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Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Ray Johnson and me?!


Ray Johnson is a contemporary artist from the 60s and 70s (died in 1995) who is most well known for his collages sent through snail mail to individuals all over the world. His connections through people, facts, and images have a multi-layering of meanings, and he has kept a large group of fans with his work- such as the Depere resident: Steven Perkins.

Steven Perkins is the gallery director and a prof. of art history at UWGB. In his home, he has a small gallery in his WC of Ray Johnson works. He has operated this small WC gallery in his home for over 8 years bringing in many different artists to show work there.

I thought traveling over to his home in Depere was SO WORTH THE TRIP! He has such a lovely home with his wife and daughter, full of worldly art as well as the funky gallery. Listening to him speak about Ray Johnson was also quite interesting. Steven was one of his correspondents which made Ray Johnson so much more "alive" to me, hearing directly from someone who actually interacted with him. Also, hearing about his opinions about setting up a gallery space and really using any space available to you (like a bathroom) to show someone's art. It was very inspiring and creative, and I want to go back!

9 comments:

  1. I agree, it was great to hear about his experiences from Ray with the recording of him in the background. And I will definitely consider going back. I like that you have a very succinct assessment here, but I do wonder what you thought about the topics of convocation or does Mary Jane Jacob not really overlap with this subject matter for you?

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  2. I enjoyed the WC Gallery as well. I thought it was pretty bizarre, but I liked it. It was also a little weird to talk to Steven Perkins immediately after first watching the documentary about Ray Johnson. It certainly kept him fresh in our minds, but I think I would have liked a little more time to think and read about Johnson before seeing a gallery about him.

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  3. yah it was amazing to see some of Ray's work in that tiny gallery, I kinda felt the presence of him when I was there. and I like how he made his art some sort of icon, I mean it's like some kind of chained product with the same brand of Ray Johnson.

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  4. I agree, seeing Ray Johnson's work in person and hearing Steven telling stories about him really brought him and his work to life. Actually being able to look at his drawings and knowing what it was like to interact with him was really interesting, and revealed even more about him beyond what watching "How to Draw a Bunny" did.

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  6. Ali, after viewing the WC gallery, I also felt as though I had this indirect interaction between me and Ray Johnson. Just by being able to view Johnson's work in person and then talking to Stephen Perkins (who actually knew Johnson in the past), made me feel so much more closer to him than I had felt when we watched the documentary.
    Although the WC gallery was intimate and had a limited collection of Johnson's work, I was still impressed by Perkin's effort. I think the intimacy of the space is what actually made me feel so close to Ray Johnson. By being alone in the bathroom for a while, I was not only able to view Johnson's work in person, but could also hear his voice in the background; it almost made me feel like he was present during that moment! It was certainly an inspiring gallery, as it made me realize that no matter how big or small a space is, one can display his/her artwork anywhere, as long as it is visible to others.

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  7. I also agree with many of my peers. Seeing Ray's art first hand made it so much more, "alive". I'll be honest and say the trip was well worth it, but I was a bit on edge prior to going. The idea of viewing art in someone's bathroom seemed, creepy? But I must say, the experience was truely remarkable, and I'd love to go again as well.

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  8. The direct contact between viewer, curator, art space, art work and artist perhaps created an art interaction experience that wasn't mind-numbing which can sometimes be a stumbling block for big museum shows that must make art accessible (physically and intellectually) to the masses.

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