As a local independent curator, who has
been around for awhile, I am a fan of Artomatic. It is a truly fun and useful
Washington tradition. Every time I visit,
I see it as a chance for discovery of a fabulous, new artist. Granted that
it’s a bit of a needle in a haystack search, and this year with 1,000+ artists,
the haystack has reached perhaps unmanageable proportions. Visual overload has
become a serious factor in appreciating what Artomatic has to offer. However, I
also have come to appreciate some unique services offered by Artomatic:
AFFORDABLE ART
Artomatic has art for every taste,
often at truly affordable prices, and I believe that original art always beats
posters, commercial replicas, etc. By purchasing original art, you are helping
to support/encourage a human being and acquiring something unique. Much better
then mall art.
POST SECRET
At 500,000 and growing, this project by
Frank Warren (which got a start at Artomatic) is a great example of the type of
participatory, successful artform that can spring from the Washington
community.
NICHE ARTISTS
Artomatic alerts the public to the best
wedding photographer (Amber Wilkes), pet photographer (Lee Anderson), pet
portraitist (Sheppard Bear), and bacon photographers (Rebecca and Eric Gordon).
Who knew?
PEEPS
Gotta love them!
LOCAL SCHOOLS/WORKSHOPS
I noticed that local institutions such
as the Washington Glass School, Glen Echo Pottery, DC Glass Works, Critical
Exposure and PG County artists posted signage identifying and giving further
exposure to their artists. Great idea.
CRAZY STUFF
Lego art by 11 year olds, black light
art, money mosaics, pet paintings juxtaposed with gay porn (8th
floor). All I can say is, wow.
After combing through all nine floors,
I have some advice for artists about what helps it work for viewers:
Presentation
counts. I know curation is verboten at Artomatic, but let’s face
it, the artists who “curated” their own space, painting the wall, taking care
in arrangement, putting their name on
the wall, leaving business cards, perhaps coordinating with another artist to
create a distinctive space, look the best. Painting the wall black or
scribbling on it doesn’t count.
MY TOP FOURTEEN (some are new
discoveries, some were a delightful relief from all the other stuff. And yes, I
definitely could have missed some greats given the circumstances):
Julia Bloom
Mei Mei Chang
Pierre Davis
David D’Orio
Mo Fogarty
Lori Goldberg
Pat Goslee
James Halloran
Robert Kincheloe
Rahshia Linendoll-Sawyer
Jessica Murray
Thomas Petzwinkler
Henrik Sundqvist
Edmond van der Bijl
