Matthew Barney vs. SFMOMA
Posted by AGI on July 30, 2006 10:41 PM | Permalink
If at all possible check out Drawing Restraint, the Matthew Barney installation at SFMOMA. On view is a sprawling study of place, space, and the human condition. By "exploring the notion that form emerges through struggle against resistance," Barney may have inadvertently become a hero to the SF developer.
In particular, the clip of him jumping on a trampoline and painting a portrait on the ceiling, one brushstroke at a time, strikes a chord with the whole development process. Entitlement, design review, the neighboring developer that won't let you put your crane on his empty lot corner, all ask similar questions as Barney's installation, and lead to similar understandings;
Why go through the struggle? Because at the end of the day, whether it's painting by trampoline, or fairly navigating the many interested parties of SF, the determination to create when constrained usually leads to the most compelling creations.
And making a decent return, whether as an art demigod, or a measly developer, doesn't hurt either.
Seriously?
"the determination to create when constrained usually leads to the most compelling creations."
You've got to be kidding. This might be the case for painters stuck in lock-up or musicians who lose an arm. But developers?
I doubt very many people would agree that SF's planning constraints have led to "compelling creations". What they've led to are aethetically mediocre structures that max out FAR while ruining the cityscape.
Posted by: Ruben | July 31, 2006 09:30 AM