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Is LowBrow Art Just A Fad?



Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia, defines lowbrow art as follows:

Lowbrow, or lowbrow art, describes an underground visual art movement that arose in the Los Angeles, California, area in the late 1970s. Lowbrow is a widespread populist art movement with origins in the underground comix world, punk music, hot-rod street culture, and other California subcultures. It is also often known by the name pop surrealism.

The majority of lowbrow artworks are paintings; there are also toys (vinyl and plush), and sculptures.


The definition goes on to discuss the first artists to create what came to be known as 'lowbrow' art, magazines in the genre (the most famous being Juxtapoz, whose editor, Robert Williams, claims to have coined the name "lowbrow"), and 'alternative' galleries that carry these types of works.

Just so you know to whose work I am referring, some of the most well-known of these artists are: SHAG (Josh Agle), Mark Ryden, Marion Peck, Todd Schorr, Elizabeth McGrath, Tim Biskup, Gary Baseman, Gary Taxali, Anthony Ausgang, Camille Rose Garcia, Joe Sorren, Tara McPherson and Raymond Pettibon.

The Wikipedia definition goes on to historically compare the Lowbrow artists to the Dadaists.

This is where they lose me.

Now, I really enjoy looking at their works, even own a few of their books. I am entertained by their not so subtle interpretation of pop culture and their 'jabs' at historic art. I even enjoy seeing how 'creepy and offensive' some of them can get.

But since when are illustrations, comic books, tattoos and graffiti considered an art movement?

Art, yes. Movement? Nah.

Comparing Shag to Marcel Duchamp makes me cringe.


Okay, so the first time Marcel Duchamp penned R. Mutt on a urinal and called it a "Fountain", the art world was aghast at what he considered art. But he was the first (the first) to take an everyday object and ascribe some ironic meaning to it.

Jeff Koons, a well respected contemporary artist, merely did the same years later and his work has recently been rapidly declining in value. You may recall the white porcelain puppy planters or blue balloon dogs on plates that appear in online auctions weekly.



Even Nara and Murakami (two asian artists whose work treads the fine line between 'fine art' and lowbrow' art and are referred to as Neo-Pop Japanese art) have also declined in value.



Just take a look at the chart below. It is January 2007 data from artprice on auction and sales values in the art world.



So, as I was saying before I got off on an art tangent there, Did Shag have the same impact on society that Marcel Duchamp did?

To compare some fun retro cocktail party scenes or cute tiki illustrations and altoid tins to Man Ray's Photographs or Duchamp's urinal is not only a stretch, it's a disservice to the fine art world.

Nowhere in the Wikipedia definition do the words goth, creepy, alien, retro or macabre appear, yet you can ascribe most of these adjectives to the work in this genre.

Yes, I'd pay a lot of money for an original Francis Bacon or Lucien Freud painting (similarly described as macabre, goth, creepy...even disturbing) but probably not for an original Mark Ryden. And that's not because Mr. Bacon is dead and Mr. Ryden is alive and kicking, but because, to me, Francis Bacon is an artist and Mark Ryden is an illustrator. Albeit an excellent illustrator. The difference between their work however is not merely because of the style or medium in which they work, but it's because of their originality, conceptuality and the emotion evoked by their works. Bacon's work is open to interpretation, multiple manifestations of theory and conjecture, whereas what you see is what you get with Ryden's work. One can look at Bacon's paintings and see something different every time, not so much with Ryden's.



Please understand me, I believe the aforementioned lowbrow artists are talented. I think their works are amusing at the very least and valid expressions of culture and society at the very most. I'd happily buy Shag's cocktail party invites to mail out or wear a Nara T-shirt. I hope these artists make money. I believe they work hard and have great talent. But is it art or a fad?

Over 15 years ago, I hired Gary Baseman to do some illustrations for a piece for Dayrunner (the organizational agenda company) and he did an excellent job. I picked him after looking through what was then the bible for art directors to find illustrators (the blackbook). But would I have considered going to a show of his works? Probably not.

I do believe that those people who plopped down 2500$ for a Shag lithograph 5 years ago, couldn't sell it on ebay for even half that today.

To whom exactly does low-brow art appeal? It's not like you can equate lowbrow with low cost anymore. Many of these artists sell pieces of their work for thousands of dollars. But will the value of these pieces increase?

According to market indeces and art world trends, the answer is no. I am not privy to Juxtapoz Magazines' circulation numbers or Shag's personal income, but I bet it's not climbing steadily.

So, before you 'invest' in a piece of lowbrow art, I have two words for you: Patrick Nagel.

Damask Is Back....And With A Vengeance.

Once relegated to Grandma's bed spread, Damask has made a major comeback as the new 'modern' pattern.

After the past few years of minimalist design in furniture and objects, rococo, ornate and baroque designed objects have come back like a plague.

Don't believe me? Just looky...One of the images below is actually a wall-mounted radiator!

If you are interested in purchasing any of the items pictured below, just click on the image.

Art For Your Floor - Modern and Cool Rugs

Who says art has to hang on the wall?

Check out these pieces of art you actually walk on! If you are curious as to where to buy these or how much they cost, simply click on the picture above and you'll be whisked right to it! Ahhhh, the magic of the internet...

See more of my Fancy Friggen Flooring & Radical Rugs list at ThisNext.

Inspiration (or ways to avoid working all day long)




As you all know, there are a million impressive interactive sites out there.
Rather than waste your precious time searching, bookmarking, e-mailing to friends, and so forth, I wasted my time for you.

These sites are not only beautifully designed but also many go on and on, so deep, that you could literally spend your entire day clicking and watching, watching and clicking.

If you're doing actual work today and haven't the time to f@#! off, be sure to bookmark this and come back to these. They are worth it, trust me.

The most intense and mind-blowing of these is Nobody Here.

Fancy yourself the next Jackson Pollock? Okay, then start here.

You can watch a collection of fabulous films that all take place in an elevator, with a wonderful interactive interface called Elevator Moods right here.

Or watch the world go by right here

Love animals?
here's a beautifully designed site that doubles as a 2007 calendar.

Okay Dave. A very talented portfolio center grad who now works for Frog design in NY has a both moving and funny site right here.

Lit Fuse design (two guys in seattle) have created a fun interactive site with barbie dolls and GI joes that shocases their talents. Check it out here.

Wanna see where Subservient Chicken got their inspiration? That'd be right here. And yes, this site was first.

Don't feel like inspiration, but mindless entertainment? Or you're unemployed, stoned and bored? then check out The Boohbah Zone here.

Bored of Tord?


I know I'm risking having woodland creatures crawl into my home and kill me as a result of my mentioning anything negative about the hot designer Tord Boontje, but once a designer starts creating things for Target, the sheen dulls a bit for me.

Now don't get me wrong, I love Target and greatly respect Mr. Boontje. And I've got to give the guy credit.

What started out as a laser cut garland for plain light bulbs (the Midsummer Garland) and a laser cut curtain for those who can't afford doors (hee hee), The Until Dawn Curtain, has become a woodland creature empire. But I'm already sick and tired of seeing a lot of this stuff:



However, what you may not be familiar with is some of his variations on the theme. And that's what I'm here to show you. Below are some of his, shall we say, less attainable products. In other words, you won't find them at Target, or even Moss in NY, but I've got a few pics for you:



I'm sure they'll be in his new design book, available any day now (which, by the way, is 5% cheaper on Overstock than on Amazon and shipping is less too!)



For those of you who simply can't get enough Boontje (pronounced boan-dcha) Bounty, you'll find his ubiquitous curtains, plates, garlands and even tattoos at Unica, Moss, and of course, Target.

Worth a mention is the guy's own site. It's really beautifully designed, you ought to check it out here.

Wood, Wonderful Wood.

10 years ago blonde woods were all the rage. Maple, beech, birch, white ash. Then about 5 years ago, it was dark woods; cherry, mahoghany..Or, as you probably know them; java and espresso and chocolate wood, since most of the dark woods were stains.
But now, anything goes. And there are a million beautiful things made of wood these days. In any shade. Veneer, lasercut, bent.
It's a wood wonderland!

See more of the really cool wood stuff I have found -including wood keyboards and monitors at myWood Wonderland list at ThisNext.



Dish For All You Art Directors Out There


Thought those of you familiar with PMS (and no, I'm not talking about Aunt Flo, I'm talking the Pantone Matching System),

The hard-to-find Pantone Dinnerwear collection is on sale at 50% off right now at Fishs Eddy in NY and online (I've got the link right here for you, folks.. just click on Fishes Eddy.

Dinner plates, salad plates, bowls, saucers and mugs all with actual pantone colors and numbers on them.

This is no crappy melamine, we're talking porcelain. Microwave and dishwasher safe.

Now, setting the table is more like doing a layout.

Driade Candles By Christian Ghion, laudani & romanelli



Unusual and beautiful wax candles designed by christian ghion and laudani & romanelli for Driade.





driade kosmo is the trademark that today groups all the objects produced by driade, defining a world of things strangely like our own. a world made up of exceptional moments that interrupt the calm sequence of events, of flamboyant characters and common folk, of artists, intellectuals and workers.


They're big.
They're bold.
They burn.
Me likey.
All available at Unica Home.

The Latest & Greatest: Items To Appreciate & Admire

Art, accessories, appliances.
A list of items that celebrate design, functionality and art.
Items to appreciate and admire.

See more of my If it's hip, it's here. list at ThisNext.

BIRD CRAP

I'm getting dangerously Anti-Aviary. Why?

Well, If you've been even the tiniest bit observant in the past year, you'd have noticed how birds are everywhere. I don't mean in the sky, or on trees, I'm talking about as a design element.

Bird pillows, bird wrapping paper, bird wallpaper, bird jewelry.
At first it was sweet, then charming and now it's verging on absolutely obnoxious.

Don't believe me?
Just go to ThisNext and type in 'bird'. There are over 3,00 bird-related items on there and over 65 individual lists of bird products. Or etsy. Or, for god's sake, even ebay.

Admittedly, I'm happy to see the actual sport of "birding' increase, but must that be reflected on everything in the marketplace?

Cushion your butt for only $8000! The PK25 Chair





Okay, I've always been a big fan of Fritz Hansen furniture and the pk22 easy chair in particular. For awhile now, I've been vacillating between spending the some odd $3500 for that chair or not.

But now.... now they've gone ahead and are producing the pk25 chair. For a measly $7,920 dollars.

Oh, do tell.... what's a design whore like me to do????

The PK25 easy chair has a matte chrome-plated steel base with braided flag halyard.


You can, and should read more about Poul Kjaerholm, when you can. He designed the original version of this chair in 1952.

What a visionary.



Fritz Hansen


What the #$@! is Shopcasting?

For those of you who don't know what Shopcasting is (don't be shy, be proud of the fact that you have a life outside of the internet), I'll help you out.

Shopcasting is very similar to a blog, only in addition to describing or showing the item, there's a direct link to purchase that item.

I've listed some links on my sidebar where you can check them out.

If you're fortunate enough to find a site where the bloggers or participants have similar taste to your own, it can save you hours of websurfing, because they've done the work for you!

Genius.

Please donate

C'mon people, it's only a dollar.