775 works in miniature at Strathmore

Beginning the weekend of the 17th, the 85th Annual Exhibition of Fine Art in Miniature features 775 works in miniature—handmade pieces as small as a thumbnail or postage stamp—created by 274 artists from eight countries, as far away as Australia, Israel, and South Africa. 

Local artists also found inspiration on the grounds of Strathmore in Montgomery County Plein Air Artists, and Baltimore painter Nick Eisele blends techniques of Old World masters with chiaroscuro techniques (experimenting with light and shadow). 

Girl with Golden Earrings by Michael W. Coe

Related Events

Opening Reception Fine Art in Miniature and Oil + Light, Sun, Nov 18, 2pm
Opening Reception Montgomery County Plein Air Artists, Sun, Nov 25, 12pm
Kids Talk and Tour Sat, Nov 24, 10:15am
Recorrido de Arte para Niños en Español Sa, 24 de nov, 11:30am
Curator’s Tour Sat, Nov 24, 1pm
Visita del Curador en Español Sat, 24 de Nov, 2pm
Miniature Painting Workshop Sun, Dec 9, 10am

First Joint Acquisition Between the Two Smithsonian Museums!

I didn't even know that this was an option - but makes sense!

The Smithsonian American Art Museum and the Smithsonian's Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden have jointly acquired Arthur Jafa's (b. 1960) iconic video "Love is the Message, The Message is Death" (2016). Considered a breakout work when it debuted in 2016, the single-channel video signaled a shift in approach to contemporary American discourse on race and politics through the use of CCTV, documentaries, YouTube and social media footage alongside Jafa's own personal home movies.

This is the first joint acquisition between the Smithsonian's two museums most active in collecting contemporary art. Both museums have a long-standing commitment to the acquisition and presentation of contemporary moving-image works. "Love is the Message, The Message is Death" was recently on view as a highlight of the Hirshhorn's exhibition "The Message: New Media Works," which closed in September.

"Jafa stands as one of the most provocative artists working today, and we are delighted to partner with our colleagues at the Smithsonian American Art Museum to acquire this seminal work for the museums' permanent collections," said Hirshhorn Director Melissa Chiu. "Unapologetically bold, his work has the unique ability to resonate with viewers of all backgrounds, and it is a testament to the potential of new media to reflect and respond to the issues of our time."

"By jointly acquiring Jafa's majestic video, SAAM and the Hirshhorn will build on the unique opportunities for understanding the work that each collection provides to visitors to the Smithsonian," said Stephanie Stebich, the Margaret and Terry Stent Director of the Smithsonian American Art Museum. "As part of SAAM's collection, Jafa's piece resonates powerfully with more than three centuries of artists engaging with America's racial complexities. Within the context of the Hirshhorn's international contemporary art galleries, it stands as a defining work of 21st-century media art."

"Love is the Message, The Message is Death" is a moving montage of original and appropriated footage, exploring the mix of joy and pain, transcendence and tragedy that characterize the African American experience at this historical moment. Set to Kanye West's gospel-inflected song "Ultralight Beam," the seven-and-a-half-minute piece swells with spiritually uplifting but candid lyrics; the music occasionally recedes allowing poignant snippets of dialogue to come to the fore. This tightly controlled editing echoes the intricate rhythmic structures of jazz, soul and hip-hop, while the source selection perfectly captures the range of mediation through which contemporary viewers experience and understand race in America. Getty-watermarked footage nods to the commercial afterlife of civil rights leaders and riots; silent-era film and sensationalized news clips link constructions of blackness across a century of moving images; and camera-phone-recorded YouTube-distributed videos highlight how personal moments can now become shockingly public, whether through choice or necessity.

About the Artist

For 20 years, Jafa has straddled the worlds of filmmaking and fine art. Since serving as director of photography on Julie Dash's groundbreaking Daughters of the Dust in 1991, Jafa has worked as a cinematographer on major films, such as John Akomfrah's Seven Songs for Malcolm X (1993), Spike Lee's Crooklyn (1994) and Nefertite Nguvu's In the Morning (2014), as well as on music videos for artists such as Jay-Z and Solange. He started showing work in art contexts in 1999, and was included the Whitney Museum of American Art's Biennial in 2000.A recent solo exhibition entitled "A Series of Utterly Improbably, Yet Extraordinary Renditions" debuted at the Serpentine Gallery in London in 2017 and is currently touring in Europe. A solo exhibition featuring new, commissioned work opens at the Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive Dec. 12. Jafa's work is in private and public collections worldwide, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, The Studio Museum in Harlem, the High Museum in Atlanta, the Dallas Museum of Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago and the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam.

Jafa was born in Tupelo, Mississippi, studied at Howard University in Washington, D.C., and currently resides in Los Angeles. He is represented by Gavin Brown's enterprise.

The Hidden Censorsip of Public Art

The FaceBookian Empire exploded last week when this happened (as detailed in WaPo article):

On Monday, the city’s arts agency added sweeping language to already approved grants requiring that artists and arts organizations avoid producing work that could be considered lewd, vulgar or political or be at risk of losing their funds.

The arts community protested, saying the amended contract infringed on their First Amendment rights. The DCCAH capitulated.

Read the whole article by Peggy McGlone here.

As I noted in several social media responses to this "reversal",  the censorship decision may be rescinded on paper... 

But... couhc, cough...

This isn't really much of a change... In fact - as noted in at least a trillion times in multiple posts over the decades in this blog, this censorship was already being done on the down low for decades and decades by arts commissions and arts organizations all over this great nation.

I suspect that the last time that DC as a city (Arts Commission, City, Federal, 1% for the Arts, Airport, etc.) - or for that fact, just about any other American city or state, or federal government arts entity - museums notwithstanding - acquired (for example) a nude work of art was probably during and by the WPA! 

Can you imagine what the reaction would be today, if anyone today designed naked statues such as the Roman Legionnaires in Union Station? 

Or the Sappho statue in Arlington cemetery? 

Prudes of all kinds would throw a moral fit! The PC crowd would go mad!

Feh! Betcha that nothing changes...

Del Ray Artisans' Holiday Market

Del Ray Artisans' 23rd Annual Fine Art & Fine Craft Holiday Market

First 3 Weekends in December 2018

(November 30-December 2, December 7-9

December 14-16)

Del Ray Artisans annual Holiday Market offers unique handmade fine arts and crafts from local artists. Different artists each weekend! Choose from wall art, pottery, photography, jewelry, glass, and much more! 

Plus FUNdraising 2019 wall calendars, cookbooks, and upcycled tote bags to support Del Ray Artisans. 

Free admission. 

Market is Nov 30-Dec 2, Dec 7-9, and Dec 14-16. Fridays 6-9pm and Saturdays & Sundays 11am-6pm. 2704 Mount Vernon Avenue, Alexandria. 

Details: DelRayArtisans.org/event/holiday-market-2018

15th Anniversary Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party

15th Anniversary Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party Saturday, November 17, 2018 Corcoran School of the Arts & Design PURCHASE TICKETS HERE!

In celebration of their 15th Anniversary Auction on November 17, artists from Transformer's past, present, and future discuss their art practices and the role Transformer has played in their work and the art community at large. Video featuring interviews with Amy Hughes Braden, Maps Glover, Rex Delafkaran, David Ibata, Carolina Mayorga, Joseph Orzal, Johab Silva, Naoko Wowsugi, and Georgie Payne, Exhibitions & Programs Manager at Transformer. Performances by Maps Glover, Khari Malik, Sifu Sun & guests. Produced in partnership with 2018 Auction Media Sponsor, Brightest Young Things. Video & Editing by William Sarmiento.

PURCHASE TICKETS HERE! 2018TRANSFORMERAUCTION.EVENTBRITE.COM Early bird discount ticket pricing of $175 through Saturday, November 10.

Call to artists and curators

The Howard County Arts Council is seeking artwork in all media to include in upcoming exhibits. Individual artists, aged 18 & older, as well as curators and arts groups interested in presenting a group show, are encouraged to apply. The Exhibits Committee meets quarterly to review applications and select artists for the exhibit space.

Detailed entry guidelines are available at https://www.hocoarts.org/explore/opportunities-artists-arts-groups/exhibit-opportunities-apply/ongoing/. 

The next deadline for submissions is Tuesday, January 1, 2019.

Art Basel’s parent company cuts regional art fairs amid major losses

Naysayers have been incorrectly predicting the demise of the art fair for years... but in my opinion art fairs have "expanded" too rapidly and there are too many of them... when December comes to Miami, there will be around 26 art fairs around the area.

MCH Group, the Swiss fair conglomerate that owns the Art Basel fairs, announced significant cost-cutting measures on Friday, including that it will abandon its two-and-a-half-year-old initiative to acquire regional art fairs around the globe. The move was announced by interim CEO Hans-Kristian Hoejsgaard, who took over direction of the live marketing giant in September amidst significant declines in revenue from its once-marquee Baselworld watch and jewelry fair.

MCH will consolidate its focus on the three Art Basel art fairs in Basel, Miami Beach, and Hong Kong, as well as Masterpiece London; Design Miami, with editions in Basel and Miami Beach; Baselworld; its car fair, Grand Basel; and a further, unspecified “large number of exhibitions focused on the Swiss market,” according to the announcement.

 Read the Artsy article here.

Last day to go see Superfine! DC

Two days ago I previewed the Superfine! DC art fair currently going on in DC's historic Union Market, and yesterday I visited the fair and did a photo review of the fair.

Today is the last day to see the fair, which stays open till 8PM! That's Zenith Gallery's booth, right by the entrance, which is showing my work!

LOCATION

Union Market

1309 5th Street Northeast

Dock 5 Event Space

Washington, DC 20002

View Map

Superfine! DC: The Review

Yesterday I gave you my thoughts on the Superfine! DC art fair currently underway at the District's historical Union Market. You can read those opinions here.

Today the crew and I visited the fair, and spent a few hours enjoying the artmosphere that any major art fair brings to any city, and chatting with a lot of old friends while making some new ones.

Bottom line: Apparently Superfine! art fairs has already announced that they'll return next year - that by itself is a major success in view of the DMV's past attempts to entertain and host a major fine arts fair such as the ones that routinely take place in many other world capitals as well as in Miami each December for the art world's big dance.

Upon entering the fair spaces, and as a veteran of nearly 100 art fairs all over the nation and overseas, I immediately noticed two things: (a) Zenith Gallery - which has my work at this fair - has the primo spot by the entrance, and (b) this fair's booths are superbly well designed and spaced, and unlike any other art fair that I've ever seen!

That's a good thing.

Why do I say that? Because every other fair on this planet has one mission in mind when designing their floor plan: maximize the number of booths, because the more booths that you can squeeze into a floor, the more Samolians that the fair organizer stands to make.

Kudos to Superfine! DC management for their booth arrangement.

Another important thing separates this fair from your typical New York or Miami art fairs: Artists can have individual booths. This is both a positive (especially in the DC art market) and a negative impact... but that's a story for another column.

In yesterday's preview, I mentioned how impressive Martin Swift's chiaroscuro portraits looked online - they look even better when closely examined! Swift's works are with Monochrome Collective and are a delight to the eyes. I also liked the giant poster that he created on one of the side exits of the fair... that's a close up below.

Martin Swift Mural outside Superfine! DC

Note the enviable agility with the brush and the mastery of the paint application! This artist is really good.

We visited several DMV gallerists, admiring the works by Gregory Ferrand and Jessica Drenk at Adah Rose Gallery. This art dealer is one of the hardest working gallerists in the area and her booth look superb! Drenk's work was one of my son's early favorites for best in show.

Gregory Ferrand at Adah Rose

Jessica Drenk at Adah Rose Gallery

My son was also mesmerized by Matthew Langley's hypnotic wall of color paintings in Susan Calloway's booth.

Matthew Langley at Susan Calloway

Yesterday I also mentioned how an impressive artist like Scott Hutchison can remain largely ignored by museum curators in this area - mostly because DMV museums think of themselves as "national" museums, rather than regional or local. In person Hutchison's new series of works are even more impressive. Check some of these gorgeous works here.

Imaginary Grasp by Scott Hutchison. 19x24 inches, oil on aluminum

I soon lost the family, as a decent crowd was packing the fair's well-designed floor, but I quickly found them admiring the work of Baltimore artist Daniel Stuelpnagel.  His elegant geometric work hides the extraordinary amount of compositional planning and work that it takes to deliver these intelligent pieces.

Campello clan chatting with artist Daniel Stuelpnagel

Work by Daniel Stuelpnagel

We then spent some time chatting with the hardworking art dealer Gabriela Rosso of Potomac's RoFa Projects - I was astounded to find that this is Rosso's 9th fair this year! All over the globe, by the way, not just the US.

Gabriella Rosso of RoFa Projects

RoFa's booth was full of impressive work, the output of this gallerist's focus on Latin American artists (mostly). I was taken by the photographs of Jesús Chacón, which (of course) remind me of my own work.

Jesús Chacón at RoFa Projects

After chatting a little with DC uberartist Anne Marchand, we set out to "discover" some new artists...

Campellos talking with artist Anne Marchand

Yesterday, when  I did my online preview, I thought that the work of Gaithersburg artist Hannah Sarfraz was fabric based, and essentially fabric design or painting on fabric... but they were in fact really well executed, hyper realistic water media paintings!

Hannah Sarfraz

Anderson soon made a straight line for Rogelio Maxwell's booth and was fascinated by his works and received a really nice reception and explanation of Maxwell's talented handling of color.

A picture of Mom taking a picture of Anderson being educated on Rogelio Maxwell

While I was there, I was quite impressed by the sculptural work that Maxwell brought to the fair - see some details images below.

Detail of sculpture by Rogelio Maxwell

Detail of Sculpture by Rogelio Maxwell

From there I found my way to the refined works of Wayson R. Jones, whose technique and presentation just keeps getting better and sharper! This is a key DMV artist deserving of more attention by the curatorial cabal of our area.

Drift II by Wayson R. Jones

Not too far from Wayson, this gorgeous wall of painted metal chairs, where the artist has kidnapped the substrate and made it into a work of high art, caught my attention.

It is the work of Dr. Bob, who is represented at the fair by the DMV's Gallery O on H... this piece below (detail) was my favorite and it was really bustin' loose.  This work needs to be acquired by the DC Arts Commission for the collection of the city.

Detail of Chuck Brown by Dr. Bob. Acrylic on metal chair, c.2015

Another artist who caught the eye of the young critic was Dennis Crayon, who was gracious enough to spend a lot of time discussing his techniques with an admiring 9-year-old fan!

Dennis Crayon at Superfine! DC

But no artist fascinated this young mind more that the Ft. Lauderdale artist known as Aliguori... see below.

His fascination was in large part driven by the 3D effect delivered by this painter's focused genre of monochromatic works that tickle the eye's ability to separate depths based on color warmth and position.

Looking at Aliguori's 3D paintings

The fact that the very nice artist was also kind enough to spend a lot of time discussing his art and technique with a young admirer is also a great lesson in art fair niceness! Thank you!

By now we had spent a few hours at the fair, and towards the end I discovered the booth of New York's Lori Cuisinier, whose Ariadne series of works were not only elegantly hung in the minimalist style preferred by the art fair management set - not only did she have the best hung booth at the fair - but was also the singularly sexiest booth in the entire fair and stood out in prudish Washington.

Ariadne bride cake by Lori Cuisinier. UV pigment on dibond, 55x54 inches

My overall impression of the fair was very positive, and I sincerely hope that the rumors that the organizers have already made the decision to return next year are true. This is a kick in the creative arse of the DMV, and it helps the capital's artistic juices in not only a seminal way, but also in one that helps our art foot print.

Tomorrow is the last day to visit Superfine! DC - the fair runs to 8PM... details here.

Superfine! DC Preview

Superfine! DC opened on Halloween night and will go through the weekend - I plan to visit tomorrow and (as I usually do to any art fair that I visit) I will give you my opinions and selection of the best works that I saw there. Here's a blurb from the fair itself:

On Halloween night, more than 600 DC art lovers braved the autumn chill and came out in full force to experience the opening night of the capital's foremost art fair. We're thrilled to be DC's art fair, and can't wait for what the weekend has in store. From a Young Collectors' Ice Cream Social with cookie sundaes (!!!) by Trickling Springs Creamery to our OUTshine Film Festival-curated series of LGBTQ+ art shorts, Superfine! DC has a lot to offer - not to mention hundreds of incredible works of art ready to discover their new homes

Check out an opening night photo recap here.

I've been visiting the fair's online presence regularly, and as the planet's greatest living art fair critic, here are the works which caught my eye (so far...):

Nate by Marin Swift
9 x 9 inches framed. Oil on Panel

Martin Swift oil portraits at Monochrome Collective are spectacular artistic muscle-flexing portraits that showcase this artist's command of the classical chiaroscuro technique while concurrently revitalizing it to a modern context! Each portrait is not only a likeness of some individual, but also a psychological narrative of that individual!

The DMV's longest running gallery, Zenith Gallery (disclaimer: I am represented by them at the fair) is full of DC area blue chip artists such as Anne Marchand, Elissa Farrow-Savos (who will probably sell out), Emily Piccirillo, Margery Goldberg, and many others, but it is Stephen Hansen who (as usual) steals the show with his humorous works, which are in reality superb works of art disguised as the rare "humor in art" genre.

Potomac's RoFa Projects, a key and hardworking DMV area art dealer who does art fairs all over the planet has elegant works by Fabian Ugalde, Jose Margulis and Raymond Romero which not only work wll together, but also should satisfy the appetite of collectors of minimalist art.

They’ll Work It Out by Gregory Ferrand
24 x 12 inches. Acrylic on Canvas, c.2017

Kensington's Adah Rose Gallery, another hardworking DMV area art dealer which travels to art fairs all over the country is also well-represented in the fair, with many DMV/Baltimore blue chip artists such as Gregory Ferrand, who just keeps on getting impossibly better and better as a painter and storyteller, Joan Belmar, Jessica Drank and others.

A Long Way to Go by Susan LaMont
18 x 40 inches. Oil on Canvas

The locals continue to be well-represented by the District's Susan Calloway Fine Arts, where one of my favorite DMV artists of all time, Susan LaMont displays her hyper-realistic paintings, which after all these years continue to amaze me as much as the first time that I saw them decades ago! Art fair pro and my good bud Matthew Langley also stands out with his elegant abstract works, as he always does...

I also liked the sexy and intelligent photographs by Lori Cuisinier, whose sensual wok stands out simply buy the sheer eroticism of the human figure when coupled with compositional elements and props that makes the viewer ask questions.

Superfine! is one of the few art fairs which allow individual artists' booths, and the DC online version is full of talent such as the interesting works by the District's Noel Kassewitz, which I suspect I'll have to examine in person to see get the full impact of their art, but which online look superb nonetheless.

Her Echo Her Shadow by Scott Hutchison
16 x 20 inches. Oil on Linen, c.2017

Another artist whose work I've known and admired for decades is Scott Hutchison. Like LaMont, Hutchison is a master of the realistic brush, but Sott has always veered towards works which stretch the visual senses and modernize some of the ideas of the surrealists of ages ago. Hutchison is one of those artists that in any other city, where local museum curators pay attention to their city artists (as they do not in the DMV), would have been, and should be in the radar of a Hirshhorn Museum curator for a ground-breaking solo.

Susan Jamison and Colleen Garibaldi also caught my eye and will be inspected in person tomorrow!

See ya there! Tickets and info here.

Through Friday till 7:00 PM and Sunday, Nov 4, 2018, to 8:00 PM EDT.

LOCATION
Union Market
1309 5th Street Northeast
Dock 5 Event Space
Washington, DC 20002

Our booth in SOFA

Our booth in SOFA Chicago, where we're showcasing the works of Lori Katz, Christine Kaiser and Laura Beth Konopinski! 

We're in Booth A39.

#sofaartfair #sofachicago #alidaandersonartprojects

Lou Stovall to speak at Sidwell Friends School

My good friend and legendary DMV artist Lou Stovall will speak at Sidwell Friends School next Wednesday Nov 7, 6-8:30pm, as part of the exhibition of his artwork which will be on display in the Daryl Reich Rubenstein Gallery ••• Sidwell Friends School, 3825 Wisconsin Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20016.

Click here to register for the lecture.

Lou Stovall was born in Athens, Georgia in 1937 and grew up in Springfield, Massachusetts. He studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and at Howard University (B.F.A.). Since 1962, he has lived and worked in Washington, DC. His drawings and silkscreen prints have earned him grants from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Stern Family Fund.

Stovall's own prints and drawings are part of numerous public and private collections throughout the world. Though his craft is that of a printmaker, Stovall's passion for art extends beyond a single medium. He gives the same care and attention to his archival framing and furniture construction as he does to his intricate prints and drawings. Please visit his website for more information.

SOFA Chicago opens tonight!

If you're in the windy city, come see us at the iconic SOFA Chicago art fair! Details here.

Work by Lori Katz, Christine Kaiser and Laura Beth Konopinski!

Hang Purge, c. 2018 by Laura Beth Konopinski
Blown glass, sculpted and re-purposed glass, enamel image transfer, mixed media
17 × 8 × 8 in;

Superfine! DC Launches Tonight

Superfine! DC opens tonight at Union Market with a spooktacular Masquerade Vernissage on Halloween night. 

All the details of the fair here! My work is with DC's own Zenith Gallery - see that work here.

LOCATION
Union Market
1309 5th Street Northeast
Dock 5 Event Space
Washington, DC 20002    MAP

DATE & TIME  
Masquerade Opening Event: Wednesday Oct 31~ 7 pm-11 pm
Thursday Nov 1  11 am - 10 pm
Friday Nov 2       11 am - 10 pm
Saturday Nov 3  11 am - 10 pm
Sunday Nov 4    11 am -  8 pm

Call for Solo Exhibition Proposals

Deadline: December 31, 2018. 

Arts & Education at the Hoyt is currently seeking artists to fill its 2020 - 2021 Exhibition Schedule. Solo, duo, collectives and curatorial proposals are welcome. 

Artists living in the Mid-Atlantic region (PA, OH, NY, NJ, MD, VA, W.VA, DE and Washington DC) are invited to apply. 

Please submit a proposal that includes; exhibition description, 10-20 jpeg images, image list with titles, media and dimensions, resume or curriculum vitae, and a $25.00 review fee. 

For more information or to apply online visit this link.

Opportunity for Artists

The Visual Arts Department at Montgomery College, Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus has a great opportunity for emerging and established artists. The King Street Gallery is their main exhibition space in the beautiful Cafritz Foundation Arts Center, located just outside of DC at 930 King Street, Silver Spring MD, and features two person and small group shows, as well as curated exhibitions. This light filled, 1050 square foot gallery is in the main atrium of the building. Its prominent location, open design, and extremely high ceilings (30 feet+) make it a great venue for major exhibitions.

The deadline for King Street Gallery proposals is November 25, 2018 at 11:59 p.m.

Application prospectus and JotForm link can be viewed here.

Superfine opens this Wednesday

The DMV's latest attempt to enter the circuit of world cities with a major international art fair opens this Wednesday!

See ya there!

Getting closer...

“You’re right,” the Turk agreed, staring back. “He isn’t gaining on us. He’s just getting closer, that’s all.” 
― William Goldman, The Princess Bride

Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this mutant trying to rip off artists!

From:  bisolayowon@gmail.com joycecris998@gmail.com

Hello 

Am sarah engler want to order some of your product which willbe resold,will be making payment by credit card details over Phone conversation for security Purpose.can i forward you the items Interested in Ordering for Quotation.

Thank You 

sarah  

Mark Jenkins on Superfine

The WaPo pops through the DMV MSM apathy wall towards the local visual arts!

Yeah Mark!

Like its more grown-up-oriented competitors, Superfine is a lively, glamorous bazaar that exists to sell art offered by galleries, dealers and artists. Mitow says he brought the fair to Washington because of its large population of young, high-income residents, as well as its booming real estate market and location between Miami and New York, the first two Superfine cities. 

“There’s a rift in the art market. It’s the only industry that has historically tried to keep customers out,” Mitow says over coffee at Union Market on a scouting trip to Washington. “I want people to be able to see themselves as collectors.”

Read his article here.