Jul7

‘what you see before you, my friend, is the result of a lifetime of chocolate. ‘-Katharine Hepburn

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Vik Muniz. Action Photo, after Hans Namuth from Pictures of Chocolate. 1997. Chromogenic color print. The Museum of Modern Art. Gift of Patricia Phelps de Cisneros in honor of Adriana Cisneros de Griffin through the Latin American and Caribbean Fund. © The Estate of Hans Namuth and Vik Muniz/Licensed by VAGA, New York, NY

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‘As part of the Artist’s Choice exhibition series at the Museum of Modern Art, Muniz curated a show drawn from the Museum’s collection, and MoMA has recently added to the collection a key picture by Muniz, Action Photo, after Hans Namuth from Pictures of Chocolate, and we hope to continue our exploration and appreciation of this leading artist’s work.’ -MoMa

To make his work, Muniz renders familiar images drawn from pop culture and art history in a variety of materials, and then photographs them. He has fashioned the Mona Lisa from peanut butter and jelly, Elizabeth Taylor from diamonds, Caravaggio’s Narcissus from junk, iconic news images from wet ink, and his self-portrait from dice. Muniz has referred to himself as an “illusionist,” and, with characteristic humor and ingenuity, explores the nature of representation in an image-saturated world.

One of Muniz’s most well-known bodies of work is a series of pictures rendered in chocolate sauce. Action Photo, after Hans Namuth (1997) is made after a 1950 photograph taken by Hans Namuth of Jackson Pollock frozen in mid-dance as he was making one of his paintings, Autumn Rhythm.  Muniz’s subsequent appropriation and translation of this image into chocolate is a perfect marriage of subject and material. The viscous chocolate syrup (incidentally, he used the brand Bosco) is a perfect stand-in for Pollock’s wet, shiny paint drips. This new acquisition not only strengthens the Museum’s Muniz holdings, but is a welcome complement to MoMA’s rich Pollock collection .

Vik Muniz is a Brazilian artist and photographer. His work has been met with both commercial success and critical acclaim, and has been exhibited worldwide. In 1998, he participated in the 24th International Biennale in São Paulo, and in 2001, he represented Brazil at the 49th Biennale in Venice, Italy. He currently works in New York City and Rio de Janerio.

 while this is not me,

this is my exact style of painting with chocolate

while not quite as celebrated as vic’s

they are not as in demand 

and have not yet been exhibited in public.

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on world chocolate day

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‘i’las cosas claras y el chocolate espeso.’

(ideas should be clear and chocolate thick.)

-spanish proverb

 

 

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source credits:MoMa, Inside/Out

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65 responses »

  16. Suddenly craving chocolate… wonder why that is?
    I am always amazed by those who “paint” or “draw” with other mediums. My sister sent me a reel from a guy who uses an old typewriter to “draw” stuff. You should see his Eiffel Tower! What?

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  18. Hi, I just wanted to thank you for supporting me I know I don’t often reciprocate I’m just too sporadic with what I do and don’t spend enough time reading other people’s work
    Regards
    Steve

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