My next trip to New York City will be on April 3rd. I will be taking a Susquehanna Trailways bus to New York City to spend the day at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum. After I visit two more museums on subsequent trips I plan to explore the Greenwich Village neighborhood and Alphabet City where I have located various interesting stores. I recently discovered an interesting art gallery in New York City that specializes in dark culture, Last Rites Gallery. One of the reasons I’ve been exploring New York City is to connect with the world of contemporary art and find new sources of inspiration in the underground. However, I’ve heard that the NYC artistic community has been pushed out of Manhattan and is now concentrated in Brooklyn.
While checking out the artists associated with the Last Rites Gallery I came across a Wikipedia article on the Lowbrow Art Movement. I am somewhat familiar with Outsider Art and Visionary Art but I had never heard of Lowbrow Art, although these styles are closely related. There are several magazines devoted to covering counter culture art; Hi-Fructose Magazine, Juxtapoz Magazine, and Raw Vision Magazine. Yesterday I went to the Lycoming Mall and bought the current issues of Juxtapoz and Raw Vision at the Borders newsstand. I was surprised that they actually carry these publications.
If I had a lot of money I would invest in this kind of art. Unfortunately, I can only afford prints and books. I bought this print for only $20.00 at http://www.copronason.com/prints155.html
Yesterday I ordered a book of the artwork of Chris Mars because his work resembles the art of Otto Dix. Currently there is a Otto Dix exhibition running at the Neue Gallery. I should probably stop by there on Saturday.
 Tolerance: The Art of Chris Mars (9780867196948): Chris Mars: Books
ISBN: 0867196947 |
I don’t know why I’m inclined to be more excited by counter culture art now. It could be due to Spring mania. Also the fact that I can visit art galleries in New York City makes it seem possible to connect with that world. Media overload usually overwhelms me with fascinating imagery so I ignore a lot of intriguing artwork. It does pay to dig deeper into the sources of contemporary culture but nobody has the time to pursue extensive research. For example, you cannot take note of the artistic director of every film you see even though it may lead you to some fantastic finds. But the Internet makes it easier to browse through our increasingly complex culture so I have taken the time to explore this dark corner.
