Fridge Burn

The Fridge was never going to be an easy fit for Barracks Row. The art gallery-cum-classroom-cum-performance space opened in an alley off of 8th Street SE in September 2009, and immediately caused minor, NIMBYish ripples in its the well-heeled Capitol Hill neighborhood. Over the last year the outre-minded space has mostly enjoyed a tentative peace with its neighbors.

But when the Fridge had to scale back its ambitions last month, kow-towing to neighbors registering noise complaints, it didn’t involve the usual suspects—no scrappy devotees of street art, no mind-scraping experimental musicians. It happened in August, when, with Congress in recess and the summer quickly bleeding days, the neighborhood can feel like a ghost town.

The culprits? Noisy new agers.

Read the rest of Erin Petty's article in the WCP here.

Head for Art

Just discovered this supercool, new DC-based art site: Head for Art. In it, the fair Aleid Ford has a "365-day project that started Jan 1. The premise is simple: every day this year I take one art work from DC’s National Gallery of Art and discuss it in an interesting and enlightening way."

The site rocks and is a refreshing new presence in the DMV's art scene. Check it out here.

Congrats!

To my good bud and DC uberartist Tim Tate, who will be having his first first museum solo exhibition at Virginia's Taubman Museum of Art in Roanoke, Virginia next May-Aug.

The show will focus primarily on video. It will be called "The Waking Dreams Of Magdelena Moliere."

Stay tuned...

Strauss Fellowships

Deadline: November 6, 2010

The Arts Council of Fairfax County announces the FY2011 Strauss Fellowships. These individual artist grants recognize professional working artists’ achievements and their demonstrated history of accomplishments; they promote artists’ continued pursuit of their creative work. Artists in all disciplines including visual arts, creative writing, theatre, dance performance and choreography, film and new media, music composition and performance are eligible to apply. Applicants must reside in Fairfax County.

Named for Bill Strauss (1947-2007), gifted writer, cofounder of the Capitol Steps and the Cappies, the Strauss Fellowships are an investment in the sustained growth and development of the arts in Fairfax County as well as a way to honor artists’ commitment to an artistic discipline, their professional activity in Fairfax County, and their contributions to the quality of life in Fairfax County. This is the fourth year the fellowships have been offered. Guidelines and application materials are available online at www.artsfairfax.org. The application deadline is November 6, 2010.

The Strauss Fellowships are awarded through a competitive grant program where the recipients are determined by their work’s merit. No specific project needs to be carried out with the funds granted; Strauss Fellowships award outstanding achievement in work that has already been completed. This year Amy Lin, Foon Sham, Blake Stenning, and Ann Marie Williams all were awarded Visual Arts Fellowships.

Seen on Univision

Funny TV commercial for a furniture store in the DMV: A woman is acosted by two men wearing INS uniforms ("la migra"). They corner her against the wall and demand her "papers."

She laughs at them and informs them that to buy furniture at such and such, you "don't need any papers."

Badges, we don't need no stinking badges...

Tomorrow at Hillyer

Guest curator Lou Stovall selected work for the October Members Show in Hillyer Art Space.

Exhibiting artists are: Anne Marchand, Carol Barsha, Cianne Fragione, Ellen Weiss, George Tkabladze, Helen K. Anne, Paula Stern, and Wayson Jones. The opening is tomorrow, Friday, October 1st, 2010, 6PM-9PM as part of the First Friday Openings at Dupont Circle area galleries.

Tomorrow

Andrew Wodzianki's Super! opened at the BlackRock Center for the Arts last Wednesday, September 29, and will run until Monday, October 25.

The artist reception is tomorrow Friday, October 1, from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. If you haven't been to the gorgeous huge gallery at BlackRock, this is a perfect opportunity to check it out.

By the way, the BlackRock 2011 Call to Artists is open now to all artists residing in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC over the age of 18 for original artwork only. This call will cover exhibits in the gallery from October 2011 through August 2012. An exhibit may include on applicant or a combination of applicants, based on the judgement of jurors. The jury panel is comprised of Kathleen Moran, Jack Rasmussen and yours truly. The deadline is Oct. 30.

Details here.

Wanna go to a DC opening this weekend?

Opening in Gallery I at the Foundry Gallery, 1314 18th St, NW, 202-463-0203, "LAND, AIR, AND SEA", Recent paintings by Ron Riley.

Riley "portrays images which evoke a sense of internal peace, tranquility, and serenity, and power uniting us with the majestic forces we find within ourselves and in our natural environment." The show runs Sept 29 through Oct 31, Open Wed - Fri, 1 to 7pm, Sat & Sun 12 to 6pm, Opening reception is Oct 1, 6 to 8pm. The Monthly members show is n display in Gallery II.

Opportunity for DMV Artists

Deadline: October 30, 2010

The BlackRock Center for the Arts has a huge gorgeous gallery space and their call for artists for the 2011 art season is now up.

The 2011 Call to Artists is open to all artists residing in Maryland, Virginia, and Washington, DC over the age of 18 for original artwork only. This call will cover exhibits in the gallery from October 2011 through August 2012. An exhibit may include on applicant or a combination of applicants, based on the judgement of jurors. The jury panel is comprised of Kathleen Moran, Jack Rasmussen and yours truly.

Details here.

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: November 12, 2010

Gallery West in Old Town Alexandria has a call for artists for their 14th Annual National Juried Show (Exhibit Dates: February 9–March 6, 2011).

The all media show will be juried by yours truly and awards to total $1,000. Click here to download the prospectus.

And the DC opening to go this Friday is...

The amazing Michal Hunter has a show of new paintings opening tomorrow at Pass Gallery from 7-10PM.

Hunter is one of my favorite DMV painters, and her work and technical facility with the brush has to be seen to be believed. Go see this show.

Artists' Websites: Marina Reitner


Marina Reiter was born in Moscow, Russia and she currently resides either in Washington, DC or New York City. She received her B.A. and M.A. degrees from Moscow State University, where she studied literature, fine arts, and art history. In the US, Marina studied art at the Corcoran College of Art and Design and the Torpedo Factory Art School. Check out her website here.

Defending Rockwell

Just in case that you thought that I was the only art critic on the planet defending the current Norman Rockwell exhibition at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Ryan L. Cole, who writes from Indianapolis on politics and culture for the City Journal, shares my point of view about Rockwell and his critics:

Critics would likely seize upon the sight to observe that popular approval does not equal artistic quality, especially when the art in question is insufficiently socially aware. Certainly that’s the view of Washington Post art critic Blake Gopnik, who in reviewing the show derided Rockwell as the cowardly, “aw, shucks” epitome of Middle America. Rockwell “doesn’t challenge any of us, or himself, to think new thoughts or try new acts or look with fresh eyes,” wrote Gopnik. “From the docile realism of his style to the received ideas of his subjects, Rockwell reliably keeps us right in the middle of our comfort zone.”

This perception of the artist’s work as soothing sentiment for the masses is nothing new, but “Telling Stories” proves it simplistic. The show, drawn from the collections of fellow storytellers George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, confirms that Rockwell had a deep understanding of America’s character and a masterly ability to convey it to canvas. True, his vision focused on our virtues, not our sins. But only in the self-loathing landscape of contemporary intellectual thought would that be cause for criticism.

Read the review here.

Binstock at the Katzen

Currently on exhibition at American University's Katzen Museum is Alan Binstock: Way-Stations. The exhibition drives home a couple of important points: (1) The Katzen's presence continues to be a major player not only in the "local" DMV art scene, but its unique design and exhibition space delivers an opportunity for large scale artwork to be exhibited in the perfect setting for size and appreciation, and (2) The DMV is one powerful magnet area for talented artists working with glass as the main substrate.

As one walks around the minimalist and somewhat Teutonic courtyard around the Katzen, the large scale sculptures by Binstock (most of which are glass, resin and steel) resonate with the space and represent a wonderful opportunity to check out one of the DMV's most gifted sculptors.

Terra by Alan Binstock
In Terra, Binstock accomplishes the successful marriage of these materials in a piece that allows to viewer to admire the work from a distance, as a cosmic visitor might, or from underneath; as if from within the attractive model of the Earth itself.

This positioning of the perspective repeats itself in most of these large scale works: A two-pronged approach at observing and interacting with the work itself. In Tradak (which means "gazing meditation" in Sanskrit), a far view reveals an enticing and slim architecture that suspends a hanging globe of green glass. As the cosmic view is reduced to a closer inspection, the piece offers three open seats within its design, further inviting closer inspection of the globe.

The title of the exhibition (Way-stations), refers to Clifford D. Simak's classic 1960s science fiction novel about virtue and galactic travel. And perhaps the piece which best exemplifies Simak's morality tale is "Chapel."


Chapel by Alan Binstock
There is a quiet and universal elegance to the work that manages to place it as both a stopping place on the light-years trek from Earth to perhaps asteroid B612, or the miles long medieval pilgrimages from northern European cities and villages to Santiago.

The exhibition goes through October 24.

Joe White at Jane Haslem

Artists' Talk Today

The show is at the School of Art & Design at Montgomery College's King Street Gallery, located in the beautiful Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center at 930 King Street in the Montgomery College, Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus.

And the associated artists' panel is today at noon, for one hour. The artists and curator will be discussing the show and taking questions.

I will be available at the panel and after the panel to discuss and answer any questions that you may have about anything dealing with the visual arts, career, galleries, etc.

Dream songs

I had the lyrics to this song come to me in a dream... and also the music to it, which I have now forgotten. It's sort of an homage to my father.

Pá Guantanamo

Con cuatro pesos vamos a jugar los gallos
Y en caballo nos vamo pá Caimanera
Ya que en Los Caños siempre gana Campello
Ese gallego no pierde desde antaño

En Caimanera juegan mucho lo Americano
Y por eso espero que triunfe mi gallito sano
Y si gana facil mi gallito bueno
Ahi mismito empieza la parrandera

Pá Guantanamo salimo en caballo
Pá Guantanamo a cojer la borrachera
Pá Guantanamo a tomar un palo bueno
Pá Guantanamo a bailar un son montuno

Pá Guantanamo salgo de Caimanera
Pá Guantanamo a bailar con la jeva entera
Pá Guantanamo a buscar los tragos buenos
Pá Guantanamo en fiesta gallito bueno

Yo nunca má juego en Los Caños
Ya que alli siempre gana ese gallego
Ese Ciclón no pierde de hace muchos años
Y a mi gallo y bolsillo le ha hecho much daño

En Caimanera juegan mucho lo Americano
Y por eso espero que triunfe mi gallito sano
Y si gana facil mi gallito bueno
Ahi mismito empieza la parrandera

Pá Guantanamo salimo en caballo
Pá Guantanamo a cojer la borrachera
Pá Guantanamo a tomar un palo bueno
Pá Guantanamo a bailar un son montuno

Pá Guantanamo salgo de Caimanera
Pá Guantanamo a bailar con la jeva entera
Pá Guantanamo a buscar los tragos buenos
Pá Guantanamo en fiesta gallito bueno

Myth & Transformation Opening

Dr. Claudia Rousseau curated an amazing show. More on that later but for now, that's me sans mustache, Little Junes and the photography legend known as Lida Moser at the opening. Pic courtesy of Laura Seldman.


The show is at the School of Art & Design at Montgomery College's King Street Gallery, located in the beautiful Morris & Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center at 930 King Street in the Montgomery College, Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus.

There will also be an artists' panel tomorrow, Monday, Sept. 27, at noon, for one hour. I will be available at the panel and after the panel to discuss and answer any questions that you may have about anything dealing with the visual arts, career, galleries, etc.

Artists' Talk

At the awards ceremony (for the Marlboro Gallery's 2nd National Juried Sculpture Exhibition) on September 17th, juror Molly Donovan, Associate Curator at the National Gallery of Art, presented awards to Millicent Young, winner of the Kari Beims Sculpture Award for Best in Show, Emily Biondo, 2nd place winner, Karen Bondarchuk, 3rd Place winner, Christina Day, Honorable Mention and Adam Bradley (who is in my 100 Washington Artists book), Honorable Mention.

A total of $3400 in prizes was awarded including the $2000 prize that accompanies the Kari Beims Sculpture Award for Best in Show.

The artists will be discussing their work in an open panel discussion on
Thursday, September 30th, from 11am - 12pm in the Marlboro Gallery.

WALA events this coming week

The Washington Area Lawyers for the Arts has a couple of cool events lined up for this coming week: On Monday 9/27, the Writer's Evening will be hosted at the International Arts & Artists, Hillyer Art Space and Thursday 9/30, an Artful Evening will be hosted at Industry Gallery and Conner Contemporary.

Click on the links for details and tickets.