guy overfelt : bibliography

Johnson, Ken. Art in Review, New York Times "American Dream...", March 14, 2003, Friday.

ART IN REVIEW; 'American Dream'
By KEN JOHNSON
Published: March 14, 2003

Ronald Feldman
31 Mercer Street and 419 Broome Street, SoHo
Through April 5

Some years ago, at the height of the so-called culture wars, the art critic Robert Hughes wrote a book called ''Culture of Complaint,'' which castigated a lot of people for petty griping and ingratitude. It's an understandable perspective, but it doesn't take into account just how creative and fun complaining can be. Witness ''American Dream,'' an exhibition of works in all media by more than 50 artists that fills Ronald Feldman's regular Mercer Street space as well as two temporarily occupied spacious floors at 419 Broome Street.

Collectively, the show offers a jaundiced picture of its theme, and its particular targets are predictable: racism, sexism, consumerism, drug addiction and so on. Quality is mixed, but there is much invigorating satiric humor and inventive esthetic energy.

Among the most impressive and mordantly funny pieces at Mercer Street is an installation by Tana Hargest that mocks big business and racial politics. It is a slick kiosk for a fictive pharmaceutical company called ''Bitter Nigger, Inc.'' that markets drugs to blacks. Its products include the ''negro Teflon medicated'' ointment Melinderm and the ''go-along to get-along pill'' Tominex.

Nancy Chun takes a shot at big drugs, too: her Pop-style painting of an ice cream sundae on a grid of Prozac pills and yellow smiley faces is called ''C'mon Get Happy, Get Ready for the Judgment Day.'' Other notable items include an apocalyptic video of a dishware cabinet in flames, by Reynold Reynolds and Patrick Jolley; and David Sher's big comic painting of American citizens ready for war, which might have been lifted from the pages of Mad magazine.

The better half of the show is at 19 Broome Street, where the expansive space provides more breathing room for larger works. One is greeted by Guy Overfelt's lifesize inflated Pontiac Trans-Am and a thrift shop-style painting of the All-American muscle car with a pair of bikini-clad models. One of Leon Golub's paintings from the 80's, a big picture of two elderly black women sitting on a bench next to a smirking white man in cowboy boots, still powerfully exudes the disturbingly ambiguous black comedy, smoldering violence and sensuously raw painterly qualities that made this body of work so arresting when it first appeared.

Downstairs is (R)TM mark's ''Foodbomb,'' a barbecue in the form of a bomb for dropping on starving people in war-torn countries. A chart provides helpful operating instructions and an inventory of the bomb's contents, which include hamburger and buns and marshmallows. Other pieces include a nasty send-up of mandarin painting by William Pope.L, an all-over abstraction made with peanut butter; Bjorn Melhus's brilliantly surrealistic talk show video; a fantastic funerary sculpture crocheted by Xenobia Bailey; and by Michael W. Wilson, a glossy copy of a publicity photograph of Attorney General John Ashcroft, signed and frighteningly inscribed with a line from Psalm 32: ''I will guide thee with mine eye.'' KEN JOHNSON

[X] close review

2002
Wellman, Laurel. "Freaks, geeks, bohos -- hey, it's the Bay Area." SF Chronicle, June 6, 2002.
Baker, Kenneth. "Bold Strokes, Cloudy Vision." SF Chronicle, June 1, 2002.
Baker, Kenneth. "Feeling for art world's elusive funny bone / Comic works can miss mark." SF Chronicle, June 9, 2002 (repro).

2001
Zuckerman-Jacobson, Heidi. Hunter College exhibition catalogue for Marked, 2001.
The New Yorker, "Marked." Oct. 15, 2001.
The New Yorker, "Wine, Women, and Wheels." Dec. 25, 2000 - Jan. 1, 2001.
The New York Art World, " Wine, Women, and Wheels." Jan. 2001.
McEnery, Paul. "Piss, puke, and glory." SF Bay Guardian, June 6, 2001.
Johnson, Ken. Art Guide, New York Times, Leisure/Weekend Desk , Jan 12, 2001, Friday.
Finch, Charlie. "Opening Night.", ArtNet.com, Features Reviews, Sept. 7, 2001 (repro).
Kim, Christine Y., exhibtion catalog, "Purloined", Artists Space, NY, NY, 2001.
Artadia, Exhibition catalogue for Grant Recipients, 2001.

2000
Baker, Kenneth. "Overfelt at Hanley." SF Chronicle, July 22, 2000.
Wellman, Laurel. "... Art for the Masses" Dog Bites, SF Weekly, Jul 19, 2000.
Wellman, Laurel. "Whither the Avant-Garde?" Dog Bites, SF Weekly, Mar 8-14, 2000 (repro).
Shepherd, Chuck. "Great Art: News of the Weird" (syndication)
Skenazy, Lenore. "The new Rule: Skip the gym, you don't fit in." Daily News. Thursday, Feb 10, 2000.
SF Chronicle, "ePicks'.", SF Gate, July 5, 2000 (repro).
Rush, Michael. "So They're Muscular: Want to Make Something of It?, The New York Times, ART/ARCHITECHTURE, Mar 19, 2000, Sunday.
Roche, Harry. "What a Guy'." MSN City Search, July 4, 2000 (repro).
Roche, Harry. "Guy Overfelt" Art Papers Magazine, July/Aug 2000 (repro).
Robinson, Walter. "Weekend Update" ArtNet.com, Magazine Reviews, 2000.
Arning, Bill. exhibition catalogue for Achieving Failure: Gym Culture, Thread Waxing Space, 2000.
Pollack, Barbara. "Achieving Failure: Gym Culture 2000." ARTnews, June 2000.
The New Yorker, "Achieving Failure: Gym Culture 2000." Apr 17, 2000.
Lisick, Beth. "...Guy Overfelt spins his wheels'." SF Chronicle, SF Gate Buzz Town, July 5, 2000 (repro).
Hunt, David. "Pumping irony" Time Out: New York, Art Review, Apr 13-20,2000.

1999
Wellman, Laurel. "Gallery Goers Puke Over Art" Dog Bites, SF Weekly, Apr 28-May 4, 1999.
Helfand, Glen. "Guy Overfelt" Art in Review, SF Bay Guardian, Apr 1999.
Delaney, Ella. "Open Container" Art in Review, Art Papers Magazine, Jan-Feb 1999.
Beursschouwburg - DigitaalBrussel, "Videoscene San Francisco", Wed, Sep 15, 1999.
ARTelevision Free Press, "California State Threatens to Close Art Exhibition", Oct 18, 1999.

1998
Hunt, David. "Art Crime" Index Magazine, Fall 1998 (repro).
The World #54, The Poetry Project, Taser Project, Summer 1998.
Time Out: Kobe, "A Happening", Japan, May 22-29, 1998.
Scott, Whitney. "Must Picks of the Weekend. " New York Post, Jan 24, 1998.
Saltz, Jerry. "Guy Overfelt. " Time Out: New York, Art Review, Jan 22-29, 1998 (repro).
Robinson, Walter. "Gallery Yenta" ArtNet.com, Gallery Beat, 1998 (repro).
Robinson, Walter. "Concept Artist Cleared of Traffic Citation" ArtNet.com, ArtNet News, Dec 22, 1998.
Pedersen, Victoria. "Annual Report" Paper Magazine, Jan 1998.
The New York Times, Art Guide, Leisure/Weekend Desk , Aug 7, 1998, Friday.
Johnson, Ken. Art Guide, New York Times, Leisure/Weekend Desk , Jan 23, 1998, Friday.
Glueck, G. "Pets", Art in Review, The New York Times, July 31, 1998, Friday.
Freedman, Marcy. "A Summer Evening Art Walk " Night+Day, SF Weekly, July 8-14, 1998 (repro).

1997
Smith, Roberta. "Prop Fiction.", Art in Review, New York Times, Feb 14, 1997, Friday.
Southern Exposure, Exhibition catalogue for Whatever, Artists Editioned Multiples, 1997.
Tammeus, Bill. "Today's column could be tomorrow's conceptual art piece" Kansas City Star, Feb 24, 1997.
Schumacher, Donna Leigh. "Whatever..." Art Papers Magazine, July/Aug 1997.
Robinson, Walter. "Collectors By Mail.", ArtNet.com, 1997 (repro).
Pollack, Barbara. "Artist's Direct Mail Campaign." ARTnewsletter, Volume XXII, no. 12 (Feb 11, 1997): 7.
News of the Weird, Sept 26, 1997, WEIRDNUZ.503.
Macadam, Barbara. "Overfelt's Lists." ARTnews, Volume 96/Number 4, April 1997, 29 (repro).
Garchik, Leah. "Who Said What.", People: The Features Page, SF Chronicle, Feb 10, 1997, sec. E8.
Buchanan, Charles. "mass mailing: Guy Overfelt." *surface magazine, issue #9, 1997, 42 (repro).
Baker, Kenneth. "Dinner to Go (and Go)." SF Chronicle, Feb 28, 1997, sec. D1, D7 (repro).

1996
Baker, Kenneth. "Two New Outlooks on Conceptual Art." SF Chronicle, July 31, 1996, sec. E1, E3.
Works/San Jose, Exhibition catalogue for Redemption thru Rubbernecking, 1996.
Roche, Harry. "Plenty of 'Nothing'." SF Bay Guardian, Aug 14,1996, 45.
Stafford, Amy. exhibition catalogue for Nothing Matters, Refusalon Gallery, 1996.
Push Gallery, Exhibition catalogue for Sequence, Artists Editioned Multiples, 1996.