ALMOST FAMOUS #3: NEW MUSEUM

Last night the TWELV crew and I found ourselves in SoHo at the NEW MUSEUM spring opening party. The line to get in was out the door. Masses of people gathered to view the art and to mingle with some of New York's art scene elitist. The crowd’s excited energy made the party both relaxing and engaging.

After a long day of work it was refreshing to see such a range of diverse and inspiring artwork. The exhibition was especially stimulating due to the experiential nature of a lot of the work. 

One of the experiential pieces we observed was Ragnar Kjartansson's durational performance and video piece Take Me Here by the Dishwasher: Memorial for a Marriage (2011/2014) in his exhibition titled “Me, My Mother, My Father, and I.” Kjartansson's was born in Iceland into a family of actors. In this performance piece he used ten live musicians lounging and playing music on mattress and tattered chairs.

The piece was inspired by Iceland's first featured film Morðsaga (1977) that featured Kjartansson's mother. The projected scene playing behind the musicians was a sex scene featuring Kjartansson's father and mother on a kitchen floor. The family legend states that Kjartansson's was conceived after this scene was filmed. Kjartan Sveinsson, a composer and former member of the band Sigur Rós, revamped the original dialogue from the movie into a ten-part polyphony that the ten musicians performed live.

Throughout the exhibition I couldn't help but wonder about the story behind the piece and about what the artist was trying to convey. It was compelling to learn about the backstory behind this work. The family history behind this piece enhances the experience of the performance. Sometimes knowing the artist's intentions can often change the way you view their artwork, for better or worse. Nonetheless, that is part of the beauty in art: the appreciation of the story behind its creation.

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KYLA TANGEMAN

FASHION ASSISTANT/ PR ASSISTANT FOR TWELV MAGAZINE

I’m a new fashion girl in New York. Living in this wonderland has been a dream and passion of mine. Coming from LA one year ago, I traded my car in for a yellow cab. This fashion business in NY is an adventure to me. The fashion parties and events makes me feel like I’m a diamond in a jewelry box.

“Happy girls are the prettiest.”   Audrey Hepburn

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