them
Eliza Madrigal: I'd appreciated the splatterers and the refined artists...
Riddle Sideways: it is a dog
Eliza Madrigal: but separately
Eliza Madrigal: hah
Eliza Madrigal: I've kept quite a few splattered faces and settings :)
Riddle Sideways: yep
Riddle Sideways: big closet of saved art
Riddle Sideways: back stairway has cork strips on both walls
Riddle Sideways: we would hang up each art piece
Riddle Sideways: son on one side, daughter on other
Eliza Madrigal: home gallery :)
Riddle Sideways: yep

Eliza Madrigal: and your own expressions? drawing? painting?
Riddle Sideways: ummmm, nope
Riddle Sideways: play some mucic
Riddle Sideways: muse
Eliza Madrigal: true
Eliza Madrigal: and STOP with daughter
Riddle Sideways: appreciation
Riddle Sideways: those who can't DO become the audience
Eliza Madrigal: "and one man in his time plays many parts"

Riddle Sideways: oh, and will be going to an exhibit at Cosco today

--BELL--

Eliza Madrigal: lol what
Riddle Sideways: the art of frozen turkeys
Eliza Madrigal: thanksgiving shopping madness
Riddle Sideways: yep
Riddle Sideways: gotta get into it
Eliza Madrigal: am stepping into one today also.... to buy tiramisu
Eliza Madrigal: >freaks out<
Riddle Sideways: giggles
Eliza Madrigal: really have to prep oneself
Riddle Sideways: oh, the Thanksgiving Tiramisu
Eliza Madrigal laughs
Eliza Madrigal: I'm attending someone else's holiday this year
Riddle Sideways: "Tradition!!!"
Eliza Madrigal: so i'm sure they'll have basics covered

Riddle Sideways: need to go
Riddle Sideways: buy buy
Eliza Madrigal: Okay, happy shopping
Eliza Madrigal: Happy Holiday too
Riddle Sideways: :)
Riddle Sideways: thanks for the moments
Eliza Madrigal: thanks for the appreciative session
Eliza Madrigal: bfn
Riddle Sideways: let there be art
Eliza Madrigal: :)