This one was of particular interest to me, Its a magic painting that changes when it’s owner speaks certain magic words to it. Over the course of its stay at Brooklyn is Watching this piece, also by DanCoyote changed many times as he came by to change it for us.

One of the things that is most interesting to me about this is that it relates in my mind to something that is true of all abstract paintings, which is that in addition to whatever official name they have like “composition in green number 57″, they also have a what i call a “secret name” which is usually something like “the one with the big red spot” or “the one that bob liked” or something like that. The secret name is used by art dealers and artists and collectors to know what the heck painting they are talking about when “untitled 1951 #3″ just doesn’t cut it.

The idea of secret knowledge around the artwork, through the use of scripts is now made litteral by DC here. To me this is one of the most significant trial-heads I’ve seen demonstrated at Brooklyn is Watching so far. By Trail-head, i just mean that…. down this path lies some interesting stuff… artwork where its interactive, but the interaction takes place along lines that are dictated by secret knowledge- Scripting taking its cues from secrets that have to be communicated socially and which interface with the economic realities of the object as well….want this painting to do tricks for you? Buy it.

also requiring some special knowledge is the fact that far above Brooklyn is Watching out of the way of anyone else’s artwork DC made a little museum in the air that reminds me of a small version of this “full immersion hyperformalism” up her in the clouds you can see a whole group of his subtly moving not-quite-2-d rectangular biomorphic abstractions.

Posted by jvanb on Tuesday, March 11th, 2008 at 5:40 pm.