Art du jour

Jeremy Blake is one of my favorite artists (his art is at the heading of this blog). He became known for weird colorful digital art installations and later art work in music (for Beck's album Sea Change)  & film (for Punch Drunk Love) A couple or so of his pieces are displayed in the permanent collection at MOMA, attesting to his influence and impact. Almost as interesting as his art was his life, which ended in suicide at age 37. His partner, Theresa Duncan was a great artist in her own right and exhibited at the Whitney Biennial in the 90s, an impressive gig to be able to get for a novice as she was then. She's also from Lapeer, MI near where I lived in Michigan! They had this great bohemian lifestyle in both New York and LA and were together for years before both committed suicide.

A burst of insanity (for lack of better words) led her to believe that Scientologists were curtailing her career in film and soon her and Jeremy began alienating their friends because of their bizarre accusations and behavior. Theresa eventually committed suicide and Jeremy followed soon after her funeral. What a shame and tragic story. It's been reported that their story has been optioned into a movie, with Gus Van Sant as an "overseer" or something like that.

Their story is so amazing and yet terrible, I'm sure part of their art's appeal were their own stories. I read about them 2 years ago during one of the most boring and frustrating summers (due mostly to the boredom) and their story has stuck with me in a weird and pathetic way. So many people would love to have the lives they did and they weren't alone or anything- they had each other! Yet something fissured beneath the surface and now though they're nothing more than stories and memories perhaps, their art lives on.

Here is some of Jeremy Blake's art: (stills from his dvd sequences)

                                        

Artwork for Beck's Sea Change:

Watch Beck's video "Round the Bend" to see his moving art
Read the article in Vanity Fair that tells the story of their lives
and Theresa's Duncan's blog

if you're interested!