This is how it is supposed to work - Part II

Yesterday I discussed my issues with the relative lack of interaction between DC area museum professionals and DC area artists and gallery, and submitted my theories as to why this interaction generally happens in nearly every other American city between their museum professionals and their art scenes, but does not happen on a regular basis in the DC area.

Today a couple of happy stories on some success stories, and the hope that more stories like this will continue to happen.

Jonathan Binstock and John Lehr

John Lehr is a very young Baltimore area photographer whose work came through the attention of Dr. Jonathan Binstock (Curator of Contemporary Art at the Corcoran) through the jurying process for the 2003 Trawick Prize.
Although Lehr was not selected as a prizewinner in that superb competition, his work caught the eye of Binstock, who became personally interested in the work of Lehr (represented in the DC area - I think - by Heineman-Myers) and when Jonathan co-curated the 48th Corcoran Biennial, he included Lehr's work in the show, one of several area artists that made an appearance at the exhibition.

Anne Collins Goodyear and Amy Lin

Last summer, Dr. Anne Collins Goodyear (who is the Assistant Curator of Prints & Drawings at the National Portrait Gallery) juried a show at Touchstone Gallery and selected one of DC area artist Amy Lin's pieces for the show.
The last December, she juried the All-Media Membership Show at the Art League Gallery in Old Town Alexandria and gave one of Lin's drawings an Honorable Mention.

Lin and Dr. Collins Goodyear met at the gallery reception for this show and Lin invited Anne to a group show that she was in at the Pierce School that month. Lin tells me that "not only did she want to come, [but also] she wanted to make an appointment so that she could see the work and talk to me about it at the same time!"

In January Anne and Amy (who is one of the DC area's hardest working artists and as far as I know still unrepresented) met at the Pierce School and Dr. Collins Goodyear looked at Lin's art and discussed it with the artist.

Then in May, Lin was offered a solo show at DCAC (opens this Friday at 7PM). Since Lin needed a curator for the DCAC show, and since she knew that Anne was interested and familiar with her work, she asked her to curate Lin's solo at DCAC and Dr. Collins Goodyear agreed to do it.

Several studio and gallery visits (as well as an essay about the show) later, they're hanging the show together on December 13 and the show opens on Friday, December 15 with a reception from 7-9PM and a curator's talk at 8pm.

Now this is a curator who is willing to spend part of her precious time working and looking in her own backyard and who exemplifies (above and beyond) the sort of interest that we would expect, once in a while, from our area curators as part of their job.

Dr. Collins Goodyear: WELL DONE!