Lower East Side gallery
showcases artist’s lively
collection of obituaries and more
BY BOB KRASNER
Adrian Dannatt began
his career as an actor,
well known in his teens
in his native England, and has
persevered in New York City as
a collector — but of more than
just art.
Adrian Dannatt proclaiming the merits of his book with
potential clients.
As a writer of obituaries —
many gathered in print in the
just-published compendium
“Doomed and Famous” — Dannatt
has established himself as a
collector of lives. While the author
notes the passing of personages
both famed and forgotten
(if they were ever known at all),
he presents all with equal weight
and possibly favors the ones he
calls “the truly marginal, utterly
obscure, mad, bad and defi nitely
worrying.”
“Doomed and Famous” is also
the title of an exhibit based on the
book that’s on display through
March 4 at the Miguel Abreu
Gallery, at 36 Orchard St. on the
Lower East Side.
With a style that packs more
into a sentence than others
manage on an entire page (and
requires occasional visits to the
dictionary), Dannatt deftly reveals
not just the details of his subjects’
lives but their uniqueness as well.
Dannatt knew many of the
subjects in the obituaries — but
don’t bother looking for superstars
in the index, as Ultra Violet
is the closest to a celebrity obit as
you will get.
Artists of note are featured,
but what seemingly ties Dannatt’s
choices together is that these are
people who have all made art out
of their lives, intentionally or not.
Models, artists, composers,
drug addicts, thieves and lawyers
fi nd themselves side-by-side for
eternity in these pages, having
created a lifelong piece of performance
art that Dannatt found
worthy of committing to history.
Alongside this ephemeral
collection, Dannatt has been collecting
more solid forms of art,
which he has brought up from his
Brooklyn basement to the Miguel
Abreu Gallery to be shown for the
fi rst time.
After writing about art for
many years and curating shows
for others, and collecting it for
longer than that, Dannatt is so
delighted to be sharing his collection
that he has made himself
available to give personal tours of
the show ( by reservation with the
gallery) , which is the only way
that you will get into the locked
basement that houses an annex to
the main fl oor.
Being a man whose affi nity for
conversation matches his love of
the written word, you can count
on enjoying an anecdote about
pretty much any artwork that
you choose. Although the show
does not include the fi rst piece
of art he ever bought — a small
Roman head purchased for two
shillings at age 11 — it does
feature an etching from 1640
and runs the gamut from British
Pop Art to New York No Wave
to Graffi ti Art. It also includes
a publication that he refers to as
his “my favorite lesbian revolutionary
separatist white women
publication.”
Rare drawings by Richard
Prince and Damien Hirst hang
across from French newspapers
that feature Picasso’s custom
art. Incidentally, those are in the
grouping of artists who all share
the initials “P.P.”
Adrian Dannatt welcomes the world ( by appointment, please)
to a personally guided tour of a selection from his art collection
at the Miguel Abreu Gallery.
Not one to ignore the realities
of the art world, Dannatt
notes that art can be “rare, but
valueless.”
He continues, “I love that
something that was thrown
away can be worth millions. It’s
interesting that you can assemble
a collection for very little money.
Not many of the pieces in this
show were bought in galleries.”
PHOTOS BY BOB KRASNER
Perhaps one can ponder the
value of art while viewing Siobhan
Liddell’s “Thread.”
“It cost 50¢ when I bought one
in 1992,” Dannatt explains. “We
are selling it for 75¢ now. It’s a
piece of string, hung from the
ceiling. You provide the string.
We don’t give you a certifi cate of
authenticity. Basically, you give
us 75¢.”
Dannatt is something of a conundrum,
a man whose wardrobe
consists only of vintage garments
— frequently purchased at thrift
stores — but is well-versed in the
world of modern art. One does
not have to worry about your
tour being interrupted by his cell
phone, as he does not own one,
but he is reachable via email.
Although Dannatt, 57, has
no immediate plans to exit this
world, he concludes his written
collection with his own obituary
– which he is quite satisfi ed
with – although his adult children
thought he was too hard on
himself.
While he has penned his own
obit, Dannatt has yet to reveal his
epitaph. We humbly suggest that
he consider something that he said
while musing on his youthful days
of stardom, when he was chased
down the street by fans eager for
his autograph.
“I am,” he stated, “still awaiting
my return to the limelight.”
For more information,
visit miguelabreugallery.com/
exhibitions/doomed-and-famous.
Adrian Dannatt in front of the “Salon Style Wall – a decidedly
eclectic arrangement of works from various periods.”
18 February 18, 2021 Schneps Media
/miguelabreugallery.com
