Art Institute Chicago, Ray Johnson and the Last Dance of the Taoist Collages

 

Ray Johnson and the Last Dance of the Taoist Collages

 

A Look into the Art Institute of Chicago's Ray Johnson Collection by Jenny Harris & Jessica Smith

 

After Chicago-area choreographer Sybil Shearer died in 2005, a box with unexpected contents  was discovered tucked away in her attic. It was filled with artworks—what the artist Ray Johnson called his Taoist Collages —that he had mailed to her 50 years earlier. These collages were not simply a  stand-alone mailing between two friends, but rather the precursors to Johnson’s  mail art practice. They marked a pivotal moment in the artist’s career when he  was using the postal system to disperse his early collages, works he called “moticos.”  Researching these rediscovered works offered a new perspective onto Johnson’s  ties to the world of dance while also shedding new light on the Art Institute’s  own holdings of Johnson’s work...

 

sample of taoist collages

 

One of 171 3-ring binders spanning the years of Johnson’s and Wilson’s respective lifetimes

 

Ray Johnson Collections  at the Art Institute of Chicago

We are thrilled to announce that the Ray Johnson Collections database at the Art Institute  of Chicago is now available to the public both online and in person. This digital collection  includes not only the database but also video tutorials, a usage guide, collection finding  aids, selected images from the collections, and more.    Untitled (Taoist Collage), 1955 Ray Johnson

 

CURRENT & UPCOMING PUBLICATIONS Queer Networks: Ray Johnson's Correspondence by Miriam Kienle, University of Minnesota Press,  November 2023   A Book About Ray by Ellen Levy, MIT Press, October 15, 2024 RECENT PRESS Ray Johnson’s Elusive Dream: ‘I Want to Dance’ by Jenny Harris for the New York Times The Unknown Ray Johnson Takes the Spotlight by Roberta Smith for the New York Times Ray Johnson by Hilton Als for the New Yorker THE RAY JOHNSON ESTATE 34 East 69th Street, New York, NY 10021 +1 (212) 628-0470 | info@rayjohnsonestate.com www.rayjohnsonestate.com          Visit

 https//www.artic.edu/articles/1154/ray-johnson-and-the-last-dance-of-the-taoist-collages 
 https://www.artic.edu/articles/1154/ray-johnson-and-the-last-dance-of-the-taoist-collages

Evento segnalato da Archivio Ophen Virtual Art di Salerno (Italy).

Sandro Bongiani Arte Contemporanea

Progetto Add e Return "70 YEARS RUGGERO MAGGI"

PROGETTO INTERNAZIONALE  

DI  Arte  Contemporanea

SPAZIO OPHEN VIRTUAL ART GALLERY

Via S. Calenda, 105/D  84126  Salerno (Italy).

 Progetto “Add e Return”

70 Years  Ruggero  Maggi

Ruggero Maggi, Fragilità e distacco, 2019, 25 x 20 x 15 cm, part., 

Courtesy Archivio Ophen Virtual Art, Salerno

A cura di Sandro  Bongiani 

e in collaborazione con l’Archivio Ophen Virtual Art e la Collezione Bongiani Ophen Art Museum di  Salerno.

Lo Spazio Ophen Virtual Art Gallery  di Salerno invita a partecipare al prossimo Progetto Internazionale di Arte Contemporanea  “Fragilità e Distacco”  dedicato a Ruggero Maggi  intervenendo sulla card di cm 21x15 ricevuta con qualsiasi tecnica preferita per completare l’opera e di rispedirla possibilmente in busta chiusa a:  

Giovanni  Bonanno – Collezione Bongiani Art Museum

Via S. Calenda 105/D    84126  Salerno (SA).

N.B. Se non ricevi  la Card in cui lavorare puoi  lo stesso  partecipare  a questo progetto stampando  il foglio  che alleghiamo a  questo evento  in formato 21x15 oppure in formato A4 di cm. 28,5 x19.5 inviandolo a noi in tempo utile.

Le opere arrivate verranno pubblicate  nella sala 24 della Collezione Bongiani Art Museum di Salerno  http://www.collezionebongianiartmuseum.it/sala.php?id=69

Per questo evento Lo Spazio Ophen Virtual Art Gallery di Salerno organizzerà dal 15 agosto  al  28 novembre  2020 una mostra collettiva internazionale virtuale come evento internazionale, con il relativo comunicato stampa, il testo critico e la comunicazione della mostra alle più importanti riviste d’arte, quotidiani e siti di arte contemporanea. La mostra  sarà poi archiviata  e visitabile permanentemente  nello spazio “mostre svolte” della galleria Virtuale di Salerno.

 Scadenza  ultima del progetto: 10  luglio  2020

(Dopo la scadenza, il Progetto  “70 Years Ruggero Maggi” diventerà  Raccolta permanente  “Work in progress”, e tutti i lavori pervenuti saranno   conservati in permanenza presso l’archivio personale  della Collezione Bongiani Art Museum di Salerno per ulteriori altre mostre.     Sandro  Bongiani Arte Contemporanea

LA  CARD:

Per stampare la Card d’invito del progetto internazionale andare su:

http://iuoma-network.ning.com/forum/topics/progetto-add-e-return-70-years-ruggero-maggi?xg_source=activity

Card da stampare: 
https://st4.ning.com/topology/rest/1.0/file/get/3773253285?profile=original

© Collezione Bongiani Art Museum, Salerno – Italy 

E-mail.  bongianimuseum@gmail.com     Tel.  3937380225

Visita la sala 32 del Museo Bongiani Art Museum

Dedicata  a  Ruggero Maggi

http://www.collezionebongianiartmuseum.it/sala.php?id=32

Visita la Collezione Bongiani Museum:   

http://www.collezionebongianiartmuseum.it/

Archivio Ophen Virtual Art di Salerno

Mail Art Homage to Ray Johnson

PLEASE ADD TO AND RETURN TO OPENS TUESDAY, OCTOBER 27 AT PRINTED MATTER OCTOBER 27 - NOVEMBER 28 OPENING RECEPTION: FRIDAY, OCTOBER 30, 6-8PM PRINTED MATTER, INC., 231 11TH AVE Please Add To and Return To: Mail Art Homage to Ray Johnson Presented with Performa and the Ray Johnson Estate October 27 - November 28, 2015 Printed Matter is pleased to present Please Add To and Return To: Mail Art Homage to Ray Johnson, the culminating exhibition of recent mail art submissions realized as part of Performa 15 in collaboration with The Ray Johnson Estate. Spanning the back wall of Printed Matter's new location at 231 11th Avenue, the exhibition presents hundreds of submitted works that were received in response to a mail art activation celebrating the life and work of artist Ray Johnson (1927-1995).  The exhibition will be on view at Printed Matter October 27-November 28 in two phases, with the installation turning over on November 11. Please join us for an opening reception, co-hosted with Performa and The Ray Johnson Estate on Friday, October 30th, 6-8PM. A panel discussion and set of performances in connection with the exhibition will be held at Printed Matter during the course of the exhibition, details forthcoming. The exhibition extends a component of Johnson’s mail art practice in which he distributed “templates” with the instructions “Please Add To.” The artist would send these photocopies of his original drawings en masse via USPS, instructing recipients to “Return To Ray Johnson” or forward to someone else entirely. Upon return of work, Johnson would typically photocopy and recirculate the altered versions or add them to his archive.  As an homage to Johnson, several of the artist’s mail art “templates” were placed back into circulation as a call to action for the next generation of Johnson enthusiasts. Submissions for the project were received from eighty-five cities in nineteen countries, demonstrating that Johnson’s legendary mail art practice continues to resonate. The exhibition will also display a selection of Johnson's original templates from 1976, which were distributed through 1990, including “please add to and return to” mailings such as "The Starn Twins," "Please Add Hair to Cher," and "Ray Johnson Silhouette." Printed Matter will have a station on-site for visitors to create new works on blank templates, which will be collected into the exhibition and placed on view in accompanying binders. Once received, all submissions are posted to a page on the  website and become part of the Ray Johnson Estate archive. Printed Matter, Inc 231 11th Ave New York, NY 10001 Press inquiries:  Keith@printedmatter.org Hours: Mon–Wed: 11AM–7PM Thurs–Fri: 11AM–8PM Sat: 11AM–7PM Sun: Closed