Art as Authority

from the press release



Anna Stump

San Diego Mesa College Museum Studies Program
619.388.2829
www.sdmesa.edu/art-gallery
Alessandra Moctezuma, Professor
amoctezu@sdccd.edu
bodynarratives09@gmail.com

Body Narratives: Expression through the human form

Reception: Friday December 4, 2009 from 5 - 8pm

Exhibition Dates & Times: December 4 - 6 and 10 - 13, 2009 from 10 - 4pm

Location:
The New Americans Museum
NTC Promenade at Liberty Station
2825 Dewey Road, Building 202, Suite 102
San Diego, CA 92106

The San Diego Mesa College Museum Studies class invites you to an exhibition of artwork featuring the human form. From the Discobolus of Classical Greece, to Leonardo Da Vinci's anatomical studies and Matisse's dancing figures, the human body has been a rich source of artistic inspiration. San Diego artists come together with striking artwork in various media that deals with the beauty, strength and passions of the body.

Artworks range from mysterious wrapped figures by Anna Stump, lyrical floating bodies by Misty Hawkins, figurative abstractions by Jeff Clark, and a Houdini-like escape performance by Autumn Hays. Other artists included are Francois Michel Beausoleil, Adrian Collins, Sheena Dowling, Jeanne Dunn, Daphne Hill, Julie Kitterman, David Krimmel, John Rankin and Michaela Simmons. The exhibit was curated and organized by Maria Bolivar, Megan Daly, James Johnson, Kevin Kao and Samantha Nessel.

On Friday, December 4 2009 the public is invited to enjoy Friday Night Liberty at NTC Promenade, the Arts and Cultural District at Roosevelt and Dewey Roads, in the heart of Liberty Station. Friday Night Liberty is a free monthly first-Friday event, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., featuring open artist studios, galleries, shopping and entertainment throughout NTC Promenade. For additional information about NTC Promenade, visit: www.ntcpromenade.org

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from the press release


"Lucy, Darwin and Me”
an installation by Michele Guieu at Art Produce Gallery

December 12 through January 24, 2010


Opening reception: Saturday, December 12, 2009, from 6 to 9pm.

Art Produce Gallery
3139 University Avenue
San Diego, CA 92104
619.584.4448




Gallery Events

December 12, 2009:
12:00 - 4:00pm
Art Produce is hosting a fair trade market of African art and imports to benefit Women’s Empowerment STAR Center.
2:00 - 3:00pm
Marian Williams tells African tales for children.
7:00 - 8:00pm
Alfusainey Suso plays the traditional West African kora.

January 9, 2010:
6:30 - 8:00pm
A casual conversation with the artist, Michele Guieu.

January 16, 2010:
6:30-8:00pm
Panel Discussion, "Darwin's Weeds ” with Leslie Ryan, landscape architect, AEREA, a San Diego landscape architecture firm, and Deborah Forster, Dept. of Cognitive Science, UC San Diego.

"Lucy, Darwin and Me”
an installation by Michele Guieu

On the occasion of the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth and the 150th anniversary of the publishing of On the Origin of Species, Michele Guieu puts together a show, “Lucy, Darwin and Me,” that celebrates our origins and biodiversity, and evokes the years she spent in Africa, including the trips she took to the Sahara desert with her geologist father and her biologist mother. Michele’s time in Africa coincided with the discovery of the skeleton known as Lucy, the oldest hominid found at the time and named for the Beatles’ song “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.” The show runs from Saturday, December 12, 2009 to Sunday, January 24, 2010, at Art Produce Gallery in North Park. Opening reception is Saturday, December 12, 2009, from 6 to 9pm.

In this show, constructed like a natural history museum exhibition, Guieu is at the same time the designer, the curator and the artist. And through it, she recalls her formative adolescent years spent in the Sahara with her father and with her family, finding fossils and sleeping under the stars.

The show is a two-room installation, comprised of a series of drawings scattered within a mural and a large cloud of text, period photos from the Sahara, family artifacts, and selected short videos.

Michele Guieu is a San Diego Art Prize 2009 nominee. The show was made possible by collaboration between Patricia Frischer from the San Diego Visual Arts Network (SDVAN), and Lynn Susholtz, director of the Art Produce Gallery. In 2009, Art Produce Gallery has been honored with an Orchid award in the category of Public Art by the San Diego Architectural Foundation.

Michele describes “Lucy, Darwin and Me” as very autobiographical. She says, “I was raised in a family where I always heard about evolution, species and continental drift. It is a natural part of my life. I find it interesting that the country where I live today is profoundly divided about the notion of evolution.

“I started to really consider working specifically for a space with the mural for the San Diego Art Prize show at Noel Baza Fine Art last February. I continued on the same path at the SDAI with my solo show “C’est la Vie”, in June 2009.

“For this show I worked with the specifics of both rooms in the gallery. I use the long wall in the first room for the mural. In the second room, smaller and more intimate, I show the photos of my father and family in Africa circa 1975 and a series of artifacts found in the desert or belonging to my father.”

About the opening festivities, Michele Guieu says: "I believe in bringing energies together, and for that reason, I was very interested in including the music I was listening to and the tales and stories I read when I was a teenager, living in Senegal. I want to share some of this very rich culture by inviting other artists to participate in the event.

"I am thrilled that Leslie Ryan and Deborah Forster accepted the proposition to organize a panel discussion on the occasion of the show. It brings a scientific perspective on evolution to the show and offers the occasion to reflect together on a subject which touches our everyday life.

The gallery events happening around this show are the result of a desire to make the community participate and to open the dialogue. Art Produce is definitely community oriented and this important goal suits very well what I am looking for with my work.

Michele adds: “I am interested in making ephemeral elements, like murals in a gallery. It makes the work less sacred. In this show I wanted to mix different techniques (photo, video, drawing, painting), to create a museum-like ambiance. The first room is inviting from the outside; the second room is more intimate.”


Bio Michele Guieu:
www.micheleguieu.com

Originally from Marseille, France, Michele Guieu lives and makes art in San Diego. Her many travels, years living in Senegal, a father geologist and a mother biologist, and a continued interest in world and political events, has only been matched by her insatiable curiosity and unbridled passion for art. It has made for a body of work un-characteristically pure, filtered, and highly astute in its ability to transform a visual vocabulary into essential language that reflects our personal and collective hardships and joys. Michele worked as a graphic designer with the political group Grapus and obtained a Masters Degree in Visual Communication from the ENSAD in Paris.

She has exhibited in numerous venues, including the Museum of the California Center for the Arts, Noel Baza Fine Art, William D. Cannon Art Gallery (Biennial), Oceanside Museum of Art (OMA 4), Cabrillo Gallery (Cabrillo College, Aptos), OT Gallery (Tustin), J. Wayne Stark Collection (Texas A&M), Galerie Deprez-Bellorget (Paris).
Michele Guieu is a San Diego Art Prize 2009 nominee.

Michele Guieu
contact@micheleguieu.com
858.490.0568


Essay by Jane La Motte
Jane La Motte

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from the press release


L Street Fine Art
628 L Street
San Diego, CA 92101 at the Omni Hotel
858.254.3031
director@lstreetfineart.com
www.lstreetfineart.com

“Driven to Abstraction”
Exhibition featuring works by Tania Alcala (San Diego Art Prize New Contemporaries 2009) and Silvia Valentino Karbashlieva

Show Dates: November 25, 2009 to Feb 15, 2010
Reception: December 10, 2009 at 8pm - Artist talk begins at 8pm (L Street Fine Art)
After opening celebration for the artists at "The Corner Bar & Restaurant" starting at 9pm
369 10th Avenue (10th and "J")
San Diego, CA 92101

L Street Fine Art Gallery presents a joint exhibition of the works of Tania Alcala and Silvia Valentino Karabashlieva. Alcala’s abstracts are based on her experience as a commercial pilot, while Karabashlieva drives her car to create work with intense attention to details. This spotlight show for Alcala marks the end of her year as a participating artist in SD Art Prize New Contemporaries II. The SD Art Prize New Contemporaries II exhibition was held in the Spring of 09 at Noel Baza Fine Art.


TANIA ALCALA

Tania Alcala’s paintings are about finding the joy of being and freedom within herself. Her work is about experiencing consciousness and awareness with the seduction of color with her brush strokes.

Born and raised in Mexico City, Tania obtained a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from Ottawa University in Phoenix, AZ and a Master’s degree in Transformative Arts from John F. Kennedy University in Berkeley, CA.
The sense of the ethereal that Tania Alcala discovered in the paintings of many artists like Mark Rothko, Yves Tanguy, and Eduardo Matta inspired her to take up flying. She took to the skies as a commercial pilot to seek the freedom she craved. While aviation offers mobility and a “heavenly” view of the world, the exacting, highly regimented aspects of that profession do not compare to the creative outlet she achieves as an artist.

For Alcala, her passion for painting is the ultimate act of freedom, allowing contradiction, intuition, risk and exhilaration to come into play. Tania’s large atmospheric pieces convey her deeply moving experiences from the skies along with her lifelong fascination with color. These abstract expressionistic works of art have an inner complexity, compellingly and sensuously immersing the viewer in a uniquely personal way.

Her smaller paintings shift your view from her the large to the intimately close up views of the earth. Alcala adds a level of creativity to these small squares of the earth captured in acrylic paint. They can be re-arranged in an unlimited variety of combinations and their contemporary pop playfulness brings us firmly into the present. The resin finish on all Tania’s work is similar in nature to the varnishes used by artists a century ago and acts like a mirror’s reflecting surface, adding another dimension to this very 21st century painter’s work.

Tania Alcala is represented in San Diego by Noel-Baza Fine Art Gallery
www.Noel-Bazafineart.com
619.876-4160
www.taniaalcala.com

SILVIA VALENTINO KARABASHLIEVA

In her project, DRIVE, Silvia Valentino Karabashlieva uses industrial and acrylic paint, graphite powder, pigments, glass beads medium, and rust on rolls of Stonehenge paper to recreate her daily encounters with the road. Virtually unlimited, the lengths of paper allow her to paint linearly, creating extensive, continuous panoramic pieces. Through a fast-paced and spontaneous process, she captures the aesthetics of the daily drive, which inspires her with both its forceful isolation from the rest of her fellow homo sapiens and its peculiar beauty.

Road signs, multi-colored reflective markings, oil stains, cross-walk "zebras", torn tires, melted asphalt, and spilled paint become landscapes that recount the permanence and transience of life. Besides the readily visible and sometimes accidental human activity however, her work shows a condensation of various places, visited and imagined. In these condensations, we glimpse contemplations and pondering, states of disturbance and elation, and spliced space/time continuums. The work also addresses the somewhat debilitating imposition of a very utilitarian invention, the road, on the human psyche and notes the prevalence of human deposits, which are helpful to humans but not always harmless to nature.

The highway as space contains the residue of human intentions and attempts to communicate by means of license plate messages and bumper stickers, road rage, spit gum, cigarette butts, and many other forms of human activity. Karabashlieva’s paintings endeavor to show its unique language, to seize glimpses of the mundane, and to record leftovers of human existence.

"I drive my car. The signs and evidence left by others drive my art," says Silvia Valentino Karabashlieva. You can see more of her work at: www.silviavalentino.com

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from the press release

Hello Everyone,

As most of you know we are in the process of developing an arts community center in the East Village area. This will have around 30 units of various sizes, 4-5 of them work/live, and significant common space, all at affordable rates (see below for more details). This projects intent is to provide for artists in San Diego and build community. It will be a testing ground and home base for SD Space 4 Art. We have a tremendous oppurtunity to begin to realize the ideas and enthusiasm that have been generating amongst the art community and fueling the goals of SD Space 4 Art. Right now there is a group of dedicated volunteers working hard to pull this off but without the participation of the larger arts community this won't be possible. In order for this to become a reality in San Diego we need: a show of interest, help spreading the word, and volunteers. First off, we need a show of interest and prospective tenants in the next 2 weeks so that we can move forward on the lease. Things are developing fast so please don't hesitate to come see the space and find out more.

Thanks,
Chris Warr

The next viewing will be on Sunday, November 29 at 3:00 pm

325 15th Ave.
San Diego, CA. 92101

Artist Studio Space Available

To all artists, art organizations, musicians, designers and creative professionals:
Affordable artist studio space in San Diego East Village. Spaces range from 250-1740 sq.ft. and Prices range from $220-$1650 per studio, utilities included (some studios heated and air conditioned). Approximately 4-6 work/live units also available. Studios share common space, which includes:

Large Gallery - Event/Performance Space - Outdoor Gathering and Meeting Space - Conference Room - Kitchen - Bathrooms - Woodshop (potential) - Kiln (potential) - Welding Space (potential) - Gated parking offered at a small additional fee.

Thanks for your participation!

sdspace4art
Sponsored by Synergy Art Foundation www.synergyart.org
Contact us at: sdspace4art@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/sdspace4art

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from the press release



Brad Schneider by Scrojo

“ARTISTS BY ARTISTS” Group Show Organized by Mary Fleener

December 1, 2009 to January 4, 2010 at the Community Room in the Encinitas Library.

The reception: December 13, 2009
1pm-4pm
The event is free and the public is invited.

* THE AxA 27 *

Danny Salzhandler by D. Goth - Robert Nanninga by Vanessa Lemen - Alec McTurk by Ana Clark - Rodney McCoubrey by Anne Julian - Mary Fleener by Fred Caldwell - David J by Scott Saw - Jerry Waddle by Max Dolberg - Scrojo by Mary Fleener - Diane Stacey by Cheryl Tall - Jim and Linda Hornung by Faith Lindley - Brad Schneider by Scrojo - Rob Machado by Rodney McCoubrey - Paul Williams by Drew Snyder - Mike Totah by Diane Stacey - Jeremy Wright by Jean Krumbein - Vanessa Lemen by Brian Weisz - Ron Lemen by Dody Tucker - Kevin Anderson by Jim Hornung - Cindy Lee Berryhill by Ron Lemen - Manuelita Brown by Kevin Anderson - Julia Gray by Jack Quick - Sheri Fox by Roz Light - Jack Quick by Bryson Stein - Roz Light by Nancy Nelson - RAW by Scott Lynd - Dody Tucker by Taina Ringeride - Scott Saw by Mary Fleener

More information: Mary Fleener

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from the press release

The Art Street Journal is an international monthly art publication focused on the most exciting new voices in contemporary art.

The November issue includes:

- Interviews with Dan Witz, Hush and WK Interact
- Features on Conor Harrington, JR, Chloe Early, Armsrock, M-City, Mark Whalen (Kill Pixie) and Candice Tripp
- Previews and reviews of ARTotale, Untitled II: The Beautiful Renaissance, The Ghost Village Project, The Thousands, Represent, the Edinburgh Art Fair and SCOPE Miami
- Images from some of the best of today’s street artists as curated by Unurth’s Sebastian Buck

The Art Street Journal is distributed worldwide. Current cities it can be found in include:
Berlin Buenos Aires Edinburgh Frankfurt Grottaglie Hamburg London Los Angeles Montreal New York Newcastle Paris Porto Alegre Sao Paulo Sydney Tel-Aviv Valencia Vienna Warsaw

People can sign up for a free annual subscription at www.theartstreetjournal.com. If you would like to receive a copy yourself, please send us your full name, mailing address and the best contact phone number and we will send one your way.

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by Richard Gleaves








Deth P. Sun is among the handful of Giant Robot artists (Souther Salazar, Saelee Oh, Ray Fong) who can make GR2 the sole reason for an LA art run.

Sun works in the school of illustration-flavored painting that is the house style of Giant Robot. What sets him apart from the cartoon crew is a melancholy poetry that's hard to put one's finger on, but utterly compelling to look at.

Sun lives in the Bay Area but grew up in San Diego, taking art classes at Patrick Henry High School from the gifted artist and teacher Tina Brown.

Normally I loathe articles that link national artists to local roots (Baldessari! Zittel! Go Padres!). But in this case it's useful for understanding the work, since Sun himself likes to throw in the occasional hometown callout, wherever home might be.

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by Marilyn Mitchell

(Untitled) is a new comedy that parodies contemporary art – especially the New York art scene. Jonathan Parker's view is at times painfully funny, at other times too realistic. It made me squirm with recognition. All contemporary art lovers will want to see this film. The story follows two competitive brothers, one who is a visual artist (Eion Bailey) and the other is a deadpan atonal music composer (Adam Goldberg). They form a love triangle with a beautiful gallery owner (Marley Shelton) that wants to only show 'important' emerging artists.

The musician's music was composed by David Lang, and it is a hoot. He drops a metal chain into a bucket and kicks it with gusto to create some of the 'music'. At a concert in the movie, the theater is almost empty while Adam Goldberg and his two accomplices plunk, bang and squeak their performance to life. The ironic twist on it was that (Untitled) played on a Saturday night to a similarly sparse audience here in San Diego.

The 'important' artists portrayed in the movie make art from taxidermied animals (think Damien Hirst), a bare light bulb going on & off (the Turner Prize) or make wall labels for banal objects such as a push pin. The pretentiousness of the art world is battered about with glee.

The most crucial aspect of the film, though, is that it raised tough questions. Who decides who is an 'important' artist? How does anyone decide if the art is any good? What does it mean to be a successful artist? (Untitled) is filled with memorable performances and some very funny lines. It attempts to expose the art world as a bit of a sham, which is no surprise. What (Untitled) did not do, though, is show us what 'important' visual art is today.

The movie made me want to see an art world with more transparency and higher standards of integrity. The fact that well known critics buy art and then write raving reviews to increase the value of their own collections doesn't make anyone bat an eye. The fact that artists routinely have nothing what-so-ever to do with the creation of their works is a completely accepted mode of creation; actually a celebrated mode of creation. The fact that collectors buy museum space to promote their own collections in order to increase their value is also accepted without any qualms. When a movie attempts to make fun of a world where a few are given 'god-like' status, despite their apparent immaturity and their shallow ideas, it makes me cringe. Sure, it's all 'subjective' but maybe there needs to be more discussion about the art world as it really is – since it is not pretty.

Landmark Hillcrest Theater

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from the press release

BOOKMEAT - The silent auction of a one-night-only library
http://www.sidestreet.org/bookmeat
Saturday, November 21, 2009, 6pm-10pm
Event to be held at--
"The Brick Building"
8870 Washington Blvd. (between Robertson & National, next door to the Royal/T)
Culver City, CA 90232

Side Street Projects
PO Box 90432, Pasadena, CA 91103
626.798.7774
jon@sidestreet.org
www.sidestreet.org

Join LA's most intriguing & celebrated artists, writers and curators for a most unusual silent auction. Each has contributed a book from their personal collection that influenced their life's work. Tucked inside each book (for the buyer's eyes only) is an autograph and secret inscription from the contributor explaining the book's significance.

Tickets are $100. Most starting bids are $75. Proceeds benefit Side Street Projects' education programs for kids and adult artists throughout LA County. Order tickets on-line at http://www.sidestreet.org/bookmeat. Or call 626.798.7774

BOOKS CONTRIBUTED BY (list in formation):

Danielle Adair, Rheim Alkadhi, Stacey Allan, Mark Allen, Rachel Allen, Kathryn Andrews, Edgar Arceneaux, Carmen Argote, Joshua Aster, Karen Atkinson, Lisa Anne Auerbach, Judy Baca, Jennifer Bain, Judie Bamber, Elise Barclay, Kelly Barrie, Tanya Batura, Dan Bayles, Justin Beal, Todd Becraft, Jay Belloli, Stacen Berg, Walead Beshty, Ellen Birrell, Andrea Bowers, Mark Bradford, Nancy Braver, Brian Bress, Kaucyila Brooke, Jane Brown, Annie Buckley, Tim Buggs, David Burns, Brian Butler, Ingrid Calame, Joshua Callaghan, Jane Callister, Heather Cantrell, Juan Capistran, Carolyn Castano, Enrique Castrejon, Mel Chin, Tom Christie, Caryn Coleman, Ginny Cook, William Cordova, Kate Costello, Charlotte Cotton, Zoe Crosher, Russell Crotty, Robert Crouch, Christian Cummings, Dorit Cypis, Lavi Daniel, Julie Deamer, Chelsea Dean, Michael Dee, Tomory Dodge, Zackary Drucker, Sam Durant, Martin Durazo, Ciara Ennis, Okwui Enwezor, Jori Finkel, Chris Finley, Sinead Finnerty-Pyne, Lauri Firstenberg, Eve Fowler, Charles Gaines, Harry Gamboa Jr., Ken Gonzales-Day, Rita Gonzalez, Alexandra Grant, Emma Gray, Amy Green, Phyllis Green, Mark Greenfield, Katie Grinnan, Sherin Guirguis, Liz Gylnn, Fritz Haeg, Emilie Halpern, Lynn Hanson, Doug Harvey, Marc Herbst, Robby Herbst, Katie Herzog, Leslie Hewitt, Michael Ned Holte, Violet Hopkins, Bettina Hubby, Salomon Huerta, Steven Hull, Emily Joyce, Vish Jugdeo, Glenn Kaino, Naima Keith, Martin Kersels, Byron Kim, Carol Ann Klondaries, Alice Könitz, David Korty, Olga Koumoundouros, Kris Kuramitsu, Annie Lapin, Elad Lassry, Tom Lawson, Julie Lazar, Julie Lequin, Katie Lewis, Karen Liebowitz, Glenn Ligon, Jed Lind, Matt Lipps, Mara Lonner, Renée Lotenero, Jean Lowe, Shana Lutker, Nathan Mabry, Kim MacConnel, Dana Maiden, Elana Mann, Michael Markowsky, Carolyn Mason, Anna Mayer, Barry McGee, Thomas McKenzie, Rodney McMillian, Lisa Melandri, Yunhee Min, Jessica Minckley, Aaron Morse, Aram Moshayedi, Sandeep Mukherjee, Holly Myers, Tucker Neel, Kori Newkirk, Jill Newman, Gaston Nogues, Laurie Nye, Pat O'Neill, Hans Ulrich Obrist, Robert Olsen, Julie Orser, Ruben Ortiz-Torres, Kaz Oshiro, Laura Owens, Marc Pally, Jorge Pardo, Anthony Pearson, Hirsch Perlman, Renée Petropoulos, Calvin Phelps, Kelly Poe, Stephanie Pryor, Jessica Rath, Marco Rios, John Robertson, Ry Rocklen, Steve Roden, Brett Cody Rogers, Emily Roysdon, Christopher Russell, Analia Saban, Shizu Saldamando, Aaron Sandnes, Melanie Schiff, Maya Schindler, Kim Schoen, Kim Schoenstadt, Jim Shaw, Kyungmi Shin, Susan Silton, Alexis Smith, Michael Smoler, Jill Spector, Carol Stakenas, Tyler Stallings, Jennifer Steinkamp, Kirsten Stoltmann, Tamara Sussman, Catherine Taft, Ami Tallman, Joel Tauber, Ed Templeton, Melissa Thorne, Pilar Tompkins, Irene Tsatos, Geoff Tuck, Jan Tumlir, Kaari Upson, Jeffrey Vallance, Monique van Genderen, Tam Van Tran, Anton Vidokle, Matias Viegener, Mary Weatherford, Dawson Weber, Marnie Weber, James Welling, Jennifer West, Pae White, Charlie White, Carrie Whitney, Millie Wilson, Rosha Yaghmai, Mario Ybarra Jr., Liz Young, Carrie Yury, HK Zamani.


BOOKMEAT PATRONS:

Nooshin Malakzad, Wendy Munger & Leonard Gumport, Peggy Phelps, Susan & John Caldwell, Joan Palmer, Janine & Tony Perron, Dianne M. Magee, Clare & Chris Tayback, Dr. Sujal & Kelly Mandavia, Paul & Lizzie Salvati, Vern & Marsha Bohr, Joe Lewis, Bob & Patty Zuber, Olin Barrett & Ann Dobson Barrett, Maureen Carlson, Dan & Diana Attias, Summer Art Academy, Elinor & Rubin Turner, Edwina & David Dedlow - FormSolver Inc., Katherine Gillespie, Susan & Jim Crawford, Kate & Leonardo Clavijo.


BOOKMEAT STEERING COMMITTEE:

Ed Schad (The Broad Art Foundation), Melissa Goldberg (ForYourArt.com), Jay Belloli (Armory Center for the Arts), Eungie Joo (New Museum), Liza Simone (Phantom Galleries), Karen Rapp (Vincent Price Gallery and Art Museum @ ELAC), Susan Yank (Hammer Museum), Elise Barclay (O'Melveny & Myers LLP), Pilar Tompkins (Claremont Museum of Art) Sinéad Finnerty-Pyne (Armory Center for the Arts), Janine Perron (Hammer Museum, Side Street Projects Board), Bari Ziperstein (Artist, Side Street Projects Board), Lorraine Molina (LM Projects, Side Street Projects Board), Diane Magee (Side Street Projects Board).


BOOKMEAT SPONSORS:

Nooshin Inc., Barefoot Wine & Bubbly, Honest Tea, Large Marge Sustainables, ForYourArt, DubLab, Savings.com, Event planning courtesy of Pink Cloud Events. Design and marketing courtesy of The Groop.


WHAT IS SIDE STREET PROJECTS?

Side Street Projects is the nation's only mobile and sustainable community art center. Headquartered in Pasadena, CA, Side Street Projects teaches artists of all ages how to roll up their sleeves and do things themselves with education programs that encourage self-reliance and problem solving. For more info, visit http://www.sidestreet.org or http://www.facebook.com/sidestreetprojects. Side Street Projects is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit art education organization. All donations are tax-deductible to the fullest extent of the law. Artist-run since 1992. Off-the-grid since 2008.

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Video suite

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from the press release

Off The Beaten Path: Violence, Women and Art lecture

21 November 2009
UCSD Campus
Pepper Canyon Hall, room 106
1:00 pm

Please join the University Art Gallery, UCSD in our final discussions associated with the current exhibition entitled Off the Beaten Path: Violence, Women and Art that to explore the global ramifications of gender-based violence. "Throughout the world, women and girls are victims of countless and senseless acts of violence. The range of gender-based violence is devastating, occurring, quite literally, from womb to tomb," explains Randy Jayne Rosenberg curator and executive director of Art Works For Change. "The stories that underlie these artworks return us imaginatively to the event of violation and allow it to affect us." The final program examines the laws that keep women in compromised positions around the world as well as within the US.

Patrick Anderson, Asst. Professor of Communication will moderate the discussion with Carmen Chavez from Casa Cornelia Law Center; Steve Bush, Jenny's Law; Summer Stephan, District Attorney of North County

ABOUT ART WORKS FOR CHANGE
Art Works for Change produces contemporary art exhibitions to address social and environmental.
It uses the power of art as a vehicle to promote dialogue and awareness, and to inspire action and thought. Art Works for Change operates under the fiscal umbrella of the Tides Center, a tax-exempt organization.

ABOUT 5 WOMEN WHO CARE
5 Women Who Care is a group of women who came together to help make a difference and bring awareness to women's and children's issues globally. Operating out of the San Diego area, these 5 Women collaborate with like-minded organizations for the empowerment and justice of women and children worldwide.

The University Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 5pm.
858.534.2107
uag@ucsd.edu

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from the press release

You are invited to join in a round-table discussion of The Candy Store:

Saturday November 21 @ 7:00 PM
Agitprop (North Park)

2837 University Ave. (behind Glenn’s Market on Utah)
San Diego, CA 92104
contact@agitpropspace.org

The discussion will focus on the project (currently on view at La Casa del Tunel: Art Center in Tijuana) and issues surrounding the general state of healthcare today. The panel will consist of the artists, a pharmacy owner from Tijuana, and others knowledgeable in the field. Attendees are encouraged to share their experiences navigating the system and thoughts on issues ranging from health insurance to the marketing of pharmaceuticals and current trends of medicating children with powerful mood altering drugs. Select objects from The Candy Store will also be on view in the gallery.

“They (The Klines) also poke at the escalating trend of United States residents crossing borders to buy medication from Mexico and Canada that they cannot afford to buy in the States. The added facet of a drug-smuggling tunnel transformed into a cultural venue transformed into a drug store makes the project even more significant, meaningful, timely and edgy.”

— Pasadena/San Gabriel Valley News Journal

The Candy Store (La dulcifies): Dispensing Truth

“The Candy Store” simultaneously attracts and repels viewers, exposes the inherent conflicts in the international healthcare industry, and the legalities and illegalities in the world of pharmaceuticals. The Candy Store is a retail space featuring “inconsumable products” made out of controlled substances (a.g. tobacco Teddy bears and Vioxx ceramic candies) adding meaningful visual spectacle and humor to the dialogue surrounding healthcare issues and bridging boundaries between art, science, sociology and activism.

Contact: Agitprop contact@agitpropspace.org
http://agitpropspace.org/

Debby and Larry Kline 760.432.9436 or Dekline1@yahoo.com
La Casa Del Túnel: Art Center, Luis Ituarte 323.574.9197 or luis_ituarte@hotmail.com

The Klines’ work can be seen at www.jugglingklines.com

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from the press release



Reception: Saturday, November 21, 2009
5 to 7 pm
Funded by Carlsbad Friends of the Arts

This exhibition takes a closer look at what is normally considered a simple utilitarian vessel used to hold tea. Teapots: Object to Subject is a collection of the best entries from the 2004 Survey of American Teapots sponsored by the Craft Alliance in St. Louis, Missouri. The best of both established artists and the most promising, innovative new artists from around the country are represented in this exhibition.
Teapots: Object to Subject is organized by the Craft Alliance and is being toured nationally by ExhibitsUSA.

This exhibition also features teapots from specially invited regional artists: Connie Beardsley, Christie Beniston, Kelly Berning, Nate Betschart, Richard Burkett, Levi Casias, Maria De Castro, Irene de Watteville, Ted Gallup, Flavia Gilmore, Joanne Hyakawa, Yoshimi Hayashi, Jeff Irwin, Christopher Lee, Ron Lenc, DeLoss McGraw, Lee Puffer, Eric Rempe, Gail Schneider, Scott Schoenherr, Fred Stodder, Cheryl Tall, Lana Wilson and Scott Young.

WILLIAM D. CANNON ART GALLERY
1775 Dove Lane
Carlsbad, CA 92011
760.602.2021
Arts@carlsbadca.gov

Spun by Art as Authority at 08:10 AM | Permalink

by Richard Gleaves

Rothko's a must-see, but like Martin or Turrell you've got to show up in person — photos steal their soul.

Which brings us to American Artists from the Russian Empire — currently showing at the San Diego Museum of Art — and its promise of a Rothko experience to anyone who shows up.

The promise is false: the Rothkos at SDMA are entombed in glass which throws up a shiny reflective surface in front of the picture plane, obscuring the essential Rothko magic (which normally happens 1 to 100 feet behind the picture plane, virtually speaking).

So what to do? Go to SDMA for the Tchelitchews, two alarming exceptions in an otherwise staid show of period art.

Then art run to LA to see Collection: MOCA'S First Thirty Years — not only does it have more and better Rothkos, but they're crucially in the buff.

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 05:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

from the New York Times, Deborah Sontag and Robin Pogrebin


One day in the mid-1980s, Dakis Joannou, a Greek Cypriot industrialist, was exploring the art galleries of the East Village in Manhattan when he came upon a basketball suspended in a tank of liquid. Captivated, he invested $2,700 in “One Ball Total Equilibrium Tank” by a little-known artist named Jeff Koons. It was, he said, as if a whole new world had opened up to him.

Twenty-five years — and 40 Koonses — later, Mr. Joannou is considered one of the most important contemporary art collectors in the world. And the New Museum of Contemporary Art in Manhattan is preparing to showcase his vast collection in a three-story exhibition, with Mr. Koons, now an art superstar, as the guest curator. More..

The San Diego Way for comparison
More still..

Spun by Art as Authority at 05:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Richard Gleaves

Tara Donovan at MCASD is a perfect cognitive storm of work, site, and placement.

Of the many fascinating aspects of Donovan's work, perhaps most intriguing is the oblique relation between how it's promoted as visit-worthy, and how it works as art.

The hook is the novelty of a mass accumulation of everyday objects, while the actual esthetic engine is the work's deft exploitation of a bi-level figure/ground inversion:

• At the micro level the action centers on the play of light between or through the objects, rather than on the objects themselves.
  
• At the macro level the focus on large-scale bioform enables the work to engage (and thus appropriate) the rectilinearity of the containing museum spaces.
  

These levels are linked by the work's crucial dependency on formal properties of surface:

• Maximal scale/mass ratio (structural)
  
• Maximal permeability of light (visual)
  

Wallpaper, carpet ... but unlike any ever seen.

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 01:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

from the press release

ZOOM
November 21 - December 19, 2009

Torrance Art Museum
3320 Civic Center Drive
Torrance, CA 90503
310.618.6340
mpresneill@torrrnet.com
www.torranceartmuseum.com
Gallery hours: Tuesday - Saturday, 11am-5pm

ZOOM artists: David Adey, Kelly Barrie, York Chang, Allison Cortson, Roni Feldman, Tony Maher, Daniel Nevers, Nobuhito Nishigawara, Andrew Schoultz, Christina Shurts, Ali Smith, Cheryl Sorg Augusta Wood, Eric Yahnker.

The Torrance Art Museum is proud to present ZOOM, a juried survey of current developments in contemporary artistic practices from California, Arizona, Nevada, and Baja artists. In its inaugural year ZOOM breaks new ground and investigates a myriad of directions and movements in contemporary art beyond the traditional institutionalized juried show. ZOOM sets a new benchmark with an un-paralleled open application for a museum survey exhibition. This exhibition seeks to reflect current trends, track developments in contemporary practices, and explore associations between the regional geographical areas. But more importantly to give voice to new artists via the open call process, for those artists without the school connections or the favored gallery, ZOOM evens the playing field.

Los Angeles is considered one of the most dynamic cities globally for the creation of contemporary art and Torrance sits in the midst of this activity. ZOOM at TAM seeks to redefine this creative hub for contemporary art to include a larger geographical context and expand our local remit to include a larger swath of artists that have a direct influence on the cultural dialogues of our time. As we compare and contrast various art practices found in this larger region of influence we will present a more comprehensive view of current artistic developments regionally and further afield.

Spun by Art as Authority at 10:52 AM | Permalink

from the press release


Saturday, November 14
1:00–3:30 p.m.
Museum Boardroom and Art School

The Museum is proud to host a panel discussion about identity, place, and culture in art inspired by the special exhibition American Artists from the Russian Empire. Join Michele Guieu, Shadab Zeest Hashmi, and Marisol Rendón — artists originally from France, Pakistan, and Colombia, respectively — as they discuss the impact their cultural identity has had on their work. After the discussion, join Museum Educators for a workshop inspired by the art of Russian-born American abstract sculptor Louise Nevelson. Lecture: Free after Museum admission.
http://www.sdmart.org/calendar.asp

San Diego Museum of Art
1450 El Prado
Balboa Park
San Diego, CA
619.232.7931

Spun by Art as Authority at 10:00 AM | Permalink

from the press release


THE ARTS COUNCIL OF THE TEMECULA VALLEY
"Visual Expressions 2010" Juried Art Show

11th November 2010 - The Arts Council of Temecula this week announced a call to all artists wishing to participate in the "Visual Expressions 2010" Juried Art Show, scheduled to run from January 22nd 2010 to March 31st 2010.

Angela Morris chair of the event said, "Our mission is to raise the profile of the arts in Temecula, and as part of this program we will be organizing a series of events, including juried shows, solo shows, group shows, contests, plein air field trips and other activities in 2010".

Sissi Hale, co-chair of "Visual Expressions 2010" said, "We will be announcing a number of further initiatives in the new year, the Visual Expressions show is just the start of our new program. We want to raise the profile of art within the community, in particular we want to encourage local artists to gain wider exposure, especially new artists looking to break through."

With this event, Visual Expressions 2010, the Arts Council is extending an open invitation to all artists in Riverside and North County. This juried competition will include categories of the following media, including Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Mixed-Media, Collage, Pastels, Sculpture, Print, Photography and Glass. Further details are provided below; with full details available in the prospectus (available online by contacting the organizers directly).

Contact Details: For anyone wishing to get further details of the competition, or any related enquiries, email Sissi Hale at sissi@sissihalestudio.com

Competition Details

The following media categories are to be judged: Oil, Acrylic, Watercolor, Mixed-Media, Collage, Pastels, Sculpture, Print, Photography and works in Glass. Artists may submit as many as five (5) works. Entries must be the artists original work, and must be not explicit, suitable for family viewing. Work must have been created in the past two years.

Fees: Entry fees are $15 for the first piece, payable with your entry form; and $5 for each additional piece, payable upon delivery on December 5th. All registration fees are non-refundable. Checks should be made payable to THE ARTS COUNCIL OF TEMECULA VALLEY. 43513 RIDGE PARK TEMECULA CA 92590.

Key Dates: Pre-registration is required and must be USPS postmarked on or before Tuesday, December 2st. All submissions must be hand-delivered to Musician's Workshop 27455 Tierra Alta Way, Temecula, CA (951-296-6778) December 5th 2010 10 am - 4 pm. Results will be announced on Monday 14th and Tuesday 15th December, with winning contestants being contacted directly by email and/or phone. Awards will be presented to the winners at the Artists Reception on January 22nd 2010 at The Mercantile Gallery - 42051 Main Street, Temecula.

Awards: Awards will be granted in each of the four categories, as follows: First Place: $200; Second Place: $100; Third Place: $50. Other awards are (1) Best Of Show: $300; (1) People's Choice: $50; (1) Historical Theme: $50 (Historical Theme showcasing the legacy of the Temecula Valley or the best depiction of historic Temecula. (Please specify in your entry form the piece(s) you want to be considered for this Historical Award).

Art Sales: All artwork selected for an award will be placed for sale at the price indicated by the artist and remain on exhibit until the end of the show or until sold. If your artwork is not for sale, please indicate "NFS". More info and registration here.

Spun by Art as Authority at 09:39 AM | Permalink

from the press release



Eve Out of Paradise (From Woodcuts of Women)

Reception 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.
Friday, November 13th, 2009

Noel-Baza Fine Art
2165 India Street
San Diego, CA 92101
Noel-Baza@cox.net
www.noel-bazafineart.com
619.876.4160

These amazingly beautiful woodcuts and linocut prints are timely and significant works of art. Featured in museums and major collections of Latin American art, Artemio's work offers an amazing value for the collector at this time.

Artemio Rodriguez was born in Tacambaro, Michoacan Mexico in 1972. He began by studying agronomy at the Universidad Autonomo Chapingo and was later introduced to art when he apprenticed and learned letterpress printing from Juan Pasco, a master print maker working out of the Taller San Martin Pescadoer near Rodriguez’s hometown.

As a print maker who works primarily in black and white, Rodriguez’s signature style emphasizes simplicity and clarity. European medieval woodcuts and the great Mexican print artists such as Jose Guadalupe Posada have been influential in Rodriguez’s print making career. Though comfortable working in a wide variety of artistic media, Rodriguez regards his ten years as a print maker as the beginning of a long quest. His larger goal is to keep exploring and promoting printmaking until he feels he has contributed something important to the medium. He fully expects this to take a lifetime.

Rodriguez’s work has been featured in galleries and Museums in the United States and Mexico. He has also illustrated and published several books. In 2009, The San Diego Museum of Art acquired several prints by Artemio Rodriguez including his monumental ( 8 x 12 foot) “Triumph of Death". They are currently on display in the new
Mexican Gallery of the SDMA in Balboa Park.

More information here

Spun by Art as Authority at 02:33 PM | Permalink

from the press release





United & Severed
That window of Time..

Special Video Screening
Saturday, Nov. 14th 6 - 9pm

ART Produce Gallery
3139 University Avenue
San Diego, CA
619.584.4448
www.artproducegallery.com





Join the artists for a special screening of United & Severed, the 22 minute video that accompanies the installation. United & Severed is an experimental video based on interviews with three women living with traumatic injuries.

United and Severed is an interdisciplinary work based on the experiences of 3 women living with traumatic injuries. Research for this artwork began with Diekman & Schaffman's interviews with Kim Anderson, Michele Caputo, & Ivy Kensinger. They tell their personal stories of shock injury where in a single moment their lives were changed forever. Show runs to December 6th, 2009.

Kristine Diekman & Karen Schaffman
(writing-audio-videography-choreography-installation)
Richard Keely & Anna O'Cain
(sculpture-installation)

For more info. about United & Severed: http://www2.csusm.edu/diekman/un_sev/

Spun by Art as Authority at 02:16 PM | Permalink

by Kevin Freitas

David White from Agitprop in North Park and Drew Snyder from The Andrews Gallery in Leucadia, have been chosen for the following Best of categories in CityBeat's annual reader's poll. And the winners are Best alternative art gallery and Best art gallery worth the drive respectively. Congrats to them both! Oceanside Museum of Art was voted Best art-scene underdog for what its worth or for whatever that means - I have no idea. Other awards, Lynn Susholtz from ART Produce Gallery in North Park has been nominated for an "Orchid" in the category of Public Art by the San Diego Architectural Foundation. www.orchidsandonions.org We couldn't be happier!

Here are a few excerpts from the CityBeat nominations:

Best art gallery worth the drive

Local art lovers rarely venture north of Quint in La Jolla for openings, but ask someone in the know and they’ll tell you that The Andrews Gallery in Leucadia (1002 N. Coast Hwy. 101, www.theandrewsgallery.com) has been showcasing some amazing local and international talent while also throwing some killer parties. more


Best alternative art gallery

Ah-ha, “alternative gallery.” If you look that up in a dictionary, it’ll say, “The owners don’t make any money selling the work.” Well, at least that’s how we’re going to be defining it today. more

Spun by Art as Authority at 08:58 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Rachel Rosenthal turns 83 today.

Or 4.5 billion.

Depending.

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 12:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)

by Kevin Freitas and David Fobes


Sitôt is an adverb in French that is generally used to designate a moment in time that has just passed — sitôt après - immediately after — or something that is about to happen as in the expression no sooner said than done. It implies a certain (physical) movement or action (trajectory) to be taken, a firm commitment that lies somewhere between the knowledge of the past and the unknown of the future. In other words, there’s no better time than the present. The whole notion of immediacy, of taking action or the taking up of arms (with the written word of course) appeals to me greatly. I wanted to seek out this immediacy through documenting the multitude of events, actions, and history being made daily in San Diego by its artists, their artworks, and those who support them. I would like to trace and record these actions — right now — through a series of interviews, eventual podcasts, video, or even art(ist) publications. My desire is to capture what is being thought about and talked about in the moment. This is why I am launching Sitôt.

Currently, I’m working with David Fobes on a project entitled “Re-collections: Art in San Diego since 1980”. Its goal is to document and publish online, a modest history of the arts in San Diego from the 1980’s until now. The project would also include documenting the music, theater, and dance movements and the people or institutions that helped shape them. We of course understand the magnitude of such an endeavor, but feel it is time to re-position the current art scene in relationship to where it has come from and to recognize the contributions it has already made.

If as is the case, there is a continuous flow of artists and art activists who choose to move to San Diego, there should be a place we feel, where you can search out the city’s cultural history (albeit within a specific time period) if for no other reason than to be aware and informed. I would like Sitôt to be that place. The better you highlight and understand a city’s artistic scene, the better you can insert yourself into it buy knowing the importance it has already played. The desire is not to find solace or comfort in the past, but to expand the future of what we know in an attempt to better clarify and place San Diego — at least contemporarily — in a larger art world context. By recognizing the past it can give us the momentum to make changes that perhaps are long overdue to the benefit of everyone. This is our hope. Both our interests in contemporary art and its history motivate us to do this.

It is of course, impossible to cover the scene or a scene entirely by oneself. This is where you can help.

You can help us by simply filling out the survey we have put online by clicking here. As the information you send is collected, we will use it to trace the events, exhibits, and artists over the years by consolidating it into a timeline of people, places and things. We are looking once again, to cover the period between 1980 and now. As an example of what this might look like, David Fobes has started to chronicle his early beginnings in San Diego with a series of chapters outlining his career, friendships and working relationships with other artists. The uniqueness of the project however is you. By helping us build this data bank with your own recollections, stories, photos and documentation, it can avoid a potentially dry and literal reading of this period. The goal is to have enough submissions by everyone to eventually publish the findings in a catalog. No history is too small as they say; we would like to know about yours. Whether you’re a newcomer or not to San Diego, we want to know about your involvement in the art scene — past or present — and how you’ve contributed to the shaping of it.

Our many thanks,

Kevin Freitas and David Fobes

Spun by Art as Authority at 08:51 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Kevin Freitas


If drawing’s origins can be traced back to the Italian Renaissance and the Academies - its usage primarily as a means to an end - that is, as a form of visual note taking or sketch in preparation for the final work of art, it isn’t until the 18th century that it begins to acquire a certain autonomy and appreciation. Drawing materials and the techniques used in employing them haven’t changed much over the centuries either, case in point, ink drawings or sumi-e has been around since the 10th century in Japan and even earlier in China. Today, it is still one of the many methods artists use to make their art. If there is any thanks to be given for drawings continued success and general public appeal, we should remove our porkpie hats (Llewellyn sports them) and thank such great masters as Rembrandt, Poussin, Rubens, Boucher, Fragonard, Delacroix, Cezanne, Degas, ad nauseam… Drawing has a very fine pedigree that carries a lot of art historical weight: tons and tons of it.

Renaissance artists viewed drawing as a cosa mentale, something that originated in the spirit and mind and then manifested itself through its gesture. Drawing then, was both mental and physical. It may have taken a major exhibit in 1976 organized by Bernice Rose entitled “Drawing Now” at the Museum of Modern Art in New York, to realize drawing could be something else than just lines on a piece of paper. It could also encompass such radical artists (at the time) as Land Art aficionados Robert Smithson and Michael Heizer, and still others from Dine to Agnes Martin to Stella, Twombly, and Rauschenberg. And how about now, where does drawing stand in 2009? The answer might be found in several new works by long time San Diego artist and resident Clayton Llewellyn, currently on view at Device Gallery (Barrio Logan).

Some of the works at Device were exhibited earlier this year in May at the Earl and Birdie Taylor Library in PB. A show Robert Pincus from the Union-Tribune reviewed, and from all accounts, rather enjoyed. Llewellyn still managed to make new work for this solo show – his second – that fills the somewhat cramped quarters of Device Gallery’s interior gallery and is nicely accompanied by a series of drawings (diptychs and triptychs) that line the gallery’s exterior walls. If you’ve never visited the gallery, it is contained in a larger warehouse structure that also houses artist/design studio spaces where at any given moment, one can hear the sounds of grinding metal and blow-torches. I find the space to be quite clean and functional; I’ve heard others say it resembles a food court for art. I think it depends on whether or not the work exposed can hold its own amongst all the sights & sounds of the space.

Llewellyn’s work holds up rather well. The title of the show Ftagn (waits dreaming) is a direct reference to H.P. Lovecraft’s story or mythos of a shared universe (one in which many writers contribute to the same fictional universe by “sharing characters and other elements”) that is inhabited by “ancient, powerful deities who came from outer space and once ruled the Earth,” one of which was Cthulhu. In the story, Cthulhu “lies ‘dead [but] dreaming’ in the submerged city of R'lyeh somewhere in the Southeast Pacific Ocean.” It is believed that some day when the moment is favorable, Cthulhu will rise once again to “wreak havoc on the earth.”

It is an apt mythology that seems to help explain “the waiting” one feels when looking at Llewellyn’s work. It is the type of anxiety and frustration that comes from looking at drawings that are still, unmoving, airless and frozen yet incredibly masterful and rich in their technique. The artist’s attention and deft drawing hands have succumbed to simply rendering the spoils of a post-industrial society that has been abandoned, shut down, turned-off, and is now silent. The drawings are starkly immutable (I don’t mean this negatively, they are rather lifeless) in their matter-of-factness, minimal in their compositions of old steam pipes, gears, levers, pumps and the like. They have been intentionally cropped compositionally or literally sectioned by the paper’s edge or frame – this is successful in varying degrees. What it does accomplish though, is that they become specimens, a record of a glorious period, trapped like insects in the amber of an industrial age that once was, but now find themselves like Cthulhu waiting and dreaming.

Synchronicity II, 2009 (detail, middle panel)

There are several works in the exhibit that are less dense, the graphite strokes of the pencil no longer emboldened. Instead, the lines are softer, poetic, and light, fanciful to a degree and remind me of the strangely curious creatures found in the film Coraline. They appear to integrate better within their colored ink washed backgrounds, floating effortlessly through the pictorial space delicately and purposefully. In the drawings Evolutional whimsy II and Charlotte Told Us We Grow Apart is where we sense an afterlife, even hope or a purpose, as large white molars have been fastened to makeshift parachutes from cloth, cast-off into the wind like a bottle tossed into the sea. But Cthulhu is never far away alas, he grows stronger everyday as evidenced in works like Synchronicity II, Intellect Alone is a Dry and Rattling Thing, or even Pandora’s Gift where hair seems to sprout from rusted pipes, bubbles escape from the ocean floor, and veins (or roots) surround and suffocate a discarded pump bringing nutrients to a restless soul.

In the end, Ftagn (waits dreaming) would have been a perfect show if not for the extrapolation and dreaming one needs to do while viewing the work. I’ve gone to great lengths to embellish and play off of the theme and inspirations for this show in my review. Dreaming or imagining while looking at art is a good thing, contemplation is healthy and necessary, but only if the work can carry you to a point (offer clues) which can allow you to set your mind free. It’s a matter of trusting and having confidence in the artwork before you, something only it can offer. For Llewellyn, I think it is a much simpler problem.

He is a confident and competent drawer; in this I have no doubts. I believe Llewellyn is at his best in a work like Reconfigured Nuclear Ideal : light bulbs and old-fashioned radio and TV vacuum tubes have replaced what could very well be the udders of a cow. He is at his most fluid when the subject matter does not become totally complacent, a victim of a drawing exercise that is a metaphor, a stand-in of a generic object (a vessel) that means one thing and is supposed to represent something else. I am unable to get overly worked up over industrial waste, garden hoses, and electrical cords disconnected. There are many ways to express loss, grief, loneliness, and abandonment, the over-use of generic icons could hamper these emotions coming forth by pushing the artist and his feelings behind the image. Llewellyn is better when he is breezy and airy, his line, shadows and chiaroscuro-esque rendering comes forward and breathes life into his drawings when they are not suppressed by the over-powering and sometimes decorative backgrounds that squash their delicateness. The bold rich ink washes of the foreground (while beautiful) do not always add something and only ends up distracting the viewer. A less stylish and more direct approach could give Llewellyn the same amount of challenges he’s after, with a much richer payoff.

In 1607, Federico Zuccari contributed to the many theories of art that have preceded his own Idea of the Sculptors, Painters, and Architects by elevating “drawing to a metaphysical activity with its origin in the mind of God.”(1) Llewellyn’s metaphysical activity certainly resides in a corner of his artistic mind and is perhaps, lying in a hallway between two open doors. Then again, he just might be one step closer to a long progression of steps towards a divine and definitive world of imagery. In the meantime, Llewellyn (waits dreaming). I’m glad I made the effort to pass through the doorway; I think you might be too.

click for larger image

(1) Rose, Bernice, "Drawing Now." The Museum of Modern Art New York, catalog printed by Colorcraft Lithographers, Inc., 1976, p.9.

Spun by Art as Authority at 02:27 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

from the press release

ART AFTER DARK: THE ZODIAC LOUNGE
Friday, November 20, 2009

What is your astrological sign? Find out at The Zodiac Lounge, Oceanside Museum of Art’s Art After Dark on Friday, November 20th from 7:00-10:00 p.m. Have your astrology, numerology and tarot cards read by Five Muses Entertainment or have Natasha Papousek of Crescent Moon Designs adorn you with a henna body art tattoo. Chris Brotzman will be spinning funky disco tribal Latin afro beats while video performance artist Megan Pogoda creates live video to his music on the façade of the museum. Inspired by all the creative energy you can make three dimensional figures in the sculpture center or hang out in the Kool lounge and experience Dave Ghilarducci’s Interactive Proverb Generator and site specific light and sound sculpture entitled "Pinholes in the Curtain of Night" that uses Morse code to communicate the twelve signs of the zodiac. Four art exhibitions will be on view, An American Dream: Gregg Jabs, Industrial Alchemy: John Zabrucky, San Diego NOW: Eight UCSD Visual Artists, and the Art of Les Perhacs. Guests will also have the chance to win Tim McCormick’s original oil painting The Stars with the opportunity drawing.

San Diego NOW: Eight UCSD Visual Artists

San Diego NOW: Eight UCSD Visual Artists presents artists from the MFA program at University of California, San Diego. The show was curated by Danielle Susalla, and features work by James Enos, Jesse Mockrin, Zac Monday, Omar Pimienta, Lesha Maria Rodriguez, Tim Schwartz, Julia Westerbeke, and Suzanne Wright.

A preview reception will be held on Friday, November 20th from 7 to 10 PM. Admission is $15 ($10 for OMA members) and includes, art, music, multimedia entertainment, art activities, food from Harney Sushi and Santino’s pizza, beer from Lost Abbey Brewery, and wine tasting from PRP Wine International.

Ticketless reservations are available by calling OMA at 760.435.3720. Or pay at the door the night of the event. Guests must be 21 or older.

An artists' forum moderated by UCSD professor Ernest Silva will be held on Thursday, December 3, from 7 to 9 PM. Meet the artists and learn about their methodologies, techniques, and the UCSD MFA program. The forum admission is $5 (free for OMA members).

OMA is located at 704 Pier View Way in downtown Oceanside, within walking distance of the Oceanside Transit Center and its Amtrak, Sprinter, and NCTD Coaster stops. Oceanside, California is half an hour north of San Diego.

Museum hours are Tuesday through Saturday, 10 AM to 4 PM and Sunday 1 to 4 PM. General admission is $8, seniors 65 and over $5, students and active military free. For information on current exhibitions or other museum programs call 760-435-3720 or visit www.oma-online.org.

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 12:16 AM | Permalink

from the press release

Off The Beaten Path: Violence, Women and Art lecture

14 November 2009
UCSD Campus
Pepper Canyon Hall, room 122
6:00 pm

Please join the University Art Gallery, UCSD in the second of three discussions associated with the current exhibition entitled Off the Beaten Path: Violence, Women and Art that to explore the global ramifications of gender-based violence. "Throughout the world, women and girls are victims of countless and senseless acts of violence. The range of gender-based violence is devastating, occurring, quite literally, from womb to tomb," explains Randy Jayne Rosenberg curator and executive director of Art Works For Change. "The stories that underlie these artworks return us imaginatively to the event of violation and allow it to affect us."

This program examines violence committed towards women based on culturally held beliefs and what women in different parts of the world are doing to challenge the status quo in their countries.

Kelli Moore, PhD Candidate, Communications will moderate the discussion with Farrah Douglas from 5 Women Who Care, Cima Rahmankhan, artist, Dep N. Tuany from Water for Sudan, Cindy Mathew from Amnesty International, Dilkhwaz Ahmed from License to Freedom.

ABOUT ART WORKS FOR CHANGE
Art Works for Change produces contemporary art exhibitions to address social and environmental.
It uses the power of art as a vehicle to promote dialogue and awareness, and to inspire action and thought. Art Works for Change operates under the fiscal umbrella of the Tides Center, a tax-exempt organization.

ABOUT 5 WOMEN WHO CARE
5 Women Who Care is a group of women who came together to help make a difference and bring awareness to women's and children's issues globally. Operating out of the San Diego area, these 5 Women collaborate with like-minded organizations for the empowerment and justice of women and children worldwide.

The University Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday, 11am to 5pm.
858.534.2107
uag@ucsd.edu

Spun by Art as Authority at 03:22 PM | Permalink

from the press release

ART EXHIBITION: MICHAEL ARATA
"REMEMBER"
November 14 - January 9
Opening Reception: November 14, 7-10 pm
Artist Talk: Sunday, December 6, 2pm


"Officials today took the rare step of publicly releasing photos of women connected in some way to convicted murderer Bill Bradford, hoping the public might help identify them. While detectives believe some have been murdered, they can't say conclusively and hope publicity might bring witnesses - or the women themselves - forward."
— Los Angeles Times, July 25, 2006


In his first project with Kristi Engle Gallery, artist Michael Arata uses the medium of painting as a process of photographic manipulation. This series of works entitled Remember features 54 small paintings (acrylic on panel), each a portrait of a young woman, hair carefully rendered but with faces blanked out. The hairstyles are all of a kind fashionable in the late 70s and early 80s and place the women in a distinctive place in time. That place tragically coincides with the 1984 arrest and conviction of William Bradford for the murders of two young women in the Los Angeles area.

Kristi Engle Gallery
5002 York Ave.
Highland Park, CA 90042
323.472.6237
kristi@kristienglegallery.com
www.kristienglegallery.com

Posing as a freelance fashion photographer, Bradford persuaded women to model for him, luring them to the Mojave Desert and other desolate locations. Immediately after his arrest, while searching Bradford's apartment, the police discovered a collection of chilling photographs, 54 in total, of pretty young women posing for the camera. With no information that could identify any of the women, all the police could do was wonder who they were and what had happened to them. In 2006, detectives looking through a cold case file found the photographs. Using the web as a way to disseminate the images more widely than was possible at the time, they were published on the LAPD website with a hope of identifying any of the women. These posted photographs became the basis for Arata's project, an exploration of identification and memory through the means of photographic portraiture. Inevitably, the meaning of these photos has shifted since their initial creation and continues to shift following Arata's appropriation and, no doubt, beyond that. Law enforcement posted these photographs in order to individually identify the women, but as a collection, the portraits are also an expression of group classification. The group of people it presents to us today reveals a cultural drive to construct a self image infused with a fear of victimization.

A hairstyle is often a very carefully chosen component of one's own personal identification. Arata's careful rendering of the hair, while blocking out the women's faces, brings into focus individual difference just as it obliterates identity. They are all different and all, somehow, the same. Our knowledge that all of these women are possible victims lends a distinct eeriness to the absence of smiling faces. As the set of photographs consolidates these individual women into a unified group, feelings towards them and their fate as individuals can be kept at arm's length, lessening our personal discomfort. Arata aims to remind us of this cultural habit so that this negation of personal comfort becomes a discomfort in itself. Distinctly aware of the potential missteps this project is fraught with, Arata's aim is to present a sincere memorial to these women in such as way as to critically examine our understanding of the nameless victim as a cultural effect.

Michael Arata has been active in the Los Angeles art community since 1987. His most recent work was exhibited at the San Diego International Art Fair. His work has been shown both locally and internationally.

Spun by Art as Authority at 09:06 AM | Permalink

with apologies to Jonathan Elsner and I.M. Pei

Spun by Art as Authority at 11:57 AM | Permalink