Thursday, September 21, 2006

Gone, Daddy, Gone.

Well. This is one way to get rid of art. Tear down the building. No more Swoon on Smith Street.

Then.


Now.


Via Oranje I came across this, the pool of Swoon sightings on flickr. Word.

12 comments:

Susan Constanse said...

Thanks for the shout out. The piece I found, I can't verify. I'm used to seeing big swoons, I guess. The one I spotted couldn't have been more than 4" in height. Does she do things that small?

Heart As Arena said...

Hi, Susan. I don't think she works that small.

Anonymous said...

That nice fence around is screaming for more swoon now...

Heart As Arena said...

Unfortunately, what it's screaming for in actuality is probably another ugly-ass Fedders Building. The torture never stops.

Anonymous said...

if swoon was not an illegal wheat paster would anyone care about her? Her style of illustration seems so incredibly unoriginal and boring..............

Heart As Arena said...

Anon. She is an illegal wheat paster, but for me, that fact never really enters into my assessment of her work. (Not to mention that I've seen her work in galleries and museums and it holds up without the illegality or the wheat paste. Her last show at Deitch was a glorious thing.) I'm almost never know what people mean when they say that something is unoriginal, and I don't find the way her lines move boring at all. I love the way her pieces interact with their environment. Her willingness to accept nature and humankind putting the finishing touches on her work via decay and destruction remind me of Doug & Mike Starn's work, albeit obviously in a different setting. So, conceptually it's really interesting blah blah blah, but that's only half (Actually, maybe a tenth) of the fun. The rest is all asthetics, and from that angle Swoon's work (just like the Starns') kicks my ass on a pretty consistent basis. Maybe you and me we just disagree, Anon, but I'm right!

Joking. About that last thing, I mean. I'm quite serious about everything else. SWOON rocks like Gibraltar.

John Morris said...

Swoon totally rocks.

First of all, her work is a pretty stunningly display of craftsmanship with a pretty hard to bite sense of her personal hand. Then she usually finds just the right spot them.

But, it's the pure sincerity and dedicated purpose in the work that stands out. As much as I love it, a lot of even the best street art doesn't trancend the " oh look at me/ publicity stunt or Oh- look at my skills stage. Swoon's work and history does not seem motivated by that at all, this is a totally sincere artist putting out these amazing things as a loving tribute to places and people that have affected and passed through her life. The fact that she still is leaving these things around is pretty much proof of that. If your sole purpose is to be famous, then puting these things in neglected corners of Pittsburgh, would be an unlikely thing. Notice that, there hasn't been some shift to huge 15 foot tall swoons or other tricky stuff going on. She is keeping on with her own personal path and sort of just leaving these things as just a natural part of her life.

John Morris said...

Getting back to the Starn Twins, they are awsome, and I think underated. I guess they got that 1980's hex on them as being some flash in the pan thing. I met them when they had a recent show in Pittsburgh, they are really low key.

Heart As Arena said...

Wow, John. That is such a great breakdown of why I love Swoon's work so much. You totally nailed it from every angle.

And YES. Mike and Doug Starn. I wasn't familiar with their work at all until a couple years ago , and I fell in love with it from the getgo. I think that you're right about the 80's hex, and as usual it's just idiotic and pointless. Is the work good or not? That should be the question and it so rarely is. And their work is good. It's very, very good.

Anonymous said...

I look at the starn twins and cant believe it ever existed, like some vaseline gaze, Granta magazine, even more sickenlingly sweet than Sally Mann horse fetish nightmare.......and I cant take Swoon's stuff at Moma or in a gallery, I immediately lose all interest....
but what the hey just an opinion
Did you forget the Oehlen show in the Chelsea roundup?....stuff at Zwirner looks cool too...happy art viewing

Heart As Arena said...

Anon 12:14. I obviously don't agree with you about the brothers Starn or Swoon, but that "cant believe it ever existed, like some vaseline gaze, Granta magazine, even more sickenlingly sweet than Sally Mann horse fetish nightmare" was a knockout classic!

I missed the Oehlen on my travels but I keep hearing good things about it, and you're right . . . the show at Zwirner looks interesting. Thanks.

Anonymous said...

thats the most democratic retort I've ever heard
kudos heart