Art Scam Alert!

Beware of this mutant trying to rip off artists!

From: Kenneth Freeman <supplyshop51@gmail.com>

Subject: Mail Inquiry....

Date: March 8, 2017 at 8:30:12 AM EST

Hello,

My name Ken owner of KEN SHOP PLACE we hear about you through the internet and am very interested in some of your products. I have a shop in the Fiji Islands in this case are you authorized to ship out worldwide or accept private pick up by a freight forwarder.

Do you have a minimum order?
Do you accept credit card for prepayment on your terminal machine manually?
A price list if possible?

I await the requested information so that i can proceed with the ordering.

Respectfully,
Kenneth Freeman

KEN SHOP PLACE
768 Avon Place
Suva
Fiji Islands
679 937 3421

 This is how the scam works and how to protect yourself... 

ARTundressed 2017 Call for Entries

Deadline: March 31, 2017

ARTundressed - They are accepting entries in the following categories:

Fine Art | Photography | Digital Art | Sculpture* | Mixed Media

Art Installation | Interactive Art Presentation | Artistic Short Film and Videos | Literary Art (Poetry, Short Story)

Registration / Submission for all other International Artists is FREE!!!

NUMBER OF SUBMISSIONS ALLOWED: Each artist is allowed to submit up to 5 entries for consideration, with a possibility of 0 – 5 submission(s) to be selected by the jurors/curators of the art exhibition.

NUMBER OF SUBMISSIONS ALLOWED: Each artist is allowed to submit up to 5 entries for consideration, with a possibility of 0 – 5 submission(s) to be selected by the jurors/curators of the art exhibition.

APPLY HERE

SUPPORT OUR CAUSE:

To put and end to FGM (Female Genital Mutilation)

Female genital mutilation (FGM) is defined as "all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons. FGM has no health benefits and is in fact very harmful to health in many ways.

Every year, over 3 million girls have their human rights and dignity violated, and their innocence brutally compromised by unwillingly being subjected to undergo a vicious and violent procedure that involves cutting their external genitalia off and stitching their womanhood. As graphic as this might sound, it is very common and real, and it's happening all over the world, including the United States where this ritual right of passage is in fact currently growing at an alarming rate.  We need to end this and protect babies and young girls from this devastating experience.

ARTundressed will be donating a portion of the event proceeds to fund organizations helping to eradicate such barbaric practices and also providing education and help to victims of FGM.

ARTundressed 2017 INCLUDES:

• Art Exhibition showcasing over 250 exceptional curated art pieces

• More than 100 artists representing many different countries

• An impressive collection of creative erogenous artworks rarely seen

• More than 80 participating artists are planning to attend this year's Exhibition

• Participation by local and international artists, performers, and Art Masters

• Live music and deejays, amazing shows and performances; Chic and Provocative Fashion

• Art Installations, Workshops, and Interactive Art Wall for audience participation

• Art contests for Body Painting; Live Drawing and Photoshoot Sessions

• Catering Services offering appetizing, delicious food, beverages, and cocktails

• The Closing Party: “the GOOD, the BAD, and the NAUGHTY” (Saturday night)

• And much more...

Jarrett Gregory is Newest Addition to Hirshhorn Curatorial Team

The Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden announces the appointment of Jarrett Gregory as curator as of Monday, March 6. Serving under the leadership of Hirshhorn Director Melissa Chiu and Chief Curator Stéphane Aquin, Gregory will be responsible for the development of the museum's contemporary international collection as well as a rotating schedule of exhibitions, commissions and special programs.

"We are very pleased to welcome Jarrett as the Hirshhorn's newest curator," said Chiu. "Jarrett has organized exhibitions of some of the most consequential international artists working today, including Pierre Huyghe and Stephen Prina, and we look forward to the experience and expertise she will bring to the Hirshhorn as the national museum of contemporary art."

"This is an exciting moment for the Hirshhorn," said Aquin. "As the fourth curator to join the museum in the past two years, Jarrett will contribute to a diverse and dynamic group of individuals, all of whom play an integral role in shaping the cultural conversation in Washington, D.C. and beyond."

Gregory most recently served as Associate Curator of Contemporary Art at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA), where she oversaw LACMA's iteration of Pierre Hyughe's retrospective, awarded the Best Monographic Exhibition Nationally by the International Association of Art Critics (AICA). Previously, Gregory held curatorial positions at the New Museum of Contemporary Art, New York, and the Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, working on exhibitions of work by Lawrence Weiner, Urs Fisher and Dorothy Iannone. This year, Gregory curated the Focus section of the 2017 Armory show.

Gregory sits on advisory board for the Lusanga International Research Centre for Art and Economic Inequality (LIRCAEI) in Lusanga, Democratic Republic of the Congo, as well as on the advisory council for The Gogova Foundation and Artist Residency in Baku, Azerbaijan. Additionally, Gregory has guest lectured for USC and UCLA's MFA programs.

Ellyn on The Hill Rag



American Gentrifiers by Dana Ellyn
26"x30"
oil on canvas
$1000

DMV artist Dana Ellyn's painting, "American Gentrifiers", is on the March cover of the Hill Rag newspaper. The original painting is currently on exhibit (and still available!) at the HillCenter which has an opening reception this Wednesday March 8th 6-8pm.

Wanna meet the artists?

Before the show (from 4:30-6), you can find the artists at Mr. Henry's (601 Pennsylvania Ave SE) – join them for a few drinks.

United/Divided at Photoworks

UNITED/DIVIDED

A JURIED PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION

JUROR

Robert Miller

Deputy Director of Photography

The Washington Post

 

EXHIBITION DATES

March 3 - April 2, 2017

 

RECEPTION | GALLERY TALK

Saturday, March 11, 5-7PM

 

PhotoworksGallery, located in Historic Glen Echo Park, is proud to present United/Divided, a juried exhibition of photography. As an art institution showcasing photographers in the Washington Metropolitan Area, Photoworks is in a unique position to initiate a visual dialog that explores the connections and divisions that currently exist in our nation, and in our nation's capitol.

Robert Miller, Deputy Director of Photography at The Washington Post, serves as the juror for the exhibition.

Miller's journalistic focus is on the news and news images.

He is currently covering the new administration, and for the last eighteen months covered the presidential campaign, as well as national enterprise for The Washington Post.

The exhibition features 23 local photographers, who artistically and effectively document the twin themes of unity and division.

EXHIBITING ARTISTS

Richard Batch

Cristina Frey

Bob Friedman

Gina Genis

Ernesto Giron

Ari Golub

Natalie Fay Green

Susan Green

David Heagy

Michael Jourdan

Chip Kahn

Bridget Murray Law

Geoff Livingston

Josh Marks

Kathryn Mohrman

Tom Mullins

Victoria Pickering

Sarah Hood Salomon

Steven Steury

Chris Suspect

Gayle Rothschild

Ginger Werz-Petricka

John J. Young

PHOTOWORKS GALLERY

Gallery Hours: Saturdays 1-4PM and Sundays 1-8PM

(and anytime a photography class is underway)
7300 MacArthur Boulevard, Glen Echo, MD

www.glenechophotoworks.org

A collection of bad things...

Bad things galleries do to artistsUnethical galleries will take in a piece of artwork by an artist, and when the price is discussed, the gallery says: "What's the price?" and the artist says: "$1000" The gallery nods OK and the artist leaves, knowing that if sold, he'll get $500 (most commercial galleries charge 50% commission -- in NYC some are as high as 70%). The gallery then sells the piece, but for $2,000, sends the artist a check for $500 and pockets the extra $1,000. That is why artists should insist on having a contract with a gallery, and the contract must specifically address that the artist will get 50% of the actual sale price.

Bad things artists to do galleries

A reputable gallery gives an artist a show, and goes through all the various expenses associated with doing so (rent, electricity, staff salaries, publicity, ads, post cards, opening reception catering, etc.) So far the gallery has put forth a considerable investment in presenting the artist's works. An interested novice collector meets the artist at the opening and expresses interest (to the artist) in buying some of his artwork. The artist, wishing to stiff the gallery for their commission says: "See me after the show and I'll sell it to you directly and save myself the gallery commission." This is not only unethical, but it's also guaranteed to ruin the artist's reputation in the city, as these things always come out in the wash, and soon no gallery will exhibit any work by this artist.


More Bad Things Artists do to GalleriesThis actually happened to a gallery in Georgetown, in Washington, DC in the 1990s:

Back when there were eight galleries in Canal Square, one of the galleries had given a show to a local -- at the time "hot" artist -- who was a painter (I say "was" because I haven't heard of the dude in years).

The artist was supposed to deliver and help hang all the paintings on a Wednesday, in order to be ready for the Georgetown third Friday openings. He did show up on Wednesday with about 50% of the work, and brought some more (freshly finished) on Thursday and to the gallerist's horror, even brought some more on Friday, and even as the show was opening at 6PM, was adding the last painting touches to several of the works.

Needless to say, several of the oils were actually wet when people starting showing up. On opening night, it was crowded, and someone apparently rubbed against one of the paintings and smeared some of the oil paint.

Now the gallerist was faced with a very irate person, demanding that his suit be cleaned (it eventually had to be replaced) and with a furious artist, demanding that the gallery pay him in full for the damaged painting.

If I am to believe the gallerist, the case actually went to court, where the judge threw it out.

More Bad Things Galleries do to Artists

This has happened to artists several times in my memories, both in the US and in Europe:

Artist and gallery owner agree to do a show of the artist's work. The gallery, like many all over the world, also has a side business as a framing shop, and tells the artist that they will take care of the framing.

The artist agrees on a handshake, and never asks for a contract, or costs, assuming that the gallerist knows what he is doing.

On opening night the artist shows up and is not too keen about the framing, but it's too late for any real discussions, as people are beginning to show up. Several pieces are sold, and the artist is very happy with the opening.

At the end of the show, the artist gets a letter in the mail from the gallery. Excited to see the payment for the sold work, the artist opens the envelope and finds a framing bill.

The bill details the cost of the framing, substracts from that amount the artist's commission from the sold work, and bills the artist for the remaining amount, as framing is very expensive.

Anger follows...

More bad things that (a) galleries do to artists or (b) artists do to galleries or (c) galleries do to collectors here, and here and here.


Bad things galleries do to art collectors...

Our area, like most major metropolitan areas, is peppered with stores that have the word "gallery" in their business name, but are very much far removed from what one would consider a true art gallery.

You will always find them in high traffic areas; main thoroughfare streets where "real" galleries could never afford the rent. You also often find them in malls.

I am speaking of the places that sell mass produced decorative works, either by Kinkade wannabes, Spanish-surnamed painters and worse still, the following scam:

Some of Picasso's children inherited many of the plates used by Picasso to create his etchings. Since them, some of those plates have been printed ad nauseam by the current owners, and are sold around the world as Picasso prints.

And then, to make matters worse, some of the plates are signed "Picasso" by his offspring owner, who is (of course) technically also surnamed Picasso.

The sales pitch, which is not technically illegal, but certainly unethical, goes something like this:

"This is a real Picasso etching, printed from the original plate and it is signed."

Note that they never state who signed the print.

Hapless buyer purchases the print for a pretty good chunk of change, takes it home and brags to his friends about his signed Picasso.

This will be a hell of a mess for the Antiques Road Show experts to detangle in a couple of hundred years.

And don't even get me started on the great Dali art fraud.

Opportunity for DMV high school sophomores, juniors and seniors

The Friends of The Yellow Barn Studio & Gallery's

18th Annual High School Student Art Exhibition

March 18 and 19, 2017

Saturday, 12 to 5PM and Sunday, 12 to 5PM

Reception Sunday, March 19 from 4:00 – 5:00pm

The Friends of the Yellow Barn Studio and Gallery is sponsoring an art competition for all high school sophomores, juniors and seniors from Montgomery County, Maryland, Northern Virginia, and Washington DC. Click here for an application form.

The Friends of the Yellow Barn, with support from Plaza Artist Materials, will award a First Prize of $500, second prize of $250, and Third prize of $150. $25 gift certificates will also be awarded to the other 37 works selected for the exhibition. Selecting the work this year will be Lenny Campello, outstanding artist and arts promoter for the DC, Maryland, and Virginia area. Award ceremony and judge’s comments take place Sunday, March 19^th from 4:00 – 5:00pm.

The Friends of the Yellow Barn is also pleased to recognize three Outstanding Teachers with a monetary prize of $250. This is our third year of enabling high school students to nominate and award their high school art teachers with a monetary prize of their own. Three outstanding art teachers will be acknowledged the night of the reception for their year round hard work in cultivating and inspiring young minds.