Synergy Deadline Extended

Evolving Perceptions has extended the deadline for their Call for Art for SYNERGY until March 15, 2005.

Per the hardworking organizers: "SYNERGY is a new movement in creative energy. The artists of the Washington D.C. metropolitan area are engaging in a project that is bringing the artistic community together in a powerfully innovative way. Evolving Perceptions (EP) is making SYNERGY their gift to the aesthetic energy of our Nation’s Capital. Through the synergy of the artists, community, supporters and media, the SYNERGY project will empower, articulate and educate the communities of the Metropolitan Washington D.C. area about the arts with a totally new paradigm. We are forming 6 teams of 3-4 artists in collaboration to create works that will be exhibited, voted on by the public and auctioned. There is a $3,000 stipend per artist. Visit EP's website for details on the call and to download an entry form.

For more questions please email Marsha Stein, SYNERGY COORDINATOR, marshasart@aol.com or call at 301-564-0707.

Tuesday Arts Agenda

DCist's Tuesday Arts Agenda is packed full of great visual arts stuff going on this week in DC.

The opening and show not to miss this week is Mexican Report: Contemporary Mexican Art, opening Thursday, Feb. 24 at the Cultural Institute of Mexico and two other local venues. The opening at the Cultural Institute of Mexico starts at 6:30PM.

If you haven't been to this beautiful building and gallery space, be prepared for one of DC's best-kept secrets: It is both a marvel of architecture and visual arts all rolled into one, and under Alejandro Negrin's leadership has really taken off as one of the key art venues in our city that truly adds a powerful international footprint to our art scene!

While there, visit Marta Maria Perez Bravo's huge digital photographs One Soul I and One Soul II.

Marta Maria is Cuban, but currently resides in Mexico, and we represent her work locally.

Exhibition details here. As I am heading to San Diego, I will miss the opening (bummer).

Airborne today

Last night's opening of Drawing II was very pleasant!

Today I am airborne and heading to the Left Coast again and returning on Friday. I am on a poetry reading mood, so on the way there I'm going to re-read The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson and also mix it up with some Yeats.

Talking about Yeats, herewith my favorite Yeats' poem of all time:

"Her Triumph"

I did the dragon's will until you came
Because I had fancied love a casual
Improvisation, or a settled game
That followed if I let the kerchief fall:
Those deeds were best that gave the minute wings
And heavenly music if they gave it wit;
And then you stood among the dragon-rings.
I mocked, being crazy, but you mastered it
And broke the chain and set my ankles free,
Saint George or else a pagan Perseus;
And now we stare astonished at the sea,
And a miraculous strange bird shrieks at us.

Mary Lang

J.T. Kirkland at Thinking About Art has an interesting review of Mary Lang's debut show in our Georgetown gallery.

More images by Lang here.

Tour de Clay

Geographically centered around the Greater Baltimore area, but featuring 878 artists, with 160 exhibits in 122 venues around the world, Tour de Clay is probably the largest visual arts multi-everything event ever held in the country, and it focuses and celebrates all forms of art in clay through a collaboration of artists from 47 states and Norway, Switzerland, Korea, Africa, Japan, Taiwan and Scotland, as well as participation by area galleries with exhibitions at more than 100 venues throughout the region, including DCAC and these other locations locally: Target Gallery, Ellipse Art Center, Scope Gallery and The 340 Space.

See all area locations here.

The exhibitions opened a couple of days ago and run through April 3, 2005.

Opening Today

Prof. Sarah Stecher of Montgomery College has curated Drawing National II at Montgomery College and selected 41 artists, and the opening reception for the show is today, Monday, February 21, 6-8PM. Directions to the campus are here.

In addition to yours truly, the following artists will be exhibiting in this show: Kelly Adams, Lila Oliver Asher, Alastair Bolton, Scott Brooks, Warren Craghead III, Elli Crocker, Pamela DeLaura, Haig Demarjian, Jan Dove, Laura Evans, Sondra B. Gair, Javier Gil, Mikhail Gubin, Sharon Harper, Jeffrey Haupt, Candace Keegan, Richard Keen, Ronald Keeney, Kathleen King, J.T. Kirkland, Mary Kate Maher, Allison Miner, Sarah Oldenburg, Mary Ott, Sky Pape, Susan Due Pearcy, Mark Pomilio, Selena Reames, Mari Richards, Jacqueline Saunders, Terri Schmidt, John P. Semple, Marc Snyder, Caroline Thorington, Adrienne Trager, Michael Voors, Yida Wang, Maya Weber, and Alice Whealin.

Lions and Tigers and Bears

Oh God!

From the Himalayan Times (thanks AJ):

Eight elephants in northern Thailand have painted their way into the Guinness Book of World Records after an art lover living in the United States shelled out a jumbo 1.5 million baht ($39,000) for their canvas creation — the highest price ever paid for elephant art.

Art lover?

Where did I leave that sharp knife?