Once out of college, most of us find it rare to receive care packages. Remember having your day brightened after treking down to mail services to retrieve a package, tearing it open with anticipation of what might be inside? But gone are the days of mystery boxes packed with love and much needed supplies from mom.
"How do you photograph something you can't see?," was the question Edward Burtynsky faced when creating the images in Oil, on view at the Corcoran Gallery of Art starting tomorrow. The world-renowned photographer began his career focused on consumerism and consumption, but around 15 years ago he had his "oil epiphany" – that oil is at the center of everything in an industrialized world and yet, we never see it, only its end products. The resulting portfolio of work is not a heavy-handed political statement, but a gorgeous documentary on the uses and ugliness of oil. I first discovered Burtynsky's work in the (must-see) 2006 documentary Manufactured Landscapes and, admittedly, have eagerly been looking forward to seeing his work in person. It did not even remotely disappoint.
Imagine for a moment that you're sitting in your rather modestly sized one bedroom apartment. Now imagine being in that space and being surrounded by over 4000 paintings, sculptures, and other pieces of modern art. So much art, in fact, stacked in every corner, to the ceilings, in every conceivable space, that when you donate it to one of the largest museums in the country, they don't have room to accept it all. The art itself may be Minimalist, but there's nothing minimal about that mental picture.
There are a number of really interesting lectures this week, including three focused on food (tomatoes, tortillas and even an Indian buffet!), as well as a good variety of visual and performing arts lectures, book talks, and more.
The Corcoran College of Art + Design will grant an honorary doctoral degree to celebrated fashion designer, Bravo icon, and favorite District son Tim Gunn. It won't be the first Corcoran degree for Gunn, who graduated with a bachelor's degree in sculpture in 1976. But it is the highest degree that the Corcoran can give.
Maya Lin readily admits that her career is made up of three different areas: architecture, memorial and art. The memorial line, which she calls it, started here in Washington, D.C. over 20 years ago, when she won a competition to design the Vietnam Veterans Memorial.
building. Minor repairs have been made to the roof throughout the building's history, although it has never been replaced. And the last touchup was nearly 30 years ago.
Phew, it's a busy week for artlovers. If you dig political art, graphic design, or street art, head to cloud nine, and stay there all weekend. As evidenced by our spotting of him in Logan Circle near his newly created mural, Shepard Fairey (most famous for his Obey Giant insignia and accompanying graphics) is in town, his calendar is booked solid, and we're all invited.
Welcome to Talk to Me, Baby, a new feature where we highlight the city's best talking events: the free, the cheap, and the spendy at the area's museums, galleries, and auditoriums. As always, stay tuned to Popcorn and Candy for film screenings and their related discussions, and to Reader, Meet Author for book talks.
Currently in its 23rd year, the 2008 Corcoran print portfolio show brings a wide range of talent and interpretation on the theme You Won't Believe your Eyes to the walls at Civilian Art Projects (soon to be host of DCist Exposed.)
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