Wegman World

William Wegman and Constance Lewellen in Conversation in NYC

 

William Wegman, Artist, 1971

Please join ICI, Constance Lewallen, and William Wegman for a special conversation on Tuesday, April 3, from 6:30- 8pm at 401 Broadway, Suite 1620, NYC.

Constance Lewallen, co-curator of State of Mind: New California Art Circa 1970, and William Wegman, pioneer video artist, conceptualist, photographer, painter, and writer, will discuss Californian artists’ significant contributions in Conceptual art, video, performance, and installation art in the late 1960s and early 1970s. Rarely seen Wegman videos will be screened, followed by a conversation about the artist’s early work and those with whom he associated.

Read more about the event here.

 

Looking Back: This Dog's Life

William Wegman, Nevadada, 1993

THIS DOG'S LIFE; At Work (and Play) With William Wegman and His Weimaraner Stars

The Washington Post
Paula Span
April 25, 1993

You might think this hyperbolic self-justification until you watch [William Wegman] in action, shifting a haunch here, placing a paw there - "Good, Batty" - and nudging the dogs gently into position - "Stay, Crookie" - until they are stretched nose to rump in a ring. "All I'm trying to do is get slight curves," Wegman says, puttering above the four sleek, silvery-brown backs. The animals are more than obedient; they're entering a drowsy state of total cooperation. Wegman is sculpting with dogs.

Read the rest of the article here.

Looking Back: New York Newsday

In 1993, the Long Island paper New York Newsday ran an interview with William Wegman. Read an excerpt below.

William Wegman, Untitled (Fay Contact Sheet), 1988

THE NEW YORK NEWSDAY

INTERVIEW WITH WILLIAM WEGMAN Dogs Offer a `Different Kind of Intimacy
by Catherine Barnett

Q. What have you learned from your weimaraners, and how have they changed you? A. I lived for about five years in between dogs, after Man Ray died in l982. When I got a dog again, I was happier, even though I'm sort of chained to my house. Halfway through a movie I say, "I wonder how Fay and Battina are doing?" and I come home early. When I got Fay, I didn't take a picture for one year, because I didn't want to do Man Ray over again. But when I did photograph Fay I realized I'd been denying myself an incredible pleasure. I also started to paint again. Working with Fay created a golden period for me.

Read the full story here.

Spontaneous Reddit

WW and his son Atlas were on Reddit last night answering questions from users. Click here to read the whole conversation. This was our favorite question:

[–]lithicreductionist  15 hours ago

is it villiam vegman or william wegman?

[–]iiAtlas[S] 11 hours ago

Milliam Megman

 

 

[+]iiAtlas[S] 4 points5 points6 points 11 hours ago  (0 children)

[–]iiAtlas[S] 4 points5 points6 points 11 hours ago

Milliam Megman

• permalink
• parent

 

Looking Back: Hardly Summer

William Wegman, Mr. Hardly, 1993

In 1993, AP reporter Jerry Harkavy visited WW in Maine. They discussed many things, including projects such as Little Red Riding Hood and The Hardly Boys.

Read the entire article here.

From WW: National Geographic

Notice anything familiar about the cover of this month's issue of National Geographic? (Hint: it features someone who has appeared on this blog.) 

This past October, WW spent several days in the studio with Penny, Flo, Candy and Bobbin, working to get just the right shot. He reflects on the experience in this video (and if you haven't seen the cover yet, you will here):

 

From the archives...

William Wegman, Honest Balls, 1987

November 29, 1987

William Wegman: The Artist and His Dog

By AMY HEMPEL

In William Wegman's studio in New York's Hudson Valley, the blond floors appear to be stenciled in an abstract floral pattern. In fact, after prolonged efforts to keep his dog out of the way of workmen during construction, Wegman took a different tack: he painted his dog's feet green and let her loose inside. It is an example of what Wegman means when he says of his work in painting, drawing, video and photography, ''I pay a lot of attention to what the format is actually doing rather than what I want it to do.''

Finish the article here.

WW on photographer Madeleine de Sinety

 

 

    William Wegman was in Portland last week talking about friend and artist Madeleine de Sinety. He is interviewed about her in the above video.

A profile

 

Wegman Salon

Came across this eleven year old (!) profile from Salon.com...

 

TUESDAY, FEB 8, 2000 09:00 ET

William Wegman

His wry, wildly popular photography owes a great debt to the gifted performance artists he works with.

BY KEVIN CONLEY

"Ever seen dogs treated as art supplies?" William Wegman moves a Weimaraner across a platform as if the creature were an 80-pound barrel of gesso. The art supply in question, Chundo, a 10-year-old male and son of Fay Ray, endures the process with a matter-of-factness, never dropping his straight-ahead stare as the photographer pushes him four inches to the left so that he and another dog, Chip, sit shoulder to shoulder.

"Don't tell anyone how easy this is," Wegman says.

Read the full article.