Archie Rand and John Yau, C from The Alphabet Paintings, 1987-94, acrylic on gold lamé, courtesy of the artists
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How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
Better known for its musical production, How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying was originally published as a book in 1952 by Shepherd Mead. The book was written as a satirical self-help book criticizing office life in the United States. Shepherd had worked his way from a mailroom employee to vice president of Benton and Bowles advertising company, and in his spare time wrote about the often contradicting niceties and behaviors he experienced. In 1961, the book was turned into a musical with music by Frank Loesser and book by Abe Burrows, Jack Weinstock, and Willie Gilbert. The Broadway musical went on for 1,417 total performances, earning seven Tony awards, the New York Drama Critics’ Circle award, and the 1962 Pulitzer Prize for Drama. There has since been a 50th year anniversary Broadway revival and a movie adaptation created. Artists Andy Rand and John Yau reference the satirical play in their piece C from The Alphabet Paintings. With the words “how to cry without really trying” set against the background of a stage, Rand and Yau play on the performative nature of the story along with the genuine emotional toil of the characters. Learn more about the musical How To Succeed in Business Without Really Trying with the link below, and find C from The Alphabet Paintings in the Schneider Museum of Art’s Main Gallery until December 14th.
https://frankloesser.com/library/how-to-succeed-in-business-without-really-trying/
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Peter Saul and John Yau, Two Hours (Series 1-9), 1994, lithographs on paper in portfolio, courtesy of John Yau
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Peter Saul
Another collaboration that references How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying is that between Peter Saul and John Yau. Considered one of the founders of Pop Art (although he would disagree with the association), Peter Saul’s work is colorful, surrealist, and cartoon-inspired. His work heavily critiques the U.S. empire under the guise of silly and often absurd drawings. The bright colors and rounded, flat characters feel childish, but a closer look reveals the honest, sometimes dark, undertones. Other times, like in his collection Two Hours with Yau, it is about play, collaboration, and humor. Learn more about Peter Saul with the link below, and find Two Hours in the Treehaven Gallery of the Schneider Museum of Art.
https://www.venusovermanhattan.com/artists/peter-saul
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Tom Burckhardt and John Yau, The Yves Klein Dive, 2017, Ink and oil on paper, courtesy of John Yau
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Yves Klein
French artist Yves Klein rose to prominence in the 1950s as a performance artist and monochrome painter. He is most well known for International Klein Blue, a shade of blue paint that he made by taking ultramarine pigment (ground lapis lazuli) and mixing it with a stabilizing polymer binder. The flat, rich dark blue shade became a signature of his. Many saw his monochromatic work as a rebellion against the expressionist art that had become popular during the time. Klein himself had a more spiritual bend to it, with the solid colors confronting his idea of the void. His interest in the metaphysical is more clearly seen in his performance pieces, the most well known being the collage photomontage Le Saut dans le Vide (Leap into the Void), which shows him flying above the street. From a young age, Klein insisted he had the ability to levitate, and used this performance to try and defy gravity. Le Saut dans le Vide is referenced in Tom Burckhardt and John Yau’s piece The Klein Dive. The piece is an advertisement for a fictional dive bar featuring a figure in a similar position to Klein in Le Saut dans le Vide. Learn more about Yves Klein with the link below, and find The Klein Dive in the Main Gallery of the Schneider Museum of Art.
https://www.theartstory.org/artist/klein-yves/ |
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From the Archive
(VIDEO) Creative Industries Discussion: John Yau & Stuart Horodner
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