The Artwork of Richard Humann
By Nick Christophers
January 9, 2018
The Artwork of Richard Humann To Be Featured in Upcoming Documentary
As a young boy Richard Humann was always attracted to the arts whether it would be art or music. It turned out his focus became art. He has been in the art game for over 30 years. It was exactly thirty years ago when he had his first exhibition. Richard is what they call a neo-conceptual artist. His work varies on what materials or mediums he uses to express a thought or idea. For anyone who knows of his type of art can see the similarities in his work to artists like Edward Ruscha, and Robert Morris.
His work is mind provoking and leaves much to the imagination. Richard looks to use his creativity to either express a thought or concept to the public. Now he is looking to bring it all into perceptive via a documentary about how he puts it all together. Working along with director Jesse Strauch, director of photography Paul Meister, videographer Jon Zorn, and with an original musical score by George LaGrange it is bound to be an inspirational and motivational piece. Each of the individuals involved in the project have rich backgrounds. Jesse a Fordham University graduate has worked for NBC and has directed videos for the singles “Dogtooth Bend” and “Dark Thots of Mayhem” from the talented band American Nomads. George is also working with Susan Darmiento for vocal proficiency for the musical score. Susan is one of the vocalists for the band American Nomads.
“It’s been about a year now. I was gearing up for a large exhibition in Venice, Italy during the Venice Biennale that opened last May, and the curator wanted to document the process. Jesse Strauch had worked with me on some art video projects in the past and I suggested that we work with him on it. It was supposed to be a short documentary but it kept getting longer until it turned into a feature. It’s been going strong ever since. He and his crew shoot every week, and travel to all the events, big and small.”
The documentary is based on Richard’s step by step journey to many locations and how he works on large-scale projects. They would begin at his Brooklyn work studio, to his hometown of Stony Point, NY, and to Woodstock, NY where he has a weekend house. Then off to the exotic locations where he sets up his shows. Locales like Venice, Italy for the Venice Biennale to Karachi, Pakistan for the Karachi Biennale. The cameras would then follow him to an art university in Islamadad for a lecture sponsored by the American Consulate. In 2018 they will follow him to Finland and Seoul, Korea for upcoming exhibitions.
So far Richard has had exhibitions in England, Germany, Italy, Spain, Taiwan, China, Korea, Russia, and South Africa. Two years ago he received the Pollack-Krasner Award a great honor in the world of art. His first solo museum show was in Finland in 2003 and his first biennale was in Italy in the same year. Richard’s first show in Asia was in 2001 in Seoul, Korea, He has said that the milestones are the ones he feels most proud of.
The process it takes to set up a show or an exhibit is not easy it takes much planning and coordination. It usually starts with a call from an interested curator which Richard soon drafts a proposal for a piece. The travel plans and arrangements are normally set up by the curator’s staff but sometimes Richard does that on his end. When it is time to set up an installation it can take days or even weeks. Meantime he can be doing press conferences and attending events.
Everything he does is captured on film by Jesse and his crew. It is a whirlwind filled with ups and downs. The documentary is a full-length feature that holds back nothing. At this point Richard explained that it will take another year before the filming is complete. Then there will be long editing process, final cut, and then distribution.
“We have a ways to go, but we’re looking forward to the entire process. Jesse is a great director and is fully committed to the project and all the upcoming steps to complete it.”
It is a motivational journey that anyone interested on the A to Z process of how unique artist turns his work into full scale project would enjoy it.
https://www.rgmagazine.com/artwork-richard-humann-nick-christophers/