Monday, December 31, 2007

Joseph Cornell vs. Mr. Wilson

So continues documentation of my eclectic vacation...

Today I finished reading a most intriguing book: Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder. This fantastic non-fiction narrative is a pseudo-biographical account of David Wilson and his Museum of Jurassic Technology written by Lawrence Weschler. It is an excellent window into the subculture of museum quality pseudo-science similar to the kind forwarded by the Athanasius Kircher Society.

The other thing I accomplished today was a visit to the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art. There I made a beeline for the Joseph Cornell exhibit (in the last stop of a traveling exhibition). In many ways, he is the chief influence for my Wunderkammern creations (albeit via David Francis). I spent about 2 hours in the 1000 square foot exhibit, and was thoroughly impressed. This show only lasts until January 6 and SFMOMA is the last stop.

In summary, my New Year's Eve can be summarized as Joseph Cornell vs. Mr. Wilson. To those of you familiar with this art and work (or with the interest in following up on them): which do you prefer?

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