Leadfoot Rubia

The NYT reported over the weekend that Presidential candidate Marco Rubio had received four traffic tickets since 1997... cough, cough...

His wife got 13! Cough, cough.... fast rubia!

For the probably car-less New Yorkers who wrote this, cough, cough... article, and their witless editor, this apparently amounted to a story worthy of precious newsprint in the NYT. However, for someone who travels to Miami as often as I do these days, and who drives around that gorgeous city, it is clear to the most casual Captain Obvious that Miami drivers are only second worst to DMV drivers.

But it seems like a local DMV paper may have busted the NYT's source or tipper for this non-story!

And also here.

And so, in the spirit of news tips, I've got a tip for the once mighty NYT: I heard that Rubio, or maybe it was his wife, once parked temporarily in a loading zone and didn't actually load or unload anything!!

Sam Steinberg: Brooklyn outsider artist

He was an outsider who flitted at the fringes of one of the country’s most elite universities, a Brooklyn-bred, Bronx-dwelling candy peddler who charmed and enthralled generations of Columbia University students with the greeting: “Hey boys, I got paintings here!” Or, “I got those Hoishey bars.” 

From the 1930s until 1982, when he died at 85, few students passed Sam Steinberg outside the student center or the Low Library steps without buying a candy bar at least once. Those who lingered a little longer also learned about Sam’s world through his Magic Marker illustrations: the stylized celebrities (Rudolph Valentino, Elvis, Richard Nixon), the surrealist animals (hoofed cats, mermaids, potato-headed dogs), the vivid whimsies (a pair of legs in Columbia gym shorts).

Read the NYT article here. 

Yep... that's me!

Call for proposals

The Brentwood Arts Exchange is seeking proposals from artists and curators to present exhibitions beginning summer 2016. Solo and group exhibitions are welcome, and the call is open to all artists and curators who are 18 years of age or older.

There are no restrictions on media or residency. 


The Brentwood Arts Exchange is The Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission’s component of the public-private partnership Gateway Arts Center, serving as an anchor for Prince George’s County Gateway Arts District. In the five years since opening, the gallery has presented 33 on-site and 19 off-site exhibitions, featuring regionally prominent artists as well as emerging artists and students. It is a place for people of all ages to meet and learn about art, purchase locally made crafts, and explore new creative talents.


The full prospectus can be downloaded here: http://files.ctctcdn.com/461c09fd001/ca6af4d5-3256-4a7f-a35e-0d924b0cf1b1.pdf

Bethesda Painting Awards prize winners

The Bethesda Arts and Entertainment District announced the top three Bethesda Painting Awards prize winners on Wednesday evening during the exhibition’s opening at Gallery B.  Bill Schmidt of Baltimore, MD was awarded “Best in Show” with $10,000; Thomas Dahlberg of Baltimore, MD was named second place and was given $2,000 and Cavan Fleming of Blacksburg, VA received third place and was awarded $1,000.

 

Bill Schmidt has been a finalist in the Bethesda Painting Awards three times before, in 2008, 2013 and 2014. He’s exhibited his artwork extensively in the Mid-Atlantic region. He has received numerous grants and awards including two Maryland State Arts Council Individual Artist Awards. In 2004 he attended the Alfred and Trafford Klots Residency Program in Rocheforten-Terre, France. Schmidt studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts and the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture in Skowhegan, ME before moving to Baltimore in 1969. He received a Master of Fine Art from the Hoffberger School of Painting at Maryland Institute College of Art in 1971. In 2007, he was named the Director of the Post-Baccalaureate Program at the Maryland Institute College of Art after being its Resident Artist since 1996.

 

 The eight artists selected as finalists are:

 

Thomas Dahlberg - Baltimore, MD

Cavan Fleming - Blacksburg, VA

Lillian Hoover - Baltimore, MD

Hedieh Ilchi - Rockville, MD

Boram Lee - Baltimore, MD

Danielle Mysliwiec - Takoma Park, MD

Bill Schmidt - Baltimore, MD

Elise Schweitzer - Roanoke, VA

 
A public opening will be held on Friday, June 12, 2015 from 6 – 9pm in conjunction with the Bethesda Art Walk. Gallery B is located at 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite E in downtown Bethesda. The work of the eight finalists will be on display from June 3-27, 2015. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday from 12 – 6pm.

Entries were juried by Arnold Kemp, Chair and Associate Professor in the Department of Painting and Printmaking at Virginia Commonwealth University; John Morrell, Chair of the Department of Art and Art History and Associate Professor of Painting and Drawing at Georgetown University; and Nora Sturges, Professor of Art and head of Painting and Drawing at Towson University.

 

The Bethesda Painting Awards was established by Carol Trawick in 2005. Ms. Trawick has served as a community activist for more than 25 years in downtown Bethesda. She is past chair of the Bethesda Arts and Entertainment District, past chair of the Bethesda Urban Partnership, Inc. and founder of The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards.

 

For more information, please visit www.bethesda.org.

New SAAM Photography Curator

The Smithsonian American Art Museum has appointed John Jacob as its McEvoy Family Curator for Photography. Jacob will be responsible for research, exhibitions and acquisitions related to the museum's collection. He joins 11 curators currently on staff for contemporary art, craft and decorative art, Latino art, media art, sculpture, works on paper, folk and self-taught art and 19th- and 20th-century painting. Jacob begins work at the museum July 13.
 
"John Jacob brings to the Smithsonian American Art Museum a deep knowledge of the field as well as valuable experience in publishing and exhibition planning," said Virginia Mecklenburg, chief curator at the Smithsonian American Art Museum. "John will bring new energy to our photography program."
 
Jacob comes to the museum from the Inge Morath Foundation, where he was director and vice-president facilitating programs related to Morath and support of women photographers, and from the Magnum Foundation, where he was program director of its Legacy Program-collecting, researching and overseeing cultural projects related to the history of Magnum Photos.

HuffPost Sux

But to anyone who has worked at the site for any period of time, as I have, it’s a little bizarre that people could be more demoralized now than at any point in the past, because the Huffington Post has always been an essentially miserable place, with a workplace culture so brutal and toxic that it would meet with approval from committed sociopaths across the land. If things are getting worse there, they have to be really, really bad.

The apparent hell of working at the Huffington Post - Details here.

Opening tomorrow in Fresno: Here Comes The Sun

Here Comes the Sun
Curated by Jeannette L. Herrera
with Jeannette L. Herrera
F. Lennox Campello
Yaroslav Koporulin
and Judith Peck

Arte Américas Fresno Museum1630 Van Ness Ave
Fresno, CA
 (559) 266-2623
www.arteamericas.org

June 4  2015  

Reception June 4th 6-8 pm
Artist talk June 5th 12-2pm

Connersmith has a new building

From Connersmith:

Leigh Conner and Jamie Smith are delighted to announce the purchase of 1013 O Street, NW, Washington, DC as the new home for the CONNERSMITH gallery and the (e)merge art fair offices. 
The three-story building, built circa 1900, is situated in the heart of the Shaw Historic District, within two blocks of Logan Circle, Blagden Alley, and Naylor Court; within four blocks of the Walter E. Washington Convention Center, and Mt. Vernon Square Metro Station; and within walking distance of many of the city’s major art museums.
 
“We are excited to create an ideal space where collectors and curators will experience our artists’ works. We have engaged the acclaimed HapstakDemetriou+ architecture/design team to realize our vision of blending technological innovation with the original character of the historic structure.” – Leigh Conner
 
“It is extremely inspiring to share in the revitalization of Shaw. The cosmopolitan energy of this great DC neighborhood is the perfect environment for contemporary art. We are thrilled to deepen our investment in the nation’s capital as our international outreach continues to expand.” – Jamie Smith
 
Founded in 1999, in Washington, DC, CONNERSMITH launches groundbreaking exhibitions of works in diverse media. The gallery maintains long-term representation of internationally influential artists who are based in DC, the US, and abroad and works with important Collector and Artist Estates.

 

Anderson and Goldbug

"Anderson with Goldbug on his shoulder"
Chalk on Driveway, c. 2015
by Anderson & F. Lennox Campello

200,000 miles

So far, almost every car that I've owned has gone past 200,000 miles and now my 2005 Chrysler Town & Country workhorse of a van joins the club!

 

Frida with Fridas

New piece in my series of works that marry traditional drawing or painting with embedded electronic components... in this case "Frida with Fridas" is a drawing of Kahlo based on an appropriated image of the iconic artist while on the wall behind her, the electronic component rotates through images of both her work as well as images of Kahlo.

Frida with Fridas
Charcoal, Conte and Embedded Electronics on Paper
24x18 inches, c. 2015

Meco's Star Wars Galactic Funk

The shoulder is returning slowly; first day back in studio in 2014!  

Finished a piece that I had started prior to the accident and now framing it and hoping that it can head out to the Texas Contemporary Art Fair.

Listening to Meco's Star Wars Galactic Funk on the turntable...

Images of new work tomorrow...

Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Fellowship program

The Virginia Museum of Fine Arts Fellowship program is a vital source of funding for the visual arts and art history in Virginia.  VMFA is committed to supporting professional artists and art students who demonstrate exceptional creative ability in their chosen discipline and, as such has awarded more than $5 million to Virginia’s artists since the program’s creation. This year marks the 75^th anniversary of VMFA’s Fellowship Program.  A dedicated microsite and documentary to the 75-year history of the program is at http://vmfa.museum/programs/75th-anniversary/.

 

The VMFA Fellowship program was established in 1940 through a generous contribution made by the late John Lee Pratt of Fredericksburg, Virginia.  Offered through VMFA Statewide, Fellowships are still largely funded through the Pratt endowment, and supplemented by annual gifts from the Lettie Pate Whitehead Foundation and the J. Warwick McClintic, Jr. Scholarship Fund.  The Fellowship program has a long and established history of supporting Virginia’s artistic talent and has helped to further the careers and studies of many distinguished individuals, including recent recipients Morgan Herrin of Richmond, Kelly Queener of Henrico, and Will May of Charlottesville.

 

VMFA offers $8,000 awards to professional artists, $6,000 awards to graduate students, and $4,000 awards to undergraduate students.  Applicants may apply in the disciplines of Crafts, Drawing, Film/Video, Mixed Media, New/Emerging Media, Painting, Photography, Printmaking, Sculpture, and Art History (graduate students only).  All applicants must be legal residents of Virginia and student applicants must be enrolled full-time in degree-seeking programs. Applicants’ works are reviewed anonymously by distinguished jurors and awards are made based on artistic merit.  The deadline for Fellowship applications is Friday, November 6, 2015.

 

I encourage interested students and professional artists to apply. Full eligibility criteria, can be found at www.VMFA.museum/fellowships.  Visit this page during the summer of 2015 for information on how to apply for a 2016-17 VMFA Fellowship.

Eve returns

A DMV collector saw this piece at the Joan Hisaoka Healing Arts Gallery at Smith Center for Healing and the Arts in their super-popular Alchemical Vessels Exhibition and Benefit.

But someone else bought it before her turn came to pick a piece... undeterred, she found me and asked for a commission.

And thus everyone wins: She gets an original Campello, the Joan Hisaoka Arts Gallery gets another sale to raise funds for their very worthy cause, and I gain another collector.

Eve Running Away from Eden
Charcoal on Broken Clay
2015 by F. Lennox Campello

Call for Arts Educators

The Greater Reston Arts Center has an open call for an Art Educators Exhibition and the deadline is June 1 at midnight!

Chech it out here.

Hurry!

Huff Post on Campello

Still, Tacoma Little Theatre's new production of the classic Cabaret is stunning and well worth seeing. With Mauro Bozzo holding court as the Emcee and host of both the show and the Kit Kat Klub and Elise Campello brilliantly singing and acting the other key role as Sally Bowles, this production shines throughout.

Read the review of Cabaret in the Huffington Post here.

The curious case of Senator Udall, President Obama, gay marriage, Cuba and the Pope

President Obama really wants a "deal" with the Castro brothers... it is beginning to seem as "no matter what." In supporting his zeal, he often invokes the Pope's newly-flowering relationship with the brutal Castro brothers.

What it is not often discussed is that the "real" behind-the scenes force in "brokering" our President's's one-sided deal, which pretty much just benefits Cuban dictator Raul Castro, was Cardinal Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's Secretary of State and thus the number two man at the Vatican.

The same Cardinal Parolin who yesterday, in response to Ireland's historic national support for marriage equality, referred to the referendum as "a defeat for humanity."

As CHC puts it:

The Vatican welcomes and joyfully embraces brutal dictators, who have murdered, tortured and imprisoned countless innocent people -- regardless of whether they repent for their crimes.  

But peaceful, loving couples -- who have harmed no one -- are "a defeat for humanity"?

And meanwhile... what's going on in Cuba?

As we noted recently, the Havana Biennial is being marred by arrests of Cuban artists in the capital, and mass arrests of dissidents in the provinces; yesterday alone over 200 dissidents were arrested throughout the island.

And yesterday more dissidents from Cuba's Anti-Totalitarian Front were arrested as they distributed pamphlets with the images of political prisoners.  Among those arrested were Luis Dominguez, Hugo Damian Prieto, Andres Sabelino, Lazaro Mendoza and Eugenio Hernandez. 

Also arrested today was independent journalist, Yuri Valle Roca.  And political prisoner Yuset Perez Moreira, a youth activist for The Emilia Project, is on the 27th day of a hunger strike protesting his unjust imprisonment.

Meanwhile, the Congressional delegation led by U.S. Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) continued the disturbing trend -- enhanced by the Obama-Castro deal -- of ignoring Cuban democracy leaders and keeping mum on all the mass arrests - including the re-arrests of several political prisoners who had been freed as part of the original Obama-Cuba deal!

Senator Udall!!!!!!!!!!!

We, Ladies in White, believe that these relations and conversations between the Cuban and U.S. governments will not be of any benefit to the Cuban people. And even less will it empower civil society, as President Barack Obama says. If no conditions are placed on the Cuban government, it will be more of the same or worse. We don't see the U.S. government, the European Union, or Pope Francis, pronouncing themselves as regards the violations of human rights on the island, which is giving the Cuban government a green light to continue violating them. 

-- Berta Soler, leader of The Ladies in White democracy movement, during the Oslo Freedom Forum, EFE, 5/26/15

Assholes of the Week: Madison School Board

Here in the DMV we are all active participants in the national debate over the Washington Redskins name and logo - in the past we've offered an alternative to the issue: Rename the team The Washington Redskin Potatoes, a suggestion which was promptly stolen by PETA and submitted as their own.

The issue of potentially racially or ethnic sensitive/offensive logos, names, etc. has many side and multiple vectors affecting it, but the slice of the issue dealing with our Native American fellow citizens is a particularly salient one, with multiple opinions (even amongst the Native American tribes themselves) and so it is understandable why the Madison, Wisconsin School Board attempted to address the issue by banning student attire with Native American mascots, logos, etc.

But my issue with that attempt is that they've gone waaaaaaay too far in their wording of the ban, far over reaching waaaaay past Native American related imagery and into areas that technically (and I know that I am a pedantic Virgo, but you'd think that these knuckleheads would read the wording of the ban a little carefully) cover a whole lot of other logos and mascots beyond the first Americans.

The amended rule states that students may not "wear clothing with words, pictures, or caricatures based on negative stereotypes of a specific gender, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation or disability.

I could pick this apart starting with who decides what is a "negative stereotype," but I suspect that just like pornography, it is hard to define but we'd all know when we see it.

But do we as a whole "we" - hopefully all of us defenders of the first amendment - agree on what's offensive? There are certainly a lot of logos out there that to many eyes seem offensive... but...

Is the Fighting Irish logo a negative representation of people of Irish ancestry? Five gets you ten that you can find some Irish who think so. In fact, check out these responses... And Pulanski H.S. in Wisconsin: You're in trouble too in your... cough, cough... adaptation of the Notre Dame logo.

Is the vintage 1960s Pittsburgh Pirates (or the 1997) logo a negative representation of people with a handicap?

The Chicago Blackhawks logo doesn't seem to cause any issue, but now it is also banned in Madison.

Can you wear a retro Chiquita Banana logo? Only if someone in the Madison School Board decides that it is not offensive to either Carmen Miranda or bananas... cough, cough...

And if you wear anything with the Two Rivers High School athletic logo, (or Gilman H.S.) also in Wisconsin, you may get in deep kimchee, as it may be deemed offensive to handicapped people... I'm just sayin'...

And none of these cut the mustard.

I hope that it is clear that I'm having a bit of fun with a somewhat sensitive issue; however, my issue with the issue, cough, cough, is the heavy-handed way in which it has been handled by the Madison, Wisconsin School Board.

This is all really about free speech, and if the board bans images speech that is offensive to some, where does it stop? The wearing of attire with American flags is already banned in some places... Now Madison has added a huge and quite possibly unenforceable set of new imagery to the banned list.

Makes my head hurt!

The Artist Protection Fund

Last Tuesday night, at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, The Institute of International Education and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation announced the exciting launch of a pilot program to save the lives and work of artists who face persecution in their home countries. The  Artist Protection Fund (APF), a three-year pilot program supported by a $2.79 million grant from The Mellon Foundation, will make life-saving fellowship grants to threatened artists from any field of artistic endeavor, and place them at host universities and arts centers in countries where they can safely continue their work.

In many parts of the world, artists suffer harassment, imprisonment, violence, and even death as a direct consequence of their unique role and power to advance free and creative expression. With participation of many arts organizations and partners from around the world, IIE has taken action to develop the Artist Protection Fund to fill a critical unmet need and provide relief and safe haven to artists on a large scale.

 

IIE is calling on arts organizations around the world to join in this important effort over the next three years. The launch of the Artist Protection Fund makes an excellent story opportunity for publications covering the arts industry and sends an important message to the many audiences of the arts community about how to become involved as a host or nominate a threatened artist in the world.

Please see full press release here.

 

My first nominee for this program is Cuban artist Tania Bruguera, and I call for the APF to award a grant to this jailed artist and to join our voice in demanding the release of Bruguera from the Castro Brothers' prison island.