Art as Authority

from the press release



"B.J. O'Hara" - Stephen Chalmers

Snowbirds, An exhibition of photographs by Stephen Chalmers
January 4 – 30, 2010 | Exhibition Reception: January 15, 6-9 PM

Contact: Brian Goeltzenleuchter | Curator | 858.602.8448 | brian@cphomedecor.com
Contact: Patrick Stewart | Executive Director | 619.235.8466 | patrick@sushiart.org

SUSHI A Center for the Urban Arts
390 Eleventh Avenue
San Diego, CA 92101
619/235-8466
www.sushiart.org

Sushi Performance and Visual Art presents Snowbirds, an exhibition of photographs by documentary photographer Stephen Chalmers. Riffing on the popular term that describes retirees who spend the snowy winter months in warmer regions, Snowbirds reveals a much more diverse cross section of the RV lifestyle that abounds in the desert Southwest.

"Bill Zellers" - Stephen Chalmers

The exhibition contains domestic portraits of people “at home” in and around their RVs interspersed with landscape imagery representing the region in which they live. Taken as a whole, the imagery offers glimpses of how identity is constructed in these mobile, domestic spaces while it points to ideologies of transience that have developed over the last century.

"Sea at Sunset" - Stephen Chalmers

Stephen Chalmers has been an emergency medical technician, taught gang-affected children photography, and worked as a counselor to severely emotionally disturbed children. His photography practice deals with the psychology of loss and raises questions about the nature of representation. Chalmers has taught workshops in alternative photographic processes and digital imaging, and has been a visiting artist at numerous colleges and universities. He has been contributing photographer to several books, and has exhibited throughout the US and as well as in Australia, Ireland, British Columbia, England, South Africa, and China. Stephen Chalmers earned his MFA in Cinema and Photography from Southern Illinois University. His work can be found in several collections including the Museum of Contemporary Photography, Light Work, Polaroid, and the Getty Research Institute. Selections from his projects and more biographical information can be seen at www.askew-view.com.

Spun by Art as Authority at 05:11 PM | Permalink

from the press release

Skip Pahl

Executive Director Skip Pahl of Oceanside Museum of Art Retires After 12 Years

After more than 12 years of dedicated service James (Skip) Pahl, Executive Director of Oceanside Museum of Art since 1997, has announced his retirement effective April 2010. Pahl will remain with the museum until the Board of Directors finds his replacement through a national search. Age 66, Pahl is looking forward to retirement and working on projects that have been on hold due to his passionate commitment to the museum.

The advancement of Oceanside Museum of Art under Pahl’s leadership includes the dramatic growth of the facility. He led the $6 million capital campaign to expand the museum, culminating in a soaring addition designed by internationally known modernist architect Fredrick Fisher. During his tenure he increased the size of the exhibition schedule and the permanent collection, strengthened the mission of the museum and instituted significant public programs.

Under his leadership the museum was awarded two $300,000 three-year grants from the James Irvine Foundation in recognition and support of OMA’s innovative programming. This was a very difficult and competitive process that involved approximately 4 months of work. He led a Capital Campaign to pay-off OMA’s construction debt raising a total of $750,000 during one of the worst recessions in the nation’s history and managed the museum through a period of economic turmoil successfully avoiding staff lay-offs or cutting core programming. During this difficult period the museum audience has significantly broadened, deepened, and diversified.

Pahl has been the driving force behind the museum developing new programs such as the Culinary Cinema Series that pairs food themed films with gourmet cuisine served in the museum, designing and curating exhibitions, fundraising, and maintaining a financially stable institution. He is a very hands-on Director that has created a family like environment where volunteers and visitors are welcome to visit his office anytime with greetings and ideas.

A California native, Pahl was born in Orange, California. He began his museum career in 1973 as the first Director of the Rex Wignall Museum-Gallery at Chaffey Community College. In 1980 Pahl was named the Assistant Director at the Museum of International Folk Art, a unit of the Museum of New Mexico in Santa Fe, New Mexico. There he helped with the design development, construction and opening of the Alexander Girard Wing. Because of his success in this position he was invited to serve as the Deputy Director of Public Programs and Education at the Museum of New Mexico.

Returning to California in 1987, Pahl assumed the Directorship of the struggling San Diego Children’s Museum and in five years time brought the institution through substantial growth while retiring its long term debt and placing the institution on a sound financial footing. In 1992 he accepted the position of Associate Director of Mingei International Museum and played a key role in having that museum selected as principal tenant in Balboa Park’s House of Charm. Pahl joined the Oceanside Museum of Art as Executive Director and its first paid staff member in November of 1997 just as the Board completed the renovation of the Gill Building and opened the museum on a full time basis.

“The museum is in a great place for transition” states Pahl who leaves his successor with 4 full time employees, 4 part time employees, a $700,000 annual operating budget and a stunning new building full of potential. Since the Fredrick Fisher Central Pavilion opened in March 2008 the museum has seen a tremendous growth in programming adding a Jazz Concert Series, Art After Dark, Free Family Art Day and an exhibition schedule that jumped from 5 to approximately 15 exhibition a year! Trustee Emeritus Bob Pickrel who worked with Pahl since his first day at the museum said “We were lucky to have Skip as long as we did. He is a dear friend who taught me how to appreciate art. We will miss him.” Pahl intends on spending retirement working on his 20-foot wooden boat that he has been building for 10 years.

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by Kevin Freitas


I was recently asked by Patricia Frischer and SDVAN (San Diego Visual Arts Network) to give my thoughts on what the future of art publications might be for all of us that still read them. Several other arts writers were also asked to contribute to the discussion, they were: Robert Pincus, art critic for the Union Tribune; Keli Dailey, SignOnSanDiego; and Seth Combs, CityBeat. You can read all of our predictions on Frischer's A+ Art Blog which can be found here. Is there a future? Let us know.

The Future of Arts Publications (complete essay)

“There’s an app for that!”

I wouldn’t be surprised if it exists already. Downloading applications to iPhone, tweeting on Twitter, adding friends to a MySpace account is a rather mundane task by now. Social networking, for better or worse, has become an extension of everyone’s id. How does this affect the type of the content we receive electronically – not to mention its quality and quantity – and how do we physically perceive it? Tweets are limited to 140 characters and most cell phone screens are no larger than two-inches square. As we become increasingly “plugged in” our capacity to reflect and ponder upon the information received decreases – including how art is viewed and understood.

The coffee table book for example, is destined for extinction and will be replaced by a Kindle. There once was a certain amount of gratification associated with lugging an 8lb. catalogue raisonné of Michelangelo’s greatest works from one apartment to another. This will no longer be necessary. Most of us students spent a lifetime looking at famous works of art in books and magazines until we could travel to Paris or Italy to actually see them firsthand. And while these images rested comfortably between the pages of a book, we could always visit them at our leisure before and after a voyage. This in fact, is no longer necessary either. Nowadays, a simple Google search will bring up a few hundred thousand paintings to look at. I don’t see artist made publications coming back anytime soon either, if they did, how would they be distributed if all our friends are online? There were many who thought Gutenberg’s printing press would put the kibosh on the written manuscript. Will artist blogs and podcasts be the knock-out punch to the jaw of movable type? I doubt it.

When it comes to art magazines, I don’t see any changes other than advertising dollars shrinking and printing costs rising. A few less to read won’t really matter anyway. They’ve always been a specialized press; the ones who survive will continue to serve the arts industry and their constituency as usual. What is changing however, are the very same publications offering abbreviated versions of their magazine online and the option to download a copy for print. Add to this, hundreds of do-it-yourself publishing companies like Lulu or Kodak that give artists the freedom and luxury to get the word out at a minimal cost. In both instances, this helps to increase readership and foster an appreciation for the arts. This is good. Perhaps we could learn something from the LA based Coagula Art Journal, now in its 17th year, as an example of doing just that.

So you might begin to think that the internet is democracy’s greatest ally – a voice for and an eye on the world. I believe it’s actually fostering thousands of exclusive factions and groups (political, artistic or otherwise) with very narrow objectives and target audiences. The problem is everyone’s talking and no one is listening or even commenting. And while artists might upload their work to the internet in an effort to circumvent dwindling exposure in traditional press sources, it is actually hurting them. The idea that art speaks to everyone has just gotten harder to hear over the din of a thousand invisible voices competing on the same computer platform. I still believe there are many news sources and general publications that aren’t doing enough to cover the arts (which would help to alleviate the cacophony of the internet at least on a local level); this would help to establish the arts as a credible and newsworthy feature, a staple of any publications editorial content. On the other hand, art blogs can only fill the void left by the traditional press temporarily, until they too become, fodder for hundreds of other blogs uploaded every day. In the end, the only cure for the arts and its exposure is to keep a copy of the painting you’re standing in front of, firmly imprinted in your mind’s eye.

Kevin Freitas

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by Kevin Freitas



"Anonymous II" - Ialo Wa

December 24, 2009: Today, I received a check from an anonymous donor in the amount of $250 dollars. Written in black ink under the heading "Purpose/Remitter" was the following: Donation for Art as Authority. Christmas came right on time this year in an anonymous envelope filled with the true spirit of giving and not receiving. Thank you. I'm humbled by your generosity, honored by your recognition, and inspired by your faith and trust in what I set out to accomplish with this blog, that is, a catalyst for crtical and honest discussion about art. I'm not alone in this endeavor of course, none of this could be possible without the artists whose work inspires me each and every day. There are many choices out there to be made, good causes to support, and needy individuals who could use a helping hand. I accept your gift graciously with pride, satisfaction, and the gratitude from the bottom of my heart that you have chosen to support not only the blog but the arts as a whole. Thank you. I'm truly blessed.

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The United States Postal Service caused an outcry last month when it decided to stop delivering letters addressed to “Santa Claus, North Pole.” It quickly reversed itself after members of Congress intervened. “We never wanted to spoil people’s Christmas,” an agency spokesman said.

Link

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by Richard Gleaves

Pronunciation: \ˌkän-təm-ˈplā-shən, -ˌtem-\
Function: noun
Date: 13th century

1 : concentration on spiritual things as a form of private devotion
2 : an act of considering with attention
3 : the act of regarding steadily

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"Anansi Does the Impossible" - published by Verna Aardema

Storyteller in video: Marian Williams

Part II: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6772-zvlVp0

ART Produce Gallery
Michele Guieu

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from the "press release"

SantaDiegoCon

Saturday December 19, 2009
12:00 pm - 12:00 am
Balboa Park fountain (starting location)

San Diego's SantaCon will be on Saturday, Dec 19th, beginning at high noon at the fountain in Balboa Park. We will start out with some reindeer games in the park, then proceed to raise merry hell throughout Hillcrest, North Park, City Heights... wherever Christmas cheer and excessive drinking drive us. Bring cash for cabs, buses, and booze. Bring bullhorns, presents, and coal. Bring your sweet, unsuspecting Santa friends. Bring Santa a shot. Be there.

www.fortheempire.info/santa.html

SPREAD THE WORD!


Editor's note: Art as Authority neither condones nor is liable for the effects of chemically-induced consciousness. The event should, however, make for excellent viewing.

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Giovanni Bellini - "Pietà"

Is art blogging really that bad?

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YTPMV is a subgenre of YouTube Poop which uses the traditional YTP source material as a basis for composing original music.

Unlike the makers of classic music videos, YTPMV artists compose all aspects of their work: sound and image. They also take great pains to distinguish their work from the more popular AMV genre, which overlays pop songs with anime imagery.

YTPMV music itself hews closely to pop forms, but it's user-generated and (in the spirit of YouTube Poop) splats vast amounts of energy.

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by Kevin Freitas


According to the Los Angeles Times, the NEA (National Endowment for the Arts) announced its 2009 grant recipients nationwide. 1,207 projects will receive $26,968,500.00 in funding to help support their endeavors. Here in California, 189 grants were awarded to arts organizations up and down the Golden State for a total of $4,295,000.00. San Diego made up 3.7% of that grant money which will be going to 7 groups primarily involved in theater, music, and film. There were no grants awarded to any visual arts organization, individual artist, museum, non-profit gallery, etc. Not surprising. But unfortunately, I can think of a dozen needy enterprises here alone that could use an infusion of cash in these tough economic times. What happened? Here is a list of the winners (from the NEA website):

• La Jolla Music Society La Jolla, CA $17,500 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Music
  To support SummerFest, presentations of chamber music and jazz. Under the direction of music director and violinist Cho-Liang Lin and composer-in-residence Christopher Rouse, the festival will include premieres of commissioned works and educational activities.
• Media Arts Center San Diego (aka San Diego Latino Film Festival) San Diego, CA $15,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Media Arts
  To support the 17th San Diego Latino Film Festival. The films and videos exhibited are produced by Latinos or are about the Latino experience.
• Old Globe Theatre San Diego, CA $40,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Musical Theater
  To support the world-premiere production of Whisper House, a new musical with music and lyrics by Tony Award-winning composer Duncan Sheik, book and lyrics by Kyle Jarrow and directed by Keith Powell. Educational and outreach activities will accompany the production.
• San Diego Asian Film Foundation (aka San Diego Asian Film Festival) San Diego, CA $15,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Media Arts
  To support the 11th San Diego Asian Film Festival. Held in the fall, the 10-day event features short films, animated works, documentaries, and narrative feature films.
• San Diego Opera Association San Diego, CA $40,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Opera
  To support a new production of Verdi's Nabucco. Activities designed around the production will include a student dress rehearsal for youth from schools in San Diego County and Tijuana, Mexico; pre-performance lectures; and an artists' roundtable discussion.
• San Diego Repertory Theatre (aka San Diego REP) San Diego, CA $20,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Theater
  To support a residency by Latino theater troupe Culture Clash to create new works. Ensemble members Richard Montoya, Herbert Siguenza and Ric Salinas will rehearse and perform a newly revised version of Culture Clash in AmeriCCa, and develop, design, and perform the world premiere of A Weekend with Pablo Picasso.
• Theatre & Arts Foundation of San Diego County (aka La Jolla Playhouse) La Jolla, CA $25,000 CATEGORY: Access to Artistic Excellence FIELD/DISCIPLINE: Theater
  To support a fully staged production of Shah Mat. A new play by Naomi Iizuka, the piece will explore the way in which recent wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have impacted the city of San Diego.

While a round of applause should be given to these lucky and I'm sure grateful contestants, it still sends a chill up my spine that no grants were given to the visual arts. This raises a lot of questions and makes me wonder if the artists here (or their network) are unaware of the possibilities that exist, don't care, or are completely dependent on the artworld's hierarchial support for making a buck or even a career. Let's hope this is not the case and there is some reasonable explanation. One thing I do know is, the more artists are dependent on others to provide their sustenance, the more spare change they'll end up with in their pockets. It takes a long time to fill up a penny jar.

In a separate article, the Los Angeles Times also reported that the NEA has found "the number of American adults attending arts and cultural events has sunk to its lowest level since 1982, which was when the NEA began conducting the poll." The good news was though, attendance was up in California and "ranked near the top among states for art museum attendance. In 2008, 31% of the state's residents -- more than 8 million people --visited an art museum or gallery." This reminded me of one of the primary goals France envisioned when it reduced its work week from 40 to 35 hours in an effort to save businesses some money, work more efficiently, and give its labor force some extra leisure time. The idea being, people would spend more money because they had more time to do so and would take advantage of all the cultural and leisure time activities available to them. It was a complete failure. People had more time this was true, but the same if not even less money. With a 12.5% unemployment rate alone here in California, I wonder if more people are becoming interested in art.

To every silver lining there is a darker storm approaching, so I'll leave you this final thought or should I say fact as you go about your daily business: "The [NEA] report shows that since 1982, the number of 18-to-24-year-olds who said they had any music education in their lives has declined by more than a third. For visual arts education, the number has decreased by a half." Sound familiar?

Spun by Art as Authority at 10:39 AM | Permalink | Comments (6)

by Doug Simay
intro Kevin Freitas


Art as Authority is proud to add to its growing roster of artists, writers, and art activists who not only support San Diego’s art community, but concretely contribute to its development and growth. I’m honored to welcome Doug Simay aboard in a joint effort to expand his readership and ours to yet another level of arts coverage and content. Doug Simay has been extensively covering the Los Angeles gallery and museum scene in his column “Simay’s Best Picks” for over two-and-half years. His column provides a comprehensive guide to the art being shown there, as well as, offering the reader rare personal insights into an artwork’s context, history and contemporaneity with great intelligence and wisdom rarely seen. Doug has maintained a presence here in San Diego for more than thirty years, recently as the director of Simayspace. His passion for collecting San Diego based artists has left him with an undisputable expertise and experience we can all surely benefit from. Please help me welcome Doug to the blog by enjoying the first segment of “Simay’s Best Picks”. Ars Longa Vita Brevis

At the end of Doug’s picks, I’ve included a brief explanation on how to go about subscribing to the Art as Authority blog via the RSS feed. Please take a moment to read over the instructions and subscribe, this way, you’ll never miss another “Simay’s Best Picks” or any of the blog’s future postings. Thank you.

Doug Simay's Best Picks

Alex Grey at Orange Coast Community College (Costa Mesa through December 18). The visionary art of Alex Grey is just part of a complex, spiritually driven world that Alex and his wife are evolving in New York (the Chapel of Sacred Mirrors). Grey’s paintings are heavily based on his experiences in Harvard’s anatomy labs and with LSD. In 1999 he had a mid-career show at the MCA La Jolla.

Alex Grey

John Millei at ACE Los Angeles (mid-Wilshire through February 2010). The ACE Los Angeles gallery is physically huge. Millei has filled this gargantuan space with 9 years worth of maritime influenced paintings. It is a phenomenal output. The abstract paintings are solid and easy to enjoy. He has abstracted ship’s rigging, masts, and superstructure into a “consciously cinematic” collection of works.



John Millei

Bianca Kolonusz-Partee at Lawrence Asher (mid-Wilshire through Dec. 19). Kolonusz-Partee collages product packaging to fabricate large relief, industrial landscapes. The work is playful, constructivist, colorful and romantic.



Bianca Kolonusz-Partee

Squeak Carnwath at Peter Mendenhall (mid-Wilshire through Jan. 9). Carnwath’s style has been constant and recognizable. The work is narrative and layered in content and mannerisms. I sometimes wonder if I like the work because it is so recognizable stylistically or because its narratives touch me in indecipherable ways.



Squeak Carnwath

Lee Mullican at Marc Selwyn (mid-Wilshire closed). Mullican, born in 1919, came to attention in the early 50’s in San Francisco as a founding member (along with Gordon Onslow Ford and Wolfgang Paalen) of the Dynaton Movement. He was an important art professor at UCLA for close to 30 years. His abstract work is heavily built on primitive, tribal, ethnic motifs.



Lee Mullican

John Sonsini at ACME (mid-Wilshire through Dec. 19). ACME has been doing business for 15 years (though Randy Sommer and Robert Gunderman have been collaborating gallerists since the Food House days in Santa Monica). I first met Randy when he worked for Dorothy Goldeen at her eponymous gallery on 9th Street in Santa Monica in the late 80‘s. I am glad for their success as they have worked very hard for it. The current exhibition is a survey of the artists they represent. Sonsini is my favorite.



John Sonsini

John Millei & DeWain Valentine at ACE Beverly Hills (Beverly Hills through January 2010). The 9 ft. tall paintings that constitute Millei’s series, “Woman in a Chair,” are very consciously a redux of Picasso. I think he has pulled off “covering” Picasso with these colossal works that are every bit his own style. In the gallery’s rear “bank vault” is this stupendous DeWain Valentine 1970’s resin disc. It is so glowing, it seems to levitate.



John Millei



De Wain Valentine

Martha Minter at Regen Projects I & II (West Hollywood closing). The viewer of this exhibition becomes a voyeur. Minter’s film, Green Pink Caviar, and the still images and paintings that accompany it represent a set of lips and tongue pushing, slurping/drooling colored beads as seen from the other side of glass against which the “mouth” does its foraging. It is like a macro view of a slug eating or an ultra closeup porno scene. There is fascination, repulsion, pleasure, disgust. The work is arresting in the same way as the fleshy paintings of Jenny Saville.



Martha Minter

Jill Spector at Other Arrangements (PDC through December). Jill Spector’s work amalgamates photographs, found objects, and constructed objects. She pairs free standing sculpture with photo cutouts placed against the walls. I have no idea what she is up to - but ‘tis really curious art. Must be performance art as the sculptural part of her installations seems to be the audience.



Jill Spector

Andy Kolar at Carl Berg (PDC through December). Kolar makes paintings and sculptures. They are conceived as installation motifs. The work is confident and very evocative of some of the giants of post WWII American art (like Morris Louis, Richard Serra, Claus Oldenburg). That evocation is a well balanced starting point for his own particular aesthetic contributions.



Andy Kolar

Denise Yaghmourian at d.e.n. (PDC through December). Yaghmourian fastidiously crafts bundles - wrapped bundles. The work is about the wrapping. Hers are the sculptural equivalent of an Agnes Martin painting. They are hand-built formalisms; constructed on a grid.



DeniseYaghmourian

Bruce Connor at Michael Kohn (West Hollywood through Dec. 19). I continue to kick myself for never buying an ink-blot painting by the Bay Area artist Bruce Connor back when, with a bit of stretching, I could have afforded it. Connor was an artist’s artist. His resourcefulness and flowing creativity are unbeatable. The gallery is showing a selection of work from the 1970’s.



Bruce Connor

Dan Bayles at Francois Ghebaly (Chinatown through Dec. 23). I like Bayles’ painting. His work suggests that he likes the act of painting and the aesthetic possibilities. The printed exhibition narrative talks about Iraq, the US Consulate, etc. etc. I drives me nuts when exhibitions are “justified” with some all-embracing literature about social-political relevance. When can visual art just be visual art?



Dan Bayles

MOCA (downtown through 5/3/1010). Now 30 years old MOCA has hung a broad selection of works from its permanent collection. There are plenty of masterworks. For this photo, I could not get back far enough to include the whole aspect of Alfred Jensen’s 1960 painting. Lynda Benglis is represented by this 1971 wax on wood wall sculpture. She is the focus of a big career survey show now on view in Ireland. The “hanging” of this MOCA exhibition is flat and uninspiring. MOCA has made Minimalism appear lifeless. The museum seems lifeless.



Alfred Jensen



Lynda Benglis

Masami Teraoka at Samuel Freeman (Bergamot closed). Masami Teraoka (paintings last seen in San Diego at SDSU and in LA at Samuel Freeman) is represented by drawings and prints from 1963 - 1985. The now deceased LA dealer, Ed Lau, introduced and championed Masami. Samuel Freeman is to be commended on picking up the “torch,” keeping the master painter, Masami Teraoka, in our conscious world.



Masami Teraoka

Bruce Everett at Craig Krull (Bergamot through January 9). Everett received his MFA from UC Santa Barbara in 1968. When he paints landscapes from photos taken while flying in an ultra light aircraft, the perspective is refreshing.



Bruce Everett

Pamela Kendall Schiffer at Craig Krull (Bergamot through January 9). Kendall Schiffer is showing gauzy, atmospheric, color, luminist landscape paintings. She is also showing black ink on paper washes that I think best represent her intention to have less be more.



Pamela Kendall Schiffer

Christopher Murphy at Lora Schlesinger (Bergamot through Dec. 31). Whether he is painting a landscape or portraits, Murphy brings a fresh approach to applying paint. His style is vigorous and physically leaves the mark of the brush and impasto of the pigment. His triptych in the current seasonal group show is marvelous.



Christopher Murphy

Gifford Myers at Lora Schlesinger (Bergamot through Dec. 31). California is to ceramic art as Venice, Italy is to glass art. Gifford Myers is a preeminent craftsman in this medium. His art always is intelligent and not unusually witty. In this sculpture, the casting of Michelangelo’s David was actually produced from an original casting of the Florentine masterwork. Given that the theme for the group exhibition was the “Toy Show” Myers felt compelled to play with a sculptural icon - how Hollywood.



Gifford Myers

Patricia Chidlaw at Terrence Rogers (Santa Monica through Dec.19). Santa Barbara-based artist, Chidlaw paints like an angel. Her scenes frequently investigate the drama of civil twilight. Her work is unceasingly beautiful.



Patricia Chidlaw

Ron Griffin at Cardwell Jimmerson (Culver City through Dec.19). A photograph cannot capture the sharp, visually textured, acrylic and lacquer transfer, paintings by Ron Griffin. This exhibition presents three artists “working at the intersection of representation and abstract tradition.” Damon Cardwell and Tom Jimmerson have consistently sought out artists and presented shows that reveal contemporary art history in our region. They are to be commended for really working to spread connoisseurship.



Ron Griffen

Andrew Schoultz, David Adey, Tony Maher, Cheryl Sorg, Roni Feldman at Torrance Museum of Art (Torrance through Dec. 19). Again, the Torrance Museum presents an exhibition with terrific content -- curation that surveys a broad range of styles and techniques. The exhibitions here consistently demonstrate the breadth of quality art-making in Southern California. What a joy. San Diego County artists David Adey and Cheryl Sorg are in this 12 artist show called “Zoom”. I recommend Tony Maher’s photographs of domestic, architectural models that he has constructed. They are much more emotionally laden than the work of James Casabere. Roni Feldman’s airbrushed acrylic monochromes are the representational equivalent to Mary Corse’s abstract, glass bead paintings.



Torrance Museum of Art



Andrew Schoultz



David Adey

Jean-Pierre Roy at Torrance Museum of Art (Torrance through Dec. 19). In Gallery Two is a jaw dropping set of paintings by Jean-Pierre Roy. His hyper realistic dystopias are cinematic and visually entrapping. This is literally heroic painting.



Jean-Pierre Roy

Get out, look at art, have fun.
Doug Simay 12/8/2009

If you want to respond to this article please e-mail me directly at doug@simayspace.com
"Best Picks" Archive
You can also find "Simay's Best Picks" on the SDVAN website

Take a look at the image above, it is a screenshot of the Art as Authority arts blog. You will notice I've circled three letters - RSS - in yellow. All the technical gibberish aside, this means you can subscribe to the blog's content by receiving an announcement or RSS feed, directly into your email box, each and every time a new blog post is published. This includes Doug Simay’s Best Picks.

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Spun by Art as Authority at 10:31 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)

by Richard Gleaves








The Fab Lab

4305 University Ave (approx. 4 lights east of I-15)
Suite 130 (on side of building on 43rd)
619.209.7440

www.thefablab.org


The Fab Lab is a non-profit community laboratory where members can use advanced digital design and fabrication tools to make almost anything. The Fab Lab in San Diego is one of thirty in the Global Fab Lab Network, and the only one on the West Coast.

Fab Lab is intended to serve people who have ideas but lack the tools necessary to realize them. It is a place where advanced technology is accessible, and where anyone can invent and execute an original design.

The Fab Lab offers access to and classes for the following tools:

• Laser cutter/etching
• CNC machine for large computer cutting
• 3D modeler
• Vinyl plotter
• Electronics building station
• Computer work stations

For information on December classes contact Katherine.roe@gmail.com

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 11:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (0)

by Richard Gleaves

Last Friday I went to the Body Narratives opening at NTC Promenade in Point Loma, not so much for the art but to see how the show was put together by the five students in Mesa College's Museum Studies program who made it happen:

• Maria Bolivar
• Megan Daly
• James Johnson
• Kevin Kao
• Samantha Nessel

I spoke with Johnson and Nessel to get a sense of the thought processes that went into the exhibition design, and came away impressed. The thinking was solid, and the design reflected it: fresh use of diagonals in siting the room dividers, a central sweet spot for viewing two of the largest works, and partial visibility of additional works from the sweet spot to lead viewers into the rest of the show.

Johnson explained that exhibition design is one of the topics covered in Museum Studies, and noted that the program brings in experts (such as Michael Fields, lead exhibit designer for the San Diego Natural History Museum) to speak on various topics.

For me the interesting thing about the Museum Studies program is what its name doesn't convey: that the students are being trained not just as potential museum staff, but also as cultural entrepreneurs with all the skills necessary to make successful art shows from scratch.

They're scouting locations, finding artists, doing press releases, designing show cards, contacting newspapers, and signing contracts to secure the exhibition spaces. And they're getting this experience not from an MFA program but from a three-class certificate program at a regional community college. We can only benefit from having such people and programs around.

Program director Alessandra Moctezuma explained that in the past few years the program has moved the student-produced shows out of the Mesa College art gallery and into the community (such as the NTC Promenade space). This makes for a better learning experience for the students, not to mention more art shows around San Diego.

The program's final class places students as interns in local museums or galleries. Johnson is interested in the Mingei, while Nessel is hoping to work with Quint. I wish them the best, and look forward to seeing more shows from them in the future.

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 11:00 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)

from the press release

Have you ever seen a face in the clouds? Ever play a record backwards, and hear a hidden message? This psychological phenomenon is called "Pareidolia" which is also the name of our next show. San Diego artist Dan Allen explores the relationship between perception and belief with his new series of paintings. Using a variety of media including watercolor,oil, acrylic, and even gilding and wax he creates modern "totems" describing emerging values in an ever changing society.

Opening reception: Saturday, December 12 from 6 - 10 pm

Art of Framing
3333 Adams ave
San Diego Ca 92116
www.theartofframing.net
619.563.9770

Spun by Art as Authority at 09:03 AM | Permalink

by Kevin Freitas


At 31 years of age, Kelsey Brookes is no painter. Unless of course, your definition of painting is limited to pigment on canvas, frames, and exposed in galleries. What Kelsey Brookes is is a doodler, a young man who has not lost the urge (I’m guessing) to fill pages and pages of his sketchbooks and canvases with mindless (obsessive) yet mildly interesting drawings and mixed-media works that center around (quoting from various press releases) “sex, comedy, and animals.”

Kelsey Brookes - "The Storm" 2009 Mixed media / 72" x 60" / Courtesy of Quint Contemporary Art / Photo credit: Roy Porello

The 24 character tweet does nothing more than attract the viewer. Once our curiosity is sufficiently aroused, the work never quite seems to deliver. I stand before Brookes work unmoved. I find the pieces in his current show at Quint Gallery only as titillating as the three words used to describe them. I guess this makes me then, some old-fart who has grown tired of “sex, comedy, and animals” period.

There is a facility to Brookes work that uses all the formal techniques of painting and composition without the hassle or struggle that comes with developing a personal language. It’s clear from the beginning he has a style, a “look” but style is not painting and can lead quickly to monotony and repetition. Painting must have a language of its own; it’s not meant to disappear or to be consumed rapidly, it is meant to be looked at, studied, and contemplated. Most of Brookes work lacks depth and meaning, it sits on the surface of the canvas immutable and superficial. At times, its poor paint handling and unchanging color scheme of fluorescent pinks, lime green and sky blue can lead to an opaque mess. The work entitled “Tiger, Tiger” is a clear example of this. For the most part though, his unequivocal popularity has nothing to do with the artwork he produces and everything to do with how its been marketed. It’s good but not good enough, at least by any criteria that exist outside of where it comes from and is supported. Where his style comes from is from the street and board culture, but the gritty urban street art that was produced “back in the day” has gotten its toenails manicured and been replaced by a whole new generation of impresarios. You have to ask yourself how this can be; the answer is not entirely obvious.

Brookes success is directly linked to the ubiquitous and commercially driven popularity street art and its derivatives has garnered over the years. It can be seen anywhere from LA to Miami, South America, Europe and beyond. Its MTV art star status (in some cases deserved) has nothing more to do with its origins and the practitioners who still risk jail time and huge fines to get their work out into the public domain. It is a phenomenon that has successfully competed against some of the art world’s best painter’s efforts for money and fame, hampered as they still are, by a traditional art gallery system of recognition and sales. And while street artists and their ilk - Brookes included - have enjoyed and even profited from the direct fruit of their labor, the mileu continues to produce a slew of very and not-so-very talented artists who are no longer concerned with the inequitable conditions found in most commercial galleries. Instead, they have crossed over into mainstream commercial outlets (clothing for example) or into exhibition venues designed uniquely for the marketing of their brands. The result has been a gold rush of wealth and recognition for both the street artist and enterprise. The pendulum has started to swing back, supply and demand has kicked in and taken hold, making for some strange bedfellows as galleries seek fortune and street artists seek credibility.

When I was growing up in Santa Cruz during the 1970’s, the Board Culture Industry (surf, skate, ski / snowboard) was not the multi-million dollar industry it is today. The “culture” of boarding and what it meant – individual freedom, athleticism, speed, beauty, a ballet on wheels – was unblemished by advertising dollars and commercial interests. Talk to any rider today, and they will tell you that their art form has nothing to do with what’s featured in the pages of some glossy fashion magazine. In short, what is happening today is called branding. Tiger Woods does it and so does Tony Hawk. The word “industry” which has been added to the board culture paradigm, is used to distinguish between the culture and the commercial derivatives –clothing, art, and boarding equipment for example - that has sucked up so many artists and wannabe’s in its wake. My only concern as a young teenager back then was what to wear - Hang Ten or O’Neill – there was nothing else to choose from. The market has since then literally exploded.

The blending of board culture with visual artists has produced a cool aesthetic that is a perfect storm of good fortune, youth consumerism, social networking, and a fledgling public intellect. It is a mainstream pop aesthetic that has attained an incredible and formidable base of energy and ideas – thanks to many street and graffiti artists – who have revolutionized the culture they grew up in and manufactured it into a viable and sustainable ecosystem. I can’t begin to tell you the number of street artists that have gone from tagging concrete to becoming artistic directors for such major labels as Billabong, Rossignol and countless others. Many of these companies and even galleries were startups comprising more labor and talent than money. As the notoriety of an athlete’s career grew, so did the exposure of the artist’s designs by virtue of the logos on the skis they were wearing. Branding a product became an aesthetic and lucrative choice. Also helping this industry to grow were professional surfers or skateboarders who had an intimate knowledge of what their potential clients would want or buy, and were scouted as consultants and product designers.

Kelsey Brookes is just one artist out of a hundred other reputable artists intimately involved in this scene. One look at Brookes resume and you’ll quickly realize he’s only been showing since 2005, but where and with who, has made all the difference in the world. And while this is admirable, it is destined to be short lived, his sustainability as an artist can only be maintained as a product or as a fine artist with a language uniquely his own. Style does not foster vision or longevity, it guarantees recognition, fulfills the requirements of branding, but does not make one an artist. Street culture’s popularity does not mean it has discerning taste, what it does mean is it takes all newcomers without prejudice.

The reason Brookes finds himself in an upscale gallery in La Jolla has everything to do with the boundaries of lowbrow (street culture) and highbrow (fine art) worlds colliding, being hammered-out, and spit-shined by plenty of his predecessors. Kelsey Brookes owes an immense if not incalculable debt to old school artists the likes of Keith Haring, Basquiat, Kenny Scharf, Hervé Di Rosa, Blek le Rat et al. even Rauschenberg’s earlier silk-screened works, galleries like Fashion Moda, art collectives like the Beautiful Losers, hip-hop, street artists, the DIY movement, Barry McGee, Ryan McGinness, and even contemporary painters like John Currin and Lisa Yuskavage for getting him there. This is not to denigrate the works of Brookes but to simply point out that the legacy has already been established. It’s easier to become an artist today in this field by mimicking so much of what is out there. It also helps to have a few household names like Banksy and Shepard Fairey leading the way. No painter has ever been guaranteed a spot in the art world’s hierarchy simply because De Kooning made it as a painter. However, had he been a skateboarder, we’d all have a larger appreciation for Abstract Expressionism.

I love street art, always have, what I don’t love is that it ends up in galleries trying to be something more than it is. The dilemma Brookes poses for us all is that he has been tossed into a hellish ring of art historical proportions and traditions (whether he belongs there or not is another debate) where the work appears to have all the accoutrements of painting when it actuality doesn’t. The painting’s appeal is too literal as opposed to contextual, simplistic as opposed to technical, visceral as opposed to poised and reflective, inspired yes, but one dimensional in its readability. Like the “Good Witch of the North” though, galleries have this uncanny ability to turn pumpkins into horse-drawn carriages, water into wine, and art into riches regardless of the quality.

The issue of quality shouldn’t be forgotten when looking at street art or understanding its ambitions. Its lightning-rod aesthetic is a major key to its success. Couple this with a fierce independence and leader in the branding and marketing of sporting equipment and clothing means not only is it a formidable foe, it also needs constant refueling of young and ambitious talent to keep it going. In the meantime, there has been no attempt to establish any critical discourse or objectivity on whether or not the work being produced is any good at all. That is, from a fine art perspective. I know of no art critics in the field of board culture and street art; this is because it is a self-regulating society where newcomers are looked down upon and art star players like Banksy are heralded as Kings – there is no middle ground. The glut of imagery produced in this self-efficient network overrides any instinct to filter or classify its quality or regulate its quantity. There is far too much of it to even try.

The problem is it’s all starting to look the same because there have been no recent innovations in its technique, method of production or exposure. To quote the Target store motto, it’s “fast, friendly and fun.” A second issue which may not appear to be a problem for some, is like Brookes, his colleagues make work that is so incredibly rich in the detail, surface, pattern, and graphic seduction, it’s almost impossible not to like it. A lot like looking at a hyper-realist painting and forgetting what the subject was about. But put this same work in a gallery and you inevitably end up leaving the viewer impressed, confused or indifferent. It is this indifference to a work’s presence and absence of content (because we know it wasn’t meant to last) is where we find the work’s true appeal. It’s temporary and fresh. It’s meant for a T-shirt and not prosperity. This is OK but don’t call it painting.

The point is today’s internet savvy artist, without leaving the comfort of the living room, can glean a rich source of imagery from anywhere. Whether it’s Hindu, Mexican, Chinese or Aboriginal it doesn’t matter. But taking and appropriating what is essentially a culture’s symbolism, even as stereotypical as it can be, and turning into a collage of signs, colors, and decorative elements such as Brookes has done, can reduce that culture down to a visual sound byte and its most basic form. Culture then becomes a “found object” one that is already loaded with a meaning and history which actually alleviates the artist from any responsibility of replacing the appropriated content with his own. It becomes a stand-in, a substitute for higher meaning and understanding. The power of a work of art that has been blended into a wild mix of cultures and sub-cultures lays not so much in the strength of the artist’s technical ability and strong graphic sense to pull it all together, but in the culture’s presence. To appropriate a culture’s identity is to gut it like a trout – from the anus to the gills – leaving it soulless and heartless.

And while this is nothing new, Christopher Knight points out that artists have been appropriating imagery for hundreds of years, they have however, turned that appropriation into a personal language that progresses beyond the original source. The work Brookes does looks cool but has no history. I believe Brookes is purely interested in the formal graphic quality of the work and non-narrative history of what happens, evolves, and changes when his techniques are applied to canvas. The reading and understanding of the work by the viewer is almost guaranteed (whether this is the case or not) by the recognizable and cultural motifs used to construct the work. It doesn’t really matter if you can “read” all the words and phrases Brookes uses as an ossature for the animal or human forms he’s painting, as long as it references something. Or as the artist put it succinctly in an interview with Seth Combs and CityBeat (speaking on the range of topics his work covers), “I just do it. And then, once I stop, I can read back into the meaning of it.” Exactly, it’s unimportant; the works are empty shells to be filled with ideas and content.

Once again, I adore street art, graffiti and any combination thereof, but I can like it for completely different reasons than I like an oil painting by David, Ingres or Phillip Guston. They’re not the same beast; I don’t know how to explain it any other way. They serve different aesthetics and tastes, and for the most part, should be taken out of the realm of fine art. And not because I said so or that it can never become - let me be clear on this - but because what Brookes does can’t right now, the work has not aged or matured enough to rank alongside the hall-of-famers in the Pantheon. It doesn’t make it bad, it just means you have to look at it with a different set of eyes.

There is as there always are, exceptions to my hard & fast rules for art criticism. This too is the nature of the beast. That exception is a work entitled “The Storm”. I believe it is one of the strongest works in the show, full of unbridled energy if you will, and contains a glimpse of where and how Brookes could push the work further. The image reminds me of a horse being “electrocuted” – like when a cartoon character sticks its finger in a light socket and you see their skeleton light-up. It is much stronger than “Feast” with all of its Mandala-esque busyness and far more interesting than the soft-porn ridiculousness of “The Red Queen”. Part of The Storm’s success is its scale and the balance between the lettering used and the imagery of the full scale horse that inhabits the entire canvas. There is far less doodling and coloring going on and the mark-making appears to be stronger, looser, and much more confident. It effuses an energy and freedom unlike its companions in the rest of the show. This gives me some hope. In the end, Brookes has come a long way in a short period of time given the notoriety and company he’s kept in a domain where success is measured in album covers and magazine spreads and not in decades that it takes to become a true painter. He’ll likely get there; it’s just a matter of time.

Spun by Art as Authority at 02:03 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)

H755NNAXYJ3U

THE SAME NIGHT


THIERRY CHATELAIN
1952 - 2008

"Lucid Dream" (self-portrait),1989 - Collection of Gilles Chatelain


A Celebration of His Life and His Work
December 18, 2009 through January 17, 2010

Reception: December 18, 2009 from 6 - 8 PM

Presented by
SDAI • MOLA
The San Diego Art Institute • Museum Of The Living Artist
1439 El Prado
Balboa Park
San Diego, California 92101
Produced by the Hoffman Trust

Spun by Art as Authority at 09:08 AM | Permalink

by Richard Gleaves








International art blog ArtAsAuthority has just released a new device and web service for helping artists track their artwork. Called IntelligentArt, the device is embedded into the artwork itself, and keeps tabs on the work's temperature, location, and other vital signs — including who's looking at the work, what they're saying about it, or whether it's being stored in a closet.

AAA is currently running a one-year trial with 500 visual artists, tracking the status of their paintings, sculptures — and even performances.

We spoke with AAA head of innovation Kevin Freitas about IntelligentArt, and how AAA is tapping into the emerging trend called The Internet of Things. This is where everyday objects become connected to the Internet through sensors and wireless data links. In the case of AAA's IntelligentArt, it is powered by multiple sensors including light, motion, temperature, and remote videocam.

AAA's Freitas described the IntelligentArt device as a "quad-band world phone with data capabilities." Along with the device, IntelligentArt includes a web application which enables artists to actively track the status of their oeuvre from the convenience of their personal computer. Users can set up triggers, alerts, and notices — for example using GPS sensors to alert them when one of their works changes locations.

IntelligentArt users pay a single monthly fee of $15 for the browser-based web service and an unlimited number of tracking devices. Freitas noted that AAA worked with the American Association of Museums to get permission to use the product in their museums — the only such device to have permission from the AAM, he told us. AAA assembles the components for IntelligentArt from a collection of manufacturing partners, using AAA's design specifications.


Real-Time Decisions Based on Sensor Data

Freitas said IntelligentArt will enable artists to make real-time decisions much more easily. For example, if the webcam sensor data indicates that a collector (or one of their associates) is disparaging an artwork, the product enables users to transmit live audio responses through the device's embedded speaker system. Alternatively, users have the option of triggering the artwork's remote self-destruct mechanism.

The initial trial period targets museum-grade artists (for example, Roman DeSalvo), where things like security and knowing the vital signs of an artwork are very important. Also, Freitas highlighted that such artists can collaborate with their dealers on monitoring the sensor data, to ensure proper siting and maintenance of important work.

The trial with professional artists is designed to help them make the "last 20%" of the art lifecycle more efficient. After about a year of this trial, AAA will then launch the product globally as a generally available platform. Freitas expects it will be used by any artist wrestling with personal vision, investment management, control issues, and a buyer's market for art.

Freitas told us that he expects this type of sensor product to "mainstream over time as collectors become used to long-term interaction with artists through their artwork."

Spun by Richard Gleaves at 01:48 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

from the press release

FRINGE THEORIES: Ideas that Depart Significantly from the Prevailing or Orthodox Views
(An Art Exhibition)

Featuring the work of Tony Allard, DJ Brejle, Keith Engeron, Noah Doely, and Mark Van Stone.


A man must consider what a rich realm he abdicates when he becomes a conformist.
— Ralph Waldo Emerson


Opening reception: December 12th, 2009 from 7 - 9pm
Talk with Mark Van Stone, PhD - “Introduction to the 2012 Issue” at 6pm

Agitprop
2837 University Ave.
(behind Glenn's Market on Utah)
San Diego, CA 92104
http://agitpropspace.org

FRINGE THEORIES considers the work of five artists and scholars that thrive outside of traditional and accepted rules and boundaries.

Writer, scholar, and Guggenheim Fellowship recipient Mark Van Stone, Ph.D. speaks about the Mayan prophecies of 2012. Also on display are some of Van Stone’s inscription works showing the attention to detail and skill acquired with three decades of calligraphic study.

Photographer Noah Doely creates fantastic and mythological works using antiquated, 19th century photographic techniques. His images invite speculation on The Photographic Truth and the inherent expectations, perceptions, and possible fabrications of the photographic record.

Painter Keith Engeron creates dark yet humorous landscapes borrowing techniques and imagery from Masters of the Modern Art period (Klimt, Van Gogh, and others). His composition utilizes the ironic juxtaposition of this celebrated imagery paired with the iconic and dangerous waste from fast food corporations.

Sculptor DJ Brelje constructs mysterious characters and monstrous creatures composed largely of found objects. These strange and aged objects have already had their own histories, identities, and former lives before becoming the new complex entities with rich, elaborate histories of their own.

Multimedia artist Tony Allard exhibits an iteration of “Drawing in The Media Stream”, a tangible media landscape that reminds us of the media’s power to create “reality” out of what is perhaps only completely fabricated visions of “truth”.

The work on display in FRINGE THEORIES forces us to keep looking forward. The themes remind us that we should not take anything for granted. The artists in the exhibition remind us to always keep an open mind.

Curated by Katherine Sweetman

Spun by Art as Authority at 07:09 PM | Permalink

from the press release

One night of art, performances, sounds, visuals and ephemera by Micki Davis, Liz Chaney, Farrah Emami, Matthew Brooks, Ash Smith, Stephanie Lie and John Benson (that will also be broadcast live in the vicinity of Agitprop on the frequency 104.1FM). Please stop in! (or at minimum listen-in while driving by!)

Saturday, Dec 5th from 5 - 7 PM

Agitprop
2837 University Avenue (North Park)
San Diego, CA
contact@agitpropspace.org

Spun by Art as Authority at 09:31 AM | Permalink

by Kevin Freitas


Los Angeles artist Michael Arata gets a nice review from Doug Harvey in this week's LA Weekly for his current show at Kristi Engle Gallery in Highland Park. We're as proud as Punch!

On another note, it doesn't seem to be all that big of a deal to review art shows in the LA Weekly on a weekly basis. Perhaps Seth Combs and Co. from San Diego's own weekly, CityBeat, should take a lesson or two on how its done. I'm just sayin'...

Review by Doug Harvey

A slightly darker take on pop seriality and gender can be found in Michael Arata’s latest group of paintings, collectively titled “Remember,” on view at Kristi Engle Gallery in Highland Park. Arata, whose work often hinges on outrageous humor or (as with his wall-creeping modular contribution to the “Some Paintings” L.A. Weekly Biennial) playful interactivity, has shifted into a more solemn — though hardly less edgy — mode, appropriating the images of 54 anonymous women whose photos were found in the apartment of L.A.-based serial killer William Bradford in 1984. More...

Spun by Art as Authority at 02:43 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Spun by Art as Authority at 08:52 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)