Trawick Prize Call for Artists

The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards is now accepting applications for the annual juried art exhibition and awards. $14,000 in prize money is awarded annually to the top four artists and a group exhibition of the finalists’ work will take place in September 2013 at Gallery B in downtown Bethesda. With a top prize of $10,000, The Trawick Prize is one of the largest and most prestigious contemporary art awards in the region.

The 2013 competition will be juried by Cynthia Connelly, Visual Arts Curator at Artisphere in Arlington, VA; Alexander Heilner, Associate Dean of Design and Media Studies at Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore; and Vesela Sretenović, Senior Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at The Phillips Collection in Washington, D.C.

Artists must be 18 years of age or older and residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, D.C.  Original painting, drawing, photography, sculpture, fiber art, digital, mixed media and video are accepted.  The maximum dimension should not exceed 96 inches in any direction. No reproductions. Selected artists must deliver artwork to the exhibit site in Bethesda, MD. All works on paper must be framed to full conservation standards. Each artist must submit five images (10 for 3-D work), application and a non-refundable entry fee of $25.

Artists may apply online or download an application at http://www.bethesda.org/bethesda/trawick-application. I have also attached a PDF version of the application.

The deadline for applications is April 1, 2013. Notifications will be mailed April 26, 2013.

Delusions of Grandeur

 “You have to be delusional to want to be an artist,” says Amber Robles-Gordon, who, with Shaunte Gates and Jamea Richmond-Edwards, debuted as the art collective Delusions of Grandeur with two back-to-back exhibitions in the summer of 2011. Originally funded by a grant from the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities, the group has expanded to five members with the addition of Wesley Clark and Stanley Squirewell.

Check out an excellent review and discussion on this group by the WaPo's Michael O'Sullivan here.

39th Street Gallery

3901 Rhode Island Ave.
Brentwood, MD

301-864-3860

This panel is today!

MIAMI ART FAIRS – REAL DEAL OR HYPE? 

FIRST‐HAND PERSPECTIVES FROM EXPERTS AND NEWCOMERS

Date: Monday, January 14th, 2013, 6:30 – 7:30 pm

Catalyst Projects will moderate this discussion, generously hosted by Arch Development and The Hive 2.0. The panel is going to feature Lenny Campello, distinguished art dealer and artist at Aqua; Adah Rose Bitterbaum, owner of the Adah Rose Gallery and exhibitor at Pulse; Tim Tate, established glass artist at Art Miami; Sean Hennessey, glass artist and newcomer to Aqua; and Shaunte Gates, exhibiting artist at Select.

This panel discussion will offer the DC arts community a look at the increasingly important world of art fairs from diverse perspectives.

This event is free of charge and open to the public.

Location:
The Hive 2.0
1231‐B Good Hope Rd SE
Washington, DC 20020

Foundry Gallery has a new President

The Foundry Gallery has elected my good friend Fran Abrams as its new President.

A former Director of Grants for the Arts and Humanities Council of Montgomery County, Ms. Abrams has had a long career of public service in government and nonprofit agencies.  A resident of Rockville, Maryland, she began working in polymer clay in 2000 and her art has been in exhibits from Virginia to Massachusetts; Since retiring from her day job in 2010 she has worked full time as an artist.

Her selection as President of the Dupont Circle-area art gallery was part of the Foundry's recent election of a new Board of Directors for 2013.  Serving as Vice President is Ed Bear Miller of Washington, DC.  Secretary is Naomi Taitz Duffy, also of Washington, and the Treasurer is Meg MacKenzie of Arlington, VA.  At-large Board members are Ana Elisa Benavent of Alexandria, Katherine Blakeslee of Washington, and Jay Peterzell of Takoma Park.

 

For more than forty years, the Foundry Gallery has supported and showcased some of Washington’s most promising and accomplished local artists. As a nonprofit, artist-run gallery, it exists to offer high quality, affordable original works of art, enrich and educate the community, and nurture, support and recognize local artists.

 

Foundry Gallery

1314 18th St, N.W.

Washington, D.C. 20036

Artist busted

Artist busted at SCOPE Miami for copying photographers’ works... read the story here.

Plein Air–Easton

Plein Air–Easton! Artists Prospectus Released, Dates Announced  

9th Annual Competition & Arts Festival to be Held July 15-21, 2013 

The Competition Prospectus for the 9th Annual Plein Air–Easton! Competition & Arts Festival will be released on January 25, 2013. Release of the prospectus marks the official kickoff of the 2013 event and begins the essential selection process for the next Plein Air–Easton! Competition. Amidst an art movement that has spurred hundreds of competitions across the country, Plein Air–Easton! is America’s premier plein air festival. Some of the best plein air artists from across the country and around the globe converge on Easton and Talbot County to vie for large cash and product prizes during a weeklong art extravaganza. In 2013, more than $20,000 in cash and product prizes will be awarded, plus the opportunity to sell their work to a large audience of art buyers. 

The caliber of artists competing at Plein Air–Easton! has strengthened each year, which has been a crucial component in the festival’s standard of excellence. With such stiff competition, the release of the prospectus offers timely and vital information for artists. The prospectus describes the process for artist entries, gives information about the entry jurist and awards judge, and outlines the competition guidelines. It will be released January 25 on the event website, www.pleinaireaston.com. 

Plein Air–Easton! is a rare opportunity to interact with these artists and experience an up-close view of the spontaneous and exciting art movement form of plein air painting—where artists leave their studios to paint “in the moment” outdoors. In just a few days, hundreds of pieces of some of the best representational art in the world are created and sold, making this a major East Coast art sale and a hot spot for art collectors and enthusiasts.  

The pinnacle of the competition is the Collector’s Preview Party which offers the first opportunity to view and purchase the competition paintings and to see the competition exhibit intact before paintings begin to be sold. Winners are announced during an awards ceremony at the Collectors’ Preview Party.  

Artists, art collectors, art and nature enthusiasts, students, tourists, local businesses, and spectators alike have discovered that this event truly lives up to its slogan of offering “Art for Everyone.” Over the past eight years, Plein Air–Easton! has become one of Easton’s largest events, attracting crowds and consistently posting impressive figures for art sales. 

Important Dates  

January 25, 2013 – Artists’ prospectus released  

March 8, 2013 – Artists deadline to enter juried competition 

March 29, 2013 – Competition artists announced. 

July 15-21, 2013 – Plein Air–Easton! Competition & Arts Festival 

July 19, 2013 – Plein Air–Easton! Collectors’ Preview Party at the Academy Museum 

Plein Air–Easton! is the work of the Avalon Foundation, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide diversified arts and educational programs that improve the quality of life in the Mid-Shore region. The Academy Art Museum is the museum venue for the competition exhibit. The event is supported by Friends of Plein Air–Easton!, the Talbot County Arts Council, and corporate, media, product, and communitybased sponsors.  

Mark your calendars now for the 2013 Plein Air–Easton! Competition & Arts Festival to be held July 15-21, 2013, with pre-festival events beginning the week before. 

Plein Air–Easton! highlights are available on an extensive video blog available at www.pleinaireaston.com. 

For information, call 410.822.7297 or visit www.pleinaireaston.com.

Royal portrait woes

I'm thrilled! Kate puts on a brave face as she sees first official portrait critics are calling 'rotten'

Read the story here.