How NOT to sign artwork

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Call to Artists: Submit Artwork for WPA Collectors’ Night 2022

WPA invites artwork submissions for Collectors' Night 2022, their annual benefit auction, which will be held online on Artsy for two weeks in June and will kick off with an event and preview exhibition in DC. The auction’s theme this year—Your Presence is the Best Art—is inspired by the artist James Lee Byars (1932–1997) and celebrates our return to gathering together.

Artworks can be submitted online via this link here. The deadline is Sunday, February 27 at 11:59 pm EST.

Before applying, please review the eligibility & selection requirements carefully. WPA will split sale proceeds with artists 50-50. 

There is no submission fee.

Open Call: April-June Studio Residency at Otis Street Arts Project

Open Call: April-June Studio Residency at Otis Street Arts Project

Otis Street Arts Project is looking for an excited, inspired artist to temporarily join the O.S.A.P. community for a one-time, short-term studio residency. This is a free residency with no fees attached. 

Artists are free to work on projects of their choosing, and are expected to provide their own materials and tools. Artists are expected to work a minimum of 15 hours a week. Artists must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. 

There is no fee to apply. This residency is open to applicants of all backgrounds and experience levels. Applications are due March 7, 2022 for a residency period of April 1—June 30, 2022.

Benefits include:

• 10x10' studio space with lots of natural light

• Participation in Open Studios May 14th and group exhibition at Otis Street Arts Project.

• Access to Otis Street Arts Project's collaborative community of 11 artists working in a wide variety of disciplines

• Minimal furniture (table and chair)

• Heating and air conditioning

• Loading dock

• Key for studio access

This residency does not include:

• Housing

How to apply

 

To apply, please submit the following via our Google form: https://forms.gle/J45f1huBKEw8BbcT7

If you do not have a Google account or have difficulty with the form please contact OSAP at info@otisstreetarts.org.

• Answers to these questions:

  • What would you work on?

  • What are you hoping to gain from this residency?  

  • How would this residency further your goals?

• 3-5 images or video links that are representative of your work

• Image guide with captions/descriptions

• A short bio

Apply by: 3/7/2022

Notifications by: 3/18/2022

The Business of the Arts: How To Develop an Art Exhibition and Pop Up

From the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities: The Business of the Arts: How To Develop an Art Exhibition and Pop Up Wednesday, February 9, 2022 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm ET via Webex Click here to register A brief checklist and discussion to help anyone who is contemplating running a pop-up shop. It takes the form of a list of questions and statements we recommend you consider before you go any further. Make sure you have considered every aspect and have an idea of how to answer most of them.

The Business of the Arts Professional Development Series aims to provide knowledge and skills related to fundraising and development, marketing and public relations, legal concerns and entrepreneurship. Free workshops and seminars are led by accomplished professionals and subject matter experts. Unless otherwise noted, workshop facilitators are independent professionals, not employees or affiliates of CAH or the District of Columbia government. The views expressed are their own and not necessarily those of CAH or the District of Columbia government. Please be advised that this workshop will include live real-time captioning via Webex. For reasonable accommodation requests, please contact Travis Marcus prior to the start of this event.

CAMP Rehoboth Call for Art

You are being invited to submit artwork for consideration in FEST ART 2022!, an exciting community exhibition that will be displayed in the CAMP Rehoboth Gallery from April 7 to 30, 2022, with an Open House Reception planned for Friday, April 8, from 3 to 5 p.m.

Women’s FEST is planning for entertainment and many fun events this year, and we are happy to report that this popular annual art show will be one of them! Join us as we celebrate the arts and artists in an exhibition that features the work of Delaware’s women artists, and artists of all genders.

To be considered, please complete the submission and agreement form by March 6 at 11:59 p.m. You will be asked to provide information about yourself and upload jpegs or files of up to three of your original works.

 

FEST ART 2022! Submission and Agreement Form

 

FEST ART 2022! is an outlet for creative expression via all art forms - painting, drawing, sculpture, 3D, ceramics, photography, videography, and more! FEST ART 2022! is a juried exhibition, and you will be notified of your acceptance by March 12, 2022.

 

CAMP Rehoboth will promote the exhibition and the artists on social media and in Letters from CAMP Rehoboth. We will also include the art on the CAMP Rehoboth website, allowing individuals who cannot be there in person to view and purchase the art. A sizable number of sales have been made both in person and via the website. The 25% commission on artwork sold will be used to support CAMP Rehoboth’s arts programs, including exhibitions, Art Markets, performances, and more.

 

Key Dates
FEST ART 2022! Exhibition dates: April 7 to 30, 2022
Open house reception:  Friday, April 8, from 3 to 5 p.m.
Registration Closes:  March 6, 2022, at 11:59 p.m.
Notification of Acceptance:  March 12, 2022
Artwork Drop off:  March 31, April 1 and 2, between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., or by special arrangement

Pick up of unsold artwork:  May 2, 3, or 4, between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., or by special arrangement

 

CAMP Rehoboth, located at 37 Baltimore Avenue in Rehoboth Beach, is thrilled to host FEST ART 2022!, and we hope that your artwork will be part of it!

My first TikTok video!

 My first TikTok video!

See it here.

On the Washington Commanders

Everyone who is serving, has served, or has been a Navy brat reacted like this when it was announced that the Washington teams which plays professional football in the NFL had been renamed the Washington Commanders: "... they way that they play not even Lieutenant Commanders..."

#washingtoncommanders #washingtonfootballteam #washington #nfl #dmv

How to sign (and NOT sign) an artwork

One of the most common mistakes that I've seen across the decades, mostly from beginning artists, but often also from experienced artists with limited exhibition exposure, is artwork which is defaced or ruined by an offending signature.

I most clarify: no one will ever complain about the size or placement of a Picasso signature on a real Picasso (lots of fakes out there).  But for most of us, an improperly placed signature, either location and or size, will sometimes deliver a negative impression upon a gallerist or a collector.

The impression delivered is "amateur."

A signature is important, and artists should and must always sign their artwork, to both document the provenance and identity of the work, for both contemporary and future generations, but also because in today's art world, it is expected -- both by gallerists and collectors.

Let's bring Picasso back into the discussion: a unsigned Picasso, even with a well-documented provenance, is generally worth nearly half of what a signed Picasso brings at auction.  Nothing exemplifies the power of an artistic signature like the commodity aspect of art.

The mandate then to artists is: sign your damn work! Usually... usually, collectors do not care where the work is signed, and "reticent" artists always have the option to sign the artwork on the back (or verso is the art lingo of the secondary art market).

Here are some visual examples -- see the gorgeous abstract that I just painted on a very large canvas that I recycled from dumpster diving at American University - it had a series of yellow dots on an otherwise blank, beautiful 40x60, nicely stretched canvas.

The curious coincidence of being surrounded by yellow
2022 abstract painting by F. Lennox Campello 40x60 inches

And here it is (above) after I sold it! It is signed - on the back, so that the essence of the abstraction remains undisturbed.

Sometimes, rarely but it does happen, a collector may request that you sign the abstract work on the front (it has happened)... in that case, I recommend using a paint that allows the signature to still be seen (if looking for it), but also somewhat blends in. See below...

But the below samples is what I see most often when this common mistake is made - gigantic signatures that deface the work.

I also see signatures on the oddest of locations on the work itself. See below -- as a rule, signatures on artwork (representational work, prints, drawings, etc., should go on the lower right margin. 

But note below, how the large signature, even at the right location, still impacts on the work.

Here is another horrible example of a work-ruining signature.

And this one as well...

In summary -- generally speaking:

• DO NOT sign any artwork with LARGE signatures - when a signature is executed, modulate the signature size so that it can be read, but does not disturb the work
• Sign abstract work on the back
• For representational work, drawings, prints, etc., sign in the lower right margin; do not sign in the artwork compositional surface
• Date the work (optional)

You are welcome!

#arttips #art #artists #tipsforartists

Seaman Schmuckatelli's Dirty Cover

Every once in a while I come across one of these... I used to do a lot of cartoons while I was in the Navy... some were published in base newspapers,  Navy magazines,  Stars & Stripes, etc. 

I gave most of them away over the years... here's one of the fabled Seaman Schmuckatelli (Navy sailors know who this fabled sailor was/is) - do they even have clubs on base anymore??? This one was "Seaman Schmuckatelli Dirty Cover"

Seaman Schmuckatelli's dirty cover
1981 Navy cartoon by Lenny Campello

The curious case of "Being the Ricardos"

When I first heard about the casting for Amazon's film "Being the Ricardos", the pedantic part of me immediately went into hyper-critical mode and I thought out loud, "Nicole Kidman... Seriously? Isn’t she an Aussie? Playing Lucy?”

Then I read about Javier Bardem playing Desi and I went ballistic… A Spaniard playing a Cuban? Not just any Cuban, but a Cuban from Santiago de Cuba, that most Cuban of all Cuban places!

I also knew at the time that I was being hypocritical in the sense that actors, great actors that is, like Kidman and Bardem can probably do anything and become anyone.  Still, a Spaniard portraying a Santiaguero was gonna be an uneasy pill to swallow for that most clannish of people known as Cubans.  Everyone is Hialeah was probably having a fit.

Then I watched the film.

Both Kidman and Bardem delivered exceptional performances and had me believing in their inner Lucy and Desi.  Congratulations to two great actors and a great performance.

However.

My obnoxious pedantic nature found a spectacularly chronological anachronism which, unfortunately makes up one of the pillars of the storyline which according to the Amazon description takes place “during one production week of “I Love Lucy” — from Monday table read through Friday audience taping — Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) and Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem) face a series of personal and professional crises that threaten their show, their careers and their marriage, in writer-director Aaron Sorkin’s behind-the-scenes drama.”

In summary, it’s the 1950s in the middle of the “red scare” and Lucy is being accused on having once being a member of the Communist Party in the 1930s.  The script has Bardem talking about having to leave Cuba because of the Bolsheviks and throughout the movie Aaron Sorkin wants the audience to believe that Desi came to the United Sates as a refugee because of the Cuban Revolution of the Castro brothers.

This is an important part of the storyline of the film.

What?

• 1917 - Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III is born in Santiago de Cuba, capital of the Oriente province to an upper class Cuban family.  His father was the mayor of the city, and his great-great-grandfather had been the Count of Santa Ines.
• 1933 - The Sergeants' Revolt, was a coup d'etat that occurred in Cuba in September 1933 and in which Desi’s father was jailed and all the family’s property confiscated. It marked the beginning of the rise of Fulgencio Batista as a Cuban strongman. Upon his release six months later, the family escapes Cuba and settles in Miami, where Desi attends High School.
• 1939 – Desi is cast in the Broadway musical Too Many Girls.
• 1940s – Arnaz and Lucille Ball were married on November 30, 1940. Desi also appears in several movies and is also drafted and serves in the US Army until discharged in 1945.
• 1950 – Desilu Productions founded by Lucy and Desi.
• 1951 – “I Love Lucy” makes its television premiere.
• 1953 – Episode 68 (the one that the Amazon movie is based on) takes place.
• 1956 – Castro starts the Cuban Revolution by landing in Cuba in December.
• 1957 – Last episode of “I Love Lucy” airs.
• 1959 – Cuban Revolution overthrows the Batista government and begins brutalizing the Cuban people leading to the largest mass migration of the 20th century known as the "Cuban Diaspora."

Now do you see why my pedantic head is spinning when Sorkin mixes crap up to make the storyline of the movie fit a made-up Hollywood timeline?

“But Lenster,” you say, “It’s just a movie… who cares?”

Today I was listening to the 1A with Jen White on WAMU. It is one of my favorite radio shows.  And White was interviewing Bardem about (mostly) Desi, Lucy and “Being the Ricardos.”

And it was clear to the most casual listener that both White and Bardem actually believe that Arnaz had escaped Cuba because of the Communist takeover.

Why? Because Sorkin directed a movie that tells a made-up storyline which will now have most people think that the Cuban Revolution took place around the 1930s.

Makes my head hurt.

PS – Ms. Jen White also seems to think that the Ball-Arnaz marriage was a “mixed race” marriage – either White thinks that Cubans are a separate race or is curiously unaware that in the 1950s there was no such thing as a Hispanic or Latino with the contemporary present day confusions as to race and national origin and/or ethnicity. In the 1950s Arnaz was a “Cuban”, but his race was/is still the same as Ball’s.

How do art scams work?

Once a week or so I get an email from an artist somewhere on the planet like this about a potential art scammer (see all my listed scammers here):

Hello, I'm a German artist and found your " Art Scam Alert " from July 15  2018 about this Donald Hugh mail. Now at January 21  2022 I got the same mail from him online in German. He ordered two pictures from me. My question is, how he is trying  to rip off artist? He wants me to send pictures and doesn't pay? 

Thank you for an answer. 

This is how:

1. They will most likely give you (a) International Bank Draft/Postal Money Order or (b) Credit Card
2. Your bank will accept them and they will show almost immediately as available in your account, which is the "normal" way to show that the deposit has cleared.
3. Artists then usually ship the work
4. A few days later the bank gets a note from that overseas bank... bad news - the draft is fake and/or cc has just been reported as stolen.
5. They withdraw the funds from your account.
6. You're hosed.

2022 Wherewithal Grantees

From the Washington Project for the Arts:

We are pleased to announce the 12 recipients for the 2022 Wherewithal Grants. Each artist or artist collective was awarded $5,000 for either a collaborative project or research.

The Research Grants recipients are: Rasha Abdulhadi, Safiyah Cheatam & Hope Willis, Larry Cook, Deirdre Darden, Rex Delafkaran, Monica Jahan Bose, and Armando Lopez-Bircann.

The Project Grants recipients are: Antonius Bui & Naoko Wowsugi, Fabiola Ching & Mayah Lovell, Ayana Zaire Cotton, Dirt, and Imogen-Blue Hinojosa.

Over the next year, these artists and cultural producers will organize projects and conduct research around such fascinating and timely topics as club photography, queering Palestinian embroidery, climate injustice, O-1 artist visas, and world-building through Black aesthetics.

An independent panel of four curators reviewed 114 applications and recommended the final 12 for funding. The panelists were Monica Peña, Programs Manager, Locust Projects (Miami); Eriola Pira, Curator, The Vera List Center (New York); Victoria Reis, Executive & Artistic Director, Transformer (DC); and Tiffany Ward, Curator and Founder, Mare Residency (Baltimore/London). 

Wherewithal Grants are generously funded by the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts as part of its Regional Regranting Program and managed by WPA.

Learn more about grantees and their projects here and follow @wherewithalgrants on Instagram for updates.