An Art:21 Artist By Motomi Jewell

His Biography -Born in Detroit, Michigan in Received BFA from University of Michigan, and an MFA from California Institute of the Arts. -Now lives and works in Los Angeles, CA. -A critic and curator, and also writes for art and music journals. -Received the Skowhegan Medal in Mixed Media and two grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Has major solo exhibitions in numerous museums.

What does he present through his artwork? -Questions the legitimacy of ‘normative’ values and systems of authority. -Explores the idea of “repressed memory syndrome.”

Something You May Recognize…

“Exploring”

“More Love Hours Than Can Ever Be Repaid”

“Miniature Reproduction ‘Chinatown Wishing Well’”

What Type of Art Does He Create? Painting? Sculpture? Installation? Performance? Drawing? How about all ?!

Repressed Memory Syndrome “I thought I should address my ‘abuse’ through the education system…” “My own abuse was my training in Hans Hoffman’s push-pull theory. All the formal qualities in the organization of these works are patterned on that kind of formalist visual-art training which I see as a kind of visual indoctrination. So I’m recovering that.” Welchman, John C., Graw, Isabelle, and Vidler, Anthony. Mike Kelley. London: Phaidon, 1999.

“The Thirteen Seasons (Heavy on the Winter)” The Birth of the New YearFecundityThe Decay of Year End The Giving Old ManDeathArt What feelings do you receive through these paintings?

“Educational Complex” “And so my religion for this structure is repressed memory syndrome. The idea is that anything you can’t remember, that you forget or block out, is the byproduct of abuse and that all of these scenarios are supposed to be filling in the missing action in these blank sections in this building.”

“Educational Complex”

“Educational Complex”

“Day is Done” “The particular categories had religious ritual overtones, but outside of the church context. They all looked like they were done in public places, or they had gothic overtones. So I said, 'Okay, I’m going to work with these particular groups of images and develop a kind of pseudo-narrative flow.' The rituals run the gamut from something like dress-up day at work to St. Patrick’s Day or Halloween, to a community play or an awards ceremony."

“Day is Done”

“Day is Done” “And I’m just trying to show that relationship between the traditional avant-garde and the carnivalesque social function of these folk rituals, as I guess you’d call them.”

“Day is Done” Music “I didn’t have time to play music anymore so I had to make a Project where I forced myself to make music. That was the Reality of it, otherwise I wasn’t ever going to get to do it.” Recording Music

“Balanced by Mass and Worth” “Memory Ware Flat #13” "Popular culture is really invisible. People are really visually illiterate. They learn to read in school, but they don’t learn to decode images.”

Mike Kelley’s Big Idea Memory Ritual Where do we see ritual in our daily lives? Do you think we alter some of our memories?

Influences Psychological and psychoanalytical writings: Sigmund Freud Sándor Ferenczi Melanie Klein Performance Writers Raymond Roussel Samuel Beckett Gertrude Stein Thomas Aquinas His own experiences and memory.

Bibliography < g_vmed.jpg>. “Mike Kelley: Biogrpahy.” Art: February “Mike Kelley: Slideshow.” Art: February “Mike Kelley: Language and Psychology.” Art: February “Mike Kelley: Interview 2 of 4.” Youtube. < D1DE2283F&playnext=1&index=25>. “Mike Kelley: “Day is Done.” Art: February Welchman, John C., Graw, Isabelle, and Vidler, Anthony. Mike Kelley. London: Phaidon, O’Brien, Glenn. “Mike Kelley.” 12 February 2009.