Monday, November 04, 2013

La Rubell and Baltimore artists...

Washington Project for the Arts (WPA) has announced the names of the artists whose work was selected by Mera Rubell, Co-Founder of the Rubell Family Collection,  from the WPA  36 Studios/36 Hours marathon in Baltimore October 26 and 27.
WPA, a 38-year-old nonprofit organization presenting contemporary art and supporting artists in the Greater Washington region, invited Mrs. Rubell to serve as one of eight curators for its 33rd Annual Art Auction Exhibition, SELECT 2014. Each year, WPA invites prestigious curators from renowned institutions to select works which are exhibited for approximately one month and then auctioned to benefit the organization and artists. As an artist service organization, WPA is proud of its long history of equally sharing proceeds of the auction art sales with the artists  (a 50/50 split).

Beginning at 6am on Saturday, October 26, 2013, Mrs. Rubell set out on a 36-hour studio visit marathon throughout the city of Baltimore accompanied by Lisa Gold, WPA Executive Director, and a constantly changing entourage of reporters, photographers, collectors, gallerists, curators, and other arts professionals. From School 33 to the Creative Alliance and at many studios in between, Ms. Rubell listened to, questioned, prodded, and bonded with the 36 artists who were selected through the 36 Studios /36 Hours lottery.

The marathon ended Sunday, October 27 at 6pm and culminated in a reception for all of the artists who applied for a studio visit as well as people in the Baltimore art community. The party, held at Rubell's Lord Baltimore Hotel, was attended by over 200 people and brought together the community in a veritable "love fest" of Baltimore art.

Mrs. Rubell was initially tasked with selecting approximately 10-15 works by 10-12 artists. She ended up selecting 25 works by 19 artists. "There were so many amazing artists," exclaimed Mrs. Rubell. "People should know what's happening in Baltimore." As the visits were made in her role as a curator for WPA's Art Auction Exhibition, many considerations went into Mrs. Rubell's decision-making process, such as scale of the work and availability for exhibition. "The choices were very difficult," Rubell professed. "All of the work I saw was of high quality and the artists were extremely professional and talented."

In a surprise announcement, Mrs. Rubell has arranged for the works she selected to be previewed in New York before the WPA SELECT 2014 exhibition. From January 11 through January 18, 2014, Marianne Boesky Gallery's uptown space (118 E 64th Street) will host Baltimore Artists + WPA + Mera Rubell = LOVE, an exhibition featuring the 25 works chosen through the 36 Studios/36 Hours adventure. The New York preview is a first for WPA and the SELECT auction. "I'm thrilled to be able to offer this incredible opportunity to these talented artists, the majority of whom have no gallery representation, and to be able to bring together the Washington, Baltimore, and New York art communities through our inspired adventure and this wonderful exhibition," said Lisa Gold.
The selected artists are:

Amanda Burnham, Michelle Dickson, Dave Eassa, Alex Ebstein, Cliff Evans, Sean FitzPatrick, Ryan Hoover, Jason Hughes, Tiffany Jones, Gary Kachadourian, Magnolia Laurie, Curtis Miller, Cara Ober, Rachel Rotenberg, Ginevra Shay, Jo Smail, Ryan Syrell, Alessandra Torres, and Stewart Watson.

SELECT 2014 will be on view February 27 through March 21, 2014 at Artisphere, 1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, VA 22209. Hours are Wednesday-Friday: 4 - 11pm; Saturday: Noon - 11pm; Sunday: Noon - 5pm; Monday & Tuesday: Closed. Admission is free.

Baltimore Artists + WPA + Mera Rubell = LOVE will be hosted by Marianne Boesky Gallery, 118 E 64th Street, New York, NY 10065 from January 11 through January 18, 2014. Hours are Tuesday - Saturday: 10am - 6pm. Admission is free.

From my collection: Grant Silverstein

Diana and her huntresses surprised by the sudden appearance of Actaeon by Grant Silverstein
This is Diana and her huntresses surprised by the sudden appearance of Actaeon by the immensely talented Pennsylvania self-taught printmaker Grant Silverstein. You can buy Silverstein etchings here.

Saturday, November 02, 2013

Hey! That's my moustache!

I don't know how long this will be online, but WJLA has the picture of my moustache illustrating this story.

Ahhh... thank you! I think?

Friday, November 01, 2013

The art of the fake...

Frida Kahlo, cough, cough.... click here ... then sort through some of the listings and see how many "undiscovered" Frida Kahlos you can find...

Thursday, October 31, 2013

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

And the DCCAH grants go to...

This year, the DCCAH received 632 applications requesting over $18 million in funding. All eligible applications are reviewed by Advisory Review Panels, which are convened by DCCAH board members (yours truly was one of the Advisory Panel members). For FY14, the DCCAH held 20 Advisory Review Panels and enlisted the expertise of over 120 Advisory Review Panelists (I was one of them) who read, discussed, and scored each application.

The DCCAH funded a broad spectrum of innovative and exciting artists, programs, and organizations. For example, individual artists in music and visual arts, programs that teach young people, and institutions that serve residents and visitors across the city will be awarded grants this year. These grantees contribute to the District's cultural landscape that provides an economic impact of over $1.1 billion to the city.

Follow this link to see a complete list of FY14 grant recipients. Below are the key Artist Fellowship program awardees (with a lot of the usual suspects)... Congrats to all of them!

In spite of the severe financial austerity environment, DC seems to be somehow still kicking ass and taking names when it comes to sheckels and the arts...

FY14 Grant Awardees - Artist Fellowship Program

FY14 Artist Fellowship Program Awardees
Name Ward Official Amount
Abdul Ali 6 $5,000
Adam Davies 3 $10,000
Alexis Gillespie 4 $10,000
Anna Edholm Davis 4 $7,500
Anne Marchand 2 $10,000
Anu Yadav 4 $10,000
Armando Lopez-Bircann 1 $5,000
Assane Konte 5 $7,500
Ayanna Gregory 4 $10,000
Brian Settles 5 $10,000
Carmen Wong 2 $10,000
Carolyn Joyner 1 $5,000
Cecilia Cackley 6 $10,000
Christylez Bacon 1 $5,000
Dan Steinhilber 6 $10,000
Dana Burgess 3 $5,000
Dana Ellyn 2 $5,000
Daniel Flint 6 $5,000
David Keplinger 2 $10,000
Dean Kessmann 3 $10,000
Elizabeth Acevedo 6 $10,000
Ellie Walton 1 $10,000
Emiliano Ruprah 4 $5,000
Eric Gottesman 1 $5,000
Fawna Xiao 6 $5,000
Fred Joiner 6 $7,500
Gregory Ferrand 4 $10,000
Holly Bass 1 $10,000
James Byers 7 $10,000
Joey Manlapaz 6 $7,500
Jonathan Tucker 6 $10,000
Juan Gaddis 4 $5,000
Julia Bloom 3 $10,000
Karen Baker 5 $5,000
Karen Evans 5 $7,500
Karen Zacarias 1 $10,000
Kate MacDonnell 1 $10,000
Kim Roberts 1 $5,000
Krys Kornmeier 3 $5,000
Linn meyers 4 $7,500
Lisa Farrell 5 $5,000
Liz Maestri 1 $5,000
Maggie Michael 2 $7,500
Marjuan Canady 4 $5,000
Mark Parascandola 1 $10,000
Matt Sesow 1 $7,500
Matthew Mann 6 $7,500
Maureen Andary 4 $7,500
Maurice Saylor 5 $10,000
Michael Janis 5 $10,000
Michael Sirvet 2 $10,000
Michelle Herman 4 $7,500
Mickey Terry 7 $10,000
Miya Hisaka 3 $5,000
Molly Springfield 1 $5,000
Naomi Ayala 1 $10,000
Norman Allen 4 $10,000
Paul Bishow 1 $7,500
Paul Reuther 2 $7,500
Paul Thornley 6 $7,500
Rania Hassan 5 $7,500
Regie Cabico 1 $10,000
Renee Stout 5 $7,500
Rik Freeman 7 $7,500
Ruth Forman 5 $7,500
Sam McCormally 5 $5,000
Sandra Beasley 1 $10,000
Sara Curtin 1 $7,500
Sean Hennessey 5 $7,500
Siobhan Rigg 5 $7,500
Sondra Arkin 2 $10,000
Stanley Squirewell 5 $5,000
Stephon Senegal 4 $7,500
Thomas Colohan 1 $10,000
Tim Tate 2 $7,500
Trevor Young 2 $7,500
Valerie Theberge 3 $10,000
Yi Chen 3 $10,000

Tuesday, October 29, 2013

White House blues...

Redux: It all depends on what the meaning of the word "is" is...

Cough, cough...

Lisa Montag at AU


Korda at Oregon


Chicoms and fake art...

No Chinese painting had ever fetched so much at auction, and, by the end of the year, the sale appeared to have global implications, helping China surpass the United States as the world’s biggest art and auction market.

But two years after the auction, Qi Baishi’s masterpiece is still languishing in a warehouse in Beijing. The winning bidder has refused to pay for the piece since doubts were raised about its authenticity. 
 Read the NYT story here. And chances are that if you think that you own a real Wifredo Lam, you're in the same boat... cough, cough...

Monday, October 28, 2013

For Miami...

Just ordered the largest frame to date for my most ambitious electronics-embedded project yet... not my largest work of art ever - that monster is in a private NYC collection - but my largest work with embedded electronics.

It will be three feet by five feet and part of the "Contemporary Art" series, where I usually show someone overwhelmed by contemporary art... painting actually. It will start at ten grand; my most expensive piece yet and a natural growth in price over many years.

We will be at CONTEXT in Miami in December, and showcasing Dulce Pinzon, Simon Monk, Ric Garcia, Audrey Wilson and yours truly.

If you are an artist, or a gallerist, or a serious collector in 2013, then you need to go to Miami in December, but before you do that, you need to make sure that you have plenty of the most valuable commodity on the planet: information!

Sunday, October 27, 2013

La Rubell all over Baltimore

Over 150 artists entered the lottery to have the opportunity to have Mera Rubell visit their studio and these are a few of the lucky 36 selected. Ms. Rubell and Ms. Gold, Director of the WPA, were joined at points throughout their tour with notable arts professionals from local museums and galleries as well as members of the press from Baltimore and Washington, DC. After the 36 hour marathon Ms. Rubell has invited participants and all applicants to 36 Studios: Part Two to join her for an after party at the Lord Baltimore Hotel on Sunday, October 27 from 6-8:00pm.

 Cara Ober has a very cool report on Mera Rubell studio-visiting tour all over Baltimore... check it out here.

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Bethesda Fine Arts Festival Call

Call to Artists

WHAT: An Outdoor Fine Arts Festival 

WHERE:
Bethesda, MD

WHEN: Saturday and Sunday 

May 10-11, 2014
 

NOTEWORTHY: 

*Complimentary breakfast and lunch for participating artists. 

*Free parking within 1 block. 

*Limited to 140 booth spaces of juried fine art and fine craft.

*Estimated attendance: 20,000. 

*$2,500 in cash awards. 

*24-hour security. 

*Booth sitters. 

*Entry/booth fees: $30/$425 (10x10); $850 (10x20).
*For more details about the show, click HERE
The Bethesda Fine Arts Festival was ranked #78 of the 200 Best Shows in the USA by Sunshine Artist Magazine in September, 2008, making it the highest ranked fine art festival in Maryland. Artists report consistently high sales every year. Electronic application available on the festival's website. 

Ancient DNA Links Native Americans With Europe

"Im still processing that Native Americans are one-third European," says geneticist Connie Mulligan of the University of Florida in Gainesville. "It's jaw-dropping." At the very least, says geneticist Dennis O'Rourke of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, "this is going to stimulate a lot of discussion."
Details http://www.sciencemag.org/content/342/6157/409.full

Friday, October 25, 2013

Alex Queral "Face | Book - Phonebook Portraits"

I know this show is in Philly and not the DMV, but my peeps Alex Queral is not only a University of Washington fellow grad, and a fellow YUCA, but also such a terrific artist who has carved a niche (pun intended) like no one else in the art world, that this show deserves a shout out:
November 1 - December 21, 2013
Artist Opening Reception:  First Friday, November 1st, 6-9 pm


Projects Gallery Philadelphia is pleased to present Alex Queral’s “Face | Book – Phonebook Portraits”.  In his third solo exhibition with the gallery, Alex explores the duality of the recognizable and the anonymous in modern society.  Works being featured include his signature hand-carved telephone books, as well as large-scale digital prints.

Born in Cuba with a migration to Mexico before landing in the U.S., the artist has experienced first hand the sense of invisibility.  Taking, until now, an easily discarded object like a residential telephone book with its lists of thousands of faceless names and numbers, Alex transforms them into three-dimensional portraits of the famous and no-so famous of today’s mass media.  Using the simple tools of an X-ACTO® knife and a little acrylic paint, his talented hands dissect, eviscerate and reconstruct these pages of soft material into incredible art objects.  Utilizing classical carving techniques on an unexpected material, Queral brings forth the individual from the faceless masses. The artist crafts recognizable visages, vaguely familiar but elusively foreign, as well as evoking his own cast of characters from the found sheets of paper.

What happens to these images when you enlarge them five fold, returning them to the cinematic context from which they came?  The graphic details become surprising clear.  The object transcends the material and becomes the focal point of discovery and serendipitous moments appear.  John Wayne’s given name (in the female) appears on his forehead; Clint Eastwood has a listing of funeral homes, perhaps a reference to the many men shot by Dirty Harry; Zimmerman is hidden behind the head of Bob Dylan.   However, with either media, the distinctly iconic work of Alex Queral cannot be denied.

Mr. Queral received a B.F.A. from the University of Washington, Seattle and a M.F.A. from the University of Pennsylvania.  His works have been exhibited around the world and throughout U.S.; most recently at the Philadelphia International Airport and in Hong Kong.  They are in the collections of Ripley's Believe It or Not!®, Sasktel Canada, Jerry Speyer and numerous private collections. His images have appeared in numerous books, including Art Made from Books; 500 Paper Objects: New Directions in Paper Art – A Preview; Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Enter If you Dare!; Playing with Books: The Art of Upcycling, Deconstructing and Reimaging the Book.  Queral's work has gained International acclaim through numerous internet bloggers.   His carved telephone books and prints are exclusively represented by Projects Gallery.

Face | Book – Phonebook Portraits will run November 1 – December 21, 2013 with an artist reception on First Friday, November 1st from 6-9. The reception is free and open to the public.  Projects Gallery is located at 629 N. 2nd St. in Philadelphia’s Northern Liberties section. A preview of works may be viewed on the gallery’s website at www.projectsgallery.com. For more information and images, please contact Projects Gallery at 267-303-9652 or info@projectsgallery.com

Thursday, October 24, 2013

A comment on the proposed new covers (hats) for the USMC

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha... cough, cough.... Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha! Oh Man! Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!!!!

Wednesday, October 23, 2013

Ev Clark at the Art League

The Art League Gallery in Alexandria has an interesting show coming up soon:  "Cities in the Air" is an exploration of the urban wilderness that surrounds and permeates Richmond, VA.  The show is up from November 7 to December 2.  The opening reception on Thursday, November 14 runs from 6:30 PM - 8 PM. 
You can visit Ev Clark's work at: everittclarkphotography.com
 
The Art League Gallery
105 North Union Street
Alexandria, VA 22314

General Hours:
Monday - Saturday (except Thursday) 10 AM - 6 PM
Thursday 10 AM - 9 PM
Sunday 12 PM - 6 PM

Tuesday, October 22, 2013

Howard County Arts Council Announces 2014 Arts Scholarship Program‏

Are you planning to pursue higher education in the arts? The Howard County Arts Council’s 2014 Arts Scholarship Application is now available!

The Howard County Arts Council will award a minimum of $10,000 in scholarship funds to students entering college in the 2014-2015 academic year. Scholarships must be used for enrollment in an accredited college program for a degree in the arts. Awards will be made in the minimum amount of $1,000 and may be used for tuition and fees only.

Applications will be reviewed by the Arts Council’s Scholarship Panel, made up of professionals working in a variety of artistic disciplines. Review criteria will include artistic merit, demonstrated knowledge of an artistic discipline, commitment to a career in the arts, and a demonstrated track record of success in an academic setting. Applicants will be notified of the committee’s decision in March 2014.

Applications for the scholarship program must be submitted online. Prospective applicants should visit hcac.culturegrants.org to initiate the application process. Applicants must be legal residents of Howard County in their senior year of high school. Applications must be submitted electronically by January 15, 2014. Contact the Howard County Arts Council at 410-313-2787 or email info@hocoarts.org for more information.

Monday, October 21, 2013

Why Artists Should Use an LLC for Their Business...

The LLC has become an increasingly popular corporate structure.  LLC’s combine the personal liability protections of a large corporation and the simplified tax structure and filing requirements of a partnership or sole proprietorship. Traditionally, corporations were the only structure that afforded personal liability protection. Because corporations are distinct entities with the power to make agreements, sign contracts and even commit crimes, owners couldn’t be blamed for its actions. Owners are merely shareholders; the corporation is the one that should pay for the wrongdoing. That was a benefit many businesses wanted.
Details here.

Sunday, October 20, 2013

The Accidental Owner of a Banksy

“Are you going to be rich?” That is the first question people ask me upon finding out that in the wee morning hours of October 17, the famed street artist Banksy painted a mural on the side of a building my family owns in East Williamsburg.

The truth is — at the end of an exhausting day filled with phone calls talking to lawyers, security companies, art experts, and reporters — I have no idea what it means. There is no rule book when one of the most famous artists in the world decides to drop his work into your life.

Details here.