Secret Language

Abstract painters always seem to talk about painting as language and the individuality of mark making. I have come to enjoy the secret coding of the walls and sidewalks of New York. These particular ones are clustered in Chelsea.

Happy Chanukah!

Tonight is the first night of Chanukah so I thought I send you some "cards" and a video. Mixed metaphors or just post modern? Art will light the way.

Opening of/at the Lower East Side Visitors Center

Last night was the opening of the Lower East Side Visitors Center at 54 Orchard. I was very pleased to be exhibiting both paintings and prints as one of the featured artists. This is one of my appropriately new york centric paintings in the show. Below some snaps from the event: the gallerist Mark Miller ribbon cutting, myself with Senator Daniel L. Squadron and Councilman Daniel R. Garodnick, and with Speaker of the New York State Assembly, Sheldon Silver.

Art Gals!

I belong to an artist's professional group that meets monthly, the New York Artist's Circle. We exchange tips, discuss business issues and more. These are two of the outstanding artists in the group, Barbara Ellmann and Gwyneth Leech. Gwyneth and Barbara are holding some of Gwyneth's "coffee cup" drawings. You can see others on her blog, Gwyneth's Full Brew.

Margrit Lewczuk - A visit

This past Saturday I went gallery hopping in Williamsburg (Brooklyn) and one stop of the day was to see the work of Margrit Lewczuk. She was at the gallery and gave some time to speaking with us. I love her work so wanted to share the experience with you...courtesy of YouTube here it is:

A red, blue, green and yellow Herring

Oliver Herring's recent show at Meulensteen was vastly entertaining. Part happening, part exhibition, part people spitting paint. I went a few times to see the evolution, layer on layer, an artist's form of reality TV or is that just what we fondly remember as reality?

Banksy, Banksy, Banksy

If you haven't seen Banksy's exuberant Exit through the Gift Shop try to see it. A rogue and picaresque journey. Even includes a cameo appearance by Shepard Fairey. And now...Banksy does a dark and scary intro to...The Simpsons. Art and Entertainment's mutant child.

Fairfield Porter

This summer I saw a small and lovely Fairfield Porter show at the Michael Rosenfeld gallery. I loved seeing Porter's quintessential summer light.

I was especially fascinated by his portraits. "Chris, Sarah, Felicity" a group of three teenagers and "Laurence in Two Lights" (seen here). You get the feeling of personality but it is subsumed in Porter's painterly approach. The painting is the subject here which gladdens my heart.

I often struggle with this issue. How much of the subject must be revealed or remain? More on this later, off to the studio, Porter always makes me want to paint.

Oh Brave New World

It's Columbus Day and I've been thinking about new worlds real and virtual. This holiday was designated by President Benjamin Harrison in 1892, four hundred years after Columbus' discovery of what we now call America.

Yet, here I sit in my new world of Cyberspace, trying to buy a bed through the seductively vivid universe of online shopping, landing in the country of IKEA, asking a simple question about whether Lade Bed Slats will fit in a Malm bed, and instead I get a verbal slap from the charming virtual Anna.

Is it my unfamiliarity with the New World's Cyber speech that offends? Is this not a polite topic in the new world? Netizens, I ask for help and understanding. Like Columbus, perhaps I can leave you a virus in return. Laurie Anderson did say, "language is a virus." Didn't she?

Pepsi Fizzle

Hi,

Just wanted to say thanks to all of you who took the time to vote for me on the Pepsi Website. We didn't make it into the top ten to receive funding from Pepsi. BUT...Videos on Broadway will continue. We still have our one glorious night through funding from the Puffin Foundation. As well, I am currently seeking more grant funding.

The exposure was terrific, making more people aware of the project. Here's a Kurt photo to make you smile.

THANK YOU ALL!!!!!

...and remember there is still an OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

Stressed out too?

Running around like crazy. Trying to get stuff done. Trying to relax while doing it. Here's an image with objects to ponder helping the process along.

...and remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

My Neighborhood!!!!!

You know you live in a strange place when this is how they they set up the pedestrian signage. Not so pedestrian, eh?

The Coney Island Film Festival

Yeah, It was a blast. Especially opening night, enthusiastic screeners, side show, burlesque and more. My brother came up from D.C.and...we really enjoyed the other films especially the ones about Coney Island itself. One film about neophyte fire eaters made us think we should try it ourselves, there's always the side show school...or maybe not.

Up Coming, Two Events!!

Two Events!!

#1

My film, Gizmo Kaleidoscope, is showing on Sunday 2 p.m. at the Coney Island Film Festival as part of Program 13. It should be a nice day for the boardwalk, the beach, some knishes or dogs and a film.

Hope to see you there.

#2

I'll be speaking about the creative process at the B&H Event Space in October
Susan Shaw: Grist for the Mill
Tuesday, October 19, 2010 | 3:00 PM - 5:00 PM

AND...voting is still open for the my project, Videos on Broadway in Pepsi Refresh Project. Please click and vote every day. Thank you!!!

Road kill...it's that kind of a day

Now might a similar artwork consist of snotty dealers, mean curators and grandstanders? Hmmm...

Pepsi Refresh Reminder - Please vote!

I'm very excited to be asking your support by voting online for a new project of mine, Videos on Broadway. We're finalists in the Pepsi Refresh Project, and we stand to get significant funding if we receive lots of daily votes by September 30.

The way it works is every day you get 10 votes to help 10 organizations. Just go to this url: http://www.refresheverything.com/videosonbroadway or from your cell phone: Text 102152 to Pepsi (73774) (standard rates apply) or start off or post elsewhere with the Pepsiwidget below.

The first time you'll have to register, it takes two or three minutes. After that you can vote in seconds. Just keep on voting for us every day, and we'll be funded and you can use your other daily votes to help some other good causes.

We already have a starter grant from the Puffin Foundation, and we've run a prototype with great success (see details below). With Pepsi we can make Videos on Broadway a regular event.

If the project looks like something you'd really like to support, try to vote for it every day from here until the end of September. We really stand a good chance!

For more on the project itself, including video, go to: www.videosonbroadway.com

We are incredibly excited about this opportunity, and we hope that, thanks to your voting and the grant from Pepsi, we can present videos from all over the world to the sidewalk-walking public from our storefront window at Union Square for many months to come.

And of course, for all you video artists out there...remember we have an OPEN CALL to participate in our projections.

Focus on Kurt #5

Disco Religion





Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

Still Lives

Here are some of Kurt's images of a dysfunctional family that call to mind the photographs of Bernard Faucon. The human obsession with the humanoid is always interesting. When poking around for this entry I discovered a whole site devoted to manikin photography, Fantomatik. And not to think this is too strange a current exhibition, The Original Copy: Photography of Sculpture, 1839 to Today at MOMA, The Museum of Modern Art, has an entire room dedicated to these issues/obsessions.

Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

Two planets...you know what they are...

Many times Kurt and I independently photograph the same things. Recent examples:





Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

Focus on Kurt #4

City lights...




Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

The Pepsi Refresh Project — Good News for Videos on Broadway

I'm very excited to be asking your support by voting online for a new project of mine, Videos on Broadway. We're finalists in the Pepsi Refresh Project, and we stand to get significant funding if we receive lots of daily votes by September 30.

The way it works is every day you get 10 votes to help 10 organizations. Just go to this url: http://www.refresheverything.com/videosonbroadway or from your cell phone: Text 102152 to Pepsi (73774) (standard rates apply) or start off or post elsewhere with the Pepsiwidget below.

The first time you'll have to register, it takes two or three minutes. After that you can vote in seconds. Just keep on voting for us every day, and we'll be funded and you can use your other daily votes to help some other good causes.

We already have a starter grant from the Puffin Foundation, and we've run a prototype with great success (see details below). With Pepsi we can make Videos on Broadway a regular event.

If the project looks like something you'd really like to support, try to vote for it every day from here until the end of September. We really stand a good chance!

For more on the project itself, including video, go to: www.videosonbroadway.com

We are incredibly excited about this opportunity, and we hope that, thanks to your voting and the grant from Pepsi, we can present videos from all over the world to the sidewalk-walking public from our storefront window at Union Square for many months to come.

And of course, for all you video artists out there...remember we have an OPEN CALL to participate in our projections.

Patterning

Just went to the Charles Burchfield show at the Whitney. Interestingly, at one time Burchfield worked as a designer at a wallpaper factory in Buffalo, New York, using his fascination with nature in the service of home decoration.

His wallpaper reminded me of a subway train I saw earlier this year. The whole train exterior had been patterned to advertise Target. It was slick and beautiful. Imagine if artists and surface designers were asked to do all the trains. What a phantasmagoria that would be.

Here's a blog I came across that features some stellar surface designers.

Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.

The Girl Who...

In these last warm days, I've been going out to see the Yankees a lot. In fact, I'm going tonight. At the game, my baseball buddies throw statistics and player stories back and forth. I have my particular favorite. If you want to stump most fans ask them if they know the name of Jackie Mitchell.

In 1931, the New York Yankees stopped in Chattanooga for an exhibition game. It was a huge event due to the appearance of "Murderers Row". Fans, reporters and photographers all turned up. Jackie Mitchell stepped up on to the mound to face the first batter, the "Sultan of Swat," Babe Ruth! A neophyte player with only 1 pitch, a "sinker," Mitchell used it to good effect. Mitchell struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig back to back. Ruth was especially angry at the strike out and threw his bat around etc.

The next day Baseball Commissioner Landis banned Miller from playing pro ball. It was big news in the New York Times even back then in 1931. Why did all this happen? Because Jackie Mitchell was female.

Jackie continued her career anyway, pitching in exhibition games and in 1933, she signed on with the House of David, who were characterized by long hair and beards. Mitchell stayed with them until 1937, but eventually became disenchanted. Who wants to play an inning while pitching on the back of a donkey? She quit at the age of 23.

She's my baseball hero. Now where's my Jackie Mitchell baseball card?

Francoise Gilot

Thinking back to good things about last year. I saw the artist who started me on my artistic path at the age of twelve, Francoise Gilot.Here I am at Francoise Gilot's opening at BLT Gallery. Below is one of her gorgeous monotypes.

Just the Way You Like It..

These are two snaps from a trip to Rehoboth. I like the color and mystery in both, especially in the one of Kurt.

Focus on Kurt #3

The subtle tones of architecture.





Remember OPEN CALL for Videos on Broadway.