Monday, March 2, 2009

All in the eye of the beholder


Before I get to the point of this post, meet our new friends, the Richardsons. They came to our mission the middle of January. What a wonderful addition! I am sure to share more about them as time goes on, but for now..just think FUN.
Sister Richardson LOVES art, REAL art. She is actually quite an expert, so she coaxed us into viewing a temporary exhibit and attending a lecture by the artist. I do not claim to be an educated consumer, I just know what I like. I was a little leery when she told us about the cardboard boxes. Okay NOT actual boxes but wooden replicas. NO KIDDING. I believe the exhibit was titled "The Discarded" -or something similar. The "masterpiece" was a display of boxes. Dell, Dole, pizza, and Reynold's Wrap... got it?. Can you say "Andy Warhol"? If you look closely, you can see one of the boxes in the picture of Elder Richardson above (you can also see the back of the artist's head). It is actually an amazing replica-VERY realistic. You may say (as I did)..."I have a garage full of the real thing." But you should know that the boxes don't stand alone. They are accompanied by a fictional account depicting how they were used by, belonged to or in someway were associated with a celebrity. So now... what do you think? The artist admittedly took weeks to complete some of the replicas. What do I think? He is skilled in creating replicas, clever in writing the fictional account and sincere in his passion for ART... but only as defined by HIM. I actually liked him. He was quite charming... aside from his very political agenda. I also liked some of his art. I could see the skill in his paintings, even though I would describe some as grotesque. I quite liked his whimsical paintings of fruits and vegetables as if they were animated objects. Of course that was until he explained that they represented conflict and the cute little creatures were actually attacking the pumpkin. So as an uneducated consumer I would give him 5 out of 10. I am SO glad we went. It was a fun evening from beginning to end. I enjoyed all of it... the art, the lecture and MOST of all the company. I just think art doesn't have to reflect the dark side of life. Maybe he will come back with a new exhibit some day. Maybe it will be called "The Cherished". I would definitely like to see that one. I might even save my money to own a poster of a copy of a print! Elder Fairhurst just asked where were the pictures of dogs playing poker, fruit bowls and Elvis on velvet. And you thought I was the UNCULTURED one!!!

3 comments:

Lott said...

I really wish I could have come with you to the art show . It would have been a blast for sure!

Mike and Kelli said...

That box is crazy. I can't believe it is made out of wood, it definitely looks like cardboard...is that a good thing or not??? I know nothing about art. :)

Elder Stevens said...

haha ahh The Richardson's...Good people. Tell em I said hi!