Introducing Andrea Brown

From the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities:

Introducing Andrea Brown

I’m the Arts Learning Coordinator for the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities. I’m new to the Agency, having started in my role this past April. I’ve always known I wanted to be an Artist. My earliest memories as a child were of my father drawing things he saw around the house, in the newspaper, and in nature. Even now, there are stacks of his illustrations in sketch books around my childhood home that I can vividly remember him leisurely drawing with such skill and grace. My aunt (his sister) would sew clothing and make beautiful dolls, varying in scale, and material. I was always in awe seeing her create things out of what started out as ordinary piles of fabric. 

By middle school I decided that I wanted to receive formal training in the visual arts and auditioned for a special admission Visual and Performing Arts high school. There, I majored in darkroom photography and commercial illustration which I’d say was the beginning of my ever-evolving journey of artmaking.  

I attended Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore, Maryland where I majored in Fibers. I would go on to sew themed fashion collections each spring with a cohort of my peers that would culminate into MICA’s annual Spring Fashion show, contributions from ticket sales supported need-based scholarships for incoming minority students.   

Shortly after undergraduate school, I relocated from the DMV to Philadelphia where I worked as a Teaching Artist through a collaborative program via University of the Arts and the School District of Philadelphia called, Philadelphia Arts Education Partnerships (PAEP). Working in the K-8 setting, through the means of arts education was my way of “giving back” and paying the gift of arts education forward. I particularly enjoyed teaching art through the lens of common core standards which I found quickly grasp students’ attention. When the arts are coupled with imaginative creativity, anywhere you are, if done right, becomes a safe space.  

Before re-locating back to the DMV, I served as the Director of Children and Youth services for a Non-profit organization geared toward STEAM education in Greater Philadelphia for youth in grades K-12. It was an amazing experience that I’ll not soon forget. I’m so excited to be back in DC where my passion for art, artistic expression, and arts education began.  

Frank Frazetta rocks the art world!

A Frank Frazetta Painting of a Brawny Warrior

 Sold for $6 Million, Making It the World’s

 Highest-Priced Work of Comic Book or Fantasy

 Art Ever

Frank Frazetta, Dark Kingdom 1976

All my life I have been an uninhibited and joyous Frank Frazetta fan! The man was and remains a legend to anyone who's ever read a comic book, bought a Conan The Barbarian book, or slobbered over his drawings of the human anatomy.

This painting is titled Dark Kingdom and was first used in 1976 as the cover of Karl Edward Wagner's novel Dark Crusade, from Wagner's series about the immortal ancient Conananesque warrior Kane - I bought, read, and owned all of them back in the 1970s.

Christina Rees says it best:

Time is the great equalizer, but with Frazetta’s work, time didn’t have to stretch far to convince us of his greatness. We loved him once upon a time and find it all too easy to love him all over again.

Long live the master through his amazing art!

36th Annual Northern National Art Competition

 

As most of you know, recently it was my honor to jury the 36th Annual Northern National  Art Competition, which was staged in the beautiful campus of Nicolet College in Rhinelander, Wisconsin.

As all great juried shows are, this was an immensely difficult show to judge, which is a good thing! I have juried and judged and curated a lot of art shows over the last few decades, and when I say that this one was by far one of the top shows with some of the best entries that I have ever had the honor to jury, I mean among the very top!

I was also superbly impressed by the diversity of the subject matter submitted - it covered practically the entire spectrum of the tapestry of the visual arts, and many of the selected entries pushed the envelope of contemporary art. 

Like any art competition, some works stood out almost immediately, but what singularly marked this show as a great competition was the significant number of entries that stood out. There are quite a few entries in this show which allowed some very talented artists to flex some powerful artistic muscles that deliver a powerful message to the solar plexus of the inquisitive mind – be prepared to be stopped in your tracks as you wander through the show. 

Finally, as always, I am honored to be able to judge and comment on the work of my fellow artists. I am humbled, kindled and educated by the talent present in this exhibition.  You can see the exhibition via a virtual tour here.

The Award winners:

Awards of Excellence

$1000

Joshua Newth / Caitlyn, Crown - Oil

James Swanson / Splash Landing - Oil

Emma LaPine / The Kindness of Transformation - Oil

Robert Jinkins / Scarecrow in the Garden - Mixed media

Special Merit Awards

$500

Kyle Surges / Cocktail Party - Oil

Berthold Boone / House Paint - Acrylic

Andrea Kidd / The Mad Hatter and The Doormouse - Charcoal, white pastel

Benefactor Awards

$300

Rebecca Korth / Rufous Martini Splash - Oil

Nate Wilson / Life Drawing - Charcoal on toned paper

Roberta Condon / Blanketed by the Barn Owls - Soft pastel on sanded paper

Sandra Cashman / The Gathering Storm - Oil

Mark Weller / Storm over Mendota - Timestacking photography

Donor Awards

$200

Michael Nichols / Breath - Buon fresco

Sheila Stilin / Tom's Barn - Watercolor

Elizabeth Yarosz-Ash / Bon Vivant - Acrylic

Patron Awards

$125 - $150

Cassandra Smith / Embellished Deer - Taxidermy whitetail deer, embellishments, acrylic

Taylor Mazer / Water Towers - Pen and ink

Craig Blacklock / Light Waves Squared AAP970 - Photography

Audience Choice Award

$250

Cassandra Smith / Embellished Deer - Taxidermy whitetail deer, embellishments, acrylic

Purchase Award

Nicolet College Permanent Collection Purchase

Rachel Catlett / Feeding the Flock, Sunburst - Oil

Review: Burning Man: Art on Fire

For decades now I have been discussing, ranting, and raving about how fine art fairs have become the epicenter of the art world, as well as how outdoor art festivals are also a key component to the tapestry of the visual arts.

Let me add to that what is perhaps the greatest single week-long art happening in the history of the planet: Burning Man.

The description of the event goes like this:

For one week every August, a remote Nevada desert becomes Black Rock City, the home of Burning Man where 80,000 participants build a temporary city devoted to creativity and community. There is no money, no running water—and there are no constraints. Artists bring enormous sculptures for participants to climb. Outrageous Mutant Vehicles glide through an opulent mirage. This is a dreamscape of permission. For seven days and nights, the artistic movement of our time materializes—and then disappears without a trace.

Burning Man: Art on Fire (Epic Ink | July 4, 2023 | $45.00 USD), is a gorgeous new and completely revised, expanded edition book illustrated with over 250 spectacular color photos. 

The book is a labor of love by Jennifer Raiser; "a writer, nonprofit leader, and Burner." 

It is also two talented photographers' insight into the raw, unlimited power of human creativity when allowed to unleash itself once a year. The photographers are Washington, DC born Scott London, who has been documenting the art and culture of Burning Man for nearly two decades, and Brazilian-born photog Sidney Erthal.

This authorized collection also includes: 

• Over 150 new photographs and descriptions of individual pieces of Burning Man art from over two decades, including art from the 2022 Burning Man event
• Over 32 new pages featuring incredible sculptures and Mutant Vehicles
• A fully updated text, which considers Burning Man’s evolving significance in the art world, and how Burning Man is the art movement of our time
• A foreword from Burning Man CEO and Co-Founder Marian Goodell
• A new epilogue about the growing importance of Burning Man art beyond Black Rock City and throughout the art world, including museum exhibits, public art, and over 100 regional Burning Man events worldwide
• A tribute to Burning Man Founder Larry Harvey, with highlights of his philosophical approach to art

The art created and often destroyed for Burning Man is an important and unique addition to the fine arts world.

In fact, I believe that it is the most significant “art happening” on the planet, and as this book and the associated documentary proves, it is art on a scale of objects nowhere else achieved, and perhaps barely imagined by such minds as Christo’s, as well as a vibrant and imaginative riot of people who often become art objects and subjects themselves.

Burning Man: Art on Fire, Revised and Updated Edition publishes July 4, 2023. 

You can order it here.

The Juried Exhibition Grant: Call for DC artists

 

FY24 Juried Exhibition Grant

The Juried Exhibition Grant (JEG) provides support for District-based artists to exhibit their work in a juried, themed visual art exhibition through grant awards and the use of CAH’s exhibition space located in the lobby of 200 I Street, SE.

RFA Release: Monday, June 26, 2023

Submission Deadline: 9 pm ET, Friday, July 28, 2023

This Request for Applications (RFA) seeks works for an exhibition that will reflect on the Civil Rights Act of 1964 during its 60th year anniversary in 2024 and how DC artists have been influenced, both explicitly and implicitly, by the social progress and reform of the past 60 years. This landmark legislation aimed to prohibit discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. By exploring this significant milestone, the exhibition seeks to provide insight into the progress, challenges, and ongoing efforts towards achieving equity and social justice.

JEG seeks works from DC artists that:

• Feature how artists in DC utilize their practices to respond to and engage with the social, political, and cultural changes resulting from this pivotal law.
• Highlight artists' documentation and interpretation of the political landscape on the local, national and international level.
• Engage archival, historical, and artistic movements that have emerged since the enactment of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 until the present day.
• Examine how present moments and developments have shaped the landscape of Washington, DC.
• Delve into historical influences of the past, capture the transformative aspects of our present, and engage with imaginative approaches to building a better future.

Staff Contacts:

• Ron Humbertson | ron.humbertson@dc.gov
• Deirdre Darden | deirdre.darden@dc.gov

Find more info on the FY24 JEG RFA RSVP for FY24 JEG Workshops

National Small Works at WPG

the 2023 Peggy Doole

Competition and Exhibition



National Small Works

June 30-July 30, 2023

National Small Works

including work from 36 artists,

representing the DC and 17 states



Opening: Saturday, July 8, 2:00-5:00 pm

It is with great pleasure that we announce the 23rd year of the National Small Works Show: the first since 2019, due to Covidian cancellations. This year’s exhibit honors Peggy Doole (1934-2021), long-time resident of the DC area who shared her love of art by giving lectures, sponsoring exhibits, and leading tours at the Hirshhorn, the National Gallery of Art, and other museums throughout Europe and the U.S. Her post-graduate museum work led her to a focus on, and a special passion for, printmaking.

The exhibition includes 36 pieces – fine art prints, photographs, and artist books chosen by the juror LuLen Walker, Art Curator for Georgetown University. 

Washington Printmakers Gallery ● 1675 Wisconsin Ave. NW ● (202) 669-1497

info@washingtonprintmakers.com ● www.washingtonprintmakers.com

This weekend at Glen Echo

This weekend is your last opportunity to take in the beauty of Glen Echo's Partnership Galleries' June exhibits; they close end-of-day on Sunday, the 25th! 

Stop by Stone Tower Gallery for a sci-fi journey through Blair Anderson's A Silversmith's Guide to the Galaxy, Popcorn Gallery for a special exhibit by Yellow Barn Studio instructors, and Park View Gallery for unique silk painting in Nico Gozal's Wonderland.

Yellow Barn Gallery's weekend exhibit features works by painter, illustrator, and instructor Eric Westbrook. Opening Reception Saturday from 4-7pm.

Saturday morning, hear from a leader in the 'eco-artist' world during Art Clinic Online. Erwin Timmers has a fascinating background and impressive career transforming materials that often aren't recycled into art.

Later in the day on Saturday, tune in to Photoworks' Artist Talk with Sandy Sugawara and Catiana Garcia Kilroy as they share the difficult but important topic of their new book, Show Me the Way to Go Home: the World War II incarceration camps that held Japanese Americans.

On Sunday, Photoworks is contributing a fascinating talk to the Diverse Voices: A Juneteenth Celebration FESTIVAL OF FREEDOM. Documentary photographer Marvin Tupper Jones will be discussing the new exhibit at the Chowan Discovery Group: Building a Mixed Race Community.

Mark your calendars! Their third Art Walk of the season is coming up on Friday, July 7th!