I always look forward to the Halloween edition of Art Report Today. William Mortensen, a wildly fascinating art world character, is worthy of your attention and delight.
From the 1920s through the 40s, his day job was to photograph portraits of royalty in the Golden Age of Hollywood. On his own time, his pursuits take us to the edge of his devious and lusty imagination. As his pal Ansel Adams was trying to capture the clean edge of photographic reality, Mortensen took the medium into the realms of messy fantasy.
His tricks, techniques and embellishments, without Photoshop, are absolutely astounding. Dig in to our profile, in this issue.
Spooky intuitive. I sure can pick 'em. Las Vegas is the New West. That dusty desert town just got a very gorgeous, backhanded compliment.
I've always been afraid the first Vegas art fair will be 'Cowboy Slim's Used Trucks 'N Mighty Fine Art.' Still scares me.
With a velvet glove covering a steel fist, that politely pushy Swiss MCH Group and their Art Basel Miami turned the screws tight on the thumbs of the Miami Beach Convention Center, and threatened to pull out of the silky seductive beach spot. And go where? Branson, Missouri? Nope. Marfa? Naw.
They threatened a move to Las Vegas. And Miami caved faster than a very bad hand.
Speaking of William Mortensen, the clever photographer set up camp in sleepy sweet Laguna Beach with a photo studio and classes for his technique.
Gallerist Peter Blake has long been the commander of his outpost for Minimalism. Like Fitzcarraldo attempting to bring opera to the Amazon rainforest, it has not been easy. Laguna is located in Orange County, California, a conservative territory with a long history of art and cultural warfare.
I've said it before. The economics of the art market should be studied. Resolute. Clever. Audacious. The arts survive in astonishing ways, like a wine cork sailing high on very rough seas.
I call upon our great art econ journos, like Tim Schneider, to study this man. His gallery perseveres against all odds. And today, he shares with us his exhibition catalogue on the early resin works of Peter Alexander.
Just in time for Halloween! Today, our film critic Justin Tanner has a review of the restoration of Ken Russell's "The Devils," a film most have never seen. (Church and State issues.) The review is an excellent piece of film criticism. Click Here.
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