HJ BOTT's Page

Hometown:

Where ever art is made AND accessible.

Relationship Status:

Married

About Me:

German-Russian family. Tri-coastal school-housing and across the A-pond. 1st solo: bus-depot restroom, Wendover, Utah,1951. Been at this since 4-5years of age, making way too much stuff. 33 Museums own the goods, lots of unsuspecting government and corporate spaces as well as numerous very discriminating private souls. Hundreds of invitational juried affairs around the planet and pages of group shows; but, most bio lines no longer mean anything to anyone but me, and there are hundreds. We all make a few memorable things and maybe that might mean something to someone before it all dissipates.

I'm a very dedicated Baroque-Minimalist (not at all a conflict of terms nor intent)
, absorbed in the phenomena of the LINE and its inherent combat with circle/square/1st issues AND much non-overt social commentay through simplistic cross-cultural symbols.I have very catholic tastes but very discriminating about craft, the content/context mix and projected sense-of-purpose. Art work, regardless the genre, must have inherent integrity-of-pupose in lieu of cooky-cutter quantity. Quality is always a subjective; but as artists, we must recognize craft as our first responsibility, therewith we may develop our own language of freedom that means to resolve issues of aesthetic "progress" and sociometric dynamics. Internally we must seek quentessential endorphin demographics, an unique Zeitgeist for a very personal avant guarde vocabulary while avoiding the temptations of the studio becoming a factory yet absorbing every bit and throw of technology..

That does NOT mean to say our work must be "ever newer," relative to the mainstream of "ADForum" gospel to be worthy of viewership, just don't beat the same drums that no long retain skins-of-purpose/interest. Our work must challenge the viewer about time, place and purpose ......... otherwise it is likely just "more pretty" or market-driven stuff (even the funky-dunky hip of the season).

And finally, yes, our busy-hands in studio-like gigs become very therapeutic for most of us, most often keeping us out of too much trouble, especially when not reading or making love. As well, I seem to have a strong proclivity for the proliferation of both verbatim content and the inherent context of equivocal clarity found in what we may call quotes that make a difference; to wit, as Marlene Dietrich is to have said, "I love quotations because it is a joy to find thoughts one might have, beautifully expressed with much authority by someone recognized wiser than oneself."

Website:

http://hjbott.com

Favorite Artists/Performers:

There are MANY artists I like personally AND deeply admire their work, the genre and sense-of-purpose, as well as appreciate the work of many more (unfortunately not all are listed here); but, this list is about only the absolute favorites that I herewith extol as the stuff to knock-me-on-my-ass, thus quite likely influence/stimulate my thinking and my productivity:
most of Henri-Georges Adams, Yaacov Agam, Peter Agostini, Joseph Albers, ARAKAWA, Chuck Arnoldi, Alice Aycok, Joel Bass, Lynda Benglis, Fletcher Benton, LORENZO BERNINI, CHARLES BIEDERMAN, MAX BILL, Andre Bloc, Mel Bochner, Ilya Bolotansky, Lee Bontecou, Glenn Brown, Reg Butler, Sergio Carmargo, Eduardo Chillida, LYGIA CLARK, Richard Claque, Alberto Collie, Petah Coyne, Tony Cragg, CARLOS CRUZ-DIEZ, Bill Davenport, Ronald Davis, RICHARD DEACON, Sergi de Camargio, Eugene Delacroix, Tony Delap, JAN VEREDEMAN der VRIES, Jim Dine, Michael Dunbar, Olafar Eliasson, Sharon Engelstein, Jimmy Ernst, MAX ERNST, Oyvind Fahlstrom, Loser Feitelson, Herbert Ferber, Don Foster, Dixie Friend-Gay, NAUM GABBO, GEGO, Carol Gerhardt, Lorenzo Ghiberti, Andy Goldsworthy, Don Gummer, Dimitri Hadzi, AL HELD, Eva Hess, Bernard Heiliger, John Henry, Barbara Hepworth, Eva Hess, Philippe Hiquily, Robert (McCoy) Hughs, Robert Irwin, Richard Johnson, Ben Kamahara, ANISH KAPOOR, Craig Kauffman, Phillip King, Gabriel Kohn, Lee Krasner, FRANK KUPKA, JULIO LE PAC, Alexander Lieberman, Richard Lippold, Seymour Lipton, EL LISSYTZKY, Joe Mancuso, John Marrioni, Karen Marston, Agnes Martin, KAZIMIR MALEVICH, David Middlebrook, Allen McCollum, John McCraken, David McGee, Clement Meadmore, Julie Mehretu, Mary Miss, Piet Mondrian, Jill Moser, Matt Mullican, Oscar Munoz, MOHOLY NAGY, Barnett Newman, JOHN NEWMAN, Ben Nicolson, Xavier Nuez, Dennis Oppenheim, HELIO OITICIA, Marta Pan, Aaron Parazette, Victor Pasmore, Alicia Penabla, ANTONIO PEVSNER, LEON POLK-SMITH, Arnaldo Pomodoro, LIBOV POPOVA, Martin Puryear, Richard Posette-Dart, Harvey Quaytman, JEAN PIERRE RAYNAUD, Krishna Reddy, Ad Reinhardt, Deborah Remington, Patrick Renner, Gerhardt Richter, George Rickey, Bridget Riley, Dorthea Rockburn, ALEXANDER RODCHENKO, James Josati, Tony Rosenthal, Dean Ruck, ROBERT RYMAN, FRED SANDBACK, Julius Schmidt, Sean Scully, Richard Serra, Kenneth Snelson, JESUS-RAFFAEL SOTO, early Frank Stella, Tony Smith, Al Souza, Francois Stahly, Richard Stankiewicz, Clyford Still, GEORGE SUGARMAN, DeWain Valentine, THEO van DOESBERG, Graham Sutherland, Richard Stout, Masura Takiguchi, Ernest Trova, early James Turrell, Guenther Uecker, GEORGES VANTONGERLOO, Victor Vasserely, Mary Vieira, BERNAR VENET, Bill Watterson, Robert Wilson, CHRISTOPHER WILMARTH, David Wienrib, James Wines, JACK YOUNGERMAN, Chris Yormick, Jack Zajac.

This list may seem far too formidable, yet think of the hundreds of artists we all know and revere that are NOT included. As well,I feel compelled to say there is a great discerning spread about preparing such list between liking, approving, admiring, appreciating and then the veneration of being influenced by and/or humbly in awe.

And a few PERFORMING Artists, listed with about the same paradigms of subjective descernment: John Adams, Steven Albert, James Anderson, Stefano Arnaldi, Bedrock, David Bowie, Dave Brubeck Trio, Don Cherry, Ornette Coleman, John Coltrane, Credence Clear Water Revival, Miles Davis, Emerson String Quartet), Brian Enno, Stan Getz, Phillip Glass, Glenn Gould, Coleman Hawkins, Houston Symphony Orchestra, Janis Joplin, Jay Leno, David Letterman, Brian Lewis, Charles Mingus, Thelonius Monk, Charlie Parker, Oscar Peterson, Steve Reich, River Oaks Chamber Orchestra, Pete Rugillo, Yutaka Sado, Don Shirley (totally under exposed), The Rolling Stones, Art Tatum, The Who, Vengelis, Led Zeppelin.

Favorite Visual Art Spaces:

Sicardi gallery, Anya Tish Gallery, The Menil Collection, Walker Art Center,The Blaffer Gallery, The Whitney, Gugenheim, Ludwig, Tate Modern, The MFAH, Texas Gallery, Wade Wilson Gallery,The Station, Diverse Works, much of the Art Car Museum, most of Meg Poisant Gallery, Lawndale Art Center, The Internatioinal Center for the Arts of the Americas @ MFAH, San Antonio's Blue Star Contemporary Arts Center, sometimes the CAM when not rubbing our regional face in its thematic intent and exclusionary stance, almost all of McClain Gallery offerings, Dallas Museum's Nasher Sculpture Garden, Fort Worth Modern, the wonderful installations at the Rice Gallery and many more that I will NOT add later.

Too many art institutions as of the 1990's have/had boards that are only interested in Hot-Name super-star Architecs. It's about the art, my friends, not roiling biomorphic barf that ended with Hugo Roblus (that's eary 1950's). If large undulating sculpture is what these boards want, why commission preposterous spaces called museums, costing far too much and most often don't function after the first three years?!! There are a great number of sculptors happy to assist, many in the preceeding list of artists.



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Favorite Performing Art Spaces:

Diverse Works, Mainstreet Theater, U-of-H Moores School Performance Center, Shepherd School at Rice, Jones Hall, Stages Repertory Theater, Ensemble Theater, MFAH Theater and obviously the Wortham.

Let us be guardedly satisfied with the visual art spaces/venues we have, however little and non-supportive they may seem (locally to some); or, we could lose what we have to vain hankerings and preposterous emulations as was the case not too many years ago.Look what has happened with visual arts reporting/critique the past ten to twelve yeas. It has been a virtual rollercoaster.Thank Catherine Anspon, Glasstire (via Rainey Kunudson), Kelly Klaasmeyer, Troy Schultz, and now Douglas Brit, for saving the visual arts from critical oblivion. Don't forget, FIRST, Houston has always been a Performing Arts oriented city. And that has not been bad for the visual arts, remembering the late Ann Holmes, as the commercial hegemony has lagged, allowing more individual artists to grow with their gallerists. Fortunately, Houston is NOT, nor likely will ever be a cookie-cutter visual arts scene.Fortunately we currently don't have any really "local" artists that are object manufactuers (close in place, but not here). Plaurality thrives here almost as unselfconsciously as in San Antonio. But we certainly enjoy many more supportive collectors. Houston's visual arts support mechanisms have quickly matured without needing NYC validation. Forget not, Frank Kupka never had the recognition deserved but he will always be the artist's artist before Picasso. Recognition/acceptance, especially within the self-absorbed spheres of artist-to-art games, is the only real Performing Arts scene. The spaces therewith are actually many. But watch Houston visual arts continue to openly thrive, especially with the alternative spaces and an ever expanding gallery scene. And here's to the success of ArtsHouston. Would anyone have actually plowed through all of the above? If so, you are a brave patient reader of
art catalogues and related publications.
Thanx, HJB