Backers

In the last few days I've had a couple of emails from separate artists asking if I knew who the "backers" of a local gallery are.

What's a "backer," you may ask?

A backer is someone, usually an anonymous partner (often with more money than sense), who backs the gallery with money, so that the risky business of staying afloat as a business can be accomplished while at the same time dancing on the leading edge of visual culture.

Anecdote: I was once giving a DC area museum director a ride to his/her home, as the director had come to visit the gallery to look at our show. On the ride home, we started to discuss area galleries, and to gossip about them.

"So you guys are doing pretty well," the director notes, "with two galleries and all."

"It's a lot of work," I answered.

"So," says the director looking at me, "who's your backer?"

I looked at the director with a slight grin on my face, as I've been asked this question a million times before and I have such a good answer.

"For our first gallery in Georgetown," I began to answer, "it was Mr. Visa and Mr. Mastercard."

"For the large, new Bethesda gallery," I continued, "it was Southern Financial Bank's loan officer!" (We paid the entire loan off in our first year at Bethesda, by the way, as I hate owing money).

The director looked at me with a strange look, obviously a little disconcerted by the look of childish glee on my face.

Anyway... back to "backers."

In the last two or three months we have been approached by two separate individuals offering to "back us" in opening a gallery in Florida. One "backer" wanted to back a Fraser Gallery in Miami, while the second one offered to back us in opening a gallery in West Palm Beach.

We turned them down, naturally, it's already too much work running two galleries, and of course, with any "backer" comes a loss of total control of the business; money talks.

Mini Dawsons

Jessica Dawson has a few mini reviews in today's WaPo.

Read them here.

Gallery Director Needed

Artstaffing.com is currently seeking to fill a Gallery Director position for an important Washington, DC client of theirs.

The Gallery Director must have at least five years of experience in contemporary galleries. Excellent client relations, the willingness to develop and implement new
projects and initiatives and the ability to take the gallery "to the next level" are essential. A self-motivated approach and a BA in Art History or related strongly preferred; some experience in NYC or LA galleries and art fairs a plus. Salary $40K plus escalating commission rate.

Please send resume with detailed cover letter and names of three references to recruiters@artstaffing.com or call 212-779-7059 for more info.

Wanna work on a mural?

Every Saturday from 3 to 7pm this summer, a mosaic mural is being erected at 13th and Good Hope Road, SE. The mural is made completely of mosaic materials found from around the city. These materials include bathroom tiles, flat colored glass, old china, bottlecaps, seashells, keys and much more.

The project needs volunteers who are interested in helping create the mural. No drawing or art experience necessary!

Material donations are also welcome, especially small bathroom tiles and flat colored glass (scraps are fine too)... especially the color red! All material donations will be picked up and tax receipts are available upon request.

This mural is made possible by a grant from the DC Commission of Arts and Humanities, Facilitating Leadership in Youth (FLY), and Art on the Block.

for more info:
DC Commission on Arts and Humanities
Jill Blankespoor
blankespoor@yahoo.com

Studio Gallery looking for a new director

Deadline: Thursday, September 15, 2005.

Studio Gallery, the longest-established artist-owned cooperative gallery in the metropolitan Washington D.C. area, located in Dupont Circle, seeks a part-time Director to start work September 2005.

This person would be the public face of a gallery known for over 40 years for its standard of excellence as well as its mission to promote outreach and education in the visual arts.

Areas of responsibility : management and coordination of gallery operations, sales and marketing, liaison with artists, exhibitions and public relations . The candidate should have a background in and enthusiasm for the visual arts and good communication, organizing and writing skills. Computer literacy, including familiarity with website and graphic technology, is essential. Base Salary plus Commission

Please contact: Andrea Kraus, ARKRAUS@aol.com or 301.229.7878

Or submit resume, references and one-page writing sample to Andrea Kraus at the mailing address below:
Studio Gallery
Andrea Kraus
7701 Oldchester Road
Bethesda, MD 20817
t: 301.229.7878 or arkraus@aol.com or www.studiogallerydc.com

August

August always gets a bad rap as being a slow month for the visual arts around here. It's not true. There are a few exhibitions around our area that I need to get to in the next few days:

1. Academy 2005: The First Five Years at Conner Contemporary Art. The annual invitational survey of work by recent graduates in Washington/Baltimore area college art programs. The exhibition's curator and founder, Jamie L. Smith has selected paintings, drawings, digital photography, sculpture and performance art by the following artists: Jason Bulluck – Howard University, Andrew Haskell – Georgetown University, Stephanie Hulbert – Catholic University, Patrick Kelly – The George Washington University, Maki Maruyama – Corcoran College of Art and Design, Jenna McCracken – The George Washington University, Julia Rommel – American University, Zach Storm – Corcoran College of Art and Design, Kate Taylor – Maryland Institute College of Art, Bret Webb – Maryland Insititute College of Art, and Virginia Warwick – University of Maryland.

This year’s special anniversary celebration also features new work including video, drawing, and photography from the following past Academy shows 2001 – 2004 alumni: Lisa Bertnick - Corcoran College of Art and Design- Academy 2001; Karin Horlbeck - Maryland Institute College of Art - Academy 2002; Noah Angell - Corcoran College of Art and Design - Academy 2003; and Mary Coble -The George Washington University - Academy 2004.

2. "Burnversions" - Solo Exhibition of "Rough Edge Photography" by James W. Bailey at the Reston Community Center.

3. The Human Form at Touchstone Gallery and juried by Anne Goodyear, Ph. D., Assistant Curator at the National Portrait Gallery.

4. Beyond Synergy at the Anne C. Fisher Gallery in Georgetown.

Bailey on Mark Cameron Boyd

Bailey has an excellent interview with Seven artist Mark Cameron Boyd.

Read it here.