From: Jack Fulton (jfulton@itsa.ucsf.edu)
Date: 03/11/02-08:39:38 PM Z
You know, Joe has it right. I think. here is my "for instance."
As a young photographer starting from the ground up in the early 1960's I
worked primarily w/my friends who were poets, film makers, painters and
sculptors. It was rather difficult to find photographers.
We just began from the beginning and tried 4x5 and pyro and Amidol etc. The
only pal I had who was interested in the potential of the medium was Bruce
Nauman.
The irony, for me, was that his studio was in my grandma's old church. She
belonged to the Jehovah's Witness group . . but, that is beside the point
when youth meets irony.
I thought I was a brilliant photographer. You know, the ego of youth. I
see it now as beneficial and worked in color and lots of text w/my imagery.
It was an interest to use my heritage of emigrant parents of Scotland and
thereby echoed sentiments of Robert Burns in my work.
Bruce had a great sense of humor (like me) and was also an equal in
intelligence, if not more so. He embraced what I'd call Duchampian
principles in his art making process . . one of which was humor. So, we did
photo stuff together and I watched his art process.
In being friends, he gave me some work and I did work for him. Those
pieces of his have hung on our wall for decades. Prints that say "Perfect
Odor" and other items.
I've recently made ink jet prints of a body of work I did w/him in 1968
entitled, "Masque", based upon Pirandello and the 15thC plays perfected by
Ben Johnson.
This might be way beyond this topic, but I found Bruce's work to be
intellectually and artistically challenging while being authentic and damned
smart. Now, he is recognized as one of the influential artists of the past
25 years . . in the world. I have zero idea what his stuff we have is worth
and do not care because our love of it and the long friendship is really
what matters. We still contemplate it. It only now happens to have the
cachet of name . .
Jack Fulton
> Me? The print that I like the best would be the one that would end up in my
> collection. Art is to enjoyed, contemplated and so forth. Buying because it
> has a big name attached is called speculation. Or to try and impress your
> friends with your great taste in art.
>
> Joe Portale
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