Chagall’s dynamic costumes and experimental sets inspire a reconsideration of his entire body of work.
Author Archives: Douglas Messerli
Douglas Messerli is an American writer, professor, and publisher based in Los Angeles. In 1976, he started Sun & Moon, a magazine of art and literature, which became Sun & Moon press, and later Green Integer press. He has taught at Temple University in Philadelphia, and Otis College of Art and Design in Los Angeles.
The Surrealist Satire of Leonora Carrington
These stunningly strange, arrestingly intellectual constructs treat the human imagination with humor and forgiveness.
Intertextual Depth in Susan Howe’s Debths
These poems collage Paul Thek’s art, 19th-century American literature, and a fairy tale to create a fresh understanding of the memory and soul.
Full House: Artists from Latin America Imagine Home
An exhibition at LACMA offers open dialogue about how the concept of home is understood and experienced.
An Eye for Words: Concrete Poets at the Getty
Concrete Poetry focuses on the purists of the movement, particularly the Brazilian Augusto de Campos, the Scottish poet Ian Hamilton Finlay, and the Austrian poet Ernst Jandl.
Reimagined Landscapes: Frank Romero’s Los Angeles
Born and raised in a middle-class family in Boyle Heights, Romero captured the pulse of Los Angeles through his pictorial and more abstract painting of decorated cars and the vast freeways (portrayed as our cultural shrines) connecting the different parts of the city.
Hirato Renkichi: The Black Shadow-Man Illuminated
Already in the three short volumes which Hirato had hoped to publish, but for which he was unable to raise money, we see a growing tendency to break up the language and images, abstracting them into a pulse of pure energy that conveys the meaning rather than simply expressing it.
Pitching Poetry: Charles Bernstein’s Essays and Interviews
From the outset of his career Bernstein has fought for a poetry of leaps and fissures, one that inhabits the space between logic and irrationality.
Pattern Recognition: Merion Estes Brings New Life to an Old World
Merion Estes has developed works on paper and fabric that incorporate beautifully abstract images along with references principally to Japanese and Chinese art, but the art of other countries is evident as well.
Invitation to the Party: Jan Nemec’s 1966 Satire of Czech Communism
Long seen as the “enfant terrible” of Czech cinema, Němec constantly found himself in trouble with Czech government authorities, and was almost arrested for making this film.
A Gift to Be Simple: John McLaughlin’s Paintings Pose Fundamental Questions
The beautiful large-scale retrospective of this major but often forgotten artist’s work at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is a truly revelatory exhibition.
David Antin: Cultural Icon
I had long been involved with David Antin through my close relationship with Marjorie Perloff, who was one of the first major US critics to engage in a critical dialogue with him and his writing.