Bad things galleries do to artists

Unethical 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.

What's Your Problem?

I really, really like this new series of articles at the Washington City Paper by Amanda Hess titled What's Your Problem?

Lisa Brotman Interview

Bethesda Art Blog has a really good interview with artist Lisa Brotman.

Read it here.

Tomorrow in Bethesda

Tomorrow, Friday, February 8th, is the second Friday of the month and thus it's the Bethesda Art Walk with 13 participating art venues and with free guided tours.

Don't miss "Closer" at Gallery Neptune, and always a great photography show is the VII Annual Photography Competition at Fraser Gallery.

M. Queensberg by William Atkins at Fraser Gallery
From 6-9PM - go see some artwork!

Wanna go to a DC opening and wine tasting this Saturday Friday?

Touchstone Gallery in the District has been an artist-owned gallery since 1976, which in gallery years is several centuries.

This Friday they're hosting an opening for their "10th Annual All-Media National Exhibition," juried by well-know DC area curator and often an advisor to the DC Commission of the Arts and Humanities, Vivienne M. Lassman.

The opening also features a wine tasting courtesy of the Washington Wine Academy. The opening is from 6-8:30PM and the show goes through March 8, 2008.

Wanna go to a DC opening on Saturday?

The Capitol Hill Art League (CHAL) will open “Fascinating Rhythm,” Saturday, February 9, 2008, 5-7 PM at the Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, 545 7th Street SE. The show continues through February 29th.

The juror for “Fascinating Rhythm” is David C. Levy, who was the President and Director of the Corcoran Gallery of Art and its College of Art and Design from 1991 to 2005.

Wanna go to a Baltimore opening this Saturday?

Light Street Gallery in Baltimore presents "Panoramic Photography from Around the World," a group show featuring the winning photographs of The Third Annual Juried Competition of the International Association of Panoramic Photographers.

Opening reception Saturday, February 9th, 2 - 6 PM. The Competition drew entries from forty one panoramic photographers from seven countries and The United States, Australia, England, Belgium, Poland, Spain and Germany. Through March 29th, 2008.

Murder Revealed?



Did the above painting expose the murderer of Oddantonio da Montefeltro?

Read this.

Opportunity for Artists

Deadline: April 6, 2008

Red Bull Art of Can is a national juried exhibition featuring artwork in a variety of media that has one thing in common: they are all inspired by Red Bull or crafted from the iconic blue and silver cans that 20somethings suck up like water.

Registration is free and open to artists nationwide through April 6, 2008.

Sculptures, paintings, digital/graphic designs and various forms of mixed media will all be considered. Registration forms and details can be downloaded here.

Peace Now!

The last Peace show is coming up at Warehouse Gallery in DC...

The show runs from Feb 22 – April 6, 2008 and will be up for the observance of the 5th anniversary of the Iraq War and during the “March for Peace” in Washington and other cities around the country.

Warehouse will also schedule some peace events during the show and Molly tells me that they welcome ideas.

If you want to participate in the show, send Molly Ruppert an email with a JPG image and details to molly@warehousetheater.com.

Wanna go to a Maryland reception this Saturday?

Don’t miss this one: Erwin Timmers (DC's leading "green artist"), Jennifer Lindstrom and Alison Sigethy are featured in SiO2, a glass showcase at the Carroll Arts Center in Westminster, MD.

It’s a beautiful drive, so drive up there for the artists’ reception on Saturday, Feb. 9, 2008, 2pm – 4pm.

Disclaimer: I've driven through Maryland and used to live there.

Wanna go to a Philly opening tomorrow?

Tomorrow, Thursday, February 7 at the Print Center in Philly: Moon Studies and Star Scratches: Sharon Harper , Dakar Portraits: Vera Viditz-Ward and That’s Women’s Work: Laura Wagner with gallery talks by the artists at 5:00pm.

Oh yeah... the opening reception is from 5:30-7:30pm.

Trevarrow at the Arts Club

I've been hearing good things about the shows currently on exhibition at the beautiful Arts Club of Washington, specifically about the work of DC artist Ruth Trevarrow and Bethesda's Marilyn Banner.

Bison Plate by Ruth Trevarrow
The shows are on through 23 February 2008.

Digital Sequences

The WaPo's art critic Michael O'Sullivan had an interesting review here of an exhibiiton over at the Montpelier Arts Center in Laurel, Maryland that sounds really interesting as well, and perhaps a new page in the ever growing "green art" movement which seems to have found an epicenter around the Greater DC area region.

Read the review here.

Digital Sequences: Chris Jordan, Running the Numbers, and Gail Rebhan, Room and Jessica Braiterman: Veneer runs until February 29, 2008 and on Saturday, Feb 23 at 3:30 pm there will be a lecture by Shannon Perich, Associate Curator at the Smithsonian Museum of American History on the Emerging History of Digital Photography from the curator's point of view. Free.

Bell on Frida and Me - Common Threads, at Projects in Philly

Jessica Bell is a student in Colette Copeland's critical writing class at the University of Pennsylvania, and in artblog Bell reviews Common Threads at Projects Gallery in Philadelphia.

I'll be visiting this show soon; read her review here.

Cirenaica Moreira

Cuban photographer's Cirenaica Moreira's photographs have been described as "vagina dentata," and she's one of my favorite photographers in the world (Disclaimer: As a Moreira superfan, dealer and collector, if Moreira's photos climb in price I stand to make a huge fortune).

The below video by Nicaraguan poet Yolanda Blanco appropriates Moreira's photos to make Blanco's poetry sing.

If Cuba ever regains its freedom, and its talented artists are then able to travel the world, then expect talented artists like Moreira to be discovered by a whole new set of American curators and collectors, and to truly blosom out.

Cirenaica Moreira was born in Havana, Cuba in 1969 and graduated from the Instituto Superior de Arte (ISA) in Havana with a focus in the performing arts, which is strongly reflected in her tableau-like photographs, with the artist herself playing the lead role. She is considered by many to be one of the most influential Cuban photographers of her generation. Her work has been displayed in many galleries, museums, art fairs (ARCO, Art Basel, etc.) and biennials around the US, Latin America and Europe.

Art critic and writer Armando Suárez-Cobián has written that:

"Cirenaica is not only the physical protagonist of her work but also the metaphor for those she dreams. Cirenaica has constructed a being that transcends her, she has converted her body into a place where all the women she is, gather together to knit and conspire. That duality has become destiny. The created characters have profiled her femininity in a way that fluctuates between the quiet knitter spinning thread who dreams and waits, and, at the same time, is being dreamed of and is exposed. And dreamed of in her delirium, she is diluted in the grace of the water. She is revealed in the silent violence of the light that burns and darkens when it falls directly, and is converted into sharpened metal that united with the dreamed bodies, cuts when they are caressed."

Buy Cirenaica Moreira now.

Juno

For the man who thinks that Terry Gilliam's Brazil is one of the top ten films ever made, it is quite a surprise to reveal that I think that Juno is one of the best movies that I have seen in the last decade.

Starring Ellen Page, rapidly becoming one of the best young actresses on the planet, and who was the terrifying star of 2005's Hard Candy -- the movie most likely to make men cross their legs.

Seriously, Hard Candy was a brutal and intelligent movie, and there are scenes in the film where the character played by Page causes men to squirm and the audible rustle from legs being crossed throughout the theatre becomes a weird sensurround to the smartest revenge movie in ages.

But this is a review of Juno and not Hard Candy.

Get back on track Campello!

Juno is witty, funny, sarcastic, sometimes a little scary and definately has that magical cult ingredient like Napoleon Dynamite did.

Page plays the sarcastic, snappy and very pregnant Juno, a 16 year old kid with a razor-sharp mind and a huge belly. The movie is the story of how she deals with her pregnancy and it is full of surprises, turns and bends and very good acting on the part of Page and the supporting cast, especially by J.K. Simmons, who plays her dad.

The movie grows as it develops, and before Juno's snappy comebacks and one liners become tiresome, she suddenly becomes a scared little girl before our eyes and just as fast turns into a strong decision maker.

I liked this movie a lot and Page is a sure bet for the Oscar for best actress; go see Juno.

The Five Senses

Recently I juried a competition for Alexandria's Target Gallery for an upcoming exhibition titled The Five Senses.

The Five Senses will be an all media exhibition that features artwork which must incorporate two or more senses (touch, taste, see, smell, hear). The physicality of this exhibition aims to engage and stimulate the viewer through works that address all aspects of human sensation.

I was surprised by the diverse range of work submitted, including many conceptual and new media pieces that really stretched the envelope both in technology and in visual intelligence.

The submissions came from all over the country and I selected 23 entries. Since the artists' names were hidden, I don't know who I picked, but through the magic of the web, I know that these thought simulators by Texas artist Gary Schott are in the show.


Show dates: March 6 – April 6, 2008
Reception and Gallery Talk: Thursday, March 13, 6-8pm

See ya there!

Interns: Washington Glass School Mentor Program

The Washington Glass School is looking for an intern/apprentice to work with a glass artist and studio. This offers an opportunity for someone to learn the business of art while broadening the scope of their material knowledge.

The School offers experience in public art, arts administration, creation of art in a very busy and successful studio, and of course learning the techniques of creating glass art.

The intern will be making molds, cutting glass, and casting glass among other duties. Prior knowledge of these techniques are not necessary. Hours are flexible but most work must take place between Monday and Friday between 10 and 5pm.

They are looking for someone to do at least 2 or 3 days a week. This is not a paid position, but a great opportunity for the right candidate. Experience in glass, electronics, computers are all helpful but not required. Please contact Tim Tate at TimTateGlass@aol.com and list your qualifications for consideration.

Sigh...

Heard on MSNBC this morning as political pundits discuss why Hispanic/Latino/Chicano households may be swinging towards the Obama candidacy because of Teddy Kennedy's endorsement:

"After all, what do you see on the walls of every Hispanic household? A picture of the Virgin Mary and a picture of JFK!"