Posts Tagged ‘arT gallery’
Wednesday, February 17th, 2010
Whether it is an illusionist or sideshow freak, a rock band in an art gallery or a matinee performance of folk music at one of the cafes along the street, the Parkdale Village Business Improvement Area (PVBIA) has amassed quite a schedule of funky and fun west-end talent to draw you out to Fireside Culture Week.
The second annual Fireside Culture Week starts Feb. 22. It’s a weeklong celebration of art, fashion, food, music and theatre that features the best of best of this artistic nook of Toronto.
 Artists bring their unique styles to Fireside Culture Week. This series of live performance will take place at a number of venues along Queen Street West between Dufferin Street and Roncesvalles Avenue.
The BIA has partnered with Heart and Stroke Foundation as part of their Heart Month events. During Fireside 2010, the PVBIA will be fundraising for Heart and Stroke Foundation by asking attendees at the shows to make a donation as they enter.
There are any number of events planned for each day and evening of Fireside culture week. Visit www.firesidecultureweek.com for an updated schedule.
Here are some highlights:
Nymphetamine – The Sideshow Performer
A falling ovation, as it is called when someone passes out during a performance, is the highest form of praise for a sideshow performer, according to Jennifer Booth.
Booth, who goes by the stage name Nymphetamine, is a circus sideshow performer, a dominatrix by day and self-described freak.
“I always joke that I was always called a freak in high school and now I get paid for it,” said the 31-year-old performer.
A sideshow performer for six years, Nymphetamine performs an intense combination of classic stunts such as cinder block breaks, laying on a bed of nails and walking on broken glass as well as modern stunts such as flesh-hook suspensions and lifting objects with her piercing.
Nymphetamine, who also has a degree in philosophy and training as a paramedic, said she has always had some unusual tastes.
Born and raised in Toronto, Nymphetamine was introduced to the art of sideshow performing by a friend from New York City.
“When I saw him do it I immediately went from ‘You’re absolutely crazy,’ to ‘Hey, that looks like a lot of fun’,” she said.
So she started to explore the art form, which she said was relatively easy to learn.
Now a resident of the Dundas Street and Dufferin Street area, Nymphetamine performs all over the city, usually at night clubs.
“You always get the young guys right up at the front of the stage screaming and wanting to see blood and wanting to see something go wrong,” she said. “And then there are the people who are absolutely fascinated, but happy to stand a ways back from the stage.”
The details around Nymphetamine’s Fireside Culture week performance are yet to be announced.
Visit www.myspace.com/nymphetaminesideshow for more on Nymphetamine.
Jef Kearn – The Urban Flautist
Jef Kearn, 33, takes band geek and turns it urban chic with the soulful sounds of his solo flute songs.
“I started playing about 20 years ago,” he said. “I started taking lessons and I just stuck with it. I kind of felt drawn to it.”
He went to school at Humber College and then York University to study music, but his brand of music isn’t what one would traditionally expect from the flute.
Kearns, who now lives in Mimico, grew up in Chatham listening to broadcasts of urban music radio stations out of Detroit. Before he was a teenager, he was transposing hip-hop lines and verse into the rhythms of his flute.
Now he has crafted a unique style of flute-focused R’n'B that cross genres from modern soul to hip-hop to classic Motown.
His CD of original tracks, On The Level, features nine tracks including I Wanna Be the One (Savage Groove Mix), which spent five weeks in the Top 10 of the Canada National House Music Charts.
Kearns is slated to perform on Friday, Feb. 25 at the Local Kitchen from 8 to 9 p.m.
Visit www.myspace.com/jefkearns for more on Kearns.
Brian Byrne and The Flamming Hoops
You may recognize Brian Byrne’s name as the lead singer of I Mother Earth, but since the band took a hiatus, Byrne has released two solo albums, opened a tattoo shop in Parkdale and performs regularly with his hobby band, The Flaming Hoops.
“The thing we do with the Flaming Hoops is just totally silly fun,” he said. “It is all covers and we cover a bunch of old country classics and on the flip side we cover classic rock, but done country.”
“I just wanted to be part of it,” he said of the Fireside Culture Week. “Anything that is going to help bring people around, because I do love this area… it is so eclectic and crazy.”
Byrne, 35, was chosen as the new lead singer of the Canadian alternative rock band I Mother Earth after singer Edwin left the band in 1997.
The Flaming Hoops is comprised Christian Tanna from I Mother Earth, Gerry Finn from David Usher and Chuck Dailey from The Salads.
“I have always been a massive country fan because that is kind of what I grew up on,” said the Newfoundland native. “All the people in the band have been road dogs forever so this was an opportunity to go play for the weekend without any pressure and not be out on the road promoting your next great project that ultimately leaves you broke and wondering why you do it anyway.”
The shows, he said, are simply fun. The Flamming Hoops cover songs like The Trouper by Iron Maiden, Crazy Train by Ozzy Osborne in a country fashion. They also cover songs by the usual country suspects like Hank Williams, Waylon Jennings and Willie Nelson.
“We even do Footloose by Kenny Loggins,” he said with a laugh.
Byrne, who lives in Kingsway Village in the city’s west end, is scheduled to perform on Saturday, Feb. 26. The location is yet to be announced.
Visit www.myspace.com/brianbyrne for more on Byrne.
Winston Spear – The Funny Man
Winston Spear loves to dance and apparently people love to watch him do it. The comedian has a video of a Bollywood-inspired dance, which has gotten more than a million hits.
He’ll be bringing his trademark dance moves as well as a few jokes to Parkdale for the Fireside Culture Week.
Spear, 45, is a Canadian standup comedian and actor from the Bloor West and Dundas area.
A working comedian for more than 20 years, Spear was a member of the cast of the popular CTV sketch comedy show Comedy Inc.
“I’m a pretty clean act,” Spear said. “I only have a few dirty jokes.”
Spear is scheduled to perform on Thursday, Feb. 24 during a comedy night, also featuring Jamie Rallison and Parker Seville, at the Snowball Gallery, 1690 Queen St. W., from 7 to 11 p.m.
You can view videos of Spear’s comedy at www.youtube.com.
ByErin Hatfield
Source: InsideToronto.com
Tags: alternative rock, arT, arT event, arT festival, arT form, arT gallery, arThou, Brian Byrne, Canada arT, fire arT, Fireside, Fireside Culture Week, flautist, flute music, I Mother Earth, Jef Kearn, Jennifer Booth, music, Nymphetamine, performance, sideshow performance, standup comedy, The Flamming Hoops, The Funny Man, Toronto arT, Winston Spear
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Sunday, September 27th, 2009
 Man and beast, the connection was made physical by Charles Darwin in his theory of evolution in the mid-19th century.
Since then zoologists and wildlife documentaries have further drawn our relationship to animals, and a slew of artists have been pondering the same; and an exhibition at the UC Riverside’s Sweeney Art Gallery, “Intelligent Design: Interspecies Art” (through 28), has gathered some provocative of their projects. “In the past, art dealing with animals usually addressed issues of representation,” says Tyler Stallings, gallery director. “I wanted to expand beyond that.” And so, he points out, this being the bicentennial of Darwin’s birth made it seemed especially timely for such a show.
Stallings invited Rachel Mayeri, an associate professor of media studies at Harvey Mudd College who is well known for her interest in “soft science” and is an artist, herself to help co-curate the show. “I’m interested in art as a way of exploring science,” says Mayeri, also an artist. “Artists can think about biological issues through their work and make them more concrete.” Eventually, they selected 20 artists, mostly from California, encompassing video, photography, painting and sculpture. “We were looking for artists with a long-term commitment to trying to understand a different mentality, to appreciating what it means to be human,” Mayeri says.
Sam Easterson focuses on the animal’s point of view quite literally, by attaching minicams to creatures ranging from including armadillos, to falcons, from scorpions to and sheep, and letting them go on their way. The resulting clips end when the cam falls off, and are shown without narrative. Other artists get that subjectivity more obliquely, such as Catherine Chalmers’ video simulation of a cockroach moving through fauna and flora in “Safari” or Alison Ruttan’s video of a man mimicking a prowling cat in “Impersonator.”
The most controversial work in the show may be the reworked taxidermy of Carl Fernandez. Ten years ago, when considering additional uses for dead animals, she visited taxidermy shops and bought seven former-animals bodies. She re-created each as a piece of luggage, with openings and cavities. On exhibit will be two — “7100-Goat” is a goat reworked into a wheeled bag, its two horns projecting from the sides, and “7200-Buffalo” is a buffalo whose woolly head has been split open, presenting itself for packing one’s belongings. “Some people find the work disgusting,” Fernandez says, “but then they go out and have a steak dinner.”
For more images and details click here.
Tags: animals, arT, arT gallery, arThou, arTists, nature arT, soft science
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Friday, August 28th, 2009
Art Taipei 2009, the longest-standing art fair in Asia with roots that go back to 1992, will kick off at Taipei World Trade Center today with a total of six themed areas and 78 galleries from all over the world, providing art lovers, investors, and artists the opportunity to feast their eyes on a variety of art forms.
“As the biggest annual art expo in Taiwan, Art Taipei is destined to become better and better each year,” said Betty Huang, minister of the Cabinet-level Council for Cultural Affairs yesterday at the opening press conference of the event in Taipei. Huang added that the annual event has not only caught the attention of domestic and international art circles, but also has a remarkable transaction record. Last year, a total of NT$750 million in transactions was reported during the five-day fair.
Huang added that, just like last year, the fair will showcase the works of eight talented local young artists in an area entitled “Made in Taiwan — Young Artist Discovery,” with an aim to increasing the visibility of young Taiwanese artists on the world art scene.
Besides the area for local new blood, Art Taipei has five more themed exhibitions: “Art Galleries”; “2009 Art Project — Art & Environment”; “Art, Now — Southeast Asia”; “Ela-Asia” and “Art Media.”.
The 78 galleries from countries all over the world offer various works including oil painting, sculpture, video installations and photographs.
Affordable art
Another feature of 2009 Art Taipei is a special event called “Affordable Art.” The works range from US$200 to US$2000 in price, providing plenty of opportunities for new collectors.
Meanwhile, Asia Art Economy Forum in Taipei will be held during the fair, offering a great chance to share and exchange experiences in the Asian art market with people with real global expertise.
The convener of the art fair, York Hsiao, said the event organizer will donate all ticket income to Typhoon Morakot relief. The five-day Art Taipei 2009 will run until Sept. 1 in Areas A and D of the Taipei World Trade Center.
Written By: Joseph Yeh
Tags: arT, arT event, arT fair, arT gallery, arT projects, arT Taipei, arThou
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Friday, August 21st, 2009
Hawke and Hunter is an unusual venue but currently the ideal choice for those desperately seeking midnight encounters with art. Turn a blind eye to the bling if you must. The new series of works by Bob and Roberta Smith lovingly transcribes a Guardian sports writer’s review of a Louise Bourgeois exhibition.
Steve Bierley’s first and intimate foray into an artist’s labyrinthine world has been playfully rendered. The work is like a series of nine large illuminated manuscripts, painted boldly from a kinky palate. There is an enjoyable circularity about the journey, from review, to painting, to review. It is not often that a critic is taken so literally. By reiterating the review the sentiment is amplified, but split up into panels the meaning is partially obscured. But, I know as well as you do that it is not always good to fly your flag directly from the mast. Here form has lifted a painterly finger to function.
Central to my experience of Bob and Roberta Smith is some unfettered innocence in both approach and delivery. The work in all its shambolic reverie smacks of the perpetual thrill of the chase, of the professional amateur. Unlike in sport, it is hard to tell who the winners and losers are in art. Bierley’s deft writing is shaded in angst and perturbance, yet this exhibition summons up optimism. If we could siphon this off we would be high on the fumes of hope, or accountability. Now that would be truly dangerous.
Source: theskinny.co.uk
Tags: arT exhibition, arT gallery, arThou, arTists, arTwork, Bob Smith, Bourgeois exhibition, drawings, Grey Gallery, Hawke and Hunter, painings, Roberta Smith
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Friday, July 24th, 2009
Petcha Kucha is an informal Japanese lecture format that allows one presenter 20 images and 20 seconds to discuss each. With as many as dozen lecturers, the idea is to bring myriad ideas and subject matter together without getting bogged down.
The “2009 Artists of the Mohawk Hudson Region” is much the same way: condensed and diverse. In the 76th annual survey of recent art made within a 100-mile radius of Albany, no single artwork dominates the two-floor gallery at the University Art Museum. A sparseness envelopes the 35-artist exhibit that’s usually jammed with well-known artists whose works tend to muscle out others. Though Petcha Kucha is roughly translated as chatter, the exhibit is quiet and understated.
That can be attributed to juror Mathew Higgs’ keen sense of tone, texture and form. Director of White Columns, an alternative arts space in Manhattan, Higgs chose “idiosyncratic” examples from 1,200 images submitted that display a strong identity on their own terms.
He’s included more new faces than in recent memory, a refreshing development for a show that has become predictable.
The weathered paintings of Marje Derrick, the quirky paper-mache snow globe of Gail Kort, the South Park-like drawings by Brian Cirmo, the whimsical fabric of Barbara Todd and the suspended burlap sachet by Georgia Wohnsen join sculptures, drawings and photographs by more established artists such as Sharon Bates, Harold Lohner and Jim Florsdorf.
For the most part, absent is hard-edged social realism, the heavily conceptual art so common today, and, except for Abe Ferrarro’s massive light switch in “One Morning I Woke Up with a Bright Idea,” there are not any elaborate multimedia installations.
What’s left is an exhibit that blurs the line between fine arts and traditional crafts in a homespun kind of way. More than a quarter of them take fabric, string, thread, construction paper — things more associated with home than a studio — and turn them into quirky objects with humor. It’s a lighthearted exhibit that revels in design for design’s sake.
The paper relief “Direction” by Laura Cannamela finds an eloquent depth of field through indentions in its plaster like substance, while the Persian wool “Fugue #19″ by Mark Olshansky uses stitches to illustrate geometric abstractions like rings on a tree.
Mocking the German tradition of figurines, Joan McKeon’s series of four clay statuettes add looks of exasperation, consternation, and downright suffering. All of them are achingly trapped in their bodies and roles, crying to get on with something different.
Lori Lupe Pellish’s “”Boy Dreams II” captures innocent’s lost in a decorative tapestry. Made with intricate weaves of fiber and dark, rich colors, it hangs like a canvass with deeply etched brushstrokes sensually conveying the coming of age. “Portable Forest Floor” by Dorene Quinn employs leaves, muslin, cotton and thread to contrast nicely with the spotted concrete floor at the entrance. Lying flat on the ground, it blends in so well; don’t be surprised if you find yourself sidestepping it.
Like “Portable Forest Floor,” the exhibit pleasantly catches you off guard through its hushed tones, subtle humor and homey designs. It is a gentle challenge to the notion that contemporary art has to be pushy and bombastic to succeed.
Tim Kane is a freelance writer from Albany and a frequent contributor to the Times Union.
Fast Talk
What: Slide show and lecture with artists from the Mohawk Hudson regional: Sharon Bates, Brian Cirmo, Richard Garrison, Kelly Jones, Harold Lohner and Dorene Quinn.
Where: University Art Museum, University at Albany. 1400 Washington Ave., Albany
When: 7-9 tonight
Cost: Free
Exhibit hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, through Aug. 8
Contact: 442-4035; www.albany.edu/museum
Tags: Albany arT, arT event, arT gallery, arT installations, arT museum, arT show, arThou, arTists, contemporary arT, new york arT, NY arT, painings
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Friday, July 24th, 2009
Beijing artists and gallery owners say the economic downturn will improve quality.
BEIJING — Fabien Fryns, who runs the F2 gallery in Caochangdi village on the outskirts of Beijing, does not look like a man who is worried about the financial crisis.
“The middle has dropped out of the market,” said Fryns, discretely smoking a cigar in the gallery’s voluminous interior garden, “but the top and the bottom are both strong.”
What is “the middle”? Pieces from $30,000 to $500,000, according to Fryns.
Compared to the stock market, or nearly any other place one can put one’s money these days, Chinese contemporary art still looks like a very good investment. Recent art auctions in Hong Kong have registered sales at the high end of their estimates, even though the targets the auction houses are setting for themselves are less ambitious today than previous years.
The owners of some of the best Beijing galleries said the shakeout promises to be a positive development for dealers, but also for artists. No one likes a bubble and there was growing concern that easy riches were destroying creativity by encouraging Chinese artists to go after major sales, rather than the real thing.
Li Xianting, the former editor of the magazine China Fine Arts who is considered the spiritual father of the contemporary art movement, said media hype transformed many artists into “money celebrities” and produced a twisted form of art.
Pan Xing Lei, a sculptor and painter who recently returned to Beijing from New York, said the financial crisis would weed out less serious artists.
“The artists who are serious can take this time to reflect and to develop their ideas,” he said. “The others will go back to their villages, or do something else.”
The craze over contemporary Chinese art began to trigger serious waves on the international art scene in 2005, after the auction house Sotheby’s established an Asian contemporary art department and began buying up works. Many of the artists were reacting to the Tiananmen Square massacre and grappling with the wrenching changes in Chinese society, a fact that made them especially interesting as an emerging China began to make its influence felt in other domains.
“The relationship was becoming difficult because many of the artists were spoiled,” Fryns said. “The scene in the last few years was crazy. You were given an hour to decide if you wanted to buy a piece.”
In March 2006, an auction that was expected to bring in $6 million raised $13 million. In 2007, a single painting, “Executioner,” by Yue Minjun, famous for his cynical-realist political pop caricatures of himself with a frozen smile, went for $5.9 million, up from the $32,200 the original owner had paid a decade earlier.
With results like that, China’s own millionaires, many of them newly minted, began buying art mostly as investment.
“None of them had time to study what it was that was making contemporary art so successful,” Fryns said, “so they bought the pieces that were going for the highest prices.”
A sprawling gallery complex known as 798, which occupies a former military factory complex, became the third most popular tourist destination in Beijing. By the time it had succeeded, however, the more exclusive galleries and many of the more serious artists had already moved to more remote art villages, including Songzhuan and Caochangdi, where F2 is located.
Brian Wallace, who runs the Red Gate Gallery in an ancient guard tower on a remnant of the city’s original Ming wall, noted that 798 seems to be evolving from gallery space to retail space. But Wallace had no doubt that China will continue to inject enormous creativity and professionalism into the contemporary art scene.
“Art is a career path in China,” Wallace said. “It is like being a doctor or a lawyer.”
The recession’s impact on real estate speculation connected to art may be a different story. Beijing’s dazzling Today Art Museum, the city’s first independent museum focusing on contemporary art, will probably succeed. But a flashy nearby gallery complex known as 22 Art Plaza International, which had intended to capitalize on the museum’s attraction, stands largely empty.
Fryns said F2 and other leading galleries prefer the more remote location at Caochangdi, because the space is reasonable, and there is a lot of it. A collector who has flown to Beijing, ready to spend a million dollars or more on a painting, has no difficulty finding the location.
“We don’t get the drop-in crowd, the casual passers-by, the young couple with cameras, but that is not what we’re looking for,” Fryns said.
And Fryns is convinced that in the long term, the best art will continue to hold its value. “There is very little quality material coming on the market today,” he said. “People are holding on to what they have. There are a lot of newly wealthy Chinese billionaires. Once they have bought everything else, a certain number will turn to contemporary art. They will want to collect the best work that is Chinese, and there is a limited supply of that.”
By William Dowell – GlobalPost
Source: www.globalpost.com
Tags: arT, arT gallery, arThou, Beijing arTists, Chinese arT, paintings, sculpture
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Sunday, July 19th, 2009
JACKSON, MS (WLBT) – This Mississippi Museum of Art premiered a new event Friday evening. It’s called the Art Remix. Organizers originally expected about 500 people to attend, but early estimates show many more people came out to the special event.
Live music kept the crowd moving with two bands and a disc jockey. Plus a scavenger hunt took folks throughout the various galleries to view the masterpieces on display. The goal of the new event was to get people through the doors of the museum who otherwise would not visit.
“(We’re) really enjoying this. It’s great art. You don’t realize what Mississippi has to offer until you come to the Mississippi Museum of Art and see what they got,” said Jerry Rowzee visiting from Madison.
The next Art Remix is scheduled on August 14th from 5:00 p.m. – 10:00 p.m.
Tags: arT, arT event, arT gallery, arT museum, arThou
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Friday, July 17th, 2009
From hands-on group painting and live music at ArtWhole Studios, to original works, performance art and live ballet at The Creamery Arts Center, First Friday Art Walk is packed with summer fun in August. Join us 6-10 p.m. Aug. 7 in 22 participating galleries. Among the highlights:
• ArtWhole Studios offers studio owner Chet Burgtorf’s new photography series Colors of the Caribbean, plus new works by artists Scott Green, Sarah E. Splitter and Allen J. Miller. Participate in a group painting, and enjoy music by Moonhoney and appetizers by Twilight Grille.
• Bodhi Salon & Spa welcomes photographer Carmelita “Carmi” DeLeon, who got her start shooting collegiate sports and now does everything from portraiture to commercial work.
• The Creamery Arts Center presents Opening an Art Gallery – Arts in the Park Exhibition, featuring the work of young artists from the Springfield Community Center with a special guest appearance by the Springfield Ballet.
• Elite PhotoArt features Artist Gary Adamson, a painter and caricaturist, and Photography by Edward Biamonte, best known as head photographer and photo editor for 417 Magazine.
• Fresh Gallery presents Painter Ann Meese and Jewelry Artist Elaine Willig.
• Global Fayre presents Baskets of Botswana, featuring museum-quality baskets hand-woven by the women of the Beyei and Hambukushu tribes in northern Botswana, plus a Kiva Awareness Evening on the Kiva micro lending program that aids entrepreneurs and alleviates poverty worldwide.
• Obelisk Home at the Inspired Commerce Building features Artist David Cogorno, a sculptor whose work “is a study of our interactions with spaces (and within them).”
• Randy Bacon Gallery shares the deeply moving experiences of grieving families in the Lost & Found Photo Exhibit.
For parents who want to attend Art Walk but think they can’t afford child care, think again! Family Art Night at the Downtown Y offers child care for ages 3 months to 12 years, 6:30-9 p.m. every First Friday for only $10 per child. Kids enjoy healthy activities and snacks, story time and a hands-on art project to take home. The Aug. 7 arts activity is Rainbow Fish. Call (417) 862-8962, ext. 149 for information or to preregister. Full details of the Aug. 7 Art Walk appear in the August Gallery Guide below.
August Gallery Guide
ArtWhole Studios, 408 W. Walnut, features studio owner Chet Burgtorf’s new photography series Colors of the Caribbean, plus new works by artists Scott Green, Sarah E. Splitter and Allen J. Miller. Guests will once again have a chance to take part in our monthly group painting, because at the ArtWhole, “group stuff is great.” Enjoy the gypsy tango stylings of Moonhoney and appetizers from Twilight Grille. For more information or to make an appointment call (417) 866-7929 or email us at artw...@att.net. www.artwholestudios.com
Big Smile Photography, 207 Park Central East, features international award-winning wedding and portrait photographer Jeremy Lawson’s creative lifestyle wedding and portraiture work. Big Smile displays Jeremy’s one-of-a-kind portrait and wedding images from local events, as well as events from around the world. (417) 527-2885 www.bigsmilestudios.com Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F and by appointment
Bodhi Salon and Spa, 431 S. Jefferson, Ste. 106, presents cross-genre photographer Carmelita “Carmi” DeLeon. Carmi began her career as a collegiate sports photographer in the early 1990s when she fell in love with the camera and its ability to capture the beauty of the human spirit. Over the years Carmi has expanded her focus to include family and animal portraits, nature, engagements, reunions and commercial photography, including work on a historical shoot of power equipment for Cadet Connection Magazine. Her philanthropic endeavors include serving as an official photographer for the MS150 Bike Tour. (417) 864-4399 www.bodhisalonandspa.com Open 9 a.m.-9 p.m. M-F; 9 a.m.-6 p.m. Sat
The Creamery Arts Center, 411 N. Sherman Parkway, presents Opening an Art Gallery – Arts in the Park Exhibition 6-9 p.m. during Art Walk, with a special guest appearance by the Springfield Ballet. Arts in the Park, now in its eighth year, is a summer arts education program for 86 students from the Springfield Community Center. Come see their creations in pottery, painting, costume design, film, photography, puppetry and performance art. Springfield Ballet performs at 7 and 8 p.m., offering a mixed bill of classical ballet excerpts, as well as original contemporary ballets staged and choreographed by Springfield Ballet faculty and guest faculty Charlotte Hart. (417) 862-ARTS (2787) www.SpringfieldArts.org Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F; closed major holidays
DB Design Salon & Art Gallery, 326 S. Campbell, presents Featured Artist Cyndilee in August. In addition to Cyndilee’s acrylics, DB Design also features works by painters Debbie Sutherland and Jerry Ellis, potters John Ehlers, Duane Bone, Cheryl Matlock, Julia Schaefer and Katrina Stevens, jewelry artists Jill LeGrand and Tammy Kirks, and stained-glass artist Nathan Smith. (417) 864-4343
Elite PhotoArt Fine Art Gallery, 325 E. Walnut St., features Artist Gary Adamson. Gary is a painter and caricaturist and is based in Springfield. He majored in art at Drury University and holds an MFA from Fontbonne University, St. Louis. (www.garyadamson.com) Also featured is Photography by Edward Biamonte. Edward will display some of his landscapes and fine art. Edward also serves as head photographer and photo editor for 417 Magazine. (www.edwardbiamonte.com) Elite PhotoArt will also feature hand-crafted jewelry by Big Nose Creations, pottery by Bari Precious, artwork by Ammie Cyr, Nancy Rose and Jay; and photography by Larry Daniel, Katia Lee, Dwayne Hillme and Gallery owners Will and Lisa Roberts. (417) 569-3322 or (417) 234-7761 www.elitephotoart.com Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. T-F; 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sat or by appointment.
Fashioned By Jaye, 212 S. Campbell, features a joint show of Digital Artwork by Kourtnie Putnam and Jaye Coltharp. (417) 862-4100 www.fashionedbyjaye.com Open Noon-7 p.m. M-F; 2-7 p.m. Sat
Fitzwilly’s Gifts & Antiques, 308 South Ave., is a longtime downtown retailer featuring antiques, gift items and collectibles. Its monthly art exhibits emphasize unique sketches and paintings by talented local artists. (417) 866-3696 Open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F, 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat; First Friday hours 11 a.m.-10 p.m.
Fresh, located at the southwest corner of Campbell and Walnut, presents Featured Artists Ann Meese and Elaine Willig in August. Ann, a painter, fell in love with art early, majoring in art at MSU in the ‘60s. After a 35-year career as an educator and administrator – and raising four children – Ann has returned to her passion. “Creating a painting is a small journey,” she says. “At the end of that journey, what remains on the canvas is an impression that evokes a variety of feelings for me. I hope you enjoy the images that I share.” A jewelry artist, Elaine says color is paramount in her work, which incorporates a wide range of materials. “Working silver and shaping unique gemstones, and using the most flexible beading materials, my designs come from precious metals, vintage glass, crystals, handmade beads, gemstones, silver, gold, copper and brass.” (417) 862-9300 Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. T-Th; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. F-Sat
Gillioz Theatre, 325 Park Central East, presents Artist Rosalie Perryman. Rosalie’s intent is to capture the beauty and details of nature by painting from her photographs, creating intense and vibrant watercolors. Photography is a passion, and the love of nature and the ability to see and to capture nature in art is her inspiration and joy. Besides her visual art pursuits in photography, watercolor, oil, acrylic and digital mediums, Rosalie is also a performing artist as a marionette cabaret-style puppeteer. Rosalie has owned and operated RLP Puppet Company for 30 years and the Jubilee Theater Center in Marshfield for 12 years. (417) 863-7843 www.gillioz.org
Global Fayre, 324 S Campbell, presents Baskets of Botswana, featuring museum-quality baskets hand woven by the women of the Beyei and Hambukushu tribes in northern Botswana. These baskets are created by 24 women that form the Etsha Weavers Group. They have many years of weaving experience, a skill that has been passed down for generations. Global Fayre also presents a Kiva Awareness Evening during the August Art Walk. Kiva connects people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty. Kiva is the world’s first person-to-person micro-lending website, empowering individuals to lend directly to unique entrepreneurs around the globe. (417) 873-9792 www.globalfayre.com Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. M-W, 10 a.m.-7 p.m. Th-Sat, 1-5 p.m. Sun or by appointment
Good Girl Art Gallery, 325 E. Walnut St., Ste. 101, presents local artist Chad Woody for the month of August. Chad’s show, Dolls for Devils consists of highly imaginative prints, drawings and sculptures reflecting Chad’s exploration into the sometimes dark and humorous caverns of the human mind. Also showing will be paintings by fellow Springfield artist Misty Ware. (417) 865-7055 www.goodgirlartgallery.com Open 10 a.m.-8 p.m. T-F; 11 a.m.-8 p.m. Sat
Hawthorn Galleries Inc., 214 E. Walnut St., presents Painter Dan McWilliams. With his unique blend of impressionistic realism, McWilliams “extracts the spirit of his subjects while illuminating the transient nature of light and color. Evoking nostalgia, his paintings stir emotions and memories for the viewer.” Meet the artist and enjoy live music by Ron Preston at the opening reception during Art Walk. (417) 866-6688 www.myspace.com/hawthorngallery Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. T-F; 1-5 p.m. Sat
Inveno Health, 429 N. Boonville Ave., displays new and vibrant work by local Painter/Printmaker Stephanie Cramer, whose colorful work pairs perfectly with the amazing facility architecture and design by Obelisk Home. Venture north of the square in August to the galleries at Inveno Health and Obelisk Home. We might be off the path, but it’s worth the walk! (417) 831-1270 Open 6-10 Art Walk evening or contact us for a tour at info@invenohealth.com.
Nonna’s Italian Café, 306 South Ave., presents A Retrospective of Works by Pokey Alrutz, including acrylic abstracts, watercolor paintings, collages, cajas de milagros, coloring books, and tapestries. Pokey has shown in many places in the Springfield area over the years, including her first show at Nonna’s in 1993. The highlight of Pokey’s career is when Salvador Dali invited her to dinner in Figueras to discuss abstraction shortly before he passed away. She dedicates this show to the memory of querido Salvador. (417) 831-1222 www.nonnascafe.com
Obelisk Home at the Inspired Commerce Building, 214 W. Phelps, presents Featured Artist David Cogorno. David, who holds a BA from Drury University, is working toward his MFA in sculpture at the University of Kansas. David grew up in St. Louis and has studied and worked in Italy and Peru. “Nature is my escape from the chaos of the world and my greatest source of inspiration. I enjoy venturing out and finding my way through obstacles that confront me; rock formations, dense foliage, bodies of water, etc.,” David says. “My current work is a study of our interactions with spaces (and within them) revealing patterns, inter-relationships, and common themes that attempt to create a unique visual experience.” (417) 616-6488 www.obeliskhome.com
Park Central Branch Library, 128 Park Central Square, features the post-modern art of Jim Delgadillo and folk singer J.R. Top. (417) 831-1342 http://parkcentrallibrary.blogspot.com Open 7 a.m.-8 p.m. M-Th; 7 a.m.-10 p.m. F-Sat
Randy Bacon Photography and Figment Art Gallery in the Monarch Art Factory, 600 W. College St., unveils Randy’s Lost & Found Photo Exhibit during the Aug. 7 Art Walk. More than 40 families receiving grief support services from Lost & Found participated in a photo exhibit to share their stories on the journey of grief. Experience their personal stories and photos that reflect their emotional struggles, steps towards healing, and their embracing of a new life that is forever changed. Visit the adjacent Figment Art Gallery & Culture House to view the latest work by house artists Kelly Kennedy, Kat Allie and Abby Waters. For more information, call (417) 868-8179. www.randybacon.com www.gallerysounds.net Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. T-F; 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Sat
Rox Stoneworks, 220 S. Campbell, Second Floor, (entrance on McDaniel), the studio of Sculptor Bruce Burnaugh, presents Works in Progress by Rox Studio students, Paintings by James Crafford and Francois LaRiviere and Paintings and Mixed Media by Charity Blansit. ROX Stoneworks is a working studio teaching stone sculpture Sat, Sun and Mon, 9:30-3:30. www.springfieldarts.org/ROXstoneworks
Springfield Hot Glass Studio, 314 S. Campbell Ave., is a working hot glass studio/gallery with facilities for furnace, torch and kiln work. Springfield Hot Glass Studio continually displays its current blown glass, beads and fused work, offering live demonstrations on Tuesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and First Fridays. Classes are available; please visit our Web site. (417) 868-8181 www.springfieldhotglass.com Open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. M-Th; 10 a.m.-10 p.m. F-Sat
Springfield Pottery, 416 S. Campbell Ave., a fine craft gallery and community clay center, features some of the best examples of fine craft in clay, wood, metal, glass, fibers, photography, printmaking, and jewelry by over 45 local, regional and national artists. (417) 864-4677 www.springfieldpottery.com Open 11 a.m.-6 p.m. T-Sat
Susan Sommer-Luarca Fine Art Gallery and Frame Shoppe, 221 Park Central South, exhibits a large body of Susan’s work in originals and fine giclee, museum prints. Susan is an internationally known and widely acclaimed artist with the honor of being Official Artist for the U.S. Olympic Team, Beijing. Official Triple Crown Horse Racing Artist and Artist for the 2008 Super Bowl, Susan also paints LIVE at many nationally televised events. (417) 866-4ART (4278) www.sslworldwide.com
Tags: arT event, arT gallery, arThou, ballet, Missouri arT, music, paintings, sculptors, Springfield MO arT event
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Thursday, July 16th, 2009
 Bradley “Carney,” terra cotta clay, glaze, wire and ceramic decals by Kansas artist Ben Ahlvers. Currently showing at Shy Rabbit Contemporary Arts in Pagosa Springs is an exhibit not to be missed. Paper & Clay 2 presents work by 15 artists from nearby and faraway, assembled together in an exhibition spotlighting contrasting materials and varying artistic approaches. As unusual as it is to find a contemporary art space nestled in the tall pines of a light industrial district in Pagosa Springs, so too is it surprising to find this quality of art on display in our geographically isolated region. Leave it to Shy Rabbit to bring fresh and innovative ceramic and print works together for a captivating display.
The theme that weds Paper & Clay 2 is perhaps the reason for the show’s excellence. Gallery owners Denise and D. Michael Coffee set out to acknowledge “the role that art educators and mentors play in the shaping of generations of artists.” To this end, the exhibit showcases the work by ceramic artists who have studied at Ohio University in Athens with internationally known ceramic artist Brad Schwieger. That’s the “clay” part of the exhibit – and it’s thought-provoking and fun.
“Paper” refers to the reductive ink prints (on paper) created by three artists who have studyied this unique printmaking method with D. Michael, a printmaker (and ceramicist) who developed the process. This is the second year that the Coffees have focused their efforts on bringing high-quality ceramic art and prints together for this event, showing emerging artists chosen by influential teachers in each medium.
The inherent material differences between paper and clay set the tone for the viewing experience. Paper is fragile. The decision to hang the prints bare, without frames, was a practical one and serves to amplify the delicate nature of the paper as well as the directness of the monoprint process. Fired clay, on the other hand, is durable. The glazes and surface textures on many of the works, however, offer a different impression.
Joe Davis has applied textures to his ceramic sculptures that are so fragile that it’s hard to believe that they are, well, hard. His amorphously shaped forms, crafted through a slip-casting process, reinforce this softness. Their fetish finishes in designer colors, like Pepto Bismol pink, lemon yellow and avocado, add another layer of oddness to them. Davis’ sculptures allude to physiology and anatomy with their bulbous, phallic and lobed forms, titled “Pumper,” “Bulb Boll” and “Blue Sqwyrt.” They seem to be equally informed by the unconscious mind, sourced purely from the imagination. They are strange, curious and playful objects.
At the other end of the aesthetic spectrum is the ceramic sculpture of Steve Schaeffer. His minimalist work is inspired by the landscape and simply titled “Warm Fire” and “Cold.” These elemental forms combine round and smooth with rough and earthy. This juxtaposition of form and surface implies a harmony of opposing forces. The elegant, elongated orbs that nest within their heavy bases seem to simultaneously ascend and rest, reinforcing the balancing of opposites. In his artist statement Schaeffer offers some insight into his choices: “The forms define space, and their weight is connected to the landscape they are inspired by. My work is about the spatial relationships I’ve experienced in nature and, in turn, the work has become a voice for those landscapes.”
While Schaeffer’s interest lies in the natural world, Ben Ahlvers is preoccupied with human nature. The sculptures are odd portraits, or heads, which is an appropriate choice for his psychological expressions. “Carney” is a funk art-inspired ceramic bust of a cigarette-smokin,’ beer-drinkin,’ hot-rod-lovin,’ 5-o’clock-shadow-wearin’ guy who is surrounded by a ring of missile-like darts. Ahlvers is interested in a sort of twisted whimsy. He writes of his work, “The good, the bad and the ugly … get exposed. Sarcasm, humor, fear, honesty, dishonesty, nostalgia are layered in the pieces.” As a father of three boys, he finds family life to be the major source of inspiration for his art.
Children and family relationships are the inspiration, too, for Juanita Ainsley’s vibrantly colored reductive-ink and mixed-media prints. A child psychologist by profession, Ainsley creates images that are sophisticatedly naïve and possess an aesthetic ease that is grounded in a child-like perspective. The compositions are busy with layers of images of animals, pottery, people and patterns that are compartmentalized into their separate areas on the paper. Ainsley continues her stream of consciousness process by drawing with ink, chalk, oil pastel, charcoal, pencil and, of course, crayon, adding more imagery and color to the print.
Underneath the playful elements of her work, discomfort can be sensed. Perhaps Ainsley is pointing to a world in which children feel boxed in and overwhelmed, a place not of their making. Perhaps she is addressing the powerless and innocent aspect in each of us. Either way, her solution to use creativity and the power of personal expression to create a world she wants to live in is admirable and inspiring.
Take the drive to Pagosa to see this show – I’m bettin’ it’ll be worth the trip!
Written by Jules Masterjohn
Source: www.durangotelegraph.com
Tags: arT, arT gallery, arThou, arTist, clay arT, contemporary arT, paper arT, Shy Rabbit
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Thursday, July 16th, 2009
 The first two billboards, unveiled on July 13th, showcase works by renowned New Jersey artists Tim Daly of Hoboken and Gary Godbee of Westfield.
Click for Daly and Godbee
Highway Art Gallery
New Jersey’s first-ever highway art gallery hits the road this summer, and Palisades Insurance Company wants you to be a part of it!
Click here to submit artwork or here to view the online gallery and vote.
The Palisades Highway Art Gallery is exhibiting original works by area artists on some of the largest and most-viewed canvases in the state – New Jersey’s highway and roadway billboards. We’ve picked prominent billboards on some of the most traveled roads throughout the Garden State to feature landscape artwork by New Jersey artists.
And you can get in on the fun, too!
Beginning July 13th, New Jersey residents of all ages and abilities can register and submit images of original paintings, drawings, photography, or mixed media inspired by New Jersey scenic views, landscapes, seascapes, urbanscapes, destinations and landmarks. Starting July 14th, visitors to the site can vote for their favorite submissions in our online gallery. Up to a dozen top-voted winners will be sponsored by Palisades for exhibit on billboards throughout the state.
Ready to share your NJ masterpiece? Then submit your work here and encourage friends and family to visit the site and vote! You can enter until July 31st but voting begins July 14th, so make sure you enter early.
Voters also have a chance at winning a prize! After casting your vote, you can enter to win a NJ weekend getaway or daytrip. What are you waiting for? Vote here!
To learn more about Drive With a Smile, the campaign rules and more, go to http://www.Palisades.com/DriveWithaSmile.
Tags: arT billboard, arT event, arT gallery, arThou, arTist, Hoboken arT, masterpiece, New Jersey arT
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