Art

What an art critic does in coronavirus isolation: organize books – Los Angeles Times

Published

5 years ago

March 17, 2020

In my home library, “De Chirico,” the slim but invaluable catalog to the Museum of Modern Art’s marvelous 1982 survey of the perplexing Italian metaphysical painter Giorgio de Chirico (1888-1978), had been shelved upside down.

I wasn’t surprised. My art-book library is not disorganized, but neither is it as shipshape as it should be.

When I pulled the catalog down the other day to turn it right side up, I wondered for a moment: Should I leave the book filed here, right between Spain’s Eduardo Chillida and Bulgarian American Christo, with the artists whose names begin with C? The single-artist monographs that make up the lion’s share of my library, whether catalogs, biographies or art history books, are lined up in basic alphabetical order.

Or, should De Chirico be shelved under D, the way the four books on Jay DeFeo and the five on Willem De Kooning are?

Nobody refers to those two artists as just Feo or Kooning, I reasoned, but often the Italian artist is just called Chirico. So, I decided to leave the catalog shelved under C.

Multiply that pause a couple hundred times over, however, and the reason becomes clear why I had procrastinated on the task of straightening up my art library — which numbers more than 2,000 books. More than two years ago I moved, and during all the packing and unpacking the filing system had occasionally gotten jumbled.

Now, with the novel coronavirus pandemic shutting down art museums and galleries all over Southern California, I had an opening. With cautions for social distancing keeping me at home more than usual, fixing the shelving glitches seemed a productive way to spend the time.

I did not expect that it would be fun. Turned out stumbling on favored if forgotten art books has its rewards.

Of all the onerous aspects of closing out one house and moving to another, none had been less pleasant than moving my library. The professional movers could pretty much disassemble the kitchen and cart out the furniture on their own. But the books? Not the books.

That required unusual prep. Alphabetical order had to be maintained — by artist for the monographs and by author for the books of criticism. Histories are grouped by geography and period, depending on the book’s subject, and on occasion by art medium. Some catalogs were kept together by museum or location — especially group shows, like Hammer, Whitney and Venice biennials.

In the process of packing, I set a couple hundred books aside, thinning the herd. Those I gave away.

Labeled and numbered moving boxes were prepared — a lot of them — but there was no way to keep the order of books exact inside each box. Some books fit, some didn’t, and the movers had a job to get done.

At the other end of the move, labeled boxes were divided up among the three different rooms where shelves had been built — “A” through the start of “R” in one, the rest of “R” through “Z” in another, all the remainder in a third. A helpful friend unpacked and placed books in whatever order they came out of the boxes.

Most of it worked pretty well, but a chunk of it did not. I put off the fixes for months.

OK, for years.

What surprised me when I started going through the shelves the other day was that it turned out to be not the least bit unpleasant. I had really admired that MoMA De Chirico show, for instance, but I hadn’t cracked that catalog in decades. Doing it now brought me back.

I went into a file cabinet to dig out what I had written about De Chirico’s anxiety-ridden visions of vacant Italian cityscapes populated by ancient sculptures and distant railroad trains, all of it slashed by raking shadows. Most of the review seemed just fine. Then, flipping through the book, my eye snagged on a couple of picture-pages.

The MoMA exhibition catalog for Italian Metaphysical artist Giorgio de Chirico reproduces his 1913 “The Joys and Enigmas of a Strange Hour,” lower left, and 95 other paintings.

(Christopher Knight / Los Angeles Times)

Plazas are nearly empty, long corridors of Roman arches are blank, sharp perspective lines don’t quite match up, which sends the ground plane tilting up and down. Steep shadows cast by a late afternoon sun, forbidding fortress towers, the Vatican’s famously uncomfortable sculpture of sleeping Ariadne from ancient Greek myth — the images were familiar. The years leading up to the nightmarish catastrophe of World War I are hauntingly evoked.

Yet now the paintings look a bit different. The current social climate has added another layer.

Today the subtle perspective dissonance in De Chirico’s rendering of civilized places still quietly destabilizes. Although a century old, Italy’s haunted scenography can’t help but suggest the latest news, littered as it is with lockdown pictures of an unpopulated St. Mark’s Square in Venice, a tourist-free Colosseum in Rome, Milan’s elaborate Duomo on a Sunday morning without services underway.

History has a way of intruding on the present. And yet, while the sinister aura of those paintings is familiar, solace also lurks. De Chirico took a long view, from the ancients to modernity. World War I opened a wound that would be decades in healing — but here we are.

Rummaging through bookshelves is a different experience from searching online. Both court serendipity. But the accident of a book, perhaps because it is a physical object rather than the glowing ephemera of digital pixels, is of another order. It has a singular density and weight.

Unexpectedly, stumbling on the reproduction of De Chirico’s 1913 “The Joys and Enigmas of a Strange Hour” also propelled me back to childhood. I grew up in a small New England town, where the presence of art barely registered beyond the bronze sculpture of Revolutionary War Gen. William Shepard guarding the village square. It was designed by Henry Augustus Lukeman, a notable student of Daniel Chester French, sculptor of the brilliant Lincoln Memorial.

In the public library adjacent, where my dad was a volunteer on the board of directors, I spent lots of after-school hours in junior high churning out homework. Finding myself one day in the fine arts aisle for no particular reason, I pulled out a book and discovered something that appeared inexplicable.

Some guy named Hans Hofmann had made paintings of bright rectangles and smears of color on canvas. Thinking back, was this the 1961 book by Clement Greenberg, or maybe William Seitz’s 1963 MoMA catalog? I have no idea, but I vividly remember my first encounter with abstract art, once-removed through reproductions. I figured the inexplicable paintings must be important, because here they were reproduced in a library book in a Podunk town.

I remember because I returned to that book on many subsequent afternoons, trying to make heads or tails of those paint smears and colored rectangles. Recalling the experience now, I went to the H shelf of my own art library to see what I could find — but to no avail. It seems I don’t have a Hofmann book.

At least, I don’t have one that has been properly shelved. Maybe it’s somewhere else. When I get done with my project, currently at C, I will know. Just a couple thousand books to go.

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Art

Calvin Lucyshyn: Vancouver Island Art Dealer Faces Fraud Charges After Police Seize Millions in Artwork

Published

4 days ago

September 13, 2024

Harry Miller

In a case that has sent shockwaves through the Vancouver Island art community, a local art dealer has been charged with one count of fraud over $5,000. Calvin Lucyshyn, the former operator of the now-closed Winchester Galleries in Oak Bay, faces the charge after police seized hundreds of artworks, valued in the tens of millions of dollars, from various storage sites in the Greater Victoria area.

Alleged Fraud Scheme

Police allege that Lucyshyn had been taking valuable art from members of the public under the guise of appraising or consigning the pieces for sale, only to cut off all communication with the owners. This investigation began in April 2022, when police received a complaint from an individual who had provided four paintings to Lucyshyn, including three works by renowned British Columbia artist Emily Carr, and had not received any updates on their sale.

Further investigation by the Saanich Police Department revealed that this was not an isolated incident. Detectives found other alleged victims who had similar experiences with Winchester Galleries, leading police to execute search warrants at three separate storage locations across Greater Victoria.

Massive Seizure of Artworks

In what has become one of the largest art fraud investigations in recent Canadian history, authorities seized approximately 1,100 pieces of art, including more than 600 pieces from a storage site in Saanich, over 300 in Langford, and more than 100 in Oak Bay. Some of the more valuable pieces, according to police, were estimated to be worth $85,000 each.

Lucyshyn was arrested on April 21, 2022, but was later released from custody. In May 2024, a fraud charge was formally laid against him.

Artwork Returned, but Some Remain Unclaimed

In a statement released on Monday, the Saanich Police Department confirmed that 1,050 of the seized artworks have been returned to their rightful owners. However, several pieces remain unclaimed, and police continue their efforts to track down the owners of these works.

Court Proceedings Ongoing

The criminal charge against Lucyshyn has not yet been tested in court, and he has publicly stated his intention to defend himself against any pending allegations. His next court appearance is scheduled for September 10, 2024.

Impact on the Local Art Community

The news of Lucyshyn’s alleged fraud has deeply affected Vancouver Island’s art community, particularly collectors, galleries, and artists who may have been impacted by the gallery’s operations. With high-value pieces from artists like Emily Carr involved, the case underscores the vulnerabilities that can exist in art transactions.

For many art collectors, the investigation has raised concerns about the potential for fraud in the art world, particularly when it comes to dealing with private galleries and dealers. The seizure of such a vast collection of artworks has also led to questions about the management and oversight of valuable art pieces, as well as the importance of transparency and trust in the industry.

As the case continues to unfold in court, it will likely serve as a cautionary tale for collectors and galleries alike, highlighting the need for due diligence in the sale and appraisal of high-value artworks.

While much of the seized artwork has been returned, the full scale of the alleged fraud is still being unraveled. Lucyshyn’s upcoming court appearances will be closely watched, not only by the legal community but also by the wider art world, as it navigates the fallout from one of Canada’s most significant art fraud cases in recent memory.

Art collectors and individuals who believe they may have been affected by this case are encouraged to contact the Saanich Police Department to inquire about any unclaimed pieces. Additionally, the case serves as a reminder for anyone involved in high-value art transactions to work with reputable dealers and to keep thorough documentation of all transactions.

As with any investment, whether in art or other ventures, it is crucial to be cautious and informed. Art fraud can devastate personal collections and finances, but by taking steps to verify authenticity, provenance, and the reputation of dealers, collectors can help safeguard their valuable pieces.

Art

Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone – BBC.com

Published

2 weeks ago

September 2, 2024

Harry Miller

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Ukrainian sells art in Essex while stuck in a warzone BBC.com

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Art

Somerset House Fire: Courtauld Gallery Reopens, Rest of Landmark Closed

Published

1 month ago

August 18, 2024

Harry Miller

The Courtauld Gallery at Somerset House has reopened its doors to the public after a fire swept through the historic building in central London. While the gallery has resumed operations, the rest of the iconic site remains closed “until further notice.”

On Saturday, approximately 125 firefighters were called to the scene to battle the blaze, which sent smoke billowing across the city. Fortunately, the fire occurred in a part of the building not housing valuable artworks, and no injuries were reported. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the fire.

Despite the disruption, art lovers queued outside the gallery before it reopened at 10:00 BST on Sunday. One visitor expressed his relief, saying, “I was sad to see the fire, but I’m relieved the art is safe.”

The Clark family, visiting London from Washington state, USA, had a unique perspective on the incident. While sightseeing on the London Eye, they watched as firefighters tackled the flames. Paul Clark, accompanied by his wife Jiorgia and their four children, shared their concern for the safety of the artwork inside Somerset House. “It was sad to see,” Mr. Clark told the BBC. As a fan of Vincent Van Gogh, he was particularly relieved to learn that the painter’s famous Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear had not been affected by the fire.

Blaze in the West Wing

The fire broke out around midday on Saturday in the west wing of Somerset House, a section of the building primarily used for offices and storage. Jonathan Reekie, director of Somerset House Trust, assured the public that “no valuable artefacts or artworks” were located in that part of the building. By Sunday, fire engines were still stationed outside as investigations into the fire’s origin continued.

About Somerset House

Located on the Strand in central London, Somerset House is a prominent arts venue with a rich history dating back to the Georgian era. Built on the site of a former Tudor palace, the complex is known for its iconic courtyard and is home to the Courtauld Gallery. The gallery houses a prestigious collection from the Samuel Courtauld Trust, showcasing masterpieces from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. Among the notable works are pieces by impressionist legends such as Edouard Manet, Claude Monet, Paul Cézanne, and Vincent Van Gogh.

Somerset House regularly hosts cultural exhibitions and public events, including its popular winter ice skating sessions in the courtyard. However, for now, the venue remains partially closed as authorities ensure the safety of the site following the fire.

Art lovers and the Somerset House community can take solace in knowing that the invaluable collection remains unharmed, and the Courtauld Gallery continues to welcome visitors, offering a reprieve amid the disruption.

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