Breaking the Code: The Art of Vernon Fisher

"Breaking the Code: The Art of Vernon Fisher" is a well made documentary of an artist I'd never heard of, quite surprising with the success he's had. Part of the reason maybe is that he turned his back on the NYC art world to stay closer to home in Texas. This documentary sold him so well and his work is so compelling that I ended up buying a print of his at auction.

“Vernon Fisher (1943-2023) was a multimedia artist born in Fort Worth, Texas. He has had over eighty one-person exhibitions, including installations at the the Museum of Modern Art in New York City, the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, D.C., and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago. His work is now in the permanent collection of more than forty art museums. Fisher used a wide range of media to create large-scale paintings and installations that appropriate referents from vernacular architecture and pop culture and imply complex visual narratives. He is known for his blackboard paintings, which employ a slate-gray ground reminiscent of a chalkboard’s layered patina. The associations of erased texts and banal classroom moments complement the representational fragments, symbols, and texts that occupy the foreground of these works. Incorporating photography, painting, sculptural elements, found objects, and written language, Fisher's art contributed to the overthrow of monolithic modernism in the late 1970s and early 1980s and won him enduring acclaim nationally and internationally.” (from the video description)

https://youtu.be/31i9UuYF4vo?si=DVaOm_2ryYxEE1aa

Ron English: Living in Delusionville

Prolific artist Ron English's art has so much depth. This documentary really delves into the thought and creative processes he uses to get to a finished product. I had no idea the steps he was taking to get to a finished painting. Well made and a visual treat - recommended!

“One of the most prolific and recognizable artists alive today, New York-based painter, street artist and designer Ron English has bombed the global landscape with unforgettable images across all categories of culture, history and art. As a fine art painter enjoying gallery and museum representation worldwide, Mr. English is well-known for his stunning oil technique and inventive use of color.” (from the artist’s website)

https://youtu.be/e20uvQICmtI?si=8vbUBfYa8PpZk-ti

Peggy Guggenheim: Art Addict

Fantastic documentary on Peggy Guggenheim, her art collecting over the years, and the establishment of her art museum in Venice, Italy. Imagine being wealthy, at loose ends, and having the money to buy relatively cheap art by the masters of your time. Very envious of her experience!

Marguerite "Peggy" Guggenheim (1898 – 1979) was born into the ridiculously wealthy Guggenheim family. Guggenheim collected modern art in Europe and the United States, saving many European masterpieces from possible destruction during World War II. She established The Peggy Guggenheim Collection in her home on the Grand Canal in Venice, Italy, in 1951, and it remains a popular destination.

https://www.kanopy.com/en/dglibrary/video/254264