Chris Shott in the WCP has a really good article on the costs of staging Artomatic.

So far they are $56,197 in the hole.

Time for one of our area's generous donors or billion dollar corporations to step up to the plate?

Maybe the Washington Post?

I like irony.

Am I the only one noticing a pattern emerging from the diverse set of "top ten" lists of Artomatic artists that I have been getting and publishing?

Art is subjective, but you do not have to be a Cryptologist (I am) to detect the pattern beginning to emerge from the lists coming in from people with signifcantly diverse interests, backgrounds, tastes, and agendas.

I'll publish the definite Art-O-Matic Top 10 List at the end of the show. It will a list derived and mathematically compiled from the various lists that I have received and am still receiving.

Then I will see if I can figure out a way to get those artists in that list on a group show somewhere.

McLean Center for the Arts, Ellipse, Target Gallery, DCAC, Transformer, Corcoran (cough, cough) or any other art space out there... feel free to email me and offer your wall space next year; Gopnik review practically guaranteed!

For Women Photographers

The next Secondsight meeting for women photographers will be held on Thursday, December 2 at 6.30pm.

The meeting will take place at the Fraser Gallery, 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Bethesda Place, MD 20814.

The Fraser Gallery is two blocks from the Bethesda metro station and there is ample free parking. The guest speaker will be Connie Reider.

Meetings are free for members, $10 for guests. Please visit www.secondsightdc.com for more information or call Catriona Fraser at 301 718-9651. Please RSVP to secondsight@hotmail.com.

Faith Flanagan's Top Ten Plus Artomatic List

Faith Flanagan is a local art fan, collector in the rough, and sometime guerilla curator. She has never been a particular fan of AOM, but strongly believes that it should not be dismissed in its entirety by those with the wit, charm, and intellect to know better.

Kathryn Cornelius
Liz Duarte
Matt Dunn
Djakarta
Dave Savage
Dylan Scholinski
Matt Sesow
Ira Tattelman
Kelly Towles
Bridget Vath

+ (cheating just a tad)

Overall Team Response: Eye Candy
Alan Callander, Ian Jehle and Karen Joan Topping

All about the Ladies: Girlz Club Members: Judy Jashisky, Lynda Hesh, Candace Keegan, and Ami Martin Wilbur.

Grammar.police Top Ten Artomatic List

Kriston from Grammar.police writes an eloquent review of his Artomatic visit and also delivers his top ten list:

Scott Brooks
Chris Edmunds
Nina Ferre
Linda Hesh
Ian Jehle
Syl Mathis
Allison Miner
Tim Tate
Kelly Towles
Amy Martin Wilber

Jesse Cohen mistyped the URL of DCARTNEWS (which is http://dcartnews.blogspot.com) and instead Jesse typed http://dcartnews.blogpsot.com.

This is what Jesse got instead of DC ARTNEWS.

Is that weird or what?

I love the Internet.

Jessica Dawson has a few mini-reviews in today's Style section of the Post.

Natalie Koss' Top Ten Artomatic List

Natalie Koss is the art critic for On Tap Magazine, and after several hours of walking through Art-O-Matic, she has selected and sent me the following list:

Chad Alan
Michele Taylor
Brett Davis
Thomas Edwards
Kayti Didriksen
Amy Marx
Mark Planisek
John Aaron
Laura Seldman
Tim Tate

Alex Katz will be delivering a lecture at the Corcoran on Monday, November 22, starting at 7:00pm.

In this evening, Alex Katz discusses the scope of his career from its beginnings in the 1960s and the major role he has played in the emergence of new perceptual realism in painting.

Jeff Blum over at DC Photo Scene visits Artomatic and offers some interesting words on the subject.

Jeff adds these eloquent thoughts to the dialogue:

"Artomatic felt more alive and vibrant than any other art event I've been to in DC, and I can't imagine it not being worth a couple of hours of anyone's time. Even if you end up hating everything in it, I can't imagine it being a waste of time to drop by. Lots of angst, gaudiness, crappy work, good work, earnestness, politics, thoughtfulness, whimsy, and an unbelievable amount of everything else not listed."

My "sources at the Post" (Oh please!) tell me that this coming Saturday the Washington Post's "Free for All" will have lots of letters and commentaries about Blake Gopnik vis-a-vis his rootcanalization of Art-O-Matic.

Keep an eye on the Saturday Post.

Artomatic was on NPR today at the Kojo Nnamdi show.

My kudos to Kojo for once again coming forth to highlight what is going on in the DC area art scene! Kojo has demonstrated (time and time again) the initiative that other "local" NPR shows seem to lack in helping to promote our area's visual arts.

Listen to the show here. It starts at around 13:32 in the show.

Busy day tomorrow...

First I'll be at the third and final day of my conference and then in the late afternoon I'll be briefing the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities on the advisory panel's recommendations for the Individual Grant awards to DC artists. My advance congratulations to all of the DC artists who will be getting $5,000 each, and my stern request that more of you apply in the coming years.

I am always shocked as to how few artists apply each year.

After that I will be hanging the spectacular debut of Cuban artist Aimee Garcia Marrero at Fraser Georgetown.

Aimee Garcia Marrero is a very young Cuban painter whose solo US debut in Los Angeles sold out in 2002 (a third of our show has already pre-sold before the opening). She then participated in the VIII Bienal de La Habana and since then has been working furiously to create this show.

The Garcia Marrero opening is this coming Friday, from 6-9 PM. We will have Cuban music, Cuba Libres and catering by the Sea Catch Restaurant. It's part of the opening night for the five Canal Square Galleries.

Come and say hi and I'll buy you a Cuba Libre, or as I call them: "Cuba Presa."

Fred Ognibene's Top Ten Artomatic List

Fred Ognibene is a DC area contemporary art collector; below are his top ten Artomatic finds:

Joseph Barbaccia
Scott Brooks
Frank Day
Nina Ferre’
Mark Jenkins
Syl Mathis
Allison B. Miner
Elizabeth Lundberg Morisette
Ruza Spak
Kelly Towles
Rob Vanderzee

Again, today I'll be at a conference most of the day today, so check back later for more top ten lists and other stuff.

Sidney Lawrence, who recently retired as the PR person at the Hirshhorn Museum, and who also used to exhibit at the former Gallery K, now writes for Artnet.com, and has this excellent round-up of Washington area shows.

Catriona Fraser's Top 10 Artomatic List

Catriona Fraser, Director and the hardworking co-owner of our two Fraser Galleries walked Art-O-Matic a few days ago and the below list reflects her top ten picks:

BJ Anderson
John Bata
Chris Edmunds
Thomas Edwards
M. Rion Huffmann
Michal Hunter
Syl Mathis
Mary Beth Ramsey
Alison Sigethy
Ira Tattlemann
Denise Wolff

Sarah Finlay and Patrick Murcia's Top Ten Artomatic List

Sarah Finlay and Patrick Murcia, the two hardworking directors of Fusebox Gallery, one of the best galleries in town, send in their top 10 AOM list:

Chad Alan
Kathryn Cornelius
Richard Dana
Frank Day
Nina Ferre’
Mansoora Hassan
Allison Miner
John Olson
Michael Platt
Kelly Towles

I'll be at a conference most of the day today, so check back later for more top ten lists and other stuff.

Tonight at 7PM is the opening reception/party for the artists showing in the fine art glass rooms at Artomatic. Even Gopnik in his root canal of the show had this to say about the glass:

"There may just be a few decent things hidden in the mix -- with so many thousands of objects on display, the law of averages says there must be. But three hours' worth of looking didn't spot too many. Some of the glasswork looked all right. (Glass is such a gorgeous medium it's hard to screw it up, and you need some basic training even to begin to work in it.)"

Talking about glass, the James Renwick Alliance Gala/Auction will be held on Saturday, April 16, 2005 at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, D.C.

This is part of the Alliance's American Craft Masters Weekend 2005 which in addition to the Gala/Auction will feature a Sunday Brunch honoring William Morris/Glass; Judy Kensley McKie/Furniture; Robert Ebendorf/Jewelry; Lia Cook/Fiber and Wayne Higby/Ceramics at the Westin and a free fiber symposium at the Navy Auditorium in the morning of April 16th.

Tim Tate, whose work is represented by us and whose work is in the permanent collection at the Renwick Gallery, the nation's premier contemporary craft venue, will be a featured artist in the Live Auction.

His piece is titled "Nine Years.....Nine Memories" and consists of nine glass globes Tate calls "Reliquaries" which are his newest series. The pieces were acquired by the Renwick Alliance at the current Art-O-Matic and are currently on display at the glass rooms in that show.

"We are delighted to have such an important piece in our Live Auction" said Judith Weisman, James Renwick Alliance's Craft Weekend Chair. "Tim's work resonates with sophistication and meaning."

At the Art-O-Matic building, the glass rooms are at 32 Good Hope Road, Anacostia on your Art-O-Matic map.

Jean Lawlor Cohen's Top Ten Artomatic List

Jean Lawlor Cohen is the editor of Where DC Magazine. Below are her picks for the best from this year's Art-O-Matic.

Cardellino - A six-canvas group of dark landscapes/trees - for impact in small space.

Chris Edmunds — Sculptural heads (one on a spring!) — for irreverence.

Kathryn Cornelius — Audio installation in an ominous sinkroom with seeping water (a Tony Oursler confrontation without the dolls) — for mystery.

Nina Ferré — Bridge installation — for making do with difficult space.

Inga Frick — Couldn’t locate, but, according to her past work, merits hunting down — for whimsy.

Linda Hesh — A time travel alcove — for self-dramatization.

Judy Jashinsky — Cicada-coated homage to Noche Crist — for spirit of camaraderie.

Matt Sesow — Self-described “crumby art” that is Basquiat meets Golub — for fun.

Ruza Spak — Large skyscape paintings with dog / deer a flyin’, what Longo’s pets must dream — for disorientation.

Martha Olsson — Her bold, expressive canvases way up on the 5th floor — for daring.