Leitmotifs

In less than a week I’ll be traveling to Germany to see Documenta 12. The curator, Roger M. Buergel, has asked over 100 leading artists from all over the world the following three questions:
Is modernity our antiquity?
What is bare life?
What is to be done?
Here, read the artspeak for yourself. I thought I would un-artspeak my own answers to these questions before I see the work.
So for tonight, is modernity our antiquity? Meaning, I guess, is the modern era, with its emphasis on capitalism and rationalism, over? Doubt it. But what I think is interesting is that the era of America as the definer of modernity is almost over. I’ll be very excited to see what the Chinese artists have to say about the matter. I want to be a citizen of many places. I’ve seen first hand here in Turkey what provincialism does to Art, and it’s not good. It doesn’t mean that all art must look the same the world over. But staying in your little flat hanging on to tradition is so boring. See, read, eat, experience, make art.

My model and muse had to leave Our Anatolian City, and I’m two large nudes short of material. So today I stayed home in my cool flat and tried to paint from myself with little success. Tomorrow and Saturday I’m teaching all day workshops outside (yikes) at a student conference. Maybe heat stroke will improve my self portraiture…