Work of Art on Bravo?

[NiteNicole]

ANYONE watching this? It's not going to be the next Project Runway but it's pretty good. I enjoy how much time they devote to the artists talking about what they're doing and why, even though I don't think there are very many um...good...artists. I know people like to argue that art is subjective but I've sat through enough undergrad art juries to know that sometimes it's just bad art, you know? I'm seeing a lot of recycled ideas and incomplete thoughts and total lack of direction or definitive POV and I'm certainly no expert.

Last night's competition was kind of a tran wreck. The assignment was to make "shocking" art. In a way, I think that some people watching will feel like the show just confirms what they've always suspected: most modern art is BS and some people just want attention. I don't think that's the case for all modern artists, but the vast majority of this group isn't coming across as very talented.

Anyone else watching? Please?

[annettemarie]

I've been watching it and it bugs the heck out of me. I don't know why. To me, making art seems almost... I don't know, sacred?... and it seems really yucky to have a reality show about it. I know this is stupid, given everything else there are reality shows about.

Still, I've watched every week.

And yeah, the shocking art was a train wreck. It was so juvenile how everyone's mind went to sex. Very junior high. And none of it was terribly shocking.

[Liquesce]

I know it sounds sort of suburban-pretentious of me, but I really wish this show was on PBS instead of Bravo. I would so rather it wasn't a "vote someone off every week" format, you know? And I would also prefer it wasn't being marketed as "finding the Next! Great! Artist!" but instead was being honest about what the show is and what the scope of the show even can be. KWIM? I get that Bravo won't or can't do that ... that they have an established reality niche and have advertisers to appeal to. I just think that the format and billing makes something that could be so cool a little bit too schlocky.

(But, like annettemarie, I still watch every week. )

ETA: Oh, and on the last challenge, Andres Serrano was absolutely correct that the very best shocking art is often that which absolutely did not set out to shock. How people involved in the program could get that and still say to the artists "ok, so set out to shock us" struck me as a little strange. It makes me wonder who exactly is coming up with the challenges, and how much they have a grip on what kind of art can actually suit the show.

[JessicaS]

I am watching it

I am not sure yet. I liked the portraits and I liked the book covers but I did NOT like the "shocking" art. I found it rather crass, vulgar and not all that shocking.

[Virginia884]

DH and I watch it every week. Some are good artists, but I think the fact that they have to work in the constraints of the challenge for that week sells some of them short. I liked the portraits and books, too, but didn't really care for the 'let's be shocking just for the hell of it' this week. At this point I think Miles is going to win.
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[Liquesce]

I'm rooting for Abdi, myself.

[NiteNicole]

I was impressed with Abdi after that tv head thing. I am sure it's an image we've all seen before (and it's probably been used in commercials, videos, and everything else) but I was really impressed that he made it look sad. The thing looked sad! At least Abdi, even if he's not very original and still working through some undergrad kind of ideas, has some skill. I feel like he's been spending time working at getting better at what it is HE does.

And I still think Miles and that woman (Nicole?) HAVE to be related. I'm putting it out there: I spy a plot twist (yes, I know there is probably not a plot twist but I'm calling it anyway).

[Liquesce]

I think Abdi is just extremely well suited to the compressed time scale of the show, you know? I totally agree about the sort of art school level of the found object challenge concept, but like you said it was physically expressive, and turning out a physically expressive, properly proportioned full body sculpture in two days isn't exactly a piece of cake. I also thought the portrait he did for the first challenge was great, and I loved that he really thought about the shock art challenge and tried to be meaningful with it rather than just defaulting to thrusting yet another variation on the theme of sex in the judges' faces.

[mata]

Nicole is "Countess" LuAnn's (from Real Housewives of NYC) niece.

[Liquesce]

They didn't even try to have a challenge this week, did they.

[NiteNicole]

It seems they have run out of challenge concepts. "Here, ride in this car because people will probably watch this but they'll ff through commercials. Ok, now do whatever you want."

Also, someone should tell Jaclyn that those people "staring" at her were probably looking at the cars on display or, oh, I don't know the small army of camera and production people following them around. I know it's tempting for her to think the rest of the world is as interested in her boobs as she is, but I really doubt that was the case.

[annettemarie]

I thought that as well-- why was the one dude a narcissist for making all the challenges about himself, but she wasn't? Haven't hers all been variations of self portraits?

[Liquesce]

I liked Peregrine this week. I feel like she went really literal not with the stated theme of the show but instead with the fact that it was a big excuse for an ad, and basically gave them ad copy, but ad copy that couldn't really be used as such.

[mommyshoppinghabit]

I enjoy the show. When I first saw the promo before the season began, I thought it would be all about the creative process and it would be filled with creative geniuses. Guess I was wrong on both counts, but it's still entertaining. Have you guys seen Project Rungay's posts every week? They're pretty much spot on.

[Liquesce]

Did anyone else find this week just a little bit painful to watch?

[JessicaS]

Originally Posted by Liquesce

Did anyone else find this week just a little bit painful to watch?

yes it was

[NiteNicole]

Ok, really? Gap in the skyline didn't seem familiar to ANYONE? REALLY?

[JessicaS]

I found this challenge to be really disjointed. I wish they would give them a bit more choice in what they were doing.

And we got another nakie picture of Jaclyn.

[NiteNicole]

Myles was just WAY over the creepy line this past week. Ick.

I want to enjoy this show, but I don't feel like the artists are very good or the projects are very well defined or any of them really know how to participate in a crit. I almost wish they would just document a fairly advanced art CLASS. We would be looking at student work but at least students know how to participate in a crit and teachers are used to leading them and the projects would make more sense.

I feel like everyone who thinks "oh art is just BS" is totally having that opinion confirmed by this show.

[Liquesce]

Personally I think the show is moving progressively farther into "train wreck" territory, and not even "entertaining train wreck" like a lot of reality shows but more just an uncomfortable, awkward viewing experience. I really think the Rungay guys nailed it when they said there's a point at which playing along means the judges are also risking damaging their reputations out in their real world jobs. (I know I for one will never again be able to read Jerry Saltz's column and take it entirely seriously.)