Richard Prince:Debutante Nurse: 2003

When I get back to NY I'm heading straight to The Guggenheim for the current Richard Prince exhibit "Spiritual America" which is going to make a lot of sense after my California adventure. Who would have thought those pulp kitsch "Nurse Paintings" from the 2003 Barbara Gladstone show would have become so iconic this year. From the opening reference at the SS 08 Louis Vuitton, to the Phillips de Pury & Company November auction ads as well as the front imagery for the Guggenheim exhibit, Prince's nurses are having a major Zeitgeist moment. My favorite nurse is "Debutante Nurse". She reminds me very much of someone iconic in her own way.

Felix Gonzalez-Torres: Untitled: Canada: 1995

There are certain artists who come along with ideas that not only define, but also change their times. Warhol in the 60's . Beuys in the 70's. Koons for the 80's and this is where I get myself in trouble- Felix Gonzalez-Torres for the 90's. Yes, yes Damien Hirst is the monolithic art-star of that era but the aforementioned hall of fame is personal and idiosyncratic. The thing I love about Felix Gonzalez-Torres is that I grew up with his imagery in NYC yet had no idea who he was, in the same that Warhol, Beuys and Koons invaded and warped my consciousness before I even learnt to process the "cool images" as "art". That is the power of the greatest art. It confronts you at the strangest turn, even when you don't know its name. This is why I was so excited today at The Strand bookstore, when I found this legendary volume on Gonzalez-Torres, published by The Guggenheim Museum in 1995 on the occasion of his solo exhibition . It has long been out of print and was reissued by the Museum this year, when Gonzalez-Torres was chosen to represent the United States at the 2007 Venice Biennale.