Ruth Trevarrow this Sunday

Painter Ruth Trevarrow "dares us to see the lush beauty in bare bones, with a collection of powerful shapes and lines distilled from skeletal remains."

Please join her at the beautiful Athenaeum in Old Town Alexandria for the opening reception on Sunday, March 6 from 4 to 6 pm.


On Sunday, March 20 at 4 pm, Trevarrow will be joined by scientists from the Smithsonian Institution to discuss the relationship between her art and the bone collections that inspired the works in the exhibit.

I think that this artist is one of great "undiscovered" jewels in the DMV. Don't miss this show.

Major DMV Gallery to close

Have heard from a couple of artists that a major DMV area gallery, which has been around for almost two decades has announced to them that it will close its physical location.

As this gallery is one of the few DMV galleries that does the major art fairs, I suspect that they will now just become an online dealer and simply continue to do the art fairs.

Update: I think that I broke this story, but Lou Jacobson confirms it in the Washington City Paper... Fraser Gallery will close.

Update 2: Heather over at DCist gets the credit for breaking the story... see it here.

Update 3: artdc has an interesting string of artists' comments about Fraser closing; read them here.

Opportunity for Artists

APPLICATION DEADLINE: May 2, 2011
NOTIFICATION DATE: May 23, 2011
EXHIBITION DATES: June 22, 2011 - August 21, 2011
OPENING RECEPTION: June 24, 2011, 6 to 9 PM

PLANNING PROCESS: Drawings and Finished Works at Arlington Arts Center.

Juror: Helen Allen, former creator and Executive Director of PULSE Art Fairs, former Executive Director of Ramsay Art Fairs, and current partner for the upcoming (e)merge art fair in Washington DC.

PLANNING PROCESS is a juried drawing show with a difference: All of the drawings selected for inclusion must be studies created in preparation for finished artworks.

Winning studies will be shown alongside finished pieces in a variety of media: A sculptor or a painter could show sketches alongside finished objects . . . a video artist could show storyboards alongside video . . . an installation artist could show plans alongside photos documenting a finished project--or a recreation of that project onsite.

Artists can submit images of up to three projects, and four preparatory drawings per finished project. The juror will pick as many projects from a given artist as she likes, and as few or as many studies connected to each project that she would like to feature.

BOTTOM LINE:

- This show is open to cutting edge contemporary artists working in any/all media, and who live or work in Virginia, Washington DC, Maryland, West Virginia, Delaware, or Pennsylvania.
- You may submit images of up to THREE PROJECTS: Up to four images of preparatory drawings may be submitted for each project; submit one JPEG of each finished 2-D work; up to TWO JPEGs of 3-D works; and MPEGs no longer than five minutes for video works.

Application here.

Armory Week in NYC

The Armory fair starts tomorrow in NYC, and this year an ever growing number of satellite fairs tag along, including a first for Brooklyn!

It's a little puzzling to some why it seems like (in the US) art fairs only tend to be successful in Miami and New York - and the best evidence of that is the growing number of satellite fairs which tag along Art Basel Miami Beach in Florida and Armory in NYC.

Moving Image, a fair dedicated to video, makes its debut this year, and it is offering free admission! The fair is co-founded by Edward Winkelman of Winkleman Gallery and Penny Pilkington and Wendy Olsoff of PPOW Gallery, continuing the trend of gallerists starting their own art fairs.

DMV galleries are mostly staying home this year, but Conner Contemporary is at the Armory show itself, and Civilian is at Scope, while Richmond's ADA and Norfolk's Mayer Fine Arts are in other satellite fairs.

Deborah Kahn at the WSS

The Washington Studio School will present a drawing exhibition of work by Deborah Kahn. The show will be on view March 21 to April 23.

Join them Friday, March 25 for Events with the Artist:

Workshop*: 2pm-4pm

Slide Lecture: 5pm-6pm

Reception: 6pm-8pm

Registration is required for workshop ($55). Register here. Space is limited, sign-up early! Slide lecture and reception are FREE.

RSVP kindly appreciated to 202-234-3030 or admin@washingtonstudioschool.org. Deborah Kahn's paintings will be also on view this spring at the Bowery Gallery in NYC from April 26 through May 21.

DC artist John Grazier pops in

 Hello,

I just experimented with a new marketing tool:  two youtube videos.  One, to sell a 40"X60" painting of an apple, "Big Apple," the 'hook' of the video being photos of New York and a soundtrack of music from the 1940s and 1960s, -- and as you must know, New York being called the big apple.  This video is about five minutes long, "Big Apple, New York, New York."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrJnzEo7Pik

The second is a video montage of about twenty drawings and paintings, with a chamber music soundtrack, "Years of Dreams in Minutes," less than two minutes long.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKQZ5dMY0dA

I am sending this email to all recipients in my list of contacts.  If you receive a duplicate of an earlier email, I apologize.

I have posted two videos about my paintings on youtube.

It is best to click on the hyperlinks instead of the youtube icons at the bottom of the page; then select full screen

Also, if you don't already know, I have a new website, www.grazierart.com.

John

John is one of the most talented artists in our region - a true master of drawing and painting! 

On Strike from the Huffington Post

Just received the below from Bill Lasarow, Publisher and Editor of ArtScene / Visual Art Source

When ArtScene and Visual Art Source was invited to become a Huffington Post blogger last year I, as publisher and editor of both publications, understood that the company paid nothing. We surveyed our writers’ reactions to assess their willingness to have their material reposted there for no additional pay. Visual Art Source, ArtScene and art ltd. (http://www.visualartsource.com) form an umbrella art publishing company that is actually quite large by the standards of our very specialized field. The tens of thousands of readers and online users that we boast, however, are miniscule compared to the 26 million visitors per month that the Huffington Post currently draws.

Yet we are now going on strike. For now, at least, no more content from us will appear on the Huffington Post.

And just like the corporate titans of the American Right, it would come as no surprise if Ms Huffington, whom I am certain has a good heart and only the best intentions, were to assume the obvious position: Who needs these people anyway? They are not even employees.

Nonetheless, we shall remain on strike until these two demands are met. First, a pay schedule must be proposed and steps initiated to implement it for all contributing writers and bloggers. Second, paid promotional material must no longer be posted alongside editorial content; a press release or exhibition catalogue essay is fundamentally different from editorial content and must be either segregated and indicated as such, or not published at all.

I am also calling upon all others now contributing free content, particularly original content to the Huffington Post to also join us in this strike.

We think it is incumbent upon the many writers and bloggers to form a negotiating partnership with Huffington/AOL in order to pursue these and other important matters so as to professionalize this relationship. It is not entirely Ms Huffington’s fault that so many talented professionals have been willing to accept the company’s terms on an “in kind” basis. Surely most do so in the hopes of achieving their own fame and fortune thanks to the great exposure that Huffington Post potentially offers. Unfortunately, such participants are only complicit in a relationship that fails the ethical smell test. And those who are already nationally known figures who will never need to be concerned about pay scales, shame on you, you should know better.

It is unethical to expect trained and qualified professionals to contribute quality content for nothing. It is unethical to cannibalize the investment of other organizations who bear the cost of compensation and other overhead without payment for the usage of their content. It is extremely unethical to not merely blur but eradicate the distinction between the independent and informed voice of news and opinion and the voice of a shill.

None of this is illegal, only unethical and oh so very hypocritical, so Ms Huffington if you insist do carry on, by all means. However we are taking this action, with the full knowledge of our contributing writers and editors, in the belief that your better angels will enable you to do the right thing. We stand ready to provide whatever helpful input we can.

For further information please contact Bill Lasarow, Publisher and Co-Editor of ArtScene / Visual Art Source, (213) 482-4724, artscene@artscenecal.com / billl@visualartsource.com

Tonight: Select's Curators Talk



Tonight is one of the The Washington Project for the Arts' (WPA) big events of the year, as their Annual Art Auction Exhibition and Gala, SELECT kicks into high gear tonight with the Curators' View event from 6:30 pm to 9:00 pm. The event is free and open to the public.

At the Curators' View, each Select curator will present and discuss their exhibition selections. In addition, WPA's prized Alice Denney Award will be presented by Robert Lehrman to Washington-based artist William Christenberry for his support of WPA and sustained commitment to the DC arts community.

Then Saturday, March 12, 2011 marks the 30th anniversary of the organization's well-known arts gala that includes a curated silent auction of more than 100 contemporary works by top contemporary artists, formal dinner, and performance art.

The events will be held at 700 Sixth Street, an Akridge-managed property, in northwest Washington on top of Chinatown; it is expected to draw over 500 art enthusiasts. You can see the selected works online here.

Meet Joel D’Orazio tomorrow

Art chairs, sculpture and abstract painting by architect turned painter/sculptor Joel D’Orazio. New as a Zenith Gallery artist, D’Orazio will be featured in a solo show, Listen to Me, at the Gallery at 1111 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, curated by Zenith Gallery.

The show opened on February 7 and will remain on display through May 13, with a “Meet the Artist” Reception on Wednesday, March 2, 5:30pm to 8:00pm.

Blake Gopnik busts the NYT!

Ahhh... did the grey old lady get caught ripping off an artist? .... and who may have caught the NYT?

Applause for the Gopnikmeister!

Read about it here.

But as Blake points out towards the end of the piece... there is no real copyright issue here... if you copy Dali's La persistència de la memòria then you have broken the law.

But if you paint your own melting watch, then you've just stood on the shoulders of a giant.

Still.... bravo Gopnik!

Sunday Funnies (ahem) Stamps


I know I'm gonna get killed for this, but here I discussed when I detected possible pornography in the American stamp issue of Sunday Funnies, and here I broke out one of the first two possibly sexualized panels (yay!) in our sexy nation's stamps history.

But as Tery Gilliam predicted in his groundbreaking film Brazil, all of you are too chicken to come forward (other than the dozen plus emails I've received... offline) to "see" the Onanist issue here.

Wait till tomorrow for me to tell you what Odie The Onanist is doing.

Antonia Ramis Miguel at Watergate

Spanish-born artist Antonia Ramis Miguel has a show coming (March 5th - April 2nd, 2011) at The Watergate Gallery in DC.

The Reception is this Saturday, March 5th 6-8pm and there's an Artist talk on Tuesday, March 15th at 6pm.

Antonia Ramis Miguel was born in Spain in 1963 and has been painting since childhood. She studied with Edgardo and Alceu Ribeiro, students of the renowned constructivist Joaquin Torres-Garcia. In this exhibition Antonia Ramis Miguel continues with her approach to Constructivist art. Her oil paintings combine the strength of structured line, color and abstraction creating a dramatic visual effect that arranges the parts of a subject into a whole. She spent several years studying the techniques of, among others, Rubens, Sargent, Velazquez and Vermeer. Miguel spent four years painting and teaching in Washington D.C. before moving to London where her palette was influenced by the greys of the sky and bricks of the buildings. The influence of her native Spain, particularly the use of saturated color, is however still visible in her work. She has shown her work in individual and collective exhibitions in her native Spain, the United Kingdom, Austria and the United States.

500 children, 500 cameras, 500 moments

Photojournalist Ramzi Haidar launched the project Glimpse (Lahza in Arabic) to bring together photographers, journalists and artists with children ages 5-12 in Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon. The children worked with these volunteers for one year to learn the basics of photography. The images they produced with their cameras are entirely their own, giving them a power to reveal a reality rarely seen. Large scale photos and books about the project are on display at the Jerusalem Fund Gallery.

At the The Jerusalem Fund Gallery (2425 Virginia Ave. NW, Washington DC 20037). From March 11– April 8, 2011 with an Opening reception on Friday March 11, 6-8 PM.

A Bissel Smaller

I was raised in Brooklyn, and all my early jobs were working in the stores and delis around Pitkin and Belmont Avenues in Brooklyn. I've also spent several months living and exploring Israel.

Why am I talking about this? Because I think those life experiences give me a solid background in opining about Jewish delis, and in my opinion, the DMV's Parkway Deli is amongst the best on this planet.

Not only do they make excellent Jewish fare, but I also like that no matter when you get there on a weekend there's always a huge line (I'm not sure why I like this, but it is reassuring), and that the crowd is so diverse, covering all four races and countless ethnicities; clearly the quality of the food draws all hungry facets of mankind.

Yesterday I ordered my usual: matzoh ball soup and the deli twins (a mound of corned beef and a mound of pastrami on two onion rolls with a side). My wife ordered a large salad and a side of spinach (that's why she's a fideo).

When the delicious soup arrived, I noticed that they had a new set of serving dishes; more modern and square; I even complimented the waiter on how cool they looked.

As I began to eat my soup and my wife her salad, we both noticed something: the new dishes were quite a bit smaller than the old dinnerware! I'm not talking 10% smaller, but maybe 25 - 35% smaller.

Feh! And I will admit that the old soup sizes were quite generous, and the deli twins were the same size, but it kinda bummed me out a little that my favorite dish in the whole joint is now a lot less soup for the same amount of sheckels.

PS - If you are a carrot cake buff (like I am), The Parkway Deli has one of the best carrot cakes in this Universe.

Cudlin in the WaPo

Just read Jeffry's most excellent (although I disagree with his closing paragraph) review of the Picasso show at VMFA.

For some reason, there's no link online yet, but it is a huge review about the 20th century's most important artist.

One Picasso relationship that is seldom explored when the illuminati discuss Picasso's African influences is the very direct influence that one of Picasso's young friends' artwork had upon the Malaga-born master (and viceversa)

I'm referring to Wifredo Lam, the Afro-Chinese Cuban-born painter who became one of Picasso's best friends when Lam arrived in Paris in the late 30s and whose focus on African imagery (according to Lam anyway) received a lot of admiration and attention from Pablo The P.

Cudlin goes yard with this review; and kudos to VMFA for bringing this spectacular show to the Mid Atlantic.

See Alex Nyerges, Director of the VMFA, talk about this show:

Torpedo Factory Art Center Visiting Artist Program

Deadline: February 28, 2011.

The Torpedo Factory Art Center invites emerging and experienced artists to apply for one, two, or three-month residencies between June 1 and August 31, 2011.

The Torpedo Factory Art Center (www.torpedofactory.org) in Alexandria, Virginia is home to more than 140 visual artists working in 82 studios. Artists create in a wide variety of media including painting, fiber, jewelry, ceramics, printmaking, cast and stained glass, and sculpture. The Torpedo Factory is open to the public every day; visitors are invited and welcomed into studios to watch artists at work, ask questions, and purchase original art – allowing the public an opportunity to share in the excitement and fascination of the creative process.

The projects undertaken by Visiting Artists for this self-directed, creative residency must be compatible with available working studio spaces and facilities.

Visiting Artists will be provided with studio space and will be able to display and sell original work.

Finalists will be selected by yours truly. There is no application fee.

Download the Prospectus and Application Form from www.torpedofactory.org/vap.

Tonight in Norfolk

Several DMV area artists, such as Tim Tate, Andrew Wodzianski and yours truly are in MFA's Winter show. The reception is February 26, from 7-9PM.

MFA is easily and by far (in my clearly subjective opinion, but easily checked out), Norfolk's top fine arts gallery, with a gorgeous location on the city's waterfront.

Mayer Fine Art
333 Waterside Drive
Norfolk, VA 23510
(757) 803-4749

Porno Stamps? Odie, what are you doing?


Perhaps I'm a big fan of hidden clues and messages in artwork. I do this all the time in my own work - hide clues, figures, words, etc. in the shadowing or lines, etc. - and I'm always looking at visual imagery from a "hidden image" perspective. I'd love to say that it comes from a cool artsy background, but in reality it stems from the whole scandal of the subliminal nudes claimed to be hidden in the ice cubes of some commercials when I was a teen.

Today I bought some stamps, including two sheets of the new Sunday Funnies stamps recently issued by the US Post Office. When I looked at them for the first time, a couple of things in two of the panels jumped at me and I did a double take.

I don't want to plant any further ideas in your head, so just look at the Garfield panel above and then take a closer look at Odie with the perspective of looking for something sexual hidden in plain sight through the magic of lines and shapes.

More on Odie and what I see him doing tomorrow... but now I'll decipher Archie for you.

Archie and Betty Looking for a Ménage à trois?



And nu? Look at the way that Archie and Betty are both looking at Veronica; not at each other. And then there are two hearts popping out of Betty's head as she stares dreamily at bad, rich girl Veronica.

Veronica smiles coyly, eyes closed, but her hand shows the hand signal for "swing."

Now look at the little blue "bar codes" underneath the three characters' arms; if you break that to binary code (notice that there are "fat" and "thin" lines or "zeroes" and "ones") then it breaks to 11010011, which is this character: Ó

Accent on the "O" - Text for the Big "O"?

It gets better; If you translate 11010011 to base64, then you get this penis emoticon character: 0w==

Fun with American stamps and The Lenster...

Opportunities for Artists

Deadline: April 30, 2011.

Call for Entries: The Graceful Envelope Contest - Artists everywhere are invited to participate in the 2011 Graceful Envelope Contest, conducted by the Washington (DC) Calligraphers Guild under the sponsorship of the National Association of Letter Carriers.

There is no entry fee.

This year's theme is "Time Flies," so design an envelope that explores good times, quality time, the times of our lives, time travel, or any other idea you have time to develop.

Address the envelope artistically to:

The Graceful Envelope Contest
Washington Calligraphers Guild
P.O. Box 3688
Merrifield, VA 22116

This is the contest's 17th year. The Smithsonian Institution's National Postal Museum created and administered it until delegating responsibility to the Washington Calligraphers Guild in 2001. The National Association of Letter Carriers exhibits the winners, which are also exhibited online at www.calligraphersguild.org. The complete Call for Entries (including categories for children) is posted on the Washington Calligraphers Guild website or you may contact contest coordinator Lorraine Swerdloff at swerdloff@gmail.com.

Sunday Funnies: Porno Stamps?

Don't shoot the messenger, but am I the only one who sees a little too much in the new Sunday Funnies stamp set from the US Post Office?


Has some stamp-designing-artist at the USPS pulled a fast one on the ole Post Office?

Study the stamps and later on tonight or tomorrow I will reveal what I see, to see if you see what I see...