Deborah Krieger reviews a 2-person show at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens. Didn’t know they showed art there (in addition to Isaiah Zagar’s amazing building)? Yes, they do. Check out Deborah’s piece on Claes Gabriel and Andrew Chalfen’s works.
Read MoreMandy Palasik, architect, writer, artist and art lover, makes a journey to Chester County to the home studio of the late master of woodworking, Wharton Esherick, and finds the wood surfaces irresistible to the touch (which is encouraged!) in the house Wharton built. Mandy recently reviewed the Becky Suss paintings at Fleisher-Ollman, based on that artist’s experience of the home studio. Suss’s paintings are now on view at the Esherick Museum, a great pairing.
Read MoreSometimes a show can be too big. Andrea talks about the new, 277+-work exhibition combining outsider and mainstream art at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and says it includes many gems that are wonderful to see, but that the show breaks no new ground and winds up overwhelming even the hard-bitten art lover. She provides a few tips on what’s not to be missed.
Read MoreAndrea reviews “Visionaries: Creating a Modern Guggenheim,” curated by Megan Fontanella, with artwork from five collectors whose gifts to the museum helped the Guggenheim define itself as a pioneering institution. A rare chance to see beautifully-conserved works by Modern masters like Brancusi, Pollock, Mondrian, the show is a must-see this summer, says Andrea.
Read MoreThis publication is the result of one of those relatively rare but exciting discoveries in the depths of a large museum’s store rooms–an album of drawings by one of the great illustrators and print designers, Katsushika Hokusai (1760-1849). Moreover, it likely corresponds to the original drawings for one of his announced, but never-printed, best-selling books of illustrations. It was billed as Master Iitsu’s Chicken-Rib Picture Book; Iitsu was one of Hokusai’s more than thirty aliases, and the term “chicken-rib” refers to a Chinese literary term for something trivial but worthwhile–like the bits of chicken left on the rib bones.
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