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Established in 2008

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Last days to see "Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective" at The Art Institute of Chicago

                                    Roy Lichtenstein. Ohhh...Alright..., 1964

 Until September September 3, 2012, you still have the rare opportunity to see the ever assembled largest group of drawings, paintings, and sculptures by Roy Lichetenstein, organized by The Art Institute of Chicago. Comprising more than 160 works, "Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective" offers a full scope of the artist's process, interests, and ambitions.

 A catalogue with nine essays by leading critics and scholars; an extensive timeline of Lichtenstein’s life and career, filled with archival images; and 172 color plates, accompains the exhibition.

 Painter, sculptor, and printmaker, throughout his career, Lichtenstein dedicated himself to explore different styles, including Impressionism, Abstract Expressionism and Art Deco design, always transforming them into something completely his own. Better than any other, he defined the basic premise of pop through parody, often in a tongue-in-cheek humorous manner.

 Due to its success, the exhibition can be visited until 8:00 p.m. from Friday, August 31, through Monday, September 3. Please use the Michigan Avenue entrance after 5:00 p.m.

 "Roy Lichtenstein: A Retrospective" is curated by James Rondeau, Dittmer Chair and Curator of the Department of Contemporary Art.

 On November 8, 2011, Lichtenstein's "I Can See the Whole Room…and There's Nobody in It!" (1961), was sold for $43,202,500 (₤26,785,550/€31,105,800), setting an auction record for the artist.

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Gravesend Art Group Annual Exhibition 2012


The Gravesend Art Group will be holding its annual exhibition at the St Andrew's Art's Centre, Royal Pier Road, Gravesend

 Work exhibited will be in a variety of mediums ie watercolour, oil, acrylic, and textile, covering a wide range of subject matter. This year much was given over to Charles Dickens and some of the work exhibited will be Dickens related.
The majority of work will be for sale.

 Also for sale will be post cards and greetings cards (of work done by our members), together with books, of poetry etc (again work done by our members)

 The Gravesend Art Group Annual Exhibition can be visited  from Saturday 25 August to Sunday 2 September 2012.
On weekends and Bank Holiday from 10am to 6pm,  and on week days from 12 noon to 6pm.
Admission is free.

 A preview evening for invited guests will take place on Friday, 24 August. The mayor elect of Gravesham, Councillor Lyn Miller will be opening the exhibition.

Elderly woman botches Jesus Christ painting in restoration attempt


Provided with the best intentions, Cecilia Giménez decided to restore a Jesus Christ fresco in the Sanctuary of Mercy Church near Zaragoza.
 Ecce Homo (Behold the Man), painted by Elias Garcia Martinez over 100 years ago, was in a state of deterioration due to moisture and according to the woman, the saltpetre rot was going to cause even more damaged unless she did something.

 According to her granddaughter Teresa García, she had already made some retouches on the tunic before.
The problem is that this time the unskillful 'restorer' decide to go for the head and the result was disastrous.
One could say that if an austronaut had gone on a voyage through the galaxy and comeback, and the first thing he saw had been the restored painting, he would have thought that he had landed on the Planet of the Apes.

 After realizing what she had done, the woman soon contacted Juan Maria Ojeda, the city councillor in charge of cultural affairs, who recognized that she had good intentions. However he also said that it's a situation that be dealt with impunity.

 The Ayuntamiento de Borja (Zaragoza) and the descents are discussing eventual legal actions. But the Government of Aragon has already reported that there's no foreseable legal action to take place on thneir initiative, since  Martinez' Ecce Homo is not an officially classified work of art, therefore not of their competence.



 Experts will meet with Cecilia Giménez to try to understand what kind of materials she used, in the hope that the fresco may be restored; due to its already previous state of deterioration, this will prove to be a difficult task. Although the  itself is not very valuable, it holds a high sentimental value for local people.
The author of the clumsy act is a woman in her 80s with a disabled 60 year-old son at her expenses.

Monday, August 20, 2012

Nature in America: Taming the Landscape

 

Until the 26 of this month, you are still on time to see a major exhibition of paintings, drawings, photographs, and prints—many rarely or never shown—of the American landscape. From the works by early artists of the Hudson River School through the mid-twentieth-century ones, before abstract expressionism changed the artistic dynamic.

 Presented by the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, "Nature in America: Taming the Landscape," comprises forty-four works on view, of which forty-two belong to the Art Center's permanent collection.

 The exhibition is arranged throughout three galleries, as to offer a better perception to the visitors, of the different interpretations of the American landscape from the depiction of the largely wilderness, passing through more intimate scenes after the Civil War, and until the early-20th-century with works inspired by the art of European modernists.

 The first part, entitled  "The Young Nation and Expansion: Domesticating the Wild," includes among other renowned artists, the names of Aaron Draper Shattuck, Andrew Joseph Russell, Frank Jay Haynes, Jervis McEntee, Thomas Doughty, Thomas Cole, and William Henry Jackson.

 Mountains, lakes, waterfalls, that is to say, a wilderness that is becoming more rare in Europe, is offered to the artists of the Hudson River School and to the early Western photographers.
Their paintings convey a sublime and romanticized landscape inspired by the dramatic American wilderness.

 After this, the visitor is taken to "After the Civil War: Softening the Face of Nature," a period during which a considerable number of painters, printmakers, and photographers in the United States, started creating more atmospheric up-close and intimate depictions of nature, with growing emphasis on strong passages and veils of color.

American painters start following the style of artists such as Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot and Theodore Rousseau, depicting an informal and vibrant landscape. It is also during this time that artists embrace a new way of painting, brought by those working in Europe: En Plein Air
These paintings often show the influences of the French Impressionsists, exhibiting luminous and color-saturated palletes.

In this section, one can find the works of Abbott H. Thayer, Coswell Rubincam, Daniel Garber, Dwight William Tryon, Henry Wolf, George Inness, John Francis Murphy, and Milton Avery among others.

 The exhibition ends with "The Progressive Era through the World Wars: Breaking Nature Apart."
In this part, one can perceive the depiction of masses, planes paterns and colours in the interpretation of the landscape. A style inspired by Matisse, Picasso and other European Modernists.
It's the first half of the twentieth century, a period of reformist politics and new ideas in the arts.

 Among the artists included in this section, some from the Woodstock Art Colony, are the renowned names of Andrew Dasburg, Ansel Adams, Arthur Dove, Ernest Fiene, John Marin, Rosella Hartman, and William Zorach.

 The exhibtion "Nature in America: Taming the Landscape" is sponsored by the Evelyn Metzger Exhibition Fund and can be visited until August 26,2012 at the Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center, located at the entrance to the historic Vassar College campus.
Admission is free and open to the public. All galleries are wheelchair accessible.
The Art Inquirer consulted  the Dutchess County Tourism website as a resource for this article

Sunday, August 19, 2012

World Photography Day 2012




The World Photography Day project was founded in 2009 and since then has grown to be global.
It celebrates photography not only as an artistic expression, but also as a medium that revolutionized the world as we see it and how we represent it - let's not forget the influences between painting and photography, especially in still-lifes.

 Photography has made possible to everyone to record moments of their lives, meaningful events, historical happenings. With recent technology it's possible to take a photo anytime at any place and share with everyone. It has become so common that we often overlook its importance.

 On April 19, the World Photography Day is celebrated by amateur and professional photographers worldwide. They capture scenes and moments that remind us how the world is beautiful and how life can be great. Around these days, the organizers of the project welcome everyone to enter the World Photography Day Competition 2012, with prizes to win.

 Video didn't kill the radio star and it didn't kill photography either.

Friday, August 17, 2012

2012 Contemporary Art Fair, American Craft Show NYC & Art Off The Main



 New York's Fall art scene will stage under the same roof at the Javits Center from 19 to 21 October, three events that will bring to the public the artwork of nearly 250 artists and artisans occupying 70,000 square feet of space at the 2012 Contemporary Art Fair NYC, American Craft Show NYC and Art Off The Main.

 The Contemporary Art Fair NYC will show the artwork of established and emerging painters, photographers, sculptors and artists working in mixed media, presenting itself as an opportunity to follow the work of your favourite artists, discover new ones and keep up with the contemporary art market.

 At the American Craft Show NYC, visitors will be able to get in touch with the latest developments and creations in fashion, jewelry and accessories as well as furniture, ceramics, glass, wood, metal and textiles.
It will also be a moment to meet some of the artisans and discuss present and future trends.

 Both the Contemporary Art Fair NYC and the American Craft Show NYC celebrate their third year and were launched by Richard and Joanna Rothbard of American Art Marketing, who have directed art fairs and craft shows for over 30 years.

 This year marks the first time that the Art Off the Main joins the art fair and craft show.
Founded by Loris Crawford, owner of Savacou Fine Arts Gallery, and launched in 2004, and most recently in an online format, Art Off the Main is a showcase for paintings, drawings, graphics, sculpture and installations by artists of Caribbean, African and Latin American ancestry, featuring artists from 20 countries including the United States.

 In a globalized world, art collectors are discovering new talents from emerging art markets, namely from Latin countries. Art Off the Main presents itself as a venue where to discover new names.

 The 2012 Contemporary Art Fair NYC, American Craft Show NYC and Art Off the Main can be visited during the following schedule:

Friday October 19, 2pm - 7pm

Saturday October 20, 10am - 7pm

Sunday October 21, 10am - 4pm
Where: Javits Center, Hall 1A—11th Avenue and 39th Street.
Visit this page for directions.

Tickets: Adults: $14 Seniors: $13: Students: $8 Children under 10: Free
One ticket opens three doors to the juried events.

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

The Academy of Reciprocal Enlightenment, Shanghai Biennale 2012 - Call for Applications

 The Shanghai Biennale 2012 will occur under the theme Reactivation, interpretating among other aspects the social mobilization and structure of community, as well as  the critical role of education.

 With the purpose of offering a broad view upon these subjects, the curatorial team determined to include lectures, seminars and other communication events into the framework of a short-term training program that will take place this autumn.

 The program is named “the Academy of Reciprocal Enlightenment”, as “Academy” refers to a Platonic-style community of wisdom and criticism. It embodies our educational philosophy: education is a self-governing action by learner communities, which serve as a platform of exchanges and dissemination of opinions.

 Art Writer/Journalist Workshop; Curatorial Practice Workshop; IMMERSION - Art

Technology Workshops, are the three choices available for those who wish to participate in the program. Each workshop is explained in detail, together with the qualification and application requirements.

 Although the Shanghai Biennale will grant tuition and accommodation to all of the selected participants for the entire course in Shanghai, these will be responsible for their round-trip airfares to and from Shanghai, visa fee and living expenses (meal and local car fare) during their stay.

 Participants should read all the details about the workshops that they wish to frequent and contact the organizer in case of any doubt.

 This can be a great opportunity to gain experience and advance your artistic career, especially when the East and Middle East are assuming an indubitable role in the art market and this program will give you a closer view about their perspective. You will also have the chance to share your ideas with others like you and learn from theirs.

Friday, August 10, 2012

"Corto Maltese: Viagem à Aventura" - The artwork of Hugo Pratt


The followers of the worldwide famous comic character Corto Maltese, who is also a reference of the 20th century literature, have the opportunity to see the work of his creator, the renowned Venitian illustrator Hugo Pratt.

 Presented by the Fundação Eugénio de Almeida and commissioned by Stefano Cecchetto and Cristina Taverna, the exhibition "Corto Maltese: Viagem à Aventura" brings to the public, 51 works of art - watercolours, gouache and Indian ink - portraying one of the many adventures of the errant Maltese captain: starting in Venice and passing through Africa, from Samarkand to Polynesia and from the Caribbbean to the Isla Escondida.

 Created in 1967, Corto Maltese is an eponymous character, a romantic anti-hero faithful to his ideals, a restless traveler always looking for remote places to explore, crossing moments of history as his witness.
 Through the adventures of his most famous creation, this exhibition helps the public to become familiarized with the immense work of Hugo Pratt.

"Corto Maltese: Viagem à Aventura" can be visited at the Fórum Eugénio de Almeida (Évora, Portugal), daily between 9h30 and 19h00, until December 2, 2012.    Guided tours, educational services, workshops and family activities at a symbolic price, are available through previous appointment. A Portuguese/English catalogue can also be aquired for €20.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Christie's to auction The Collection of Hélène Rochas


           Andy Warhol 'pink' portrait of Hélène Rochas (1 of 4), 1974 (c) Christie's Images Limited 2012

Chrisitie's will be offering at auction in Paris on 27 September 2012, following a pre-sale public exhibition from 11 to 26 (except on Sundays) of the same month, The Collection of Hélène Rochas, also known as ‘la belle Hélène’ or ‘la belle Madame Rochas’.
 The collection comprises art works from the Modern and Post-War eras; exquisite examples from the Art Deco period, important furniture and European objets d’art as well as Old Master and 19th century paintings and drawings.

 Set aside from the big aristocratic collections as well as from those amassed by the French financial and industrial bourgeoisie,  Rochas' preferences were influenced by wealthy foreigners, aesthetes, and collectors who followed the examples of Carlos de Beistegui, Arturo Lopez-Willshaw, Antenor Patiño or even took inspiration from the more modern tastes of Eugénia Errázuriz and Cole Porter.

Alongside her friends Yves Saint-Laurent and Pierre Bergé, Hélène Rochas was one of the first to start an important Art Deco collection. Among the acquired artworks and objects, now to be offered at auction, are a torchère serpent, created by Edouard Marcel Sandoz in 1931 (estimate: €25,000-30,000); a floor lamp by Edgar Brandt & Daum (estimate: €40,000-60,000), Deux masques, circa 1925 by Jean Lambert-Rucki and inlayed with egg shell by Jean Dunand (estimate: €60,000-80,000), as well as four works by Diego Giacometti, led by a Berceau coffee-table circa 1963 (estimate: €60,000-80,000). She explained she found a “dreamlike potential” in the period.

An important sale of her Art Deco collection was organised at Christie’s Monaco in 1990.

 In 1974, while living in New York, she commissioned four portraits by Andy Warhol (each estimated at €200,000-300,000), and also acquired Ben Nicholson’s 1933 abstract painting "Fiddle and Spanish Guitar", a testimony to the Abstract movements that led the 1930s art scene (estimate: €300,000-500,000). This work was displayed in her Paris apartment facing a striking Neoclassical sofa previously owned by Arturo Lopez-Willshaw, who had acquired it at the age of just 16 (estimate: €12,000-18,000). It was flanked with a pair neoclassical ormolu and lac burgaute candelabras, from Harewood Castle in England (estimate: €100,000-150,000).

 A magnificent 151 x 94 cm life-size Portrait of Lucien Guitry by Edouard Vuillard (estimate: €150,000-250,000), which was featured as number 303 in the Vuillard retrospective at the Grand Palais, Paris September 2003-January 2004, dominated the entrance hall of her Parisian apartment on rue Barbet de Jouy, in the elegant 7th arrondissement.
 The living room was presided over by Braunes Schweigen, a 1925 oil painting by Wassily Kandinsky, which hung above a sofa (estimate: €1,5 million-2 million). A large 1954 terracotta vase by Picasso (estimate: €40,000-60,000) stood on one of a pair of Neoclassical side tables (estimate: €80,000-120,000).

The petit salon was the area where Madame Rochas hosted friends and guests, presenting them with a large Balthus painting, Japanese woman with red table, 1967-76, which hung over the entire wall (estimate: €3 million-5 million; dimensions: 144 x 192.2 cm). The work represents Setsuko Ideta, the painter’s second wife, whom he met in Rome, after he was appointed director of the Academy of France at the Villa Medici, and married in 1967. This relationship had a considerable influence on his art, and Setsuko became his muse, adopting a traditional Far-Eastern style. In the same room, above the fire-place sat an important flower bouquet by Jean Fautrier (estimate: €60,000-80,000) once part of the André Malraux Collection.

 Both the exhbition and sale will take place at Christie’s, 9 avenue Matignon 75008 Paris.
 The Collection of Hélène Rochas (sale 3538) is estimated to realise 8 million euros.

Saturday, August 4, 2012

Alcarte 2012 opens today

 The colective exhibition Alcarte opens today at 18h00 (GMT) in the City Hall Museum Center of Sacred Art, inside the Misericórdia Church of Alcochete (Núcleo de Arte Sacra do Museu Municipal, na Igreja da Misericórdia de Alcochete), located near 30kms south of Lisbon and easily accessible through the Vasco de Gama bridge.

 Entitled “Alcarte – 30 anos” to celebrate its 30th anniversary, the event includes over 60 works, comprising painting, sculpture, drawing, photography and screenprinting. One of the highlights of the 2012 edition is the participation of young artists through the “Alcarte Júnior 2012” initiative.

 The exhibition can be visited until September 9, during the following hours: Tuesday (14h00 - 17h30); Wednesday to Friday (10h30 - 12h30 and 14h00 - 17h30); Saturday (14h30 - 18h30); Sunday (10h30 - 12h30 and 14h30 - 18h30). Closed on Monday.


 During the "Festas do Barrete Verde e das Salinas" celebrations, the Alcarte – 30 anos can be visited at extended hours:

10 of August - 18h00 - 24h00

11 and 12 of August - 20h30 - 24h00

13 of August - 14h00 - 18h00 and 20h30 - 24h00

14 of August - 20h30 - 24h00

15 of August - 15h00 - 18h00 and 20h30 às 24h00

16 of August - 20h30 - 24h00