DC Arts Commission Grants

Deadlines: January 18 and 20, 2006.

The New Media and Audio Program offers individual grants of up to $10,000 to artists and arts organizations for support of innovative New Media and Audio projects. Deadline: Jan 18, 2006.

There's also a "Folk Arts Mini Grants" of $1000.00 each. That deadline is January 18, 2006. The Folk & Traditional Arts Mini-Grant (FTA) offers quick response small-scaled grants up to $1,000 to artists and arts organizations practicing or supporting folk traditions.

For more info, go to this website and click on "Opportunities for Artists."

There's a "How to Apply" workshop at the Arts Commission on December 15th from 6 - 7 pm. (it is free). Call them for more info at 202-724-5613.

Wanna go to an opening tonight?

There is an opening at Los Arrieros Restaurant (7926 Georgia Ave., Silver Spring, MD) starting at 7PM. This exhibition is the artdc.org fund raiser. All artwork is for sale ranging from $50-$300.

If you believe in artdc.org and have a few bucks to spare, stop by and buy some art. 70% goes to the artist directly. The rest will be used to help them with marketing or printing costs, snail mail, and other promo avenues.

ArtDC.org has been growing in leaps and bounds and now has 685 registered users. Some of the artists in this show include: Vèrta Reyes, Matt Achhammer, Angela Kleis, Heather Levy, Kim Reyes, Robin Walker, Jessie Marie Maraschiello, Joshua Yospyn, Eric Reiffenstein, Rose Kane, Lola Akinmade, Matt Billings, Erin Antognoli, Andy Cleavenger, Lee Vaughan, John Spaulding, Mara Odette, Virginia Nostrand, Sheffied Burroughs, Christopher Goodwin, Richard Chu, Antoinette Wysocki, Darren Smith, J. Halloran, Behnam Farahpour, Patricia Hartnett and Stephanie Booth.

Songs about art, artists & painting

Anna L. Conti has a most excellent list of songs about art, artists and painting.

See it here.

WPA\C Presents: PostSecret

At last!

Washington Project for the Arts\Corcoran Association (WPA\C) is hostng the PostSecret exhibition, a public art project founded and curated by Frank Warren and first debuted in the much maligned (in the DC press that is) Art-O-Matic.

Nothing like spectacular success to make all the AOM critics eat crow, uh?

The opening reception (and fundraiser for Kristin Brooks Hope Center) will be held on Wednesday, December 14, from 6:00-10:00 p.m. ($10.00 suggested donation).

Warren's instructions were simple, and judging from his spectacular achievements, the results have been perhaps one of the most successful public art projects in history!

"You are invited to anonymously contribute a secret to a group art project. Your secret can be a regret, fear, betrayal, desire, confession, or childhood humiliation. Reveal anything --- as long as it is true and you have never shared it with anyone before. Be brief. Be legible. Be creative."

In November of 2004 Frank Warren printed 3000 postcards inviting people to share a secret with him.

He then handed these out at Artomatic, in art galleries, slipped them in pages of library books, then slowly, the secrets began to find their way to his mailbox. The secrets were both provocative and profound, and some of the cards are themselves works of art. As Frank began posting the cards on his website, PostSecret took on a life of its own, becoming much more than a simple art project.

PostSecret has grown into a global phenomenon and (in my opinion) is the most flagrant missing piece of the 2006 Whitney Biennial!

Exhibition Information:
LOCATION: 3307 M St. NW Washington DC (The former Georgetown Staples store)

OPENING RECEPTION: Thursday, December 15th, 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

FUNDRAISER: Wednesday, December 14th, 6:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.

Exhibition Dates: December 15, 2005 – January 8, 2006
Exhibition Hours: Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday 6:00 – 10:00 p.m., Saturdays and Sundays 2:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m. or by appointment through WPA\C.

The book, PostSecret Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives compiled by Frank Warren, with a foreword by Anne C. Fisher, Ph.D. will be available for purchase during the exhibition, along with the Washington Project for the Arts\Corcoran Artist 2006-2007 Artist Directory.




See ya there!

Opportunity for Photographers

Deadline: December 31, 2005

The 2005 National Photo Awards is now accepting entries. Open to all amateur, emerging and professional photographers. A separate monthly print competition is also available. The competition offers cash and prizes for the winners in the various categories. Winners will be selected in several categories. $9.00 for each photo entered into the monthly competition, $14.00 for each single photo or $28.00 for each series entered into the main competition.

To request your 2005 entry forms and view past winners, contact:
2005 National Photo Awards
59456 330th St
Warroad MN 56763 or call 218-386-2100 email awards@mncable.net

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Deadline: January 27, 2006

The 2006 Bethesda International Photography Competition. Open to all photographers 18 years and older. All photography not previously exhibited at the Fraser Gallery. The maximum dimension (including frame) should not exceed 40 inches in any direction. $950 in cash prizes. Details and entry forms here or email the Gallery for an entry form or send a SASE to:
Fraser Gallery
7700 Wisconsin Avenue
Suite E
Bethesda, MD 20814
301/718-9651
info@thefrasergallery.com

Silverthorne on Group Show

Alexandra Silverthorne checks in with a quickie review of our current Winter Group Show in Bethesda.

Read the review here.

The Evolution of a Drawing

Another one of the recurring themes that I continually revisit in my own artwork is the imagery of Saint Sebastian.

A few years ago I did a massive ink wash drawing of St. Sebastian. I was titled "St. Sebastian in a Dissolving Gene Davis Landscape," and I think that it eventually sold through Sothebys.com. It looked like this:



Anyway... that ink drawing was supposed to be the anchor for an oil painting that I never created, but the image of the martyr remained with me, and a couple of days ago I finished the following piece, which is charcoal on 300 weight paper, and about 4.5 inches by 16.5 inches.



This piece will be at my show opening next Friday at Fraser Gallery Georgetown. See more of the work for that exhibition online here.