Groucho

"A child of five would understand this. Send someone to fetch a child of five."
-- Groucho Marx

Heard on Univision

Mexican political party Partido Acción Nacional (PAN) has chosen Congresswoman Josefina Vázquez Mota as their Presidential candidate - the first woman candidate with a real good chance of becoming our Southern neighbor's first female Presidente.

We send out congrats to Josefina!

PostSecret 2012 Tour

The local DMV art superstar known as Frank Warren is the only artist on planet Earth (at least that I am aware of) who can sell out college auditoriums and other such audience-venues as he continues to expand and discuss and publish his planetary scale installation megaproject PostSecret.

Check out the 2012 Spring tour video below:

Charity Auction

Distinguished works of art will grace the Middleburg Community Center on Friday, February 24th, in an unprecedented auction of original artwork from the community’s best local artists. Doors for this fundraising event will open at 5:30 P.M., and proceeds will benefit the Middleburg Montessori School.

"It is always impressive when so many artists come together to support a worth-while cause like this one," offered Bradley Stevens, a well-known realist painter. Stevens, a former faculty member at both George Washington University and Georgetown University, donated a children’s group drawing lesson in portraiture and an adult “plein-air,” or outdoor oil-painting lesson, at Barrel Oaks winery in Delaplane. These items, like all other offerings, will go to the highest bidder.

With more than fifteen committed artists, including the furniture of craftsmen at Plank & Nickel, the auction will showcase the art of Misia Broadhead-Barham, Anthony Barham, Kim Basinger, Armand Cabrera, Hwa Crawford, Mikel Diaz, Richard Dimon, Charles Matheson, Lilla Ohrstrom, Dana Lee Thompson, Dana Volkert, Antonia Walker, Charlie Westbrook, Henry Wingate, and Cathy Zimmerman, among others.

A sample of the featured artists:

Armand Cabrera, known for his alla prima work—paintings completed in one sitting in the studio or outdoors—has donated “Farmhouse,” a stunning 8’ x 10’ oil on linen. Armand, a former California-based production artist in the entertainment industry, brings his eye for detail to his exquisite landscapes. His work has been featured in International Artist Magazine and American Art Collector.

Local artist Dana Volkert captures the natural world, isolated and enlarged, in abstract beauty. Her compelling work has been exhibited in galleries worldwide and is a must for the modern collector.

Antonia Walker, whose works are represented in many collections including the Arts-in-Embassy Program of The State Department, has been a visiting artist at the American Academy in Rome. She has studied under Spanish Sculptor Benjamin Saul as well as Brittany, France-based artist William Woodward. Antonia is most well known for her oil paintings of the Virginia countryside and images of Italy and France.

Artist Henry Wingate’s first career was flying airplanes for the Navy. Wingate is best known for his classic oil portraits and his traditional representational works of art, approaches he studied in ateliers, or working studios. An award winning artist, Wingate has been featured in American Artist and Portrait Highlights magazines.

Also included in the auction are handcrafted, reclaimed wood furniture from the designers at Plank & Nickel. Two beautiful live-edge modern benches will be among the offerings.

The public is invited to this open event. Barrel Oak Winery will be providing wine to bidders and guests alike. Delicious hors d’oeuvres from Julien’s on Washington Street will add a touch of French cuisine.

“We are thrilled to be partnering with these talented artists,” explained BethAnn Slater, Head of School of Middleburg Montessori. “Ultimately, we are all coming together to benefit the children in our community.”

For more information about the event, or to become a donor, please contact Middleburg Montessori School at 540-687-5210.

WHAT: Art Auction and Reception, “ART OF THE PIEDMONT”
WHERE: Middleburg Community Center, 300 Washington St. Middleburg, VA
WHEN: Friday, February 24th, 2012 at 5:30-9:30PM (Free to the public)
WHO: Hosted by Middleburg Montessori School. Contact: 540-687-5210

For the big game

For the last two days I've been cooking "Ropa Vieja" in the slow cooker. This is my favorite Cuban dish and it takes forever to cook properly, but when done right... OMG! You start with simply a few chunks of skirt steak, tomato sauce, onions, fresh garlic, and a few key spices and two days or so in the slow cooker.

Since it is the Super Bowl, I also made my own salsa, and not to brag, but seeing that salsa is NOT a Cuban dish to start with, I think I've put my own tag on this most Mexican of foods and may have even put my Mexican compadres to shame; let's just say that garlic and cilantro to an overwhelming state can never go wrong - and then crush some mango into that puppy and Mmmmm...

Now let's hope that the Giants kick some rump.

Chawky Frenn Opening at BlackRock

Tonight: Chawky Frenn at BlackRock

I have always thought that the BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown, MD has one of the most beautiful and dramatic gallery spaces in the region. With its impossibly tall gallery space, it opens itself to all kinds of great curatorial ideas.

And tonight, GMU Professor Chawky Frenn will be opening his "Be The Change You Seek" solo show. And if you know Frenn's past, then you can expect a show sure to raise some eyebrows. Frenn uses his vast technical skills as a painter like a weapon, aiming his talented brush at social, political and historical issues.

The opening is from 5:30 - 7:30PM. The show goes through Feb. 27.

BlackRock Center for the Arts is located at 12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown, Maryland 20874. Call them at 301.528.2260 for more info.

See ya there!

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: Friday, March 9, 2012

The Bethesda Urban Partnership and Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District has announced “Tunnel Vision,” a public art exhibition to be hung in the Metro Tunnel that runs under Wisconsin Avenue in downtown Bethesda.

“Tunnel Vision” will showcase the work of 12 selected artists inside the Metro Tunnel. Interested artists are invited to submit up to 5 images of their work for review. Each artist will be paid $500 for the license to use their image. If selected, artists will need to provide a high resolution file for the image of their artwork to be printed on a poly metal material, size 4' high x 8' wide. Artists are encouraged to submit artwork that can easily be sized to 4’ x 8’.

Artists must be residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C. to be eligible for consideration. There is a category for young artists, age 14-17, to apply. The deadline for submitting images for review is Friday, March 9, 2012. Interested artists should visit this website for more information and the application for consideration.

Heard on Univision

The Mexican Minister of Health, Salomón Chertorivski, has announced that the Mexican government has invented a vaccine to prevent heroin addiction.

Details here, in case you think that I'm messing with you.

Torpedo Factory Art Center Visiting Artist Program

Deadline: February 15, 2012. 



The Torpedo Factory Art Center invites emerging and experienced artists to apply for one, two, or three-month residencies between June 1 and August 31, 2012.

The Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia is home to more than 140 visual artists working in 82 studios. Artists create in a wide variety of media including painting, fiber, jewelry, ceramics, printmaking, and sculpture. The Torpedo Factory is open to the public every day; visitors are invited and welcomed into studios to watch artists at work.

Visiting Artists will be provided with studio space and will be able to display and sell original work. The projects undertaken for this self-directed, creative residency must be compatible with available working studio spaces and facilities.

Finalists will be selected by Paula Amt, owner of gallery plan b. There is no application fee. 
You can download the Prospectus from this website.

Spidey is an issue

So far, for my naked Superheroes series of drawings I've depicted the Man of Steel about a dozen times, Batman (and Batman and Robin) 2-3 times, and Supergirl about 6-7 times.

Next is Spiderman, although I am having a hard time visualizing the drawing. It is easy to conceptualize Superman or Supergirl flying in the buff, but why would Peter Parker be climbing the facade of a building in the buff, and somehow still be wearing a mask or somethings that identifies him as Spidey?

The agonies of a brilliant mind...

Maryland Art Place names new Executive Director

Maryland Art Place (MAP) has announced the hiring of Amy Cavanaugh Royce as its new Executive Director. I also know that she is one helluva good cellist!

In her former position as Chief Operating Officer and Vice President of the ARCH Development Corporation in Washington, D.C., Ms. Royce spearheaded the development of four cultural facilities, which now operate as the cultural arm of ARCH organization.

She also co-founded and operated a state-of-the-art contemporary exhibition space, Honfleur Gallery.

John James Anderson and Susan Stacks at Adah Rose Gallery

Adah Rose Gallery (3766 Howard Ave Kensington Md, 20895, www.adahrosegallery.com is a relative newcomer to the DMV art scene, but under the experienced guidance of Adah Rose, it seems to have hit the deck running.

“The Pleasures Here Are Well Known” - work by John James Anderson and Susan Stacks - is their next show, with an opening reception, on Saturday February 11, 6:30-8:30 p.m. (also music by Walker Road).

The printed word and the acquisition of language are the principal ideas in the work of John James Anderson. His first series, “Building Blocks,” adopts the playful vocabulary of pop art with familiar logos and graphics which require reading through a lens that is both nostalgic and cerebral. Mr. Anderson creates a graphic alphabet from the eye-catching lettering of soda cans, candy wrappers and cereal boxes. In his second series, “Out of Print,” language and the evolution of our collective literacy is also explored, this time in the decline of print journalism. Mr. Anderson collected the front pages of national newspapers and carefully erased portions of their content, resulting in graphic and poetic musings on the fate of mass communication.

... Beginning with the unconsciousness of a doodle, but executed with the commitment of surgery, Susan Stacks creates drawings with pencil and pen that are artifacts of a meditative experience. These intricate and elegant works reference landscapes, microscopic forms, and cartography. As Ms. Stacks draws, a twist becomes a tug, a dash a dot. Her influences are as varied as novels, mythological figures, plant and bacterial life, rock stars and vending machines. She refers to her drawings as emotional maps, parasites, friends, and penance.

Artguardian

(Via/Thanks!)

There are an estimated 150 million works of art in the market today – in museums, public spaces and in the holdings of private collectors. Not only because of their material value, but also because of their intangible value they deserve to be handled carefully. However, neither artists nor museums or collectors want to protect artwork from detrimental influences by keeping it in a climate-controlled safe. Art needs the public.

By combining modern technologies from the fields of microelectronics, building physics and information technology, three Fraunhofer Institutes and their partners have now developed a solution that meets the challenges that arise: "Artguardian consists of four sensors invisibly attached to the work of art; they register temperatures, humidity, lighting conditions and any bumps or movements", observes Dr. Stephan Guttowski from the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration IZM in Berlin." It forwards data at regular intervals to a base station located near the work."

Check it out here.

Google's new search by image function

I'm loving Google's new search by image capability. Now you can drop an image into the search box and it not only finds all "similar" images around the Internets, but also all the websites where that image is being used.

Using that function, I've discovered that many of my drawings are being used all over the place without my permission, and I've only researched about a dozen or so pieces.

Example: "Victorious Pict" is a decade old drawing that was part of my Pictish Nation show at the old Georgetown Fraser Gallery.

After using the Google function, I've discovered that the drawing is in use by all these websites all over the planet.

Go play with it.

How to rip off artists?

According to some of the artists whose work is being sold via this website, the fellow human from our northern neighbor who runs it is allegedly ripping off the artists in question, and despite repeated requests to remove their artwork from the site -- from the artists to the website owners -- it has all been apparently ignored.

For all that matters:

Registrant Name: Alex Munin
Registrant Organization: munin.co
Registrant Address1: 172 Vagan Rd.
Registrant City: Toronto
Registrant State/Province: ON
Registrant Postal Code: m6c3a4
Registrant Country: Canada
Registrant Country Code: CA
Registrant Phone Number: +1.6472284753

Lori Earley is one of the artists being allegedly ripped off. Lori's wondrous work has been exhibited in the DMV by the olde Fraser Gallery - decades ago now! Check it out here.

Anybody out there know anything about this? Mr. Munin? Want to respond? (I found his email address and sent him a request for comments).

Any other artists?

We have a possible Comemierda alert.

Update: Looks like the website in question has been taken down since last night!

Heard on Univision

I just heard that the Spanish language TV show Sabado Gigante, a variety show by Chilean-born TV host Mario Kreutzberger Blumenfeld - known to the Latin American television-watching world as Don Francisco - is celebrating its 50th year anniversary.

WOW!

Congrats Don Francisco!

Wanna come to my book signing?

There will be a book signing for my 100 Artists of Washington, DC book on February 16 from 6:30 - 8:30PM at the gorgeous BlackRock Center for the Arts in Germantown, Maryland.

Bring your own book (buy it at Amazon here) or get a copy from me at the Center (it will be cheaper at Amazon).

Many of the artists in the book will be there, so this is also a good opportunity to get your copy signed by them as well.

I will also be giving a talk about how this book came to be, and the selection process (an update) for the next two volumes.

BlackRock Center for the Arts
12901 Town Commons Drive
Germantown, MD 20874

301.528.2260 (administrative offices)
301.528.2266 (fax)
info@blackrockcenter.org (e-mail)

See ya there!

Call for Artists: Bethesda Painting Awards

Deadline: Submissions must be received by Friday, February 24, 2012

The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District is currently accepting applications for the seventh annual Bethesda Painting Awards. Up to nine finalists will be selected to display their work in an exhibition during the month of June at Gallery B in downtown Bethesda, and the top four winners will receive $14,000 in prize monies.

Best in Show will be awarded $10,000; Second Place will be honored with $2,000 and Third Place will receive $1,000. Additionally, a “Young Artist” whose birthday is after February 24, 1982 may be awarded $1,000. Artists must be 18 years of age or older and residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C.

All original 2-D paintings including oil, acrylic, watercolor, gouache, encaustic and mixed media will be accepted. The maximum dimensions should not exceed 60 inches in width or 84 inches in height. No reproductions. Artwork must have been completed within the last two years and must be available for the duration of the exhibit.

Each artist must submit either 5 slides, application and a non-refundable fee of $25. Digital entries will be accepted on CD in JPG, GIF or PNG format.

For a complete application, please visit www.bethesda.org, send a self-addressed stamped envelope to:

Bethesda Painting Awards
c/o Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District
7700 Old Georgetown Road
Bethesda, MD 20814

Or call 301-215-6660 x117.

Mitt's Mexican Dad

"White House hopeful Mitt Romney rarely mentions a key fact as he works to woo Hispanics ahead of Tuesday's Republican presidential nominating contest in Florida -- his own Mexican heritage."

I mentioned this back in 2008, but read the more recent update to the story here.

And if we follow the silly definitions of "Hispanic" or "Latino", then Romney qualifies, since his father was born in a Latin American country, and could be the GOP's second "Hispanic" Presidential candidate!

Uh? Well... you see, since John McCain was actually born in Panama...

Makes my head hurt.