In addition to checking out the Longhouse yesterday I had an opportunity to attend a conversation between the classic American sculptor John Chamberlain and the director of the Parrish Museum in Southampton, Terry Sultan. John is well known in the art world for his colorful metallic pieces incorporating car parts and I learned his first car sculpture was actually created in town in Larry Rivers backyard. John spoke about his youth in Chicago and trying to find his way as an artist at the Art Institute of Chicago and Black Mountain College.
John went on to discuss his artistic process and career with highlights such as 2 inclusions in the Whitney Biennial, and over 100 one man shows. Chamberlain, who studied art history for a period, has always considered himself an Abstract Expressionist along with the other Hamptonites like Jackson Pollock and Willem de Kooning . The concept of viewing his work through the frame of Abstract Expressionism gives his sculptures another dimension. In his hour long dialogue the 81 year old sculptor had a number of fun stories about his old drinking days and his associations with other artists.
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