Inaugural Exhibition at Freight Gallery

FREIGHT GALLERY - Presents Diane Szczepaniak

Floating Light: An Installation In The Freight Elevator

Opening Reception on Sunday, September 22 from 3-5 pm 

Freight Gallery is pleased to present its inaugural exhibition featuring an installation called Floating Light, by Diane Szczepaniak. A painter and sculptor, Szczepaniak focuses equally on the object as well as the space around the object:  “When successful, the space becomes a sense experience that eludes description, but is felt in the body.”

About the artist: Diane Szczepaniak has exhibited her work in numerous solo and group exhibitions. Among her other accomplishments, she won a 2019 Fleur and Charles Bresler Residency at VisArts in Rockville, MD and in 2014 and 2011 she was a Semi-Finalist for the Sondheim Prize at the Decker/Meyerhoff Galleries, MICA, Baltimore, MD.  She was a finalist for the Trawick Prize in Bethesda, Maryland in 2012 and was awarded an Individual Artist Award in Visual Arts: Sculpture from the Maryland State Arts Council.  She has presented annual workshops exploring color, perception, and space to the Dudley Fellows at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Her work is in numerous private and public collections.  www.dianeszczepaniak.com

About Freight Gallery: Freight is an artist run pop-up gallery in a 1925 Hollister Whitney freight elevator in Washington, DC.  The space is 75 inches wide, 95 inches high, and 85 inches deep–a perfect container for displaying sculpture and small installations.  Its mission is to create more opportunities for artists. Freight is located at 2414 Douglas Street NE Washington DC 20018. There is plenty of on street parking.  Please enter on the side through the loading dock.

Next week's lecture: On Identity in the Arts: What Does It Mean to be Latinx?

Lecture: On Identity in the Arts: What Does It Mean to be Latinx?

Montpelier Art Center

9652 Muirkirk Rd

Laurel, MD 20708

Saturday, September 21, 2pm.

I will be delving deep into the history and evolution of the Latino ethnic label and then discussing important questions on the issue while wrapping it around the context of the fine arts in a sometimes funny, but always informative presentation. 

Lecture is free and open to the public.

Art All Night 2019

Please join the DC Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD), eight of our District Main Streets and the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (DCCAH) on Saturday, September 14, 2019 for a FREE all-night art festival!
 
Festivities in select DC Main Street corridors will begin at approximately 7 pm and end around midnight, though some neighborhoods will keep the celebrations going until 3 am (Sunday morning). The festival will showcase visual and performing arts, including painting, photography, sculpture, crafts, fashion, music, dance, theater, film, and poetry, to indoor and outdoor public and private spaces, including businesses.

The festival is presented by Mayor Muriel Bowser and in partnership with Destination Congress Heights, Deanwood Heights, Historic Dupont Circle Main Streets, H Street Main Street, Minnesota Ave, North Capitol Main Street, Shaw Main Street, Tenleytown Main Street, with support from the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH) and the DC Department of Small and Local Business Development (DSLBD).

To visit the official Art All Night 2019 website for more information about the night's events, click here.

From a collector...

A collector in NYC sent me a photo of three of my pieces that he owns and how he has installed them in his penthouse in NYC - I thought that they looked very cool!

Congratulations to Oletha DeVane!

Congratulations to Oletha DeVane of Ellicott City, MD, the 2019 Trawick Prize Best in Show Winner! 

Additionally, Mojdeh Rezaiepour of Washington, D.C. was named 2nd place; Renee Rendine of Towson, MD, 3rd place and Monroe Isenberg of Washington, D.C. was named the Young Artist winner of 2019.

The exhibit of all eight finalists will run through September 28.

The Trawick Prize, which was one of the first regional competitions of its kind in the metropolitan area, has received over 3,000 artist submissions over the years.  Artists must be 18 years of age or older and residents of Maryland, Virginia or Washington, DC. This event is produced in September of each year by the Bethesda Arts and Entertainment District & Bethesda Urban Partnership and features the work of the finalists in a group exhibition.

Gallery B, 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite E
Gallery hours: Wed. - Sat, 12-6pm
Reception: Friday, Sept. 13, 6-8pm

The curious case of the DC art collection

All out war between the DC mayor and the city council over who runs the District's Art Commission... just got word that the mayor sent a police officer over to the the art commission and changed the locks on the Art Bank storage facility, essentially seizing control of all the artwork inside!

On Identity in the Arts: What it means to be LatinX

We are all set for September 21, 2pm at Montpelier Art Center for my lecture: On Identity in the Arts: What it means to be LatinX.

Give it a shout out if you can and share it around. Seating is limited so folks are asked to call the center at 301.377.7800 to register.

It's all free - courtesy of the Arts and Cultural Heritage Division of The  Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.

Address of Montpelier Art Center is
9652 Muirkirk Rd
Laurel, MD 20708

Lecture: Art with a Twist

Sunday, October 13, 2pm.

Lecture: Art with a Twist

Montpelier Art Center

9652 Muirkirk Rd

Laurel, MD 20708

Join me as I take a fun walk through art history that culminates in contemporary art where I will discuss the work of some DC area artists and our regional art scene, and answer questions.

Lecture is free and open to the public.

Zofie King: Secular Relics and Apocryphal Fossils

Please join the very talented Zofie King for her solo exhibition "Secular Relics and Apocryphal Fossils" at Hillyer, opening on Friday, September 6, 6-9pm, with an artist talk during Art All Night, Saturday, September 14 at 8:30pm.

Final Thoughts, c.2019
Found objects, acrylic, resin, LED, velvet, cyanotype on satin
66" x 20" x 15"
Image courtesy of Pete Duvall

She writes:

When making the pieces for this show, I was reflecting on how objects connect us to history, both geological and cultural. Fossils serve as a record of geological time, in which humans are a mere blip, while reliquaries encapsulate myths that go back several centuries. The origin of relics is often dubious, and their provenance hard to track. In fact, a reliquary is venerated for what it is thought to contain, and its real value lies in the story that surrounds the object. Similarly, fossils hold our fascination by telling us about the history of life before humans. Studied extensively, they are put into context using the scientific method, but in holding a fossil, one is also physically connected to a prehistoric time. 

 9 Hillyer Court, NW, Washington, DC 20008
202.338.0325  |  atHillyer.org  |  ArtsandArtists.org

A new art fair model!

For many galleries, art fairs present a “damned if you do, damned if you don’t” proposal. The cost to participate has grown increasingly steep, with many charging tens of thousands for a booth, plus expenses for shipping, travel, and insurance. Do more than one fair a year—let alone five or six—and that number balloons quickly. On the other hand, not participating can amount to a significant lost business opportunity.

Future Fair, a new New York startup launched by fair veteran Rachel Mijares Fick and art adviser Rebeca Laliberte, poses an answer to this problem: it will cut a share of its profits with participating galleries.

Read the whole article here. 

Villagallegos in my past footprint

Just discovered that my paternal grandmother was born in Villagallegos (Celtic Village), in the municipality of Valdevimbre, in the province of Leon, in northwest Spain... even today pretty much a one horse village, with about 100 people living there!

Plein Air Painting Competition at Serenity Farm

FARM HERITAGE CONSERVANCY
1st Annual Sunflower Festival at Serenity Farm
6960 Serenity Farm Road
Benedict, Maryland 20612

Labor Day Weekend 2019, August 31 and September 1, 10am – 4pm

En Plein Air Day, August 30 8am-dark

Plein Air Entries created on August 30 will be judged by Dr. Margaret Dowell, Adjunct Professor of Art, College of Southern Maryland.  Artworks will be available for public viewing and purchase at the festival on August 31 and September 1.  Twenty percent of all art sales will go to the Farm Heritage Conservancy, a non profit 501(c)3.

Prizes
1st Prize: $200
2nd Prize: $100
3rd Prize: $50

AUGUST 28: Deadline for artists to contact Franklin A Robinson, Jr to reserve a spot. Space is limited to twenty entrants. E-mail fhcbenedict2015@gmail.com

AUGUST 30: En plein air day, 8am-9am, artists report to the Harvest House at Serenity Farm to fill out Artist Participation Form and to join us for donuts and coffee for meet and greet. Then the full day to wander the farm and paint.

9am-dark, paint on location at Serenity Farm, at the end of the day works will be given to Franklin Robinson for hanging.  Canvases MUST HAVE eyehooks and wire. Artists will submit title and price for work.

AUGUST 31 AND SEPTEMBER 1, 10 am – 4 pm. Art works created on August 30 at the farm will be on public display during the festival.

SEPTEMBER 1, 3-4 pm.  Artists’ reception in the Yellow Barn.  Artists pick up works not sold during festival.

Vintage nude drawing at auction

Check out this 1995 drawing now being auctioned off by someone in New York - click here for details.

Time for 2019 Trawick!

The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards produced by the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District will honor the top artists from Maryland, Washington, D.C. & Virginia for the 17th annual year.

The exhibit will be held from September 4-28 with a public reception on Friday, Sept. 13 from 6-8pm.  This year it is a tough one to pick a winner... but I'm betting on Muriel Hasbun.

2019 Finalists:

Stephanie Benassi, Linden, VA

Monroe Isenberg, Washington, D.C.

Hoesy Corona, Baltimore, MD

Renee Rendine, Towson, MD

Oletha DeVane, Ellicott City, MD

Mojdeh Rezaiepour, Vienna, VA

Muriel Hasbun, Silver Spring, MD

Anne Rogers, Baltimore, MD

Gallery B, 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite E
Gallery hours: Wed. - Sat, 12-6pm

Trawick Prize 2019 Opens

The Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards produced by the Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District will honor the top artists from Maryland, Washington, D.C. & Virginia for the 17th annual year.

The exhibit will be held from September 4-28 with a public reception on Friday, Sept. 13 from 6-8pm.  This year it is a tough one to pick a winner... but I'm betting on Muriel Hasbun.

2019 Finalists:

Stephanie Benassi, Linden, VA

Monroe Isenberg, Washington, D.C.

Hoesy Corona, Baltimore, MD

Renee Rendine, Towson, MD

Oletha DeVane, Ellicott City, MD

Mojdeh Rezaiepour, Vienna, VA

Muriel Hasbun, Silver Spring, MD

Anne Rogers, Baltimore, MD

Gallery B, 7700 Wisconsin Avenue, Suite E
Gallery hours: Wed. - Sat, 12-6pm

Lecture: On Identity in the Arts: What Does It Mean to be Latinx?

Lecture: On Identity in the Arts: What Does It Mean to be Latinx?

Montpelier Art Center

9652 Muirkirk Rd

Laurel, MD 20708

Saturday, September 21, 2pm.

I will be delving deep into the history and evolution of the Latino ethnic label and then discussing important questions on the issue while wrapping it around the context of the fine arts in a sometimes funny, but always informative presentation. 

Lecture is free and open to the public.

The Art of Evolution

The Art of Evolution, on view through Sunday September 8, is an offshoot of the DC Commission on the Arts & Humanities Sister Cities grant to Paris that was awarded to DMV artist Michele Banks.

With her grant funding, Michele was able to go to Paris and meet Virginie Courtier-Orgogozo, PhD where she collaborated with the research lab to make art about evolutionary biology.

Later Michele invited Virginie to come to DC and participate in an educational and creative workshop featuring Arnaud Martin of George Washington University who is actively using CRISPR technology to edit butterfly genomes.

The workshop was held at the studio of Jessica Beels (Off the Beaten Track) and all of the women in this exhibition (Michele Banks, Jessica Beels, Mei Mei Chang, Pat Goslee and Shelley Loewnstein) participated in the workshop.

There will be a closing reception on Sunday afternoon, September 8 from 1 to 3 pm.

Facebook event link:
https://m.facebook.com/events/373332646592913/

ADDRESS
Takoma Park Community Center – Sam Abbott Citizens’ Center

( directly above the Takoma Park police station )
City of Takoma Park
7500 Maple Avenue
Takoma Park, MD 20912

HOURS
8:30 AM – 9:30 PM* Monday – Thursday
8:30 AM – 10:00 PM Friday
10:00 AM – 6:00 PM Saturday
12:00 PM – 5:00 PM Sunday

PHONE
Main: 301-891-7100
TTY: 1-800-735-2258

Opportunity for artists

Leonardo: When the Arts Reach the Sky

Deadline: August 30, 2019

On the occasion of the 500th anniversary of Leonardo Da Vinci’s death, the Italian Cultural Center of Maryland (ICCM) in collaboration with Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), the Maryland Aviation Administration (MAA), and office of First Lady Yumi Hogan is pleased to announce a Call for Entries for two juried art exhibitions celebrating the genius of the Renaissance. The exhibition pieces may include works that reinterpret or reimagine Leonardo’s originals. The exhibition pieces will ultimately reflect Leonardo’s legacy of creating art that rests on a foundation of inquiry and knowledge. 

Entries should visualize or materially reflect on laws of nature and/or the order of the universe, both natural and human-made (including but not limited to current events, historical events, political concepts, and human emotions). The two exhibitions will take place in September, 2019. 

One will take place at Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport, and other will take place at the National Italian American Gallery (NIAG) at the ICCM. 

Full Details here!

Curator for the exhibitions is Gioia Milano, Director of Education, Exhibitions and Programs at the Italian Cultural Center of Maryland. Contact 

Email: Leonardo500@italymd.org. Online applications:https://www.judgify.me/ICCMLEO500    

Art Scam Alert!

Art Scam Alert!!!

From: Roger Gordon rogerphantom090@gmail.com

Date: August 12, 2019 at 7:08:44 AM EDT

Subject: ARTWORK IS NEEDED.

 Hello,  

         I am Gordon from Richmond Indiana. thoughts of the best anniversary gift of the century to my wife has been roaming my mind for a while now. i figured out later that my wife spends noticeable time on viewing artworks from your page on my laptop and i can easily guess she likes your work, which i found quite impressive and intriguing too. I must admit your doing quite an impressive job. You are undoubtedly good at what you do. 

      With that being said, I would like to purchase some of your works as a surprise gift to my wife in honor of our upcoming wedding anniversary. It would be of help if you could send some pictures of your piece of works, with their respective prices and sizes, which are ready for immediate (or close to immediate) sales. My budget for this should be anything that falls under $8000, and if i have to pay more, there should be a reason in terms of worth and value. Your works are impeccable anyways.  .

      I look forward to reading from you in a view to knowing more about your pieces of inventory. As a matter of importance, I would also like to know if you accept check as a means of payment

Regards,

   Gordon.

Opportunity for Artists

Mattawoman Creek Art Center
SOUTHERN MARYLAND ART - 2019
SEPTEMBER 20 – OCTOBER 27, 2019

Open all-media themed juried show with a $1,000 First Prize!

A total of $1,800 is to be awarded.

Show theme: Southern Maryland Art

Southern Maryland is defined as Maryland west of the Chesapeake Bay,
south of Rt. 50 (D.C. to Annapolis), and outside the I-95/I-495 D.C. Beltway.
The challenge to you: Bring Southern Maryland to life as visual ART.
Join the competition to win cash prizes and sell your artwork.

ELIGIBILITY: All artists over 18 years of age, both MCAC members and non-members, may enter.
Entries must relate to Southern Maryland and have been created after Sept. 30, 2018.

ENTRY FEE: $25.00 for MCAC members and $40 for non-members. Fee is non-refundable.

SALES POLICY: MCAC will retain a 25% commission on all artwork sold during the exhibit.
A
t least 2 pieces must be for sale; 1 of 3 may be marked “not for sale” (NFS).
The Call For Entry is posted on the MCAC website: www.MattawomanArt.org.

You may contact MCAC by email at MattawomanArt@aol.com or by phone at 301-743-5159.

Mattawoman Creek Art Center is located in Smallwood State Park, Marbury MD, 20658

35 miles south of Washington, D.C. on Md. Route 224 in Charles County.
Park Entry fee is waived for Art Center visitors.