Airborne today

Heading north to New England. Re-reading Vonnegut's Breakfast of Champions on the flight there.

Don't forget, today is the is the Bethesda Artists Market, inside Bethesda Plaza and around our gallery. From 10 - 5PM. Details here.

Heading off

Tomorrow, Sunday July 10 is the Bethesda Artists Market, swing by and see 35 or 40 fine artists and craftsmen selling their work inside Bethesda Plaza and around our gallery. From 10 - 5PM. Details here.

I won't be there, as I am flying up North to New England for a while, and then to Colorado and finally to the Left Coast; I'll be back home by the end of July.

I'll continue to try to post from the road.

The Gallery

Last night we had a very large opening, although somehow all the sales took place today, although Saturdays are usually pretty quiet in Bethesda.

Seven

A couple of artists featured in Seven have emailed me and have found galleries interested in them! An unexpected benefit for them, but something that I knew was a possibility and thus why I asked my fellow gallerists to come and see the show, and why I dug deep into the WPA/C files for new names.

CNN will be doing a segment on Seven next week. I'll miss it as I will be somewhere out West, but Kim Ward from the WPA/C will represent! As soon as I have a viewing schedule, I'll pass it along.

Donations Needed

Artwork is needed to be donated for an online art auction to benefit the Whitman-Walker Clinic in DC, the leading provider of HIV/AIDS services in the DC metro area.

It's being forced to drastically reduce its services due to a shortage of funds. The Washington Blade's June 10th article has more details.

Artists who participate in the benefit to gain attention and promotion of their work through the auction and are listed in link to artists' own web pages. Email or call Basla Andolsun if you are interested or with questions. I intend to donate work and hope that some of you will do as well.

Mammaries

I've already heard good things about "Angst for the Mammaries," which opened yesterday at Touchstone Gallery, and where artists Candace Keegan, Adrienne Mills, Raymonde Van Santen, Amy Glengary Yang and Joyce Zipperer confront "growing angst over the artistic depiction of bare breasts in an era of diminishing personal freedom. Viewers are invited to explore and document their opinions on bare breasts in contemporary art and culture."

A discussion with the artists, moderated by Judy Jashinsky, will take place at 7 pm, on Friday, July 15, 2005.

Opportunity for Artists

1460 Wall Mountables

1460 Wall Mountables: DCAC's Annual Open Exhibit: July 29 - September 4, 2005.

DCAC Membership Benefit Opening: Friday, July 29th from 7-9 PM

Don't miss DCAC's annual fundraising event where you can show your art, sell your art, and compete with other artists to win $100! Buy your own 2' x 2' space or just come to the opening reception on July 29th. This is one of the best artists' opportunities in our city. Everytime that that I've done this show, I've sold all the work and had a great time in the process! Here's how it works:

· Each 2 ft. x 2 ft. space is only $10.
· DCAC members receive one free space.
· Become a DCAC member at the event and receive three free spaces for a total of four free spaces.
· Art must be 2 feet x 2 feet or smaller (spaces may not be combined.)
· All art must be wall mountable.
· $100 prize for the most interesting and innovative use of a 2' x 2' square.
· Artist may hang anytime Wednesday, Thursday or Friday, July 27, 28 between 2-7:00 PM and July 29 between 2 and 6.
· Spaces are available on a first come basis.
· Bring your own hanging tools.

Call 202/462-7833 for more information.

OPTIONS artists announced

Dr. Libby Lumpkin has selected the artists for the OPTIONS 2005 exhibition. Read the news release here.

The selected artists are listed below; I am familiar with a name or two, but do not know the work of any of them, except for Field's paintings in Strictly Painting V:

Bayo Abiodun
Judy Baumann
Jorge Benitez
Anne Benolken
Sheila Blake
Chad Caldwell
Kimberly Caputo
Tim DeVoe
Suzanna Fields
Lynn Galuzzo
Emily Hall
Lori Larusso
Ryan Mulligan
Mark Robarge
Lindsay Rogers
Amanda Sauer
Gary Thompson
George Tkbladze
Randy Toy
Susan Vaughan

Gallery Tales

A while back, at a very crowded opening in our Bethesda gallery, one of the persons in attendance was this huge man, dressed like Neo from the Matrix movies (all in black in some kind of Father Sarducci leather outfit). Long hair and a huge Satanic ornament around his neck-chain completed the costume, although with this dude, you could tell that he dressed like that normally.

Anyhoooo... As this Neo-wannabe is swishing around his huge six foot five frame in his leather skirts; drinking our Sangria from one end of the gallery to the other, he knocks down a small framed piece under glass.

It hits the floor, and because it's fairly small, the glass doesn't shatter. Neo-wannabe attempts to re-hang it as I approach him.

"That's OK," I say, "I'll take care of it," and as I re-hang it, I notice that the glass is chipped in one corner. No big deal, the art is OK, and after all, it was an accident. I wave off to the alarmed artist, who is on the other side of the gallery, but has noticed that her work was in harm's way.

Neo sees me notice the broken glass and says: "The glass was already broken."

I turn around, look up to his face, and say: "No sir, I framed these myself yesterday, and the glass was not broken, it just broke when it fell; that's OK we'll replace the glass."

Neo says: "No man, the glass was already broken."

I breathe deeply, trying to control the Brooklyn streets side of me. "The glass was not broken... all you had to say was 'I am sorry.'"

"No way!" says Neo, "the glass was already broken," and he starts to walk away.

I grab his leathered arm, and say to him: "Get out of my gallery."

He turns and looks at me a bit confused. "Get out of my gallery," I say again.

"Look man, OK, I am sorry," he mutters.

"Get out of my gallery," I say a little louder, and people are now nervously noticing the confrontation. He starts to walk away towards the door, as he gets by the front desk, he actually turns around and offers me his hand. "No hard feelings," he says.

Brooklyn is barely under control now, raging in my chest and scratching and itching to get out. Catriona Fraser, behind the desk, looks incredibly alarmed. "Please get out," I growl to Neo, "you don't know how close you are to an ass kicking."

He swishes out. I turn around to face our opening crowd of white-faced, silent art lovers, and try to find the place inside me to again try to sell some art.

Another day in the life of an art dealer.