Confluences: Intersectional Visions of Italy at Georgetown University

The Georgetown University Art Galleries and the Italian Cultural Institute of Washington are thrilled to present "Confluences: Intersectional Visions of Italy." The exhibition presents for the first time in the United States a group of artists addressing social justice issues connected to notions of Italy—which is far more complex than the single cultural, political, or social space it is commonly thought to be. 

Artists: Dafne Boggeri, Valeria Cherchi, Giulia Crispiani, Maria Adele Del Vecchio, Binta Diaw, Alessandra Ferrini, Muna Mussie 

These contemporary artists counter such familiar fictions through projects that consider nuances of individual and collective experience across a variety of topics, such as colonialism, societal amnesia, gender-based biases, and civic activism. 

This exhibition will be on view in the de la Cruz and Spagnuolo Art Galleries from January 26th, 2024 - April 7th, 2024. The project is curated by Ilaria Conti and organized by the Italian Cultural Institute of Washington in collaboration with Georgetown University Art Galleries. You are invited to a private curator-led tour of the exhibition on Friday, January 26th at 5 pm. An Opening Reception from 6-8 pm that is free and open to the public will follow. Visitors should RSVP for the Reception here. 

The curious case of Stolichnaya and the blacked out name

Over a decade ago I wrote this under the title "Silly Soviets":

I have this collector of my work who is very high up in the food chain over at Bacardi.

Most people don't know how HUGE this private company is, and how averse to publicity the Bacardi family is... but essentially Bacardi is a gargantuan octopus company - that is a company that owns a company, that owns a company, that owns a company and so on.

Anyway, when Stolichnaya (Russian: Столичная, also known as Stoli) was acquired by some group (Latvia or Russia) owned by someone, who is owned by someone, etc., one of the Western tricks that the new owners tried to teach the Stoli management was the trick of putting out the same product under a different label, but cheaper, and to do this whenever they needed a fast cash influx.

They were horrified when Stoli came out a little later with a few thousand cases of the iconic vodka with the same basic label, but with the name blacked out - sort of like what they used to do to porn pics in the 50s and 60s.

Cough, cough...

Fiddler on the Roof at Olney Theatre

Director Peter Flynn’s staging begins after Fiddler’s narrative ends, in a timeless version of the immigration center where the Jews of Anatevka hope to land. Tevye has arrived with his wife and two youngest daughters, eager to regain a sense of community by sharing the story of his family’s displacement and its struggles between tradition and progress. So, he enlists others who want to immigrate to America – and who have likely also been displaced, as he has – in telling his story and creating (metaphorically) the American community he hopes to join. Those whom he enlists will be the ensemble members representing the many different ethnic and religious backgrounds found in the Olney Theatre community, one of the most diverse in America.

The above is from the Olney Theatre's into to the new staging of the timeless story of the lives, woes, happiness and persecution of the Jews of Anatevka, by now one of the most recognizable and truly timeless stage plays of our times.

I first saw this play when our High School class at Aviation High School in Queens, New York went to see in on Broadway; almost 50 years later the play remains as fresh, entertaining and heart-touching as ever!

“Without changing a word or note of this beautiful musical, Peter Flynn’s staging celebrates that most typical Jewish-American journey and links that journey with an American immigrant story that continues today. His idea perfectly reflects the changing mission of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society (HIAS): We used to aid refugees because they were Jews. Now we aid refugees because we are Jews." As Cantor Stephanie Weishaar said to me when I told her about our plans, ‘the enduring power of Fiddler is that for every culture, in every part of the world, they see THEIR story in Fiddler.’”  -- - Jason Loewith, Artistic Director

The new interpretation (essentially the beginning starts at the arrival to America) is not heavy handed at all, and in fact Fiddler flows in such a way that once the well-known songs start flowing, it remains a magical holiday show.

The cast is of the new Fiddler is (as usual with Olney's productions) superb in this often athletic show, with really good performance from Sophie Shulman (Tzeitel), Sumié Yotsukura (Hodel), Rachel Stern (Golde), Ariana Caldwell (Chava), Noah Keyishian (Perchik), Michael Wood (Motel), Howard Kaye (Tevia), and Graciela Rey as the hypnotic Fiddler.

Yotsukura is easily the true stand-out in the show -- she easily floats between the many emotions and feelings of her character with elegance and grace - she's able to capture emotions with physical nuances of her body as a whole, not just macro expressions from her face - without a doubt the rising star of this show. 

Rey as the Fiddler is masterful with nearly impossible dance movements, leg lifts, physical flows as she leaps, spins and dances on top of buildings, weaves in and out between members of the cast as an almost invisible force; all along a gleaming smile on her face.

Her athletic prowess ties the entire show together!

The show is choreographed by Lorna Ventura and Directed by Peter Flynn and runs through December 31st.

Olney Theater is located at 2001 Olney-Sandy Spring Road, Olney, MD 20832.

Prince George's County Artists Exhibition in the Lowe House Office - Deadline Approaching

 Attention Prince George's County Artists

New Call for Arts for

"Collective Ground"

DEADLINE: 11:59PM on December 8, 2023

Submissions are being accepted for "Collective Ground", the 2023 annual art exhibition by Prince George’s County Artists in the Prince George’s Delegation of the Lowe House Office Building, Annapolis, MD. Please, submit by 11:59 pm on December 8, 2023.

For details, visit: https://m-ncppc.submittable.com/submit

Obama: What Shows Up in Ebay

The below proof litho done by me in 2007 and sold in 2009 in Philadelphia's historic Obamarama Art Show just showed up on Ebay for sale!

See it and buy it here.

Under $500 is Live!

Bid here

Bethesda Fine Arts Festival Applications Open

The online application is now open for the 2024 Bethesda Fine Arts Festival. This annual festival features 120 of the nation's finest artists, in categories including, but not limited to, ceramics, fiber, glass, painting, photography and sculpture. 

The juried festival provides artists with amenities including 24 hour security of the festival site, booth sitters, breakfast & lunch for participating artists, and more. 

The deadline to apply is Friday, December 22, 2023, and selected artists will be notified in late January 2024.

The Bethesda Fine Arts Festival will be held on May 11 & May 12, 2024 in Woodmont Triangle and will feature our selected artists, live music and local restaurants.

Details and application here.