APAH-Contemporary Art

Christo and Jeanne-Claude, The Gates, 1979, Mixed-media installation

Once upon a time in 1979, an artistic husband-and-wife team wanted to do a unique, temporary art installation in Central Park. In 2005, their dreams came true and they were able to do it! They installed 7503 deep saffron-colored vinyl gates running all throughout the walkways of Central Park so that people could walk under a warm, golden ceiling. The gates had no purpose other than to be a work of art that can be marvelled, which is what people did. The gates didn't stay forever though, because the message the couple wanted to send was that the fleeting moments in life are precious and that we should cherish them in the now. The gates stayed for 15 days, and then the couple had them removed from Central Park. Compare to

Maya Lin , Vietnam Veterans Memorial, 1982, Granite

Once Upon A Time, a contest was held to design the commemoration structure for an American war ending in 1973. A long minimalist reflective black granite wall holds the names of those who died in order by year of the conflict. The winner, A young Chinese american designer, created a space that is interactive between the monument, the surrounding landscape and the visitors emphasizing the importance of harmony between humanity and the environment. Compare to

Jean-Michel Basquiat, Horn Players, 1983, Acrylic and oil paint stick on three canvas panels

Once Upon a Time: An American neo-expressionist artist used acrylic and oil paintstick on three mounted canvas panels (triptych) in order to depict the bustling New York city and music life while at the same time providing homage to African-Americans jazz artists such as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie. His graffiti art style of art is inspired by the likes of Pablo Picasso and the abstract expressionist movement. Compare to

Song Su-nam, Summer Trees, 1983, Ink on paper

Once Upon a Time: A Korean artist created an india ink on paper depicting the modern and contemporary depiction of mountains and plants illustrating one with nature, intelligence and strength by creating a disproportion of the trees as tall with small trunks. The overlapping of the paper depicts the difficulty to enter and revealing a sense of shallow space. The black, gray, and white embraces the abstraction and modernism of Korean art. Compare to Fan Kuan Travellers among Mountains and Streams and

Magdalena Abakanowicz, Androgyne III, 1985, Burlap, resin, wood, nails, and string

Once upon a time: a contemporary polish artist created an abstract sculpture in 1985 made of burlap, resin, nails, wood, and string. The sculpture is a fragment of a human body, with only the back and legs visible and front portion hollowed out, which at the time was seen as a form of dehumanization, and emphasized sexual characteristics. The rough texture created by burlap could be representative of wrinkles, human skin, veins, and possibly a reference to the artist's dark past during WWII. Compare to Darkytown Rebellion and The Swing by Yinka Shonibare.

Xu Bing, A Book from the Sky, 1987, Mixed-media installation

Once Upon a Time: A Chinese artist created a series of woodblock print scrolls and books that display rows of calligraphy. The calligraphy is actually not a part of the Chinese language, but is made up by the artist, who is responding to the propoganda used in the Cultural Revolution in China. The work conveys that meaning is not always found in words. Compare to Chairman Mao en Route to Anyuan and Sunflower Seeds by Ai Wei Wei

Jeff Koons, Pink Panther, 1988, Glazed porcelain

Once upon a time: An American Postmodern artist created a porcelain sculpture depicting a cartoon character and Jayne Mansfield together. The use of bright colors such as pink, blue, lavender, green and yellowish gold are to suggest sexuality between the two characters. By juxtaposing the cartoon character and the Hollywood star, the artist is challenging the appropriation of a mass-culture object and the object itself therefore challenging postmodernism as a whole. Compare to Nader Elevating Photography to an Art by Honore Daumier, Electronic Superhighway and Trade by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith

Cindy Sherman, Untitled (228), 1990, Photograph

Once Upon A Time™: A 6' 10 1/16" x 48" chromogenic color print was photographed in 1990, now located in MoMA, the American artist disguising herself to host the Biblical scene of Judith holding Holofernes' head. Drawing inspiration for the figures from Renaissance, there is emphasis of dominance of the woman whilst not providing a clear context of this being a feminist work, seen through Judith's resolute stature whilst Holofernes' (ironically) lively grotesque one, as well as the dominant colors of red, blue, and green in drapery featured, and her dressed in front of brocaded fabric curtain with colors of gold, further possibly symbolizing and suggesting direct correlation to Christ. Compare to Deposition by Pontormo and Rebellious Silence

Faith Ringold, Dancing at the Louvre, from the series The French Collection, Part; #1, 1991, Acrylic on canvas, tie-dyed, pieced fabric border

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Once upon a time: A female, African-American artist created a story quilt that depicts a fictional story of Willa Marie Simone meeting celebrities. She uses a quilt painted with acrylic paint to portray a continuous narrative as well as a combination of history, griot tradition, African-American culture, and her own biography as well as contributing to the rise of postmodernism." Compare to Migration of the Negro and Funeral Banner of Lady Dao

Jaune Quick-to-See Smith, Trade, 1992, Oil and mixed media on canvas

Once Upon A Time: A 20th century contemporary artist made an oil paint and mixed media canvas that included a collage as well as some objects. The artwork depicts historical and contemporary inequities between the Native Americans ans the United States government. The artist chose the colors white, yellow, green and especially red paint, which refers to Native American heritage meaning blood, warfare, anger, and sacrifice. Sports and toy imagery references the idea of trinket bartering and commercial use and misuse of Native American imagery in pop culture. Compare to Old Man's Cloth and Pisupo Lua Afe

Emily Kame, Earth's Creation, 1994, Synthetic polymer paint on canvas

Once Upon A Time: A 20th century Australian artist painted an acrylic paint on canvas work using the colors blue, green, yellow, and red making it seem to bloom like lush vegetation over the large canvas. The painting characterized the desert, grasslands, and rock formations of Australia. The expressive style is based on the artist's experience as a batik textile artist and perhaps the aborigine concept of Dreaming. Compare to Starry Night and Improvisation 28

Shirin Neshat, Rebellious Silence, 1994, Ink on photograph

Once Upon A Time: A 20th century Iranian artist uses her own face in a black and white photograph that is part of a series of works that convey the contrasting view of the western world compared to the Iranian view on women's identities during the Islamic Revolution in Iran. The rifle vertically bisects the work, and the rifle, the veil, the text, and the gaze are meant to convey the "paradoxical reality" between the western view of oppression on the women living in Iran, and the Iranian view during the Islamic Revolution that one should be willing to die for their faith in their religion. Compare to Shibboleth by Doris Salcedo and The Crossing by Bill Viola

Pepon Osorio, En la Barberia no se Llora, 1994, Mixed-media installation

Once Upon A Time: A 20th century Puerto Rican artist made a mixed media work which challenges definitions of masculinity and the relationship between machismo (masculinity) and homophobia, violence, and infidelity. One part of the work is a video of Latino men of varying age in masculine poses, and also of them crying. It is inspired by his first haircut in Puerto Rico, which he relates to masculinity. He recreates the barbershop as filled with masculine imagery. Compare to Tete a Tete by Wm Hogarth, Narcissus Garden by Kusama and The Swing by Yinka Shonibare

Michael Tuffery, Pisupo Lua Afe, 1994, Mixed media

Once Upon A Time: A 20th century artist from New Zealand created the sculpture of a bull out of flattened cans of corned beef. The sculpture alludes to the economic and dietary history of Pacific islands, as canned goods were introduced as imported goods that contributed to the contamination of local diets with sodium, saturated fat, and high cholesterol, causing high risk for heart disease and diabetes. In addition, this artwork also emphasizes the negative impacts of cattle on the environment as they disrupted native plants, farmland, and waterways. Compare to Old Man's Cloth and Trade by Jaune Quick to See Smith

Nam June Paik, Electronic Superhighway, 1995, Mixed-media installation

Once Upon a Time: A 20th century artist, one of the first to use television as an artistic medium, arranged 300 television screens into the shape of the United States and its interstate highways in order to emphasize how important television is in our society and how it connects all of us, despite being in different states. Neon lights outline the country and each state contains TV's showing video clips that characterize each state. Compare to Pure Land by Mariko Mori and The Crossing by Bill Viola

Bill Viola, The Crossing, 1996, Video/sound installation

Once Upon a Time: A 20th century contemporary artist took inspiration from spiritual religions that focus on change, redemption, transformation, and renewal, and interpreted these ideas into this work. He used his knowledge on technological experimentation to create this room-sized video installation with two screens showing a male figure walking slowly (so the viewer can have a relationship with both the artistic and spiritual experience) to the camera and stopping. On one screen, the man catches on fire and on the other screen, the man is engulfed in water until both elements take over and the man disappears. Compare to Horse in Motion by Edweard Muybridge and Stadia II by Jukie Mehretu

Frank Gehry, Guggenheim Museum Bilbao, 1997, Titanium, glass, and limestone

Once Upon A Time, an architect created a deconstructivist structure located in a port city in Spain. The titanium facade swoops ad soars mimicking the waves and ships in the harbor. It's reflective covering changes with atmospheric effects giving the building a dynamic undulating effect. Interior is open to accommodate changes in collections and installations. Compare to MAXXI Museum by Zara Hadid and Seagram Building.

Mariko Mori, Pure Land, 1998, Color photograph on glass

Once Upon a Time: There was a Japanese artist who used a creative interpretation of traditional Japanese art forms. The artist makes herself the central figure resembling a deity Kichijoten. Kichijoten is a japanese buddhist deity representing the essence of well-being, success, and beauty. The main figure holds a nyoi hoju, a jewel with powers to grant wishes and defeat evil. The jewel can also represent the Buddha's universal mind. The work was a color photograph on glass ,but would have been played in a three dimensional video with humming sounds, fans giving breezes, and scents to give the audience a calm, meditating tone and further connection to the artwork. The work romanticized views of popular culture and was a combination of fantasized imagery for consumers and traditional Japanese imagery. Compare to Ryoan ji and Illustration from The Results of the Five Year Plan by Stepanova

Kiki Smith, Lying with the Wolf, 2001, Ink and pencil on paper

Once Upon a Time: a 21st century artist creates a large scale multi media piece (using ink and pencil) to allow her to show texture, to illustrate a woman embracing a wolf, the symbol of classical Roman mythology. She assimilates themes of the bonds between humans and animals (and nature), mythology and religious narrative that were prevalent in her life, and contemporary images of the female body and feminine domesticity, along with the emphasis of female strength that enabled her to tame a wolf and equality (the de-emphasis of predator and prey)

Kara Walker, Darkytown Rebellion, 2001, Cut paper and projection on wall

Once Upon a time: An artist in 2003 created a digital installation in the post modernism era using cut up paper silhouettes and light projections on the wall. The artwork shows the violence of slavery in the antebellum South prior to the Civil War. The delicate refined craft of silhouette making is contrasted with violent and tragic images of African americans. Walker by revisiting the history of racism in America calls attention to the continuation of discrimination worldwide

Yinka Shonibare, The Swing (after Fragonard), 2001, Mixed-media installation

Once Upon A Time, a British-Nigerian artist recreated part of the composition of an 18th century Rococo painting for his installation called The Age of Enlightenment. A headless mannequin dressed in bright multi-patterned Dutch wax cloth is surrounded by a faux natural space in which the viewer can insert himself or herself into the composition as the absent figures. The work examines Western colonialism of that period and makes reference to nobility of the French Revolution, who were guillotined.

El Anatsui, Old Man's Cloth, 2003, Aluminum and copper wire

Once Upon a Time, an African artist named El Anastui created a massive wall textile installation out of bottle caps from alcohol beverages marketed to Africans by British colonial rulers. The artwork was welded of aluminum and copper wire, with different coloured patterns (red, gold, and black), a referenced to kente cloths originally designed for royalty and later as imagery associated with African-american culture of the late 20th century. The artist contrasts western and Nigerian context and the 2D and 3D mediums (textiles and scupture) evoked in his work

Julie Mehretu, Stadia II, 2004, Ink and acrylic on canvas

Once Upon A Time: An Ethiopian Artsist named Julie Mehretu turned her art and specific dynasim into the world around her. The Stadia II is both an ink and acrylic on canvas made according to a larger scale. The styles are rendered as stadium architecture is used throughout. As seen in the painting, you can see a party-like frenzy outburst in small circular spaces along with other images as well. Multi-layered lines as well as sweeping lines are used to create animation in the artwork. The purpose of this work was to globally express the energy we have in our world these days.

Wangechi Mutu, Preying Mantra, 2006, Mixed media on Mylar

Once Upon A Time: A Kenyan artist created a mixed media on mylar collage in the 21st century, that depicts a female hybrid figure sitting on what seems to be a Kuba cloth. The artist focuses on female subjectivity, used imagery, and hybridity which is the mixture of cultures to create a different culture uniqueness to compare the female figure to a praying mantis. The creator of this artwork was inspired by a protest she saw that was held by woman, earlier collages, and african articles and african stereotypes.

Doris Salcedo, Shibboleth, 2007, Installation

Once Upon A Time: A Columbian artist created a deep, slim crack in the ground and uses it to defy neat descriptions, but to live in limbo between sculpture and installation. The interior of the crack varies from width and depth from the wires cutting into the sides; and the viewer's view on the piece differs depending on where they are standing.This piece of work illustrates the artist's sense of isolation in part because of her exile from her homeland and the rift between her Columbian heritage and the Western European world.

Zaha Hadid, MAXXI National Museum of XXI Century Arts, 2009, Glass, steel, and cement

Once Upon A Time, an Iraqi-British architect won an international design competition to build a contemporary art museum in Rome. Two museums built as oblong tubes or horizontal structures with large open window space and a glass roof for natural light [compare to Gothic "lux nova"] Spaces flow from one area to another with curving interior that changes in depth as visitors move through the space.

Ai Wei Wei, Kui Hua Zi (Sunflower Seeds), 2010, Sculpted and painted porcelain

Once Upon A Time: A Chinese artist provided employment for impoverished skilled women to create hundreds of handmade porcelain sunflower seeds, purposefully using the work to reveal China's propaganda and critique of conformity and censorship in China. The artist brought awareness to the common negative connotations of the term "Made in China" and the effects of mass consumerism.