3 posts tagged "Ed Ruscha"
Monsieur Vladimir Dit Merci
He may be a fixture on the fashion-party-circuit, but Vladimir Restoin-Roitfeld continues to make a strong case for himself as an up-and-coming art world contender. Following a successful show with Sotheby’s last October, the Paris native previewed his most ambitious group exhibition to date this morning at developer Aby Rosen’s contemporary art mecca, 980 Madison Avenue. Dubbed Merci Mercy, the 35-artist show explores the power and vitality of the written word. “I was looking for a new concept to develop and discovered that many of the artists I like use text in a systematic way,” said Restoin-Roitfeld, looking every bit the power broker despite frigid climes and the before-noon preview. “It was a good opportunity to bridge the artists I love with those I’m less familiar with and contextualize them in a way that made sense.” Borrowing its title from a Louise Bourgeois inscription (left), the show features works from industry veterans Ed Ruscha and Nan Goldin) to Zeitgeist darlings (Tom Sachs and the late Dash Snow, whose work is pictured below). “We wanted to find pieces that were less expected or typical,” said co-curator and Bortolami Gallery director Christine Messineo, who was introduced to Restoin-Roitfeld by his sister Julia. “And we were especially interested in working with artists from our generation.” To wit, the pair paid studio visits to several younger artists including Rashid Johnson, Jason Loebs and, Lucien Smith, all of whom created original works for the show.This March, Restoin-Roitfeld will curate a two-man exhibition with his longtime collaborator Nicolas Pol and Ashley Bickerton at Lehmann Maupin Gallery, but the roving dealer has no plans for a permanent gallery anytime soon. “I would like to settle down, but it’s a step-by step-process,” the 27-year-old told Style.com, though he’ll start by holding private salons at his new Upper East Side office. “I think it”s good to do things uptown. Young people should see what’s happening on this side of the city.”
Merci Mercy will run until February 17 at 980 Madison Avenue
Lots To See, Just One Eye
Just One Eye is not your typical e-tailer. For starters, their brick-and-mortar flagship stands in the mazelike Hollywood compound where Howard Hughes used to live, work, and seduce movie stars. But really, it’s their product selection that makes them so extraordinary. Where else could you find a Warhol-signed Rolling Stones necktie tee, some Carlo Bugatti chairs, and a range of antique fine jewelry alongside looks from Rodarte, Proenza Schouler, Olympia Le-Tan, and Maiyet? Since opening the store last spring, co-founder Paola Russo (formerly of Maxfield) has focused on mixing fashion and art. And we mean big-time art. Ed Ruscha has been collaborating in various ways since the shop’s launch. Work by Murakami, among others, hangs on the walls at headquarters. And today, the shop is launching the first in an ongoing series of artist/designer collaborations, debuting a limited-edition range of Damien Hirst-decorated backpacks from The Row.
According to Russo, Just One Eye’s interest in commissioning these projects comes from the store’s mandate to create “specialness.” “Our vision,” she explains, “is to make and sell things that will last. We don’t want to be involved with mass-produced fads,” she says. “Real luxury is something that is timeless and exceptional.” Naturally, true luxury comes with a hair-raising price tag. Or, in the case of the backpacks, which ring in at a cool $55,000, a gasp-worthy one. But it helps to know that some of that cash will go to a good cause. A portion of the proceeds from the bags will be donated to UNICEF; ditto Just One Eye’s next, more cost-democratic collaboration, which will see Nate Lowman teaming up with Converse. “He’s painting 25 pairs,” says Russo. “So the question for the people who buy these shoes will be, you know, do you wear them, or keep them as art?” A question many of us have posed about our shoes. But not typically of our sneakers.
Visit Just One Eye at justoneeye.com.
Fendi On Wheels
The 17th annual ArtWalk benefit hits New York tonight, with co-chairs Alec Baldwin, Carey Lowell, Richard Gere, and Coco Rocha hosting one of the social calendar’s most prominent benefit art auctions, with proceeds going to New York City’s Coalition for the Homeless. Shepard Fairey, Jenny Holzer, Ed Ruscha, and Richard Phillips are among the artists who have donated their work to the silent and live auctions, but it’s a piece from evening sponsor Fendi that may have the evening’s fashion-world attendees buzzing. The label’s Selleria bike has Roman leather seats, wheel and handle covers, pump, basket, and vanity case—and, for the easily misdirected, a leather-covered GPS. ArtWalk? ArtRide!