Art-O-Matic Top Ten List

This was not easy to do: 600 plus artists in a maze of rooms and corridors involving over seven hours of walking during the last two nights. Later I will post the top ten lists of several other gallerists, dealers, curators and artists. Email me your top ten list and I will also post it here. They are listed in alphabetical order:

Joseph Barbaccia
Margaret Dowell
Matt Dunn
M. Rion Hoffman
Michal Hunter
Michael Janis
Mark Jenkins
Syl Mathis
Allison B. Miner
Tim Tate

Of the ten artists listed above, I was familiar with the work of all but M. Rion Hoffman, Syl Mathis and Mark Jenkins. We, of course, represent the work of Tim Tate.

Note that four of the artists on this list do not have a web presence (at least that I can find). I find this astounding in this day and age.

Even after all the hours spent so far at Art-O-Matic, I am pretty sure that I've probably missed quite a few artists, as sometimes the building can get quite disorienting.

I am also preparing the following lists:

(a) Copyright Infringement List
(b) Porn List
(c) Hannibal Lechter Art List
(d) Funniest Art List
(f) Top Ten Artists I Had Never Heard Of List

And, no... I've decided not to publish my "Somebody Please Burn This" list. Sorry...

Right on cue for all the Friday night gallery openings and parties scheduled tonight: the rain arrives.

Yesterday the Post's Arts Beat column discussed some artwork stolen from a Dupont Circle area gallery as well as giving kidos to area artist Tim Tate (represented by us) and reports that:

"The gay magazine Out has included glass sculptor Tim Tate on its annual "Out 100" list of notable people. Tate, a founder and co-director of the Washington Glass School, was named an Outstanding Emerging Artist earlier this year at the Mayor's Arts Awards. He joins a mix of established and rising figures in the visual arts section of the "Out 100" -- including pop art icon David Hockney, sexually provocative photographer Anthony Goicolea and Korean interdisciplinary artist Erica Cho."

That newsbit was first discussed here two weeks ago.

Also yesterday, the new issue of the Washington City Paper has a fascinating story by Chris Shott and John Metcalfe on the effects upon the National Gallery of Art's guards to the continuous exposure to Dan Flavin's bright artwork.

"Ever since the gallery’s Oct. 3 opening of “Dan Flavin: A Retrospective,” staffers watching over the sprawling display of 44 illuminated works by the fluorescent-tube-obsessed minimalist have complained of headaches, anxiety, and nervousness—all allegedly brought on by excessive wattage. A combined 48,600 watts, to be exact. One staffer is said to have passed out."

Man do my feet hurt...

It's one AM... and just back from spending about four hours at Art-O-Matic to do the "art dealers top ten" pick.

Ran into several gallerists walking the halls and rooms of Art-O-Matic, including Sarah Finlay and Patrick Murcia from Fusebox, Steve Krensky from Light Street Gallery and others.

Later today (after I get some sleep) I will post my list of top ten artists in the show, and then later I will post some other people's top ten.

If any reader visits the show, email me your top ten and I will post here as well.

Tonight we have the opening of Cuban Artists: Three Generations at Fraser Bethesda, with new work by Sandra Ramos and Jacqueline Zerquera Tejedor, as well as work from the Estate of Carlos Alfonzo.

Mojitos, Sangria, Cuba Libres and Cuban music to go along with the Cuban art will be available as part of the opening from 6-9 PM.

After my opening I'm heading down to the Art-O-Matic opening party.

See ya there around 10 PM!

Surprise, surprise...

Blake Gopnik brutalizes Art-O-Matic in today's Washington Post.

Don't worry... I'll give you guys a real, objective review in a few days, rather than one that (in my opinion) was pre-conceived in his mind and perhaps even his word processor before this eloquent man stepped into the building.

Read it here. The good side of the story is that brutal reviews such as this one is tend to actually benefit the show being destroyed by the critic. I bet that in the coming Sundays, the Post's Sunday Arts will have plenty of letters both agreeing and disagreeing with Gopnik.

And that dialogue is good for the show, for the artists, and for Washington. If you want to send a letter to the editor about the review, learn how to do it here.

So, I actually think that this carpet bombing of Art-O-Matic will be good for the show. It is actually a lot better than a lukewarm review.

Natalie Koss reviews Gehry at the Corcoran and Malone at Fraser Georgetown.

Just back from the press preview of Art-O-Matic, and if anything, it is by far the best one ever! I have sensory overload, after all there are well over 600 artists present, but first impressions are very good, especially as it pertains to the fabulous building.

Lots of familiar faces tonight at the press preview, including Conner Contemporary's hardworking owner Leigh Conner, who was picking out her ten top Art-O-Matic artists list.

Leigh's list will join several other art dealers top ten lists (including my list, Fusebox's Sarah Finlay and Fraser Gallery's Catriona Fraser, which will be used by Art-O-Matic to promote the event.

I will visit Art-O-Matic several times over the next few days (tomorrow I will pick my top ten) and then write a review for the CrierMedia newspapers and one for NPR.

You can read my 2002 review of that year's Art-O-Matic here, and a second review here and a segment from my review of the 2000 show here

I'm not holding my breath waiting for the NGA to answer my question about the cost of their latest acquisition.

Back in 1993 or 1994, I wrote a piece about a Cy Twombly piece that they had acquired and then inquired as to its total cost. My piece ended up getting picked up by a couple of newspapers, including the Washington Post, and it received quite a bit of publicity. I then asked the NGA via letter for the cost of the Twombly acquisition. Ten years later I am still waiting for an answer.

Here's that piece just for fun (if you are a Twombly fan: my apologies for MY opinion about his work):

Twombly over Picasso? The National Gallery of Art's latest acquisition of an exceedingly boring painting by Virginia painter Cy Twombly succinctly brings to light a perfect example of the sort of poor decisions made in the seclusion of museum walls which exemplify why the general public is often at odds with our arts intelligentsia.

Cy Twombly's "Untitled (Bolsena)" was acquired on Friday the 13th of October by the National Gallery of Art at a cost of about one million dollars. The gallery's Collector's Committee also considered a Picasso, a Giacometti and a Baselitz before choosing the Twombly painting, which was aptly described by Washington Post art critic Paul Richards as "evoking the butt-end days of New York action painting. Or a wall besides a public pay phone."

Although it is clear that the Twombly piece will now join the National Gallery's ever growing "Gee, Mom, I can do that!" collection of art, what isn't clear is the rationale for picking Twombly over Picasso or Giacometti. It has been said that Twombly's main claim to fame is his early associations with Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg; if this is his main springboard into the walls of the National gallery, then it is clear to me that a pathetic mistake has been made by the gallery's Collectors Committee. As a matter of fact one would be hard pressed to pick a Johns or a Rauschenberg over a Picasso!

A new Picasso acquisition would have brought the National Gallery some more public interest, and a price tag of a million dollars seems almost a bargain for perhaps the greatest painter of all time. Whatever his detractors, Picasso is a recognized entity which would attract people who both like and dislike his work. I suspect Twombly's "champions" are not enough to prevent this latest acquisition from being ridiculed by the public and dismissed by the critics.

It is also clear that the piece was vastly overpriced, as a similar Twombly sold less than two weeks ago in New York for $167,000. It would be interesting to see in which basement of the National Gallery this scrawling will gather dust in a few years. When it is put into storage, I hope it is well marked as a piece of art, or it may accidentally resurface on a wall next to a pay phone at the Smithsonian Metro Station.

Thinking About Art's posting on Kirkland's disappointment with DC Artists (vis-a-vis their response to his project) has generated a lot of good comments.

One comment discusses the "extremely high cost of digital media. In order to participate, one would need to somehow digitize several works of art so that they could be viewed on your website."

This is incorrect.

The best way to start out in the digital world and avoid the "high cost" is simply to take your own photos of your work, any film type and take it to your corner film developing store and ask them for digital images on a CD ROM.

Or even better, and what I do, is to ship the film to Photoworks and for a very reasonable price (under $25) you'll get two sets of slides, two sets of photos, negatives, a CD ROM of digital images and a webpage on their server (password protected for you) where they store your digital images and you can email them around, or copy them to your PC as needed.

I've been using Photoworks since I was in Art School (1977-1981) and they were called Seattle Filmworks. They are fast and efficient, and this digital service can't be beat.

Next excuse?

Kriston over at Grammar.police has some interesting words on the acquisition of Rachel Whiteread's "Ghost", which as Paul Richard put in his piece last weekend in the Post is "a signature piece of the "YBAs," the chic Young British Artists, and of London's soaring rise in the international art world, and of all that that implies."

Richard suggests that the piece cost in excess of a million dollars and that the billionaire who came up with that money is a local one: Mitchell Rales, who lives in Potomac, and who is an art collector.

The sculpture is on the mezzanine of the East Building, and just like Kriston, I must have walked past it without noticing it (if it truly was there over the weekend). I guess that's a true triumph of minimalism.

I'd like to know how much the piece cost, and frankly since the NGA is a government institution, it should not be a secret. After all, Mr. Rales will get a well-deserved tax write-off (that he can spread over the next five years) for his generous donation. Our kudos to him.

So Dear NGA, we're curious: How many sheckels did this thing cost?

Opportunities for Artists

Deadline: November 13, 2004. Baker Arts Center National Juried Art Exhibition. $8500 in prize money. 2 and 3-dimensional original Fine Art including Photography completed within the past 2 years. For More Information call 620/624-2810. For prospectus send SASE to:
Baker Arts Center
624 N Pershing
Liberal KS 67901

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Deadline: November 16, 2004. A new Chicago gallery is organizing artists and themes for upcoming Winter and Spring programs. Interested established and emerging artists please submit digital images (jpeg), slides, photos etc. along with artist statements, bios, proposals etc. All correspondence to:
Sacha Warholic
LUX Gallery
3036 N Lincoln Ave., Suite 3A
Chicago IL 60657

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Deadline: November 20, 2004. The Masters's Mystery Show, a high profile exhibition and sale of original artist's postcards to benefit the Florida International University's MFA program, will take place at the MB Ritz Carlton concurrently with Art Basil MB '04. The project will follow a format wildly successful in Europe. Works donated by established artists, including some international stars, will be shown along with famous architects, designers and celebrities. All works will have a fixed size (6" x 9") and will be sold at a fixed and very affordable price. The Mystery is that while the names of the participants will be widely publicized, the artists will not be identified during the exhibition, and the signature on each work will only be revealed after the sale is completed. So the public has to "play detective." If you want to participate, please contact them via this email or call 305/490-4852. They will provide the blank cards and return envelopes. All artwork must be received by November 20, 2004.

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Deadline: November 30, 2004. Juried Exhibition - Written Word IMAGINESTATION presents the first of its juried exhibitions for 2005. The theme of this juried on-line show is Written Word. Text must be incorporated into the piece. Artists are invited to interpret this theme in 2 or 3 dimensions in any media. November 30, 2004. Exhibition Dates: January 15 - February 28, 2005. Application Fee: $12 - Members, $15 - Non-Members. Send SASE to: ISQ105 - Written Word
C/O IMAGINESTATION LLC
Box 20326
Lehigh Valley PA 18002-0326

Web site: here or email them here.

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Deadline: January 31, 2005. Art.com and Cultural Institute of Mexico, AN HOMAGE TO FRIDA KAHLO, curated by yours truly. Inviting works in photography, painting, watercolor, drawing and mixed media that feature new portraits of Frida Kahlo, or images influenced by the artist, her life or her work. Prizes include paid trip to Kahlo Museum in Mexico City, cash award and print-on-demand package.

Potential exposure to more than five million art lovers every month. No entry fee, and easy, online image upload and submission process. DEADLINE JANUARY 31, 2005. Virtual collection displayed April 5 through July 6, 2005. For more information, visit Art.com, or email originals@art.com or call toll free 866/308-8597 (US and Canada) or 919/831-0015, x3135 (international).

As an art dealer, one of the things that I have discovered (as the web progresses and artists and artwork become an integral part of the Global Information Grid), is how adept the new young, savvy collectors are at detecting emerging young artists by the art of Googling them.

It is easy to see that lamestream media reviews are slowly but surely becoming a thing of the past, and what's more important (at least to a collector who is not familiar with an artist - but attracted to the work), is the digital footprint that the artist in question has on the Web.

Some, many artists do not seem to understand this yet... some do. Many gallerists certainly don't understand this. I know that our success as a gallery is a puzzle to many elitist people in this area who think they know a lot about art and galleries and yet have never ran one or sold any artwork. I was recently asked by a very important museum curator: "So, you guys are doing pretty good... getting a lot of press and making museum sales... who is your backer?"

She probably thought that I was kidding her when I answered that for our first couple of years it had been "Mr. Visa and Mr. Mastercard."

But I meander... look at your computer screen and see the future of art history. And the meat of selling art (and selling the artist).

The above rant was triggered by the failure of DC area artists and galleries to respond to Thinking About Art's call for artists to discuss their work and ideas and thoughts in 100 words or less. Several have responded and yet Kirkland is justifiably astounded as to the apathy which his project has encountered.

Sometimes I think that the "A" in Art around here stands for Apathy; and yet, now that Thinking About Art has opened its project to all artists (not just DC area), we should see a surge in interest from national artists, and a kick in the ass to our area's artists.

Our Fraser Gallery of Bethesda, Maryland, has an opening this coming Friday Nov. 12 at 6-9 PM. We will host a show titled Cuban Artists: Three Generations which will include new works by Sandra Ramos and Jacqueline Zerquera Tejedor, as well as works from the Estate of Carlos Alfonzo.

These artists represent three generations of Cuban contemporary artists. Alfonzo is regarded as one of the most important Cuban artists in recent years (he died of AIDS in 1991), while Ramos is without a doubt the most talked-about and one of the most collected contemporary Cuban artists alive today (in the collection of many American museums already).

Zerquera is a very respected Havana artist who is now emerging in the international scene.

Opening reception on Friday, Nov. 12 from 6-9 PM. In addition to our famous Sangria, we will also have Cuban music, Mojitos and Cuba Libres.

The opening is part of the Bethesda Art Walk, which now provides free walking tours of the various participating galleries. Free and Open to the public.

See ya there!

WCP vs WP

The Washington City Paper has taken a swing at the Washington Post Sunday Source.

Ben Watson writes: The Washington Post’s Sunday Source section offers light and bubbly how-to’s on burnless dinner parties, easy outings, and mistake-proof craft projects. As the typical young, urban reader whom the section caters to, I thought it would be good to put the Source—and my skills—to the test. I decided to take on Laura J. Vogel’s craft column, “15Min.” Could I find all those craft supplies without a car? Could I assemble them into something cute and useful? Could I do it all in 15 minutes?

It's quite funny! read the whole thing here.

What I don't understand is why this guy was naked...

Art Jobs

The Textile Museum, 2320 S Street, NW, Washington, DC is currently looking for a Director, an Accounting Manager, and a Assistant Curator for Eastern Hemisphere Collections.

The Textile Museum is an international center for exhibition, study, collection and preservation of textiles with a mission of furthering understanding and appreciation of mankind's creative achievements in the textile arts.

Full position announcement and qualifications here.

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The Creative Arts Center at Community College of Baltimore County is seeking Artist-instructors and they are needed in dance, art history, vocal and instrumental music, visual art, design, photography, theatre, writing, and culinary arts. For more information, please contact the Creative Arts Center at CCBC at 410-780-6533

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Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation seeks a Development Officer who will be responsible for the initiation, oversight, planning, implementation, and management of a development program that secures significant financial resources from government, foundations, corporations, and individuals to support the Foundation's mission.

Qualifications include: a bachelor's degree in business, marketing, communications or a field related to the arts; two to three years of progressive experience and responsibility in development in an arts or cultural agency; strong research, planning, writing, grantwriting and budgeting skills; and proficiency in computer technology including the ability to use various software applications for project and data management (especially Access and Excel).

The starting salary for this position is in the low $40's. A full benefits package accompanies the position. Send letter of application, resume, writing samples, and names and addresses of three references to:

Development Officer
Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation
201 N. Charles St.
Suite 401
Baltimore, MD 21201

Magazine looking for freelancers

Starting January, 2005, Urbanite magazine will be published in color on a monthly basis. They're looking for illustrators and photographers to do paid freelance work.

Urbanite wants images that are "edgy, artsy, and challenging."

Interested artists should send samples to:

Ann Wiker
Art Manager
Urbanite
1431 Patapsco Street
Baltimore, MD 21230

Or email Ann at aeartdealer@aol.com or call her at 410/404.3587

As everyone knows, the Elizabeth Roberts Gallery has closed since Elizabeth married and will move soon to the Left Coast.

The gallery space is for rent and it would be great if someone started a new gallery (or two!). Here are the details:

Two floor gallery space located in Dupont Circle’s historic gallery row: 2108 R Street, NW

There are two floors (approximately 1200 square feet each) of space, and they could be potentially divided into two gallery spaces.

Available in 2005.

Anyone who wants to find out more information or is interested in renting should contact Elizabeth at: elizabeth@elizabethroberts.net

Tonight is the first Friday of November and thus the extended hours for the Dupont Circle area galleries.

Openings from 6-8 PM generally...

See ya there!

New Gallery in Town

Washington Chapter of the Women's Caucus For Arts is holding a Holiday Art Show at the newly created gallery at the Chevy Chase Community Center.

The opening reception for the artists will be held on Saturday November 6, from 2-4 pm.

The new gallery is in the Chevy Chase Community Center at 5101 Connecticut Avenue (across from the Avalon Theater) in Chevy Chase.

Chan Chao's new work opens at Numark

Numark Gallery presents "Echo", Chan Chao's newest body of work. The show opens today and runs until December 18, 2004, with an opening reception on Friday, November 12, from6:30 - 8pm.

Cheryl tells me that Chan is again photographing his subjects at close range, front and center, and returning to a subject that he dealt with earlier in his career - the female nude.

I am for one, very glad of this return to the nude, as I was not a big fan of Chao's previous body of work, which (of course) received wide critical acclaim (I am talking about the Burma: Something Went Wrong photographs), and allowed Chao national exposure as they were prominently featured in the 2002 Whitney Biennial.

The Art League is one of the nation's largest arts group with several thousand members from our area. They are sponsoring a couple of interesting panels and shows in the coming days:

In November, The Teacher as Artist show will showcase the artwork of both present and former Art League faculty members including well-known Washington artists such as Gene Davis, Paul Reid, Lou Stovall, and Jay Hall Carpenter.

This All-Media Membership Show is dedicated to all the outstanding artists who have been, and still are, the League's teachers.

The opening reception is this Sunday, November 7, from 3:00-5:00 pm and the show runs until Monday, December 6, 2004.

Then on Thursday, November 11, 2004 from 7:00-9:00 pm, Carol Dupre (who was savaged in the Washington Post a couple of years ago) will lead a panel of past and present Art League teachers in a discussion: Refuting the Taboo on Artistic Intelligence. Among other issues, she will explore the taboos that lurk, often quietly, in every classroom.

For event information, call 703-683-1780.

Washington Print Club's Panel Discussion of Print Collecting and Contemporary Printmaking.

On Saturday, Nov. 13, 2004 from 10:30 to Noon, and in celebration of the 40th anniversary of The Washington Print Club, the WPC and Georgetown University Art Collection are sponsoring a panel discussion of print collecting and contemporary printmaking.

The panel will be moderated by WPC Advisor Dr. Alan Fern, former director of the National Portrait Gallery, and curator of prints at the Library of Congress. The panel will include WPC founding members Mary Hewes and Herbert Franklin; Ruth Fine, curator of special projects in modern art at the National Gallery of Art; Scip Barnhart, printmaking instructor at the Corcoran College of Art and Design; Jane Haslem, Jane Haslem Gallery; Clifford Chieffo, emeritus professor of art at Georgetown University; Donald Saff, senior curator of prints and drawings at the Solomon R.Guggenheim Foundation; and Mrs. Martin Atlas, collector.

The panel discussion will be held in McNeir Auditorium, on the main campus of Georgetown University.

More details here. Admission is free and the event is open to the public.

Want to Ask Jeff Koons a Question?

For the January-February 2004 issue, Flash Art is giving you the opportunity to interview Jeff Koons. As they've done twice this year (first with Vanessa Beecroft, then Maurizio Cattelan), the magazine is soliciting questions from people. They will present the best of these questions to Jeff Koons, and he will respond to them in an interview published in the Jan-Feb 2004 issue.

Please e-mail all questions to francesca@flashartonline.com Thursday, November 11, 2004.

James W. Bailey has of course already sent in a question: "Mr. Koons, at exactly what point in your "art" career would you admit to selling out your soul to the devil for the almighty American dollar, as well as any other international currencies that you have benefited from by selling your "art" work?"

Later today I will be in MHz TV discussing the recent Christie's and Sotheby's art auction sales as well as a couple of area art exhibitions.

New Painting Prize Announced

In June 2005, the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District, a non-profit organization, will award $14,000 in prizes to painters from Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia.

The Bethesda Painting Competition will be one of the largest cash awards in the United States given to a painter, with a $10,000 award for Best in Show. This competition will be an annual event that will bring much-needed media and critical attention to artists from this region.

In 2002, the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District created The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards, a juried art competition awarding $14,000 in prize monies to contemporary artists in the Greater Washington, D.C. area.

The founder, Carol Trawick, is committed to annually honoring contemporary visual artists with this award. Ms. Trawick has generously made the same commitment to area painters. With the creation of the Bethesda Painting Competition (also funded by Ms. Trawick), they now have the opportunity to specifically recognize and honor area painters as well as build on Bethesda’s reputation as a well-respected arts community.

The search for jurors who are qualified to jury painting is now on, but this is great news for our area artists!

Van Gogh's great grandson murdered in Amsterdam

Greg Allen reports that Dutch filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, who is the great grandson of Vincent Van Gogh was murdered on an Amsterdam street yesterday, apparently by Muslim extremists because of a short film by Theo titled "Submission" which had been broadcast on Dutch TV.

Per Allen, "Van Gogh and the film's writer, an "ex-Muslim" member of parliament, Ayaan Hirsi Ali, had received numerous death threats and accusations of blasphemy."

James W. Bailey has the following words on this brutal murder:

Another Saint in the art world has given his life in the pure pursuit of his art.

Yesterday's savage and brutal murder in Amsterdam of filmmaker Theo van Gogh represents another direct assault by extremists on the universal concept of freedom of artistic expression.

The first line of protection that an artist, photographer, curator, musician, singer, dancer, choreographer or any other person involved in the arts enjoys in support of their art, is acceptance within the art world of the basic principles of freedom of artistic expression.

It is absolutely critical that every person in the arts, and more importantly, that every arts organization on the planet, subscribe to and advocate for a consistent definition of freedom of artistic expression that applies equally to every single artist.

Every voice in the art world needs to speak out condemning the slaughter of Theo van Gogh.

Every voice in the art world also needs to speak with clarity, firmness and resolve in support of a universally accepted definition of freedom of artist expression for every artist in this world.

Sincerely,

James W. Bailey
Experimental Photographer

Congratulations to President Bush on his victory. Now let's move on.

We'll get back to the world of our area's art scene later today. Come back.

Please go vote today.

And please, whoever wins tonite, or next week, or whenever the damned lawyers allow anyone to win, let us unite as much as possible and start bridging our divisions.

I'm going to vote today, and I hope that my candidate wins, because I fear that the other guy will be a disaster for our nation and the world. If the other guy wins, then I hope that I am wrong.

But whoever wins; let's stop the hate for the person and let us agree to disagree and move on to the future.

I, for one, plan to give our President (new or re-elected) a chance and clean slate to lead our nation.

Thanks to AJ

This is how the upper crust of the art world sticks a knife in your ribs when they can't figure out how an artist makes it big without their stamp of approval.

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: Wednesday, December 15, 2004

The Art Renewal Center seeks applicants for its 2nd Annual International Salon Competition. Over $44,000 in cash awards; $10,000 Best in Show, and featured online gallery.

Send #10 SASE for prospectus to:
Karen McCormack
Art Renewal Center
Box 837
Glenham NY 12527

For more info:
The Art Renewal Center
Email: arcprogram@aol.com or visit www.artrenewal.org

Painting is dead... right guys? I mean... "ancient medium" and all that.

US Museum curators got together and decided to pick the US artist to represent the nation at the next Venice Biennale.

They picked a painter!

Not only that, but this is a second time returnee! The US choice for 2005 was also the US choice for 1970, when he contructed "Chocolate Room," a visual and sensory art experience where the Venice visitor saw 360 pieces of paper impregnated with chocolate and hung like roof shingles so that they smelled like chocolate; sort of like "scratch and sniff art."

But now he's just an "ancient medium" devotee.

Most local curators and Blake: read it and weep.

October (Art) Surprise: Tonight!

Curators Andrea Pollan and Nora Halpern have an October Art Surprise. Sponsored by Furioso Development Corporation, Metropolis Development Company, and G Fine Art, and in cooperation with Glen Construction (am I done with the credits?) they present: Jenny Holzer: Xenon for D.C.

Internationally acclaimed artist Jenny Holzer comes to Washington, DC to launch her first public art project here. The project consists of one of her first Xenon projections in the U.S.

Jenny Holzer's Xenon projections have captivated audiences around the globe from Buenos Aires to Paris to Berlin. She now presents them for the first time in the United States.

Tonight you can see the projections against the facade of the new 1515 14th Street Arts Building (near the corner of 14th & Church Streets NW between P & Q Streets).

On Monday, November 1, 2004, at the Gelman Library on the campus of George Washington University, Holzer will project poems, as well as declassified documents made available through the Freedom of Information Act and the work of the National Security Archive.

Congratulations to Washington area artist and co-founder of the Washington Glass School, Tim Tate who has been announced as one of New York City's Out Magazine 100 Most Remarkable People of 2004.

Tim will be hanging out in NYC next month gathering his award and hanging with celebrities like Ellen deG and others.

This is an important recognition no doubt based on Tate’s string of artistic accomplishments in the last couple of years, such as being recognized as the 2003 Mayor’s Arts Awards Washington Artist of the Year, two sold out shows at our two Fraser Galleries, major reviews in both national and international newspapers and magazines and his selection as the design winner for the International AIDS Monument to be built in New Orleans.

New Arts Based TV Show

GPV Group is an organization that provides assistance to program networks looking to expand.

They have started an arts news television program called ArtsMedia News. The program is starting off initially as newsbreaks airing seven times a week on MHz Networks in the DC area with further distribution to public television stations nationwide.

Starting in January they will be expanding to a half hour weekly program to air at 8:30 PM on Thursday nights on MHz with further distribution nationwide as well.

They've approached me to introduce some of the art newsbreaks that focus on DC-based art news and I will be doing my first one next week. This newsbreak will focus on the current exhibition Tradition in Transition: Russian Icons in the Age of the Romanovs currently on display at the Hillwood Museum and Gardens through December 31.

This is good news for our area's cultural tapestry!

Andrew Noyes has an excellent article in today's Voice of the Hill on the subject of the public art project that DC artist Marsha Stein has been organizing for the last few weeks.

The article is on page 32, and describes Stein's project as well as generous comments from the Washington Post's Chief Art Critic Blake Gopnik and from myself.

A novel concept that Stein has introduced to the world of art is the fact that she has a videographer working with her, and documenting everything in a reality TV approach. The videographer hopes that this project will be the seed of an art-based Reality TV series to pitch to the networks.

Interested artists should contact Marsha Stein at Marshasart@aol.com.

Venezuelan photographer Luis Gomez makes his DC area debut with "Cities," a 32-photo exhibit at Candida’s World of Books at 1541 14th Street N.W. (14th and Q).

The exhibit runs through November 15 and focuses on inner, urban cores —one of Gomez’s favorite subjects— and offers glimpses of architecture and streetscapes, as well as their people. The photos will take viewers to cities that include Amsterdam, Chicago, Havana, Madrid, Prague, Santiago, Sydney and others.

Cynthia Young defends the "grubs" in a passionate letter in this week's Washington City Paper.

And Jeffry Cudlin writes another really good review (why isn't Cudlin writing more often in the WCP?).

This time he reviews "Inventions: Recent Paintings by Caio Fonseca" at the Corcoran and damned near convinced me that Fonseca was not just another hack painting the kind of safe, unintelligible art that cannot remotely offend anyone and that one routinely sees in hotels, airports and furniture stores. Not really art but "wall decor."

Thusday is the day the Style section of the Post reviews galleries and today Glenn Dixon reviews Kenny Hunter: Works in Colour at Conner Contemporary Art.

There's also a theatre review and a music review in today's Style.

The Washington Post finally picks up the story of Philip Barlow's woes with the WAP/C first reported here over two weeks ago.

The Arts Beat column adds little to the story that hasn't been discussed to death already by DC Artnews, J.T. Kirkland, Tyler Green, MetroBlogging and others.

Other than this great quote from the new OPTIONS 2005 curator:

"I've been forgiving of artists who've painted dreadful cows in my part of the country," adds Lumpkin, "so I can be forgiving of artists who've painted dreadful pandas in your part of the country." "

I've been out all day, and arrived home, picked up the email (I am by now used to getting one letter a week from either/or United or American Airlines pleading with me to sign up for their credit card), cooked dinner, got ready to watch the World Series, and then... read my email.

I was a bit taken back by the huge number of emails that I've received from artists commenting on the new WPA/C OPTIONS curator. But I think that we need to let the waters settle and see how things develop.

Last weekend the Washington Times gave our current Bethesda show (David FeBland), their "Hot Pick" of the week.

Transformer tells me that they will have Ken Grimes, Laura Craig McNellis, Judith Scott, and Melvin "Milky" Way in a show titled Cryptic Communications: Work by Four Self Taught Artists. Show opens November 6 and runs through December 4, 2004.

In Alexandria, Pa Dian Accents presents Women of Color, Style and Expression, a collection of more than 40 works by five contemporary artists from the D.C. area, from Saturday, November 13 through Sunday, November 21. The featured artists in this show found their visions in a variety of ways. Edith Graciela Sanabria’s art began as a response to a difficult childhood with an authoritarian father. Donna Boozer was inspired by the birth of her daughter. Chela Sanbria, Edith’s daughter, found healing from a crippling illness through painting vibrant colors and Jennifer Jin Seaver began her artistic career as a child in Korea.

New York realist Mikel Glass is at Old Town Alexandria's Century Gallery. The exhibition is on view until December 1, 2004. I saw Glass’ show at Century a couple of years ago and Glass is a spectacularly talented painter whose works have been called "a battle between Rembrandt and Freud."

And in Georgetown...

"Ebb and Flow," recent paintings and drawings by Washingtonian Janis Goodman, (who teaches at the Corcoran) explores the universal theme of constancy.

Goodman's new series is devoted to water and its insistent repetition, even as the rest of the world is in flux. Her intelligent renderings of water capture the artist's intense devotion to observation and meditation.

"Ebb and Flow" will be on view at District Fine Arts from November 5 through December 11, 2004.

New OPTIONS 2005 Curator Named

The Washington Project for the Arts\Corcoran Association (WPA\C) has announced that Ms. Libby Lumpkin has been named as the WPA\C OPTIONS exhibition curator to replace fired curator Philip Barlow.

Libby Lumpkin is an internationally noted art historian, critic, and curator who serves as Director of the Museum Studies Program at California State University and Assistant Professor of Art History, Long Beach. She was the founding curator of Steve Wynn's Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art in Las Vegas (man... Tyler Green will have fun with that bit of resume news), and has served as Visiting Professor of Art Theory at Yale University, Visiting Lecturer on Visual and Environmental Studies at Harvard University, Visiting Professor of Theory and Aesthetics at the University of California Santa Barbara, and Visiting Lecturer at Umeå University in Umeå, Sweden.

She also served as Assistant Professor of Art History and Curator of the Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Lumpkin is the author of Deep Design: Nine Little Art Histories, as well as Ingrid Calame and Jean-Michel Basquiat: War Paint. She edited and produced the catalogs for the Bellagio Collection, and has authored numerous critical essays on contemporary art and design. Dr. Lumpkin was a contributing editor of Art Issues magazine of Los Angeles, and is a regular contributor to Artforum of New York.

She is founding director of a design institute for the Institute of Modern Letters at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas to open in January 2005. After spending two years in Long Beach, she returned to Las Vegas with her spouse, art critic and curator, Dave Hickey.

Ms. Lumpkin has stated that

"The emerging artist scene in the Washington, D.C. area is unexplored territory for me. I look forward to discovering what's out there. I'm hoping that artists of all types who do not yet have gallery representation will respond to the call for submission for consideration so that we can set up appointments to view works. I'm sure most of the artists will be young, but I'd love to hear from artists of all ages, anyone who is presently working outside the gallery system. I'm as interested in the private, eccentric artist as in those whose works are engaged in prevailing cultural discourse. I'd like to end up with an exhibition that presents a lively mixture of types."

Does this mean that Ms. Lumpkin is automatically excluding any and all artists who have gallery representation? Someone better tell the Corcoran Board of Trustees right away before she buys her plane tickets to come visit our area.

The WPA\C will soon announce submission guidelines for artists who wish to submit materials as preliminary research for the benefit of the curator. Because this is not a juried exhibition, there is no fee to submit materials and artists do not have to be a member of the WPA\C to be considered. These guidelines will be posted on the WPA/C website on Nov 1, 2004. Ms. Lumpkin will perform on-site studio visits while working on the exhibition in Washington, DC.

It is a smart move by the WPA/C to hire an outside curator to replace Barlow, but I wonder how much this is costing them; I suspect that curators such as Lumpkin do not come cheaply.

I wish Ms. Lumpkin the best of luck with a most difficult show. It won't be easy, but I am sure that she will do a good job; we will be watching.

Tonight I will be at one of my favorite charity art auctions for a great organization and a great cause.

It is at the Carnegie Institution of Washington (16th & P Streets, NW), the Walker Whitman Clinic will be having their annual Art for Life Auction, in my opinion one of the best art auctions in the city. Viewing from 6:00 pm and the auction starts at 7:30 pm.

See you there!

Driving Force was a national competition to recognize and showcase young artists with disabilities, ages 16 -25, who are living in the United States.

The exhibition is currently on view at the S. Dillon Ripley Center, Smithsonian Institution through November 29, 2004. It will then tour for one year throughout the U.S.

The grand prize winner, Sunny Taylor, is a self taught hand and foot artist (only 22 years old) who is a spectacular painter.

The Cuba series

These pieces below are from a set of about 100 watercolors, mixed media, oils, acrylics, and prints that I did either for one of my senior year exhibition projects at the University of Washington School of Art in 1981 as well as class assignments through the years (1977-1981). Probably 80 of these have sold over the years. They all have the map of the island of Cuba as the focus. There are also a few pre-art school works as I started this series around 1972 or so when I was in High School.

Update: Some of these images are from owners that bought some of these sending them to me... in some cases I had not seen them in years!

"Isla Prision (Prison Island)"
c. 1980, Ink wash and wood rods on paper
In the collection of The Cuban Studies Institute, Miami, Florida

"Isla Prision"
Monoprint enhanced with Charcoal and pins, c.1980
In a private collection in New Jersey

"Isla Prision"
Monoprint enhanced with watercolor and pins, c.1980
In a private collection in Florida

Isla Encadenada
Acrylic on paper with metal chain, c. 1979

Isla Encadenada
Colored pencils on paper with metal chain, c. 1979

"Isla Herida" c. 1978

"Donde crece la palma" 1978

"The Island that Time Forgot" 1981

"Mi verso es un ciervo herido Que busca en el monte amparo" 1979

"Stabbed Island" 1980


"Isla Roja" (Red Island) 1981


"Isla Carcel" (Jail Island) 1981


"Isla Encarcelada" (Jailed Island) 1981


"Isla Ensangrentada" (Bloodied Island) 1981


"Isla Encadenada" (Chained Island) 1981


Isla Pesadilla (Nightmare Island) 1981


Isla en Jaula (Caged Island) 1981


"Isla en Goma" (Inner Tube Island) 1981


"Isla Prisionera" (Prisoner Island) 1981


Isla Deshuesada (Deboned Island) 1981

"Isla Llorona", oil on board c. 1978

"Isla Abandonada (Abandoned Island)"
Oil and Acrylic on Gessoed Board, 8x10 inches, c.1979
In a private collection in Hialeah, Florida

"Isla Clavada (Nailed Island)"
1980 Color pencils and embedded nails

Nubes Lloronas, Oil on board, c.1979

"Isla Llorona", oil on board, c.1978
In the collection of Queens' University, Charlotte, NC

Cuba, Isla Desbaratada (Cuba, Disassembled Island). Pen and Ink. 2009.


Cuba, Isla Encarcelada (Cuba, Jailed Island). Watercolor and Wire. 2009.



Cuba, Isla Judia (Cuba, Jewish Island). Watercolor. 2009.

Isla Prisionera
In a private collection in Miami, Florida

Isla Balsera
Location Unknown (Sold at Pike Pace Market, Seattle in 1978-79)

"Isla Balsera (Raft Island)" - Happy Birthday America, Wishing We Were There!
Collage on Paper, Framed to 30x40 inches, c. 1976
Was in a private Collection in New Jersey - donated to American University Art Museum in 2015

"Isla Prision (Prison Island)" By F. Lennox Campello
c. 1978, Charcoal on paper
In a private collection in New Jersey

"Isla Prisión" (Prison Island)
Watercolor on Paper by F. Lennox Campello, c. 1977

One of the more eye-opening things in attending an art fair is seeing the dynamics that go onto the decision to buy a piece of art.

Put together a few thousand people, paying an entry fee to enter the fair, an assortment of dealers, and a huge diverse variety of offerings and it's an education in people watching.

The married couple:
"Do you like it?"
"Yeah, I like it- it's just what we've been looking for."
"Where would we put it?"
"We have a couple of spots that it'd fit."
"Do you really like it."
"Yeah, how about you?"
"Yeah, I kinda of like it."
"Should we get it?"
"If you want it."
(five minutes later)
"Let's think about it."
"OK" [To me] "Do you have a business card?"

The couple (not married):
Her: "Do you like it?"
Him: "Sssoright"
Her: "Where would we put it?"
Him: "Dunno."
Her: "Do you really like it."
Him: "So'OK.. Yeah, how about you?"
Her: "Yeah, I kinda, sorta, really like it."
Him: "Dunno though"
Her: "What? You don't like it?"
Him: "If you want it."
(five minutes later)
Him: "Let's think about it."
Her or Him: "OK" [To me] "Do you have a business card?"

The Single Woman (SW) with a Woman Friend:
SW: "WOW! Now, I really like this!"
Friend: "Yeah... it's nice"
SW: "It's exactly what I've been looking for!"
Friend: "I have a friend who does work just like this..."
SW: "I am really drawn to it!"
Friend: "Are you really sure you like it?"
SW: "Uh - yeah!... why? Don't you like it?"
Friend: "Yeah... it's OK"
SW: "I think it's really good... I think it's the first piece in this whole show that I really like."
Friend: "There's a few more booths we haven't seen."
SW: "I think I'm going to buy this."
Friend: "Are you sure?"
SW: "Uh - yeah!... It's a good price too.... why? Don't you like it?"
(five minutes later)
SW: "Do you have a business card?"

The Single Woman (SW) with a Man Friend:
SW: "WOW! Now, I really like this!"
Friend: "Yeah... Cool"
SW: "It's exactly what I've been looking for!"
Friend: "I think it's a lithograph" [it's actually a charcoal]
SW: "I am really drawn to it!"
Friend: "Are you really sure you like it?"
SW: "Uh - yeah!... why? Don't you like it?"
Friend: "I have something like it... I got it cheaper though..."
SW: "I think it's really good... I think it's the first piece in this whole show that I really like."
Friend: "You like lithographs?"
SW: "I think I'm going to buy this."
Friend: "Are you sure?"
SW: "Uh - yeah!... It's a good price too.... why? Don't you like it?"
(five minutes later)
SW: "Do you have a business card?"

The Single Focus Dream Buyer:
[Walks straight up to one piece, never looks at the rest of the work in your booth]
"I'll take this"
[Me] "Thank you... it's a very striking charcoal drawing - will be that be a check or charge?"
"Charge"
[Me] "I can send you more information on this artist..."
"That will be great - I love this work - it's exactly what I'm interested in!"
[Me] "I have a few more pieces here, would you like to see them?"
"No, thanks..."

The "I'm glad you're here guy (IGYHG)":
IGYHG: "Hey! I've been looking for you!"
[Me]: "Hi, how are you?"
IGYHG: "... been walking this whole fair looking for you!"
[Me]: "Yeah... lots of dealers this year... glad you found us!"
IGYHG: "Howsa been goin'?"
[Me]: "Yes... quite good actually..."
IGYHG: "Well, let me look at what you've got!"
[three minutes later]
IGYHG: "Well... I'm glad you're here... see ya next year!"


The "I Shudda Bought It Last Year Guy (Shudda)":
Shudda: "Hey! You're here again!"
[Me]: "Hi, how are you? Yeah... It's our 7th year here..."
Shudda: "... been walking this whole fair looking for you!"
[Me]: "Yeah... lots of dealers this year... glad you found us!"
Shudda: "Howsa been goin'?"
[Me]: "Yes... quite good actually..."
Shudda: "Well, let me look at what you've got!"
[three minutes later]
Shudda: "Where's that really good watercolor of the fill-in-the-blank?"
[Me]: "Uh... I sold it last year - but I have a few more pieces by that artist."
Shudda: "Ah! - I really wanted that one! Do you have another one?"
[Me]: "Well, no... it was an original watercolor, and I sold it; but I have ---"
Shudda: "I really wanted that piece; and it was a good price too..."
[Me]: "Maybe you'd like some of his new work..."
Shudda: "I shudda bought it last year"
[Walks away]
Shudda: "You gonna be here next year?"

The "Where's That Piece Guy (WTP)":
WTP: "Hey! You're here again!"
[Me]: "Hi, how are you? Yeah... It's our 7th year here..."
WTP: "... been walking this whole fair specifically looking for you!"
[Me]: "Yeah... lots of dealers this year... glad you found us!"
WTP: "Howsa been goin'?"
[Me]: "Yes... quite good actually..."
WTP: "OK... last year I saw this piece... it was a fill-in-the-bank and I should have bought it then! "
[Me]: "Yeah... that is a nice piece."
WTP: "I've been thinking about it for a whole year"
[Looks around the booth and doesn't see it]
WTP: "Do you still have it?"
[From here there are two paths...]
Path One -
[Me]: "Uh... I sold it last year - but I have a few more pieces by that artist."
WTP: "Ah! - I really wanted that one! Do you have another one?"
[Me]: "Well, no... it was an original watercolor, and I sold it; but I have ---"
WTP: "I really wanted that piece; and it was a good price too..."
[Me]: "Maybe you'd like some of his new work..."
WTP: "I shudda bought it last year"
[Walks away]
WTP: "You gonna be here next year?"
Path Two
[Me]: "Let me get it for you... I have it in the back!"
WTP: "Great"
[I bring it out and give to WTP]
WTP: "Yeah this is it! It's great!"
[Me]: "This artist has done really well this last year and ---"
WTP: [Handing it back] "Excellent! I'm glad you still have it... until what time are you going to be here?"