Avo Samuelian
(Editors note: Avo is a my friend and dentist and I welcome him as the second guest writer to the blog/novel. Thanks Avo!)
Many friends have been writing blogs lately but Carter’s has been my favorite. Actually it is the only one I read. The reasons behind it are simple. The first one is because I love St. Barth and have spent some time there. Reading his perspective on St. Barth life intertwined with art is fresh and interesting to me. Secondly and more importantly I like Carter’s work and this is definitely an extension of his oeuvre (pic of your pinned up blog at Medium here). Oh, and he is a very good friend!
So when I was asked to become the second guest writer, I felt really honored and nervous! How can I follow Carter and Douglas Gordon? WOW!!!! But here it goes.
When I saw Carter on the 4th of July after his 32 Day stint in St Barth, he looked relaxed and totally at ease (he is always like that) but his tan really suited him. He is the only person I know who has been to St Barth (known for its culinary excellence and lost weight) As we all know from his blog, he is having a hard time adjusting to NYC. I totally understand that feeling. Escapism is bliss (there is even a travel magazine called Escapism). Escapism is defined as “a mental diversion by means of entertainment or recreation, as an ‘escape’ from the perceived unpleasant aspects of daily stress. It can also be used as a term to define the actions people take to try to help relieve feelings of depression or general sadness.”
I do it almost every weekend. Manuel (my BF) and I head to Long Island (Springs) every weekend to spend some quiet time after a hectic week of work and play in the city. Our house (pic of our house, EH house.jpg) is not that much bigger than our apartment, but it provides much needed relaxation and escapism. I reconnect with nature, kayak and lounge lazily on the beach. It reinvigorates me and allows me to get back to work and deal with patients. The water here is not as warm as the Caribbean, but the beaches (whether bay or ocean) are spectacular.
And at the end of August the bay beaches can get warm and on some glorious days the Atlantic Ocean aided by the Gulf Stream warms up to a delicious temperature.In addition to the outdoor activities, the Springs (section of East Hampton) has been a hotbed for Contemporary Art. Jackson Pollock’s and Lee Krasner’s house and studio is less than a mile away. Peggy Guggenheim advanced Pollock $5000 to buy their house so that he can paint at peace. The peace did not last long. However one can see how the light on Long Island affected all these artists. Being on an island (even in Manhattan) with its reflective light qualities creates a completely different color palette. Carter discussed this phenomenon in his blog while in St. Barth. The Krasner/Pollock house is a huge attraction since visitors can see the edges of the famous drip paintings Pollock made in his studio.
Unfortunately there are no famous Pollock drip paintings there and only one early small figurative painting, but some nice monumental Krasners adorn the living room. The bedrooms are left intact and you can see how they lived and worked there. In addition, Pollock, the movie was filmed there. If you are ever around here make sure you call and make a reservation for a tour. The tour is heavy on gossip and how the Pollocks lived, but just to be in the same space where those drip paintings were made is an experience you should not miss. www.pkhouse.org.
Lately, everyone has been escaping with the blog phenomenon, whether writing or reading one. But lets not forget the best way to escape. Reading a wonderful book, especially in the summer. The New York Times makes a list of books we should read in the summer and even I am waiting for the last installment of the Harry Potter series! Meanwhile I am in love with the most amazing book I have laid my eyes on. Robert Gober’s Sculptures and Installations 1979-2007 published by Steidl for his Schaulager Basel exhibition in Switzerland has been an eye opener. The book is not available in the US until September, but for some reason our friend Judy Roaman had a copy of it in English in her amazing shop in East Hampton (one of my huge sinful indulgences, other than buying art, is buying books) www.jroaman.com.
The book is gorgeous and brings out the genius that Gober is. I am not talking about his art. Of course everyone pretty much agrees he is an American master. I am impressed with his simple and clear notes that accompany most of his art featured. He discusses with plain and concise words the ideas behind his pieces. I am not sure who else agrees with me, but curators and critics use adjectives upon run on sentences to make a point that absolutely makes no sense to me (was this a run on sentence in itself?) What I am trying to say is that here you have an artist like Bob Gober who simply conveys his idea not only in a genius sculpture but also in his simple and straightforward notes. It is just sheer beauty. I escape in his notes and just look at the piece of art accompanying it. It finally makes total sense.
Art historians have their reasons to be around and convey the works’ importance to readers, but it is an amazing feeling when you can make a piece of art feel important to you and only you. This brings escapism to another level. It internalizes it and makes it special. No need to be on the same page with everyone else.Or maybe I just love Gober’s work!!!
Last night, Manuel and I went to the movies, hey another escapist activity. But this movie was an eye opener. I am sure everyone has heard about Sicko, the new Mike More movie about the healthcare fiasco in the States.
This is a tough topic for me, but I am going to try and tackle it. I cannot be impartial about universal healthcare discussions since it directly affects me. I am a dentist. Dentists in the States are expensive just like any other healthcare service and some of you have avoided us because of it and I cannot blame you. More’s movie is a must see. After laughing (uncomfortably) to some of the jokes, we almost cried (I think Manuel did) at the end. I will not tell you what happened, but even I, as a health care provider, feel something must be done to fix this broken system. Insurance companies have been making record profits by not paying for necessary procedures. This means some people die because doctors are not able to perform the necessary procedures. Nobody should be placed in a situation where they have to decide between a hospital stay or paying their mortgage. In addition, no student should worry about paying their student loans because they received some “great” education. It is only in the States where students have ballooning education loans. Dentists graduating now pack a loan of over $250,000 just from their postgraduate work. Imagine that. You have not even started working and you have a mortgage to pay!!!! Nowhere else in the civilized world are students left with such huge burdens… We have our amazing government to thank for that. Congress has done an amazing job and lets not even get into our President’s and his almighty Vice-President’s job performance.
It seems we cannot truly escape this world and its problems. But we can try our best. We can physically go to some idyllic Caribbean island and spend a whole month there (lucky Carter). If we cannot do that, then a movie or a book will take you away from this world’s worries. Try it, you will love it….
