SCENE & HERD
01.27.05 David Rimanelli on Jeff Koons’s surprise fiftieth birthday party
“Mr. and Mrs. Koons finally arrived, and the window gates of the gallery ascended as they entered; Jeff’s ever-smiling countenance didn’t quite disguise his distinct non-surprise. The first person he greeted was Ileana Sonnabend. And then a genuine surprise: A forty-piece marching band, with an escort of ponies, entered the gallery behind a Gigantor cake, played ‘Happy Birthday,’ and then segued into an oompah version of Led Zeppelin’s ‘Kashmir.’” READ ON (www.artforum.com/diary/)
01.25.05 Critics converge on Mexico City
“Who knew that the SITAC conference is the art event in Mexico? The fourth International Symposium on Contemporary Art Theory proved to be a nonstop slew of private viewings and collectors’ parties complementing three long days in which a semiglittering array of art historians, theorists and critics slogged it out via an indefatigable (and often incomprehensible) translator. This year’s theme was the relationship of art criticism to art historya well-chosen point of departure, even if the resulting discussions managed only to arrive at the consensus that history is a good thing.” READ ON (artforum.com/diary/#entry8313)
01.17.05 Dennis Cooper reads at the National Arts Club
“A word about readings…the whole scene generally strikes me as less a promotion of the writer’s work than a cheap dramatization of the debasement of literature in contemporary America, a Spinal Tap for poets, if you will. Which is why it was quite a bit more than a ‘refreshing surprise’ to attend a reading by LA’s post-punk Jean Genet, Dennis Cooper…” READ ON (artforum.com/diary/archive=200501#entry8243)
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