In my view, non-objective and abstract art have a special role in describing non-Newtonian reality—a reality in which our five senses are of little use.
The Al Held Foundation and the Smithsonian Institution’s Archives of American Art are pleased to present “Artists’ Archives and Public Storytelling,” an afternoon of conversation with Anne Helmreich (Smithsonian's Archives of American Art), Christine Persche (Storm King Art Center), Sally Radic (Guston Foundation), and Daniel Belasco (Al Held Foundation). The panelists will consider such questions as the value of including archives and oral histories in public storytelling about an artist or artwork. Why is it important to make memories and legacies of the artist available to the public? How are organizations using digital technologies to support public storytelling with archives and oral histories? What other forms of public storytelling might we envision? Registration is required, click link for details.
The foundation's executive director Daniel Belasco will discuss how "Noah's Focus II" (1970), a stunning large-scale work from Held's Black & White period, was recently unstretched and rolled for safe transport from New York to the Guggenheim Bilbao. A gift from the foundation to the museum, the painting went straight on view in the permanent collection galleries. Belasco will discuss the painting and its labor-intensive relocation on the occasion of Held's birthday (October 12). The talk also serves as a preview to Belasco’s in-person conversation with curator Marta Blavia at the Guggenheim Bilbao on Thursday, October 22.
Curated by Olga Dekalo, this solo exhibition by Lukaza Branfman-Verissimo includes a series of handmade cotton paper works exhibited for the first time and photographs the artist made in collaboration with Nicholas Valdes.