Miami Art Basel Week: VIP Opening Night Minus Two

Airborne bright and early this cold morning in Washington, DC... Lyft'd to Dulles by Claudio - got there almost two hours before the departure.

Packed plane... middle seat, which is what apparently United Airlines gives to anyone with a "Basic Economy" ticket holder... plus no carry-on (unless you wanna shell out $25!).

Landed in Miami almost an hour early (suspicious ETA figgerin')... and my great friend and host Scott B. picked me up at the airport... I'm staying at his spectacular home exchange condo on the 16th floor on the beach at "the beach" of Miami Beach.  Check out the condo here.

Scott and Judy rock!

By one o'clock I was at the great Pulse Art Fair... our very first time ever at this fair after over a dozen years at the Art Basel week of fairs in Miami.

By the time I got there, Michael Janis and the new gallery assistant (Teri Bailey) had already brought all the boxes and art from the truck to the booth - nice!

Work, work, work... open boxes, get an Exaco knife cut, ask permission to use tiny nails instead of screws, lift up Tim's heavy-assed pieces from the boxes...

Tim Tate calls: He's stuck in Atlanta as his plane developed problems... "no worries", I say, but Tim is worried.

A few more hours of work and it's almost 8 PM and I decide that we're almost "good" and both the Janis and I head to our beds.

On the spur of the moment I decide to lug my luggage to the condo by way of the beach trail (rather than the free Collins Avenue trolley)...

Bad decision... once you get on this damned "board" (brick) walk... there's now way to get out of it - no "exit" to Collins Avenue - other than when you get to a park.

Two looooong miles later (remember... I'm dragging my luggage)... I get to Bel Aire... which thank God is right next to a park and thus an exit from the fucking yellow brick road.

I go up to Scott and Judy's super condo on the 16th floor, with an amazing view of the Caribbean... and yet I am mesmerized by the fact that these two former DMV area art collectors had the "sight' to pick up soooooooooo many great DMV stars... and I find great vintage, early works in their amazing place.

vintage Sheila Giolitti

vintage Tim Tate

2019 is great so far! The fairs haven't opened yet... and I've already showed you some great artwork!

I walked Collins to a little Colombian restaurant and got some tostones with fried cheese (leave it to the Colombians to try to improve a Cuban dish)... and I must admit that it was really good.

More tomorrow...

Spectacular digs in Miami Beach

Check out the spectacular place where I'll be staying while working the Pulse Art Fair in Miami Beach! This amazing place is available for rent!  Note the great artwork on the walls... most of it acquired over the years from DMV artists by the owners!

New gallery grand opening tonight!

There's a new gallery opening in an epic location in town and the grand opening party is tonight!!! From their news release:

This is to announce and welcome you to my new and spectacular Gallery, and kiosk, LOVE ALL SERVE ALL.  Both are in the iconic and historic UNION STATION, the train station located at 50 Massachusetts NE, Washington, DC  20002.  The gallery is on the Mezzanine, the 2nd floor on the right as one goes up the curved stairs after passing through the Grand Hall.  It is next to Andrews Ties, and is 2640 square feet.  The kiosk is on the main floor through the Grand Hall, all the way to the left, across from H&M by the escalators.  

The Gallery will exhibit and sell original art, excellent only hand made items by local artists and vintage, quirky pieces.

The kiosk will tease and seduce you upstairs with a sampling of the extensive collection above.  A free gift awaits you if you make the trek to the Mezzanine, down the hallway to the massive Gallery.

We will be having a Grand Opening Party on Sunday, December 1, from 10 in the morning until whenever our last guest decides to leave in the evening.  The opening will be a fundraiser to benefit Victims of Sex Trafficking, themselves.  To that end, we will be raffling off gift baskets graciously donated by The Body Shop, a coveted L'Occitaine Advent Calendar filled with samples of every L'Occitaine product, generously donated by L'Occitaine, a fabulous gift donated by Elisabeth's Boutique (also located on the Mezzanine).  We will also have refreshments, including sumptuous pastries generously donated by The Sweet Shop, imported, fantastic cheeses from Bowers Fancy Dairy Products,  and delicious delicacies purveyed by Canales Deli, also available at historic Eastern Market, and delicious snacks and discount coupons good for dinner at Unos Pizza just across the way on the Mezzanine, should you decide to stay and dine!

Additionally we will have fantastic live entertainment, including the precious, precocious and adorable Lilly who, at the tender age of twelve, will grace us with the singing of her original songs at 1pm, the magnificently talented Sharon McKay who will regale us with her unbelievable voice at 7pm, the sensational Shara, at a time yet to be announced, and I, myself will read portions of The United States Constitution.  There may be dancing and you are all welcome to sing along!  We have an acoustic guitar on hand for anyone who wishes to engage us as long as you can play (lol).

I intend this project to be a Force for Good, in a world increasingly in need of such!  To this end I am making a portion of the Gallery space available to others who are holding the light in this increasingly darkening world.  Already scheduled on our calendar is the heroic Jianli Yang, imprisoned in China for his participation in Tiananmen Square for five years, he now runs Citizen Power Initiatives which in part aides student activists in Hong Kong in their fight for democracy.  He will be speaking in the Gallery on Human Rights Day, December 10, from 2pm -4pm.  I hope you can attend.  Later in the month we will be hosting the lovely Andrea Seiger who will inform us of the Washington, DC we have yet to discover with tales from her book, 111 PLACES IN WASHINGTON THAT YOU MUST NOT MISS!

The Best Artist Opportunities in December

See them here.

Stable accepting Post Studio applications

From Stable:

We have seats open in our Post Studio! The Post Studio is a shared work space for individuals who do not need traditional studios but want to be apart of the STABLE community. They will have a shared desk space within the STABLE complex, enjoy 24/7 access to work at their convenience, and benefit from STABLE's programming and resource sharing. The Post Studio is available to artists, independent curators, and writers.

Details here.

Opportunity for Artists

Vision Idea Design is inviting artwork submissions for its Toys For Tots Art Showcase.

The event will be held on Saturday, November 30, 2019 at the Patriots Pub & Grill.

All submissions will be reviewed and selected artists will be invited to participate with between one and five artworks. Proceeds from the sale are split with the artist and the charity, with the artist deciding on the percentage donated.

There is no fee to submit your work.

The Art Showcase raises money for non-profit and volunteer organizations. This is a red-dot event, not a silent auction.

We welcome submissions from artists within the Fairfax region.

All forms of painting, drawing, photography, collage, printmaking (analog and digital), sculpture, and three-dimensional multiples are eligible. *No jewelry, crafts, video or sound art will be accepted at this time.

Artists may submit up to five (5) works.

All 2-D artwork submissions on paper, if accepted, must be framed and ready to hang with wiring in good condition (No saw- tooth hangers)

Submissions Deadline: Sunday, November 24, 2019, 11:59pm
Notification of Acceptance: November 25, 2019
Early Artwork Drop Off: November 26, 2019
Artwork Drop Off: November 30, 2019 2pm
Artist Showcase: Saturday, November 30, 2019, 3:00pm – 8:00pm

Send Submissions to: info@visionideadesign.com
Subject Line: Toys For Tots Art Showcase

Include up to 5 images of work in a single email, no larger than 10mb.

For each image include:

Title:
Medium:  
(Full Description of Object would be excellent, i.e. sepia toned gelatin silver photograph OR archival pigment print OR unique paper photogram… etc.)
Value:
Donation Percentage: 50% / 75% / 100%
Size:
Photographer’s Name:
Address:
City, St., Zip
Email address:
Website:

All unsold artwork must be picked up at the end of the event.

Creative Capital

Creative Capital supports adventurous artists across the country through funding, counsel, and career development services.  This impact-driven arts organization provides each funded project with up to $50,000 in funding and career development services valued at $50,000.

WHO: U.S. artists with at least five years of professional experience in any discipline working on a specific project.

FIELD: Painting, Sculpture, Works on Paper, Photography, Public Art, and more

AMOUNT: Up to $50,000 in direct funding

DEADLINE: February 2020 

FINE PRINT: Besides funding, you’ll have access to consultations with legal, financial, marketing, public relations, and web consultants; artist retreats and regional gatherings; ten meetings with a strategic planning coach; and more. Letter of Inquiry must be submitted. You can learn more here.

Pulse Miami Beach will debut a new bilingual series of talks

Also not to be missed is a debut feature for the fair, PULSE Perspectivos, a dual-language series of talks and tours held in English and Spanish. The conversation “On Identity in the Arts: What Does It Mean to be Latino/a? Latino, Latina, Latin(x), Hispanic…”, held in Spanish at 2 p.m. on Saturday, seems particularly promising. 

The conversation will be led by art critic, writer and blogger Florencio Lennox Campello who has been spearheading interactive events discussing these issues for the past few years and will also include the artists Sandra Ramos and Alessandra Torres, along with  Tessie Penin of Uprise Art. 

Read the entire article in Artsy here... 

Artomatic Announces New Board of Directors

There is a new AOM Board of Directors in town! 

We are really inspired and motivated to lead Artomatic towards its 20th anniversary. As we honor the 20th anniversary, we celebrate additional milestones for Artomatic, Inc. like the new website. This innovative digital experience will facilitate the Event by keeping track of volunteer shifts, offering better stage and performance management and providing additional resources for artists. 

This year, the all-volunteer Board elected Jamila Canty and Olivia Garcia as Co-Presidents and hired Natalie Graves Tucker as the first Executive Director, representing a new departure for Artomatic. 

As we celebrate the past, we look into the bright future of Artomatic which is really all about you, our supporters, and our artistic community. 

Watch our social media in the coming weeks to learn more about each of our new Board Members. 

DC Arts Studios (DCAS) -- 40th Anniversary1

DC Arts Studios (DCAS) invites you to their 40th Anniversary Celebration & Annual Holiday Open Studios on Saturday, December 7th, 4pm - 7pm!

Take a self-guided tour through the participating artists' studios and have a "behind the scenes" peek into their creative process -- a great way to introduce kids to the arts and learn about different techniques and mediums!

Purchase original artwork and other handmade gifts directly from the artists themselves! Featured artwork and gifts will include photography, paintings, mixed media, fiber art, sculpture, stained glass, weaving, art made from computer parts, and much more.

Swing by the Willow Street Gallery on our first floor to see THEIR 40th Anniversary show, "Flashback," an exhibition of works by current and former DCAS / A. Salon members. 

There will be food and refreshments throughout the studios.

The event is free, accessible, family friendly, and open to the public.

And please help us spread the word! Share the DCAS 40th Anniversary / Holiday Open Studios Facebook event: https://www.facebook.com/events/2596238730411337

DCAS 40th Anniversary / Holiday Open Studios eventbrite:  https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dc-arts-studios-40th-anniversary-holiday-open-studios-tickets-82517204179

DC Arts Studios is located at 6925 Willow St NW, Washington, DC 20012, next to Downtown Takoma Park, MD.

Driving: There is street parking.
Metro: Take the Red Line to the Takoma DC Metro Station. Walk a few blocks on Carroll Ave towards Downtown Takoma Park, MD. Turn right onto Willow Street. We are halfway down the block on the left-hand side of the street.

Call for porposals

Deadline: Feb 1, 2020

BlackRock Center for the Arts is now accepting exhibition proposals for solo, group and themed exhibitions to be presented in our gallery spaces in 2021 and beyond. Visual artists, curators, and coordinators of artist collectives and organizations who are over the age of 18 and live or work in Maryland, Washington, DC, Virginia, West Virginia, Delaware and Pennsylvania are encouraged to submit Exhibition Proposals. 

BlackRock is a nonprofit arts center which presents changing exhibitions of contemporary art by both emerging and established artists working in all media, to include site-specific installations, video and other time-based media, performance, new technologies and experimental forms.

Details here.

Call for Artists

The Howard County Arts Council is seeking artists to participate in its annual juried Art Auction, a key component of the Celebration of the Arts in Howard County gala. The Art Auction shines a spotlight on Howard County’s diverse and talented visual arts community at this important fundraising event.

All 2-D, 3-D, and fine craft artists, 18 years or older, residing, working, or studying in Howard County; HCAC members; and artists who have exhibited in Howard County in the last year are eligible to submit. Deadline for submissions is January 20, 2020.

Visual artists working in all styles and media are invited to apply, including painters, sculptors, ceramicists, fiber artists, jewelers, and photographers. Artists will be selected by the Art Auction Committee, which may also invite artists who are eligible to participate. This showcase of Howard County artists has proven to be a great benefit to both established and emerging talent in the community and is also a successful fundraiser to support art programs, exhibitions, and organizations in the county.

This year’s Celebration will be held at the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center at Howard Community College on Saturday, March 28, 2020 from 6-10pm. The Art Auction exhibit will be presented in the Rouse Company Foundation Gallery. The proceeds from each artwork sold will be divided equally between the artist and the Arts Council. Artists may also choose to donate the entirety of any sales to the Arts Council. Last year’s Art Auction resulted in $8,440 in sales, with 53 pieces sold.

For more information or to submit an entry, visit hocoarts.org; to have a prospectus delivered via postal mail or email, please call 410-313-ARTS (2787).

Small Treasures opens at Zenith Gallery

Small Treasures
Opening Receptions to Meet the Artists:
Friday, November 22, 5-8 pm & Saturday November 23, 2-5 pm   
Show dates: November 22, 2019 - January 11, 2020 
At ZENITH GALLERY -1429 Iris Street NW, Washington DC 20012

Featuring Artists:
Caroline Benchetrit, William Buchanan, F.Lennox Campello, Lea Craigie-Marshall, Susan Freda, Carolyn Goodridge, Ibou N'Diaye, Peter Hansen, Stephen Hansen, Hubert Jackson, Mihira Karra, Kristine Mays, Hadrian Mendoza, Nancy Nesvet, Carol Newmyer, Keith Norval, Katharine Owens, Elissa Farrow-Savos, Suzy Scarborough, Gavin Sewell, Paul Martin-Wolff, Marcie Wolf-Hubbard....and many more

Artists New to Zenith Gallery: Nina Benton, Najee Dorsey, and Lisa Meek   

Wheaton Arts Parade Gallery Grand Re-opening!

Wheaton Arts Parade Gallery Grand Re-opening! Celebrate with local artists! Join  for refreshments on Wednesday the 20th!

5-8pm!

The Wheaton Arts Parade Gallery is on the lower level of the Westfield Wheaton shopping center at Entrance 11 across from Eterna Spa. Every two months there is a new exhibition of oil paintings, acrylics, watercolors, mixed media, photographs and sculptures. 

Ninety percent of all sales revenue goes directly to the artists. In exchange, the artists volunteer to manage the gallery. I hope that you will stop by and see the gallery's diverse collection and meet some of the talented artists in our midst. 

Currently Exhibiting

Maria Luisa Benavides

Mary Del Bianco

Jamie Downs

Leslie Hansley

Sofia Hart

Jonathan Jaeger

Judith Levine

John MacArthur

Josue Martinez

Frank Mancino

Dulce Moreno

Kenneth Namalomba

Francisca Oviedo

Laura-Leigh Palmer

Rachel Patton

Peijisan

Sandra Perez-Ramos

Carol Porter

Emily Lanier Roberts

Roxana Rojas-Luzon

Maria Elena Sayan

Elizabeth Stecher

Elizabeth Steel

Narissa Steel

Judith Disalvo Stenger

Vicky Surles

Scottish watercolor

I wrote a while back about all the watercolors of Scotland that I did while I lived there from 1989-1992... these rarely show up on the secondary art market.

This one is a steal at the current starting bid! See it here.

Forgeries in the British royals' collection!

Read the Artsy article here.

Connersmith is 20!

Congrats to Leigh and Jamie!

CONNERSMITH is proud to celebrate the gallery’s first two decades. Founded in 1999 by Leigh Conner and Jamie Smith, CONNERSMITH upholds a solid commitment to excellence in contemporary and post-war art. We mark this anniversary with the launch of a new WEBSITE custom-designed to deliver the most current information and facilitate research on artists, available works and gallery history.

Opening Receptions Tonight!

The Triangle Art Studios "Combat2Canvas" participants narrated their military experiences through original works of art and writing, using these modalities to bridge the gap between military and civilian communities.

Opening Reception:
Nov. 8 , 6-8pm
7711 Old Georgetown Rd.

Gallery Hours, Oct. 26 - Nov. 23
Fri. & Sat.,1-5pm

Studio B will feature the artwork of Shanthi Chandrasekar. While many of her works are influenced by her Indian heritage, her true inspiration comes from the mystery and majesty of the world around her.

Opening Reception:
Nov. 8, 6-8pm
7475 Wisconsin Ave., Lower Level

Gallery Hours:
Tues.-Fri., 1-6pm

Gallery B will feature landscape photographer Kee Woo Rhee with the exhibition "Time, Space, Matter and Beyond."

Opening Reception:
Nov. 8, 6-8pm
7700 Wisconsin Ave., Suite E

Gallery Hours, Nov. 6 - 30
Wed. - Sat. 12-6pm

Rebecca Coles and Amy Genser

Rebecca Coles and Amy Genser
Opening Reception - Friday, November 8, 6:30-8pm
Show Dates - November 8 - December 31
RSVP at the Facebook Event Page

Long View Gallery
1234 9th St NW
Washington, DC 20001

Rebecca Cole’s work currently focuses on the reinvention of entomological cataloging, display and the assemblage of shapes. Each shape is hand drawn and then intricately hand cut from carefully selected paper, focusing on recycling a medium that would otherwise be discarded and lost. She dissects small details of color, imagery and text into silhouettes that are then re-sculptured, pinned and encased. Rebecca’s aim is to transform an every day object into a piece of work that invites the viewer to see beyond its original source.

Amy Genser plays with paper and paint to explore her obsession with texture, pattern, and color. Evocative of natural forms and organic processes, her work is simultaneously irregular and ordered. She uses paper as pigment and constructs her pieces by layering, cutting, rolling, and combining paper.

Andrew Wodzianski is a Fanboy

Andrew Wodzianski in

Andrew Wodzianski is a Fanboy 

in Open Gallery at Montgomery College 

Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus

In my spectacularly informed opinion, Andrew Wodzianski is one of the most talented and best painters in the DMV. The man can paint, and he can also canvas-deliver his ideas, and interests better than anyone who I know.

The Open Gallery presents Andrew Wodzianski is a Fanboy, featuring the work of Andrew Wodzianski from November 13, 2019 – January 10, 2020.  Andrew Wodzianski’s work depicts self-portraits utilizing a variety of media representing identity roles. An Artist Talk will be held on November 20th from 1:30 – 2:30. A reception will be held on Thursday, December 12 from 6-8 P.M. The events and exhibition are located at the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center of Montgomery College on the Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus. For more information, visit http://cms.montgomerycollege.edu/arts-tpss/exhibitions/. Free and open to the public.

Andrew Wodzianski is a Fanboy represents a ten-year retrospective of self-portraiture wherein Wodzianski has intentionally concealed his identity. Instead of introspective depictions of the human condition, Wodzianski reveals little of his true self. Whether a painting, photograph, or performance, each work is another layer of artifice. When viewed as a collection, an inkling of personality begins to materialize. Through an amalgamation of late 20th Century adolescent Americana, identity roles and contradictions and complexities can be gleaned. There is much left unexplained, but two things are certain; Wodzianski is clearly a pop culture fanatic and a self-described man-child. He is a fanboy.

About the Series:

This is the 3rd show of this year’s themed exhibition series, Self, which invites artists to explore contemporary ideas of Self Portraiture by engaging with the self through either representational or conceptual means.

About the Artist:

Andrew Wodzianski is an artist from Venango County, Pennsylvania. He holds an MFA from Maryland Institute College of Art and has exhibited widely as both a painter and performance artist, including the (e)merge art fair Washington, DC, Aqua Art Fair in Miami, and SCOPE NYC in New York. His interest in humor, satire, and popular culture permeates all his media. Says Andrew: “At parties, I tell trapped guests that I’m an interdisciplinary artist working in crocodile tears, puppy dog tails, and magpie chatter. I immediately assure them I’m not being literal. Collecting those materials from the animals would be cruel! Instead, I stress the supplies are silly metaphors for my constant exploration into falsehood, adolescent nostalgia, and appropriation. I shun adulthood, with most of my days spent embracing popular culture references introduced to me prior to 1989. I may create with diverse mediums, but I’m always reflecting on my fantastical youth with generous sprinkles of both reverence and satire.”

About the Open Gallery:

The Open Gallery’s exhibitions complement the academic programs of Montgomery College's Department of Visual and Performing Arts while bringing art to the community. As part of the Silver Spring arts community, exhibitions focus on current pieces by working artists. The gallery is on the ground floor of The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center on the west side of the Takoma Park/Silver Spring Campus. The center is located off Georgia Avenue at 930 King Street. Parking is available in the West Campus Garage, located immediately behind the center.

Contact: KatherineKnight, 240-567-1461 katherine.knight@montgomerycollege.edu

Gallery Website:      https://www.montgomerycollege.edu/academics/departments/visual-performing-arts-tpss/index.html

Gallery Address:     The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation Arts Center - 930 King Street, Silver Spring, MD 20910