Last week I was busy putting together a master mix consisting of some great songs that caught my attention over the past few months. Of course, every mix needs an appropriate cover so I spent some time digging through the gnarly piles that continually accumulate on my desk. Nothing was really working. I mean, what could possibly work for a mix containing some Thin Lizzy, Blue Oyster Cult, a little Kraftwerk, some Hatchback, a smidge of Angelo Badalamenti, a taste of Ferraby Lionheart, and a teensy bit of Wolfmother to name a few? That's right, this mix is one for the ages. Then I remembered a mailer I got from the Hammer Museum in Los Angeles. The cover featured artist Charles Burchfield's painting, The Four Seasons (below), and I haven't stopped thinking about it for weeks.
 
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I even cut it out and made a mock ReadyMade cover.
 
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This obsession pushed me into a self-taught history lesson. I wasn't too familiar with Burchfield so my meanderings through his work were truly eye-opening. Burchfield was born in Ohio in 1893 and was primarily a watercolorist. This fact, interestingly enough, has perhaps led to him being not as well known as some of his peers since watercolor does not hold up well to intense light, limiting the number of times his work can be exhibited (below, An April Mood).
 
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I won't drag you through all the regurgitated information I picked up during my home-study but if you are interested in learning more you should take a look at this article by Doug Harvey from the LA Weekly. And if you are in Los Angeles or there-abouts, you should definitely go check out the exhibit called Heat Waves in a Swamp: The Paintings of Charles Burchfield, curated by artist Robert Gober (below, Glory of Spring).
 
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In the end, I couldn't manage a Burchfield as a cover for my mix but in the process of elimination came across another show at the Hammer, The Bible Illuminated: R. Crumb's Book of Genesis. Now, Crumb is someone I am very familiar with though I had no idea that he had been working on a version of the book of Genesis for the past five years (below, Chapter 1, Page 1). 
 
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After digging deep into Crumb's undertaking I couldn't help myself and ended up going with an image from his biblical remix for my own little mix.
 
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It's now painfully obvious that I've got to get to LA to take in this epic double-feature before it closes. Art history classes have rarely been this much fun. Heat Waves in a Swamp: The Paintings of Charles Burchfield at the Hammer Museum closes January 3rd. The Bible Illuminated: R. Crumb's Book of Genesis at the Hammer closes February 7th. Flights from New York to LA seem somewhat, kinda affordable (if you plan right) after New Years. Just saying...

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