“Bret Reilly’s art evokes the power of the human spirit, especially in the 4-year wake of 9/11.” Okay, so this guy makes humorous plaster statues of elongated elephants and people holding pencils. He’s clearly got a lighthearted bent, so I doubt he had anything to do with the blurb, which repeatedly invokes the ghost of September 11th for no reason whatsoever. Must be his dealer. I guess if you’re worried about selling a $2,500 plaster elephant you might try to prop up your case with a national tragedy. But surely such tastelessness is counterproductive. Why such desperation over plaster elephants? Do they really need to cost $2,500? Around the corner at West Elm “sculptures” sell for $29. It’s nothing good, but also nobody clings to the image of burning buildings to move the merchandise. So if Bret Reilly sold his elephants for $200, off the back of a truck, could he make it up on volume? I imagine he could spend more time making funny elephants and less time letting dealers make a fool of him. Do we really need galleries, movie studios and multinational record labels to make a few of us stars? Or would we be better off with all of us making a living?
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I came across your blog when googling Bret Reilly, whose art I enjoy and respect.
After viewing the art and reading the complete press release posted on Reilly’s website (which you link to), I think you have misinterpretted the art. I think the sculptures are indeed lighthearted—this is not downer art as you so imply by citing “desperation” and “invoking the ghost of September 11th.”
From the press release: “Reilly’s elephants, powerful, resiliant and spiritual, are the triumphant metaphors for New Yorkers: both surviving attacks by the world’s poachers. His herd represents the strength and courage that exists with unity.”
And I guess if you were an artist, you might want to sell your work for $2,500 +. I hardly see how criticizing the cost of the sculptures is productive as part of your review. Perhaps you have not been to any real art galleries recently. Take a trip to Chelsea and see what real art sells for rather than comparing a 10-foot elephant to some trinket being sold in a corner store for under 30 dollars.
And speaking of “clinging to the image of burning buildings” as you so eloquently write, maybe if more people did remember that image, they might appreciate life a little bit more and celebrate the courage and whimsy that surrounds us, as Bret has intended to do with the elephants.