Birth of the Cool
Very excited about the Birth of the Cool exhibition at the Blanton Museum here in Austin, TX finally opening.
By celebrating the distinctive influence Californian mid-century modernism had on painting, architecture, furniture design, decorative and graphic arts, film, and music, this expo is eagerly anticipated and well worth a visit.
The Blanton describes it as “Through more than 200 objects, Birth of the Cool examines the dynamic community of architects, designers, artists, filmmakers, and musicians who overlapped and interacted in Southern California at midcentury. Among the international roster of creative artists who converged on the West Coast during this period were Chet Baker, Karl Benjamin, William Claxton, Louis Danziger, Charles and Ray Eames, Jules Engel, Lorser Feitelson, Greta Magnusson Grossman, Frederick Hammersley, Pierre Koenig, John Lautner, Helen Lundeberg, John McLaughlin, Gerald Mulligan, Richard Neutra, and Julius Shulman. Many of them made their way to the West Coast from various locations throughout Europe and North America; all played a germinal role in the development of this influential and iconic style of high modernism. In the spirit of “cool,” inspired by Miles Davis’s album Birth of the Cool, the exhibition explores the affinities among these innovators of art, design, and style working on the West Coast in the postwar era.”
It opened today and runs through May 17. Get out to see it and git sum kulture!
john
From The Other Side of the Mirror 
Looks great. To bad it’s so far away.
Skip said this on February 22, 2009 at 4:12 pm