Makes you think all the world’s a sunny day

Last week’s announcement that Kodak will no longer make  Kodachrome film is no big surprise.

The Wall Street Journal says a proper goodbye, here to a medium that was employed and loved by many, including Nan Goldin, Dan Graham, Louise Lawler, William Eggleston, William Christenberry, and Joel Meyerowitz, among countless others. And on the WSJ’s Speakeasy – Kodachrome: A Cultural History – jumping from the immediate recognition – Paul Simon’s anthem, to the other great shout-outs this film’s received.

My favorite:

Elvis Costello’s “Watch Your Step” (1981)

When you’re kicking in the courtroom/And you’re drinking down the Eau de Cologne/And you’re spitting out the Kodachrome/You better watch your step.

Suddenly in Your City

The Seattle incarnation of  suddenly: where we live now opens this week.

Hannes Wingate

SUDDENLY: WHERE WE LIVE NOW
An Exhibition Exploring the Aesthetic Life of Cities

July 3-15, 2009
312 Occidental Avenue
Seattle, WA, 98104
gallery hours: July 5-15, closed July 4, 12-6 p.m. Free

suddenly: where we live now will be on view from July 3 through July 15, 2009 in a storefront space in Seattle’s Pioneer Square neighborhood. An opening reception with curator Stephanie Snyder, director of the Douglas F. Cooley Memorial Art Gallery at Reed College, and participating artists Elias Hansen, Michael Hebb, Michael McManus, Hannes Wingate, and Molly Dilworth will be held at the space on Friday, July 3 at 9:00 p.m.

Visual artists exhibiting work in the Seattle iteration of suddenly include: Marc Joseph Berg, New York; Zoe Crosher, Los Angeles; Molly Dilworth, Brooklyn; Elias Hansen, Tacoma; Michael Hebb, Seattle; Hadley+Maxwell, Berlin; Michael McManus, Portland; Boris Sieverts, Frankfurt; and Hannes Wingate, Portland.

In addition, a bookstore has been created in the space, offering works by suddenly artists and participating writers: Fritz Haeg, Los Angeles; Frank Heath, Brooklyn; Anne Focke, Seattle; Lisa Robertson, San Francisco; Thomas Sieverts, Frankfurt; Stephanie Snyder, Portland; Matthew Stadler, Portland; Storm Tharp, Portland; and Oscar Tuazon, Paris.

Risky Business

Every Wednesday, the Henry staff meets. We talk about what’s coming up, new ideas, and plan new programs as a team – and often, we talk about The Big Picture. This morning, Henry Director Sylvia Wolf posed these questions:

What does it mean to be a risk-taking institution?
How do we take risks?
Why do we take risks?

No one is promoting the idea of risk for risk’s sake. It’s a big question, especially since it is one that is so tied up in the Henry’s  identity.  If we take risks all the time, and we’re totally comfortable with it – then it isn’t actually very risky anymore, is it? What are the new risks for the Henry? Could one risk be getting (and learning from) feedback in new ways and opening venues for dialogue and critique? We tried that with the MFA BrightKite Wall – but I think it’s going to take some getting used to before it actually works as meaningful dialogue. The lines are always open – Hankblog will publish your comments as long as they’re not spam. The Henry’s Twitter feed, Facebook, and Tumblr are all open for comments and questions. I’d love to hear your thoughts. What is a risk that you’d like to see the Henry take? What are some risks that the Henry’s taken that fell flat, from your perspective? What are some risks that you’d like to see the Henry take again?

I posed the question on our Twitter feed – to some very interesting responses – (sounds like Yerba Buena Center for the Arts had the same staff meeting as we did at the Henry today.) It’s pretty amazing how the Twitterverse works and how thoughtful – and inspiring – folks can be in 140 characters or less.
Want to follow the Henry on Twitter?

“Great staff meeting questions this morning! What does it mean for a museum to take risks? What would it mean for the Henry to take risks?”

1. PaulFraserWebb@henryartgallery Oh, and I’m not talking damp squib failure. More glorious going down in flames failure.about 1 hour ago from TweetDeck in reply to henryartgallery

2. 

   PaulFraserWebb@henryartgallery be willing to fail – embrace failure – and learn from it.about 1 hour ago from TweetDeck in reply to henryartgallery
3. 

   museumnerd@henryartgallery “Risk taking” for a contmporary art museum could be: exhibiting unestablished artists w no gallery representation.about 1 hour ago from mobile web
4. 

   tangdynasty@henryartgallery reevaluate most of the existing curatorial & museological paradigms – there’s no room for real risk or change any longerabout 1 hour ago from TweetDeck in reply to henryartgallery
5. 

   City_Arts@henryartgallery Addressing difficult, local issues through art. E.g. Wallinger’s installation at the Tate: http://tinyurl.com/2hv2umabout 1 hour ago from TweetDeck in reply to henryartgallery

Go means go!

suddenly, this summer

Read ALL about it at http://suddenly.org/

Last Chance For MFA Exhibition

The 2009 UW School of Art M.F.A. exhibition closes after this weekend. Today and tomorrow are you big chances to see it. It’s an excellent one and these students have worked very hard. See them at the Henry in the next 48 hours.
We’re open 11-4 today and tomorrow.

Words Without Pictures: come to the program, hear artists talk, help us launch the book!

We are gearing up for another Projections program tomorrow, this one centered on current issues in contemporary photographic practice. We will hear from three fantastic Seattle artists — Margot Quan Knight, Vesna Pavlovic, and David Hartt — on their work before we head into discussion with visiting artist/curator Alex Klein. Klein edited the brand new compendium Words Without Pictures that compiles the essays, responses, and structured discussions from a year long series of online forums and live events at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. Artists, scholars, critics, and curators all participated in the multi-faceted project.

Bring your credit cards, you might just want to take a copy home! Essays by Walead Beshty, Mark Wyse, George Baker, Charlotte Cotton, Alex Klein, and others. Conversations include the voices of Sarah Charlesworth, John Divola, James Welling, Sharon Lockhart, Amir Zaki, Allan McCollum, Amy Adler, Paul Graham, and many others. It’s certain to be a source book you’ll want on your shelf if you are interested in the latest developments around the medium of photography and the contemporary state of the photographic image.

Projections: Words Without Pictures is happening Thursday, June 18th, 6:30 in the Henry Auditorium. FREE for Henry members, $5 general admission.

See you there!

Bike Friday Pics

Last night’s Bike Friday event was biketastic! So many, many THANKS to our amazing volutneers, to Whitney Ford-Terry, to LAKE (who sounded amazing), to the ASUW Bike Shop Valet Parking Team, to Alex from 20/20 Cylces and his incredible Bike-Powered Blender and just-picked organic strawberries, to BikeWorks for the racks, to Seattle DIY, to Hollow Earth Radio and DJ Tape Deck, to Cascade Bicycling Club, Recycled Cycles, and 20/20 Cycles for the door prizes and to YOU, Seattle Art-Loving Bike Enthusiasts! Welcome to the Henry, it’s nice to see you here!

Got photos from last night that you’d like to share? Drop them in the Henry’s Flickr Pool.

New Alchemy – Get your golden tickets today!

Tickets available here!

WHAT: A Fundraiser with a Mad Scientist Type Twist

WHY: Support ARCADE V.28 – A NEW ALCHEMY

FEATURING: Live Music, Entertainment, Food and Libations

WHERE: Argent Fabrication – 4001 Aurora Ave N, Seattle

DATE: Wednesday, June 17, 2009

TIME:   6 PM to 9 PM

Walk through Target Practice with Laurie Anderson

Many thanks to Jen Graves for pointing me to the the audio guide that features Laurie Anderson and SAM curator Michael Darling with for the new exhibition Target Practice.
Very cool!