MAD ABOUT M.A.D.
by Anita Sarko
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| MIGUEL LUCIANO (1972-, Puerto Rico) PURE PLANTAINUM PENDANT (2006) Cast resin, plantain, platinum, sterling chain, acrylic, textile Science project as art. Remember covering fruits in resin, then watching them rot? I loved doing that. This is the precious version: Luciano covers a plantain with platinum and adds a sterling chain. The performance artist and teacher enjoys linking popular culture with traditional Puerto Rican culture. This demonstrates the rot under a precious pure shell. |
| One of the more excellent things about living in NYC is that there is always something new to discover. No matter how long you’ve lived here or how much you’ve seen or how many experiences you’ve had when and where, there is ALWAYS a little treasure just waiting to be unearthed. Which brings us to THE MUSEUM OF ARTS AND DESIGN. Been there? I didn’t think so ... Formerly the American Crafts Museum, M.A.D. has always been at the forefront of exhibiting contemporary jewelry, especially art jewelry. It has accrued an important collection of American art jewelry since 1956. The collection dates back to the 1940s and includes pieces made from everything from precious stones to extremely alternative materials, sometimes within the same piece.
Go through the drawers that you’ll find within the walls of the exhibitions (a practice that is encouraged through signs on those walls) and you’ll find the entire dazzling collection from the museum’s beginnings to the latest in CAD/CAM (computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing) pieces. There are even sketches that are both working drawings and pieces of art on their own, much in the same way that Christo and Jean-Claude’s projects were always documented. “The way to understand what contemporary art jewelry is is to know what it is not.” Emphasizes M.A.D.’s wonderful jewelry curator, Ursula Neuman. Neuman explains that contemporary art jewelry is, for starters, not mass-produced: It is either a piece, which is one-of-a-kind or part of a small series. Secondly, its value is not defined in monetary terms: The emphasis is on concept and ideas, technique and innovation. Consider yourself schooled! I must admit that I didn’t have a clue. In fact, I didn’t have a clue this museum even existed, despite it being smack-dab in the middle of the city (2 Columbus Circle). It’s a sliver of beauty, at once so much belonging to where it is and yet, when once inside, a world away. |
| History, Memory, Tradition (The usage of techniques from the past that, eventually, became more conceptual. These artisans used indigenous materials while addressing themselves to life around them.) |
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| RENY GOLCMAN (1940-, Brazil) JAW NECKLACE (1973) Silver, barracuda jawbone |
WILLIAM SPRATLING (1900-1967, United States) CROISSANT (1940) Silver, rosewood Spratling went to Taxco, a Mexican mining town, in the 1920s. He worked with local craftsmen, using indigenous patterns and designs. They used local silver, along with non-precious materials, feathers and wood. He inspired the Mexican artisans to use pre-Columbian techniques to create pieces that were entirely Mexican in form. These pieces became a hit with everyone from Tiffany’s to Orson Wells. |
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| Top: NURIA CARULLA (1952-, Columbia) SENTADOS (1978) Silver The “Chair piece.” This is a statement on Columbian drug lords and their violence. Above: OLGA MARIA PIRIA (1927-, Uruguay) UNTITLED (1965) Silver Piria trained as a painter with Joaquin Torres Garcia and then combined this background with what she learned working with Carlos Jauregui, an electronics specialist/jeweler. She is a major inspiration for Latin American jewelers. |
CAIO MOURAO (1933-2005, Brazil) ANTI-JEWEL (1959) Silver, gold, hematite Mourao was one of the major instigators embracing ancient techniques to create jewelry that is defiantly Brazilian. Pierre Cardin became a fan and used Mourao’s pieces in his shows in the 60s. His daughter currently continues his work. |
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| CHEQUITA NAHIR (1970-, Paramaribo, Surinam) INDJI BOKA (2005) Porcelain, yarn Surinam has always been a very politically fragile country. This piece uses porcelain to indicate that, along with rope to represent its history of slavery. |
LUIS ACOSTA (1952-, Argentina) QUIPUS (2010) Paper, thread These “talking knots” represent cultural memorization. Quipu were Incan devices used to keep records that were later suppressed by the Spanish conquerors. |
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| CAROLINA HORNAUER (1977-, Chile) TRANSFORMATION (No 2) (2008) Resin, cedar wood, cashew lacquer, eggshell, silver, citrine quartz This represents personal memorization. Part of a series made of old pictures and frames reconstructed to present new stories and contexts. |
| Ms. Neuman is taking me on a tour of M.A.D’s exhibit THINK AGAIN: NEW LATIN AMERICAN JEWELRY that will be up until February 27, 2011. This is a must-see. “This is the first time that this jewelry has been shown in a museum show of this magnitude in not only the US, but, probably, in the western world.” Neuman explains. She points out that this exhibit was made possible through coordination with a foundation in the Netherlands that is devoted to promoting Latin American design. Part of the problem is that it has only been within the last ten years that Latin America has caught up with contemporary art jewelry. The area has been so neglectful of this craft’s importance that most of the artists usually need a second job just to make a living. Therefore, the forty artists who arrived for the exhibit’s opening were very surprised at the interest and the importance attached to their work. At least those were the ones that were lucky enough to still be alive when the rest of the world caught up to their genius. How many stories have we heard about those who weren’t so blessed? The reason it took so long for Latin America to take notice of the importance of its own artisans and the significance of its heritage is because of the strong tradition of importing jewelry, especially in Brazil. A big influence was that the large foreign jewelers had branches in Brazil and, therefore, maintained control over what was available and valued. Finally, some jewelers departed from the notion that only “fine jewelry” was worthwhile. |
| Seeking and Expressing Identity (Where artists represent their times using raw, evolving, unusual concepts, sometimes going so far as to incorporate spirituality) |
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| JORGE MANILLA (1975-, Mexico) EXISTENCE IGNORED (2006) Sawdust, polyester, pigment, epoxic varnish, copper This piece represents Manilla’s religious concerns. He considered Catholicism to be the cause of great anxiety and pain. |
MARIA CONSTANZA OCHOA (1972-, Columbia) UNTITLED (2007) Cinnamon, copper, gold Cinnamon used to represent prayer beads and the effects off spirituality on the body. |
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| ELISA GULMINELLI (1955-, Argentina) INFLACION (2007) Sterling silver, old bank notes, old copper coin A study on Argentinean inflation. The coin worth one cent at the top is worth more than all the bank notes below. |
MARIA PENDARIES (1981-, France/Mexico) BOUCLE D’OR (2008) Human hair, gold, brass box and glass This is a major political statement in having the human hair weighed down by gold. This represents the suffering and joys felt during colonization. |
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| MARIA PAULA AMEZCUA (1972-, Mexico) ALTER ITINERANTE (2007) Brass, glass, silver, paper, textile, glitter, epoxy Shown with a mirror because the piece is two-sided. This represents Amezcua’s thoughts on Catholicism. The front of the piece is the outward, public side and the inside is the personal pagan inheritance of the native people that was never given up; that which is in their blood. |
TERESA MARGOLLES (1963-, Mexico) AJUSTE DE CUENTAS 16 (2007) Gold, window shield glass, diamonds Alluding to Mexican crime, Margolles collected glass from criminally caused car crashes. She mixed the glass with diamonds to play on which of the two is really precious. |
| The show is divided into three sections (History, Memory, Tradition / A Knack for Invention / Seeking and Expressing Identity) and includes artisans from South America, Mexico and the Caribbean. These are not merely pretty baubles, by any stretch of the imagination. Actually “imagination” is exactly what electrifies this exhibit. Take the time to read about each piece and you will be astounded by the use of jewelry as a commentary on heritage, struggles, religion, violence, gender, politics, spontaneity, economics, values and even drugs. Check out the examples here and then do yourself a favor and fill in the blanks through a visit to this wonderful place. |
| A Knack for Invention |
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| LAURA ALVARADO (1977-, Columbia) BODY TYPING: MY AFFAIR (2009) Polyamide, Swarovski beads, steel Inspired by Elizabeth Taylor’s book My Love Affair With Jewelry. A combination of using extremely stretched Ethylene-Vinyl-Acetate foam combined with body painting and 3D scanning. |
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| HENA LEE (1985-, Brazil) AMARELO E PRETO (2010) Chopsticks, acrylic paint, silver, cotton thread Lee’s work contrasts her Korean heritage to her Brazilian roots through chopsticks and knotted threads. |
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| ANDREAS QUINONES (1962-. Mexico) GORGUERA (2000) Bamboo, silver, freshwater pearls, guitar strings |
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| HELENA BIERMANN ANGEL (1972-, Columbia) HIT THE ROAD SERIES I (2008) Nickel wire, silver, paint, flexible magnets, insects, seeds HIT THE ROAD SERIES II (2008) Silver, steel, magnet foil, paper, car exhaust Angel’s environmental statement on pollution. She shows how pure white brooches are totally changed by the effects of exhaust. She used magnets to affix the brooches to her automobile’s tailpipe to absorb the emissions and to the car window to catch bugs. |
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| BETTINA TEREPINS (1952-, Brazil) PROTESIS I (1996) Imbuia wood, gold, diamonds PROTESIS II (1996) Imbuia wood, gold Terepins recreated dilapidated furniture into jewelry. Imbuia wood is precious and endangered, so is no longer allowed to be used in production. Remember “The Forbidden Dance”? Well, this is The Forbidden Wood. |
| Make sure not to miss the THE STORE AT MAD. Not only will you find great items for yourself, but this is also a singular source for gifts, especially for those tiresome friends who seem to have EVERYTHING. Hmmm ... guess they don’t ... MUSEUM OF ARTS AND DESIGN 2 COLUMBUS CIRCLE 212.299.7777 www.madmuseum.org facebook.com/madmuseum |
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