Avant-garde rocker Captain Beefheart occupies a unique pop-culture niche thanks to his absurdist songs from the 1970s, but his career as a painter is less well known — even though art has been his main creative outlet since he stopped recording music in 1982. A painting by Beefheart, who now goes by his given name, Don Van Vliet, is nestled in a prime spot at Michael Werner gallery’s ABMB booth. (Check out his other paintings at the gallery’s Web site.)
Priced at $40,000, the paint-glooped 1992 abstraction — titled “black doily” — is the latest Van Vliet work to be offered by the gallery, which has represented the artist for twenty years. He came to Werner after A.R. Penck, another gallery artist, became a captain Beefheart fan in East Berlin in the ’70s. “Now a whole generation of younger artists has become obsessed with his work, like Thomas Houseago and Aaron Curry,” said gallery managing director Gordon VeneKlasen. Van Vliet’s expressionistic style — “he started out more figurative, and became less so,” explains the dealer — is very much in key with the gallery’s heavily Germanic roster, whose art surrounds the work in the booth.
While the Van Vliet was still available as of 3:30 during the vernissage, the gallery enjoyed a flurry of other sales in the fair’s first hours. A humongous, wall-devouring Georg Baselitz painting from 2005 — titled “Die Grossen Fruende (Remix),” and featuring two sketchy figures against a white ground, one with yellow swastikas on his knees — sold for “just under a million dollars,” according to VeneKlasen, and all six 2010 Aaron Curry works, including a hanging sculpture and collage paintings, moved at prices ranging from $15,000 to $60,000. Other works sold too, including a Sigmar Polke for $400,000.
Is the dealer excited by the market energy? “I’m beyond that,” he said. “I’m satisfied. I could go home now and be happy.”
Don Van Vliet's painting at Michael Werner gallery
[...] Van Vliet continued recording as Captain Beefheart with a rotating group of Magic Band members through 1982. In later years, he shifted his primary focus to creating visual art, a world in which he won some acclaim. The Michael Werner Gallery displayed his work for decades, with their most recent Van Vliet show occurring in 2007. Earlier this month, one of Van Vliet’s paintings was reportedly being offered at an asking price of $40,000. [...]
[...] Van Vliet a single after another recording as Captain Beefheart with a rotating organisation of Magic Band members by 1982. In after years, he shifted his first concentration to formulating visible art, a universe in that he won a little acclaim. The Michael Werner Gallery displayed his work for decades, with their many new Van Vliet uncover occurring in 2007. Earlier this month, a single of Van Vliet’s paintings was reportedly being offering during an asking cost of $40,000. [...]
[...] Van Vliet continued recording as Captain Beefheart with a rotating group of Magic Band members through 1982. (Read about his five best albums.) In later years, he shifted his primary focus to creating visual art, a world in which he won some acclaim. The Michael Werner Gallery displayed his work for decades, with their most recent Van Vliet show occurring in 2007. Earlier this month, one of Van Vliet’s paintings was reportedly being offered at an asking price of $ 40,000. [...]
[...] this article: Captain Beefheart Takes a Bow at Michael Werner – In the Air, Art+Auction’s Gossip Colum… Tags: berlin, career, grossen-fruende, michael-werner, sales, Sigmar Polke, vernissage, [...]
[...] Van Vliet continued recording as Captain Beefheart with a rotating group of Magic Band members through 1982. (Read about his five best albums.) In later years, he shifted his primary focus to creating visual art, a world in which he won some acclaim. The Michael Werner Gallery displayed his work for decades, with their most recent Van Vliet show occurring in 2007. Earlier this month, one of Van Vliet’s paintings was reportedly being offered at an asking price of $40,000. [...]
[...] artist and even had his work shown recently at galleries in New York. Vliet did make a rare appearance, [...]
[...] Instead, Vliet focused on his work as a visual artist and even had his work shown recently at galleries in New York. Vliet did make a rare appearance, however, in the 1993 documentary by photographer Anton Corbijn [...]
[...] Instead, Vliet focused on his work as a visual artist and even had his work shown recently at galleries in New York. Vliet did make a rare [...]
[...] focused upon his work as a visible artist as well as even had his work shown not long ago during galleries in New York. Vliet did make a singular appearance, however, in a 1993 documentary by photographer Anton Corbijn [...]
[...] Van Vliet continued recording as Captain Beefheart with a rotating group of Magic Band members through 1982. (Read about his five best albums.) In later years, he shifted his primary focus to creating visual art, a world in which he won some acclaim. The Michael Werner Gallery displayed his work for decades, with their most recent Van Vliet show occurring in 2007. Earlier this month, one of Van Vliet’s paintings was reportedly being offered at an asking price of $40,000. [...]
[...] Instead, Vliet focused on his work as a visual artist and even had his work shown recently at galleries in New York. Vliet did make a rare appearance, however, in the 1993 documentary by photographer Anton Corbijn [...]
[...] Instead, Vliet focused on his work as a visual artist and even had his work shown recently at galleries in New York. Vliet did make a rare appearance, however, in the 1993 documentary by photographer Anton Corbijn [...]
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