Celebrity Avatars & Animated Video Game

Fredericka suggested that the next step in our project is to create an animated video game in which the following events would occur: we would really drive off the Mormon Mesa in the rental vehicle Thelma and Louise style; we would avoid bullets flying from Michael Heizer and James Turrell; we would parachute into Roden Crater from an airplane. And who were the celebrity avatars that would play the roles of Nancy and Jacinda?





Toby Kamps is vying for the movie rights.

Michael Jackson Banner Pocket Complete!

But first of all... whoever would have thought Goldie (my gaudy i-phone codpiece) would have blended in to anything around? "But you are in Texas," says Nancy.



Michael Jackson Banner with Chainsaw (please contact 713.857.9811 if you want this cat in your movie) and Pocket:

5 Days until the opening at Texas Gallery!

Somehow we didn't even manage to make it into the gallery today! We were running errands (driving down Dunlavy a mere 12 times) in addition to giving a visiting artist's talk to Paul Kittelson's Public Art class at University of Houston.

Today most of the photographs taken included our quest to have a cover sewn for the Michael Jackson Banner. Our first trip to the alteration store with vinyl proved to be useless because no one's sewing machines in town can sew that material without ripping it (we found two other opinions that backed that up). So we visited High Fashion Fabric in Midtown and found some white velvet.



We then had great plans to embroider "M.J." onto the white velvet but no one could do that by uh... let's say tomorrow so we left the plans to sew the "pocket" there and returned to High Fashion Fabric.



In addition to discovering that off the shoulder shirts were what to where to work, we came across sequined fabric. We thought we made the decision but then found something else. The deciding factor? We finally decided to look at the price tag and discovered the fabric in Nancy's arm was a mere $39.99/yard (ouch) compared to the $199.99/yard closer to the floor (hell no!).



and so 1/2 yard of gold sequined fabric was cut to cover one side of the white velvet pocket that will contain the Michael Jackson Banner as of tomorrow at noon.



Before leaving we did manage to admire this lovely feather dress (Fly Like an Eagle revisitation occurs on a regular basis around here):



Not pictured: multiple trips to Industrial Audio/Video where our DVD was reburned with chapters and shipped overnight to New Jersey with the hopes that it can still arrive by Friday (doubtful), purchasing wood for our "platform" pedestals for three of the larger objects, and our trip to Edward's to see Alice in Wonderland - a much needed respite from thinking about earthworks every waking hour.

Tomorrow we begin the photographic installation at Texas Gallery (Nancy, Ian, and Mark installed the video projection on Sunday). Getting closer!

I HEART M.J.

BRYCE CANYON

Tip #001: We highly recommend wearing sunglasses when visiting Bryce Canyon because they really make the colors "pop."









SAGE BRUSH MOUSTACHES (LAST SUMMER JACINDA COULDN'T PUT DOWN THE SMALL PIECE OF SAGE BRUSH SHE HAD COLLECTED, FOR THREE DAYS SHE SMELLED "HOME". THIS SUMMER I PLANNED FOR HER TO STRAP IT ON INSTEAD OF HOLDING IT UNDER HER NOSE.)







HELL-MART IN CEDAR CITY, UTAH!!! JACINDA HAD NOT BEEN IN FOR OVER SEVEN YEARS. NANCY HAD ONLY BEEN IN BY FORCE OF SOME OTHER INFLUENCES (DESTIN VACATIONS). WE MADE OUR WAY OUT AND THERE IT WAS A TRUE MIRACLE. ONLY A FEW MINUTES AFTER WE HAD FOUND OUT M.J. HAD DIED. WHAT A DAY.

On the subject of Hollywood...

Mel Bochner's Minimal Art - The Movie, 1966



Before I discuss updating, I think it's interesting to note Nancy "Smithson" as Bridget Bardot and any of the other artist's wives whose first names are only denoted with their first initial (and of course wondering if their last names are not those of their husbands). I also like the cross offs for Virginia Dwan and Robert Smithson.


James Dean & Elizabeth Taylor in Giant (filmed in Marfa, Texas)

Today's remake would feature full names of entire cast and Willem Dafoe (he'd be a good Micheal Heizer), Philip Seymour Hoffman, Hope Davis, and Michelle Williams. Who else?

The "Uniform" - What Smithson, Holt, Heizer, & Turrell Wore When Creating These Works

Finding what Robert Smithson wore was really easy. He doesn't look like he belongs in this space at all. There are two outfits (what do you think about combining them both or one take the role of the waiters and the other the black "I'm a NY artist" look?).


Smithson with Richard Serra, 1970


Smithson and the Construction of Spiral Jetty, 1970


Smithson and his waiters (I call, "Not It" on wearing this one)


I cannot find anything (as of yet) on what Nancy Holt wore. I surmise that this is her in the views of Sun Tunnels but cannot be certain. Whatever she is wearing, she is NOT trying to be a cowgirl or cowboy for that matter.

This is the Nancy Holt we will not be emulating:




Heizer is also easy to find. Here he is with Robert Smithson in Nevada in 1968 (I am counting on finding a white cowboy hat). Here's a more recent headshot.



And James Turrell... Oh! The black cowboy ensemble! Maybe you can buy the white gear and I'll buy the black and we'll really be covering a lot of territory.



What is so odd is that I really want them to be wearing something like in Richard Prince's Untitled Cowboys photograph from 2003. Dream on.



Of course we can always dump the whole idea and go looking like this:

SHOW DOWN

I've had visions of myself as a man on this road trip. The one who drives, gets the gas, farts and burps. And it never felt right, I'm not really up for three weeks of burping and farting and I have a feeling that you would never have agreed to take a road trip with me much less do it again had I decided upon to do this as a three week performance. 

Then I thought of myself creating these artists alter egos, perhaps giving tours of Heizer's, City or Turrell's, Roten Crater. And I may still do something like this (even if it is just for you, consider it a private tour) - BUT - I kept seeing Heizer and Turrell as these cowboys in all their photo shoots. 

And could not help but think of Richard Prince 

(flash back to road trip no. 001.) I believe that show was at the Walker? But the main idea here is the parallels between what Prince was doing in his photographs and how I feel it relates to these earthworks and these celeb. artist and (I won't come close to denying my obsessions as a fan of either celebs or artists). Combined with the history of western landscape painting as propaganda. I'm in love! And somehow all these things start clicking together even if they are in my own minds map of images and general understandings. SO - I needed to purchase boots and a hat before my departure. Jacinda, I hope you can spot me, I'm planning on full gear the first day. I have yet to decide if it will be the dirty cowboy look or a cross between Tammy Faye meets boots and fringe. I love fringe!! (Misha Barton in boots with fringe.)