Opportunities for Artists

On-line gallery. AddictionAndArt.Org is seeking artworks addressing the complexities of addiction and recovery to post/share with a worldwide audience - for the good of mankind. Works in any media, completed in any year are eligible. www.addictionandart.org - go to "Share Your Art" in the menu. Questions: editor@addictionandart.org or call 301-639-3520 for submission information.

By the way, Big Think just listed the Addiction and Art book as one of the top 10 art books of 2010!

Artist talk tonight

Newly minted Baltimorean and realist artist Hyeseung Marriage-Song has been invited to speak at the Charcoal Club of Baltimore’s monthly meeting on Thursday, January 20, 2011, at 7 pm at the Meadow Mill Building, Studio 213, 3600 Clipper Mill Road.

Marriage-Song, 32, is a realist artist represented by the Eleanor Ettinger Gallery in New York City, located in Midtown and Chelsea. She studied at the prestigious Water Street Atelier and Grand Central Academy in New York under Jacob Collins and recently moved to Baltimore with her husband who is on the faculty of Physics and Astronomy at Johns Hopkins University in Homewood. Marriage-Song primarily works in oil, creating portraits, nudes, still lifes and landscapes from life, eschewing photographic references. On Thursday, she will be speaking about her work and techniques as well as demonstrating her alla prima technique with the help of a live model chosen from the audience.

Marriage-Song has shown in numerous group shows in New York City, Atlanta and Houston. She is an Elizabeth Greenshields Recipient and an Art Renewal Center Competition Finalist and award recipient in the Figure Painting Category. Her studio is in School 33 Art Center, in Federal Hill, which is a program of the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts.

The Charcoal Club was established in 1883 and is the country’s second oldest art club. The club provides a nude model for a small fee and encourages art appreciation through group shows and speakers.

Next at Brentwood

Resonant Forms An exhibition featuring artwork by Martha Jackson-Jarvis (who is one of the 100 artists in my book), Alonzo Davis, and Frank Smith.

The show is co-presented by the Brentwood Arts Exchange and the Prince George's African American Museum and Cultural Center.

Dates: February 1 - April 9, 2011.
Opening Reception: Friday, February 11. 5-8pm

Brentwood Arts Exchange @ Gateway Arts Center
3901 Rhode Island Avenue
Brentwood, MD 20722

Open mouth

I had one of the most shocking, unexpected meetings - ever - today. I am still dumbfounded by the news, and the only reason that I am not pulling my hair out is because the person on the other side who told me the shocking news is someone I trust and consider a friend.

Still... Feh!

At Civilian

"Civilian Art Projects presents climate, control, a three-person exhibition curated by Kristina Bilonick and Karyn Miller featuring J.J. McCracken, Jan Razauskas, and Millicent Young. The name climate, control refers to the artists' response to their immediate surroundings, as well as the exacting nature of their practice. The artists in this exhibition work in drastically different materials - from clay and horsehair to drawing and paint - but in each of their works, there is an intense focus on the precision of artistic production, and a sense of significance in the medium they chose to work in. The artists cull the fodder for their work and in some cases their materials from their immediate surroundings. Miller points out though, that, "at the same time there is an openness to chance which gives it a kind of negative tension." The exhibition opens to the public on January 21, 2011 and will be on view through February 19, 2011 at Civilian Art Projects in downtown Washington, DC."

Exhibition on view: January 21 - February 19, 2011
Opening Reception for the artists: Friday, January 21, 7-9 p.m.
Artist Talk: Saturday, February 19, 4p.m.

Judkis reporting Maura Judkis has a really cool report on the temper-flaring effects of my Che Guevara video drawing at the MIA art fair last week. Read that here.

Judkis also has a really terrific interview/report on the very talented Victoria F. Gaitán, who is easily developing into one of the brightest new stars of the DMV art scene. Read that here.

Bit of a quandary

One of the positive "wake" effects of exhibiting at good art fairs is that one's artwork is not only exposed to a lot of collectors, but also to a lot of other gallerists and curators.

For example, at the just finished Miami International Art Fair, and as I related in this blog in the last few days, my Che Guevara video drawing obtained a lot of attention and a good share of uninformed threats.

An Argentine gallery approached me yesterday, interested in bringing the piece to Buenos Aires for an exhibition on Guevara. This sounds like a terrific opportunity, doesn't it?

However, it also puts me in the difficult position of having to make a decision. And that decision is driven by the point that I'd like to have at least three video drawings ready for the next art fair later this year in New York.

As they are quite expensive to produce (mostly due to the electronics), and because the Che piece has proven to be so wildly successful, I am leaning to declining the invitation so that I can keep it with me and exhibit it later this year in New York alongside two other new video drawings.

The subject of the next video drawing will also be an icon-like figure, and either her open heart (or perhaps her forehead) will be the window into her soul where the video will be playing.

The third subject will also be an icon-like drawing of yet another iconic figure, although this one may not be a "real" person.

But I need at least three for NYC and I don't want to ship away the most controversial one!

What to do?