>> HOST: IN THIS EDITION
OF ARTWORKS.
A LEGENDARY ROCK STAR.
A SMASH BROADWAY PRODUCTION
GALLOPING ACROSS THE NATION.
AN ARTIST WITH
WEST AFRICAN ROOTS
AND A GLOBAL AESTHETIC.
AND THE IMPACT
OF A FAMOUS POP ARTIST.
IT'S ALL AHEAD ON ARTWORKS.
>> ANNOUNCER: ARTWORKS IS MADE
POSSIBLE IN PART BY:
THE MPT NEW INITIATIVES FUND,
FOUNDED BY
IRENE AND EDWARD H. KAPLAN.
>> HELLO,
I'M RHEA FEIKIN
AND THIS IS ARTWORKS.
STAY TUNED FOR SOME
EXCITING STORIES THIS WEEK.
>> I'M KWAME KWEI-ARMAH.
MANY KNOW PETE TOWNSEND
AS A FOUNDING MEMBER
OF THE LEGENDARY BRITISH
ROCK 'N' ROLL BAND THE WHO.
THE GUITARIST WHO SMASHED
HIS GUITARS ONSTAGE.
>> RHEA: IN THIS INTERVIEW
WITH PAUL HOLDENGRABER
AT THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY,
TOWNSEND DESCRIBES HOW
ART SCHOOL INSPIRED HIM
TO FORM ONE OF THE MOST
INFLUENTIAL ROCK BANDS
IN HISTORY.
>> KWAME: AND ABOUT THOSE
SMASHING GUITARS?
THERE WAS METHOD BEHIND
THE MADNESS SO HE SAYS.
HERE'S A LOOK.
>> PETE TOWNSHEND: I WAS VERY
LUCKY.
I WASN'T JUST LUCKY
TO HAVE BEEN THE SON
OF A POPULAR MUSICIAN
OR A MUSICIAN PLAYING
POPULAR MUSIC.
I WAS ALSO VERY LUCKY TO HAVE
THE TIMING FOR ME
WHEN I MOVED.
IF I'D HAVE MOVED INTO MUSIC
PROFESSIONALLY BEFORE I WENT
TO ART SCHOOL
I WOULD HAVE MISSED ONE
OF THE MOST EXTRAORDINARY
ART SCHOOL COURSES
THAT THE UK EVER PRODUCED,
WHICH WAS CALLED
THE BASIC COURSE.
AND IT WAS REVISED BY THIS
EXTRAORDINARY MAN CALLED,
ROY ASCOT WITH TWO OTHER GUYS
HOWARD COHEN,
WHO WAS A COMPUTER VISIONARY
AS AN ARTIST,
AND HIS BROTHER,
BERNARD WHO WENT ON TO BE
THE HEAD AT THE SLADE
THE FINEST ART SCHOOL
IN, IN BRITAIN.
AND YOUNG PAINTERS FROM CORNWALL
AND LECTURERS BROUGHT
IN LIKE LARRY RIVERS,
CAME AND STAYED AT OUR COLLEGE
FOR TWO OR THREE MONTHS.
AND GUSTAV METZGER,
THE AUTO-DESTRUCTIVE ARTIST
WHOSE WORK WAS NOTHING
TO DO WITH DESTRUCTION AT ALL.
IT WAS TO DO WITH THE FACT
THAT WE AS PEOPLE WERE
DESTROYING OUR ENVIRONMENT.
NO,
WE WERE DESTROYING NATURE
AND CALLING IT AN ENVIRONMENT.
AND AS AN ARTIST,
WHAT YOU HAD WAS THE DUTY
TO REFLECT THAT,
TO REFLECT THAT DESTRUCTION.
AND, UH SO,
ARMED WITH THE IDEA THAT,
THAT, THAT THE END WAS COMING.
THE CERTAIN KNOWLEDGE
THAT THE END WAS COMING.
ARMED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE
THAT I HAD A DUTY TO MAKE
MY MUSIC SOUND LIKE
WHAT IT WAS THAT I THOUGHT
WAS COMING,
ARMED WITH THE IDEA
THAT I HAD TO DO SOMETHING
WITH THIS BAND, WHO OKAY,
THEY WERE NOT THE PERFECT
INSTRUMENT.
I DIDN'T FEEL THEY WERE
AT THE TIME.
BUT THEY BECAME SO.
YOU KNOW,
THE WHO, I COULDN'T HAVE
HAD BETTER MEN BESIDE ME.
I COULDN'T HAVE.
YOU KNOW, THAT IN FACT,
IF IT WE HAD BEEN FOUR
ARTY-FARTY ART STUDENTS
WHO ALL THOUGHT LIKE I DID,
IT WOULD HAVE BEEN
A COMPLETE MESS, YOU KNOW.
I JUST USED TO KIND
OF WALK AROUND WITH MY ARTY
IDEAS AND THE REST OF THEM
GOT ON WITH THE JOB.
YOU KNOW,
ROGER OFTEN TALKS ABOUT
THE FACT THAT HE USED
TO HAVE TO COME ROUND
AND DIG ME OUT OF BED, YOU KNOW.
BUT, TO GO TO SHOWS.
BECAUSE I WAS A DEEP THINKER.
I LISTENED TO YOU KNOW,
R&BRECORDS.
BUT THAT MOMENT OF UNITING
WHAT HAD HAPPENED WHAT I
WAS WHAT I'D BEEN TAUGHT
AT ART SCHOOL AND SUDDENLY
REALIZING THAT THIS LITTLE BAND
I WAS IN,
THIS LITTLE R&BBAND
WE WERE JUST ONE OF THE BANDS
AROUND AT THE TIME
IN WEST LONDON
HAD THIS POTENTIAL TO MAKE THIS
EXTRAORDINARY NOISE.
AND ROGER AS A SINGER IS
QUITE INTERESTING BECAUSE
HE HIS TWO OF THE SINGERS
THAT HE LOVED THE MOST
ONE WAS HOWLING WOLF,
WHO HOWLED LIKE A WOLF.
SMOKESTACK LIGHTNING.
YOU KNOW, LIKE THAT.
SING.
AND,
AND THAT THIS LITTLE SKINNY,
LITTLE GUY.
THIS LITTLE MOD GUY
IN FRONT OF THE BAND,
HOWLING WITH THIS HUGE VOICE.
ME, MAKING MY NOISE.
AND JOHN ENTWISTLE
AS A BASS PLAYER WAS ANOTHER
EXTRAORDINARY CHARACTER.
HE WASN'T CONTENT TO PLAY
THE BASS.
HE WANTED IT TO BE MORE.
HE WANTED IT TO BE LIKE
A HUGE ORGAN.
AND HAD THESE SPECIAL STRINGS
MADE THAT DIDN'T GO BOOM.
THEY WENT WANG.
AND, UM WOULD BANG AWAY.
AND, UH KEITH MOON,
OF COURSE,
WE ALL WE ALL KNOW ABOUT
THIS INCREDIBLY EXPRESSIVE,
FLUID,
ALMOST ORCHESTRAL DRUMMER.
HE HE DIDN'T PLAY BOM,
BOM, BOM,
LIKE MOST R&BDRUMMERS DO.
HE'D GO BUM-BUM-PSSSSH,
BUM-BUM-PSSSH,
BUM-BAH-BUM-BAH-BUM-BAH-BO OM.
AND IT WAS ALL KIND OF LIKE
ORCHESTRAL DRUMMING.
IT WAS DECORATIVE.
AND SO,
WHEN I'M STANDING THERE
PRETENDING TO BE,
YOU KNOW,
THE BIG PLANE THAT'S BRINGING
THE BOMB THAT'S GOING TO BE
THE END OF THE WORLD,
ISN'T IT SAD.
YOU KNOW.
RRRRRRRRRRRRR.
DON'T LOOK AT MY NOSE.
IT'S COMING.
RRRRRRR.
AROUND ME,
THIS ROGER GUY RRRRRRRAARRRRR,
JOHN ENTWISTLE BANGING AWAY,
MAKING A NOISE LIKE FIVE
OR SIX, YOU KNOW,
HUGE THEATER ORGANS
ALL PLAYING AT ONCE
AND KEITH MAKING THIS
IN YOU KNOW,
INCREDIBLE KIND OF ALMOST
LIKE TYMPANI AND CYMBALS
AND, YOU KNOW,
NOT LIKE THE NORMAL KIND
OF MUSIC THAT OTHER BANDS
WERE MAKING.
IT WAS BEDLAM,
TO SAY THE LEAST.
AND IT WAS PART OF IT FOR
THE ARTISTIC STATEMENT
I WANTED TO MAKE.
>> PAUL HOLDENGROBER: SO,
THE GENEALOGY
OF THE DESTRUCTION
OF THE GUITARS COMES FROM...
>> PETE TOWNSHEND: IT COMES OUT
OF THAT THING OF THINKING
AFTER A WHILE THAT THIS
ISN'T ENOUGH AND THAT
WHAT I HAVE TO DO
IS I HAVE TO MAKE SOME NEW
SOUNDS.
AND I START BANGING THE GUITAR
AROUND AND I AND THEN
THAT BECOMES VERY,
VERY INTERESTING.
THE GUITAR I WAS USING IN THESE
EARLY DAYS,
WAS A RICKENBACKER.
IT'S A VERY LIGHT-BUILT GUITAR.
IT'S VERY DELICATE.
AND THIN WOOD.
AND VERY VIBRANT.
IT'S A SEMI-ACOUSTIC GUITAR.
SO,
IT WOULD FEEDBACK EASILY
AND MAKE THIS INCREDIBLY
EXTRAORDINARY SOUND.
BUT THEN I WOULD BANG IT
IN THE AMPLIFIER
AND AS I DID SO,
IT WOULD KIND OF GO BOING-CRASH.
AND SCRAPE THE STRINGS
AND THAT KIND OF BECAME
ANOTHER SOUND AND SCRAPE
SCRAPING THE STRINGS UP AND DOWN
THE MIC STAND.
AND,
I IMAGINED THAT WHEN I BROKE
THE GUITAR,
I HIT THE GUITAR ON THE GROUND,
BOUNCED THE GUITAR
ON THE GROUND,
BASHED IT ON THE CEILING
OR WHATEVER,
THAT IT WOULD MAKE
AN INTERESTING SOUND.
AND IT DID.
AND IT WAS ALSO, YOU KNOW,
I LOOKED PRETTY COOL
DOING IT AS WELL.
[LAUGHTER]
>> RHEA: SO, DID YOU SEE THEM?
>> KWAME: WHO?
>> RHEA: THE WHO THEY JUST
COMPLETED A NORTH AMERICAN TOUR
IN FEBRUARY.
BUT YOU'LL FIND
PETE TOWNSHEND'S MEMOIR,
"WHO I AM" ON THE BOOKSHELVES
NOW.
>> KWAME: SINCE ITS DEBUT
AT THE NATIONAL THEATER
IN LONDON'S WEST END,
"WAR HORSE" HAS GALLOPED AWAY
WITH A STREAM OF ACCOLADES,
INCLUDING A TONY AWARD
FOR BEST PLAY IN 2011.
NOW THE FIRST NATIONAL
TOURING PRODUCTION OF THE PLAY
IS TRAVELING ACROSS THE U.S..
JARED BOWEN SEIZED A CHANCE
TO MEET WITH THE COMPANY
AND GET A REVEALING LOOK
AT THE SHOW'S UNIQUE EQUINE
STAR.
>> JARED BOWEN: IT'S
THE ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE,
1912.
A TEENAGER NAMED ALBERT RAISES
A COLT HE CALLS JOEY.
THEIR BOND IS IMMEDIATE
AND UNWAVERING.
BUT AT THE OUTBREAK
OF WORLD WAR I,
JOEY IS CONSCRIPTED
INTO THE BRITISH ARMY.
>> I DO SOLEMLY SWEAR
THAT WE SHALL BE TOGETHER AGAIN.
>> JARED: WAR HORSE TRACES
JOEY'S BRUTAL PATH THROUGH WAR
AND THE MAJESTIC ANIMAL'S
ENDURANCE IN A LANDSCAPE
OF HORROR.
ANDREW VEENSTRA PLAYS ALBERT.
>> ANDREW VEENSTRA: I DEFINITELY
THINK IT'S AN ANTHEM OF PEACE.
YOU LOOK AT THE ATROCITIES
THAT WERE COMMITTED
AND WHY THEY WERE COMMITTED
AND YOU'RE LEFT QUESTIONING
WHAT IT WAS ALL ABOUT
AND WHY IT'S THERE.
>> JARED: THE EMOTIONAL
HEFT OF THE SHOW COMES
FROM THE HORSES LIFE-SIZED
PUPPETS CREATED BY
THE HANDSPRING PUPPET COMPANY
WHICH RECEIVED A SPECIAL
TONY AWARD FOR THE EFFORT.
IT'S AT THE BOSTON OPERA HOUSE
WHERE JOEY TROTTED IN TO MEET
US.
>> VEENSTRA: THIS IS JOEY.
HE'LL GET TO KNOW YOU.
HE'LL SMELL YOU.
YOU JUST REACH OUT.
HE'S NO DIFFERENT FROM ANY OTHER
HORSE.
HE'LL GIVE YOU A LOT OF PRESSURE
ON YOUR HAND.
>> JARED: THIS IS REMARKABLE.
I'M SOMEONE WHO GREW UP
RIDING HORSES,
I RIDE EVERY SUMMER
AND THEY HAVE THE MANNERISMS
EXACTLY DOWN.
THIS IS A HORSE!
>> VEENSTRA: YEAH ABSOLUTELY.
>> JARED: JOEY IS AN ELABORATE
CREATION HANDMADE BY OVER
A DOZEN PEOPLE,
HE IS 120 POUNDS,
ROUGHLY TEN FEET LONG
AND EIGHT FEET TALL.
HE IS FRAMED IN CANE
AND ALUMINUM.
LEATHER DRAPES HIS BACK
AND A HOSIERY-LIKE FABRIC
COMPRISES HIS SKIN.
BUT HE IS IMBUED WITH LIFE.
>> VEENSTRA: "THE LUNGS
OF THE HORSE ARE ABOUT
THREE TIMES THE SIZE
OF HUMAN BEINGS LUNGS.
SO TO GET THE SOUND PRODUCED,
THE EXHALES, INHALES,
IT TAKES THREE PEOPLE TO CREATE
THAT.
AND ALL THREE OF THEM CREATE
THE HORSE SOUNDS AND EVERYTHING
INVOLVING THE HORSE.
>> JARED: THE THREE ACTORS SLASH
PUPPETEERS INHABITING JOEY
SERVE AS THE HEAD,
HEART AND HIND MANIPULATING
THE HORSE THROUGH A SERIES
OF LEVERS CONTROLLING 20 JOINTS.
>> BRIAN ROBERT BURNS: "WE ALL
INFORM EACH OTHER.
THE HIND THAT IS THE ENGINE
OF THE BODY AND THE HEAD BEING
THE THOUGHT OF THAT ANIMAL,
THE BREATH AND THE ENGINE
AND THE MIND ALL WORK TOGETHER
AND YOU KNOW CREATE THIS REALLY
BEAUTIFUL ORGANISM."
>> JARED: AND IT'S A PROCESS
THAT HAS BECOME ORGANIC SAY
THE ACTORS.
WHILE THEY HAVE BASIC
CHOREOGRAPHY ON STAGE
TELLING THEM WHERE TO BE
AND WHEN,
THEY'RE OTHERWISE GIVEN FREE
REIGN.
>> DANNY YOERGES: "AS WE GET
FURTHER INTO THIS TOUR WE START
TO REALLY FLESH OUT THESE REALLY
TINY DETAILS OF WHAT THE HORSE
IS THINKING.
AND THEY SURPRISE US WHEN
WE'RE ON STAGE.
THAT'S THE EXCITING THING."
>> JESSICA KRUEGER: "I HAVE
A TERRIBLE HABIT
OF SEEING SOMETHING,
STEALING IT,
PUTTING IT IN THE SHOW
LIKE RIGHT AWAY WITHOUT TELLING
ANYBODY I'LL SEE THINGS
ON YOUTUBE, IN A LIVE HORSE,
ANYTHING AND I'LL JUST
AHHH I'LL FIND A PLACE
TO PUT IT AND I WILL.
MAYBE IT WORKS,
MAYBE IT DOESN'T."
>> JARED: FOR VEENSTRA THERE
IS LITTLE QUESTION.
>> VEENSTRA: "JOEY IS NEVER
ANYTHING BUT JOEY TO US
IN THE CAST.
I FORGET QUITE HONESTLY
PROBABLY QUICKER THAN
THE AUDIENCE DOES WHICH
IS PRETTY QUICK THAT IT'S EVEN
OPERATED BY PEOPLE.
YOU JUST IMMEDIATELY ARE FEELING
FOR THIS ANIMAL.
>> JARED: WHICH MAKES WAR HORSE
AN UNBRIDLED SUCCESS.
>> KWAME: FILMMAKER
STEVEN SPIELBERG ADAPTED
THE PLAY INTO A FILM,
WHICH WAS NOMINATED
FOR EIGHT ACADEMY AWARDS
IN 2012.
NOW,
OUR NEXT ARTIST'S WORK
IS ALL ABOUT TRANSFORMATION.
THE CELEBRATED
WEST AFRICAN ARTIST,
EL ANATSUI,
USES FOUND MATERIALS
SUCH AS CONDENSED MILK TINS
AND ALUMINUM BOTTLE CAPS.
THIS ARTIST DRAWS
ON THE AESTHETIC TRADITIONS
OF HIS NATIVE COUNTRY AS WELL
AS WESTERN INFLUENCES.
HIS 40 YEAR RETROSPECTIVE,
RECENTLY AT THE DENVER ART
MUSEUM,
REVEALS EL ANATSUI'S
CREATIVE PROCESS AND GLOBAL
APPROACH TO ART.
>> EL ANATSUI: I THINK ART
SHOULD ALLOW US TO QUESTION
OUR OWN EXPERIENCES
AND CHALLENGE US TO WANT TO KNOW
MORE ABOUT OTHERS.
SPECIFICALLY FOR THE WORK
OF EL ANATSUI IT'S VERY EASY
TO DO THAT.
YOU COME TO HIS WORK AND YOU SEE
THAT CLEARY IT'S SOMETHING
FROM AFRICA OR FROM A PLACE
THAT YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR WITH
AND IT MAKES YOU QUESTION
YOURSELF AND YOUR PLACE
IN THE WORLD AND YOUR
RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHER SPACES.
>> THIS IS A RETROSPECTIVE
OF HIS 40 YEAR CAREER.
>> EL ANATSUI: SEEING 40 YEARS
OF MY WORK AND BROUGHT TOGETHER
UNDER ONE ROOF IS HUMBLING,
GIVES ME A FEELING
OF EXHILARATION.
IT'S LIKE HAVING A REUNION
OF PEOPLE I'VE MET SO MANY YEARS
BACK.
YOU GO TO SOME OF THE EARLIER
WORKS AND IT GIVES YOU THE SENSE
THAT YOU ACTUALLY DIDN'T TAKE
A BIG LEAP BUT THAT WHAT YOU
WERE DOING WAS TAKING LITTLE
STEPS TO GET TO THIS STAGE.
>> NANCY BLOMBERG: THIS IS AN
EXTRAORDINARY OPPORTUNITY
FOR PEOPLE TO REALLY LOOK
AT AN ARTIST.
HOW HE HAS CHANGED.
HOW HIS IDEAS HAVE CHANGED
OVER TIME AND YOU DON'T OFTEN
SEE THAT.
>> LISA BINDER: EL IS A VERY
QUIET MAN,
VERY PRIVATE PERSON BUT SOMEONE
WHO LOVES TO ENGAGE
WITH INDIVIDUALS THAT HE MEETS
ALL OVER THE WORLD AND HE LOVES
TO ENGAGE WITH PEOPLE ABOUT ART.
>> NANCY: WELL,
HE IS CERTAINLY
AN INTERNATIONALLY KNOWN ARTIST.
HE WAS PRETTY WELL KNOWN
IN AFRICA FOR THE FIRST 30 YEARS
AND KNOWN IN EUROPE AS WELL.
>> LISA: HE REMAINS
VERY IMPORTANT IN AFRICA
SPECIFICALLY WEST AFRICA.
HE'S FROM GHANA BUT HAS LIVED
AND WORKED IN NIGERIA SINCE 1975
AND IS VERY WELL-KNOWN THERE.
>> NANCY: BUT,
HE REALLY BURST
ONTO THE INTERNATIONAL SCENE
IN ABOUT 2007 WHEN HE BEGAN
CREATING A SERIES OF THESE
METAL WALL SCULPTURES.
>> AMANDA THOMPSON: FOR ME
THE AMAZING THING ABOUT
EL ANATSUI'S WORK
IS THAT IT IS SO ACCESSIBLE.
DESIGN PEOPLE CAN ENGAGE
WITH IT,
CRAFTS PEOPLE CAN ENGAGE
WITH IT,
PAINTERS CAN ENGAGE WITH IT
AND THE BACK STORY OF IT,
THE USE OF RECYCLED,
REUSED BOTTLE CAPS IT'S
SO VERY CURRENT TO ISSUES
GOING ON IN THE WORLD
AND THE STORY IS INTIMATE
TO THE HISTORY OF WEST AFRICA
AS WELL.
>> EL ANATSUI: THERE CAME
A TIME WHEN I DEVELOPED
THE AFFINITY FOR ONLY MATERIAL
THAT HAS SEEN SOME USE,
THAT HAD HAD SOME CONTACT
WITH PEOPLE.
I FIND THAT THEY HAVE SOMETHING
RICH ABOUT THEM.
MAYBE SOMETHING PSYCHIC
OR SPIRITUAL IT'S KIND
OF BUILDS A BOND BETWEEN ME
AND ANYBODY WHO HAS HAD REACTION
WITH THE OBJECT.
>> LISA: HIS WORK IS MADE
OF THE THINGS OF LIFE.
OF THE THINGS THAT WE EXPERIENCE
IN OUR EVERY DAY WORLD
AND SO WE ARE ABLE TO COME
TO IT WITH OUR OWN EXPERIENCES
AND SAY OK I UNDERSTAND
THAT THAT'S SOME THING
THAT IS IN MY WORLD TOO.
>> EL: I LIKE THE IDEA
OF PICKING COMMONPLACE THINGS
AND GIVING THEM A NEW LEASE
OF LIFE.
MOST OF THE TIME THE MEDIA
I WORKED WITH CAME
INADVERTENTLY.
IT HAS TO ANNOUNCE ITSELF
OR BRING ITSELF
IN SURREPTITIOUSLY.
>> NANCY: EL USES
VERY ORDINARY MATERIALS
TO CREATE INCREDIBLE WORKS
OF ART.
HE USES THESE PIECES
IN INSTALLATIONS OR IN SINGLE
WORKS TO TELL VERY PERSONAL
STORIES.
SOMETIMES HIS OWN PERSONAL
STORIES AND OTHER TIMES
TO TELL UNIVERSAL STORIES
OR STORIES ABOUT AFRICAN
HISTORY.
>> EL: ALMOST ALL THE WORK
I'VE DONE,
ALL THE PHASES
THAT I'VE PASSED THROUGH,
COULD BE LINKED ONE WAY
OR ANOTHER WITH HISTORY.
NOT THAT I WAS TRYING
TO RECOUNT HISTORY BUT WAS KIND
OF LOOKING AT HISTORY
AS SOMETHING THAT REFLECTS
BACK TO ME.
>> AMANDA THOMPSON: THIS IS MY
5TH TIME INSTALLING THIS
EXHIBITION.
SO IT'S WONDERFUL FOR ME
TO SEET INSTALLED
IN A DIFFERENT SPACE EACH TIME
BECAUSE THE PIECES TAKE ON
A WHOLE NEW LIFE.
THE DENVER ART MUSEUM IS
GOING TO BE FANTASTIC
BECAUSE OF ALL THE ANGLES.
>> LISA: THE LIBESKIND BUILDING
IS PERFECT FOR AN ARTIST
SUCH AS EL WHO MAKES WORKS
SPECIFICALLY TO ADAPT
TO THE ENVIRONMENT
IN WHICH IT IS DISPLAYED.
IT CAN BE,
IT'S MEANT TO BE,
DIFFERENT EVERY TIME
IT'S INSTALLED.
>> NANCY: OUR WALLS
ARE CHALLENGING THEY SLANT
OUTWARD.
AND SO,
HOW DO YOU HANG THEM
BECAUSE THEY CAN'T BE HUNG FLAT
ON THE WALL?
SO,
WE WORKED WITH FORKLIFTS.
WE WORK WITH TEAMS OF PEOPLE
TO SHAPE THEM.
AND THAT'S WHAT I GET TO DO.
SO,
I HAVE SOMEONE IN THE BACK
AND I'M IN THE FRONT
AND I'M LITERALLY LIFTING UP
THE PIECES AND SAYING OKAY,
LET'S PUT A HOOK HERE
AND THEN I'LL STEP BACK
AND SAY UM,
THAT DOESN'T WORK.
TAKE THAT OUT.
SO,
IT'S A PROCESS THAT YOU WORK ON
FOR A COUPLE OF HOURS
TO SHAPE EACH OF THESE PIECES.
AND,
IT IS GREAT FUN
BECAUSE I GET TO CREATE
ALONG WITH THE ARTIST.
IT IS A COMPLETE JOY TO HANG
HIS WORKS.
WHETHER THEY ARE HANGING,
WHETHER THEY ARE ON PLATFORMS,
THERE'S NO ONE RIGHT WAY
TO DO IT.
MOST ARTISTS HAVE
A PARTICULAR WAY THAT THEY LIKE
THE PIECE TO BE SEEN,
THEY CREATE IT IN A CERTAIN WAY
AND THEY LIKE IT PRESENTED
IN A CERTAIN WAY.
AND EL ENCOURAGES EVERYONE
TO SHAPE THE PIECES
AS THEY SEE FIT
FOR THEIR SPACES.
I THINK ART SHOULD INSPIRE YOU.
YOU CAN WALK THROUGH HERE
AND SEE A JUST
A TREMENDOUS AMOUNT OF BEAUTY.
I THINK IT SHOULD TELL STORIES,
I THINK IT SHOULD MATTER TO YOU.
>> RHEA: EL ANATSUI'S WORK
HAS BEEN SEEN THROUGHOUT
THE WORLD.
AND NOW,
HERE'S THIS WEEK
IN ARTS HISTORY.
IN HIS OWN TIME,
ARTIST ANDY WARHOL PUSHED
THE BOUNDARIES OF WHAT DEFINED
ART,
CHALLENGING EXPECTATIONS
WITH HIS PORTRAYALS
OF POPULAR CULTURE.
IN THE RECENT EXHIBITION,
CALLED "REGARDING WARHOL
SIXTY ARTISTS, FIFTY YEARS"
AT THE METROPOLITAN MUSEUM
OF ART IN NEW YORK CITY,
THE WORKS OF WARHOL WERE SHOWN
FOR THE FIRST TIME
JUXTAPOSED WITH THE ARTISTS
THAT REINTERPRETED
HIS GROUNDBREAKING WORK.
>> MARK ROSENTHAL:
THE EXHIBITION IS MEANT
TO BE A LOOK AT WARHOL
AND HIS IMPACT
ON CONTEMPORARY ART
OF THE LAST 50 YEARS.
WARHOL WAS WILLING TO EMBRACE
ANYTHING.
AND THAT'S THE WARHOL EFFECT.
>> MARLA PRATHER: WELL IT'S
A VERY LARGE SHOW SO THERE
ARE 157 WORKS TOTAL
AND 51 OF THOSE ARE BY WARHOL.
>> MARK: IN EACH GROUPING
OF WORKS THERE'LL BE A WARHOL,
OR MAYBE 2 WARHOLS,
AND A GROUP OF WORKS BY OTHER
ARTISTS.
EACH GROUPING IS MEANT
TO INTRODUCE OTHER APPROACHES
TO WHAT WARHOL SET OUT.
>> MARLA: THE FIRST SECTION
IS A VERY LARGE SECTION
CALLED "DAILY NEWS
FROM BANALITY TO DISASTER"
HE WAS CONSTANTLY LOOKING
AT CURRENT EVENTS AND LOOKING
TO NEWSPAPERS, TO MAGAZINES.
>> MARK: WARHOL'S SOURCES
WERE SO OFTEN THE MOST BANAL
OF SUBJECTS.
BUT ALSO FROM THE DAILY NEWS
HE TOOK DISASTERS,
AND HE WOULD MAKE PAINTINGS
BASED ON THAT.
>> MARLA: SO THEN THAT SECTION
MOVES INTO AN AREA THAT HAS
TO DO WITH AMERICAN CONSUMERISM,
WITH LOGOS,
AND HOW OTHER ARTISTS LIKE
AI WEI WEI HAVE APPROPRIATED
THOSE IMAGES.
>> MARK: FOR ME ONE
OF THE EXCITING THINGS ABOUT
THE SHOW IS TO SEE WARHOL
JUXTAPOSED,
FOR EXAMPLE AN ARTIST
NAMED HANS HAACKE,
AND HE CARRIES THE WARHOL
EXAMPLE INTO VERY POLITICAL
DIMENSIONS.
SO HERE HE'S USING THE LOOK
OF PACKAGING,
LIKE WARHOL'S SOUP CAN,
TO THEN MAKE
A POLITICAL STATEMENT
ABOUT WHERE CIGARETTES ARE MADE,
AND THE SENATOR JESSE HELMS.
THERE'S LOTS OF SURPRISES
LIKE THAT WHERE ARTISTS
CAN CARRY THE WARHOL EXAMPLE.
>> MARLA: ANOTHER VERY LARGE
SECTION IS THE PORTRAITURE
SECTION.
WE CALL IT CELEBRITY AND POWER.
FOR ME THE 1964 TURQUOISE
MARILYN,
IS SUCH AN ICONIC IMAGE
AND IS SO,
BEAUTIFUL TO BEGIN WITH,
IT'S ABSOLUTELY ELECTRIC
IN TERMS OF ITS TURQUOISE
COLORATION.
I LOVE THE FACT THAT MARILYN
SAID THAT MARILYN WAS THE VEIL
THAT SHE WORE OVER NORMA JEAN,
AND I THINK THAT WARHOL REALLY
SORT OF UNDERSTOOD
THAT THERE WAS SOME OTHER
HUMAN BEING BENEATH THIS SURFACE
OF ALL OF THIS BLONDE HAIR
AND COLOR.
>> MARK: IN 1960 IN NEW YORK
THERE WERE ALMOST NO PEOPLE
MAKING PORTRAITS.
WE HAVE WARHOL'S "DIAMOND DUST
PORTRAIT OF JOSEPH BEUYS"
TO EXEMPLIFY WARHOL CELEBRATING
ARTISTS.
SO BEHIND ME IS A FAMOUS
PORTRAIT BY CHUCK CLOSE
OF THE MUSICIAN PHIL GLASS.
THERE'S ALSO A PHOTOGRAPH
RICHARD AVEDON MADE
OF TRUMAN CAPOTE.
THERE'S A PAINTING BY ALEX KATZ
OF THE POET TED BERRIGAN,
SO THIS GIVES YOU A SENSE
OF HOW WITH WARHOL AS AN EXAMPLE
THINGS EXPAND OUT
AND BECOME VERY EXCITING.
>> MARLA: THERE'S ANOTHER
SECTION CALLED "QUEER STUDIES,"
WHICH IS REALLY
ABOUT SHIFTING IDENTITIES,
ASSUMED PERSONALITIES,
THE IDEA THAT IDENTITY,
ESPECIALLY SEXUAL IDENTITY,
IS SOMETHING
THAT CAN BE ALTERED,
CAN BE USED IN A KIND OF FLUID
AND SHIFTING AND CHANGING WAY.
AND THEN THE LAST SECTIONS
ARE REALLY MORE ABOUT
WARHOL-IAN TECHNIQUES,
THERE'S A SECTION CALLED
"CONSUMING IMAGES" ABOUT
ABSTRACTION,
SERIALITY AND REPETITION.
AND IT BEGINS WITH A WONDERFUL
IMAGE OF THE "MONA LISA."
SO THE REST OF THE GALLERY
IS IN PART ABOUT HOW OTHER
ARTISTS HAVE ABSORBED
THIS APPROPRIATION TECHNIQUE.
AND THEN THERE IS A SECTION
CALLED "NO BOUNDARIES,"
AND IT REALLY HAS TO DO
WITH THIS WONDERFUL KIND
OF EXPLOSION OF THE WHOLE
WARHOL-IAN PHENOMENON,
AND THE IDEA THAT ART
REALLY CAN BE ANYTHING.
>> MARK: ONE OF THE INTERESTING
THINGS ABOUT DOING
THIS EXHIBITION,
WAS TO THINK ABOUT HOW ALIVE
THE LEGACY IS RIGHT NOW.
RYAN TRECARTIN IS A FILMMAKER.
IF YOU COMPARE THEM
TO THE ANDY WARHOL FILMS
YOU QUICKLY REALIZE THAT
RYAN TRECARTIN IS A DESCENDANT
OF ANDY WARHOL,
A SHOW OF HIS WORK OPENED
A LITTLE OVER A YEAR AGO
AND WAS MET BY UNBELIEVABLE
PRAISE.
IF A CONTEMPORARY ARTIST
IS STILL MOVED BY ANDY WARHOL
AND THAT ARTIST HAPPENS
TO BE SO CELEBRATED,
THEN THE WARHOL EFFECT IS STILL
WITH US.
>> MARLA: OUR IDEA ABOUT
THE EXHIBITION WAS NOT SIMPLY
AN IDEA OF DIRECT INFLUENCE,
BUT THE IMPACT THROUGH
THE CULTURE OF WARHOL.
BUT ALSO NOT WITH THE IDEA
THAT THIS IS THE DEFINITIVE
SHOW.
IT SHOULD GET PEOPLE TALKING.
I WOULD HOPE THAT PEOPLE THINK
ABOUT WHERE WARHOL'S IMPACT
GOES BEYOND THE GALLERIES,
AND TO HAVE A KIND OF HEIGHTENED
AWARENESS,
WHEN THEY NEXT GO TO GALLERIES
OR TO A DEPARTMENT STORE
OR FLIP THROUGH A MAGAZINE
OR SURF THE WEB,
AND HOW WARHOL WILL SEEM
VERY EVER PRESENT.
>> RHEA: AFTER WARHOL'S
UNEXPECTED DEATH IN 1987,
A FOUNDATION WAS SET UP
IN HIS NAME TO ADVANCE
THE VISUAL ARTS.
FOR MORE INFORMATION VISIT
WARHOLFOUNDATION.ORG.
>> KWAME: THAT'S IT FOR TONIGHT,
BUT TUNE IN NEXT WEEK
FOR MORE ARTIST PROFILES.
I'M KWAME KWEI-ARMAH.
>> AND I'M RHEA FEIKIN.
DON'T FORGET TO VISIT
MPT.ORG/ARTWORKS,
FOR FEATURE VIDEOS
AND MORE UPCOMING ARTS EVENTS.
THANKS FOR WATCHING.
>> ANNOUNCER: ARTWORKS IS MADE
POSSIBLE IN PART BY:
THE MPT NEW INITIATIVES FUND,
FOUNDED BY
IRENE AND EDWARD H. KAPLAN.