A Couple of Ways of Doing Something in Austin
Opening this weekend at the Austin Museum of Art, A Couple Ways of Doing Something features Chuck Close’s intimate portraits of leading contemporary artists, paired with Bob Holman’s witty and beautifully typeset poems. The daguerreotypes offer an extremely revealing study of the subjects, extending the hyperrealist tradition of portraiture for which Close is renowned. In keeping with the exhibition title, Chuck Close has included examples of his other works taken from each daguerreotype in a variety of media, including photogravures, digital pigment prints, and large-scale tapestries. In an additional departure for Close, many of the portraits were produced in tandem with praise poems by Bob Holman, founder of the Bowery Poetry Club. Together, they form composite portraits of their subjects—an influential and highly creative circle of friends and colleagues—from Andres Serrano to Cindy Sherman. An opening reception will be held Friday, August 21 from 6:00 to 9:00, open only to museum members. The museum will screen a film about the artist and his peers in early September as well as a Slide Lecture by Art Historian Richard Shiff early November.
Chuck Close: A Couple of Ways of Doing Something
Saturday, August 22—Sunday, November 8, 2009
Austin Museum of Art
823 Congress Avenue
Austin, Texas
(512) 495-9224
Film: Portrait of Close’s Creative Circle
Thursday, September 10, 2009 7:00 pm
In her film Chuck Close (2007), director Marion Cajori examines the appeal of the human face by interviewing the artist and his circle of creative friends, including Philip Glass, Robert Rauschenberg, and Kiki Smith. Film introduction by Austin photographer George Krause.
Slide Lecture: Realism of Low Resolution
Thursday, November 5, 2009 7:00 pm
Art Historian Richard Shiff will put the portraits of Chuck Close in context with the slide lecture Realism of Low Resolution: Chuck Close (and Others).
Click here to purchase your copy of A Couple of Ways of Doing Something, published by Aperture.
Tags: A Couple of Ways of Doing Something, Andres Serrano, Austin Museum of Art, Bob Holman, Chuck Close, Cindy Sherman, Marion Cajori, Richard Shiff
