Mahler with Marimba

I have been transfixed by the recent event at the Avery Fisher Hall. This was the story that came out last Friday about conductor Alan Gilbert stopping the New York Philharmonic dead in its tracks at the mercy of an intrusive and never-ending marimba ring tone.  

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/13/nyregion/ringing-finally-stopped-but-concertgoers-alarm-persists.html?

The marimba in its modern form came to America at about the same time that Mahler was writing his 9th symphony - in 1910. Although the instrument has been used in later classical pieces by other composers, it is not believed that Mahler had any knowledge or interest in the instrument popular in Central America and on Caribbean cruise ships.

That the ring tone erupted for a few moments was bad enough, but from varying reports, it lasted an agonizingly long 5 - 10 minutes.  It seemed insidiously programmed not to misbehave during a loud section, but at the moment when the music is fading almost into silence.  

As you can see from from this score of the 4th movement, there aren't many notes.  The sound disintegrates and you could hear a pin drop if not for the equivalent of Daffy Duck making his entrance.  We all know the ditty - Da, da, da, da, da!  Da, da, da, da, da! Da, da, da, da, da, da, da, da!

                                             

This was hijacking of the highest order - interruption of art. Just imagine some 2,700 people and musicians transfixed by the ethereal and sublime music of Mahler's 9th Symphony. Along comes the insistent, obnoxious, and uninvited instrument. Captain Gilbert endured the massacre as long as he could stand it, then stopped the engines and everyone waited.  And waited while the marimba made merry. That so many were held hostage by this banality is true theatre of the absurd.  These gentle appearing patrons soon had murderous thoughts, but apart from angry shouts and rhythmic clapping, why didn't anybody DO anything? Music is an experience when we voluntarily suspend our belief for a period of time with a start and a finish. The magical moment was destroyed. 

No, this is not a mallet for striking a marimba, but Mahler's baton.  He had a very successful conducting career before dying at the age of 50. And yes, the curse of dying after composing 9 symphonies held true. Good thing he didn't have to hear this altered performance.

On January 10, 2012, civilization as we know it was brought to its knees by the power of technology. 

Thus sprak Malus Domestica - a tone poem

Enter the iPhone, disguised here as the monolith in 2001 Space Odyssey.  Little did we know that we would become helpless victims to the Hal that played annoying ring tones.  This is the one glaring mistake that Steve Jobs didn't address in his obsessive quest to design the best.

I object to the inanity of most of the ring tones offered on Blackberry and iPhone. Please do everyone a favor and be sure that yours is one that isn't irritating.  And learn how to turn off the damn thing.  You may have to customize it and pay a few bucks plus be sure to ask your friends if the ring tone you choose is offensive.  Otherwise, listen up cell phones designers, don't insult us with your meager, mediocre menus to select from when we've just shelled out a lot of loot.

  

So, the psychological repercussions of all this percussion will echo for some time...will Patron X ever be able to use an iPhone again without experiencing trauma?  Or ever listen to Mahler again?  Will he be expelled forever from Avery Fisher Hall?  Will he have to keep this a deep, dark secret forever from friends and family?  Patron X, and we, unfortunately, will never be able to forget.  I think it would be in the best interests of iPhone to delete that tone entirely and let there be silence!                                        

                         

                                                                                    

                                                               

                                                                          

                                                                        

Renee's Believe it or Not!

"Hunka, hunka, hunka!  You can't beat the fun!", yelled the carnival barker.  I didn't know what hunka meant, but the carney's cadence was mesmerizing.  Young people with blank faces were enticed to strap themselves to a flat trapezoid that torqued in increasingly sharp angles, starting ever-so-slowly and ending at tortuously high speeds. I listened to his cajoling banter, and marveled at how he engaged and entertained the crowd in a tight, twisting medieval street in St. Andrew's, Scotland,  many years ago.  The carney's call still resounds in my memory, and the funny words he used came to mind as I considered the acquisition of a bunkie board...

A bunkie board is a thin foundation for the mattress that  replaces the box spring.

The process of interior design is always fun, and I am especially delighted by serendipity. You never know when what you are looking for may be found in the most ordinary of places and circumstances! Recently I had been cogitating about purchasing a bunkie board for a home decorating project. I had a small room that served dual purpose as a guest room and study.  By replacing the twin box spring with a bunkie board, the height would be more sofa-like. With an assortment of pillows and bolsters, its rare function as a mattress support would be further disguised. 

Just now while walking Chewy, I spied a large, rectangular canvas leaning against a dumpster. As I walked around the block, the size stuck in my head; they closely echoed the dimensions of a twin bed; and why were the corners curved?  It seemed rather peculiar.  I  completed our walk, and returned with a tape measure.  Sure enough, it was a standard twin size: 39" x 75".

Well, what did I expect when I turned it over?  This definitely falls in the realm of 'bad paintings'. It is only heroic in its use of unorthodox stretched canvas and bravery in scale.

And what is this mysterious painted out portion that says 2 + 2 = 5?  What does that mean? Not only is the perpetrator artistically naive, but mathematically defiant!

Aerial Born Bunkie Board

Aesthetics aside, could it be that what I had been poised to purchase that very day was right under my nose? I couldn't believe the odds of this very obscure find.  I had researched the price, $95 with delivery, and only had to pull the trigger when I returned home from our walk. Thank god for dog walks!  Dogs are in the details, or is it God is in the details?  (When you were a child, did you ever spell  D-O-G when you meant to spell G-O-D?) This enigmatic painting could be laid to rest serving its original purpose, and be saved from the landfill.  All is well as long as it doesn't contribute to nightmares for unsuspecting sleeping guests. All in all, a hunky dory ending.

Bunkie Delivery Service

Dumpsterside accessible

Art Hijacked by Yacht Hoppers and Party Hijinks

Last Year, I had meant to remind you all to make the pilgrimage to Venice for the 54th Biennale, the oldest   and biggest and most important art exhibition in the world.  Closing day was November 27th.  Art Basel Miami Beach, a little closer to home, was another big one which closed December 4th.

Was it the art or the parties that made all the headlines?  My impression was that the parties got just as much coverage, if not moreso, than the art!  The super-rich art crowd is annoyingly predictable with both their collections of trophy wives and trophy art.  Whether it's multi-million dollar contemporary art collections in a surround of cabbage leaf chintz and dainty Chippendale antiques or austere modernist revisions, there is an emotional disconnect.  I'm tired already of seeing the same old iconic artists (especially my favorites) being rehashed again and again, in over-the-top homes just because they have been stamped Certified and Approved by the DDCWC, or, Department of Dealers, Curators, and Wealthy Collectors.

This article by Charles Saatchi, art's own Oprah Winfrey for laying the golden mantle on young artists, is commendable for its candor.  Saatchi could likely afford the yacht shown below, but more likely he will spend his profits on more art to feed the world.

Quick Quiz Question:  Who is the biggest art spender?

Answer: Sheikh Saud bin Ali-al-Thani, of the Qatar royal family. He reportedly spent several hundred million dollars in just the past two years.  So put THAT in your decorating budget and smoke it!

A super yacht moored in Venice for the art biennale.
 Photograph: Chris Helgren/Reuters/Corbis

And now may I introduce Charles Saatchi, self-professed artaholic, commenting on the State of the Art: 

http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2011/dec/02/saatchi-hideousness-art-world/print

I Jus Wanna Sing Songs

So to finish off 2011 with a song...and what better way to start the new year?

My current repertoire:


Caro mio ben
 by Giuseppe Giordani (1744-1798)

http://youtu.be/UPnqhlFPTwo
A sad love song that's more difficult than it seems.




Where'er you walk (Semele) 
by George Frederick Handel (1685-1759)
http://youtu.be/P3a0ykFPbL8
I usually sing this song while walking my dog, but in the art of survival, now I know that I could take to the streets if necessary!




Come unto him (Messiah)
 by George Frederick Handel
http://youtu.be/fIjEGCqiazQ
When I first heard this song, I could no longer be a spectator, but had to sing it, too!




Pie Jesu (from Requiem)
 by Gabriel Faure (1845-1924)

http://youtu.be/dHbUebcQopo
Faure's Requiem is one of the most beautiful pieces of music ever written.  Hear it in its entirety!

The assorted words and messages from these songs are good ones to wish you all in the new year: 
 love and peace and may there always be music in your life!

Cave Paintings

It's sometimes good to hearken back to the old times, ancient times, hey, even pre-historic times.  Rocks and sticks may seem trendy right now for furnishing interiors, but for me they never go out of style. There is something satisfying about what Carl Jung called "our collective unconscious". The evolution to wall paintings came 32,000 years ago,  as far as we know.  When I decided to retrieve a few of my art pieces  from the Garden Apartment project, I was disturbed by their absence.  First I was going to draw with chalk on the wall as a substitute for the original art.  Then, I thought why not do something more permanent and paint on the wall?  This thought process happened rapidly and naturally, and in some respects seemed even better than the "original" artworks themselves.  

copy of  "Copy of Nickel" in process

latex paint on drywall

Is any thought ever truly original?  Usually, someone on the other side of the globe is doing the same thing, or someone may have done it years before.  Maybe it seemed like our own idea but in fact was something that just seeped into our unconscious.  I found this little plastic nickel with the word copy stamped on it.  As if anyone would think that a plastic nickel would be mistaken for the real thing? How baffling is that?  What is real art and what isn't?  I would regard these as originals, as as part of a series.

 "Copy of Copy of Nickel" 

latex on drywall

Renee Celeste Flanders

2011

(original below on shelf)

Perhaps I was experiencing a  throwback to the freedom felt in drawing on the wall as a child.  Do any of you recall that uninhibited impulse?  

copy of "Bouquet" on wall in process

The original "Bouquet" was never painted, but cut into the canvas a la Lucio Fontana. I had drawn numerous renditions, but never painted the lines, as they were cut with a knife.  To paint it was taking it from 3 dimensional to 2 dimensional, but with the objective to simulate the 3 dimensional original. Here I was cutting through the wall with paint.  I felt like Alice in Wonderland entering the wall through the looking glass!

copy of "Bouquet" on wall in process

 "Copy of Hand" 

latex on drywall

Renee Celeste Flanders

2011

Up against the wall, cave art!  This was a simple but satisfying way to mark my territory.  Or, it could be seen as an appeal to the gods of aesthetics to always invoke their good graces to the occupants of the apartment.  Instead of happy hunting, may they achieve great success in their artistic endeavors on stage at The Repertory Theatre of St. Louis and Opera Theatre of St. Louis! 

Art Apartment

When designing an interior, it's best to start with the art, but in the case of The Garden Apartment G1, most of the artwork was collected and created towards the end of the installation.  As an interior designer partnering with Marcia Smith on this project, we could do whatever we wanted (which is always the beauty of showhouses). In addition to artwork loaned by Craft Alliance, a donated piece by Jim Harris, and donations from the collection of Marcia Smith, I  included ten of my own pieces.

Marcia and I considered what we would most like to see on the walls.  Ellsworth Kelly seemed a common denominator for the design of G1, and rather than purchase a poster or (dreaded) giclee print, to my studio I went, pulling things out of storage and creating a few appropriated images. 

                                         

"No 9"

latex on canvas 

2011

Renee Flanders

The scale of this particular piece was necessary to cover a small window which previously had housed the heating and air-conditioning unit. We decided to make it go away with a large painting paying homage to Ellsworth Kelly.

"Clay Court"

latex and texture paint additive

2011

Renee Flanders     

For the piece above the wall shelf, I again borrowed imagery from Kelly, but determined that it should be a textured surface and much larger than the original. I've always loved the game of tennis, especially playing on clay.  To paint a tentative tennis court was fun, too.

                                           

"Red"

oil encaustic on canvas

2011

Renee Flanders

We wanted a splash of color.  As the opening night play for the season was "Red" by John Logan, it seemed a no-brainer to do a red painting at the front door.  Appropriately enough, the play was about artist Mark Rothko, who loved the color red.

"Read Book"

latex on paper

2011
Renee Flanders

Gathering steam,  I was inspired to make a book cover in red entitled "Read Book" by RCF.  It's good for a laugh in any context, I think.

 "Hand"
asphalt and styrofoam
2007

Renee Flanders

I actually found a piece of roof tile in the shape of a hand when walking Chewy a few years back. It beckons one to the black box galley kitchen.

"5 MINUTES"

oil on cardboard

2007

Renee Flanders

This was pulled out of storage, too...never imagined that it would be in an actor's suite!  How perfect is that?!

Bedroom art

"Dot"

asphalt and styrofoam

2009

Renee Flanders


Circles rule!  My favorite shape since the age of 5...

Bathroom art

"Copy of Nickel"

plastic and styrofoam

2009

Renee Flanders

Ya gotta have good bathroom art!

                                           

"Toilet"

porcelain, polished chrome, red lacquer

2011

Renee Flanders

Who doesn't enjoy a good pun? I've signed many a toilet with R. Mutt in my lifetime and never tire of laughing at the same joke. 

"Fountain"

porcelain

1917

Marcel Duchamp

Here's the original, from nearly 100 years ago.  Duchamp bought the urinal from a plumbing supply store, put it on a pedestal, and entered it in art exhibit that promised to accept all art.  He proclaimed, "Anything is art, as long as the artist says that it is." 

"Fountain (After Marcel Duchamp)"

cast bronze

1991

Sherrie Levine

 A good idea never dies.  

"Bouquet"

latex on canvas

2011

Rene Flanders

Originally, Marcia and I had planned to have the "Knappa" hanging light fixture from Ikea over the table.  That plan was scrapped when we decided to stay with the recessed light fixture already in place.  The idea evolved to my drawing the "Knappa" on the chalkboard wall in the dining area.  I did draw it, but was not satisfied.  Back to my art storage I went, and came up with "Bouquet", part of a series I did inspired by Lucio Fontana,  which immediately brightened the space with its blooms. 

Artist and interior designer,

yours truly, on opening night. 

I hold 3 degrees: a BFA and MFA , both with majors in Painting and an AAS degree in Interior Design. In graduate school we joked that the acronym MFA stood for Mighty Fine Artist.  I think of my background in fine arts and art history as the foundation of what I do as an interior designer.  

For more exciting details about The Garden Apartment project, see  At Home magazine Nov./Dec. 2011 on newstands now!  Here is the link:

http://www.stlmag.com/St-Louis-AT-HOME/November-December-2011/Act-Three-The-Repertory-Theatre-Apartments-Go-Through-the-Final-Phase-of-Transformation/

No Guts No Glory

Core of the Crew

Marcia, Rosemary, Herb, et moi

This is the second installment of the Garden Apartment project that I worked on this summer with Marcia Smith. It is featured in the current Nov./Dec. issue of At Home magazine on stands now! Check it out at:  

http://www.stlmag.com/St-Louis-AT-HOME/November-December-2011/Act-Three-The-Repertory-Theatre-Apartments-Go-Through-the-Final-Phase-of-Transformation/

Dining Area before

Dining Area after

"Bouquet"

latex on canvas

2011

Renee Flanders

Kitchen before

Kitchen during

Kitchen after

What actor wouldn't feel comfortable in this "Black Box Theatre"?

I'm a hands-on designer who's not shy with a mop, broom or vacuum!
Whether it's walls or canvases that need painting; I can do!

Bathroom before...

Bathroom during surgery


This is the part about the guts...

Bathroom after

The coil wire mesh shower curtain (aluminum) was donated by one of my clients who is converting to a shower only project.  It is a show stopper that looks like chain mail and is very sexy.

Bathroom after

Quelle difference!

Bedroom before

 Hazards of the profession: I bonked my head on the bed while flipping it...

Bedroom after 


Time to put on your costume - it's show time!

Bedroom after

Our friend Crista Carr Shatz painted silver dots on an Ikea chair to liven things up.

Showhouses of any sort are great for knocking off a few pounds.  When is there any time to eat?

Bedroom after

We painted the wall with chalk board paint and chalked on the "Z's" to lull the actors to sleep.

Job well done; it's time to go home.