Rain, slush, snow and leaks

The snow storm arrived in New York overnight and this city responded beautifully... I walked several blocks from my hotel to the Scope Art Fair and the most dangerous event proved to be the New Yorkers with huge umbrellas and looking down to avoid the fierce cold wind as a slushly snow fell... as a result of the Venturi effect caused by the tall buildings, there were very fierce winds at every corner as well.

When I was a kid in Brooklyn, my high school was in Long Island City in Queens, and I used to spend over an hour in the subway going to High School... I am sure that we had school "snow days" back then. but frankly, I don't remember ever been off from school because of snow.

When I got to Scope I discovered that the the old post office's roof had been leaking above my neighbor's space (Fitzroy Knox from New York) and the two pretty gallerists were bravely securing work as the Scope crew attacked the problem.

And I must give kudos to the Scope crew.

As I stood watching them tarp over the leaks and then build a roof under the leaking area, I was thinking to myself "These union guys are really on the ball here... they might just give some of these New York unions a good name if they are not careful..."

Later I found out that these were not the union guys responding to the barely avoided disaster, but in fact the Scope crew, and they deserve a superbly earned "Well Done!"

The Scope director (Sonja Hofstetter) was on the spot and working the issue, and the tall good looking guy (who looks a little like a young Jim Carey) in charge of the work crew, was so nit picky about making sure that it was a perfect job, that even after the space had been re-roofed, he actually had a guy come over and tape  the edges and re-paint the whole thing.

In cases like this, the response of an art fair's crew to unplanned close calls like this is the key to avoiding disaster and these guys had half a dozen people on the job right away and it showed in the manner and professionalism with which they responded and the final solution to the problem.

Later on I found out that the skinny guy directing the response to the leak is in fact the owner of Scope (Alexis Hubshman), which makes this an even cooler response, as there's nothing like a hands-on boss who gets his hands dirty to make things happen.

Check out the picture to the left - these guys essentially re-roofed the leaky area and made it look good.

Great job Scopers!

Seen in a hoity toity art fair in New York...

You know how art critics are always slamming Artomatic for this and for that?

Just sayin'

Only a few days left before deadline!

One thing that nearly every artist on the planet (including myself) shares is rejection letters/emails from galleries, juried competitions, curators and your aunt Elvira... in fact, since I have been a juror, gallerist and curator for a ton of art shows, I hate to say that I've written a fuckload of rejection letters myself.

And now Worn Magazine wants them! Read the below note from them:

Dear Readers,  

I'm excited to announce that the Spring/Summer issue of Worn Magazine is well under way and will be released at the end of April. The theme of this upcoming issue is "Dreams." One way to interpret this theme is to consider the personal journey we're all on to accomplish our dreams.

One important part of this journey is enduring rejection and then going on to kick butt anyway. Because I want all aspects of dreaming to be represented in this issue (not just the typical ones) I'd like you brave souls to send us your rejection letters so that we can print them in the upcoming issue or on our website. In addition to your letter, please include a short paragraph that explains how you've gone on to kick butt since that once unfortunate correspondence.

This is your opportunity to stick it to the man! [My note: highly sexist... artists get rejection letters/emails from all sexual varieties... not just the man... that's me trying to be semantically hip as a Virgo... I know what they mean]

Personally, I have two rejection letters I'd be willing to share, one from the FBI and another from the L.A. Times. 

Please address your letters as follows:
Subject- Rejection Is the Best Protection
Send to: info@wornmagazine.com
Please include a scanned copy of your letter OR forward us the initial rejection email.
Deadline to submit letters is Monday, March 11. 
Be brave! 

Nicole Aguirre, Editor-in-Chief

Art Underground is coming to Crystal City!

I can tell that this is gonna be big!

Art Underground will celebrate its launch on Saturday, March 16 with an open house and free mega paint-off hosted by ArtJamz from 6pm – 10pm at 2100 Crystal Drive. This event will be an energetic opportunity for the public to get a taste of the newest arts and cultural destination in the area with tours of brand new artist studios (Studios Underground) the Gallery Underground curated by the Arlington Artists Alliance, music, beverages, and snacks. Stop by and you can also catch Synetic’s latest installment of its famous silent Shakespeare series, The Tempest, at 8 PM (visit www.synetictheater.org for tickets).

The Crystal City Business Improvement District (BID), in partnership with Vornado/Charles E. Smith and the Arlington Artists Alliance (AAA), is transforming five blocks of Crystal City’s interior retail space into a vibrant arts and cultural destination with galleries, studios, interactive exhibits and activities, performance and classroom spaces, and a host of special events. This effort will create a powerful new incubator for the arts that will further activate and support Crystal City businesses and retail by attracting additional exposure, visitation, business and opportunities.

Art Underground is a collection of arts programming that will initially include:

• Studios Underground: an outlet for local artists to create, practice and showcase their talents while providing an engaging cultural experience for area residents, employees, visitors and guests.
• Gallery Underground (formerly the Northern Virginia Art Center): a showcase of original artwork by regional artists with monthly rotating exhibits to excite the imagination, stimulate creativity, and encourage repeat visitation.
• FotoWalk Underground: in partnership with FotoDC, FotoWalk is a yearlong, 1000-foot, 150-image gallery that changes every six months.
• Synetic Theater: the premier American physical theater, fusing dynamic art forms – such as text, drama, movement, acrobatics, dance and music.
• Special Events: Art Underground will host and present ongoing activities and events, including monthly ArtJamz sessions.

Details here.

Boots...

Seems like every other woman in New York is wearing those tall hooker boots - you know, the kind that Julia Roberts' character wears in Pretty Woman?

I'm pretty sure that I've never seen anyone in the DMV wear boots like these...

Just sayin'

Scope about to start...

It's all up and running and the fair opens in half an hour for the VIPs and press... just made a quick round of the fair and Contemporary Wing from DC and Grimaldis from Baltimore are looking good. Here are some shots of the booth and also the wall in front of me, where all through the fair I'm gonna be looking at a skinny nude Swiss woman smoking a cigarette - I understand from the staff at Lausanne's Dubner Moderne that she's a banker.

View of Alida Anderson Art Projects at SCOPE NY

View of Alida Anderson Art Projects at SCOPE NY

Ivan Simeon "Are you Beautiful"

.

One of the great joint projects of painters and bankers—the modern art market—was also an invention of the Gilded Age. What made the art market as we know it possible, starting in the middle of the nineteenth century, was the availability of cash.

Banks and the art market.... naaah! Read it here.

Coolest "somewhat old" building on the planet

The Joker is in Gotham again...

"Self Portrait as The Joker"
Andrew Wodzianski
28 x 20
Oil on Canvas

Will be at Booth J09 at SCOPE NEW YORK starting tomorrow as part of the "Superheroes" curated exhibition...

Congrats!

To super hard working DMV area artist Judith Peck, who just won the Juror's choice award from the (Louisiana) Masur Museum's juried competition from George T.M. Shackelford.

Peck is an artists' artist - by that I mean that Judy (whose work I love and have taken to art fairs many times) is admired by nearly every artist who is familiar with it.... she has exhibited widely around the US and her work has been featured multiple times in art magazines and newspaper reviews.

Among these, most recently in 2012 alone her work has been featured in The Artists’ Magazine, Combustus 13, Poets and Artists, The Birmingham Arts Journal and the book “Bourgeon, Fifty Artists Write About Their Work”, published by Day 8 Publishers.

This hard working and widely exhibited artist participated in eight exhibitions in 2012 alone, including a solo show at the Hoyt Institute for the Arts in New Castle, PA and an invitational show at the Georgia Museum of Art. 

And she works in one of the most difficult art niches that exist - nearly always doing portraits. That is one hard science... the subtle ability to not only capture someone's likeness, but also deliver someone's psychological and non kinetic make-up -- that's what makes Peck tick and cross over from a super gifted technical artist into that super rare upper artmosphere of the great portraitists of our time.

She sells well too... and as any art dealer can tell you, selling someone else portrait's is one of the hardest things to do on planet Artdealer... but collectors just fall in love with Peck's ability to "deliver" someone; not just an image of that person.

Peck’s work has also been exhibited widely in multiple art fairs, including the Aqua Art Fair in Miami Beach, and the Affordable Art Fair in New York and Red Dot in Miami.

Go Judith!

Senator Durbin... why?

For many years, large national retailers, big business and many hungry state tax collectors have hoped for new Internet sales tax collection policy. They want Congress to pass a federal law that would allow tax agents from one state to enforce their sales tax laws on retailers based in other states, even when a business is based thousands of miles away. Nearly everyone that I know opposes this misguided idea that goes against everything that the Internet stands for, and I (like millions of others worldwide) believe that small businesses selling via the Internet should only be subject to the tax laws of the states in which they operate.

The news from Capitol Hill is clear and just like the economy... it's grim.

Internet sales tax supporters are convinced that 2013 is their year, and they are determined to pass a new Internet sales tax bill when our out of control "tax everything" Congress (that refuses to face real financial austerity) tackles "corporate tax reform" in spite of the fact that "corporate" and the millions of small American businesses that operate on the Internet seldom share the same anything.

In December, Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL), the misguided idiot who smells more and more sources to suck money out of the economy and is the sponsor of Internet sales tax legislation, publicly announced that he had a commitment from the Senate Finance Committee to "take it up early next year and move it to the floor."  Why Durbin wants to lead an effort to bleed more and more taxes is something between himself and his big money donors...

Your opinion matters. If you oppose giving state tax collectors new powers to impose and enforce out-of-state sales tax burdens on small businesses that sell via the Internet, now is the time to make your voice heard.

This is not a Republican or Democrat issue - but an issue that deals with the freedom of the worldwide web and the never-ending appetite for some in Congress to try to tax any and everything that moves.

Take the time to email, call or write to your two Senators and your Congress person... feel free to use, edit and adapt the letter below, but DO SOMETHING!

 

Dear Member of Congress,

As your constituent and one of the millions of Americans concerned with this issue, I'm asking you not to impose any new sales tax laws on small businesses operating on the Internet.

In the 1992 Quill Decision, the Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to allow state tax enforcement authorities to impose their sales tax laws on small businesses located in other states.  However, an effort backed by giant retailers and a group of state legislators is trying to push Congress to overturn the Quill Decision and establish an unfair tax regime that would force small online businesses to be subject to sales tax laws all across the country, regardless of where the small business is actually located.

Millions of American small business retailers, would be directly impacted by any new Internet sales tax system. It would increase the cost of doing business and shopping on-line, which would hurt sellers and buyers alike. I believe that small businesses selling via the Internet should only be subject to the tax laws of the states in which they operate. Instead of imposing new tax burdens on small businesses, I would encourage Congress to do EXACTLY the opposite and look at new policies that encourage small business growth and development on the Internet, which in turn will spur job growth and increase consumer choice.

As your constituent, I would ask that you please oppose any efforts to impose new tax burdens on small businesses operating on the Internet.

Thank you for your support.

Sincerely,
YOUR NAME

Mingering Mike in the museum!

Between 1968 and 1977, Mingering Mike released around 50 albums, each with its own hand-drawn album art, and played sold-out shows around the world. Yet if you haven’t heard of the prolific soul and funk singer, it’s because he was entirely fictional, but the art was real and has just been acquired by the Smithsonian American Art Museum.

Details in Hyperallergic here.

Next week: SCOPE New York

Next week is Armory week in New York, which means that several art fairs will be going on the Big Apple, all anchored around the Armory fair.

Starting on Wednesday, we will be at the Scope Art Fair, booth J09... from the DMV Contemporary Wing will also be there, so if any of you are heading to visit the art fairs, please make sure to stop by and say hi to me and CW.

We're all hoping that the fiscal Omaggedon doesn't hurt the fair too much... feh!

DATES and TIMES

• VIP and Press First View, Wednesday, March 6: 3pm – 9pm (By Invitation)

Daily

• Thursday, March 7: 11am - 8pm
• Friday, March 8: 11am - 8pm
• Saturday, March 9: 11am - 8pm
• Sunday, March 10: 11am - 7pm

SCOPE NEW YORK PAVILION
Skylight at Moynihan Station
New York City Main Post Office
312 West 33^rd Street
New York, NY 10001

Open the flood gates!

One thing that nearly every artist on the planet (including myself) shares is rejection letters/emails from galleries, juried competitions, curators and your aunt Elvira... in fact, since I have been a juror, gallerist and curator for a ton of art shows, I hate to say that I've written a fuckload of rejection letters myself.

And now Worn Magazine wants them! Read the below note from them:

Dear Readers,  

I'm excited to announce that the Spring/Summer issue of Worn Magazine is well under way and will be released at the end of April. The theme of this upcoming issue is "Dreams." One way to interpret this theme is to consider the personal journey we're all on to accomplish our dreams.

One important part of this journey is enduring rejection and then going on to kick butt anyway. Because I want all aspects of dreaming to be represented in this issue (not just the typical ones) I'd like you brave souls to send us your rejection letters so that we can print them in the upcoming issue or on our website. In addition to your letter, please include a short paragraph that explains how you've gone on to kick butt since that once unfortunate correspondence.

This is your opportunity to stick it to the man! [My note: highly sexist... artists get rejection letters/emails from all sexual varieties... not just the man... that's me trying to be semantically hip as a Virgo... I know what they mean]

Personally, I have two rejection letters I'd be willing to share, one from the FBI and another from the L.A. Times. 

Please address your letters as follows:
Subject- Rejection Is the Best Protection
Send to: info@wornmagazine.com
Please include a scanned copy of your letter OR forward us the initial rejection email.

Deadline to submit letters is Monday, March 11. 

Be brave! 

Nicole Aguirre, Editor-in-Chief

Wanna go to an opening tonight!

AMY LIN

DIFFUSION 

March 2 -April 27, 2013

opening reception for the artist,  

Saturday, March 2, 5-7pm  

 

Addison/Ripley in Georgetown!

Norm Parish

That guy on the left has done more for African American artists and artists of all four races and thousands of ethnicities around the DMV than most people realize.

That guy on the left is one of the hardest working, least recognized, key members of the visual arts cultural tapestry of our capital region.

That guy on the left is one of the longest surviving independent fine arts commercial gallery owners in the region and a champion for the DC area visual arts.

That guy is Norm Parish, owner, director and curator of Parish Gallery, established in Georgetown in 1991, which means that in "gallery years", his gallery has not only survived but flourished in a town where art galleries struggle to stay open.

He was my neighbor for many years while I was half of The Fraser Gallery's original location in G'town from 1996 - 2006 and I consider him a friend and my earliest inspiration for trying to do something positive for the DMV art scene.

Tokesplace has a tribute to him here and I applaud that! Check out the video below...

Tonight's key opening is...

If you're not going to this opening tonight, then you're just off the visual arts radar in the DMV.

Here... HERE!

Beer Art Intervention Project

Anna U. Davis is one of the DMV's hardest working artists. By that I mean that Anna shows a lot of work around the DMV and is a key, active member of the visual arts tapestry that makes the DMV one of the hottest (in spite of the apathy of the press and local museums) visual art scenes on the planet. 

A little like my own hotel art intervention project, Anna has a very cool art beer intervention project going on... she says:

Every time I buy a 6 pack of mixed beers @ S & S liquors @ Takoma Park Metro Station, I will return the cardboard beer carrier to the store with a drawing on it. If you want it, grab it at the store when you buy a mixed 6 pack! Free, oh well you have to pay for the beer! :)

Check them out below... I know that I'm headed there soon to buy some brews - S&S is located at 6925 4th St NW, Washington, DC 20012 and they're gonna start selling a lot of Anna's beer tomorrow and they owe her at least a free six pack once in a while...

 

The Art of Street Portraiture

While traveling in Cuba with National Geographic Expeditions I had the fortunate opportunity to interview a real life ¨fotógrafo minutero¨ that expanded my knowledge on a craft that is used less frequently now a days, but still in Cuba, Argentina and other locations around the world.

The beauty of these fotógrafos minuteros or street portrait photographers, is it’s authentic nature, and it’s ability to develop photos instantly. The liveliness caught with this type of practice, and equipment is something unlike anything else in the photography world used today. It has a raw, yet intimate style all at the same time.

Read  the whole piece (Via) here...

The Lilith and Eve (After The Sin) - detail

The Lilith and Eve (After The Sin)
Charcoal and Conte on Paper. 4x12 inches
Will be at SCOPE New York next month!

DATES & TIMES

• VIP and Press First View, Wednesday, March 6: 3pm – 9pm (By Invitation)

Daily

• Thursday, March 7: 11am - 8pm
• Friday, March 8: 11am - 8pm
• Saturday, March 9: 11am - 8pm
• Sunday, March 10: 11am - 7pm

SCOPE NEW YORK PAVILION
Skylight at Moynihan Station
New York City Main Post Office
312 West 33^rd Street
New York, NY 10001

The Virgin Mary as Superhero

Meet ‘Super Mary’, a pop culture version of her former self, part of a series by French artist, Soasig Chamaillard, who restores and transforms damaged statues, either donated or discovered in garage sales.

Details and lots more versions of this artist's work here. 

By the way, those of us who have been to Artomatic over the years, know that there is an Artomatic artist whose name escapes me now, that several years ago did this idea first (if I recall correctly in more than one Artomatic) where instead of the Virgin's statue, he used statues of The Christ, which he then transformed into a whole array of new versions of Jesus that a few centuries ago would have merited frying at the stake.

If anyone recalls that artist's name, please leave it in the comments!

Spiderman Naked

Spiderman Naked
Charcoal and conte on paper
14 x 8 inches. 2013
Will be part of the "Superheroes" exhibition at SCOPE NY next month. Booth J09.

DATES & TIMES

• VIP and Press First View, Wednesday, March 6: 3pm – 9pm (By Invitation)

Daily

• Thursday, March 7: 11am - 8pm
• Friday, March 8: 11am - 8pm
• Saturday, March 9: 11am - 8pm
• Sunday, March 10: 11am - 7pm

SCOPE NEW YORK PAVILION
Skylight at Moynihan Station
New York City Main Post Office
312 West 33^rd Street
New York, NY 10001

Portlandia mocks postmodernism

Labeling everyday objects as postmodern "art" is dangerous, as the creators of Portlandia demonstrated last week.

Check it out here.

Rousseau reviews

Dr. Claudia Rousseau has a couple of really good reviews in The Gazette (which is owned by the Washington Post) here.

The Wapo, since they own The Gazette, often reprint Gazette articles in the WaPo, but have never re-used an art review, which I find odd, considering that Dr. Rousseau, an award winning writer, is one of the most talented art writers around and already in their employ.

It's a good thing that Mark Jenkins is doing a GREAT job at the WaPo since he took over the freelance arts coverage job from Jessica Dawson, but one would think that once in a while the WaPo would augment the visual arts coverage with a Gazette review here and there.

If you don't get it... you don't get it!

(e)merge back this October

The third edition of (e)merge takes place October 3-6, 2013 at the Rubell Family's Capitol Skyline Hotel, in Washington, DC.

Details here.

Yap, yap, yap

The kid doing what he loves to best and a genetically programmed function on all Homo Cubanesis: exercising his gums at the recent talk at the Edison Gallery on the subject of Artomatic.

Wanna go to an opening tonight?

“Transmission” (meaning light falling through glass) - an exhibition of work by the very talented DMV area artist Nancy Donnelly opens this evening, 7-9 PM. 

There's an artist talk at 8PM.
 

VisArts

Common Ground Gallery.

150 Gibbs St.

Rockville (part of Rockville Center).

There’s a metro stop nearby, and also a big parking garage close by. 

Also a ton of great restaurants and bars in a very pedestrian friendly zone - if you haven't been to the "new" Rockville downtown in a while, prepare to be surprised.

Artists: OUT OF ORDER is coming...

YOU SHOULD DO THIS!

FRIDAY, APRIL 5th, 8PM @ MAP

Maryland Art Place's annual spring benefit, silent auction and party! Out of Order, one of MAP's most celebrated annual events, is right around the corner. Join them to view and bid on works from a wide range of regional artists—from emerging and students artists to established professionals. TICKETS Available for $45 at the door or online through MissionTix.com. SPONSORSHIPS Offered at three levels this year! $250 | $500 | $1,000 Contact Emily Sollenberger for additional information or view the form here. ARTISTS Any artist is welcome to hang one original work in the silent auction exhibition. Installation takes place on a first-come, first-served basis on Tuesday, April 2nd from 7a - midnight. For details, visit mdartplace.org.  I always do this and I always sell my piece! Mark your calendars for Friday, April 5th and stay connected with mdartplace.org for more information & details!

2013 OOO Committee: Morgan Gilligan - Chair, Robbye Apperson, Niki Ballard, Karen Bokram, Liz Wade Cairns, G. Brian Comes, Suzi Cordish, Dawn Gavin, Ted Hart, Chris Janian, Peter Kilpe, Nate Larson, Stacey Murray, Tiffani Norris, Harris Peace, Sam Polakoff, Amy Eva Raehse, Jon Royce, Lucky Thompson, Jessica D'Argenio Waller

Gleason on Charity Auctions

There is a tradition of auctioning original works of art donated by artists to raise money for charitable causes. There are many good causes that hold such events. No matter how good the causes, though, I have come to the conclusion that artists must stop donating to every single one of them.

Don't ever donate your art to a charity auction again. Half a century of charity art auctions have changed the way collectors buy art. These fundraisers have depressed prices of art across the board and kept artists in a subordinate position that has no career upside or benefits.

Read the article in the HuffPost here.

Artists and Obamacare

 What, exactly, can be expected now that the ACA is moving forward? Data from a report by the group Leveraging Investments in Creativity specifically lays  out how artists could be affected by the President's new health care law, based on data about creative workers and their situation. Since the Supreme Court has officially upheld the law, ARTINFO broke out a few parts that are most likely to affect the arts community:

 Details here.

Amy Lin's new show at Addison Ripley

AMY LIN

DIFFUSION 

March 2 -April 27, 2013

opening reception for the artist,  

Saturday, March 2, 5-7pm 

3D pen?

The World’s First 3D Printing Pen that Lets you Draw Sculptures!!!

 Come again?

 Just see it here... 

2013 Sondheim Semi-Finalists

Big field for Baltimore's Sondheim Prize semis... just. to show how new and thus strong this Baltimore-centric small army is, I've bolded the artists' whose work is familiar to me. This is a good, fresh thing -- my kudos to the Sondheim!

A Baltimore art prize takes care of its own! Imagine that!
 

Laura Amussen, Towson, MD
Catherine Borg, Baltimore, MD
Gabriela Bulisova, Alexandria, VA
Amanda Burnham, Baltimore, MD
Dustin Carlson, Baltimore, MD
Lynn Cazabon, Baltimore, MD
Cindy Cheng, Baltimore, MD
Mina Cheon, Baltimore, MD
Wesley Clark, Hyattsville, MD
Sarada Conaway, Baltimore, MD
Ricardo Contreras, Baltimore, MD
Larry Cook, Landover Hills, MD
Hoesy Corona, Baltimore, MD
Caitlin Cunningham, Baltimore, MD
Frank Day, Washington, DC
Erika Diehl, Baltimore, MD
Lisa Dillin, Baltimore, MD
Amy Finkelstein, Takoma Park, MD
FORCE Upsetting Rape Culture, Baltimore, MD
(Rebecca Nagle & Hannah Brancato)
Zoe Friedman, Baltimore, MD
Lorenzo Gattorna & Mary Ancel, Baltimore, MD
Marian Glebes, Baltimore, MD
Clarissa Gregory, Baltimore, MD
Joshua Haycraft, Washington, DC
Jeff Hensley, Ellicott City, MD
Hedieh Ilchi, Rockville, MD
Brian Kain, Emmitsburg, MD
Jordan Kasey, Baltimore, MD
Dean Kessmann, Washington, DC
Sung Hwa Kim, Baltimore, MD
David Knopp, Baltimore, MD
Nate Larson, Baltimore, MD
Jonathan Latiano, Baltimore, MD
Kimberly Llerena, Baltimore, MD
Curtis Miller, Baltimore, MD
A. Moon, Baltimore, MD
Jeffrey Moser, Lancaster, PA
Charles Norton, Baltimore, MD
Louie Palu, Washington, DC
Mark Parascandola, Washington, DC
Ruth Pettus, Baltimore, MD
Benjamin Piwowar, Baltimore, MD
Tatjana Plitt, Odenton, MD
Steve Prince, Silver Spring, MD
Adam Rush, Baltimore, MD
Miguel Sabogal, Baltimore, MD
Dan Steinhilber, Washington, DC
Adejoke Tugbiyele, Baltimore, MD
Stewart Watson, Baltimore, MD
Melissa Webb, Baltimore, MD
Karen Yasinsky, Tilghman, MD

Next month in NYC: Judith with the head of Holofernes

"Judith with the head of Holofernes" is a charcoal drawing with an embedded digital presentation.

The "heads" of Holofernes rotate inside Judith's sack, showing the heads of the hateful leaders of some of the contemporary (still oppressed) nations of the ancient Assyrian Empire, who a few thousand years later still want to destroy Israel (their leaders that is)... we see Ahmadinejad, Khamenei, Muqtada al-Sadr, Assad, Morsi, Rafsanjani, etc.

The piece measures 16.75 x 12 inches and will be matted and framed to a larger size and (unless some savvy collector buys it between now and then) it will make its exhibition debut at Scope New York next March, where it is sure to piss off a lot of anti-Semites.

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: April 5, 2013

The Delaplaine Visual Arts Education Center located in historic downtown Frederick, Mayland announces the 2013 Annual Juried Exhibit. Dates: May 4 - June 23. 

Open to any artist living or working in the United States, all media is eligible, no size restrictions. $1150 in prize money awarded, $500 first prize. Juror: Gerald Ross, Director of Exhibitions at the Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) in Baltimore, Maryland. 

For details on how to enter visit this website.

Dental care for artists

Maryland Art Place is partnering with students of the dental hygiene program at The Community College of Baltimore County – Dundalk Campus. Patients pay $20 for a professional checkup and cleaning (no insurance required). X-rays available at an additional cost. Please ask about discounts for current students and senior citizens.

Take advantage of this special opportunity if you are an artist in need of:

•      dental checkup
•      teeth cleaning
•      x-rays

For more information visit mdartplace.org or contact Julie Smith, 443.717.1617,
jsmith791@hotmail.com

The Batman Naked

The Batman Naked
Charcoal and Conte on Paper
34 x 8 inches
2013 by F. Lennox Campello

Will be exhibited at SCOPE NEW YORK next month as part of the "Superheroes" exhibition - Booth J09!

Bruce Wayne: The Trapped Batman

Bruce Wayne: Trapped Batman
30x30 cm. Oil and Alkyds on Wood. 2013 by Simon Monk

This new work by British artist Simon Monk will be part of the curated exhibition "Superheroes" at the SCOPE Art Fair New York next month in NYC.

New Arts Center to Open in Anacostia

ARCH Development Corporation (ADC) announces the Anacostia Arts Center, coming spring 2013 to Historic Anacostia. Designed to be a community arts nucleus, the Anacostia Arts Center will bring approximately 10,000 square feet of creative commercial space to Good Hope Road SE. Conveniently located at the south end of the 11th Street Bridge between Martin Luther King Jr. Avenue SE and 13th Street SE, the Anacostia Arts Center will bring independent creative projects together under one roof.

Anacostia Arts Center will occupy the street level of 1231 Good Hope Road SE, formally the ARCH Training Center. The property is divided up into spaces connected by a main hall, with common lounge areas in the front and rear of the building. 

Currently under construction, the space will include: a built-out black box theater, the American Poetry Museum Reading Room, the short-term creative rental facility Blank Space SE, a coffee shop & juice bar, three gallery rental spaces, and two boutique/wellness center rental spaces. Now accepting proposals and lease applications: the black box theater, all gallery and boutique/wellness center spaces, coffee shop & juice bar.

Duane Gautier, CEO of ADC, explains his vision for the center: "This project will assist in transforming the Anacostia neighborhood into a place people recognize as an arts destination."

Anacostia Arts Center represents the newest effort by ADC to revitalize Historic Anacostia by providing opportunities for the creative economy to flourish in the area. The organization's work in the neighborhood began with job training, housing, and micro-lending programs more than 20years ago. The focus expanded to the arts in 2007, with ADC's opening of its first art gallery in the area, Honfleur Gallery. In 2009, Vivid Solutions DC Archival Print Lab opened, followed by the accompanying fine art photography and digital art exhibition space, The Gallery at Vivid Solutions. ADC produced its first large-scale community arts festival LUMEN8Anacostia in April 2012 and its return is scheduled for June 22, 2013. In summer 2012 Honfleur Gallery established the Annual East of the River Distinguished Artist Award. The Anacostia Playhouse, formally the H St. Playhouse, relocated to Shannon Place SE with assistance from ADC. It is also slated to open in spring 2013.

Calling it a "natural addition to an already flourishing art culture" in Anacostia and predicting that it will be a destination for residents and nonresidents," ANC Commissioner 8A06 Kendall Graham said, "The establishment of the Anacostia Arts Center, along with the opening of the Anacostia Playhouse and second annual LUMEN8Anacostia festival, will only add to the momentum of Anacostia's renaissance."

ADC's Director of Business Development Nikki Peele pointed out that the location of the Anacostia Arts Center directly above The HIVE 2.0 will be mutually beneficial to both projects. She said, "The HIVE 2.0 is about providing an environment for innovators, visionaries, and entrepreneurs to collaborate and thrive. Having the Anacostia Arts Center in the same building as The HIVE 2.0 is a huge asset in making our space more attractive, more dynamic, and more cutting edge for the entrepreneurs that call our small business incubators home."

With the Anacostia Arts Center, ADC intends to further diversify the arts landscape in Historic Anacostia by providing the space and start-up support for other arts organizations to lay down roots in the community.

Wanna see the asteroid?

Today, an asteroid about the size of the Statue of Liberty but named 2012 DA14 will zip by only 17,200 miles from Earth. You won’t be able to see it with the naked eye, but you'll be able to check it out online via any of the links below (Via EarthSky):

Bareket Observatory in Israel is offering a free live webcast of the close approach on February 15 beginning at 20:15 UTC (2:15 p.m. Central Time in the U.S.), for a duration of about 3 hours. For more information, visit Baraket Observatory’s website. You’ll be automatically transfered to the live images, during the event.

Clay Center Observatory will offer real-time high-definition video, weather permitting, beginning at 1:00 UTC on February 16 (5 p.m. CST on February 15). Clay Center Observatory’s Ustream channel is here.
NASA Television will provide commentary starting at 19:00 UTC (1 p.m. CST) on February 15. The commentary will be streamed live online at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv and http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2.

Slooh Space Camera will cover the asteroid’s near-approach on Friday, February 15, with several live shows, free to the public, starting at 02:00 UTC on February 16 (8 p.m. CST). Find international times for Slooh at http://goo.gl/ythGd. Slooh will also have real-time commentary from their own Paul Cox, astronomer and author Bob Berman, and Prescott Observatory manager Matt Francis. Visit Slooh’s event page here.

Virtual Telescope Project, which calls itself “the most active facility in the world in astronomical science and education,” will also be following 2012 DA14 on February 15. Check out Virtual Telescope’s event page here.