Saturday, October 27, 2012

Art vs. Food: A Sociological Saunter



An Essay of Opinion by William Deresewicz,   from the New York Times of October 26, 2012



“Eat, Pray, Love,” the title goes, but a lot of peopleLike art, food is also a genuine passion that people like to share with their friends. Many try their hands at it as amateurs — the weekend chef is what the Sunday painter used to be — while avowing their respect for the professionals and their veneration for the geniuses. It has developed, of late, an elaborate cultural apparatus that parallels the one that exists for art, a whole literature of criticism, journalism, appreciation, memoir and theoretical debate. It has its awards, its maestros, its televised performances. It has become a matter of local and national pride, while maintaining, as culture did in the old days, a sense of deference toward the European centers and traditions — enriched at a later stage, in both cases, by a globally minded eclecticism.
Just as aestheticism, the religion of art, inherited the position of Christianity among the progressive classes around the turn of the 20th century, so has foodism taken over from  never make it past the first. Nor do they have to. Food now expresses the symbolic values and absorbs the spiritual energies of the educated class. It has become invested with the meaning of life. It is seen as the path to salvation, for the self and humanity both.
But food, for all that, is not art. Both begin by addressing the senses, but that is where food stops. It is not narrative or representational, does not organize and express emotion. An apple is not a story, even if we can tell a story about it. A curry is not an idea, even if its creation is the result of one. Meals can evoke emotions, but only very roughly and generally, and only within a very limited range — comfort, delight, perhaps nostalgia, but not anger, say, or sorrow, or a thousand other things. Food is highly developed as a system of sensations, extremely crude as a system of symbols. Proust on the madeleine is art; the madeleine itself is not art.
A good risotto is a fine thing, but it isn’t going to give you insight into other people, allow you to see the world in a new way, or force you to take an inventory of your soul.
Yes, food centers life in France and Italy, too, but not to the disadvantage of art, which still occupies the supreme place in both cultures. Here in America, we are in danger of confusing our palates with our souls.
Read more at:
Posted by at No comments:

Monday, October 8, 2012

An American In Paris: Edward Hopper Restrospective Opens

The NightHawks






By Thomas Adamson, Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — A major Edward Hopper retrospective in Paris reveals that
the 20th century painter famed for his rendering of American life drew
inspiration from France.
The show's curator Didier Ottinger told the Associated Press on Monday that
Hopper was "a lifelong Francophile" who first visited Paris in 1906. That was
just after an important exhibition of the influential Fauvism movement known
for its strong use of color.
Ottinger said he clearly took influence from participating artists like Henri Matisse
 even though Hopper's palette is more muted. "You can see it in his large, solid
 color masses," he said.
The illuminating collection includes some 128 Hopper works — such as lonely
masterpieces "Gas,""Hotel Room"and "Soir Bleu" — alongside 35 comparative
works from French artists who influenced him.
Hopper, who died in 1967, took two other trips to the French capital in 1909
 and 1910, exploring its salons and grand museums, such as the Louvre.
Among the other artists featured in the exhibit is Edgar Degas, whose work, the
exhibit catalog suggests, encouraged Hopper to incorporate dramatic angles into
 his own paintings. This technique later became one of his artistic signatures, such as
 in his most famous work "Nighthawks" from 1942, which resembles a still from a film noir.
"He always used to say, even late in his life, that he was a post-Impressionist. France
was so important for him," added Ottinger.
The exhibit, which draws from collections in the United States, Spain and France,
 opens at Paris' Grand Palais Wednesday and runs through January 28.
____
Thomas Adamson can be followed at http:/ /Twitter.com/ThomasAdamsonAP
A woman looks at "Hotel Room, 1931" as part of the retrospective of Edward Hopper, one of the great American 20th century artists at Paris’ Grand Palais Museum, in Paris, Monday, Oct. 8, 2012. This major Hopper retrospective reveals that the 20th century painter known for his rendering of American life, also drew inspiration from France, and includes some 128 Hopper works, such as the masterpieces “Nighthawks” and “Soir Bleu”. (AP Photo / Francois Mori)A woman looks at "Office at night, 1940" as part of the retrospective of Edward Hopper works, one of the great American 20th century artists at Paris’ Grand Palais Museum, in Paris, Monday, Oct. 8, 2012. This major Hopper retrospective reveals that the 20th century painter known for his rendering of American life, also drew inspiration from France, and includes some 128 Hopper works, such as the masterpieces “Nighthawks” and “Soir Bleu”.(AP Photo/Francois Mori)A man walks by a Eugene Atget photography display as part of the retrospective for Edward Hopper, one of the great American 20th century artists at Paris’ Grand Palais Museum, in Paris, Monday, Oct. 8, 2012. This major Hopper retrospective reveals that the 20th century painter known for his rendering of American life, also drew inspiration from France, and includes some 128 Hopper works, such as the masterpieces “Nighthawks” and “Soir Bleu”.(AP Photo/Francois Mori)A woman looks at "Gas 1940" as part of the retrospective of Edward Hopper, one of the great American 20th century artists at Paris’ Grand Palais Museum, in Paris, Monday, Oct. 8, 2012. This major Hopper retrospective reveals that the 20th century painter known for his rendering of American life, also drew inspiration from France. (AP Photo/Francois Mori)

Leave a comment...Comment Guidelines
your avatar

Post AsOptions

5 comments


  • 0Please sign in to rate a Thumb UpPlease sign in to rate a Thumb Down0

    PARIS (AP) — A major Edward Hopper retrospective in Paris reveals that the 20th century painter famed for his rendering of American life drew inspiration from France.
    The show's curator Didier Ottinger told the Associated Press on Monday that Hopper was "a lifelong Francophile" who first visited Paris in 1906. That was just after an important exhibition of the influential Fauvism movement known for its strong use of color.
    Ottinger said he clearly took influence from participating artists like Henri Matisse even though Hopper's palette is more muted. "You can see it in his large, solid color masses," he said.
    The illuminating collection includes some 128 Hopper works — such as lonely masterpieces "Gas,""Hotel Room"and "Soir Bleu" — alongside 35 comparative works from French artists who influenced him.
    Hopper, who died in 1967, took two other trips to the French capital in 1909 and 1910, exploring its salons and grand museums, such as the Louvre.
    Among the other artists featured in the exhibit is Edgar Degas, whose work, the exhibit catalog suggests, encouraged Hopper to incorporate dramatic angles into his own paintings. This technique later became one of his artistic signatures, such as in his most famous work "Nighthawks" from 1942, which resembles a still from a film noir.
    "He always used to say, even late in his life, that he was a post-Impressionist. France was so important for him," added Ottinger.
    The exhibit, which draws from collections in the United States, Spain and France, opens at Paris' Grand Palais Wednesday and runs through January 28.
Posted by at No comments:
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)