Touchstone Gallery celebrates 40 years!

Congrats to Touchstone Gallery! In gallery years, 40 is like 200 years for most other businesses!

May 4 – 29, 2016

CHAMPAGNE GALA RECEPTION: Friday, May 13, 6-8:30 PM
Hors d’Oeuvres provided by Acadiana Restaurant
Brazilian music by Tom Rohde, guitar and Pablo Regis de Oliveira, cavaquinho
(Free and open to the public)

GALLERY A
40th Anniversary Show including artwork by 50 current and 40 former gallery artists.

Exhibiting Artists: Lina Alattar, Steve Alderton, David Alfuth, Linda Bankerd, Ann Barbieri, David Beers, Harmon Biddle, Jo Ann Block, Jill E. Brantley, Richard Braswell, Dana Brotman, Chica Brunsvold, Roberto Carvalho, Danny Conant, Marcia Coppel, Tory Cowles, Charlie Dale, Lionel Daniels, Mari DeMaris, Anthony Dortch, Susan De Serio Faden, Susan Feller, Connie Fleres, Elaine Florimonte, Michelle Frazier, Pamela Frederick, Jeanne Garant, Judith Giuliani, Robert Goebel, M. Alexander Gray, Marco Gutierrez Zevallos, Patricia Helsing, Angela Herbert Hodges, Carolyn Johnson, Timothy Johnson, Leslie A. Johnston, Peter Karp, Aleksandra Katargina, Nihal Kececi, Makda Kibour, Ai-Wen Wu Kratz, Chee-Keong Kung, Harvey Kupferberg, Michael Lang, Paula Lantz, Cathy Leaycraft, Carl Lennartson, Francine Livaditis, Teresa RobertsLogan, Carol Lopatin, Marge Loudon Moody, Shelley Lowenstein, Rosemary Luckett, Mary H. Lynch, Kate McConnell, Pete McCutchen, JoAnn McInnis, McCain McMurray, Newton S. More, Bill Mould, Georgia Nassikas, Minna Nathanson, Aina Nergaard-Nammack, Leslie M. Nolan, Nancy Novick, Mary D. Ott , Mark Palmer, Cheryl Parsons, Wendy Plotkin-Mates, Lauren Rader, BD Richardson, Ron Riley, April Rimpo, Michelle Rogers, Colleen Sabo, Amy Sabrin, Claudia Samper, Rhona LK Schonwald, Rima Schulkind, Janathel Shaw, Connie Slack, Janos Somogyi, Maureen M. Squires, Tre, Mary Trent Scott, Lisa Tureson, Rosa Vera, Gail Vogels, Gale Wallar, Jonathan Wassom, Ellyn Weiss, Janet Wheeler, Melissa Widerkehr, Patricia Williams.

GALLERY B
“Do I Know You?” by Paula Lantz
Paula Lantz presents part of an on-going theme of boldly painted and collaged abstracted figures.

GALLERY C
"A Few of my Favorite Things” by Colleen Sabo
This show will feature all new work completed within the past two years in oils. Included will be landscapes, city scenes, florals and still lifes, with an emphasis on French landscapes.

Touchstone Gallery
901 New York Ave NW
Washington DC 20001
Tel: 202-347-2787

Cell: 202-905-7506
E-mail: info@touchstonegallery.com
www.touchstonegallery.com

Open: Wednesday-Friday 11-6, Saturday-Sunday 12-5

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: Friday, July 1, 2016

Artists wishing to be considered for an exhibit in the Howard County Arts Council (HCAC) galleries are invited to submit a general exhibit application. The HCAC Exhibits Committee meets quarterly to review applications and select artists for the exhibit space. Artists, ages 18 and older, working in all media and styles including time-based and installation artists, are encouraged to apply either individually or as a group. The Committee also welcomes proposals from curators and organizations.

 

Detailed entry guidelines are available on the ‘Exhibits’ page of the HCAC website, for pick-up at the Howard County Center for the Arts, or by mail by calling 410-313-2787 or emailing info@hocoarts.org. The next deadline for submissions is Friday, July 1, 2016.

 

HCAC manages two galleries at the Howard County Center for the Arts with over 2100 square feet of exhibit space. The HCAC gallery program was established to enhance the public’s appreciation of the visual arts, provide a venue to exhibit the work of local, regional, and national artists in a professional space, and provide leadership in the arts by presenting a broad spectrum of arts in all media from both emerging and established artists.

 

HCAC presents 11-12 exhibits per year of national, regional, and local artists, including two-person, small and large group, juried, curated, and community shows.

 

Gallery hours are Monday through Friday 10AM - 8PM, Saturday 10AM - 4PM, and Sunday 12 - 4PM.  To learn more about HCAC programs and exhibits, call 410-313-ARTS (2787) or visit hocoarts.org.  

The Batman Brooding Over Robin

Newest piece that marries technology with contemporary drawing: A traditional drawing of The Batman as he sits in the dank bat cave brooding over the death of Robin. In the embedded video we have a 6.5 minute embedded video loop that focuses on the relationship between the Dark Knight and The Boy Wonder.


The background, as usual, contains a series of double encrypted messages (in the "cracks" on the wall. Click on the images for a larger version.





The Batman in The Batcave (Brooding Over Robin)
Charcoal, conte and Embedded Appropriated Video. Circa 2013
Framed to 30x40 inches.

Call for photographers: Photo '16

Entry deadline:June 30, 2016


Photo ‘16 is a national juried fine art photography exhibit at Multiple Exposures Gallery at the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, Virginia. 

We are extremely pleased that Sam Abell, long-time National Geographic photographer who contributed some of the most intriguing and memorable images in the Geographic, will be the juror for this competition and exhibit.

All photographers living in the U.S., 18 years or older working in traditional, digital or alternative photographic processes are eligible to participate.


Exhibit dates: October 18, 2016 - November 27, 2016
Awards and Reception: Saturday, October 29, 2016: 2pm-4pm


Details here.

Tonight

Come talk to the critics and meet the artist for the closing of 'The Critiqued' at The Otis Street Art Project.

We are honored to have our distinguished critics F. Lennox Campello, Adah Rose Bitterbaum, Michael O’Sullivan to return. We will revisit common artistic issues discussed throughout the year and the critiqued experience.

Doors open at 6pm
Panel 6:30-7:30pm
Party 7:30-8:30pm

Exhibiting Artists:
Zofie Lang
Christian Tribastone
Ceci Cole McInturff
Amy Hughes Braden
Jose Fernandez
Alexandra Silverthorne
Fallon Chase
Amber Robles-Gordon
Joan Belmar
Katie Pumphrey
Steven Durow
Jacqui Crocetta
Stephanie Booth

If you have not seen this show yet it's a must see. They are open Saturdays 12-5, Tue-Fri by appointment.

 See the review in the Washington Post here.


Otis Street Arts Project
3706 Otis Street
Mount Rainier, MD 20712
202.550.4634
mailto:Info@OtisStreetArts.org
OtisStreetArts.org

Spectacular Children Art

First some images of kindergarten artwork from Sidwell Friends Lower School, followed by a video of the SFS Lower School Art show... some of this work is just breath-taking!  The video is all the way at the bottom...

Art Scam Alert!

Be careful with this mutant:

From:

Susan Martez (info1@barbedtapewire.com)

Dear Frien

 

We are interested in purchasing your product,

Kindly reply us with your company business terms and conditions so that we can place a trial order ASAP

Waiting for your timely reply

Best regard

Susan Martez

Purchasing Manager

Lumach Groups Company Limited

Address: 055 Quatics blk

North CarolinaZip:610026

United state.

Tele:1-870-399047204

sale@lumachgroups.com

Paintings ‘stolen’ from the Internet

It’s a show called “Can t you sue ppl for stealing tweets isn’t that playjarism?” and it consists of 15 oil paintings, none of which were made by Lavoie. He didn’t even see them until the day they were installed, though he came up with the ideas, negotiated with subcontractors and signed off on every stage of the work. He did everything that a creative director and project manager would do at an ad agency, except that he didn’t have to get a client’s approval.

Read here the details of this fascinating approach to 21st century art (which in variant forms has been employed by artists since the atelier was invented). 

$25,000 reward for stolen Warhol prints

Sometime between the evening of April 6 and the morning of April 7, thieves broke in to the Springfield Art Museum and stole seven screen prints by pop artist Andy Warhol, and as of today, April 22, they are still missing. The prints were part of a series of ten prints depicting Campbell’s Soup cans and were some of Warhol’s most famous and recognizable work.

Read the whole story here, and then read here why these prints can only be sold on the black market and whoever buys them has to know that they're stolen. 

Next month...

Bethesda Fine Arts Festival
May 14, 10am - 6pm and May 15, 10am - 5pm

130 artists from throughout the United States and Canada will converge in Bethesda's  Woodmont Triangle for the Bethesda Fine Arts Festival. Along with booths of fine art and fine craft, the festival will feature live musical, great eats from Bethesda restaurants and a children's activity area. 

Join them for a unique shopping experience in downtown Bethesda. Browse jewelry, furniture, painting, photography, sculpture and more. 

Admission to the festival is free and free parking is available in the public parking garage on Auburn Avenue. This event is held rain or shine.

More info.

$25K painting competition

Canton, OH is the birthplace of the NFL. ArtsinStark, the County Arts Council, invites any professional artist living in America to submit concept for a $25,000 commission to create a painting celebrating the fact that in 1946 --- a full year before Jackie Robinson began playing professional baseball ---- 4 African American football players brought about the permanent reintegration of pro football: Marion Motley, Bill Willis, Woody Strode, and Kenny Washington.

This call is just for a concept for the painting.

The artist selected in May will receive $25,000 to create the painting. ArtsinStark will display the painting, and also use the image to celebrate this important historical moment in other forms, including making it into a large mural for the Canton Arts District as part of The ELEVEN project. Details of call at www.artsinstark.com/91 Go to www.CallForEntry.org to submit concept by May 6. See trailer for “Forgotten Four”

Free Parking: Salon-Style Conversation at the Alper!‏

May 5th

5:30-7:00 pm

Join the Alper for the second session of Free Parking, a series of salon-style conversations in the Alper Initiative for Washington Art. It could get rowdy as we review the life and art of musicians in the 70s and 80s DC Punk and New Wave music scenes. Special guests Bill Warrell and Michael Olshonsky.

This event is free and open to anyone interested in discussing the art and artists of the Washington Metropolitan area. Space is limited.

 RSVP is required.

More Info

Wanna go to a cool panel + closing party this Saturday?

Come talk to the critics and meet the artist for the closing of 'The Critiqued' at The Otis Street Art Project.

We are honored to have our distinguished critics F. Lennox Campello, Adah Rose Bitterbaum, Michael O’Sullivan to return. We will revisit common artistic issues discussed throughout the year and the critiqued experience.

Doors open at 6pm
Panel 6:30-7:30pm
Party 7:30-8:30pm

Exhibiting Artists:
Zofie Lang
Christian Tribastone
Ceci Cole McInturff
Amy Hughes Braden
Jose Fernandez
Alexandra Silverthorne
Fallon Chase
Amber Robles-Gordon
Joan Belmar
Katie Pumphrey
Steven Durow
Jacqui Crocetta
Stephanie Booth

If you have not seen this show yet it's a must see. They are open Saturdays 12-5, Tue-Fri by appointment.

 See the review in the Washington Post here.


Otis Street Arts Project
3706 Otis Street
Mount Rainier, MD 20712
202.550.4634
mailto:Info@OtisStreetArts.org
OtisStreetArts.org

(Re)Invention: Art + Innovation + Disability + Design

Entry Deadline: 6/1/16


First Prize $20,000! A juried exhibition of emerging young artists with disabilities, ages 16-25, showcasing artwork created at the intersection of technology, innovation, and disability. 15 finalists share a total of $60,000 in cash prizes, with a 1st prize of $20,000.

Details here.

The Looking Glass: Artist Immigrants to Washington

The Looking Glass: Artist Immigrants to Washington

June 18–August 14, 2016

Opening Reception: June 18, 6-8PM

 

Naul Oleja, Fleeing From the Storm, 1981

The Alper Initiative for Washington Art presents the work of ten artists who immigrated to Washington, DC from Latin America under duress during the past fifty years, found homes in Washington, and made or are making positive contributions to our artistic culture and quality of life.

 

The exhibition features work by artists:

• Joan Belmar
• Jose Ygnacio Bermudez
• Lenny Campello
• Irene Clouthier
• Juan Downey
• Ric Garcia
• Muriel Hasbun
• Frida Larios
• Carolina Mayorga
• Naul Ojeda

Artists who left their homes in Chile, Colombia, Cuba, El Salvador, Mexico, and Uruguay.

 

American University Museum

Tel: 202-885-1300

Fax: 202-885-1140

museum@american.edu

 

4400 Massachusetts Ave NW

Washington, DC 20016

 

Admission Free

Parking Free (weekends)

Tue-Sun, 11:00-4:00

Fully Accessible

See Directions

 

The art of money

The recent decision to replace Andrew Jackson with Harriet Tubman, like nearly anything in the last few years, seems to have multiple political and social angles and views, depending on where your dogma lies.


The right wing should be rejoicing, as Tubman was a strong supporter of gun rights, and a vibrant activist for the Republican Party.  Jackson, on the other hand, was a Democrat.


As a result, essentially a Republican has replaced a Democrat on the twenty spot... not just any Democrat, but the founder of the Democratic Party!... cough, cough.


Personally, I'm more interested in the art angle aspect of this decision, hoping against all odds that the new Tubman $20 bill will be a bit more "artsy" than existing US money.


While the US dollar is the king of the hill when it comes to money, there's a vast chasm in art appeal in American money from many other countries.


Don't get me wrong, most countries have pretty boring bills, more often than not copying the style of the US dollar. Even the dirty, rotten Commies in Cuba use the "dollar style" here and there, such as in the case of the homophobic, racist, mass murderer Che Guevara three pesos bill:

And OK, the twenty Euro bill doesn't even look like money, but more like a coupon that you get in the mail or a ticket to a soccer game, or 20% discount at AC Moore's.

But before the Euro took over, European denominations were works of art in their diverse and colorful beauty. Check out the beautiful landscape in this Spanish 1000 peseta bill:

Or art!  See how Delacroix and the other figures look like rough drawing sketches from his Liberty Leading the People (La liberté guidant le people) 1830 painting?, not to mention bare tits, on this French 100 francs bill:

We will never see a woman's breasts on any American money - ever!


In Latin America, a few decades ago, most currency bills had the same style as the US dollar - but the introduction of technology to reduce fake bills also brought an opportunity to revamp their bills, and even to introduce women imagery - an interesting accomplishment in these macho societies. My favorite? Frida Kahlo in the Mexican 500 pesos bill. She's on the back, and her husband, the very ugly Diego Rivera, is on the front... cough, cough.

African countries also have gorgeous money, and plenty of females on their currency. Cameroon, in particular, has some beautiful women on their bills, although they seem to have an odd fixation with blue-eyed African women?

And then Costa Rica rocks the animal world with this super cool image of a Great White:



Or this beautiful butterfly:

But to get back on topic (boring US currency design), perhaps the new $20 bill could start by taking baby steps. How about if the image of Tubman breaks the usual compositional plane of the rectangular dollar note? Have Tubman really breaking out of the composition and leading American currency to new design heights?


Nearly all the suggested designs here are boring, although a few do take my suggestion and break the compositional plane.


This image below (via) begins to really re-composition US money, although it stands a snowball's chance in hell to ever be in any bill - but it has the artistic compositional elements that I visualize (breaking the plane of the rectangle).

Baby steps...

Opportunities for Artists

Opportunities 
             

Artists Can Apply to Plein Air Festivals
Plein Air painting is a phrase borrowed from the French meaning "open air” and is used to describe the act of painting outdoors where an artist reproduces the visual conditions at the time of the painting. Maryland is home to a dozen Plein Air festivals. Below are upcoming opportunities for artists to participate:

• 2016 Solomons Plein Air Festival application and prospectus are available now for the September 12-18 event. Applications accepted through April 15. Click here to apply.
• Howard County Arts Council seeks artists to take part in the juried portion of Paint It! Ellicott City 2016. The annual Paint-Out is July 7-10 in Ellicott City. A minimum of $5,000 in total awards go to participating artists. Deadline is April 29. Register here.
• Art League of Ocean City’s 2016 Plein Air event is August 11-14. Registration is open. Artists will take to the boardwalk, streets, harbors, bay and marshes. Register here.
• Harford County Second International Plein Air Art Festival is Oct. 10-15. Click here to find out about future registration dates.

Campello at auction

This gorgeous framed 1999 limited edition print of mine just showed up for sale on the secondary market, and they're taking offers. Check it out here.

Sunbather
Limited Edition Print
Framed to 16x20 inches
c. 1999 by F. Lennox Campello

Scary dude

Florencio Lennox Campello
Self Portrait, c. April 16, 2016

DCCAH Launches FY17 Arts and Humanities Grants

On Thursday, April 14, 2016, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH) launched its project and arts and humanities fellowship grant programs for funding in Fiscal Year 2017. Funding opportunities are available for District artists and humanities professionals and non-profit organizations.

"Public funding for the arts and humanities is an investment in our local artists and cultural organizations that actively support and grow our creative economy," said Arthur Espinoza, Jr., Executive Director of DCCAH. "These grant funds will help support a wide range of activities and programs for the benefit of District residents."

Applications for nine different grant programs are currently being accepted, with deadlines to apply beginning May 18, 2016. Grant applications are reviewed by independent panels of arts and humanities professionals and community members who make recommendations to the DCCAH Board of Commissioners.

DCCAH will offer workshops in April and May to provide assistance for applicants. Additionally, applicants may schedule a meeting with a member of the DCCAH grants department for assistance in preparing an application.

For a complete listing of grant programs and guidelines, and to submit an application, visit www.dcarts.dc.gov.