Weekend Online

The staff of the WaPo's Weekend is again online at 11AM and discussing their coverage and answering your questions.

Details and a way to ask questions here.

No Tolls on the Internet

Congress is about to cast a very important and historic vote on the future of the Internet. The vote will decide whether the Internet remains a free and open or instead becomes the property of cable and phone companies.

Read the details here and then contact your elected representative.

Kirkland on Compelled II

Thinking About Art reviews our last show (Compelled by Content II). Read the review here.

If you don't get it...

I guess it takes a thousand... this is from the last Weekend live online chat last Friday:

Arlington, Va.: For several weeks now when questioned about the sparse arts coverage you guys have talked about giving equal coverage across the board and meeting demand. You say that you're listening to us asking for more reviews of our local galleries. You also say that everyone wants more coverage of movies, theatre, music, etc.

My question is this: where are all of those people in these chat sessions? You are asked repeatedly about providing more art coverage but I have yet to see one comment asking for more music reviews or theater reviews, etc.

Something doesn't jive about this. Could you please really address the issue instead of talking more about this so-called demand for more coverage across the board and lack of print space? O'Sullivan is an asset to our area but he can't do it all himself.

Joyce Jones: Thanks for joining our chat. Our first chat had lots of questions about our "sparse" dance coverage. We have many chatters who come to our chats, fortunately, and considering that this is only our fifth week, I hope the numbers will grow exponentially. Maybe when we get 1,000 questions a week, I'll consider the makeup of the questioners to be statistically significant (sorry, i majored in economics, minored in art).

Our mission is to cover entertainment. That's a lot. We take our mission very seriously and we try to give a representative sample of the best the area has to offer, while being geographically representative and keeping in mind that we have a broad readership. We are not a guide to the galleries. But we do take the galleries seriously and Michael does a great job of covering all of the arts. But, yes, he is one person. (Though I'm working on cloning him.)

You may want to focus on other venues within the paper when pressing for more gallery coverage, perhaps the Arts section or even the Extras, which often can give good space to venues within their area.

What Arts Section? Did she mean the one that was renamed Style section about 15 years ago? (It used to be called the Arts Section) or did she mean the Sunday Arts (which has done about four gallery reviews in the last couple of years - and then most of those were done on one gallery which could not be reviewed by Style due to conflict of interests on the part of the reviewer - and thus the Sunday Arts review "make-up" review.

The next Weekend online session is this coming Friday. You can submit your questions here.

Prints

I'm hearing good things about the current Kirk Waldroff exhibition at Washington Printmakers Gallery which opened last Friday.

Details here.

Congrats!

To DC area artist Chawky Frenn (represented by us), who is currently in Lebanon where he delivered a lecture at The American University of Beirut recently, and who has been selected to participate in a major museum show at the Sursok Museum in Beirut in September and who will also be delivering a lecture (arranged by Alan Feltus) at the American school in Tuscany in his way back to George Mason University, where Frenn is a member of the art faculty.

Grants

Deadline: June 12, 2006

This NEA grant offers funding for projects that help children and youth acquire appreciation, knowledge, and understanding of and skills in the arts. Projects must provide participatory learning and engagement of students with skilled artists, teachers, and excellent art, and ensure the application of national, state, or local arts education standards. Maximum Award: $5,000-$150,000. Eligibility: school-based or community-based projects.

Boot Camp for Artists

On Sunday, June 11, 2006, we will present another one of our highly successful "Success as an Artist" Seminars. This next seminar will be jointly hosted with the good people from Art-O-Matic, and the Warehouse Theater, Café and Gallery, on Sunday, June 11, 2006 from 10:30-6PM, with lunch provided.

The seven hour seminar, which has been taken by over 2,000 artists and arts professionals from all over the Mid Atlantic is designed to deliver information, data and proven tactics to allow artists to develop and sustain a career in the fine arts. The seminar costs $80 (includes lunch) and is limited to 50 people. For more details please visit this website. For this seminar, sometimes called "Boot Camp for Artists" by the attendees, people as far as Arizona, California, New York and South Carolina have attended, including many, many university level art professionals.

In its seven hour format, the seminar covers a wide range of structured issues including:

1. Materials - Buying materials;strategies for lowering your costs, where and how to get it, etc.

2. Presentation – How to properly present your artwork including Conservation issues, Archival Matting and Framing, Longevity of materials, a discussion on Limited editions, signing and numbering, Prints vs. Reproduction, discussion on Iris Prints (Pros and Cons).

3. Creating a resume - Strategy for building your art resume, including how to write one, what should be in it, presentation, etc.

4. Juried Shows – An Insider's view and strategy to get in the competitions.

5. How to take slides and photographs of your artwork

6. Selling your art – A variety of avenues to actually selling your artwork, including fine arts festivals, corporate acquisitions, galleries, public arts, etc.

7. Creating a Body of Works

8. How to write a news release

9. Publicity – How to get in newspapers, magazines, etc. Plus handouts on email and addresses of newspaper critics, writers, etc.

10. Galleries – Discussion on area galleries including Vanity Galleries, Co-Operatives, Commercial Galleries, Non-profit Art spaces, etc.

11. How to approach a gallery – Realities of the business, Contracts, Gallery/Artist Relationship, Agents.

12. Outdoor Art Festivals – Discussion and advice on how to sell outwork at fine arts festivals, which to do, which to avoid, etc.

13. Resources - Display systems and tents, best juried shows and ones to avoid.

14. Accepting Credit cards – How to set up your art business.

15. Grants – Discussion on how to get grants in DC, Regional and National, including handouts on who and where and when.

16. Alternative Marketing - Cable TV, Local media

17. Internet – How to build your website at no cost, how to establish a wide and diverse Internet presence.

The seminar has been a spectacular success, and the feedback from artists can be read online at here and we continue to receive tremendous positive feedback on the practical success that this seminar has meant for those who have taken it.

You can sign up for the seminar at 301/718-9651 or via email at info@thefrasergallery.com. There are a few spots left!

Congrats!

To my good friend Jeffry Cudlin from the Washington City Paper, who has been nominated for the Association of Alternative NewsWeeklies Awards (for art criticism).

Bethesda Art Walk

This next Friday, June 9, is the second Friday of the month and thus it's the Bethesda Art Walk with 13 participating venues and with free guided tours.

We will host the finalists for the $14,000 Bethesda Painting Award Prizes. There will be an opening reception for the finalists at the Fraser Gallery from 6-9PM.

See the finalists here.

See ya there!

At Nevin Kelly

Two really good DC area artists, Sondra N. Arkin and Mary Beth Ramsey open at the Nevin Kelly Gallery this coming Thursday with an opening reception from 6-9PM.

Tape Dude in New York City

Mark Jenkins just keeps getting better and bolder. Check out his latest New York City project here.

Norfolk

I feel like I've been driving for years! I've just arrived in Norfolk for a meeting. Tons of stuff to discuss and post.

Meanwhile have fun with hotel art.

Kevin MacDonald (1946-2006)

Several of you have sent me emails to let me know that Washington area artist Kevin MacDonald passed away at 7:07 last night at Casey House Hospice in Derwood. He had been battling cancer for the last two years.

This is a significant loss to our area's art community of a very talented and respected artist and an exceptionally wonderful and decent human being.

Tate in the WaPo

While I was gone (I'm still gone actually... but heading back) to Colgate, the WaPo's Rachel Beckman had this piece on Tim Tate and the 48 Hour Film Project.

WaPo's Weekend Staff Online

I'm on the road... but keep the pressure up and ask good, intelligent questions!

The WaPo's Weekend staffers are online at 11AM today answering questions about Weekend and its coverage.

You can email your question to them here.

More arts coverage!

On the road...

Heading out later today to Colgate for a college reunion... more later.

1st Fridays

Tomorrow is the first Friday of June and thus usually time for the openings and extended hours of the Dupont Circle area galleries. Openings are generally from 6-8PM, but make sure to check their websites for the correct times.

Also on Friday, Irvine Contemporary and Warehouse Gallery have Charbel Ackermann's "The New Geometry" and "Monument2", a Special Installation at The Warehouse Gallery, opening with a reception for the artist on Friday June 2, 5:00-7:00 at The Gallery at The Warehouse. There's also an artist's talk and afternoon reception on Saturday, June 3rd, 2:00-4:00 pm, also at The Gallery at the Warehouse.

Wanna go to an opening tonite?

"Dogs and Cats Living Together," a solo show by John Aaron at The Clarendon Grill consisting of large watercolor and oil paintings of uncommon household pets has an opening reception for the artist tonight from 6-9PM. The exhibition runs through July 22, 2006.

The Clarendon Grill
1101 N. Highland St.
Arlington, VA 22201
703.524.7455