Prospect.1

There is a retrospective art exhibit of international acclaim called Prospect.1 taking place in New Orleans through January 18, 2009. Dan Cameron a NY based curator was inspired to create the exhibit after Hurricane Katrina. There are over 80 artists exhibiting in areas scattered throughout the city but mostly in the warehouse district. There are also satellite exhibits. It is considered the largest international art biennial in the United States. There’s been a lot written up about it in the local Times Picayune newspaper but only one or two mentions in the Washington Post, so I’m not sure how much national acclaim it is really getting. There is a lot of contemporary stuff that’s not always my cup of tea but here are a few worthy stories from the Times Picayune:

1) Prospect.1 installation shapes perceptions of home and lifestyle about how Paul Valinsky converts his FEMA trailer into an “Emergency Artist Studio.” I would absolutely love this kind of studio because you can travel with it and the natural light is phenomenal, not to mention it’s solar powered, so you’re off the grid.

2) This is a great interview with Tony Fitzpatrick by Chris Rose of 1 Dead in Attic fame. Fitzpatrick is one of the Prospect.1 artists. Even though he and Chris Rose are transplants to New Orleans (so is Emeril Lagasse by the way) they get the city. I love what Fitzpatrick says about the relationship between art and life, “Art is a kind of rebirth. It is what elevates us above darkness, tragedy and furious loss” and, “New Orleans is absolutely vital to the imagination of artists in this country, and sharing this holy place with the rest of the world is necessary. Every artist I’ve encountered in Prospect.1 has become an ambassador for the city; New Orleans gets in your heart fast.”…. This type of ambassadorship and exposure is what New Orleans needs for a change — something positive.

Chris Rose, by the way, is an excellent writer, one of my favorites. His book mentioned above is really worth reading in its realistic description of experiencing an unreal/surreal situation and the slow settling-in of an emotional breakdown that Hurricane Katrina caused and the rising above that despair. It’s a disheartening and uplifting lesson in reality.

3) Finally Mithra symbolically represents rising out of the hurricane waters of Katrina in the 9th Ward with Mark Bradford’s ark. This photo is more striking than the others of this art piece because of the scale, color and composition, and it’s very representative, maybe more than the artwork itself, of the salvation of New Orleans.

I don’t know if I’ll make it home before this exhibit ends and frankly, it’s hard to be constantly reminded of Katrina. For those of us who lived through it, either by being there or having relatives who were and are still there, it is time to move on. Reflecting on the past is good, because it shouldn’t be forgotten, but living in it just holds you down. Let’s rise above and through this holiday season and for me it will be knowing that I have time now to get my ducks in a row for a local and then more prominent launch.

(After 2.5+ years of wearing my brain tumor band and 3+ years of wearing my Renew NOLA bracelet, I have finally taken them off and it’s pretty liberating.)

Have a great weekend!