On the eighth day, Monday, I rested, mostly…at least until Gregg came by late afternoon with the consignment sheet and unwelcome news that the Library would close at nine that night until March 31st…or The Duration, which made March 31st look wildly optimistic. So as soon as L was back from her afternoon perambulation we piled into the ’45 so she could see the show
and attempt unofficial documentation of “Further Afield” while Gregg and Kathryn were putting the finishing touches on the installation of an exhibition potentially unsee-able…
I’ve compiled a tour of the show, nominally clockwise in rotation, beginning with the 40′ wall, which more or less conforms to the floor plan above – with exceptions – such as beginning with
“Seven Troughs”, 24X24″, 2017 [above] and then “Looking West, Early Spring”, 20X88′, 2019;
“Libre 2″, 48X48”, 2019; “Libre 1, 48X48”, 2019…
“Blue One”, 14X81″, 2019; “The Quinn River Sank”, 12X81″, 2019…
‘Ptg. 3″, 24X24″, 2019; “Ptg. 1″, 24X24”, 2019.
Gregg with Linda at the end of the corridor with the wall of paintings on cardboard behind
them and then details of the cardboards, various sizes and dates.
Three acrylics, all 2018, all 8X44″; “Oregon Fade”, Red One” and “Oregon One”
before moving on to the wide spot in the road wherein were hung “We’ll Mine the Other Planets
Later” [an actual bumper sticker – “Earth First, We’ll Mine the Other Planets Later” – seen in a parking lot in Puckerbrush, Nevada, in the early nineties], 30X30″, 1997 and
the aforeseen [for those of you who noticed the announcement for the show] “Black Rock Point; Quinn River Sink”, 30X72″, 2019. Finally came “Playa from Libre”, 14X48″, 2017. Additionally I
put a random selection of six 2007 14X17″ pen and ink imaginary topos in one vitrine and copies of “Auto Biographies and Every House I Ever Lived In [from Memory”, 2014, in the other.
This being the only occasion the installation was open to the public we improvised a sort of
“soft opening” attended by curator Kathryn Renfrow [Gregg shown earlier], Linda Fleming
and the excellent David Dodd, Director of the Benicia Public Library, which then closed for the
unforeseeable future. As a result, the artist will not be present…nor anyone else. Not soon.
Most pictures here, if any good at all, taken by L. Fleming..
Stay home, be safe, take care.
MSM
Michael,
Thanks for the fine tour of Further Afield, and I guess this is a welcome to the future, or at least to the foreseeable future. (And thanks for the spell check as I had written for-sea-able and I don’t think we are looking that far into the future, at least not yet.) We are in strange times to say the least. The show is beautiful and your digital tour is beautifully put together. Things I missed: seeing precisely what a surface would feel like, being able to really hone in on a detail, feeling the air in the room, just meandering, being able to see a painting across the hall which pulls me out of sequence. Nevertheless, bravo! You have digitally, actually, taken me to the show. Heartfelt thanks, and yes, be careful and be well.
Like Fred said, “You have digitally, actually, taken me to the show” — and that feels like a real treat right about now. Thanks to LF for the excellent photos. Please be safe out there…
Thank you two so much for the virtual tour of Further Afield. It’s wonderful to see your new work and take time to zoom in each one. That it hangs for viewing with no one to see is a crime.
David Dodd so full of life!
A delightful human…if we manage to reopen [and re-recept] you’ll surely meet him. stay tuned…
Ha! Yes. I love Michael’s work.
Thank you for the tour of your beautiful show. I hope to see it, and you, in real life soon. xo
The show look great, Mike. I hope I get to see it (or its parts).
MSM- thanks for sharing. The work looks really lovely and I am so sorry the reception and public access were closed. The good news is that this too shall pass and light & life will flow into the building once more. Hang tough.
Michael and Linda,
Thank you for the beautiful, detailed documentation!
What a pleasure to see the show here, so completely, fine antidote to the disheartening anticlimax on Tuesday and the rest of the week.
We will open the exhibit when the library reopens, take up where we left off, and proceed with a nice long round of days when all can share your splendid work, Michael, in person.
Very fond of Seven Toughs and the appearances of the “crunckley” clouds.
What an ultra special expansive treat for us who are “Staying in Place.”
Lots of Love
Stay well
Ulp…I made the same mistake Kathryn had made earlier with that; it should be “Seven Troughs”…
??
In reply to..what?
Seven Troughs misspelling – is it published somewhere misspelled? I will fix it if so …
I’m not sure; I think we caught it before it made the papers[?]…it’s corrected here.
I’ve looked; if it was it was corrected before anything went to press…
What gorgeous work! I was especially sent by the wall of paintings on cardboard. Nice to see people there too. Thank you so much for your post…I agree with Beth – “ultra special expansive treat! ”
BE WELL.
Thank you, Jamie
MIchael an Linda,
I just spent a good deal of time perusing your virtual exhibition and it has only wet my appetite for eventually standing in front of the work in flesh as soon as humanly possible. Thank you for your effort to make this available in this fashion. I enlarged my screen in order to take in the work as best I could.
Clearly this show must be hung again in the future….it needs to be seen my many….in the flesh.
Also, I would be interested in collecting one or more of your works on cardboard. I believe you have my email. If not, let me know. OR here’s my phone # for a chat, regardless… 7070-980-0710. Much love and respect – Mark
Thanks Mark; I believe David is angling to let the show remain up after the quarantine is lifted..we may try to do an actual reception at that point. I’ll let you know…and be in touch soon.
Love and respect back at you…and Marija.
Michael and Mark, and everyone,
“Further Afield” will open when the library reopens, as mentioned above, and stay open for its originally scheduled length of time. (five weeks)
Something to look forward to!
Dearest Michael — You’ve managed to take us Further Afield with this well documented virtual tour than I imagined possible. Thank you! I have a new appreciation for going through the show in this way. To be able to feel that floating light you’ve managed to capture and the edgelessness of the Great Basin and Playa from inside my four walls is an indescribable gift. I want to live in front of that wall of cardboard paintings. I wish I could stand to each side and see how the light bounces off or is absorbed but this with so many other things will have to wait. For now, thank you and thank Linda —catching glimpses of both of you warms my heart.
Space and light – great stuff Michael. Nice to see a collection for the first time in what’s been for me something like 40 years. More than one of these would be a great companion to one of your pieces hanging on the wall at my place in Anchorage. And motivation to get out and look around in your part of the world – a goal for adventuress on the other side of this interesting time .
WHAT an excellent exhibition! – as is only to be expected from this amazing artist. The “Wall” of paintings with close-ups, and the extraordinary books in the case – I am so grateful for this tour!!!
And also – a nice exhibiting space!
Fortunately we can see it in person when all these germs blow over.
Good girl Lindie for taking such fine pictures!
Love you both so mucho!
I am filled with the Light of deLight that rolls and flows along with all of the beautiful thoughts that can be seen just above this space.
This is what Art does.
Congratulations, Michael!
Thanks so much. I was going to ask you to do it last week. Wonderful to see everything. And you are looking very good. & Linda too. Happy Birthday it is around now I recall . I am making more art and projects then ever with this forced seclusion.Doing Yoga on Zoom 3 times a week instead of just once before with our beloved teacher. Al continues to recover in the midst of this pandemic. Munnums proliferating at a great rate! Love to you both
Thanks Sibyl…be sure to click the like at the end for “not be present”…I think you’ll like it [if you haven’t seen it already] love M
I love that I can click a photo and then zoom in, really great detail of layers and surface- so much so that I was able to discern steamm punk scratched (?) into the surface of a little one.
Hi Michael,
After the disappointment of the closing, I had been hoping for something like a virtual walkthrough, but now I long even more to see the real thing. It will not come soon enough…..
Congratulation! Stay healthy.
Fondly,
Hedi
PS love the reflection of the State Capitol.
How come you still have hair on top?
Magic…
Michael—-the show looks absolutely wonderful. I hope John and I are still here (and not in Colorado) when the library reopens, so we can see it. Your work is so damn beautiful and satisfying. I especially love the image on the announcement, and the new one “Seven Troughs” That feels like a departure for you, both spatially and color wise. I look forward to seeing it in person.
Actually “Seven Troughs” is something of a throwback to the mid-seventies “classic” period, but I finished it in ’17. Hopefully things will open up before you decamp for the Huerfano.
I am overwhelmed by the fantastic quality and quantity of your “small survey” Further Afield. I was expecting just a few pieces but am really stoked to see so many of my favorite examples of your work. It may be a “small survey” compared with “Making Places” in Santa Fe 7 years ago, but the Benicia Library show is absolutely beautiful, perfectly hung and expertly documented for virtual sharing (GREAT JOB, Linda!). Congratulations! To all involved, but especially to you, Bro.
Brenda and I await the “all clear” announcement from our sheltering to come over and see it in person… we will most definitely attend!
Soooooo tantalizing! I really look forward to seeing the real thing, but thank you for going to all the effort to make a virtual show. Along with all you fans I am very impressed!!
Art in the Time of Cholera. Thank you, Michael, for putting this excellent tour together and giving friends and fans a taste of the show that isn’t (yet). There is virtue in the virtual.
Just saw this; what a wonderful and wonderfully presented exhibition, and can only hope that they can extend it beyond the virtual and into the real, if and when. So nice to see the assembly of the previously seen, seen uncompleted, and the unseen, brought together, focused, narrated. I have your card of Black Rock Point: Quinn River Sink right next to me on the bookselves, just below a photo of Rembrant’s Kenwood self-portrait, with which you are familiar. And thank you Linda for documenting this, but, but, it’s too bad and too sad they remain locked down.
Beautiful work! I look forward to seeing it in person, especially the cardboard painting collection. So juicy!
…and still there until the library reopens! Hope you can get there.
Visit the video tour of “Further Afield” on YouTube at https://youtu.be/xHhpPCzQ2o4