A Dialog about Hidden and Urgent issues in Contemporary Abstract Painting

Sunday, November 12, 2017

      

4 - 6 pm

 

Against the backdrop of Tim Doud's "Parthenogenesis" exhibition, Curator's Office @ Studio 1469  presents artists Rushern Baker IV, Tim Doud & Leslie Smith III in a chewy discussion moderated by Zoë Charlton about how artists are approaching abstraction in painting today.

Is abstraction an elitist commodity? Should it be perceived only aesthetically and formally?  What is the data hidden beneath its carefully orchestrated surfaces? How is the abstract art object the conveyor of social, spiritual, or political meaning?

"Abstraction is the separation of ideas from objects and, in art, the creation of forms that work against literal depiction; we often see abstraction itself as a form of distance. Historically, we know that it has also been used as a tool: most famously, the CIA co-opted Abstract Expressionism in an attempt to demonstrate our country's intellectual freedom and project an image of America to the outside world after World War II."  - Chloë Bass  "Can Abstraction Help Us Understand the Value of Black Lives?"  

The panel discussion aims to address numerous complex questions through each individual artist's own experience and their acute observations of the current contemporary art world.

 

Curator's Office @ Studio 1469  is one of Washington DC's "hidden gem" exhibition spaces located down an alley in the Columbia Heights neighborhood. It can be tricky to find the first time.  For a map and video showing directions, please Click Here.

New portraits

The latest version of the annual exhibition, “Recent Acquisitions”, at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery will displays the newest portraits to enter into the museum’s renowned collection. Figures who have made lasting contributions in such areas as medicine, music, literature, art and social justice are represented in paintings, sculpture, prints, drawings, photographs and new media. This installation will be on view from Nov. 17 through Nov. 4, 2018.

 

These most recent acquisitions join more than 22,000 others in the Portrait Gallery’s collection to represent the numerous individuals who have made a significant impact on the history and culture of the United States. Subjects include the lawyer Francis Scott Key who penned the lyrics for the “Star-Spangled Banner”; former Secretary of State Dr. Madeleine K. Albright; actress Gertrude Jeannette; university president Norman Francis; photographer Harry Callahan; fashion designer Ralph Lauren; and multi-award-winning actress Rita Moreno.

 

The list of the objects is here. More information below and attached.

Open Studio: "Refuse/REFUSE"

"Refuse/REFUSE"  investigates the ongoing rise in the levels of plastic in our oceans and its inevitable effect on sea life and ultimately mankind.

 

Through sculpture and video artist Kirsty Little hope to increase awareness of this problem.

12 Nov 1-5pm

Red Dirt studios 

The Firehouse. 

4051 34th St

Mt. Rainer MD 20712

Call for Artists

Deadline for submissions is January 22, 2018

The Howard County Arts Council is seeking artists to participate in the annual Juried Silent Art Auction Exhibit as part of the Arts Council’s annual fundraising gala, Celebration of the Arts in Howard County. The Silent Auction shines a spotlight on Howard County’s diverse and talented visual arts community at this important event.

 

All 2-D, 3-D, and fine craft artists, 18 years or older, residing, working, or studying in Howard County; HCAC members; and artists who have exhibited in Howard County in the last year are eligible to submit.

 

Visual artists working in all styles and media are invited to apply, including painters, sculptors, ceramicists, fiber artists, jewelers, and photographers. Artists will be selected by the silent auction committee who may also invite artists who are eligible to participate. This showcase of artists in Howard County has proven to be a great benefit to both established and emerging talent in the community and is also a successful fundraiser to support art programs, exhibitions, and organizations in the county.

 

This year’s Celebration will be held at the Horowitz Visual and Performing Arts Center at Howard Community College on Saturday, March 24, 2018 from 6-10pm. The Silent Auction exhibit will be presented in the Rouse Company Foundation Gallery. The final bid for each artwork sold will be divided equally between the artist and the Arts Council. Last year’s Silent Auction resulted in $10,690 in sales, with 70 pieces sold.

 

For more information or to submit an entry, visit hocoarts.org; to have a prospectus delivered via postal mail or email, please call 410-313-ARTS (2787).

Late Fall shows at AU

Late fall shows at the American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center will open Nov. 11. Opening Reception: Saturday, Nov. 11 from 6-9 p.m.

The first exhibit to open, RADIX: THE ETERNAL FEMININE, is curated by Claudia Rousseau, Ph.D. RADIX is a collaboration of three Washington artists: Anne Marchand, Pat Goslee and Cianne Fragione. The exhibit features the concept of the Eternal Feminine as an original, dynamic and cosmic force, in paintings and assemblages. Defying simple definition, this concept has different but analogous meanings for each artist. Each artist employs contemporary and abstract terms to express feminine energy from her own perspective. Through Dec. 17. Gallery Talk: Nov. 30 from 6-7 p.m.

The second exhibit, THE TRAWICK PRIZE, features award-winning Washington art in the Alper Initiative for Washington Art space of the museum. Established by Carol Trawick, a community activist from Montgomery County, Md., the prize rewards some of the most talented artists from the Washington area. THE TRAWICK PRIZE exhibit features new works by the “Best in Show” recipients from the last 15 years: Lauren Adams, Richard Cleaver, Larry Cook, Neil Feather, Mia Feurer, Lillian Bayley Hoover, Gary Kachadourian, Maggie Michael, Jonathan Monaghan, Jiha Moon, David Page, James Rieck, Jo Smail and Rene Trevino. Through Dec. 17. Gallery Talk: Nov. 11 from 5-6 p.m.

The museum is excited to display new acquisitions to its ROTHFELD COLLECTION OF CONTEMPORARY ISRAELI ART. Part of the American University Museum’s permanent collection, the Rothfeld Collection is designed to inspire dialog about political and cultural issues involving Israel, through paintings, sculptures, and mixed media work of prominent and emerging Israeli artists. The exhibit features an array of work from the collection as well as recent acquisitions by artists Melanie Daniel, Tal Shochat, Lihi Turjeman, and Alon Kedem.

The show runs concurrently with an exhibit of Arab modern and contemporary art, BETWEEN TWO ROUNDS OF FIRE, THE EXILE OF THE SEA: ARAB MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY WORKS FROM THE BARJEEL ART FOUNDATION. The Rothfeld Collection was originally gifted to the AU Museum by Donald Rothfeld in 2011, and it has been growing ever since.

Continuing at AU Museum through Dec. 17 are: BETWEEN TWO ROUNDS OF FIRE, THE EXILE OF THE SEA: ARAB MODERN AND CONTEMPORARY WORKS FROM THE BARJEEL ART FOUNDATION; WILLIAM WOODWARD: THE SEVEN DEADLY SINS; and TETHERED TO THE CRADLE: KINETIC WORK BY CHRISTOPHER CARTER.
MUSEUM INFORMATION, HOURS, LOCATION: The American University Museum is a three-story public museum and sculpture garden located within the university’s Katzen Arts Center. The region’s largest university facility for exhibiting art, the museum has a permanent collection that highlights the donors’ holdings and AU’s Watkins Collection and Rothfeld Collection. Rotating exhibitions emphasize regional, national, and international contemporary art.
The Katzen Museum Store is open during museum hours plus one hour before select special events. Visitors may purchase books, catalogs, and prints related to past and current exhibitions, as well as fine crafts and other one-of-a-kind objects by predominantly local artisans.

The Katzen Arts Center, named for Washington-area benefactors Dr. and Mrs. Cyrus Katzen, brings all the visual and performing arts programs at AU into one space. Designed to foster interdisciplinary collaboration in the arts, the Katzen includes the museum, the Abramson Family Recital Hall, the Studio Theatre, a dance studio, an electronics studio, artists’ studios, rehearsal space, and classrooms.

The American University Museum at the Katzen Arts Center is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday. Admission is free. For more information, call 202-885-1300 or look on the Web at www.american.edu/cas/museum. Follow the museum on Facebook (facebook.com/AmericanUniversityMuseum), on Twitter (@AUMuseum_Katzen), or on Instagram (AUMuseum_Katzen).

Does It Matter If Jimmie Durham, Noted Cherokee Artist, Is Not Actually Cherokee?

Does it also matter that Senator Elizabeth Warren allegedly for decades claimed to be Native-American, only to be busted when she turned to national politics? Or is self-identification enough?

All this dates back to June 26, when a group of ten Cherokee artists, educators, and leaders published a letter to the website of Indian Country Today, just four days after his retrospective opened at the Walker. The group’s letter claimed Durham was “a trickster” who is “falsely claiming to be Cherokee” and went on to state that he “has no Cherokee relatives; he does not live in or spend time in Cherokee communities; he does not participate in dances and does not belong to a ceremonial ground.” In the ensuing weeks and months he was labeled everything from “The Artist Formerly Known As Cherokee” to the “Art World’s Rachel Dolezal,” and the Walker issued the following disclaimer to the webpage and wall credits of their show: 

While Durham self-identifies as Cherokee, he is not recognized by any of the three Cherokee Nations, which as sovereign nations determine their own citizenship. We recognize that there are Cherokee artists and scholars who reject Durham’s claims of Cherokee ancestry.

Read the whole fascinating article in Vulture here. 

New pop-up gallery

Torpedo Factory Artists @ Mosaic, a new art venture by Torpedo Factory Artists’ Association (TFAA), opens on Saturday, November 4, 2017 at Mosaic District in Fairfax, Virginia. This pop-up art gallery will feature the work of more than 60 TFAA members over the course of three curated shows. The Mosaic gallery will be open until February 28, 2018. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Sunday, 11:00 am - 7:00 pm, with extended hours for special events and by appointment. A grand opening reception will take place on November 4 from 5:00 to 8:00 pm.