New Alexandria, Virginia gallery

New to me anyway, but open since June of last year is DelRay's Blueberry Gallery (gallery website coming soon I am told) in Alexandria, VA.

The gallery is having a closing reception for their current exhibit of works by Nihal Kececi on Feb. 29 from 5:30-7:30PM.

The Art League's Patrons Show


If you were crazy enough to be hanging around Old Town Alexandria about 4 AM on a cold morning last month you would have noticed people forming a long line in the brutal cold outside the Torpedo Factory. They were waiting for a chance to get original art for their collections – or perhaps some brave souls starting to collect art.

"A line for art?" you must be asking, "who is crazy enough to freeze lining up at Oh-dark-thirty just to buy artwork?"

Hundreds.

They were lining up for one of the great art deals of the year: the Annual Patrons' Show. It's very simple: artists donate original artwork to the Art League, who inspects it, selects it and often frames it. It is quality stuff, ranging from huge abstracts to delicate pencil drawings. The Art League represents nearly 1,800 artists in the area, so there's plenty of possible sources of art donated by generous artists.

It is one of the largest art events in the country, with around 600 original works of art finding a new home in one day.

Usually about 600 pieces are donated and hung salon style in the Art League’s gallery on the first floor of the Factory. Then raffle tickets go up for sale at 10 AM, and they usually disappear within an hour or two; and each ticket equals a guaranteed a work of art.

And on Sunday, February 17 at 5PM, people who have a ticket begin gathering into the main floor of the Factory and they bring chairs, tables, food and loads of booze (this is like an art pic nic) as it will be a long, loud, fun, cheery and boozy evening as the tickets are drawn at random; and as they are called, ticket-holders select a piece of art from the work on display on the walls.

Everyone with a ticket is guaranteed a work of art. The tickets cost $175 each - an amazing deal once you see the work that you can get.

The first ticket called gets the first choice and so on - you get to pick the best piece (to you) from around 600 works of art). You better pick one quickly, or the crowds begin to shout and whistle and demand a choice be made.

It is without a doubt, the most sought after art ticket in town, and often incredible acquisitions are made... and I hear that there are some tickets left!

Call the Art League at 703/683-1780.

Curatorial Fellowship in Philly

Deadline: March 28, 2008

The Philadelphia Museum of Art has announced the two-year (first year renewable) Dorothy J. del Bueno Curatorial Fellowship in the Department of Prints, Drawings, and Photographs, beginning on July 1, 2008.

An M.A in art history or related field is required; the Fellow should have demonstrated a commitment to scholarship in art history and an ability to work collaboratively. The fellowship provides firsthand experience with curatorial work in the graphic arts. Fellows participate in all activities of a large, active curatorial department with a collection of over 160,000 works of art on paper: exhibition and loan preparation; object research and cataloguing; study room supervision and daily administrative tasks. Fellows have the opportunity to organize an exhibition from the permanent collection during the second year of the fellowship. Travel stipend and benefits.

Fellowship for Philly Artists

Deadline March 8, 2008

The Center for Emerging Visual Artists and New Courtland Elder Services (NCES) are offering Philadelphia area artists the opportunity to participate in a new community-based fellowship. Through the New Courtland Artist Fellowship, eight artists will be selected to bring innovative/engaging art-making to residents of NCES.

Artists are asked to develop an intergenerational project that brings NCES residents together with school age children/teens to create an exciting artistic project. Work created during the fellowship will be exhibited with the work of the artists in a large, well publicized exhibition. For more details contact CFEVA at 215 546-7775 x11 or email Genevieve@cfeva.org.

Grant for Artists

The Pollock-Krasner Foundation invites painters, sculptors, mixed media, installation artists, and artists who work on paper to apply for grants ranging from $1,000 to $30,000. The sole purpose of the foundation is to provide financial assistance to individual working artists of established ability. For more information, contact:

Pollock-Krasner Foundation
863 Park Ave.
New York, NY 10021

Fax (212) 288-2836; email: grants@pkf.org

Sculpture NOW 2008

DC opening reception for this key Washington Sculptors Group show is on Thursday, February 14, 2008 6:00pm to 8:30 pm and the awards presentation by David Furchgott, President of International Arts & Artists, is to take place at 7:15pm... where did you ask?

Washington Square, located at 1050 Connecticut Avenue NW (18th and L Streets)in Washington, DC.

Sculptures by Christian Benefiel, Brent Crothers, Joel D'Orazio, Pattie Porter Firestone, Frank Fishburne, Breon Gilleran, Michael A. Guadagno, Len Harris, James Kessler, Jin Lee, Carol Gellner Levin, Mitra M. Lore, Phelan Meek, Judy Sutton Moore, Bill Moore, Lincoln Mudd, Mahasti Y. Mudd, Pokey Park, Tom Rooney, Richard Schellenberg, Mike Shaffer, Craig Schaffer, Bo Simeon, Frances Sniffen, Pamela Soldwedel-Barrett, George Tkabladze, Ron van Delden, Raymonde van Santen, Sarah Wegner, Elizabeth Whiteley, and Joyce Zipperer.

Also congrats to Brent Crothers, who is also a Sondheim Prize semifinalist!

Conservation

This is one of the best art conservation articles that I have read in a long time.

Read the Washingtonian article by Harry Jaffe here.