[ART REVIEW]
SOLOS
“HE MADE IT COOL TO BE GAY.”
{BY ROBERT RACZKA}
Living in This Filthy World: John Waters
“I Wished for Things but Got Instead, an Anvil dropped Upon My Head,” by Craig Freeman
Good neighbors. Two polished solo exhibits in adjoining Downtown galleries double the food for thought. Craig Freeman’s paintings and drawings at 707 Penn Gallery aren’t exactly upbeat, but for a show self-described as exploring themes of “nihilism, depression, and suicide,” it’s not the downer it could be. That’s partly because there’s plenty of black humor here, though Freeman is far from flippant with the subject, and depression feels as if it’s taken seriously. As a twist, Freeman populates his pictures with cartoon characters, which makes their dilemmas and despair feel less individualistic and of broader applicability. Freeman’s modestly sized paintings are designed more than composed, and resemble either icons, as in the stylized image of feet projecting from under an anvil, or logos, as in “Exit House,” in which the words are combined with the image of a noose. These pictures make reference to tragedies of disaster and self-destruction, though they stop short of expressing much about them, leaving emotional distance. The accompanying drawings on discolored paper hold only disconnected and fragmentary images and are calculatedly incomplete. One door over, at 709 Penn Gallery, Fabrizio Gerbino is exhibiting 10 paintings that, though not a conventionally tight series, share with each other a similarity of tone along with a predilection for shades of gray. (Not that kind!) The miscellaneous aspect keeps it interesting with horizontal and vertical formats, various materials and even a multi-panel piece of irregular shape. There are varied approaches to imagery, from a painterly representation of a hand to motifs, decorative elements, spatial perspectives and pure abstraction. Gerbino is exercising more freedom than most artists permit themselves. The wide-ranging character of these works reflects the use of different sources for inspiration and forms, which are then filtered and channeled into his art. I’m reminded of the breadth of early Francesco Clemente, with whom Gerbino seems to share a foraging curiosity. Yet these pieces hang together, sufficiently unified by the artist’s use of geometric and architectural space in conjunction with a looseness of paint-handling, as seen in “Untitled” (2008). While many of the paintings are heavily reworked, resulting in built-up surfaces, they maintain equilibrium between structure and fluidity.
WATERSON WARHOL
INFO@PGHCITYPAPER.COM
CRAIG FREEMAN: CARTOON NIHILISM 707 Penn Gallery, 707 Penn Ave., Downtown (412-325-7017). FABRIZIO GERBINO: THE PAINTING AS OBJECT 709 Penn Gallery, 709 Penn Ave., Downtown (412-224-4651). Both shows continue through Feb. 17. www.trustarts.org
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[WORDS]
PITTSBURGH CITY PAPER 01.30/02.06.2013
{BY {B BY BILL LL O’DRISCOLL} O’D ’DRI RIISCOL SCOL SC OLL} L}
J
OHN WATERS, who made his name as a ground-
breaking filmmaker, hasn’t released a new feature since 2004. But he’s hardly slowed down. With TV guest spots, books and speaking engagements — plus the continued success of the stagemusical version of his 1988 film Hairspray — the man who gave us cult classics like Pink Flamingos and Polyester remains a comic raconteur beloved of freaks and misfits everywhere. Last year, when Waters appeared on Australian chat show Q & A, a fan tweeted on screen, “This is like a vision of the Virgin Mary in rural Ireland.”
JOHN WATERS
INTIMATE GALLERY TALK:
8:30 p.m. Thu., Jan. 31 (The Andy Warhol Museum, 117 Sandusky St., North Side. $150).
THIS FILTHY WORLD:
8 p.m. Fri., Feb. 1 (Carnegie Music Hall, 4400 Forbes Ave., Oakland; $20-25). 412-237-8300 or www.warhol.org
In Pittsburgh this week, Waters has two gigs. On Jan. 31, he follows up his role as the voice of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s audio guide for Regarding Warhol: Sixty Artists, Fifty Years by personally leading a tour through this major traveling exhibit at The Andy Warhol Museum. On Feb. 1, at Carnegie Music Hall, Waters gives a new version of his popular monologue This Filthy World — basically a rundown of his influences and obsessions, last presented here in 2005. Waters, 66, still lives in his hometown of Balti-
more, though he spoke with CP by phone from his San Francisco flat — “the apartment that Hairspray: The Musical bought me.” He was especially keen to discuss Warhol’s films, which ranged from experiments like the six-hour Sleep to outrageous works like Vinyl. A longer version of this interview, and an audio clip, are available at www.pghcitypaper.com. HOW DID YOU GET THE MET GIG? They just asked me. And I did know Andy and I was on the board of The Warhol Foundation for a long time. … It was an acting job! YOU CALL WARHOL THE MOST INFLUENTIAL ARTIST OF THE PAST 50 YEARS. HOW SO? Andy did so many great things. The movies to me are the only things that have not yet reached their top peak of success and influence. … I am convinced someday they will be considered as valuable and as important as the artwork. Because it was so radical to slow down movies, and make movies of really cute people on amphetamine talking fast … in slow motion. CONTINUES ON PG. 36