To Biennial or Not to Biennial

Kyle MacMillan over at the Denver Post asks and raises some really good points over the need for the new Denver Biennial. Kyle writes:

At least 50 major biennials take place internationally, and more are being added to the list all the time, making it easy to wonder: How many biennials are too many? And with each new one, isn't the drawing power of such events becoming increasingly diluted?

Read the whole article here.

Washington's Corcoran Gallery of Art hosts the Corcoran Biennial, which they've hosted for many years. The biennial used to be strictly focused on painting, and as such it had a good niche in the overflowing scene of world biennials - it was just a biennial to sample the state of contemporary painting.

Unfortunately, in my opinion (which is generally not shared by many museum curators or probably other art writers), under the guidance of former Corcoran curator Terry Sultan, the Corcoran Biennial was "modernized" to become just like every other biennial and overly expanded to include everything that passes as fine art these days.

The result? Now the Corcoran Biennial is just another one of the 50+ biennials around the world, desperately lacking focus and usually bringing to DC a lot of art and artists recycled from other biennials plus a severe sprinkling of "newish" work.

In my opinion it would have been better to resist the temptation to expand to become a Jack of all art trades and keep it focused on the state of contemporary painting in all its vampirical refusals to die.

Time for Norfolk to be embarrassed

Norfolk newspaper The Virginian-Pilot sponsors an annual Student Gallery competition hosted at the Chrysler Museum of Art.

The top awards were announced a couple of weeks ago at the Chrysler Museum of Art, where works by the contest’s 62 finalists are on display. Erin Ayres “Unveiled Tokens of Lonely and Deserted Past,” was among two works that earned her the $1,000 first-place award.

Now the controversy part... Teresa Annas, art critic for the same newspaper courageously writes that:

This year’s top winners resulted from a third round of judging. The first two jurors selected nude artworks for first place. Those judges were Aaron De Groft, director of the Muscarelle Museum of Art, College of William and Mary, and Scott Howe, director of education and public programs at the Chrysler Museum.

The Virginian-Pilot, the contest’s main sponsor, declined to honor those choices.

“One was a nude self-portrait of a 17-year-old girl, and we didn’t feel that was appropriate,” said Pam Smith-Rodden, director of marketing, the department that runs Student Gallery. The other piece was a sculpture.

“We’re thinking about the audience, and all the kids and the younger siblings who will see these pieces,” Smith-Rodden said.

Those artworks are still on display at the Chrysler. “We honestly don’t believe those two pieces are appropriate to be held up as the winners of a high school art show, because they do depict the nude,” she said.

Student Gallery has no policy against nude imagery, Smith-Rodden said. “It hasn’t been an issue in the past, but we’re going to revisit it for future shows.”

Three days after the story came out, Norfolk began to respond and Annas reported that "Local art lovers rushed to donate money this week to a high school artist who was chosen as a winner in The Virginian-Pilot Student Gallery but was not given the award because the newspaper’s publisher deemed her work inappropriate. By late Friday, $700 had been collected. The goal was to raise $1,000. "

A day later Annas reported that:

Nancy "Beth" Reid, the teen artist whose nude self-portrait was denied top prize in an art contest, will be given $1,000 in a private ceremony today at Churchland High School in Portsmouth.

Beth, 17, was the first top winner chosen for The Virginian-Pilot Student Gallery, which is open to any high school junior or senior in the region. Her work was rejected for first place by the newspaper's publisher, Bruce Bradley. He deemed the work "inappropriate" for the show because it is a nude image of a minor.

A similar private award will go to Jasmine Childs of Chesapeake. She was the top choice of a second judge, but her sculpture of a nude torso also was rejected by Bradley.

And thus a sour story turns out a little better at the end thanks to the intervention of art lovers who saved the day at the last minute and thanks to the brave reporting by a writer employed by the same newspaper that caused Norfolk to be embarrassed in the eyes of the art world.

Bravo to the people of Norfolk!

Now I know...

This quote clearly reveals that Kingsley Amis' force is the HMFDIC (Head Motherfucker Darth In Charge) of the cabal of most suppliers of art writing:

"If you can't annoy somebody, there's little point in writing."

- Kingsley Amis

VB 2009

The Venice Biennale has named Daniel Birnbaum, the rector of the Staedelschule International Art Academy in Frankfurt, to curate its 2009 show.

"Birnbaum, born in Stockholm in 1963, was responsible for the Moscow biennial as well as exhibitions at the Pompidou Center in Paris and at London's Serpentine Gallery. He is a contributing editor to Artforum magazine in New York and writes critical essays for catalogs." Read the Bloomberg report here.

Common Waters: An Ocean Apart

Common Waters: An Ocean Apart opens tonight with an grand opening reception from 6-9PM at Mayer Fine Art in Norfolk, Virginia. This is a brand new gallery in a beautiful setting in Norfolk's Waterside building.

I curated this show, which features work by four leading Cuban artists: Marta Maria Perez Bravo, Sandra Ramos, Aimee Garcia Marrero and Cirenaica Moreira.

The show was hung last night and it looks beautiful, but it almost didn't happen at the last minute, as tragedy was barely avoided when the gallery owner was rushed to emergency because she badly cut her face with a piece of broken glass. The glass edge was jammed against her face and cut her all the way through to her mouth.

She's a trooper though! After a few hours in emergency, and a ton of stitches later, she came back to the gallery and finished hanging the show.

If you're in Norfolk tonight, come and say hi!

Opportunity for artists

Deadline: May 5, 2008

Wanna sell your landscape? 4Culture is seeking to acquire wall-mounted landscape works that use color(paintings, prints, photographs, drawings, etc.) for the Harborview Medical Center Collection, part of the King County Public Art Collection in Seattle.

The subject matter for this call must be the essence of landscape, whether represented realistically or abstractly. These works will be on display throughout the public spaces of the new Norm Maleng Building, a multi-story facility that houses operating rooms, acute care, rehabilitation, and clinic facilities, along with their associated waiting areas. An overall budget of $80,000 has been designated to purchase artwork. National artists who would like their work considered for purchase must submit images of existing available artwork for the panel's review. The maximum value of individual works should be $3500. A maximum height or width of 36" and a maximum depth of 3" for the artwork is specified. All artworks will be purchased unframed.

For a complete prospectus, visit this website. For more information: email Greg Bell at greg.bell@4culture.org

Save the Date: Gallery Grand Opening in DC

On Friday, May 9th from 5:30-8PM, the Healing Arts Gallery at Smith Farm Center will have its grand opening at 1632 U Street NW in DC. More on the gallery's mission later...

Out of Order Picks

By the time I showed up to the Maryland Art Place to drop my piece for "Out of Order" I was number 299, so by 6:22PM there were already almost three hundred pieces on the walls, and as I mentioned yesterday I jotted down a few exceptional pieces.

So from the first 300 artists in this massive open show, my top pick went to number 136 by Gilden Bransky! A close second, or perhaps sharing top spot is Anthony Terranova's amazing steel jacket (#76).

I also quite liked a cool little nude by #199, Jan Friedlander, and also Palma Allen (#100) multiple nude.

Really good work by number 155, Lauren Simonutti.

A really brilliant work by Hadieh Shafie (#42) which reminded me of the Arabic poems that cover most of the walls of the Alhambra pops in as a good challenger for Best in Show.

Balage's (#92) gorgeous painting of Joan of Arc (I think) is one of the best paintings in MAP, as is Patrick Kluga's painting of tomatoes (sorry but I cannot decipher the number from my notes).

Another really well done oil is Zachary Thornton's oil portrait (#111), although Thornton got a little lazy with the hands.

And Rosetta DeBernardinis (#198) is her usual fresh and powerful work, which is the polar opposite of another favorite, David Wilson's airbrush (I think) at #160.

And how could I not pick Alexa Brooks' evocative piece of the subject of Cuba? It is number 294!

The Silent Auction and Gala is at 8PM, this coming Friday, April 11, 2008. Go buy some artwork!

Beyond the Easel

Beyond the Easel: Preparing to Market and Sell Your Art
Date: Saturday, May 3, 2008
Time: 10am-6pm
Location: Warehouse Arts Complex in Washington, DC

Instructor: Rosetta DeBerardinis, School 33 Resident Studio Artist, Liquitex Artist of the Month: 2007, contributor to Daily Campello Art News, former Art Tour Guide, and abstract painter whose work has been exhibited and sold at commercial galleries and art venues in the Washington metro area, Baltimore and Richmond, VA.

This course is designed for professional artists who approach art as a business.
Defining goals, identifying the market, the studio, developing a body of work, marketing tools, promotion, the Internet, galleries and other venues are some of the topics to be discussed. It will provide the basic organizational and marketing skills required to exhibit and sell artwork.

Limit: 45 Students
Students are required to bring notebook and a writing instrument.
Cost: $50

Questions may be directed to: RosettaGallery@aol.com

Wanna go to an opening in Bethesda?

Joan Danziger opens at Bethesda's Osuna Gallery on Saturday, April 12, 2008, from 5-8 pm with an exhibition of recent sculptures.

Jury Duty

Tomorrow I will be on art jury duty for VSA arts, looking at entries inspired by the performing arts for “Derivative Composition,” an international juried art exhibition that will be on display at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, D.C., from May 29 - July 20, 2008.

Two-and three-dimensional art, digital art, installations, video and film, and other media that draw inspiration from music, theater, or dance are to be judged.

More on all of that later...

Deadhead Wading

Earlier tonight, after spending hours on a clogged up I-95 drive from Philly, I arrived in Baltimore, parked for 61 minutes (cost me $13 bucks), then I waded my way through a couple of hundred deadheads hanging around the plaza where the beautiful spaces of the Maryland Art Place is located in Baltimore to drop my piece for "Out of Order," where MAP opens its doors to any artist who wishes to exhibit their work in their gallery. Work must be original and ready to hang. They will accept one piece per artist, with wall dimensions not to exceed 5’x5’. They will be open all night accepting work.

Details here.

I was number 299, so by 6:22PM there were already almost three hundred pieces on the walls, and I jotted down a few exceptional pieces, which I had intended to mention, but which I left in my van, which then some valet in the DC hotel where I am tonight already parked somewhere and thus you will all have to wait until tomorrow to find out who the real good finds in this auction are, and there are some terrific pieces of art being offered.

The Silent Auction and Gala is at 8PM, this coming Friday, April 11, 2008.

Out of Order

MAP’s infamous free-hung benefit exhibition is back! For twenty-four hours, the Maryland Art Place in Baltimore will open its doors to any artist who wishes to exhibit their work in their gallery. Work must be original and ready to hang. They will accept one piece per artist, with wall dimensions not to exceed 5’x5’.

Details here.

It keeps on rolling

The year 2008 Tim Tatetahon just keeps rolling... fresh from the Washington Glass School opening at Charlottesville's Migrations Gallery, Tate now opens a solo show and makes his Santa Fe debut with an exhibition at Jane Sauer Gallery titled "The Vague Haze of the Unconscious" and opening on on April 11 and running through May 6, 2008.

Opening at Migrations Gallery
Next: Philadelphia.

SF Art Institute halts exhibition

Citing threats of violence by animal rights activists, the San Francisco Art Institute said Saturday that it is canceling a controversial exhibition that included video clips of animals being bludgeoned to death, as well as a public forum it had scheduled to address the controversy.

Read the story here.

A Miami mural of Barack Obama generates some buzz

In a weird way - since we all are supposed to want to be governed and taken care of by big government and its inherent burocracy - this makes sense.

Read the Miami Herald story here.

It's all about the galleries

The current issue of Washingtonian magazine publishes something that it should have done ages ago: a superb article on the Greater DC area galleries by the CP's cappo-di-tutti-criticos Cristiano Cappo.

Read the article by Capps here.

Wanna go to an opening in New Jersey?

Greg Minah, who a few years ago made it to quite a few of the Art-O-Matic Top Ten lists that I ran, is having a solo show at Fusion Gallery in Collingswood, NJ about 10 minutes outside Philly.

The show is open now, and the artist reception is being held on April 12th (Second Saturday) from 6 - 10pm and the show runs through May 4, 2008.

Yay!

This just won a Pulitzer Prize and it is a good read - read it here.

Amy Lin at the Art League

Amy Lin's solo show "Interaction" opens this Thursday, April 10 from 6:30-8pm at the Art League Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia.

"Interaction" involves a blending of arts and sciences, but surprisingly, the blend isn't related to Amy's degree in chemical engineering - it relates to her childhood experiences with her Mom, who was a professor at the university doing research in human genetics. Each of the drawings in the show is inspired by a memory from her childhood in the biology labs. Amy is now represented by Heineman Myers Contemporary Art in Bethesda, MD, but some of us recall that she originally got her start at the Art League Gallery.

In the December 2005 Art League Gallery show, Lin was given an award by Anne Collins Goodyear, from the National Portrait Gallery, and it was there that I first saw her work and mentioned it in a review that I wrote for the Crier Media newspapers.

Since then her career and presence have taken out at an astounding pace, with enviable critical coverage in the press and a very hot sales trail.

Lin's drawings at the Art League appear courtesy of Heineman Myers, as "Interaction" was scheduled two years ago before she had signed with Heineman Myers.

"Sacrifice" 45x55 inches, colored pencil c.2008 by Amy Lin
Read DCist's Amy Cavanaugh's interview Lin here.

Buy Amy Lin now.