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Co-Conspirators: Artist and Collector
Selected Paintings and Works on Paper from the Collection of
James Cottrell and Joseph Lovett
April 21 – May 29, 2005
Opening Reception Thursday, April 21,
6 – 8 PM
SPECIAL EVENT
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68 Thompson Street
New York, NY 10012
Phone: 212-334-1500
Contact: Emmanuelle Brard |
invite you to celebrate the works of Miguel
Barceló
from the James Cottrell and Joseph Lovett Collection
Special Guest Speaker Dore Ashton
Wednesday, May 11, 5:30 pm – 7:30 pm
Drinks at 5:30 pm •
RSVP: 212.255.0719 ext.119
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Jean Michel-Basquiat, Claudio, n.d, crayon
on paper, 17 x 14 in.
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The Chelsea Art Museum showcases selected
paintings and works on paper from the contemporary art collection
of New York residents Jim Cottrell and Joe Lovett from April 22
through May 29, 2005. More than 40 works have been selected from
Co-Conspirators: Artist and Collector, a traveling exhibition that
originated at the Orlando Museum of Art in 2004. The works on view
include paintings, drawings, watercolors and mixed-media works
on canvas.
Cottrell and Lovett have been collecting art since 1976. Much
of their collection began by building a personal relationship with
an artist resulting in a long-term commitment to their work.
The aesthetic of the collection is overridingly in favor of painting – usually
abstractions with a built-up surface of paint. Some of the finer
works in this category include paintings by Donald Baechler, Jean
Michel Basquiat, Keith Haring, Deborah Kass, Jonathan Lasker, Suzanne
McClelland, Malcolm Morley and Barton Benes. The collection offers
an in-depth look at many of the artists, often through three or
more examples of their work. The focus of the collection includes
artists working in the United States, Spain and France. The international
artists include Miguel Barceló, Roland Flexner, David Hockney
and Edouard Prulhiere.
In reflecting on how the collection began, Joe Lovett notes, “Artworks
I originally collected were given to me by friends. I never had
a desire to own grand or expensive works. I am just as happy to
see it in a museum as on my own walls. But one day, Jim said to
me, ‘If we don’t support the work, how will the artist
survive?’”
Co-Conspirators: Artist and Collector was coined by
Orlando Museum of Art curator, Sue Scott, to propel what’s at the heart
of this unique collection; it’s longstanding dedication to
building personal relationships with artists to achieve a deeper
understanding of art. Jim and Joe continue to acquire works by
many of the artists they came to know over the years, oddly in
contrast to an emerging art buying trend recently reported on by
Village Voice chief critic, Jerry Saltz who writes “Typically,
collectors [have been] affluent and involved, if sometimes annoying
about their obsessions. [Today’s] buyers are the opposite:
They're affluent but detached and are almost always annoying. They
tend to buy only in public, acquire impulsively, and usually buy
only one work by an artist. They rarely cultivate relationships
with dealers or artists…”
For Jim Cottrell it was clear early on: “When we started
collecting, I used to think it was the image that was important.
But as time went on, it became more about the artists’ relationship
to the world. It’s been an evolution in what and how I collect
and most of that has to do with getting to know the artists.”
Jim Cottrell is an internationally renowned academic anesthesiologist,
researcher and author. His book Under the Mask: A Guide to
Feeling Secure and Comfortable During Anesthesia and Surgery (Rutgers
University Press) is his first book for the lay public. Joe Lovett
is an award-winning
documentary filmmaker specializing in public health and social
issues. His latest film Gay Sex in the '70s will have its
world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival that coincides with
the Chelsea Art Museum exhibition beginning April 21st. Jim Cottrell
and Joe Lovett were listed among Art & Antiques Top 100 Collectors
in 2001.
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