Carlo McCormick
Encyclopedia
Carlo McCormick is a culture critic and curator
living in New York City
. He is the author of numerous books, monographs and catalogues on contemporary art
and artists.
and art
. His writing has appeared in Aperture, Art in America
, Art News, Artforum
, Camera Austria, High Times, Spin (magazine)
, Tokion
, Vice and other magazines. McCormick is Senior Editor of Paper (magazine)
.
This exhibition examined the rich cross-section of artists and activities that coexisted and often overlapped in Lower Manhattan between 1974 and 1984. Emerging out of the deflated optimism of the Summer of Love
(and energized by the enactment of the Loft Laws that made it legal for artists to live in downtown
New York's industrial spaces) the Downtown
no wave
scene attracted painters, sculptors, photographers, musicians, performance art
, filmmakers, and writers who could afford the then-low rent lofts and Lower East Side
tenement apartments.
The show traveled to the Andy Warhol
Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
(May 20 to September 3, 2006) and the Austin Museum of Art
, in Austin
, Texas
(November 18, 2006, to January 28, 2007). It was chosen as first place winner by The International Association of Art Critics/USA (AICA USA) for best thematic show in New York City
in 2005-2006.
Curator
A curator is a manager or overseer. Traditionally, a curator or keeper of a cultural heritage institution is a content specialist responsible for an institution's collections and involved with the interpretation of heritage material...
living in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. He is the author of numerous books, monographs and catalogues on contemporary art
Contemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
and artists.
Pedagogic Activity
McCormick lectures and teaches extensively at universities and colleges around the United States on popular culturePopular culture
Popular culture is the totality of ideas, perspectives, attitudes, memes, images and other phenomena that are deemed preferred per an informal consensus within the mainstream of a given culture, especially Western culture of the early to mid 20th century and the emerging global mainstream of the...
and art
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
. His writing has appeared in Aperture, Art in America
Art in America
Art in America is an illustrated monthly, international magazine concentrating on the contemporary art world, including profiles of artists and genres, updates about art movements, show reviews and event schedules. It is designed for collectors, artists, dealers, art professionals and other...
, Art News, Artforum
Artforum
Artforum is an international monthly magazine specializing in contemporary art.-Publication:The magazine is published ten times a year, September through May, along with an annual summer issue...
, Camera Austria, High Times, Spin (magazine)
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
, Tokion
Tokion
Tokion is a New York-based magazine covering art, fashion, music and film. It publishes separate US, UK, and Japanese editions. Tokion also produces the annual Creativity Now Conference, a weekend-long seminar of panel discussions with speakers from across the creative spectrum.- History :Tokion...
, Vice and other magazines. McCormick is Senior Editor of Paper (magazine)
Paper (magazine)
Paper magazine is a New York City–based independent magazine covering and discovering cultural movements with a focus on fashion, design, pop-culture, nightlife, music, art and film. The magazine covers trends, new creative talent, urban American lifestyle as well as international lifestyles and...
.
Curatorial Activity
McCormick was guest curator of The Downtown Show: the New York Art Scene from 1974 to 1984 (in consultation with Lynn Gumpert, and Marvin J. Taylor) that was held at NYU’s Grey Art Gallery and Fales Library.This exhibition examined the rich cross-section of artists and activities that coexisted and often overlapped in Lower Manhattan between 1974 and 1984. Emerging out of the deflated optimism of the Summer of Love
Summer of Love
The Summer of Love was a social phenomenon that occurred during the summer of 1967, when as many as 100,000 people converged on the Haight-Ashbury neighborhood of San Francisco, creating a cultural and political rebellion...
(and energized by the enactment of the Loft Laws that made it legal for artists to live in downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....
New York's industrial spaces) the Downtown
Downtown
Downtown is a term primarily used in North America by English speakers to refer to a city's core or central business district ....
no wave
No Wave
No Wave was a short-lived but influential underground music, film, performance art, video, and contemporary art scene that had its beginnings during the mid-1970s in New York City. The term No Wave is in part satirical word play rejecting the commercial elements of the then-popular New Wave genre...
scene attracted painters, sculptors, photographers, musicians, performance art
Performance art
In art, performance art is a performance presented to an audience, traditionally interdisciplinary. Performance may be either scripted or unscripted, random or carefully orchestrated; spontaneous or otherwise carefully planned with or without audience participation. The performance can be live or...
, filmmakers, and writers who could afford the then-low rent lofts and Lower East Side
Lower East Side
The Lower East Side, LES, is a neighborhood in the southeastern part of the New York City borough of Manhattan. It is roughly bounded by Allen Street, East Houston Street, Essex Street, Canal Street, Eldridge Street, East Broadway, and Grand Street....
tenement apartments.
The show traveled to the Andy Warhol
Andy Warhol
Andrew Warhola , known as Andy Warhol, was an American painter, printmaker, and filmmaker who was a leading figure in the visual art movement known as pop art...
Museum in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
(May 20 to September 3, 2006) and the Austin Museum of Art
Austin Museum of Art
The Austin Museum of Art is Austin, Texas's primary community art museum, since it was established in 1961 as Laguna Gloria Art Museum. The museums roots date to 1943, when Clara Driscoll donated her 1916 lakeside estate in west Austin to be used "as a museum to bring pleasure in the appreciation...
, in Austin
Austin, Texas
Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of :Texas and the seat of Travis County. Located in Central Texas on the eastern edge of the American Southwest, it is the fourth-largest city in Texas and the 14th most populous city in the United States. It was the third-fastest-growing large city in...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(November 18, 2006, to January 28, 2007). It was chosen as first place winner by The International Association of Art Critics/USA (AICA USA) for best thematic show in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 2005-2006.
Reference Bibliography
- Carlo McCormick, "The Downtown Book: The New York Art Scene, 1974–1984", Princeton University Press, 2006
- Grace Glueck, "The Downtown Scene", When It Was Still Dirty", The New York Times, January 13, 2006
- João Ribas, Artinfo,"Carlo McCormick", January 23, 2006
- Carlo McCormick & Walter Robinson, (1982) "Slouching Toward Avenue D, Art in AmericaArt in AmericaArt in America is an illustrated monthly, international magazine concentrating on the contemporary art world, including profiles of artists and genres, updates about art movements, show reviews and event schedules. It is designed for collectors, artists, dealers, art professionals and other...
- Mairi Beautyman, AICA Announces Best Exhibitions of 2005-2006 Season, Interior Design, January 11, 2007