Taking Another Look

For as many times I have looked at Jasper Johns' Corpse and Mirror at the Art Institute, this is the first time that I noticed this one circle. Johns did many of these paintings using simple cross-hatching with a brush. The other aspect of this particular painting that I like is that it is a series of 4 joined panels that appear to be 6, by Johns' use of trompe l'oeil. He was always crazy like a fox, hiding easter eggs in his works, in this instance, the form of a circle. This is what I've always liked about neo-dada and pop art: it was clever in a way that has traveled well, as a novel might from the 19th century.

The other thing I observe in the modern galleries is what crowds look at. They are attracted to Warhol's Jackie screenprints like moths to a light--now to take selfies with them. This is not surprising that the content and the context are still contemporary as if they were a one-way mirror into 1964. There was a young fellow wearing earbuds and was intensely looking at the white brush strokes in a Robert Ryman painting. This is encouraging because almost all the people I see roaming through galleries are taking the art seriously and not making derisive remarks. (This is either because they are maximizing the price of admission, or are genuinely interested, I don't know yet.)

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The other works Iove are the Martha Rosler photo collages. Now anyone can do these appropriations easily in Photoshop and post them on social media--but back in the 60s they had a great effect of cognitive dissonance created by the juxtaposition of images of Vietnam with scenes of comfortable suburban life.

What was interesting this time was the idea of compartmentalization--that we go about our daily lives in comfort while numbing ourselves against the dark global realities. Cold War Steve now does a satirical version of these but they're not shown in a serious context. He shares them on Twitter and they are hugely popular, but they are wackier and less thought-provoking. Art museums are a place where you can find sanctuary from the wacky and insane.

Art is always cool regardless of how the world is changing around it.