Monday, November 16th
Did you know on an average week I may be approached by as many as 20-35 artists looking for gallery representation? Most of them are ineffective. Are you making the same mistakes they are?
Before I explain, let me introduce myself. My name is Jason Horejs. I have owned Xanadu Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona for more than eight years. Several years ago, I began to wonder why artists were inept talking to galleries. I quickly realized most were unsuccessful because there is very little information explaining the best strategies.
That lack of information often leads to these blunders:
Mistake #1: Presenting an inconsistent body of work. Artists generally love their freedom. They want to experiment. They love a challenge. They crave variety. All good things, except when you are presenting your work to a gallery.
The work you present to a gallery needs to be unified. It doesn't need to be repetitive or formulaic, but it must present you as a consistent artist with a clear vision.
Jason Horejs on 11.16.09 @ 10:00 AM EST [
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Monday, November 9th
All of my life I have been studying composition. The way in which forms, space and light relate to each other can create a visual image that tells a story one way or another. The interrelationship of elements may devise a magical picture that causes the viewer to enter the dream. In another juxtaposition of components, the observer may be tempted to extract from the image aspects that may be built on to form another story. Still other possibilities exist within the structure of that which the artist presents to the audience. I have always sought out subject matter that gives viewers of my photographs insight into how I relate to the subjects that I photograph and an idea that the viewer can enhance my images with his or her own perspectives.
Ellen Fisch on 11.09.09 @ 02:00 PM EST [
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Thursday, October 22nd
INSIDERS by Alice Cavender
If you're coming to Bordeaux in the next few months, there is a stop you absolutely have to make. If the thought hadn't crossed your mind, plan a trip to Bordeaux anyway, come and taste the local specialities and save a day for a peek at the INSIDERS exhibition showing at the Entrepôt Lainé until the 7th of February 2010. You won't be disappointed.
The latest co-venture between CAPC museum of contemporary art and arc en rêve centre d’architecture is worth the trip. Centred on the uses, practices and know-how that have developed over the past decades, the imposing colonial warehouse is home to a colourful and well-thought-up selection of art and architectural works that bring the true concept of DIY to life.
The exhibition presents a new type of creation, that who has come to life following massive globalisation of our societies. It's a creation that goes beyond this globalisation, looking for new ways of expressing itself, bringing together such things as daily life practices and artistic approaches, handcraft and state-of-the-art technology, human beliefs and rituals and industrial production. It all comes down to the fact that everyone is or can be an artist, that the everyday production that Mankind has found to respond to pragmatic or more utopian ideas can be and is art. This new network of resources and creativity makes up the INSIDERS, those who think up a new way of creating art, architecture - a new way of life.
Alice Cavender on 10.22.09 @ 01:15 PM EST [
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Thursday, October 15th
In an old notebook I recently found this paragraph, which I would like to underline.
"I work until late at night, concentrating on an internal conflict that I find impossible to resolve. I still hope to be able to produce something good; but I need to receive a few "brilliant ideas". If they don't come, I'll have to put the work off for longer. I imagine that this is what's going to happen, because it isn't really a question of a few "brilliant ideas".
The fact is that nothing in our state of mind is ever clear, and our painting suffers from this lack of certainty. Sometimes I feel that the meaning of my work is exclusively connected to the production of a painting; to its continuous references and modifications; to small discoveries, like rafts to which a shipwrecked man clings, and which then sink to the depths, taking with them lines, colours and pseudo-meanings.
Alberto Sughi on 10.15.09 @ 10:19 AM EST [
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Thursday, October 8th
Constructivist integrationHow is it that art of the De Stijl movement should be "for the people" and not isolated from the people, if all its concern is to depict subjects, essences and "problems" that are not of any interest to the majority of us, hence the people?
"…The art of the De Stijl movement regarded not only the art itself but also the caring for man for whom the art was created, as first priority…" if it is so, than please explain to me how the caring for man is being manifested in works such as Construction within a sphere by Georges Vantongerloo, or Composition II by Theo Van Doesburg? Do these works of art improve your well-being and comfort in front of the torments of life?
Art does not solve anything. If it's worth something at all it simply tells a story and if not then it's simply wasting your time pleasantly. A situation where art is rolling around between people's legs will not encourage integration with those people; just the same as a Shinto Japanese will not feel integrated among a bunch of Israeli prayers in a synagogue in Tel-Aviv. If there is no common language there is no communication; if there is no common interest there is no will to form a common language.
findigart on 10.08.09 @ 08:34 AM EST [
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Monday, October 5th
Recently, I was honored to give the keynote address at the National Association of Independent Artists 2009 meeting (www.naia-artists.org). The theme was “Art Stimulus Plan 2009-2010,” which was the focus of my speech which went very well and provoked some pretty cool discussion. Here’s the speech:
“I'm here to talk about art, but I need to say something here first that's weighing heavily on me. You may also feel the same. I'm finding what's happening in this country right now very troubling. The conflict, the fear, the rumors, the meanness, the drama, the political game playing on all sides, the over-arching philosophy of the day that says if I don't agree with you or you don't agree with me, then you must be destroyed. We have got to stop this. We're like a dog chasing its tail. It's like we're children hopelessly trapped in the oral phase of our psychological and social development. We have got to evolve past this.
We have got to do a better job of looking out for one another. We're all we've got. We have to get on the same page ... for the sake of history, if no other reason. I'm convinced that 200 years from now, historians are going to look back and say, "Oh my God! They had everything the needed, they had the knowledge and yes, the resources and they still screwed it up!" I truly want to believe that we live in an enlightened society and the great thing is that ART CAN LEAD THE WAY.
Michael Corbin on 10.05.09 @ 08:57 AM EST [
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Thursday, October 1st
The new art complex at Yale University (2008-9) includes renovations of the Rudolph Building (originally built in 1963), and the Library (Robert B. Haas Family Arts Library) and incorporates an entirely new element--the Jeffrey H. Loria Center for the History of Art. Charles Gwathmey M.Arch. - 62 (Gwathmey, Siegel & Associates, NYC) served as architect for all three projects.
The Loria Center is of special importance because it brings a focus to the entire field of study that had been missing. The recent Alumni Conference (April, 2009) highlighted theoretical considerations from earlier leaders in the visual arts at Yale--Henri Focillon (1881-1943), George Kubler (1912-1996) that could stimulate the entire field beyond the campus. In my view, the Loria Center, by its mere existence, will serve as more than an edifice; it will serve as a catalyst for innovative studies in the Visual Arts. Which is to say that the the History of Art is also the future of art.
Joyce Waddell Bailey on 10.01.09 @ 09:23 AM EST [
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Thursday, September 24th
It is not just visual artists. In many ways, these days we are all wanderers in the wilderness. That is, if the wilderness can be described as being in a place unfamiliar to us. I am not talking about healthcare, global warming, housing or the economy here. There are plenty of sources for information on those topics. I am specifically discussing how getting your art to market is different and more unfamiliar these days.
Can there be artist reading this post who has not changed up what they are doing in an effort to stimulate sales? This is not completely new. Smart marketing artists have always looked for new ways to create selling opportunities. What is different now is the old ways of doing things have become less reliable than in the past.
Tradeshows such as ArtExpo New York and Decor Expo Atlanta are a shell of their former glorious selves. The sister magazines that serve the same audience of art dealers and galleries, notably Art Business News, Art World News and Decor are slimmed down versions of their peak years.
Barney Davey on 09.24.09 @ 08:07 AM EST [
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Thursday, September 10th
From the instant it began with Vincent Gallo on camera watching a moth flickering about a seemingly bright, hot, lightbulb, I knew it was going to be good.
So, I did what I always do when it looks like it'll be worthwhile. I settled in my cushy seat. No popcorn necessary.
I'm not going to tell you anything about the plot of Francis Ford Coppola's new film, "TETRO." Plots reveal themselves. I'm also not going to go into the many themes, nor will I critique the acting. After all, I'm not a film critic, nor am I aspiring to be. I'm just film fan. Here's where I'm going with this ...
ART.
Yes, art. For me, artistic vision is the difference between a movie and a film. Art separates mere entertainment from true enlightenment. That's what I got while watching, "TETRO." In fact, I wasn't just watching it, I was bathing in it. Right now, I'm thinking back to this afternoon when I was one of only three people in the entire theater experiencing this masterwork. It was the thing film noir dreams are made of. It was that old Hollywood sense of luxuriousness that came with knowing this was a five-star production.
Michael Corbin on 09.10.09 @ 12:28 PM EST [
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Monday, August 31st
For a long time a battle has been waging amongst art historians and critics. While it may not be apparent to the general public, it has affected the art community greatly, resulting in confusion and disagreement. It centers on the parameters of modernism and postmodernism. When you take an Art History survey class and ask about this dilemma your professor will almost certainly avoid the debate. You’ll probably get an answer that’s vague and insinuates that modernism ended in the 1960s. This type of response is a great disservice to the issue.
I personally began to think about this issue a few days ago when I was confronted about a prior article that I wrote, Graffiti, Abstract Expressionism, & Fabulous Auction Returns. Asserting that the criticism in the post was incomplete, he complained that I overlooked key issues. Specifically focusing on Dash Snow, he said that I failed to note that the artist had given up family fortune and fame (Snow hailed from the de Menil family) and had chosen to live a life on the streets.
Matilda Anderson on 08.31.09 @ 07:51 AM EST [
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Monday, August 24th
Have you ever had one of those days at work where you just want to scream, "WHY AM I HERE? NO, REALLY! WHY AM I HERE?" Who hasn't?
Of course, you know why you're there. It's your job and you need to get paid to pay the bills. Okay and yes, you want to be productive in the world. Yet, isn't it funny how job frustration is rarely about the work itself? We're all pretty much trained to do what we do, so while the work can be challenging, it's never impossible. It's usually about the people ... the clashing agendas, the egos and the personalities. When others get involved, your quiet corner for creating and carrying out a simple, almost pleasant task becomes the intersection of monumental effort and pain. It's when that proverbial committee is supposed to be creating a horse, but squawks out a camel. That was my day today. When it was time to leave, I bolted. Finally, I had gotten the job done, even though my sanity was shaky.
Michael Corbin on 08.24.09 @ 09:50 AM EST [
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Thursday, July 30th
TeaserDoes writing the theory of relativity from memory make one a math genius?
Let us distinguish between outstanding memory capabilities and phenomenon of art, as we do between crafting the rook and playing chess...
..."Stephen Wiltshire, ma main man"Do the innate absolute criteria of fine art judge Stephen Wiltshire's art, or is it only the jealousy of one private subjective ego?
Stephen Wiltshire became famous after appearing in some TV show where he presented his remarkable photographic memory abilities. First, I would like to honestly state, that I am truly empathic and happy for his success and have nothing in person against him. He really seems like a cute guy. What I am more concerned about is the definition of art in regards to Stepen Wiltshire's abilities. I'll break this down to art's three basic components, as I perceive them.
findigart on 07.30.09 @ 03:17 PM EST [
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Monday, July 27th
* INSTINCT AND INTUITION *CONVICTION *PASSION * HAVE AN (ACQUIRING MIND) * PRACTICE AND CULTIVATE PATIENCE * OBSERVE * USE YOUR IMAGINATION
A big part of the pleasure in collecting art has been the educational process and the gradual development of greater self confidence. Lucian Freud is a British Painter type: Contemporary Art, is said to be the "most expensive living artist at auction of the 21st Century "...,with a "Big Sue"painting.The painting called: " Benefits Supervisor Sleeping" sold for $ 33.6 million or �17.2 million at Christies in May 2009.The Sitter is (Sue Tilley ) and she sat for Freud over a four year period.The London based Russian oil billionaire Roman Abramovich is said the buyer of Lucian Freud's Big Sue and Francis Bacon's triptych which sold for $ 86.3 Million or �43 million. Trust your instinct especially if you want to collect art meaningfully. Meet someone who will take the time to educate you more to have confidence in your tastes and if you are a couple,you both try to get there together;Learn about different artists and have different pieces in a collection,your appreciation grows the more you look at art. Collecting is not just buying art,it is really spiritual which you have to have a 'passion' for. Is esthetics, rather than economics,is the guiding principle when assembling a great collection?However,in the late 90s,new art collectors face a bewildering array of choices. Not only they have to choose a focus -which medium,which period,which artists-in the increasing diversity of fine art but must also make decisions about budget and value in an ever-fluctuating market. I know of a budding art collector ,who saw a painting by a Jamaican master painter and paid down monthly until she finished,so, one doesn't have to have a lot of money to start collect; I say to anyone in terms of collecting an artist,it is important to collect works from different time/period as the artist progresses;
John Powell on 07.27.09 @ 11:13 AM EST [
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Monday, July 20th
So, I just got another speaking engagement for art's sake.
It's pro bono and should be fun. I'll be keynote speaker at the National Association of Independent Artists' (naia-artists.org) annual conference at the end of September. This will mark the second time I've spoken at this conference. Cool. This year, it's set for Peoria, Illinois, not the art capital of the world, but here's the thing. It's not that far away. I can drive there within a day, stay in a nice hotel overnight and maybe even see some art in a city I've never visited. What can be better? It'll kick off Peoria Fine Art Fair weekend which I won't be able to attend. Work beckons.
A
s I've gotten older, I've learned to drop my preconceived notions about people and places. It's the only way to travel. You just have to get up early, pack your bags, do a little Googling, get in your car or hop a plane and GO. Just GO. I've never been to Peoria, but soon I will be able to say I have. The cool thing is ... if you're an art collector, it's not just about the art or the artists. It's really about getting out there and collecting EXPERIENCES. I usually tell people that collecting isn't just about the art. It's about being open to life and new things ... no matter where life takes you. Pack your bags, but leave your baggage.
Michael Corbin on 07.20.09 @ 04:35 PM EST [
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Thursday, July 16th
For those of us who live immersed in the digital world, which certainly includes you as an Absolute Arts blog reader, it is most likely nearly incomprehensible how a modern day artist, or businessperson of any sort, could not be partially, if not fully, connected in the social marketing world. Truly, these days most would think how can anyone serious about getting ahead not be wholly represented on The Social Marketing Grid with a Facebook page, Twitter and Linkedin accounts et cetera?
The reality is there are plenty of people with serious careers and serious career ambitions who have not and are not interested in joining the minions on the great social networking experiment that consumes so many others. Is it really possible to be successful or to grow a meaningful career without issuing a single tweet? The simple answer as always remains yes.
Barney Davey on 07.16.09 @ 03:16 PM EST [
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Thursday, July 9th
Back in April 2009 a reader of my Blogs for AbsoluteArts posted the following comment:
�On the www.albertosughi.com website there is a very powerful painting called "Ruling class". Would love to participate in a discussion on that piece.� Since then I committed myself to holding such a discussion and today I will try to maintain that promise. Possibly in order to understand The Ruling Class (�La Classe Dirigente, Oil on Canvas, 165x140cm, 1965) we need to place and read it in the context of another group of works also painted between 1964 and 1965. So let�s start by examining the Historic Moment (L�Ora Storica), a work I painted at the end of 1964 and that clearly is a prelude to The Ruling Class itself.
This is a triptych, 165 by 420 centimetres, one of the paintings that most reflect if not the world of Bacon, at least Bacon�s style, clawing at the canvas, his very open way of painting first on unprepared canvas, with a great sweep of background colouring, that had a strong influence on me. I felt most attracted to three painters: Degas, Munch and Bacon. In fact, I then felt an affinity between them, even if secretly, not from the thematic point of view, but as a way of confronting the canvas, a great affinity between Degas and Bacon.
Alberto Sughi on 07.09.09 @ 11:22 AM EST [
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Monday, July 6th
Phil and Kat Taylor are husband and wife art collectors. They live just outside Toronto, Canada which is a cool art city. One day, out of the blue, Phil emailed me and we started chatting about our common interest. I thought that he would make a great interview subject. He has a forthright, down to earth, yet very polite air about him. To me, this makes him "Clearly Canadian." Read on and you'll see.
MICHAEL: Hi Phil. Thanks for talking with me. You and your wife Kat (Katherine) are collectors. What got you into collecting? How did you begin?
PHIL: Well, my parents were both professional actors in Canada, so I grew up in an arts saturated environment - literature, music, acting, and of course visual arts. My early passion was photography since I could not draw very well, but I was always drawn to the fine arts of painting and sculpting. As a young adult I started to buy prints of popular master works though I always kept an eye on the contemporary scene as well. But it took many years to figure out what I really liked. We are bombarded with so many opinions and views on art that it can be very confusing. And when you start to buy original art, you really want to be sure of yourself, because it usually costs quite a bit more to buy good originals, even from unknown artists. And about 10 years ago I bought my first quality original by a fine Quebec artist named Louise Dandurand. The art dealer knew it was my first buy and could see I was nervous. When we completed the deal he said "I know it's a bit scary buying your first original, but it gets easier." He was right. I married my wife a few years after that and found that we have similar taste in art, and we have been buying new works from living artists ever since.
Michael Corbin on 07.06.09 @ 12:31 PM EST [
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Friday, July 3rd
Four years have gone by and it�s getting harder to keep time from slipping by. Is it age-related or just the fact that I�ve been keeping busy? I really don�t give it much thought, it�s just a fact I�m confronted with now that I�ve packed up my studio and shipped my things off to a new destination where I�ll start all over again.
In the past year, though, keeping busy had something to do with it. One of the reasons I decided to stop posting on aa was because there was too much I needed to tend to, and the lure of the ethereal world was sneakily keeping me away from the real one. But I also felt that a break from blogging and commenting might actually be a good healthy thing. Too many things kept popping up on my screen asking me to join and I needed to distance myself from my computer �routine� to be able to focus on the concrete things I wanted to achieve at the studio. What�s the point of being on 8 different sites if you can�t get anything worthwhile completed in the real world to talk about?
Jose Freitas Cruz on 07.03.09 @ 11:11 AM EST [
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Monday, June 29th
As photographer of details of architecture, I am conditioned to observe my surroundings carefully. I notice buildings, but I hone in on the line of a corner; the angle of a gable; a fashioned decorative vine on a wrought iron gate and the stone carvings on a façade. Fine tuning a bit more, I visually thrive on the textures used for building: grainy granite, polished marble, satiny wood, rough brick, smooth cold iron. These elements create an environment that promotes creativity for me. And above all the light that permeates the scene sets the tone of my photography. Rembrandt 's art and the light of his world are the reasons that I recently went to Amsterdam. To know and to understand an artist 's work on an intimate level, it is essential to see the light with which the artist worked. I believe that the light of Amsterdam defined Rembrandt 's paintings, drawings, etchings. The way that the master saw his subjects, gave him the framework for the art he created.
Ellen Fisch on 06.29.09 @ 04:43 PM EST [
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Monday, June 22nd
Combine air, space, track lighting, concrete, glass, metal, a cool king-size bed to rest your sleepy head and you�re totally there.
You�ve got what may or may not be your typical hip hotel. However, as I write these oh so urbane words, I�m not in your run of the mill sleek abode. I�m taking up pricy space in this totally hip place.
21C.
My trip here actually began a couple of years ago when I first heard about it. �When I finally decide to visit Louisville for another art trip, I going to stay there,� I thought to myself.
But of course, time and expenses or lack thereof intervened and my arrival was much delayed � but here I am slumping over the keyboard in a thick groove as Marvin Gaye croons, �What�s Goin� On� through the speakers piped in overhead.
Michael Corbin on 06.22.09 @ 11:16 AM EST [
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Friday, June 19th
This will be my last post from the UAE. In fact by the time you read this I will already be on my way back to gorgeous grey clouds of the average UK summertime. The last two years of living first in Dubai and then in Sharjah, have been a decidedly mixed experience but I have learned a lot and really enjoyed the exposure to the diverse international art I have seen here. What is perhaps most bizarre is that it took me several months to find an actual Emirati artist but now they seem to be everywhere. It has been very interesting to see how phenomenally the cultural sector has grown just in the last two years and how arts development can become a kind of nationalism in the absence of any other type of overt political statement! I actually arrived in Dubai in May 2007 in the final week of the 8th Sharjah Biennale so I didn�t get to see very much of it. However, 2007 seems to have been the key year. Dubai held its first international Art Fair and fringe in March and not to be outdone, Abu Dhabi followed suit with Art Paris-Abu Dhabi in November. Galleries started to proliferate and three very distinct art areas emerged in Dubai which now has plans for a Museum of Modern Middle Eastern Art, an opera house and various other museums and arts dedicated areas. Meanwhile Abu Dhabi is getting a �starchitect� designed Guggenheim, Louvre, Maritime museum and performing arts centre.
Valerie Grove on 06.19.09 @ 11:27 AM EST [
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Monday, June 15th
Is art exactly this or something else?
Is it revealed or created?
Is it contained or merely channeled?
Is art natural like the sweat dripping down my back on a hot day?
Is art artificial like a phoney smile from a hypocrit person?
Is art deliberately superficial like arching an arrow to a distant target?
Is it casual yet intentful as the autumn fall?
Is it innocent yet provoking like a nude baby?
Is it bright yet temporary like falling inlove?
Is it straight-forward emotional yet deceiving as a Heroin addict?
findigart on 06.15.09 @ 11:10 AM EST [
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Thursday, June 11th
It began with a story in Sunset Magazine on a new style of modular home that is compact, energy efficient and eco-friendly.
The story on homes built by Michelle Kaufmann Designs caught the eye of woman I know who lives with her husband in a suburban community in the San Francisco Bay area. For years they have enjoyed spending weekends on the coast of west Sonoma County, an area of sprawling ranches, picturesque towns, and gorgeous beaches on the Pacific coast.
The couple had thought about building a small home there as a retreat from their more urban home in the East Bay. My friend saw it both as an investment and a way to take advantage of the great view.
Early this spring, my wife and I spent a day visiting my friend, who asked not to be named to protect her family's privacy. Early on our only morning there, we awoke to see the fog curling through the valley below us, filling the gaps in the green hills.
Personal values and the ability to get approval from local planning officials both played a part in my friend choosing a Michelle Kaufmann Designs home. She hoped that its small scale and highly energy efficiency would make the home appealing to coastal planning boards trying to limit development in scenic open areas. And the simple design would enable her to present the plans herself, rather than relying on a developer. "You do better as a homeowner going through the process," she said. And their hopes were borne out, her husband told me.
Kaufmann brought the modular home into the 21st century by making energy efficiency and environmental friendliness core principles of the design of these speedily-built homes. (Even with the public's embrace of environmental design, the company couldn't overcome the housing bust and financial meltdown and just days ago announced it is folding. It had built about 40 homes.)
Compared with their conventional counterparts, modular homes have always been cheaper because they are built in factories and simpler to build, avoiding the uncertainties of outdoor construction.
Brian Miller on 06.11.09 @ 03:35 PM EST [
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Monday, June 8th
Kentucky born and bred artist Brad Everett Kirkman is what some people might call an "outsider artist." He isn't trained, but some might say he's anointed. Looking at his work, you can clearly see that he's not only driven by art, but also a message. He works full-time for a precision manufacturing company, but art is his true calling and message. Incidentally, we had this chat long ago and begin by talking about his old website which has since changed to www.brevki.com and www.BradEverettKirkman.blogspot.com However, his message remains the same.
MICHAEL: Hey Brad. First of all, your website is called, mainrinse.com. Why do you have a website and where did the name come from?
BRAD: I felt I needed a space of my own that I could have complete control. No ads to distract and no restrictions etc. Main Rinse is an anagram of "I'm a sinner." I named it this so I would always be reminded that I am no better than anybody else on this planet. I will always be in need of a Savior that can fill the hole in me that nothing or no one else can fill.
MICHAEL: Do you draw (no pun intended, sorry) any connection between your art and "Main Rinse"?
BRAD: I really can't separate the two. I think of the website as an extension of the art. I can say and do more there to expand on the message I'm trying to relay with my art.
Michael Corbin on 06.08.09 @ 12:00 PM EST [
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Thursday, June 4th
Over the last three months, the CAPC contemporary art museum in Bordeaux has played host to the French artist Jean-Luc Blanc, organising a vast retrospective of his work.
Born in 1965 in Nice, Jean-Luc Blanc started his artistic career by drawing, gradually venturing towards painting. This picture-lover takes constant inspiration from the numerous media that our society puts forward, gleaning images from magazines, newspapers, postcards, and films. After a frenzied period of collecting and accumulation, several pictures impose themselves to Jean-Luc Blanc, and he selects these to paint. Transferring a small picture to a larger-sized painting allows the artist to give a second life to the image he says himself that photography is an execution, painting a resuscitation. Giving pictures selected from our everyday life a new purpose, cancelling their first meaning, bringing anonymity to stars, conferring new-found glory on John Does this is Jean-Luc Blancs game. With this somewhat simple and repetitive technique, the artist masterfully allows the spectator to come across a new image, free of its past, and open to interpretation. Discovering Jean-Luc Blancs work allows us to come to terms with our own personal way of looking at art.
Alice Cavender on 06.04.09 @ 03:20 PM EST [
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Friday, May 22nd
One of the main areas for art galleries and activity in Dubai is the Al Quoz Industrial Zone. As the name suggests the area is grimy, dusty and mechanical, inhabited by warehouses, factories, storage depots and wholesale outlets. When rents were skyrocketing elsewhere in Dubai this area was still relatively cheap and the large and empty premises were ideal for conversion to gallery spaces so over the past five years or so a lot of galleries have set up here.
There are risks to living in an industrial zone and reports of warehouse fires are frequent. However a massive explosion and fire last year resulted in several casualties, 3 destroyed warehouses and a thick cloud of toxic smoke which hung over the whole city. Luckily none of the galleries were close enough to the site of the fire to be seriously affected and since then it seems that fire safety precautions have been improved.
Valerie Grove on 05.22.09 @ 10:08 AM EST [
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Monday, May 18th
So, Im sitting here inside my hotel room after having visited Art Chicago 2009. I managed to make it on this very last day of the fair. Who would ever think someone would actually look forward to Monday?
As you undoubtedly know by now, art fairs are great excursions for me. Theres something about them that allows me to feel that Im putting reality on hold. As I wander the clinical, pristine aisles of art, I feel almost as if Im floating amid the clouds. Theres something about being in the presence of art that elevates you. After only a few short moments alone with art, you enter this state of meditation, followed by communion and then, your senses are heightened, your spirits lifted and its almost as if youre in some virtual reality place. Its a treasured space and a good gig if you can get it.
I sort of have that feeling right now here in my modern, hotel room at the Aloft Hotel where outside this very window, planes are busily landing at and departing OHare Airport as you might expect on the first business day of the week.
Michael Corbin on 05.18.09 @ 09:23 AM EST [
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Saturday, April 25th
There are many elements involved in an economy but I choose to look at art. Art appreciation is a gateway to the intellectual capacity of the mind, which opens the door for learning because in art you find cultural diversity, where learning first starts. To appreciate diverse art forms, one has to be first culturally diverse/aware because it is through art all forms of cultures are seen.
It is said that credit, is the life blood of any economy, art is one credit that helps to detect "signs" of an economy? It is in the art collection of any country that can help one to see the wealth of a country. So, you can see the important place art plays in an economy. It helps us to see what one could term the early "signs" of a good or bad economy in a country, hence art is about visual signs but most people mainly who I would call the connoisseurs of the economy, may have not been looking at art as an element for signs for an economical depression. A work of art may be understood as a conductor from the artist's mind to the viewer's but it may never reach the viewer. With the advent of the Internet, artists can set up their own websites and be seen.
John Powell on 04.25.09 @ 07:52 AM EST [
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Monday, April 20th
Rosemary Lucy Cosentino is an artist who lives in Montreal, Quebec. I actually met her online after she responded to one of my blogs. I checked out her website, www.rosemary-cosentino.com and I loved her art which I think has a brooding, solitary quality. Consequently, I asked her to chat here. She's actually breaking the rules by sticking with the old school ... Read on and you'll see what I mean.
MICHAEL: Thanks for chatting Rosemary. First of all, you call yourself a "Contemporary Figurative Realist Artist" who employs "Old Master" techniques. Is it really possible to breathe new life into old techniques?
ROSEMARY: Definitely! Hopefully, I won't go too much off topic, but everything I say is relevant to why I strongly believe this to be true. Growing up, my true inspiration in becoming an artist came from impressive realist oil paintings I saw in books, television and museums. I wanted to be able to paint that way as well and in doing so, I would be perhaps one day as well able to inspire some child in becoming an artist in the same way the Old Masters did for me. I have used the old techniques and took the most important part of that (knowing how to make your paints and how to apply them properly on hand prepared grounds) and created my own style and personalized technique. I can ensure my paintings will last through the test of time and still be classified as a contemporary artist who paints figuratively and realistically. Up close, my works are very painterly and the layering of brushstrokes is not the same, but similar to what Rembrandt did in his works. I can paint photo-realistic if I choose with a brushstroke free flawless look or expressionist or even abstract. I will always employ the Old Master technique no matter the subject. It does not matter really what you are painting, but how you are painting it. Rembrandt's scratchy, layered, painterly strokes were genius. He captured so much with so little. There are no restrictions on subject matter like in those days, and so I do not fear being thrown in jail for trying to depict something other than representational and what is real. But, it is my choice to paint the way I do.
Michael Corbin on 04.20.09 @ 01:36 PM EST [
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Thursday, April 16th
A mad junky in the name of art (Part 1 of 2)Should being an "artist" automatically excuse for immorality and capriciousness?The joystick of attitudeWhen someone is established in a path of spiritual awareness, in faith, he realizes his essence and uses every daily doing as a lift to spiritual enhancement, to personal growth, to the aspiration to all that which is noble, pure and luminous. It's a question of attitude and attitude is an expression of the freedom of choise which God gave us, Humans.
A deep and intense spiritual awareness to the existential suffering of oneself and of mankind is a gift, but awareness which is not accompanied with equilibrium of the mind begets fear which might result in hatred, rather than a balanced and aware mind which begets love and faith.
findigart on 04.16.09 @ 08:09 AM EST [
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