2011年11月30日星期三

Next legal step uncertain for O'Keeffe art at Fisk

Fisk University's decade-long quest to generate cash from a 101-piece art collection donated by the late painter Georgia O'Keeffe is one step closer to fruition.

But it is unclear how quickly the historically black university in Nashville will be able to complete a $30 million deal to sell a 50 percent stake in the collection to the Crystal Bridges Museum in Bentonville, Ark.

Under the agreement, the artworks including O'Keefe's own 1927 oil painting "Radiator Building — Night, New York — would move between Fisk and the Arkansas museum every two years.

A state appeals court ruling Tuesday threw out a judge's requirement for Fisk to reserve two-thirds of the proceeds to ensure future upkeep of the collection amid the university's shaky financial circumstances.

Fisk officials argued at last year's trial that the school had mortgaged all of its buildings, was running a $2 million annual deficit and had no unrestricted endowment available. The opinion notes that when President Hazel O'Leary was asked whether Fisk was "viable" given the scope of its financial challenges, she responded, "No, not at all."

The 2-1 decision found the lower court didn't have the authority to require the creation of the $20 million endowment to guard against creditors should Fisk declare bankruptcy.

"The record clearly reveals that that Ms. O'Keeffe never intended for the Collection to be sold or otherwise monetized in order for Fisk University to pay its general operating expenses," Clement wrote in his dissent.

Even with the endowment in place, Fisk would be able to use $10 million to "rise above its current financial predicament," while staying closer to O'Keeffe's original charitable intent, Clement said.

The Crystal Bridges Museum features artwork amassed by Wal-Mart heiress Alice Walton, including Asher Durand's landscape painting "Kindred Spirits" and Norman Rockwell's "Rosie the Riveter."

While the majority opinion rules out the judge establishing an endowment requirement, it does not preclude the court from approving one or another "dedicated source of support" for the collection. It also calls on Fisk to lay out how it will use a $1 million pledge from Walton to upgrade the display space and outline how it plans to spend the $30 million from the deal.

The state attorney general's office, which has fought to keep the collection from leaving Nashville, has not yet decided whether to seek an appeal to the state Supreme Court. A Fisk spokesman did not return a message seeking comment.

In 1949, O'Keefe donated 97 pieces to Fisk from the estate of her late husband, the photographer Alfred Stieglitz. They include works by Picasso, Renoir, Cezanne, Marsden Hartley, Alfred Maurer and Charles Demuth, among others.

O'Keeffe, who died in 1986, also gave the school four of her own paintings as part of the gift, which was made to Fisk because the school educated blacks at a time when the South was segregated.

The gift carried the stipulation that it could not be sold or broken up. But Fisk has argued that it can't afford even the $131,000 it currently spends to display the collection each year.

The school in 2002 sought to send the collection on a foreign tour to raise money for the school. Three years later, Fisk announced plans to sell O'Keeffe's "Radiator Building" and Hartley's "Painting No. 3."

That move was blocked by the state attorney general, whose office is responsible for overseeing charitable giving in Tennessee. The current case is the result of protracted legal fights over the collection.

2011年11月29日星期二

Exceptional work of art by Paul Cézanne at Christie's impressionist

Christie’s announces the auction of an exceptional work of art by Paul Cézanne at its Impressionist and Modern Art sale on December 1st, 2011. This oil on canvas study was realized between 1902 and 1906 when the artist was at the peak of his career. This study, one of the few known to this date, is estimated between 2,000,000 and 3,000,000 Euros.

Thomas Seydoux, International director of the Impressionist and Modern Art department: ”The Bathers of Paul Cézanne figure among the most famous compositions in Art History. Discovering and unveiling this oil on canvas study was a very exhilarating moment, because it is the first time in decades that we discover such a piece of art.”

The famous series of paintings The Bathers, executed between 1894 and 1906, are today recognized to be emblematic works of art by Paul Cézanne. They are, according to Philip Conisbee, former curator of the Washington National Gallery of Art, “the heritage of Cézanne.”

In addition to the series are three final large format versions executed between 1894 and the artist’s death in 1906. We know that a great deal of Cézanne’s work was influenced by this theme. He created numerous studies and sketches, most of them were pencil drawings “which always stayed in his chest’s drawer, in his room, or in his desk’s drawer in his studio” showing an obstinacy working on the subject (J. Gasquet, Cézanne, Paris, 1926, p. 55). Until this day, only a few of these registered studies are the same composition as in the final versions. Among these studies, seven are oil paintings, including the work presented here, while others are in watercolor. These studies are now all held in public institutions.

The owner’s grand-father acquired this study in 1961 from the Parisian merchant Otto Wertheimer and it has not been seen or exhibited since then. Coming from Ambroise Vollard’s succession, this work of art would have been acquired by Otto Wertheimer in the early Fifties. The limited number of successive ownerships contributed to the rarity of this piece which remained unknown to the public until this day. The rediscovery of this work of art celebrates one of the most important events of the season.

2011年11月28日星期一

Haut-Brion 1945 Vintage Tops $334 Million Christie’s Auction

A lot containing 14 bottles of Chateau Haut-Brion together with a bespoke console by London- based furniture maker David Linley fetched HK$1.44 million ($184,850) at a Christie’s International wine sale.

The package, in which all bottles were shipped direct from the cellars of the Bordeaux winemaker, included a rare 1945 vintage and bottles from 1959 and 1961. A lot also containing a Linley console and 14 bottles of Haut Brion white sold for HK$1.32 million.

The two lots, both of which carried presale estimates of HK$1 million to HK$2 million, were welcome highlights to an otherwise lackluster two-day sale that saw many lots of Chateau Lafite Rothschild go unsold.

“The bidding wasn’t as keen as I expected, so I got lucky,” said Paul Dunn, a Hong Kong-based collector who bought both top lots. “Plus Haut-Brion generously donated the proceeds to the Children’s Medical Fund which added a whole lot of meaning to the lots, so I decided to go for it.”

The three-day wine sale that ended today raised HK$64.7 million, compared with a presale low estimate of HK$60 million. About 16 percent of the lots failed to sell.

Christie’s six-day sale also includes Chinese ceramics, jewelry and watches and is estimated by the London-based auction house to raise as much as HK$2.6 billion ($334 million).

While some Bordeaux sales flagged, demand for Burgundy remained strong. The Liv-Ex 50 Fine Wine Index, which tracks Bordeaux first growths, has fallen 18 percent since June. Less expensive Bordeaux second growths have fared better recently.

The third-most-expensive lot was a case of 12 bottles of Romanee-Conti Domaine de la Romanee Conti 1985 that sold for HK$1.2 million, almost reaching its presale high estimate of HK$1.3 million. Romanee Conti accounted for seven of the top 10 wine lots sold.

Caution was also the watchword at Christie’s evening sale of Asian 20th-century and contemporary art, with works by Chinese painters Zhang Xiaogang and Zeng Fanzhi unsold. Christie’s raised HK$397 million ($51 million), with just 42 out of 57 lots finding buyers.

“It’s a price-aware market,” said Jonathan Stone, Christie’s chairman and international head of Asian art. “There were strong moments and less strong moments.”

Across town, a world record amount of HK$25.3 million was paid for an 18th-century Qianlong era Chinese snuff bottle at a Bonhams auction today.

The decision by Christie’s to combine Southeast Asian, Korean and Japanese art together with Chinese for the first time was justified by the extent of cross-cultural bidding from different regions, said Eric Chang, international director of Asian 20th-Century and Contemporary Art.

The two-day sale, which included works from a private collection on Saturday night and a day sale yesterday, raised a combined HK$704.7 million compared with a presale estimate of HK$540 million.

The top-selling lot was an oil by 20th-century abstract Chinese painter Zao Wou-ki, which sold for HK$35.38 million, more than double its presale high estimate of HK$15 million.

Pascal de Sarthe, a Hong Kong-based art dealer, said he bought the painting for a client who was prepared to pay far more.

“Buyers were more cautious,” he said. “Tonight was a very lucky spot for me.”

Indonesian star Nyoman Masriadi fared better than many contemporary Chinese artists. His painting showing a parody of movie hero Indiana Jones carrying a giant diamond sold for HK$3.38 million, more than its HK$3.2 million top estimate.

While London and New York events typically are headlined by paintings, a highlight of Hong Kong is the auction of Chinese antiques. On Nov. 30, this includes a 15th-century Ming dynasty blue-and-white porcelain moonflask and a Qianlong-era white jade vase and cover that both have high estimates of HK$35 million.

The day before, Christie’s will offer two unmounted diamonds each weighing more than 35 carats as separate lots, carrying high estimates of HK$80 million apiece.

Christie’s also is displaying a collection of jewelry at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre venue that belonged to actress Elizabeth Taylor. The pieces will go on sale in New York on Dec. 13-14, including a necklace with a 50-carat pearl given to her in 1969 by Richard Burton that once belonged to Spain’s King Phillip II.

2011年11月27日星期日

Holly Day House Art Show features hand-crafted works

The Artists of Picacho Hills on Saturday hosted its annual Holly Day House Art Show, which featured a variety of original fine artwork created by residents of the Picacho Hills area.

The juried art show offered unique gifts, including jewelry, paintings, photography, textiles, basketry, glass and woodworking, created by nearly 25 artists from The Artists of Picacho Hills.

The 2nd annual Holly Day House Art Show continues from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. today at 1340 Picacho Hills Drive in Las Cruces, by Ump 88 Irish Grill.

Instead of enduring long lines and crowds of post-Thanksgiving shoppers, visitors to Saturday's show enjoyed refreshments and door prizes, while perusing unique, handcrafted works of art from the spacious venue in Picacho Hills, said Wanda Sparks, past president of the Artists of Picacho Hills, who also creates ornate and colorful gourd Christmas ornaments.

During the group's final show of the year, Sparks said more than 200 shoppers on Saturday were in search of holiday decorations, Christmas presents for loved ones, and even gifts for themselves.

"Several couples have come in and said to the person they were with, 'You know, this would make a really wonderful gift for me,'" Sparks said with a smile.

One of the newest art associations in Las Cruces, The Artists of Picacho Hills was founded in 2008 and has since blossomed into a group of more than 30 artists, including painters, sculptors, jewelry makers, photographers, woodworkers, potters, textile and multimedia artists, according to the group's website. Artists of Picacho Hills is open to all residents who create original artwork and live in Picacho Hills.

The Artists of Picacho Hills also annually hosts the popular Art in the Garden show in September, which typically attracts about 600 visitors, and For the Love of Art in February, Sparks said.

Choosing a new, more spacious venue for this year's Holly Day House Art Show, Sparks said, "No matter how many shoppers we've had at once, it's never felt crowded and the artists have had a lot of space to really showcase their art."

"It's been busy all day," said Jeanne DeArment, who organized the event, of the turnout during first day of the annual show. "It's nice to see people doing their shopping locally and supporting local artists, rather than purchasing a TV made in China. I can guarantee, what they've found here will last a whole lot longer, too."

Using various computer techniques to turn photographs into interesting works of art, Picacho Hills artist Steve Bailey said his pieces were selling fast during Saturday's show.

"I've been doing really well," Bailey said. "I've sold several of my bigger pieces and my cards are about to sell out."

Having participated in several previous Artists of Picacho Hills shows, Bailey said many who purchased works of his Saturday were repeat customers.

"Most of the people who purchase larger pieces of art are shopping for their own homes because it's just so personal," he explained. "Repeat customers also want to make sure that the piece they're thinking of purchasing will complement those already hanging in their homes."

He continued, "I'll definitely be coming back next year."

Watercolorist Marie Siegrist, who has been painting for most of her adult life, said the first day of the weekend-long show was a success.

"It's been very nice," she said. "I've already sold a painting and have interest in another."

The first time showcasing her paintings, which also feature acrylic and gouache pieces, at the Holly Day House event, Siegrist said of the art show, "It's been a great opportunity to get to know other artists and to connect with people in the community who are interested in our art."

"The more exposure the better," added Alice Terry, an oil painter. "Because of this show, I have potential for even more sales."

After taking a class in basket weaving about four years ago, artist Lonnie Wilson was hooked on the craft.

"It's such a fun project, and I've been getting a lot of good feedback here," she said. "This show has such a nice feeling since it's at the beginning of the holiday season and I think it's really coming into its own this year."

Oil painter Rosemary McKeown agreed, stating, "The response has been very positive and people have been impressed with how nice the art is."

She continued, "Because the show is juried by a third party, you know you're going to find some really nice works of art. And the facility this year is much bigger, allowing for the art to be displayed really nicely."

Gregg Tracy, who uses mesquite wood and turquoise to hand craft boxes, cutting boards and trays, as well as larger furniture pieces, said, "It's nice to have this large space this year."

He added, "The variety of art is what makes this show so nice. The group always looks for different mediums and different types of art to feature."

Judi Miller, who creates knitted shawls, said she draws inspiration from nature to come up with new designs. Her colorful pieces feature lace-like patterns that incorporate swans, turtles, lilacs, and other natural elements.

"Coming up with new patterns is always very exciting," Miller said.

Her first time showcasing her work at the Holly Day House Art Show, Miller said shoppers "seem to really enjoying looking" at her collection of shawls.

2011年11月24日星期四

Calgary firm helps unlock oil reserves

Proflux technology was developed by a team of scientists and researchers at Bradford University in the U.K. as a potential "game-changer" for the heavy oil industry. In 2005 Oilflow Solutions was launched in Aberdeen, Scotland, to develop and commercialize the technology of the Proflux suite of operations, which provides a revolutionary integrated solution to mobilizing heavy oil.

Realizing the need to be better presented in the marketplace and identifying Calgary as the key core market for the application, Oilflow Solutions Canada was formed in 2008 and its centre of operations established here under the leadership of Mike Crabtree, who relocated from the U.K. along with his key scientists and technical specialists.

Crabtree left Oilflow Solutions this year to start his own oil production company and Fred Meyer, who has served 31 years in the oil and gas industry, has taken over as CEO.

Meyer worked for Schlumberger for 27 years in positions including field engineer in Alberta, British Columbia and Newfoundland and district manager of its operations on the East Coast before moving to a sales position in Egypt. He was transferred back to Canada at the start of the Hibernia project and then lived in Bolivia as country manager for a time before leaving Schlumberger in 2007.

Since then, Meyer served as president of TestAlta Services and sales manager for Calmena Energy Services before joining Oilflow Solutions in May of this year.

Its own R&D laboratories are located in northeast Calgary, where four PhDs and a reservoir engineer are on staff, but Meyer is moving his executive and sales office into Calgary Place downtown to be closer to the major oil companies who have been introduced to Oilflow Solutions' unique, patented chemistry.

Through its family of polymer-based products it is looking to be a global leader in unlocking heavy oil by increasing oil production; reducing downtime costs; reducing energy consumption and environmental impact; and increasing reserves.

By reducing flowing viscosity, Proflux is being used in wells to improve production, in pipelines to transport heavy oil, and it improves oil recovery in reservoirs.

Friendly to the environment, Proflux is non-toxic and biodegradable and in some applications, both field-produced water and the product can be recycled. collector of works by Calgary artist Paul Van Ginkel, using his western imagery paintings not only to show off on his office walls but also as graphics for his annual reports.

This year, Ward spoke with Van Ginkel on the possibility of creating a charity calendar. Ward agreed to pay the cost for producing 1,000 calendars that use 20 of the artist's paintings and donate 100 per cent of the proceeds to HOPEthiopia, an organization committed to the restoration of both the people and the land of Ethiopia.

Painted Pony hosted a calendar launch in its office in October and to date, Van Ginkel informs me that more than $40,000 has been raised for the charity.

A public showing and sale will be held at Merlot Vinotecca on Friday and Saturday, when Van Ginkel will be in attendance.

A thank you party was held yesterday at Canada's Sports Hall of Fame, the impressive new facility at Canada Olympic Park that shares the compelling stories of outstanding achievements in Canadian sports.

It was held in honour of Claire Buffone-Blair, who has stepped down from her position as president and CEO after achieving her target of opening the hall on time, under budget and fully financed. She says she has experienced rather a hectic time as director of operations for the Own the Podium initiative and readying and opening the hall, and says she now needs to spend more time with her young family.

2011年11月23日星期三

Sotheby's Old Master & British paintings sales to be highlighted

Sotheby's London, 22nd November 2011, announces that the Old Master and British Paintings Evening and Day Sales on 7th and 8th December 2011 will offer a selection of important works of exceptional quality and rarity, many of which have remained in private collections for decades, including the masterpiece by Jan Steen Card Players in an Interior (est. 4.5-6 million*). The sales, which comprise 237 lots, are estimated to fetch a combined total in excess of 21 million.

Alex Bell, Sotheby’s Co-Chairman, Old Master Paintings, Worldwide, said: “We are extremely pleased to continue Sotheby’s eleventh successive year of leading in Old Master Paintings auction sales with a carefully curated offering which responds to the market demand for a wide variety of works of exceptional quality from a broad array of schools. The sale highlights demonstrate the mastery of some of the most important artists in the field,including Jan Steen, Jacob van Ruisdael, Lucas Cranach, Anthony Van Dyck, Johann Zoffany and Joseph Wright of Derby.”

Jan Havicksz Steen’s oil on panel Figures Seated in an Interior with a Man and a Woman Seated at a Table Playing Cards (circa 1660) is a superb example of the artist’s painting, one of his best preserved works and a masterpiece of seventeenth-century Dutch genre painting. Estimated at 4.5-6 million, the work’s combination of both technical and intellectual mastery, demonstrated in the unusually high degree of finish in the details as well the background, make it one of the foremost examples of Steen’s work and of seventeenth-century Dutch genre to come to the market in recent years. Steen’s choice of subject - a soldier being disarmed by a woman’s charms - is an exploration of one of the most popular themes of the mid-seventeenth century, with its roots in the biblical story of Samson and Delilah. The artist’s interpretation is characterised by his unusually complex and humorous exploration of human nature and the interaction between the sexes.

Dune Landscape with a Farmer on a Sandy Road, and a Distant View of Haarlem (estimated 1.2–1.6 million) is unquestionably one of Jacob van Ruisdael’s greatest works. Executed in 1647, it bears the characteristics of all Ruisdael’s finest works - a complete mastery of the representation of nature, weather, the time of day, and is highly observant of the effects of nature. The painting’s evocation of mood and spirit of place on the rutted, sandy road on the outskirts of Haarlem, is an astonishing achievement from an artist still under twenty years old at the time.

A Guardroom Scene with Tric-Trac Players in the Foreground by David Teniers the Younger is estimated at 400,000–600,000. This beautifully preserved oil-oncopper is an exceptional example of Teniers’ work from the 1640s, at the height of his artistic powers, and is among the finest achievements of his Antwerp period. Teniers was a sharp observer of human nature, and in this work he emphasises the serious nature of the competition between the players, while exploring his interest in still life within the interior setting. In 1819 the painting was displayed in the Duchess Street gallery of renowned tastemaker Thomas Hope. It is offered for sale at auction for the first time in almost 100 years.

The elegant oil on panel portrait Young Lady Three Quarter Length, in a Geen Velvet and Orange Dress and Pear-Embroidered Black Hat (est. 800,000-1,200,000) is attributed to Lucas Cranach the Younger and is thought to be a collaborative work between Lucas Cranach the Elder and Lucas Cranach the Younger from the period around 1533. This portrait is characteristic of the style Cranach perfected during his years in Wittenberg studying with his father. The wonderfully insightful character study combines acute realism with courtly refinement. The portrait is very close stylistically to a beautiful female portrait by Lucas Cranach the Younger in the Staatsgalerie, Stuttgart, whose companion portrait is dated 1543. Although the pose of the present sitter might suggest that the picture originally had a pendant, none has ever been connected and the direct outward glance of the sitter suggests that that it was equally likely to have been conceived as a single portrait in its own right.

2011年11月22日星期二

Nationally Known Painter & Photographer Barry Elz Featured

The featured artist at the 10th Annual Holiday Art Show & Hand Craft Sale at The Hadlyme Public Hall Thanksgiving Weekend will be Barry Elz of Michigan, a nationally recognized impressionist landscape painter and photographer who lived in the Lyme area for many years.

Elz’s landscape oils are a contemporary stylized approach reminiscent and respectful of the American impressionist from the early 1900's, many of whom lived and painted in Lyme and Old Lyme.

“The opportunity to paint and live in the same countryside as Willard Metcalf, Bruce Crane and John Twachtman was a priceless experience,” said Elz of his time living in Lyme.

Many of Elz’s landscapes now hang in public spaces including The Boston Sheraton Hotel, The Raytheon Corporation and Kemper Insurance Company, as well as, many private collections. He has also had exhibits in several venues, including the prestigious Cooley Gallery in Old Lyme.

Elz is also nationally recognized commercial and journalistic photographer, with studios located in New York City and Chicago.  His photograph portfolio includes over three decades of published national campaigns for clients such as Gatorade, Nike, Land's End and in publications, such as the NY Times, Sports Illustrated and Time Magazine.

He photographed many celebrities, including Michael Jordan, Alex Rodriguez, Cindy Crawford and Kathy Ireland and eventually published a portrait book that reached the New York Times Best Seller List.

Elz plans to exhibit up to ten oil paintings in a range of small to moderate sizes. Many of his oils can be seen on his website.

There will also be more artists exhibiting mixed media, holiday home décor, photography, oil & watercolor paintings, stoneware, wood carvings, jewelry, pottery, and sculpture.

All the artists have been asked to prepare “Small Wonders” in order to be able to offer some pieces that are affordable for all and perfect for everybody’s holiday gift lists.

Each year the following for this show grows.  For its beginnings, the goal of the show has been to offer gifts of fine art and hand crafts in all price ranges. This venue embraces and is a show place of many local artists and artisans from the Connecticut River valley.

The Thanksgiving Hadlyme Art Show is a perfect outing for family and friends visiting for the long holiday weekend because it can include a drive through some of New England’s most beautiful countryside.  Get off I-95 at Exit 70, and take Rt. 156 north through the Connecticut River hamlet of Hamburg on storied Hamburg Cove. About 100 yards past the Lyme Congregational Church in Hamburg bear left onto Old Hamburg Road and go through the Hamburg Bridge Historic District at the mouth of the Eight Mile River. Then go left over the bridge and wind your way up bucolic Joshuatown Road past old mill ponds and 19th Century clapboard cottages into the peaceful farmland and tidal salt marshes of historic Hadlyme. 

When you arrive, you can shop at your own pace with no sales pitches or aggressive sales people to annoy you. There will be local folk to welcome you with refreshments made in neighborhood kitchens, and you will be able to talk directly to the artists whose work you can admire.

And when you leave for home, you can drive down Ferry Road to the Connecticut River and take the charming little Chester-Hadlyme Ferry (nine cars max) over to Chester, where you’ll find several fine cafes and restaurants for a late lunch or dinner.

The show opens Friday Nov. 25 from 4-8pm with a wine reception and an opportunity to meet the artists. It will be open on Saturday, Nov. 26 from 11am-5pm and on Sunday Nov. 27 from 11am-4pm.

More information about the art show can be found on the Hadlyme Hall website.

2011年11月21日星期一

Suburban showing

You could call it a brush stroke of genius.

Or maybe they just have a bead on a hot new trend, but a group of local artists is turning to  trunk shows and pop-up galleries as a means of reaching people who might otherwise never see their work.

From pottery to paintings, glass beads to leatherwork and clothing, the six women will set up shop in a Maple Ridge home for three days this weekend and invite the public to pop in and have a look at their art, during Bohemia in the Burbs.

Everything will be for sale — most of the pieces at prices that won’t give visitors sticker shock, said Elaine Brewer-White, a Walnut Grove sculptor who is co-organizing the event, along with Fort Langley painter Judy Nygren.

“We’re trying to invent a new market in a depressed economy,” explained Brewer-White, who modeled the idea on a similar effort by one of her friends in Chicago.

The title, Bohemia in the Burbs, reflects the fact that all the artists involved live outside Vancouver, she said.

This way, neither the artists nor their audience need to drive into the city to connect.

An alternative to cheap mass-produced wall hangings, dishes, clothing and accessories, the show is an opportunity to buy “one of a kind, beautiful, handmade things, instead of things made in China,” said Brewer-White.

“It’s so discouraging; how do you compete,” she asked, standing inside her home studio, surrounded by dozens of the whimsical ceramic figurines that have been her bread and butter for the past 30 years.

On a table behind her is a growing stack of brightly coloured dishes, bowls and mugs — no two exactly the same. She is stockpiling pieces for the trunk show, which will emphasize the practical as well as the pretty.

“This is the first time I’ve done anything utilitarian since art school — luckily, I still remember how,” she laughed.

As she talks, the artist pulls a block of clay from a clear plastic bag and, using a wire, slices a small chunk off the top.

Rolling it into a flat sheet, she carves out a rectangle, using a piece of cardboard and a practised eye to guide the knife. After pressing a pattern into the surface, she rolls it into a small tube and fixes a circle of clay to one end.

The finished product will be another of her kindness cups — small, colourful vessels, each bearing an inspiring word — which will sell for about $15.

At the other end of the scale, will be Fort Langley artist Sue Northcott’s handbags, stitched out of leather and other materials recovered from garments that have been sifted from “thrift stores and rag shops.” Those will likely run in the mid-$200 range, said Brewer-White.

Artist Billie Jo Thomson’s paintings will be among the items for sale, seamstress Loraie Tylor, with her passion for fabric and flow, is creating “wearable art”  for the show, while glass bead maker Chris Clarke is creating original art that visitors can carry home in their pockets.

Nygren, having just returned to her artwork from a three-year hiatus, will display her small oil paintings.

2011年11月20日星期日

CAL holiday show supplies works of beauty for the art lover

In this edition of the Columbia Art League’s annual “Give a Gift of Art” holiday exhibit, the oils have it.

Each winner of the member’s open show were oil painters: JD King, CAL newcomer Kate Klingensmith and Jane Mudd placed first, second and third, respectively. All of the works of art — winners, honorable mentions, and others — are for sale during the holiday season, offering another chance to patrons to purchase art for their friends and loved ones.

Not only did oil paints take the spoils in this exhibit, but nature in its various forms is prominent as well. Landscapes depicting all seasons dominate the gallery walls; Executive Director Diana Moxon and her colleagues even began grouping some seasons together for presentation. An inner wall shows black-and-white images fringed by winter scenes, and the art on the wall facing the front windows collectively echo the last fiery vestiges of autumn colors. Tucked in right by the window is a fall-weather tribute to The Blue Note by Stephanie Jenkins. The artist represented the venerated music venue standing stately and surrounded by a thick glory of fall leaves from the trees lining the sidewalk on Ninth Street.

King’s first-place painting, “Hey Mack,” also testifies to the burning brilliance of fall colors; an imposing classic Mack truck, nearly the same bold colors as the landscape surrounding it, fills most of the canvas as leaves drop over and around it. The truck’s bumper lackadaisically reads, “Move It On Over.” King painted from an old photograph he had taken of a truck on the side of the road three miles west of Ashland, he said in an email. The massive tree behind the truck had begun to grow into the Mack’s back bed. Old trucks, he said, “embody a male aesthetic that has to do with responsibility, tradition and purpose, and they are also kind of sad in an almost romantic way. It’s kind of like a photo of that beloved old dog on the front porch. Seen a lot and wishes he could tell you about it.”

Jane Mudd, who earned third place, switches seasons with “Spring Thaw,” an oil-based kaleidoscope of color all worked into a slightly abstract, fluid rendering of a creek thawing into a slight waterfall. A bare tree is just budding in the foreground; the entire spectrum of smears fit together to create a beautifully wrought whole.

The storm dramas of summer have a presence as well: George Tutt’s large painting in the back corner, “Storm’s Comin’,” depicts a ramshackle shed in the foreground, painted in boldly opaque watercolors. A lamp-lit farmhouse rests in the background, reflecting gold glow into a small pond. Over the hills in the background, clouds rise, and a sky deepens purple with oncoming rain. Eric Seat’s painting, “After the Storm,” reflects the aftermath of such a gathering rain: A wall of dark clouds disperses and breaks into fingers of sunset-thrashed orange.

Nature is reflected in surreal and hyper-idealized forms in addition to the more straightforward landscapes. Amy Jerke’s photograph “Dream Worlds,” shows a stunning close-up of a dewdrop-studded feather, almost a Mother-Nature-forged Swarovski. Across from the photograph, Megan Henley, a Rock Bridge High School student who won this show’s Emerging Artist award, created a checkered paper-and-ink representation of a fish with a bulbous eye and a mass of stylized scales. Kate Passis, who often creates artistic studies in polymer clay, has returned with a small jewel of a mosaic that, upon closer inspection, turns out to be a reflection of a tree line under moonlight; leaves drop everywhere and land on the “water” portrayed as less vivid, more grayish stones. Even the moon, at the top left of the mosaic, has a water reflection in the bottom half of the mosaic, a slightly duller but still glistening bit of pearl.

Tending toward the mammalian side of nature is Kate Klingensmith’s second-place work, “Pinto in the Sun,” a painting showing the muscular sunlit flank of a pinto horse. Klingensmith, who moved to Moberly from Colorado this year, frequently used to drive past a farm named The Paint Factory that bred painted horses.

Klingensmith finally called the owners and asked if she could photograph their horses, she said in an email. “Pinto in the Sun” was one of the horses she photographed. “In addition to thinking about the overall design of the image,” she said, “I photograph what it is that fascinates me about a horse at that moment. … For ‘Pinto in the Sun,’ it was his mane and back, with the sun on him and a slight breeze in the air.” The artist, who paints horses on commission, also has expressed other natural themes in big-sky landscapes and highway scenes from Montana.

Near the front of the gallery is a collection of sculptures and functional objects that nearly look as if they had been plotted together or fashioned from the same channels of imagination. Ahmed Ithman, who is new to CAL, has created the self-describing “White & Green Vase,” a porcelain work with a sandy-colored rim and clouds of green and turquoise merging with creamy colors around the basin. Mike Seat and Ray Almeida also have contributed similarly colored functional sculptures; the three play together well while retaining their own artistic distinctions. Elsewhere in the sculptural offerings is a fluid, twisting lamp sculpture made out of “cone 6” translucent porcelain, sculpted by Fadra Hepner sculpted. The effect is almost that of a wizard’s hat. To create small divots reminiscent of constellations, which let light to the outside of the sculpture, Hepner rolled grains of rice into the porcelain, Moxon said. Each grain of rice burned up when she fired the sculpture, leaving the tiny dents behind.

2011年11月17日星期四

Kaminski's Thanksgiving sale stuffed with treasures

The Saturday sale includes fine European and American decorative furnishings, fine art, including a Calder lithograph, Tiffany and estate jewelry, sterling silver and a wonderful collection of European furniture and decorative arts from an important California collector as well as a selection of furniture deaccessioned from a Massachusetts historical society. The entire second day is devoted to rugs from all over the world.

The art selection starts off with an early 1950s abstract color lithograph by Alexander Calder (American, (1898-1976) estimated at $15,000-$25,000. Calder, best known for his sculptures and mobiles died in 1976. Born into an artistic family, his father and grandfather were both sculptors and his mother was a painter. Calder studied mechanical engineering before starting his formal art training. In addition to his talent as a sculptor, he was an accomplished painter of gouaches and is known for his “poetic arrangements of boldly colored, irregularly shaped geometric forms that convey a sense of harmony and balance.”

Another important painting in the sale is an evening autumn Parisian street scene oil on canvas by Edouard Leon Cortes (French, 1882-1969) estimated at $20,000-$30,000.

A particularly exotic painting of a harem beauty by the Russian painter Paul Alexander Svedomsky (Russian 1849-1904), signed oil on canvas, is estimated at $12,000-$18,000. Other paintings by Russian artists in the sale include a sunset on the seashore scene by Constantin Aleksandrovich Westchiloff (1877-1945), an Alexandre Benois (1870-1960) of women by a fountain, both estimated at $8,000-$12,000, and a barn scene with horses and dogs signed oil on canvas by Nikolai Egorovich Sverchkov (1817-1898), $7,000-$10,000.

A contemporary piece, charcoal on paper, by the portrait painter Aleix (Alejo) Vidal-Quadras (Spanish b. 1919) titled The 4 Faces of Merle Oberon portrays the British actress in four different views. Famous for his portraits of prominent European aristocrats, this piece was sketched in 1959 after Oberon married Mexican industrialist Bruno Pagliai. It is estimated at $5,000-$8,000.

Other European artists include Eugene Von Blaas (Italian/Austrian, (1843-1931) girl with a jar, oil on panel estimated at $8,000-$10,000 and a 17th-century portrait of a Spanish prince, oil on canvas valued at $4,000-$7,000.

There is a portrait of the author William Butler Yeats by the British artist Henry Charles Brewer (1866-1950). It is initialed and dated “H.C.B. 1913” and is oil on canvas. It is estimated at $3,000-$5,000.

There are two George Stanfield Walters (British, 1838-1924) watercolors, both signed and dated. The first is an estuary view with small boats and the other a harbor scene with fishing boats. Walters is known for his landscapes and marine scenes, and his works are in the collections of the British Museum and the Victoria and Albert in London.

Two exceptional bronzes are on offer, the first a Joan of Arc, bronze signed “Fremiet” by Emmanuel Fremiet (French,1824-1910), famous for his sculpture of the same subject in Paris, and estimated to bring $3,000-$5,000, a second bronze by Leonard Baskin (American, 1922-2000) titled Prophet: Homage to Rico Lebrun, with dark brown patina, signed and dated “1977 Baskin FE AP,” artist’s proof, cast by Bedi-Makky Art Foundry, 36 inches high x 11 1/2 inches wide x 13 inches deep. This particular piece is shown in the artist’s monograph by Irma Jaffe, The Sculpture of Leonard Baskin. The bronze came from a collector in California who acquired the piece directly from the artist.

European furniture and decorative items come from an important California dealer and include two pairs of 19th-century Italian blackamoors, painted, laquered and gilded. These statues were popularized in the 17th century in Venice, Italy. Andrea Brustolon (Italian 1662-1732) was the most important sculptor of the art. The first pair stand 67 inches high and are estimated at $8,000-$12,000 and the second pair are holding a torchiere, stand 57 inches high and are estimated at $7,000-$9,000.

Italian furniture and decoration abound in this collection and there is a pair of 18th-century Italian carved wood and gesso columns, a 19th-century highly decorative Venetian display cabinet and a pair of early Italian floor lamps, as well as a pair of Italian sconces of silver gilt wood. There are also two Italian 19th-century carved gilt wood angels, a 19th-century Italian Rococo mirror, a pair of Rococo candelabras and many more Italian decorative items.

An extensive collection of French furniture and decorative pieces are also in the sale including two highly carved French vitrines, a pair of French painted panels having neoclassical motifs, oil on canvas, an early 20th-century French trumeau mirror estimated at $900-$1,200 and a 19th-century French Empire mantel clock, marble with ormolu bezel and an open pendulum, estimated at $800-$1,200.

The items deaccessioned from a Massachusetts Historical Society include an 18th-century slant-lid desk, an 18th-century two-drawer stand having acanthus carving in the manner of Duncan Phyfe, a set of six late 18th-century/early 19th-century ribbon-back side chairs, having pegged construction, a flame mahogany claw foot sofa, a 19th-century carved flame mahogany Empire sofa with heavily carved claw feet, and a 19th-century Empire game table and a mahogany tip-top table, originally owned by Bessie A. Baker of Beverly, Mass.

From the family of H. Sacks and Sons of Brookline, Mass., is a circa 1800-1815 Portsmouth, N.H., Hepplewhite bow-front, drop-front chest having four graduated drawers, with mahogany and birch banding inlay. The brass pulls have an American eagle design. A circa 1770, mahogany Pennsylvannia four-drawer chest with graduated drawers and ogee bracket feet that descended through the Drake family of Pennsylvannia and having Quaker roots is estimated at $1,500-$3,000.

In anticipation of Christmas gift buying, there is a large collection of jewelry in the sale, including a platinum and diamond bow pin with approximately 50 European cut diamonds and a center diamond of approximately 5 carats total weight estimated at $3,200-$3,500. A platinum pear-shaped diamond ring is estimated at $2,500-$3,500. Also featured are a platinum and diamond eternity band, many lots of Tiffany jewelry including an 18K yellow gold and ruby pin, a lot of two Tiffany diamond and ruby pins in the form of bees, a Tiffany 18K yellow gold and diamond ring and a 18K Tiffany yellow gold and ruby pendant, as well as a Tiffany/Perretti pendant on a matching chain. Cartier is represented in a 18K yellow gold bracelet. There are also two beautiful tanzanite rings in the sale.

2011年11月16日星期三

Yard sale not the venue for selling art

There are two missing pieces of information I need in order to accurately evaluate these two paintings. The first is the size: This is important because art is often essentially sold by the square inch. The second is whether or not these images are actually signed by Roger Etienne.

The phrase in today's letter, " that I have finally figured out were painted by Roger Etienne," either means that these are not signed (I cannot see a signature in the photograph) or they are signed "Etienne" and it took N. L.-P. a while to discover to whom that referred.

I have found some genuine examples of Etienne's work that are unsigned so the lack of a signature is not all that disturbing. The pieces in today's question with their big eyed children painted on French newspaper is in Etienne's style, and I think there is very little doubt that these two pieces are by that artist.

Etienne is really very famous, but little has been printed about him that I could find. He was born in 1922, and since I can find no date of death, I have to assume that he is probably still alive or perhaps recently deceased.

Although he worked at the Pablo Picasso Workshop for four years, Etienne is considered to be a French Impressionist. It has been reported that Marc Chagall commissioned Etienne to do work for the Paris Opera House, and Etienne supposedly has work in museums in Paris, Zurich and Brussels.

All that sounds very impressive, but does this translate into money in the art market? Currently, I think the answer is no, and his work often fails to sell when it comes up for auction. Unfortunately, when it does sell, images of his children usually bring less than $500.

Etienne also did some nudes, which bring a little more money when they come up for sale (but still less than $1,000 as a general rule), and he also did some landscapes. In addition, there are some Etienne lithographs on the market, but these usually sell for less than $100 at auction.

If N. L.-P.'s two examples are signed, in good condition and a good size, the current insurance replacement value for the pair is probably in the $400 to $600 range. But the question is, should the current owner keep them or sell them. That, of course, is strictly up to her, but let me point out that the main reason to keep any work of art is because the owner likes it and appreciates the image.

So, if N. L.-P. likes these two paintings, she should keep them. But, whether she likes them or not she should not sell them at a garage sale. In this kind of downscale venue in East Tennessee, these painting would probably bring next to nothing.

I think she should keep them for the time being and see if the price goes up in the short term. If she should decide to sell, consigning them to a reputable auction house would be the thing to do.

2011年11月15日星期二

Early version of famous Victorian 'Derby Day' painting found hanging

An early version of 'The Derby Day,' a panoramic painting by famed Victorian artist William Powell Frith, was found in a New England beach house.

It is one of the era's most famous pictures.

The picaresque image shows crowds at an 1850s horse race, from a rich family in their carriage to gamblers, acrobats, and prostitutes.

The finished painting hangs in the Tate Britain gallery in London.

Peter Brown, Christie's director of Victorian pictures, said the rediscovery of the oil sketch was 'immensely exciting.'

It had been hanging in a modest New England beach house for decades before a friend of the owner suggested it might be worth something.

Christie's won't be more specific about the location because the owner wants to remain anonymous.

Mr Brown said the vendor, who is in his 60s, believes his parents bought the painting some time before World War II, when Victorian art was often dismissed as garish and sentimental.

'It's a testament to the change in fortunes of Victorian pictures over the last century that these things could have been acquired very cheaply indeed in the '30s, '40s and '50s,' said Mr Brown.

Since the 1970s, critical opinion has changed, and works by the best Victorian artists are coveted by collectors.

'It's really a novel in paint and would have been read as such by the Victorian picture-going public,' Mr Brown said.

The painting goes on sale December 15 in London, with an estimate of $477,000 to $800,000.

Mr Frith, one of the era's most successful painters, specialized in busy scenes of daily life, and his subjects ranged from beach-goers to railway stations to royal weddings.

He rose to fame by way of his meticulously painted scenes, which often depicted both the very rich and the very poor.

In 1853, the painter was appointed a full member of the Royal Academy.

By this time, Mr Frith had made plenty of high-profile friendships. He was familiar with fellow painter William Turner, as well as Charles Dickens, who he immortalized in a portrait in 1859.

He was also a favourite of the Royal Family.

'The Derby Day' was so popular when first exhibited in 1858 that a special rail was installed at the Royal Academy in London to hold back the crowds.

In fact, rails had to be installed at no less than six of his paintings.

'The Derby Day' depicts three main scenes.

In the first, on the far left, men in top hats focus on the 'thimble-rigger.'

An acrobat and his son are in the center of 'The Derby Day,' greedily eying a lavish picnic laid out by a footman.

Racegoers on the right hang about their carriages and flirt and also prepare picnics, while a ragged, hungry-looking girl begs for food.

2011年11月14日星期一

Russell Drysdale's rare old Gran eyes $1m

The metre-high oil on board is one of seven pictures for sale from the estate of Irvin Rockman, the thrice-married, controversy-plagued former lord mayor of Melbourne.

Rockman died last year and is remembered for financially backing the initial Dan Murphy liquor stores and founding Rockman Regency luxury hotel. He inherited the picture from his parents, clothing retailers Norman and Susie Rockman.

Despite the foreboding appearance of Gran, Sotheby's chairman Geoffrey Smith said its value lay in its scarcity.

"(Drysdale) painted very few portraits, fewer than 300," he said. "He just wasn't very prolific, they took a long time and he was independently wealthy and painted for love."

Drysdale was known to destroy works he was unhappy with rather than release them.

"That's why they are sought-after: works from this period don't often appear on the market," Mr Smith said.

Since 2000, nine paintings by Drysdale, who died in 1981, have sold for more than seven figures.

"The wonderful thing about Drysdale is he's a humanist; he depicts many people who are marginalised," said Mr Smith.

For its Important Australian and International Art auction in Melbourne next Tuesday, Sotheby's will auction 64 works valued at between $4m and $5.3m.

In Sydney, over the two days prior, Bonhams Australia will auction jewellery, furniture, decorative arts, Aboriginal art and Australian art valued at between $6.3m and $8.7m. The following week, on November 30 in Melbourne, Deutscher and Hackett will auction 161 lots of Important Australian and International Art valued between $4.1m and $5.5m.

Veteran dealer Denis Savill, who has this year curtailed his once vigorous auction-buying activity, said "all the auction houses have much more meagre offerings than a couple of years ago".

The scarcity of valuable works on offer is the result of collectors who don't have to sell refraining from consigning works into the current flat market.

2011年11月13日星期日

Tihar masala to spice up your food

Soon, food items and condiments made by Tihar inmates will occupy your kitchen shelves. What's more: you can buy detergents, biscuits, namkeen and even jute bags made by the inmates. The largest prison complex in south Asia is also set to become a competing brand in grocery shops across the city. And, when you visit the trade fair at Pragati Maidan this time around, you can even spot brand TJ's (Tihar Jail's) stall at the fair. With 15 new distributors appointed by the Tihar authorities for the National Capital Region (NCR), soon the TJ's products will be available in every nook and cranny, say Tihar officials.

"In the last fiscal year, our turnover was Rs 14 crore. This year, we have expanded our range of products and aim to have a turnover of Rs 20 crore. The products made by our inmates are of good quality and competitively priced. It gladdens the heart of the inmates to know their products are in demand outside the jail premises," said Sunil Gupta, Tihar law officer and PRO.

Tihar has recently launched its own spice manufacturing unit. Now, they also plan to open a blanket manufacturing factory in jail 8 and 9. "Each year, we float tenders in Panipat to provide us with blankets for our inmates. Each of the 12,500 prisoners is entitled to four blankets. We plan to save government money by starting this unit. We will first meet our own requirements and then put the extra blankets up on sale. We are also launching TJ's soap and detergent powder," said a senior Tihar official.

Presently, Tihar Jail products can be found in all court complexes in Delhi including high court. Around 20 branches of Kendriya Bhandaar and Khaadi Bhandaar also stock TJ's products.

With the new distributors in the fray, these products will soon be available at grocery shops as well.

The products include handloom and textile, apparel, furniture, pure mustard oil, recycled hand-made paper products, paintings, designer candles and lamps, jute bags, herbal products.

"TJ's is a brand developed with a non-commercial and non-profit objective. Tihar jail factory provides an opportunity to reform and rehabilitate the inmates by channelizing their energy in a positive direction," said a senior jail official.

2011年11月10日星期四

The Art World's Slowpokes

Sure, everyone likes Jan Vermeer now, three hundred-plus years after the seventeenth century Dutch artist's death, but most art dealers want little to do with artists who can only produce two or three paintings a year -- Vermeer created fewer than 40 in his lifetime.

"There are lots of difficulties in building a career when you don't have a large inventory," New York dealer Louis K. Meisel said. "You want to have one-person shows every two or three years, but the artist may not have enough completed works to exhibit. You want to show the artist's work at galleries in other cities, in order to attract out-of-town buyers, but you can't do it because there is just nothing to spare. You also have to sell each painting for more money than other artists might receive just because the artist has so few other works to sell."

Meisel, who has represented the work of photo realist painters (most averaging four works a year) since the early 1970s, developed a number of creative approaches to surmount these difficulties, but many other dealers just don't want the bother and will forego otherwise promising artists. "Admittedly, there are times when you get frustrated, waiting and waiting for the works to dribble in, for the shows to take place," said New York dealer Nancy Hoffman, who represents a number of nonprolific artists. "It's much harder to keep an artist in the public eye if there are five years between shows. Shows give context to the work."

Finding an accommodating art dealer is no small challenge for artists with low productivity. "I've had dealer after dealer tell me that they like the images I do but not the low volume," William Beckman, who produces an average of two paintings a year, said. "Dealers just can't appreciate the length of time it takes me to get that image right, and they say they can't show me and pay the overhead." Beckman never was much faster. He may apply as many as 100 layers of paint, which he then scrapes and sandpapers ("I have an obsession with a certain surface"). In 1969, he worked all year long on a single six-foot tall painting of his (now ex-) wife, which he sold two years later for $10,000, keeping only $5,000 after the commission was paid. "I really began to question whether I could do this," he noted. "Now, I had a wife and child to support." Ohio State University offered him a teaching position in 1971. "I flew home [Brooklyn, New York] to talk to my wife about it and, as soon as I got through the door, she told me there was a buyer for the painting I was then working on, so I tore up the contract and stuck with it."

Even the most understanding dealers may show exasperation from time to time at artists who do not produce many paintings. Barbara Dixon Drewa, a trompe l'oeil painter in Houston, Texas, stated that "I've had dealers suggest to me that I get an assistant to do the finishing touches, to speed everything up. Others have suggested that I spend less time with my family and just paint. I'm working 30-40 hours per week in the studio on my painting as it is." Her one-person shows at the Fischbach Gallery in New York City take place when she is able to complete enough works to fill the space. A single oil-on-wood painting takes between 10 and 12 weeks to create, and each is sent up to her dealer as soon as the paint is dry. Usually, they are sold quickly but with the proviso that the gallery may borrow the works back for exhibitions--that is a common solution to the slow-producing artist problem, filling up the gallery walls for exhibitions even though half or more of the works may not be for sale.
At times, the walls just cannot be filled. Beckman noted that he has had shows with only two paintings, displaying each spotlighted painting in a darkened room, which adds a certain visual excitement to the event while making a virtue of necessity.

There are certain options for dealers of slow-producing artists and others for the artists themselves. In order to help artists work full-time on their art, some dealers offer advances against future sales or suggest foundations to which artists may apply for grants and fellowships. Similarly, some dealers also arrange commissions for their artists as well as recommend them for teaching positions. Some artists also become more productive when a specific exhibition date is scheduled. Artists are usually appreciative if their dealers are understanding and supportive of their slow processes, not carping at them or dropping them from the gallery when they don't produce a certain number of pictures. "Artists aren't factories," Robert Fishko, director of Forum Gallery in New York, said. "You can't put on a second shift. You just have to accept the artist with whatever level of productivity he or she has."

Expanding the regional or national exposure for artists with relatively few works to show sometimes entails a dealer placing advertisements in art magazines and other publications. Louis Meisel noted that he has been able to put together exhibitions of his photo realist artists for loans to galleries in other cities by including "two of this artist, two of that artist, two of another and two of someone else, because there just aren't eight works by one artist to lend out." In general, artists who may go long periods between one-person exhibits are more likely to be included in group shows.

All other things being equal, realist painters, especially those who concentrate on fine details, are more likely to have a small output than artists in other media and styles. "When I was an abstract expressionist, I produced lots and lots of work. It's the nature of the beast," said painter and sculptor Audrey Flack. "When I started doing the photo realism, that's when everything slowed down. I'd say to myself, 'Here I am working all this time on this finger and, during this time, someone else has already done 20 paintings.'" She noted that the slower pace of productivity increased the problem of earning a living as well as "raises the stakes" when the completed work is finally exhibited to the public. "You show your work and people don't get it, or some critic condemns it, you may wonder, 'Have I wasted the last few years of my life?' If I do just three paintings in two years, and only one sells, I think, 'How am I supposed to live off that?'"

The labor-intensive approach of painstaking realism requires career expectations as patient as the artistic technique itself. Realist artists cannot expect that their paintings will sell for much more than another painter's work simply because it took them longer to create them. Photo realist painter Don Eddy, who said that he "lived from painting to the painting" in the early 1970s and produces only four or five works a year, noted that he always spends "less than my income, and I've created a reserve that now could carry me through three or four years if there were a fallow period. That takes the pressure off."

Another way of taking at least some more of the pressure off is by creating works in different sizes and media that do not take as much time as the larger pieces. Audrey Flack and Janet Fish, for instance, both paint in watercolors (Flack: "because you can finish them in a day, and it's a way to get out of the studio and into nature"; Fish: "because I can do three or four a day, and it has helped me open up my larger paintings").

Studies for larger, more time-consuming works also flesh out an exhibition as well as provide more affordable pieces. William Beckman also helps "fill the gallery's walls with drawings," both in pencil and charcoal, that sell for between $3,000 and $11,000, far less than the large (six-by-five-foot: $160,000) and small (two-by-three-foot: $45,000) paintings. Candace Jans, a Boston artist, exhibits and sells the studies (gouaches and alkyds) for her larger oil paintings, of which she may only produce two a year. While the studies sell for far less ($2,500 for a five-by-eight-inch or $5,000-$6,000 for a 12-by-18-inch) than the oils ($25,000-$30,000), their more plentiful supply increases the likelihood of something selling right away. The studies are also less taxing for her: "They are straight-forward exercises," she said. "It's what I see in front of me. I don't have all the compositional problems of the larger paintings. The studies are a palette cleanser."

Varying the size also increases the artistic output of Scott Pryor, a painter who spends an average of two months on his four-by-six-foot paintings but just a few days or weeks on his smaller (five-by-eight-inch or one-by-two-foot) paintings. "After I finish one of the larger paintings, I think, 'Gee, I don't want to do that much more again for a long time,'" he said. "And even though I get more money for the larger paintings, proportionately I make more from the smaller works because I can do so many more of them." He added that he creates the larger paintings "on a lot of faith, because the larger works may be harder to sell since they cost more."

2011年11月9日星期三

Kick off the holiday season with Second Friday event

This month's Second Friday offers a variety of ways to beat the cool air.

On Nov. 11, from 5-8 p.m., start with a Full Moon party at SouthEast Expeditions at the Wharf. Get howling with their free margaritas and new Florida Keys paddling slideshow, "Sunshine Billionaires." Next door at Mallards at the Wharf mention Second Friday and get a free appetizer with any two entrees.

Up on North Street, several eateries will warm you with food, spirits and music. North Street Market will offer a wine tasting from 4-6 p.m. with four personal selections, cheese and appetizers, all reasonably priced and great for the holiday. The Barracuda Pub will offer 10 percent off everything on the menu until 9 p.m. Janet's Café will offer light, fresh and healthy dinners. At the Blarney Stone Pub, the music group, Americana Lovebirds, will warm your heart and keep your toes tapping with the music of several generations.

Reflecting that Second Friday coincides with Veterans Day, the Inn & Garden Café will offer free desserts for military veterans with proof of service. They will also feature three appetizers for $10 or one for $4. Reservations are suggested, call 757-787-8850.

Second Friday is a great opportunity to get an early start on holiday shopping. At gardenART on King Street, come in to see the festive autumn and Christmas décor and great gift selection. Just down the road, the Richardson Gallery will present new paintings by Jack Richardson, John Nyberg, Daniel Lawrence and others. Light refreshments will be served. Nearby at its new location at 6 North Street, Purls Yarn Shop will offer the newest luxury yarns by Louisa Harding, Artyarns and Blue Heron.

The Historic Onancock School on College Avenue will offer something brand new for November's Second Friday -- a pottery exhibit and demonstration in the main room. At Art in Life Gallery (Room 109) start your shopping with fashion scarves, new jewelry and Doug Small oil paintings at special pricing for the holidays.

To see work from the Eastern Shore Art League take a quick detour to The Hermitage, out on North Street to see new work on display in the lobby. Refreshments will be served.

Back on Market Street, Dawn will be bright and inviting with all the colors of Fall in clothing, accessories and unique ingredients for home, bath and body and gifts (open until 7 p.m.). Next door, Great Space ETC will again hold its Second Friday "Surprise Sale." Stop in to see if what's on sale. The Red Queen Gallery will feature Carole Campbell woodcuts, Scot Dolby's wonderful paintings, and Vesna Zidovec's pottery.

At the Crockett Gallery, patrons can get 20 percent off Willie's prints and original paintings.

2011年11月8日星期二

Local artists offer accessible art at Metcalfe show

Three Ottawa artists are “recessionizing” the business of fine art at their very first art show this coming Saturday, Nov. 12 and Sunday, Nov. 13 at the Metcalfe Town Hall on Victoria Street.

Deborah Lyall, Barbara Carlson and John Benn have come together after years of friendship to showcase their artwork that, while distinct in their styles and media, share two important commonalities: local content and accessibility.

“Our thing is to have art that’s affordable for the everyday person to buy. It’s kind of like recessionizing the way that you sell art, to have it more accessible to people who are on budget,” explained Greely framer and relatively new artist Lyall, who creates vintage fashion-inspired graphics working from old Ottawa Citizen catalogues, advertisements and photos.

While Lyall uses recycled paper, repurposed fabrics and other multimedia materials to create her fun – and often very funny – graphics, Carlson spends her time extrapolating fun and whimsical creatures, objects and fashion pieces out the junk she finds on the ground around Ottawa. Objects are scanned into their digital form, where she then works them into animated drawings from her very unique imagination.

“If you look at things you can recognize the items. If you look up close,” Lyall said.

One of Carlson’s drawings hanging in Lyall’s house is called the “homemade highrise,” an image of a towering brick apartment building made up of photos of many different houses, walk-ups and apartments around the city.

“A beautiful mind, this woman has,” Lyall added.

Carlson’s husband John Benn is perhaps the most traditional of the three, creating ‘plein air’ oil paintings of various landscapes and scenes found in Ottawa South.

Plein air painting sounds just like what it is: the artist takes his materials, sits outside in the elements and paints the scene in front of him from start to finish.

“The man is amazing. He paints outside in the cold. He will be outside being eaten by bugs all day, and it’s done in a short amount of time. Plein air painting tends to be a little more coarse,” Lyall explained.

Benn used to be a well-known etcher in the capital as well, creating intricate scenes and landscapes around Ottawa.

“It’s a really good mix, the three of us together. I think it will be an interesting show,” Lyall said.

Lyall grew up in an antique shop and now runs a picture framing business out of her log cabin home near Greely, where she is famous for making shadow boxes to display heirlooms and cherished items.

Now 50, after 20 years of framing other peoples’ art, she decided last year to start making her own.

She was inspired by her grade six teacher Bob Robb, who taught her at Blossom Park Public School and kept in touch throughout her life until he died this year.

“He always encouraged me in art, and he always said ‘How come you’re not doing it?’ I thought framing was going to be it for me. But I got this bug to start doing my own stuff about a year ago. I started working with fabric and multi media work and this is what’s happened,” she said, gesturing to the chaotic studio hung with dozens of her signature vintage silhouettes. Postage stamp-inspired cameos, variations on old-fashioned underclothes, colourful flowers, old trucks and vintage formalwear pop out of their frames around the room, outlined in black and backed with bright colours.

A quilt comprised of ornate paper stars is dedicated to Robb, whose funeral Lyall spoke at several months ago, and whose family will be at the art show. Prints of individual quilting squares will be on sale for $40.

“This gentleman always said to us, ‘Don’t live on the sidelines of your life; reach.’ So, of course, I made stars,” she said.

2011年11月7日星期一

Pieces of the past up for sale at antique show

Salisbury is a long way from Lynchburg, Va., but Frances Jackson and her husband, Hugh, think it’s worth the time for the sake of antiques.

The couple own Jackson’s Antiques and will have a booth at this year’s Historic Salisbury Antique Show, which begins later this weekend. This is the 58th year of the event.

The show is at the Salisbury Civic Center, 315 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. The show hours are 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Friday with lunch and dinner served, and 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday with lunch served.

Tickets are $6 at the door and $5.50 in advance.

Advance tickets can be purchased at the following places — Salisbury Emporium, 230 E. Kerr St.; the Rowan Museum, 114 S. Jackson St.; Clyde’s, 224 E. Bank St.; Queen’s Gifts, 221 S. Main St. and Caniche, 200 S. Main St.

“We have done it for five years and it’s a little far for us to come, plus my husband and I both have full time jobs, but everytime we go the people are just wonderful,” Frances said.

She said they always seem to do pretty OK when they participate.

The Jacksons have Chinese Export Rose Medallion, Canton, Early Chinese Export as well as English and American furniture.

In addition to setting up a booth, the two shop the show.

“I pick up items once I’m there. You’re always looking and always find things you add to your collection,” she said.

The annual event — the oldest of its kind in North Carolina — benefits Rowan Museum and its two house museums, the Old Stone House and the Utzman-Chambers House.

“I look at antiques as a wise investment,” said one organizer, Virginia Robertson.

She said there is nothing like the quality and craftsmanship of the items that will be found at the show.

“It’s unparalleled,” Robertson said.

She said antiques can be used as a statement piece in a room.

Tickets for the patron’s dinner are $85 and will take place at 6:30 p.m. on Thursday.

Davis Cooke with Old Sarum Gallery in Salisbury has been participating for years.

He and business partner John Short will have about 10-15 pieces ranging from museum quality art pieces, known artists and what Cooke calls “some sweet little paintings” that may not have a well known artist, but are still a great find.

“Antiques are a connection with the history of our past whether its jewelry or art, that’s a tangible link,” Cooke said.

The majority of what Old Sarum Gallery has falls under landscape and seascape.

The antique show is a way for some people to expand their art collection or start a collection.

“We’re preserving and restoring history,” Cooke said.

He also has people who typically stop by his booth who don’t necessarily want to buy a painting, but want to know how to restore one they own.

Old Sarum Gallery does restoration services as well.

2011年11月6日星期日

Annual event showcases artists, kicks off holiday shopping

Thanksgiving is still a few weeks away, but it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Waterloo Center for the Arts staff and volunteers are knee-deep in glitter and garland, setting the stage for the annual Holiday Arts Festival, Saturday and next Sunday (Nov. 12-13). Artists from nine Midwestern states soon will roll up in their sleighs and unload paintings, pottery, jewelry and other artwork for sale at the annual juried event.

Shopping hours are from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. The festival is free and open to the public.

"It's so exciting," says Jacqui Komschlies from Appleton, Wis. Komschlies and her daughter, Chelsea Reisner, a student at Wartburg College in Waverly, are jewelry makers participating in their first Holiday Arts Show. "You should see my Facebook page --- 'we got into an art show!' For Chelsea and I, it gives us so much to be able to come home and make pretty things, then go someplace where people are coming because it's art," she says.

Komschlies describes her intricately woven, multistrand necklaces as "painting with beads. I take a picture and try to re-create that feeling and colors and the essence of the picture in beads." Her pieces have names like "Midnight Sky," "Seashore Christmas" and "Christmas Treasure." Daughter Chelsea works with polymer clay and other elements to create unique and fanciful jewelry.

The festival will feature 67 artists from Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Ohio, Nebraska and Wisconsin.

Chad Forbis, a painter from St. Louis, will be returning for his second show. "I was impressed last year. I liked the feel of the show and there was a good crowd both days. The volunteers did an awesome job and the quality of the work is high, so I'm looking forward to it," he says.

Forbis' most recent pieces are 12-by-12-inch paintings of birds in oil, acrylics, spray paint, pen and raw pigments on veneer plywood. He contrasts their natural shapes against often rough-hewn objects. Some paintings are humorous, such as "Weight of the World," featuring a large bird perched on the shoulders of a small bird, and are visual metaphors for real life situations and sentiment, he explains.

This year's event will celebrate the legacy of Clarence Alling, the late former WCA director, who began the arts festival tradition more than 40 years ago.

"He was way ahead of his time in doing this sort of thing," says Maureen Newbill, WCA visitor services manager and festival organizer. "He thought art should be accessible, and he was an artist in his own right."

Alling died last year, but left a large collection of his own pottery to the center, some pieces for the permanent collection as well as pieces that will be sold at the festival through Friends of the Center, a group he founded.

Other activities include a ceramics studio pottery sale and fundraiser, featuring work by dozens of students and instructors priced from $1 to about $ 10. Proceeds will support the WCA Ceramics Studio.

Scott Cawelti will be signing copies of his new book, "Brother's Blood: The True Story of the Mark Family Murders" at 1:30 p.m. Saturday, and Brandon Brockway will sign copies of "Waterloo Postcard History Series" at 1:30 p.m. next Sunday.

The ArtHouse Cafe will be open from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. and the Phelps Youth Pavilion will offer half-price admission both days.

2011年11月3日星期四

Mont Vernon Artisans planning annual show and sale

Mont Vernon Artisans will host their sixth annual Show and Sale featuring art and fine crafts.

Meet 20 artists and artisans and view their work in glass, silver, photography, textiles, beads, pottery, oils, acrylics, watercolor, woodturning and more. Get a jump on holiday shopping and enter to win a basket of handcrafted gifts. This stop on the New Hampshire Open Doors tour is held in collaboration with the League of NH Craftsmen and NH Made.

The Mont Vernon Artisans are artists and makers of fine craft, amateur and professional, who are residents of Mont Vernon and are engaged in supporting and learning from each other.

These Mont Vernon Artisans will showcase their art or craft: Mike Amadeo, woodworker and beadmaker; Anita Carroll, glass beads, photography and graphic design; Sheila Clegg, handcrafted silver jewelry; Tony Immorlica, turned objects; Lyn Jennings, baked goods and cheeses; Kyeong Kim, jewelry and photography; JoAnn Kitchel, illustrator; Doug Kolb, hand-sculpted jewelry; Michelle Kolb, fine silver jewelry; Sarah Lawrence, creative calligraphy; Cheryl Miller, fabric collages and paintings; Hazel Milligan, paintings on canvas and wood; Karen Mitchell, fine silver jewelry; Jane Nilles, video, vignettes and design; Roxanne O’Brien, watercolor and oil; Paula Pestana, acrylic and watercolor; Earle Rich, wood-turned objects; Susanna Ries, stained glass; Amanda Wassell, handmade accessories; and Nina Zotcavage, contemporary jewelry.

All Mont Vernon residents at any stage of their practice are welcome to join Mont Vernon Artisans. The group hosts events that give members an opportunity to show and sell their work, such as the sixth annual Veterans Day weekend event. The artisans also display their crafts at the town’s Spring Gala in mid-May and participate in events that support other town organizations to celebrate the presence of art and fine craft in the community. The Mont Vernon Artisans and the Friends of the Mont Vernon Daland Memorial Library recently collaborated in a fundraiser for which the artisans painted chairs and stools based on favorite children’s books, the library hosted an ice cream social, and the event culminated in a successful auction.

2011年11月2日星期三

PoMo Art Association hosts annual sale by members this weekend

Still life, portraits and Mother Earth in her glory will be among the subjects shown this weekend at the 44th annual Port Moody Art Association sale — one of the most highly anticipated events of the year for Tri-City artists and collectors.

Some 50 PMAA members will have about 160 acrylic, watercolour, oil and mixed media paintings up for grabs: all of them new and, best of all, original.

PMAA spokesperson Tracey Costescu said Friday night will be the hottest ticket in town as buyers pack the opening reception, wanting to get the first pick of the offerings.

“Our members have been working all year to get ready for this show,” she said. “And we insist that we have only new artwork and no repeats. We find that if we have prints, it brings another dimension so we prefer originals because it really adds to the excitement for the crowd.”

One PMAA member showing four works at the sale — and for the first time — is Leesa Hanna, a Port Moody resident who uses a variety of media such as photography, collage, charcoal, and acrylic, watercolour, oil and encaustic paintings.

Though Hanna has displayed in solo and group shows regularly since 2008, including at the Los Angeles Center for Digital Art, she hopes to focus more on her craft, especially now that she has settled into her film set decoration career and that her preschool daughter is getting older.

In fact, the 43-year-old artist recently took three months off and spent time in her studio at 2709 Esplanade in Rocky Point Park, often with her girl in tow. Hanna gave her a paint brush and canvas, and the pair found inspiration in a Georgia O’Keeffe book. Her daughter’s creation impressed Hanna so much that “I framed it and put it on my wall,” she said, proudly, “and it was really enjoyable to have her by my side.”

Hanna started in the art scene as an apprentice to a fashion photographer. She branched out on her own, snapping mainly black and white pictures, but found the profession didn’t suit her.

She took a few classes at Emily Carr University of Art and Design but never graduated.

“Life,” she said, “just ended up happening.”

Hanna added, “I think that if I’m going to win the lottery, I’m going to go back to art school because the biggest thing that I lack is the technical aspect. I have books. I have the internet. I have lots of artist friends. But I really want to master painting and just immerse myself in the whole culture.”

These days, Hanna’s artwork is being sold at Chartreuse Living, a furniture store in Suter Brook village.

2011年11月1日星期二

Child artist Kieron Williamson to hold new exhibition

The oil, watercolour and pastel originals are expected to fetch between £1,000 and £15,500 each.

He has already earned enough from art to buy a house on the Norfolk Broads.

The latest paintings include scenes from Kieron's home county and abroad.

Kieron's last exhibition at the Norfolk gallery in 2010 caused a stir across the art world, with his collection of works selling out in 30 minutes.

Fans camped outside the gallery days before the sale, with people from as far away as Arizona in the US snapping up his paintings.

His last exhibition was at the Delamore Arts Festival in Devon in May, where his works sold out before the event began.

"It's lovely to see a nine-year-old boy keeping traditional landscape painting alive," said Kieron's mother, Michelle.

"The new paintings reflect Kieron's continuing passion for capturing Norfolk landscapes, as well as dipping his toes into foreign waters.

"We see massive progress in Kieron's work every three months or so and so you can't help but celebrate and share this progress with family, friends and the public."

While giving some of his earnings to charity, Kieron's parents have so far invested much of his fortune in property.

He bought his first house in Ludham on the Norfolk Broads, where the famous watercolour and oil-based artist Edward Seago once lived, in March.

Plans are still in place for the family to move to Cornwall in the near future, hoping it will further develop the young artist's talent.

Mrs Williamson also confirmed a retrospective exhibition and sale has been organised at Picturecraft Gallery for next year's Holt Festival, to coincide with Kieron's 10th birthday.