This coming Friday is the first Friday of the month, which means that the galleries around the Dupont Circle area galleries will have their First Friday openings and extended hours. Most of them have extended hours from 6-8 PM. Special congratulations to Conner Contemporary which will be celebrating its five year anniversary with a special group show retrospective.

Also 43 artists in the NoMA neighborhood will be having open studios this weekeind, noon to 5 PM. A good starting point would be in M. Jordan Tierney's studio, located at 57 N Street, NW. Tierney is a superb artist, who I thought had one of the best installations at last year's Art-O-Matic.

The article that Protzman wrote for this month's ARTnews has me thinking a bit. I agree with Ferd that there's a buzz beginning to happen around DC art galleries and artists.

But how do we kindle this "buzz" so that it grows to a national roar? How do we, as an arts community, grab this opportunity and make it grow into something important?

I will give it some thought and for the next few days I will be posting my ten step program to making the buzz into a roar. Ten steps that can help nurture and grow our visual arts scene. Your thoughts and ideas are welcome.

In case you missed it on Sunday, Philip Kennicott, who is one of the music critics at the Post, has a very interesting essay on gay art and censorship.

Blake Gopnik also has a brilliant piece on Christoffer Wilhelm Eckersberg at the National Gallery of Art. In the article, Gopnik discusses Eckersberg's works and relative importance in the world of art from the perspective of two Gopniks: The Gopnik that we all know (who thinks painting is dead, that in order for contemporary art to be any good it has to add something "new", why be a realist when you can take a photo, etc.) - and the "other" Gopnik; that is the opposite of the published Gopnik. This "other" Gopnik is less apt to generalize and more open-minded when it comes to art.

This is novel and interesting art writing and it is almost as good as my idea of having Blake Gopnik and Paul Richard review the same show at the same time so that we can read two critics' perspectives on one artist.

Or you can read the Chief Art Critic of the Washington Times' view of this same show.

For Frida Kahlo fans:

Linda Pelati in Italy has a mail art call on the subject of Frida Kahlo. No restriction on size or technique. Deadline is January 31, 2004. All works will be exhibited, none will be returned. Documentation to all.

Send works to:

Frida Kahlo
Comune di Trezzano Rosa
Piazza XXV Aprile, 1
20060 Trezzano Rosa - MI
Italy

Just read the ARTnews "City Focus" article in the December issue of ARTnews. It's a very good piece by Ferdinand Protzman, who used to write the "Galleries" column for the Washington Post, and is now a cultural writer and a contributing editor of ARTnews. He also recently published Landscape : Photographs of Time and Place.

Protzman's talks about the buzz growing around Washington area artists, first making the case that area artists and galleries have long been overshadowed by the local museum's "blockbuster exhibitions of famous dead artists."

Ferd also reveals that three prominent galleries (Hemphill, G Fine Art and Conner Contemporary) will be moving soon to 1515 14th Street, NW - to a building renovated specifically for galleries by well-known local art developer and artist Giorgio Furioso.

A few days I ago, I posted about how to get some well-known name art for $50 while at the same time raising funds for a really good cause.

But this "unknown art sale" is apparently the ancestor of them all and should be a terrific idea for a local visual arts (or other) non-profit to raise funds through the visual arts. This British sale is expected to raise about $150,000.

In ARTnews, Linda Yablonsky looks at artists doing self portraits or incorporating their images into their artwork. I am particularly interested in this theme, and some area artists, such as John Winslow, or Joe Shannon or Manon Cleary, or Chawky Frenn have for decades used their images as part of the story they tell though their paintings.

Another fascinating issue that artists (especially in the US) explore is race. If you want to catch up on the latest scientific evidence of what "race" means, then I suggest this Scientific American article.

December issue of ARTnews also has a focus on Washington, DC.

In case you missed it, Jessica Dawson looks at a very good show at DCAC.

DCAC is one of the great cultural jewels in our city.

We're spending Thanksgiving with Sheila Giolitti, who is not only a brilliant artist, but also a great cook!

She's the most recent Best of Show winner of the 48th Annual Boardwalk Art Show, which attracts about 200,000 visitors each June and is organized by the Contemporary Art Center of Virginia. This show has $23,000 in cash prizes recognizing outstanding artistic achievements and it is highly competitive, with artists from all over the country applying for selection. Selected artists get a 11' x 10' feet space on the Boardwalk concrete surface. It's hard work, but a great opportunity for artists to sell their art directly to the public. Details and deadlines here.

This is how one lucks out in a NYC gallery onto an original Ida Applebroog, or John Baldessari, John Dugdale, Marcel Dzama, Tony Feher, Milton Glaser, Kiki Smith, William Wegman and many other talented artists (including quite a few DC area artists) for $50.

Keep an eye on the website as they do it every year and it's for a great cause.

Gallery plug:

William F. Stapp, who served as the National Portrait Gallery's first curator of photographs (1976-1991) and is now an independent curator and consultant will jury the 2004 Bethesda International Photography Competition. Most recently he curated the traveling exhibition "Portrait of the Art World: A Century of ARTnews Photographs."

The Bethesda International Photography Competition is our worldwide annual call for photographers. Nearly $1500 is cash prizes are awarded as well as a solo exhibition in our Georgetown gallery for the Best of Show winner. The exhibition will take place in our Bethesda Gallery from March 12 through April 7, 2004.

The 2003 juror was Philip Brookman, Curator of Photography and Media Arts at the Corcoran Gallery of Art. The 2003 Best of Show winner was Bay Area photographer Hugh Shurley, who will have a solo exhibit in our Georgetown space in 2004.

Prof. Margarida Kendall Hull, who taught for many years at George Mason University and exhibited locally at Gallery K (now closed), just had a very successful sold out exhibition at Galeria Sao Mamede in Lisbon, Portugal.

And another area artist, Andres Tremols has an ongoing exhibition of his new glass pieces at the America's Collection Gallery in Coral Gables, one of the Greater Miami area's best galleries.

The Gazette newspapers, which are owned by the Washington Post, have a front page story about the "controversy" caused by Scott Hutchison's large paintings of nude women in our Bethesda space.

What goes for "shocking" in art around here is quite different from what goes for shocking in NYC or LA.

Anyone ever heard of Nadin Ospina? Look at his stuff here.

Before you laugh, one of his cute sculptures just sold at Sotheby's for almost $17,000 while surprisingly enough (to me anyway) was the fact that this tiny Frida Kahlo oil came in at $150,000 under its low estimate of $1.5 million, although still a huge amount of money for a very early, but small (7.2 x 5.7 inches) painting.

Opportunities for Artists:

Deadline: March 15, 2003. The David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA is currently seeking portfolios and/or slides and resumes from artists who do work related to Latin America, the Iberian Peninsula in Europe, or Latinos in the U.S.

Work from all styles and traditions, except for freestanding sculpture and installations, will be considered. Open to all artists with interests in Latino/Latin American/Iberian issues. Latino/a artists and artists from Latin America and Europe (Spain and Portugal) are particularly encouraged to apply. The Center will select a limited number of artists to exhibit for the 2004-2005 academic year. Artists may submit a maximum of 10 slides with SASE for return.

Work cannot exceed 70 lbs. Only hanging work that is properly framed, wired, and ready to hang will be considered.

Send to:
Jose L. Falconi, Art Forum Coordinator
DRCLAS Latin American and Latin Art Forum
Harvard University
61 Kirkland Street
Cambridge, MA 02138

For my view on "Latino" art visit Cultureflux.

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For Photographers:

Deadline February 1, 2004. Alexia Foundation for World Peace: Annual Photography Award of $15,000 is offered for the production of a proposed project. The Alexia Foundation seeks to "provide the financial ability for a photographer to produce a substantial picture story that furthers the foundation's goals of promoting world peace and cultural understanding."

For more information contact David Sutherland at dcsuther@syr.edu or on the web at Alexia Foundation.

Last year, local photographer Stefan Zaklin from Arlington, Virginia was one of the three finalists. Zaklin also won first prize in Poynter's Magazine Portrait competition with this image.

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And this is really an interesting one...

Creative Art Technologies is looking for original Pop Art style art work and images to license and reproduce digitally in the form of oil paintings, murals, and corporate art - artwork and images in the style of Warhol, Lichtenstein, Max, etc. They are looking for original Pop Art artwork owned completely by the artist only.

All artwork must meet copyrights standards prior to being used. Artists retain the copyrights of their work. Royalties are paid in accordance with each agreement. For more information on their licensing program and where to send a sample of your work contact Creative Art Technologies (561) 832-8055, e-mail: info@catstudios.com or visit their web site. Full information will be sent to artists whose samples are of interest. They are also looking for digital artists to convert photographs and portraits to a pop art style.

Molly Rupert, from Warehouse Gallery passes that she has a group show now until December 15 titled "Artex: Off the Clock." It's work created by artists who support themselves by working in the fine arts community.

There are 22 artists included and I particularly like Brad Rudich, whose daytime job is exhibit preparation, installation, and nearly every aspect of artifact care and handling for most of our area museums. I own one of Brad's pieces that I bought at last year's Art-O-Matic.

Warehouse Gallery, Theater and Coffee Bar is one of the really great cultural assets in our area, and they've been one of the anchors of the revival of the Shaw area.

The Jackson Art Center is hosting their Open Studios next Sunday, December 7 from noon to 5 PM. They are located in the historic Jackson School opposite Montrose Park and near Dumbarton Oaks. There is ample street parking nearby. Food, wine and soft drinks will be served. For further info contact Sue DuFour (301) 986-1386 or Liz Naden (301) 424-9440 or visit their website.

Faith Flanagan organizes MUSE, which is a monthly art salon at DCAC. Each session is an opportunity to talk about contemporary art at a monthly get-together. Each salon features a discussion with a member of the local arts community, followed by a chance for audience members to show slides or samples of their work.

The next MUSE is December 7, 2003 at 7:30 P.M. when the guest will be Anne Corbett, Executive Director, Cultural Development Corporation. A new MUSE will be organized the first Sunday of each following month. For more info email Faith at salon@dcartscenter.org.

Can't wait to see this: In 1946 Salvador Dalí did a cartoon for Walt Disney titled “Destino." It was never finished until recently, when computer-generated images finished the last few frames. Read the entire story and see some clips from the cartoon at NPR.

Also lots of good images from the cartoon here.

The former Art Editor for the British newspaper The Guardian discusses how and why a newspaper should have a high commitment to supporting the arts.

The interesting point in this article by Ian Mayes is that fact that he discloses that between the Guardian and the Observer (owned and run by The Guardian), they employ about 60 art critics backed by a similar number of editors and subeditors!

And they made a deliberate effort to provide arts coverage in spite of the fact that "...the commitment is not simply or primarily a commercial one. In terms of revenue for the paper, many areas of the arts would not pay for the coverage."

I would guess that our own Post, which has a daily circulation of around 600,000 printed papers, and gets around two million hits a day for its website, and owns several other newspapers, is probably about twice the size of the Guardian newspapers.

Does anyone want to count the number of Post critics and see if they employ or use more or less than the Guardian?