Judith Larsen

On election night, courtesy of a friend of artist Judith Larsen, several Boston Print Collectors had the good fortune to be able to visit with Judith (along with her artist husband, Peik) in her Cambridge studio. It's an impressive space with lots of wonderful pieces hanging on the walls. Some of us had seen her works at the Colin Rhys Gallery before he left for LA and we wanted to know more about her and her style. In her wonderful, gracious and articulate manner, she provided us with insights about her work and explained her technique; how she projects historical math and science formulas onto photographs of nudes. It is a process she said can be very time consuming, as she is working with live models who she needs to direct into specific poses. She explained that sometimes she needs to take 500 pictures to get one good one. Asked how she decided upon this type of photography, she indicated she was always good in math and science. Well great for us, as we see her as an artist producing gorgeous small, medium and large-scale engaging and captivating prints. She also showed us an incredible video piece. She is currently working on a project for the Sao Paulo biennale.



As Judith explains it: "my work incorporates the figure as an empty vessel or blank slate, which is then infused with a series of images from the history of Art and Science. The projected images examine various organizing systems, including language, mapping and microscopy, as shadowed testimony to an unknown light source. The viewer or audience is invited to look beyond the ‘apparent’ and imagine the implications of these symbolically clad vessels. As the figure and imagery merge, the body begins to shed its epidermal shield and inhabit its own metaphors.This figurative work is as much about stillness as it is about the constant metamorphosis of possibility. It dwells in suspended opposition between the enduring vitality of the flesh and its fragile impermanence."



Her website is: http://www.judithlarsen.com/

Artcetera 2008

For those who won't be at the IFPDA Print Fair in NYC on November 1st, that Saturday AIDS Action in Boston is presenting Artcetera 2008. The live and silent auctions at this event can be a good place to see and buy art made in Boston and beyond- sometimes with really good deals. Michael Mazur and Judith Larsen (both mentioned in this blog) have prints in the auctions. There is also a Laura McPhee benefit print (shown here) for Patrons at the $2,500 level and above. To view the available artwork and purchase tickets, click on the link below.

http://www.aac.org/site/PageServer?pagename=events_artcetera

Prints Only?

Lately I have been struggling with the concept of "focus" in a collection. I started out collecting artist books and prints, but have found it difficult to stick with one medium or even a theme. In the last year or so, I have been buying drawings, sculpture, and some excellent work that defies categorization, such as rising art star, Brian Glaser's peice entitled, "I will leave less than this behind," made out of over 5,000 found cigarette butts.

In a kind of organic process, I think a focus has been slowly evolving out of my art purchases- artists in the early phase of their careers. It has been really fun to buy without a safety net, following my own instincts and tastes. In fact, some of my biggest art buying regrets have been not following those instincts and not buying Tara Donovan and Judith Larsen years ago.