Wanna do something this Wednesday in DC?

ALEATORIC is going on this coming Wednesday!

Several local artists fill up two floors with installation art and emerging bands will be performing to keep up a lively atmosphere.

Sponsored by the new Artcade Magazine, and by Civilian Art Projects and by Panache, with Marissa Botelho, Curator, Reuben Breslar, Music Coordinator and work by local arts students, artists, musicians, and creative writers.

Bands involved include "Pontiak," "The Show is the Rainbow," and "Black and Tan Fantasy Band."

This night of Music and Installation Art is Wednesday, August 1, 2007 from 7:45pm – 12am and donations for the bands are encouraged. It takes place at:

Bobby Fisher Memorial Building (aka Borf Building)
1644 North Capitol St, NW,
Washington, D.C., 20002
*3 blocks north west of New York Ave. Metro Station

Another art fair coming to DC

It will be August 10-12, 2007 at the Washington Convention Center.


Click on the image for a larger image of the card or visit this website.

Johnny Cash

Like many people my age, when I was a kid in Brooklyn, I grew up knowing who Johnny Cash was and who Ray Charles was, but I was not at all interested in their music.

I find it peculiar that now, after the two hit biographical movies came out about these two music giants (and both Jamie Fox and Joaquin Phoenix did such great jobs in recreating Charles and Cash's music), my interest -- along that of millions of new fans -- has been kindled for their music.

My house backs to up to a large park in Media, PA, and they have a stage there which is set-up for outdoor concerts, sort of a mini Wolf Trap. I can walk there from my house, so once in a while we walk and sit in for whoever is playing.

Last night Johnny Cash was playing. Well, actually David Stone and the Johnny Cash Experience, but let me tell you, this man was amazing!

He is not a Johnny Cash impersonator, but clearly a highly talented artist and someone who has studied Cash's life, music, mannerisms, voice and style for many, many years, and now delivers a nearly scary ability to assume the role of the man in black.

He was really good.

Stone did not try to impersonate Cash, but rather walked the audience through Cash's life and music, while at the same time sounding, looking and playing exactly like the real man in black.

The few thousand people in the audience -- which covered the whole range of ages, although oddly enough I noticed a lot of tattooed women, not just one or two tattoos either, but whole arms and chests covered in them -- really enjoyed Stone's performance and were on their feet several times.

He was really good.

Corcoran responds to my idea

A few days ago I discussed one idea that I had sent the Corcoran for possible inclusion in their Ansel Adams exhibition. And below, Paul Roth, Curator of Photography and Media Arts at the Corcoran Gallery of Art responds:

Dear Lenny,

Paul Greenhalgh and Philip Brookman have referred your letter of July 12 to me for response, as I am the in-house curator supervising the Corcoran's installation of the Ansel Adams exhibition. Please accept my apology for the lateness of this reply; our coming photography exhibitions have had many pressing deadlines the last couple of weeks.

First, regarding your suggestion about the public domain set of Ansel Adams photographs at the Library of Congress. This idea is interesting and would no doubt be a feature valued by many of our visitors. Unfortunately, a variety of reasons--relating to logistics, timing, available space, and other factors--make this an impossible option for us at this time. Another major issue for us is our consideration of the best way to balance presentation of two major exhibitions by two very different photographers.

With reference to the issues you raise, I am encouraged by the fact that the technology now in use by the Library of Congress allows people to download many if not all of the Adams images directly from home, in reasonably large digital files. Over the years digital availability at the Library has evolved to minimize the complications presented by institutional bureaucracy, the large volume of print orders, and staffing limitations. For a very long time, several-month waits were the norm when people would order prints (of any of millions of pictures in the public domain, not just Adams) from the LOC in gelatin silver. The downloading feature of the LOC website is going a long way to making access more direct.

Finally, I'd like to thank you for mentioning the issue of collaboration with other institutions (in your blog a couple days back). Collaboration is something that is very important to us, and we have had many professional interactions with a number of museums, alternative art spaces, non-profits, libraries, and archives over the years. Since I came to the Corcoran eleven years ago I have had three opportunities to collaborate with the Library of Congress Prints and Photographs Division and Photoduplication Office on exhibitions: HALF PAST AUTUMN: THE ART OF GORDON PARKS; PROPAGANDA AND DREAMS: PHOTOGRAPHY IN THE 1930S IN THE US AND USSR; and THE QUILTS OF GEE'S BEND. Each was a great experience. While I appreciate your suggestion that these interactions can be difficult, we have found ways to work together very productively for the benefit of our audience.

Best wishes,

Paul

Good points all.

Artcade Magazine

New, super cool DC-based online art magazine... visit them here.

Two million

The most visited blog by a Cuban-American is...

Perez Hilton's celebrity juice and gossip blog in LA! With over two million hits a day!

But we're hot on your tail Perez!

New Curator at AAC

Jeffry Cudlin tells us that he's the new curator at the Arlington Arts Center.

This is nothing but good news for the AAC and for Arlington.

Cool Art Thing of the Moment

I don't know where DC artist Guy Mondo finds these things, but he is certain to find the oddest things in the world of fine arts.

"The images above illustrate the results of an unusual artistic collaboration between the French artist Hubert Duprat and a group of caddis fly larvae... Duprat, who was born in 1957, began working with caddis fly larvae in the early 1980s...

After collecting the larvae from their normal environments, he relocates them to his studio where he gently removes their own natural cases and then places them in aquaria that he fills with alternative materials from which they can begin to recreate their protective sheaths. He began with only gold spangles but has since also added the kinds of semi-precious and precious stones (including turquoise, opals, lapis lazuli and coral, as well as pearls, rubies, sapphires, and diamonds) seen here.

The insects do not always incorporate all the available materials into their case designs, and certain larvae, Duprat notes, seem to have better facility with some materials than with others. Additionally, cases built by one insect and then discarded when it evolves into its fly state are sometimes recovered by other larvae, who may repurpose it by adding to or altering its size and form."

Read the whole article here.

Call for Artists

Deadline: Saturday August 18, 2007

Somerville, Mass' Nave Gallery's Young Turks returns for a second year with an exhibition featuring art and artists "taking a walk on the wild side." The show aims to highlight all that is not part of the status quo. They seek work that questions, confronts, and, yes, attacks ideas, images, and ideology that others take for granted.

No submission fee!

Anger, disassociation, a rejection of the societal norm are some of the
emotions they expect artwork in this show to explore. Commentary on larger societal issues such as world poverty, the Middle East crisis, global warming or of issues closer to home such as the Big Dig mess, gas prices, gang violence, or drugs, left wing and right wing rhetoric, are just some examples of possible themes. Or it can be strictly personal, an illustration of the artist using the creative process to express a specific state of being or growth.

Artists are invited to submit work that addresses their connection with this theme as described above. Work of all mediums is encouraged. Both established and emerging artists are welcome to apply.

Applications should include:
- Artist resume, email contact info, image list (medium, dimensions, year
created)
- Artist statement 150 words about artwork and relationship to the call
- Supporting images may be either slides or digital. Label slides or
CD-ROM with their full name, and the name of their piece.
- Include a self-addressed envelope with adequate postage for return of
materials
- postmark deadline of Saturday August 18, 2007
- email submissions accepted: info@artsomerville.org

The Nave Gallery
155 Powderhouse Blvd.
Somerville, MA 02144

And the answer is...

Zoe's answer to my question below is: "it's a close second to the biennial. It's in a "suite" area so it's not open to everyone who comes to a game. If it was in a public area, it might tie the biennial."

Congrats!

To Philly's wonderphotog Zoe Strauss, who tells us that The Philadelphia Eagles will be purchasing a vinyl print of her photo "Mattress Flip" for display in the "Red Zone" at Lincoln Financial Field.

So what's cooler, being selected for the last Whitney Biennial or being selected by an NFL powerhouse?

Time for the 'skins to step up and ante up some artwork for their stadium.

Mary Coble



Mary Coble will be performing "Marker DC" this Saturday, July 28th, 2-5pm at the entrance to the U Street / Cardozo Metro Station (green line) 13th and U Street, in Washington,DC.

In Marker, performance artist Mary Coble "expands the focus of her previous performances, Note to Self 2005 (on Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgendered persons murdered in hate crimes) and Aversion 2007 (shock aversion therapy). The artist now invites viewers to emulate the physical + verbal assaults marginalized groups have endured by penning hate-inspired epithets such as 'dyke', 'spic' or 'nigger' on her body."

Marker (DC) is a part of the WPA/C's SiteProject DC events curated by Welmoed Laanstra. Coble is represented by Conner Contemporary.

Renoir at the PMA

The Philadelphia Museum of Art will be the only U.S. venue for the first exhibition to explore the inventiveness and importance of the landscape painting of Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841-1919) during the first 30 years of the artist’s career.

“We are delighted to collaborate with our colleagues in London and Ottawa on this major exhibition from public and private collections around the world to explore a little studied aspect of Renoir’s genius that is so central to his overall vision,” said Anne d’Harnoncourt, Director of the Philadelphia Museum of Art. “It will be especially gratifying to see the exhibition in the context of our own collections, which are renowned for their representation of Impressionism and particularly rich in figure paintings by Renoir. It will be a great pleasure to welcome visitors from throughout the United States and beyond to Philadelphia.”

Renoir Landscapes is organized by the National Gallery, London, The National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa, and the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The exhibition was seen in London and is currently on view in Ottawa through September 9, 2007.

Hard Questions

David Genovesi has an interesting list of 22 art questions that he hopes he is never asked in an interview:

- What is art?

- Does art have a purpose, if so, what is it?

- Who determines whether an artist is an artist?

- Why do you create?

- Does the art you create have any particular meaning?

- Does the art you create have any social implications?

- Does the art you create pay the rent?

- What effect is the digital revolution having on art?

- Who has the final authority for determining the “validity” of contemporary art?

- Would you advise a young person to become an artist?

- Must art be beautiful?

- Is there such a thing as "good art" or "bad art", if so, what's the difference?

- Is there such a thing as "a good artist" or "a bad artist", if so, what's the difference?

- Is painting still a valid art form?

- Is a print of a painting art?

- To what extent must an artist consider his audience?

- What’s the most important asset an artist needs to survive today?

- Why buy art?

- Is buying art a good investment?

- Who is the best living artist?

- Is a painting by Jackson Pollock worth 140 million dollars?

- If you’re such a good artist, why aren’t you rich and famous?

WCP Sold

The Washington City Paper has been sold. Details here.

If it wasn't for the CP's visual arts coverage, all that we'd have in the nation's capital is the voice of a freelancer writing 20 odd columns a year for the WaPo's Style section and O'Sullivan's weekly column in the Weekend section.

Let's hope that the new ownership continues the CP's tradition of leading the visual arts coverage in the printed media in DC.

Wanna go to a DC opening tomorrow?

Rebecca C. Adams: Compulsory Figures and ∞ at Transformer.

Using sound and large street drawings to interpret an archaic division of figure skating, this indoor and outdoor installation captures the sonic environment of practicing compulsory figures on ice, while visually striving to reproduce similar exercises on pavement. Opening : July 26, 6:30 - 8 PM.

Coming to the Corcoran

The Corcoran's fall season will feature two photography exhibitions, Ansel Adams, opening September 15, and Annie Leibovitz: A Photographer's Life, 1990-2005, opening October 13.

Yes, another Annie Leibovitz exhibition at the Corcoran.

When I got the news release, I sent the Corcoran's director, Paul Greenhalgh (who by the way, has been doing a really decent job since taking over the reigns of the Corcoran) a couple of suggestions for future photography shows. One idea "augments" the Ansel Adams exhibition, which will hopefully add a new dimension to yet another Adams photo show.

To start, I will admit that "Moonrise Over Hernandez" is a great photograph and people will oooh and aaah over it, as they have done for the dozens and dozens of previous Adams' exhibitions over the years.


Here's my idea: The Library of Congress has a HUGE collection of Ansel Adams negatives that are the property of the people of the United States.

It is my impression that anyone can (for a nominal fee) get the Library of Congress to print them photos from the Adams' negatives (or any other negative in the public domain I suppose). Already the LofC has even worked out a deal with Zazzle.com to buy a lot of LofC repros/stuff online. In fact, here's an Ansel Adams photo that you can buy from them.

Here's the novel idea: Why not set up an electronic online booth(s) at the Ansel Adams Corcoran exhibition where Corcoran visitors can also preview the hundreds (if not thousands) of other negatives that the LofC owns the copyright to, and provide an easy way for visitors to the Corcoran exhibition to order Adams' photos?

Probably much rarer Adams' photos that seldom see the light of day, much less the moonriselight.

Ahead of time the Corcoran can set up a deal where a percentage of the costs of the Adams' photos would be donated to the Corcoran as a "pass-through-fee."

And then this is a win-win situation for all, as visitors come away with an Adams' photograph, the LofC gets some money out of it, and the Corcoran also gets some additional funds out of it.

The technology is the easy part; getting two separate institutions to cooperate is the hard part.

Nothing heard back from anyone yet.

Pediatric AIDS/HIV Care Fundraiser

The Pink Line Project will host a happy hour fundraiser to support Pediatric AIDS-HIV Care, an organization dedicated to children living with AIDS/HIV in the Washington metropolitan area. Their program employs creative approaches - including art and music - to help children cope with the stress and stigma associated with this disease.

Great video art from "barely emerging artist" Kathryn Cornelius, Jeff Wyckoff, Kathleen McGlaun, Koike Susumu, and Live Music by Ben Gilligan (from French Toast and Small Doses)!

Wednesday, July 25, 6 to 8 PM at 18th Street Lounge (1212 18th Street, NW in DC).

Spray Painting

Depending on many variables (most of which I think have to deal with culture, upbringing, formation, sense of inferiority, elitist aspirations, and hidden wanna-be issues), often artsy people stand on definite sides when it comes to what the art world describes as "low brow art" and "high art."

In the various earlier discussions here on what makes good art, a lot of theory and art history has been discussed and written about.

I'm of the opinion that the only proven and tested art critic of what makes good art is time.

And often what was once considered low brow art, or art that wasn't good enough, stands the test of time just as well (or even better) than what the contemporary critics or artsy folks of the time would have selected.

History is full of such examples: Ukiyo-e in Japan, Salon des Refusés in France, most 19th century steelpoints, Frida Kahlo in Mexico, Norman Rockwell in the US, most photography until Steiglitz dragged it into art galleries, Florida's Highway Men, and on and on.

But now, even though anything and everything is art, there's still a world of low brow art that makes most members of the artworld scene roll their eyes. We all do it.


On the other hand, some low brow art has managed to make the jump to the high art side.

Like John Currin. Or Lisa Yuskavage and many others.

And that's OK - everything is art.

Perhaps one of the most refreshing developments of the last few years has been the recognition of the artists sometimes described as "street artists." Many, like Banksy, and in the DC region artists like Kelly Towles and Mark Jenkins, have made the jump and show equally at ease in galleries. In Jenkins' case, he has become a worldwide fixture and now creates his street tape sculptures all over the planet.

Another form of street art, which is new to me, are "spray paint artists."

A few weeks ago I was wandering around South Street in Philly, when I came across a group of people, including a cop, avidly observing a young man create artwork while kneeling down on the sidewalk at the entrance to the South Street Pedestrian Bridge. In front of him were displayed 20 or 30 pieces of art on cardstock... about 30 x 20 inches each.

He worked with amazing speed, to the tune of a very hip beat that played on the boom box next to him. His paper was taped to a spinning table, and he sprayed, dabbed, removed and spun to the beat of the music. We all watched hypnotized as image after image appeared.

It took him about 90 seconds to create a painting from scratch. "I may not be the best," he told me when I started talking to him during a break and while I was buying one of his pieces, "but I am the fastest spray painter around."

The subject imagery is of no consequence. It seemed to focus on otherwordly landscapes, Star-Trekkie vistas, or surrealist dreams. Mine was a mixture of some sort of a Anakin Skywalker viewpoint married to a glowing penis.

But the imagery is the least of the concerns here. What hypnotized and mesmerized the crowd was the performance of this young artist, arms flying, spray cans tumbling, music playing and the "ooohs" and "ahhhs" of the crowd as he created work after work every 90 seconds.

See for yourself in the below video (filmed in Mobile, Alabama earlier this year):

His name is Joshua Moonshine, and the streets of US cities are his galleries.

Wanna go to a Tyson's Corner, Virginia opening today?

Details here.