May 2005 Archive

Weekly update – Summer and ICA

spector, shelleySummer…and Fall tooIt’s the Weekly’s Summer Guide issue this week and my art round-up focuses on what’s coming up at Temple Gallery, Space 1026, PAFA, Pentimenti, the Print Center and more.cronin, patriciaAnd because I like to give a taste of what’s farther off on the horizon, I put in some news about what’s coming in the fall, like: I Am On Your Shoulders artblog pal and contributor Shelley Spector‘s solo exhibit at Painted Bride Art Center will inhabit the entire two-floor gallery space and will include music and other multi-media elements. (Image is a studio shot of some of ... More » »

Last licks & picks

Thought I’d just throw up some images of work I saw earlier this month that made me think.palumbo, anthonyAt Artists House, there’s a constant struggle to keep that Academy tradition from going the way of the Model T. I am happy to report that some efforts did have moments of modernity in the current show. So here are some images and a comment or two: Anthony Palumbo, who can paint up a storm, continues a struggle to find his own voice between a rock (his brother David’s paintings) and a hard place (PAFA). In this outing, I especially liked the ... More » »

Making photography happen 1 and 2

[ARTIST NAME HERE]No one else will do it for us. That’s the sorry truth. If you’re an artist or an art lover and want to get beyond the studio, it helps to knuckle down and take charge. And suddenly, taking charge seems to be part of what’s happening in Philadelphia, and that’s a really great thing for the art world (right, c-type photo by Guenther Cartwright).salzmann, laurenceLast weekend, Roberta and I got a call and invitation to come over from photographer Laurence Salzmann, who created Photo West Gallery in Powelton Village. The gallery was created with tlc, and looks great–modern ... More » »

Fish mysteries

prosek, jamesJames Prosek‘s painted fish tales at Fleisher-Ollman Gallery are not about “the one that got away.” Prosek’s watercolor paintings are about the ones that are coming, the fishy “what-ifs” that are not real but figments of an imaginative mind at play with issues of ecology and the infringement of man on the natural world. Thus, for example, the Connecticut artist, who is also a writer, naturalist, and trout fishing enthusiast with several books to his name, contemplates a woodpecker and thinks “What if nature began through selection to mimic industry.” Then he paints the woodpecker with a drill for ... More » »

The art of living with art

cattelan, maurizioNot that we’re crazed or anything but I almost forgot to tell you about our celebrity siting on May 13 in Lehman Maupin Gallery on 26th St. There was a crowd spilling in while we were there so it was a little noisy and distracting. I heard some Italian and looked around and saw a tallish, salt-and-pepper haired man in a sports coat. He looked familiar but it took me a minute to place him. I turned to Libby and said “Is that Maurizio Cattelan?” She said she thought it was. We had seen the artist and his gallerist ... More » »

Making it happen

The art world, so much like the rest of the world, is built on networks of who you know and how you make use of those connections (left, Jesse Moynihan’s “We’re Closer Now,” acrylic on wood).moynihan, jesse The current show at Ashley Gallery is a perfect case in point. Damian Jared Weinkrantz had been wanting to curate a show of young artists. He had helped hang shows for gallerist Diane Ashley in the past, and knew that her gallery would be dark for a while because of her art fair commitments in Chicago and New York.weinkrantz, damian jaredSo he asked ... More » »

Stained glass and dripped paint, New York II

schaechter, judithI’m long overdue telling you about the rest of our trip to New York. See Libby’s post for first installment. Here’s my report on the shows by our town’s fabulous Judith Schaechter at Claire Oliver Fine Art and by German artist Neo Rauch at David Zwirner. Both shows are excellent, and luckily they’re both up for a while (Schaechter til June 11 and Rauch through June 18). So get on by and see them.rauch, neoThrough the glass darklyThis is Schaechter’s second solo exhibit with the gallery. The stained glass artist, whose resume now includes the 2002 Whitney Biennial, a ... More » »

Barnes–back-room deals and power plays

Today’s Philadelphia Inquirer has a terrific blow-by-blow account of the Barnes brouhaha and how the final deal was reached between the Philadelphia movers and shakers and Lincoln University (image of Dr. Albert Barnes). It doesn’t mention (out of kindness???) that Lincoln must bear some of the blame for the Barnes coming to such a pretty pass that something had to be done. It also shows how business gets done via the old boys network and therefore how Lincoln got cut out of the early-stages planning and thinking. My favorite line in it was the statement that the art world per ... More » »

Business news

After two years of slaving on artblog, we decided to search for the mighty buck–on google and amazon. So, don’t forget when you’re making purchases at amazon, to click through from our button in the left column. We get a cut of anything you buy that way. As for google, in their program, we get paid per page view, so every time you look at artblog, you’re helping us. Artist alert! See those ads in the upper right corner? You too can buy space on artblog to advertise your upcoming or current show. It’s only $20/month to link to your ... More » »

Friday quick hits

paper radLike Libby, I was running around yesterday looking and taking pictures and trying to figure out the next parking spot for yet another part of town for yet another gallery in the increasingly sprawling and imby* scene. (here’s a photo of one of my favorite Mayor Street initiatives — blue water in the fountain at Love Park. The cotton candy color makes me smile every time. This is my drive by photo. That’s City Hall, right, in the background. I’m guessing Street can see his art project from his office window.) *in my back yard I’m in a rush ... More » »