Matt’s Version:
It wasn’t a very hairy ass, but it took damn near 10 minutes
to shave it.
I watched it all. From the front row I had an intimate view
of the projected image shot with Super 8mm film, and it was raw footage in
every sense of the term. This was just part of one of the three “pieces” we
watched at the Contemporary Art Museum (CAM) for this month’s mission.
Andrew Lampert was the filmmaker and projectionist, and he
narrated the selected works. As you can see on the CAM website Andrew Lampert is a semi-famous artist that has
done these types of shows all over the world. After sitting through three of
his films, I can only offer see two options for his supposed celebrity: he rode
to success on the coattails of a real artist, or he is very good at putting on
big shows and I got jipped at the smallish CAM venue.
Several times during the performance and afterwards during
the FAQ Lampert told us that he has done big shows with a dozen or more
projectors going at once, often with live musical accompaniment. He mentioned
it so often that I was struck with the idea that perhaps he knew this event was
pretty lame, and he wanted us to know that he was the real thing. Well, I
wasn’t convinced. At least I wasn’t convinced that he would appeal to someone
like me, who has only a casual interest in art. The evening wasn’t a total
waste, however. As is the recurring theme here on Not-Rot, we still
accomplished what we set out to do, which is try something new and different
that would engage our brains. Plus it’s not everyday you get to watch a guy get
his bum shaved.
Chris’ Version:
For our August mission, we decided to check out the
Contemporary Art Museum, and specifically a lecture/demonstration of a specific
artist. I know that often modern art has the bad reputation of being kitsch—cheap
and careless art that tries to pass itself off as genius—but Matt and I kind of
wanted the chance to see for ourselves if it was true. To be sure, some people stereotype
all modern art as kitsch, and, though I don’t believe all of it is, I was
secretly hoping to have an experience with art that was borderline between
kitsch and genius. It’s as fun to rant about bad art as it is to rave about
great art. I think we got that opportunity which, in my inexpert opinion, might
have been more rant than rave.
For what it’s worth, the clip that Lampert, the artist, had
on loop on the big screen while people were taking their seats previous to the
show, seemed very promising. It was a slo-mo video in negative of a Super Mario
mascot, standing on a street corner while people passed by. It was accompanied
by low base rumblings and high pitched sonar sounds which added to its eerie feel.
I actually had a lot of interesting impressions tickle my brain as we waited
and watched it. But thoughtful impressions faded quickly as the actual show
started which included: random scenes from Lampert’s childhood movie-making blunders
conveniently reinterpreted as precocious foreshadowing of his future success, a
succession of takes in which two women in rustic clothing improvised a 19th
century ‘yo-momma’ battle, and a video of random scenes from New York city
which were force-narrated into a time-traveling story about Lampert’s family in
the future.
Well, aside from my feelings of antipathy for the clips
Lampert selected for the show, the Super Mario loop (what Lampert regrettably titled,
“Super F*cked Up Mario”) was interesting to say the least, and may be
indicative of Lampert’s potential. He is
a video archivist/preservationist, so he certainly has the technical skills to
make good art, should he be so inspired. However, I truly wander if Lampert can
tell the difference between his ‘great’ work, and…the rest. Being able to
rightly evaluate your work might be what separates the good from the great.
