Monday, December 27, 2010

"Red Sea", 2008, oil/ gessoed ragboard, 15"-16" by Marc Salz, from the "Genetic Moments" series. This series has many paintings with eyes looking in all directions, up, down and sideways. They could be seen as "human minimalism" or better said, "HU-minimalism" or "HUE-minimalism". I was also interested in where the eyes were pointing as in Spanish religious paintings (El Greco, Zurbaran) and in the almost cartoony way they were painted. They look up towards heaven, down towards earth and sideways at each other.
"Green Sea"(for Andrei Tarkovsky), 2008, oil/ gessoed ragboard, 17"-18". Andrei Tarkovsky was a film director who used water as a character. An example from the Tarkovsky film "Stalker": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KZKAVl_qX_Y .

“Down Under”, 2009, oil/ragboard, 15.5”-18”. 
"Red Rivers”, 2007, oil/ gessoed ragboard, 17"-16".

Sam Salz and Dr.Albert Barnes.

My father's(Sam Salz) early first major collector was Dr.Albert Barnes who's collection of Impressionists and Post-Impressionists became the well known Barnes Foundation in Merion,Pa. that is now in it's new home near the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Sam Salz had met Dr.Barnes indirectly through Soutine and his dealer Zborovsky. Barnes had bought many Soutines and featured his paintings as part of his collection at the Foundation's home in Merion. After the sale, my father introduced Dr.Barnes to the famous Impressionist dealer Ambroise Vollard. In his early days as an art dealer, Vollard would give my father paintings to sell as a way of teaching him the trade. Later Barnes decided to invite Vollard to view his collection when he came to America. According to my father's story, when Vollard entered the main room of the Foundation, he immediately saw a room filled with great masterpieces (Matisse, Cezanne, Seurat etc...). Upon entering the room, Vollard stepped down one of the steps and accidently fell on the floor. Somewhat shaken by the experience, the dealer rose to his feet as Barnes exclaimed: "Just think, you could have died in the company of these great masterpieces". Vollard responded: "This man is crazy!" and he ran out of the room.

Sunday, December 19, 2010

“Balloonatic”, 2005, oil/wood, 18”-29”. For Buster Keaton.



“Boogie Woogie”, 2010, oil/wood, 21"-21". There is Piet Mondrian’s great “Broadway Boogie Woogie” but this is Philadelphia’s “Broad Street Boogie Woogie”.

Friday, December 10, 2010

Family Tree”, 2005, oil/Baltic birch, 20”-25”.

             
“Found Objects”, 1999, oil/wood, 18"-24”.