There was so much self-conscious irony, art-world-insider chattiness, and reality-TV posturing during this energetic first season of Work of Art: The Next Great Artist that it was almost inevitable that the show would end by striking one of its rarest poses: sincerity.
The hour began with the Project Runway-style gimmick that’s always better than a gimmick: visits to the finalists’ homes. That meant Kansas City, MO, for Peregrine, who lives with her jazz artist husband in a large living/working space that would be the envy of any creative person. Placed in her context, it was now easy to see why Peregrine often came across as an art-addled sprite: She’s created her own little self-contained art world, and had filled it with sculptures and paintings in various media of horses, children, and – in her most striking and what she described as “creepy” image — unborn twin fawns.
Then it was on to Dover, PA, where Abdi seemed to live in his mom’s basement, furiously busy making art below while, above, his utterly charming mother kept an immaculate suburban home. It was tempting to make a connection between Abdi’s impeccable technique (realistic drawing, portraiture, and sculpture) and the middle-class orderliness in which he was raised.
On to Minneapolis, MN, and Miles, where he revealed to the visiting Simon de Pury a key childhood influence – the Teletubbies – and the fact that this 23 year-old didn’t become seriously interested in art until he was in high school. Again, this seemed to explain something in Miles’ work: All these weeks in which we and the judges noted that he’s as absorbed in the process as much as in the finished work might have to do with his relatively recent, ongoing mastery of various art-forms.
Once everyone was reassembled, so to speak, at the Brooklyn Museum for the installation and showing of their work, I realized pretty quickly that the flat statement I made last week – “It’s Miles’ show to lose” – was foolish. Miles took one of those great concepts of his (this time, taking pictures of people who frequented a White Castle hamburger joint and fixating on a man who died days after Miles photographed him) and then over-worked the concept into ugly abstraction.
By contrast, Abdi stuck to what he does best, only on a bigger scale. The crucial element of his show – two large sculptures of men in athletic poses that, when shown as figures lying on the floor, carried the weight of any number of interpretations: men of action; figures in death sprawls; crucified victims.
Peregrine offered up a truly dazzling array of candy-colored work. I thought the fawn painting was ultimately not creepy but eerie and beautiful, as were the various wax forms, especially the busts of children. Yes, the cotton-candy machine was too cutesy, and the drawings of people throwing up – in Simon de Pury’s phrase, “What’s with theeese young girls vomeeting?” – a one-note notion repeated too many times. But overall, looking at Peregrine’s effusive art, I agreed with museum guest and executive producer Sarah Jessica Parker: “Wow.”
The final “crit,” with guest judge David LaChappelle, was like many of these segments – you got the feeling so much more interesting stuff was discussed and argued over than was edited into the hour.
The winner was Abdi, and I think Peregrine should have won. Here’s why: Abdi certainly made a big impression with those two floor-bound sculptures. But the rest of his pieces weren’t as strong, from the inclusion of his sketchbook (which Bill Powers correctly nailed as a trite “art school” gesture) to the photo-realist painting of the body-bag that impressed the judges but looked merely lumpy to me. In fact, I wasn’t even sure whether the body-bag was a photo or a painting, but that has more to do with a problem Work of Art must address if it comes back for a second season – too often, art works weren’t filmed in ways that conveyed the experience of looking at them in a gallery or museum. Next time: different angles, more close-ups and long-shots, please.
Peregrine seems to have taken second-place for being too imaginative, too overflowing with her gifts. I mean, if judge Jerry Saltz called her fawn piece “perfect” – what higher praise is there? The other judges seemed to agree with him. But the warning de Pury offered Peregrine back at her home, that she had “too much” to show, seems like a forgivable sin, in the presence of such a variety of ideas and execution.
Overall in its freshman season, I really enjoyed Work of Art. I have a nagging feeling that the critics and/or the producers pushed Abdi over the finish-line as winner because his work was the most conventionally figurative, and therefore liable to appeal to the broadest number of viewers. But that’s not to deny his talent.
As a reality show, I think Work of Art was well-cast. Miles may have dialed back his devious sabotage mind-games for the finale, but he made for a fine character. But I’m shocked the show couldn’t work in a museum-moment with the series’ designated villains. Jaclyn, working the museum space in full Jessica Rabbit mode, must have uttered something quote-worthy, no? And are we to believe that bitter Erik was too mellow to pass some final harsh judgment on Miles?
This may be the internal paradox that dooms Work of Art: The very qualities that make for entertaining reality-TV – excessiveness, stupid obviousness, gracelessness under pressure – work against the creation of good art, unless you’re Andy Warhol or Jeff Koons or Julian Schnabel. And unlike Top Chef, in which you can imagine biting into a delicious morsel, or Project Runway, in which you can imagine your favorite dream-woman wearing a new creation, the end-product of this competition leaves you, at best, stroking your chin and saying, “Hmmm… really nicely done.” And I’m surprised to be writing that, given that I’d rather go look at art than eat in a fancy restaurant or attend a fashion show, but I think it’s probably true of most people in a weekly TV audience.
So, I end with two questions: What did you think of the choice of winner? And would you watch a second season of Work of Art?
Follow: @kentucker
Peregrine was robbed. Her genius shone through in the incredible twin fawn portrait (or was it a photograph?) and encased wax head. Even her horses had “incredible energy coming off them”. Abdi’s sculptures were nice, but I believe he won for being too commercially viable. Too bad, because I would gladly have jumped on the subway to go see either of the other finalists’ work.
I don’t agree. I think she needed to edit her work.It was a gaint pink mess with 2 great pieces, but you couldn’t even see.I think abdi deserved it because he used so many different mediums compared with the rest.Don’t get me wrong i liked Peregrine ,but I think they got the right order.I would totally watch season 2.
Agreed. Editing IS a function of art. It can prevent something artistic from becoming trash. If an artist just goes on and on and on, then the work stops being art and just becomes excess.
I totally concur.
Totally disagree. The twin fawn portrait was photographed by someone else. And her wax sculptures were castings of vintage doll heads and toy ponies, someone else’s work too. Clever use of found objects, but hardly compares to the skill and artistry of Abdi.
Exactly. Peregrine did a nice job of repurposing existing materials, but didn’t generate the forms herself in many cases. She did create the photo from the object that she had at home which she placed under the glass dome, so give her credit for coming up with that and beautifully photographing it. But again, it was something that she repurposed. There’s nothing wrong with that, but repurposing shouldn’t win over full creation which both Abdi & Miles used.
So those Renaissance painters who employed other artists to work on paintings…were they bogus too?
Couldn’t agree more. Also, Peregrine’s techniques were not as polished as Abdi’s by any stretch. The problem with many artists and art critics is that they place concept over technique and design….that bothers me a lot. I really liked Miles’ show a lot. I would hang any of those pieces in my home. But I preferred Abdi’s show. He’s a great artist. He has good concepts and social commentary AND great technique. This combination is what makes a great artist.
I disagree. I continually found her work creepy and unengaging. When you have to literally LOOK AWAY from a piece of art, that’s not a good thing. And that’s what I had to do last night with the vomit pictures. The children’s heads were creepy too. I just found her work totally weird. I was thrilled that Abdi won.
I agree, Donna. I know I’m very unsophisticated because when I looked at Peregrine’s collection instead of saying “Wow”, I said “What??”. The heads looked too much like dead babies. And the paintings of people vomiting were bizarre. Her art has always been beyond my comprehension. At least she wore a normal-looking outfit to the finale. I’ve been pulling for Abdi to win all season. I think he’s a very talented artist.
Art is subjective, I found Peregrine’s art bizarre and disconnected. How did the wax picture frames play into the country fair motive? I thought the fawns on a plate was striking, but I was unsure what it was saying, I thought it was an ad for PETA.
Ok, I know Peregrine, and she’s been doing the same crap since she was in high school.. literally the same drawings, and the wax ponies and frames are a total art school rip off from someone she went to KCAI with. She’s a mess, and how people can’t see this is beyond me.. perhaps she’s stuck to her old college mantra of “willing to sleep her way to the top” which explains Saltz’s love for her… I couldn’t be happier she lost!!!
I was so happy Abdi won! Although thats more for personality reasons than art. I liked his art, but I’m not exactly an art critic. Peregrine deservedly got second place, and awful Miles in a distant third. This show defintely desrves a second season. I enjoyed watching the art process.
Abdi won because he is black.
because black people are obviously known for dominating reality television…i mean, just look at how many black people have won the bachelor, the bachelorette, rock of love, project runway, top chef, etc.
What a stupid comment. My family was just remarking on the FACT that most reality shows kick black folks off in early rounds and for no reason. Top Chef, Top Shot, and Design Star are examples this season. And I’ll never for get how Donald Trump “fired” a black man because he had “too much” education. So it was a pleasant surprise to see Abdi win–he deserved it, and for once, the best person won. You are a racist idiot, by the way.
Rock on, Donna!!
Not to mention that Abdi is a person that let his talent do the talking, not the trumped-up drama that a lot of contestants rely on on shows like these. I wish more reality competition shows had more contestants like Abdi. Show us their talent, not the fake insecurities.
you’re an idiot Devin
Devin is just a troll.
What a dumb and prejudiced thing to say (said this white southerner!). Good grief man, put the KKK hood up and turn off the tv. SHEEHS.
What an incredibly stupid and uninformed thing to say. Abi’s work was wonderful as was he. He had many fine pieces throughout the season and deserved the win.
Wow…… I didn’t think you could get bravo in a trailer park on a tv with a clothes hanger and aluminum foil for an antenna.
I think any of the three really could have won tonight. I liked Peregrine’s the best on TV, but I could see myself pretty blown away by Abdi’s sculptures after encountering them in a gallery. Count me in for a second season. Any Bravo real estate not occupied by a “real” housewife is reason to celebrate.
I agree with Ken Tucker. Throughout the season I felt I needed to see more of the final pieces. Each piece barely rated 10 sec. of close ups during the gallery scenes, and I didn’t have enough time to take in the final creation before it cut to the next peice. Yes, we got another glimpse during deliberation, but again, just a short clip. The visual payoff was not there. Next season producers, please double the meager length of viz dedicated for these final creations.
1. Some episodes should have been an hour-fifteen, hour thirty to give more looks at the art & process,
and, most importantly:
2. The artists should be given *at least* double the amount of time to conceptualize & work on their pieces.
3. I suspect now that proof of concept has been delivered, we’ll see much better artists on the show, especially at the bottom end. The top 5 had talent (despite freakshow barbie’s sick personality notwithstanding–clearly she was abused as a child), but the bottom cadre was pretty much pure dross.
Enjoyed all three shows. Peregrine was lucky to get to the final after last week, so it was a marvel to see her do so well. I could have handled either of them winning, but Abdi really did have a knack at producing emotion. I liked Miles through the whole show but I think he went one step over the conceptual line for his last appearance. Also, I’m from Minneapolis and there was a locally famous artist (and a documentary) that followed patrons of White Castle. Not sure if its the same location, but I’m guessing it was the same Lake Street one.
I thought the final 3 wound up in the right order. I liked just about all of Abdi’s show. Peregrine had 2 brilliant pieces, but the rest, though fun, didn’t come together. Miles’ work was largely unimpressive.
I don’t know about unimpressive, but whereas the judges called it a “work in progress,” I’d say it’s more unfully realized. He didn’t start out focusing on one person, only after he learned that the man had died. The zoomed image of the man’s eye turned into pixels just didn’t work because without him telling us what was going on, I’d never have figured that out. There are ways to have blown up the focus on the man’s eye that would have been more involving and allowing viewers to understand what it was that they were looking at.
Everything Miles did this season was a work n progress. None of them seemed like finished works of art. He was definitely the most overrated contestant in the show.
I agree with your comment about Miles’ work. He didn’t seem to know what he wanted to say about the event. It seemed to impress upon him, but it didn’t seem that he understood how it did. So, instead, he took the photos down until they were unrecognizable.
Art is a form of communication, which is why I’ve always believed that it should stand on its own without further explanation. Miles’ work, particularly in the last round, didn’t do this. Even he didn’t understand what he was trying to say.
It was a photograph of the unborn fawns. Not a painting. She told Simon that it was going to be very difficult to photograph.
Jerry Saltz clearly came in with a pro-Peregrine/anti-Adbi agenda and did everything in his power to make Peregrine win. He was the only one so effusive in his praise for her art. Clearly she floated his boat, but it was obvious Abdi had the greater impact.
You say you’re not, but you are diminishing Abdi for no good reason. His artwork carries such a weight. It’s profound without being obvious. He has a natural instinct to create arresting images. I don’t like this notion that they chose Abdi because his art is more palatable and easier to accept for audiences. I hate that whole line of reasoning — it’s an “everyone is dumb and I’m smart — I get it and you don’t — you can’t handle something that’s not straightforward — you’re not on my level” bunch of crap, quite honestly.
The judges said that Peregrine’s work was good on an individual basis, but didn’t work as well as a whole. And I think that came through on TV as well.
Peregrine’s finest moment is the photo of the fawns, which is beautiful in the most spectacularly odd way. It’s an image of tragedy made almost angelic. By far her best piece.
Miles’ show was just a mess. His fixation on this White Castle and the man who died was borderline ridiculous. Everything that lit the judges’ hearts aflame was gone. And the cliche notion of zooming in and in and in on a photo to leave these abstract images was a huge mistake. I think Miles was in the lead going into the finale, but he wasn’t even in the discussion once he presented his final work.
In the end the right person won. These producers should be proud of themselves. They took something that could have been a disaster and made it work really well. I hope they make another season — I will definitely watch it.
Do you have your own blog? Cuz, it kind of feels like it.
Well done.
Bravo! (No pun intended).
Yes to everything you said!
@Jon. I agree with your post 100%. Miles was all concept and no images and execution. There is no way I would buy any of his works–let alone see it. And I don’t know why he thought anyone would want to see photos from his local White Castle? I can take photos from my own local White Castle. So why should I go and see his?
I couldn’t agree more, Jon. You basically just voiced my own opinions to a T. And yes, I will definitely watch a second season of this show, if it comes to pass.
Abdi wins and yet you insult him (It was a fix! The producers pushed for him!) Wow.
Peregrine had the best collection and should have won the final show. I think that her OWN art was much stronger than the other two, but she struggled with the show’s odd and forced challenges. However, when given the chance to create her OWN work at her own pace, she was definitely the best one of the group.
agreed-
The right person with the best finale piece won and yes, I’ll watch a second season.
Peregrine had some very good pieces but she overwhelmed them with trite pieces that didn’t ring true including the setting it in a country fair. I doubt that Peregrine went to many country fairs as a child and if she had been part of the country fair milieu, there would have been different childhood imagery. I did go to country fairs as a child and she didn’t achieve that feeling..and they aren’t pleasant, dreamy affairs…they are glaring, blaring, light-filled, rather scary with their carny employees, rickety rides, time away from adults…not pink and pastel colored. And more to that, I didn’t encounter any freak shows at the fairs I went to as a child.
Totally agree. I am no art critic. I have absolutely no knowledge and probably no taste, but I thought Peregrine’s show was cheesy. What’s with all the wax heads, in pastels no less? The empty frames on the walls? The wax (I assume) horses? I never went to a country fair like that. Your description of country fairs is absolutely accurate. My opinion is worthless, but I didn’t like her show and I thought Abdi put on a museum-worthy show. I just did not understand Miles’ abstractions.
Yes! I loved Abdi’s final showing. The body bag piece was beautiful and moving. I believe he deserved the win. Peregrine’s work was whimsical and lovely, but just too much of it. Really, Ken, as a writer you must know the importance of editing! I enjoyed this show and hope it comes back for season two.
ABDI deserves to win I like Peregrine and she is good but putting all of her pieces together cost her and she was warned of this. Miles is a mess his obsession with the white castle homeless guy cost him. The final two were correct based on overall work. Abdi brought emotion , tech, and newness to his work. However they should show the art from every angle so we see what the judges see.
I agree that Abdi well deserved his win. And, no, it’s not because his art is simply more accessible. As Jon rightly notes above, this is too often the point of view of the self-important passing judgment on the simple mortal.
I have loved much of Peregrine’s work, and she seems to be a truly lovely person. Her most moving work, for me, clearly derives from her ambivalence about her unconventional childhood and the intensity of feeling and compassion that remain with her. It did not surprise me that there was much of that in her show and the 2 core pieces – the photograph of the fawns and the child’s head – were most moving because they seemed to come closest to capturing and expressing that intensity in a spare and brilliant moment. But the problem with her show was not simply that there was too much, but rather that the quality of her other pieces did not come close to those 2. What was with all the frames? There is a real exploration of idealized and murdered childhood in Peregrine’s work and I hope to be able to see more and follow her as she develops.
Abdi, on the other hand, presented a show that was cohesive and moving in its totality (the sketchbook notwithstanding). A few of his pieces have brought tears to my eyes – truly a rare thing for art at all, and certainly art presented on TV.
I was very skeptical about this show, but was certainly drawn in and impressed. I would not hesitate to watch another season.
I love your breakdown of Peregrine’s work!
For once I think the judges got it right, and I was, of course, wrong. Miles was the best contestant by a (ahem) mile. His facility with materials and strong conceptual confidence gave him the edge over everyone else. It was also his undoing in the final challenge–too obsessive and overworked, and (oddly for him) conceptually weak. Left to his own devices, where he should have been strongest, he faltered big time.
You could tell Peregrine was a strong artist in her own right, but her work on the show up until the pony/cigarrettes piece was weak (if sophisticated). That piece surely saved her. I had initially favored Nicole, but in retrospect Peregrine has more to say through her work than Nicole’s design-oriented stuff.
Abdi surprised me in the last two challenges–his work throughout has been extremely sub-par, not even top-half work, and I include his lame, challenge-winning “head bombs.” But when the chips were down no one rose to the occasion like Abdi.
I could not agree more. Abdi’s nature piece literally moved me to tears. The profound simplicity of it was amazing. And his finale had an amazing flow and a feeling of hopeful melancholy that just worked.
Abdi didn’t hit it out of the park every week, but his creations always caught my attention. I think that he truly put himself into every every one of his works, not because he wanted to win a television show [ie. Miles] but because Abdi cared about the art itself. I am pleased with this outcome.
Abdi was fabulous in his final showing. I was unimpressed with Peregrine’s work, there was so much going on that I was overwhelmed. I felt like Miles in the technology graveyard, I simply wanted to escape to a dark corner and take a nap. Perhaps I am a sucker for simplicity, but I enjoyed that about Abdi’s show and I enjoyed that about Miles’ as well. I don’t think he was a mess, I thought he took a leap of faith and let go of the control in his art, which allowed him to discover something unique through his art.
Although I’ve been a big Miles fan from the very beginning, I think that Abdi did deserve to win. He clearly peaked at the right time, and his sculptures were the most impressive. I kind of liked Peregrine’s pieces, but they were too colorful. The pictures on the wall looked childish, and things like the cotton candy kind of dimished (infantilized) her showcase in my eyes. It took me awhile to get into this show, but I would definitely watch a second season.
yes
I’m not a Miles fan at all. I didn’t buy the “OCD” thing. That tortured artist thing was just too much. I really found it hard to like this show. I think a lot of these artists are perverts and this gave them a “legitimate” way to express that perversion. Jackie and Peregrine were prime examples.