Richard Meier @ TASCHEN Store, NYC for book signing, 06/06/08

TASCHEN proudly presents:

RICHARD MEIER
Live and in person to sign copies of his new monograph,
Richard Meier & Partners, Complete Works 1963-2008.

This event is free and open to the public and we hope to see you there!

Tuesday, June 3, 2008
6–8 PM

TASCHEN Store New York
107 Greene Street (b/w Prince and Spring)
New York, NY 10012
212) 226-2212

For those unable to attend, pre-order a signed copy: store-ny@taschen.com

All information courtesy of TASCHEN.

Scion's National Art Tour/Show and Live Auction, Los Angeles

Scion's National Art Tour - INSTALLATION 4: It's A Beautiful World -Concludes in Los Angeles with Show and Live Auction

Los Angeles - April 2008 -Scion's Installation 4, "It's A Beautiful World," opened in Los Angeles, the last of nine cities on the national tour, on May 10th. More than 800 people attended the opening night festivities, including most of the artists. The innovative Scion Installation Art Tour launched its fourth installment last July and features a diverse array of artists from around the world. The theme, "It's a Beautiful World," was interpreted by each artist, in one of four mediums— painting, photography, sculpture, and collage. The culmination of the tour is accompanied by a live auction where all of the artwork will be auctioned off to the public, and 100 percent of the proceeds will go toward art related charities - This year's recipient: Art From Scrap, an organization encouraging creative expression in the arts and promoting a greater understanding of environmental issues: http://www.artfromscrap.org. In previous years, the auctions have raised more than $110,000 for charity.

This year's artists include: Andrew Pommier, Andy Mueller, Angela Boatwright, Blaine Fontana, Blek LeRat, Books llll, Caia Koopman, Chris Yormick, Cody Hudson, Dalek, David Choe, Eye One, Francesco LoCastro, Freddi C, J. Shea, James Jean, Jeff Soto, Joshua Krause, Kelsey Brookes, Kenton Parker, Kofie, Mel Kadel, Michael Sieben, Mike Giant, Rammellzee, RETNA, R. Grimes, Ron English, Sam Flores, Sage Vaughn, Skwerm, Tim McCormick, Travis Millard, and The London Police.

The auction will be held in Los Angeles, at the Scion Installation L.A. space in the Culver City Arts District on Sunday, June 1, 2008 from 4pm - 7pm (auction begins promptly at 5 pm), as well as online and on phone lines. Located at 3521 Helms Ave. (at National), Culver City, Calif., 90232, the gallery will also host all the artwork during the 3rd Annual Culver City Artwalk happening Saturday, May 31st.

The gallery website is: http://www.scion.com/space. For information on bidding, visit: http://www.scion.com/installation.

Scion Installation 4 has visited the following cities around the country: Philadelphia; Austin; Chicago; New York; Seattle; Boston; and Minneapolis. Each tour stop kicked off with an opening event for local art aficionados, press, and other urban tastemakers.

The tour also stopped in Miami for the prestigious Art Basel event. Six of this year's artists designed custom balloons, each eight-feet in diameter, which were flown over the grounds of the Raleigh Hotel. Also on display were the custom designed Scion art cars from Dalek, Sage Vaughn, and Ron English.

Launched in 2003, Scion Installation is a revolutionary art tour affirming Scion's ongoing commitment to supporting independent artistic expression and featuring work from an unprecedented collective of contemporary artists. Previous participants have included: Andre from Paris, Gary Baseman, Mr Cartoon, Crash, Daim, Daze, Sam Flores, Friendswithyou, Futura, Mike Giant, Justin Hampton, Krush, Mear One, Ricky Powell, Persue, Revok, Retna, Rostarr, Saber, Kenny Scharf, Seak, StayHigh 149, Wearesupervision, and more. The program is designed to give exposure to both established and emerging artists.

For more information on the tour, the artists, the artwork, details from past tours, and to BID NOW please visit: http://www.scion.com/installation

All information courtesy of Scion.

Sarah Wilmer @ Randall Scott Gallery, Washington, DC

Sarah Wilmer
photographs
may 31st-july 5th
artists reception: may 31st
7pm-9pm

Randall Scott Gallery
1326 14th Street NW
Washington, D.C. 20005

202-332-0806
202-332-0807 fax
www.randallscottgallery.com
info@randallscottgallery.com

Hours:
11AM-6PM Wed-Sat

Location
1/2 block south of Rhode Island at 14th Street NW
2nd floor above Thai Tanic Restaurant

All text and imagery courtesy of Randall Scott Gallery.

WITW/DESIGN STUDIO at Rooms on View

WITW / DESIGN STUDIO
at Rooms on View
-----------------------------------------------------
Designers from the Whatiftheworld / Design Studio collective,
Adriaan Hugo, Xandre Kriel, Liam Mooney and Lyall Sprong will
be launching new bench designs at Rooms on View this weekend.
The benches will be available for viewing at the iLunch stand
curated by Laureen Rossouw. Click here for more info

'South African House'
Rooms On View
Gallagher Estate, Midrand
Johannesburg

Thursday 29th May - Friday 30th May 10h00 - 20h00
Saturday 31st May - Sunday 1st June 10h00 - 18h00





ABOUT WITW / DESIGN STUDIO
-----------------------------------------------------
The WITW / Design Studio creates opportunities, projects and
platforms for emerging local designers. The studio showroom
operates as a multi-disciplinary collective and stocks furniture,
fashion and products from some of South Africa’s most exciting
young designers. In addition to this, the studio also offers
interior design services, creative direction, project management,
and specialized commissioning. Click here for more info.


UPCOMING EVENTS
-----------------------------------------------------
> T - a night sale of limited edition designer t-shirts
in collaboration with Dokter & Misses, and Friends.
Thursday, 19 June 2008 18h00 - 21h00
WITW / DS Showroom 11 Hope Street, East City, CT

> Tuis Nywerheid - a Bake Sale
Chocolates, cakes and other sweet designer treats.
Coming August '08 !

> Number Three - the third in a series of projects and
events for emerging designers. Coming October '08 !

-----------------------------------------------------

Whatiftheworld / Design Studio
Showroom: 11 Hope Street
East City, Cape Town, 8001
M - F 10h00 - 16h00
Sat 10h00 - 14h00

For ordering information or enquiries,
please contact Liam Mooney on 084 550 1037
liam@whatiftheworld.com

All imagery and text courtesy of WhatIfTheWorld Gallery.

ChinaSquare Gallery presents "Zhao Nengzhi: Confessional Configuration"

ZHAO NENGZHI
CONFESSIONAL FIGURATION

Essay by Jonathan Goodman
June 3-28, 2008
Opening reception: June 5, 2008 6:00-8:00 pm

ChinaSquare Gallery is pleased to present Zhao Nengzhi: Confessional Figuration, on view from June 3, 2008.

Born in the early 1960s, Zhao Nengzhi belongs to a generation old enough to remember the Cultural Revolution and has been shaped by the disappointments of Tiananmen Square. His disturbed, disturbing faces act as troubled witnesses to a culture filled with the wish for things. Interestingly, however, the terms of the figures’ disaffection and anomie is essentially private rather than public; Zhao’s red faces, painted in sizes large enough to evoke landscape, do not rely on external references to make their point; instead, hardship has been internalized, so that Zhao’s portraits communicate mostly psychological distress.

Zhao’s figures wrestle with an unspoken grief that seems inexorable and overwhelming; figuration here gives him the room to paint and sculpt in broadly engaged terms, which beg the question: Why such alienation in an environment of abundance and greater personal freedom? Zhao’s strength is that he refuses to give answers to such a question, referring the query back to his audience. The sheer rawness of the artist’s red heads emphasizes coarse features and troubled dispositions, which many would see as evidence of social hopelessness.

A fully illustrated catalogue accompanies this exhibition. For more information please contact the gallery at info@chinasquareny.com.

All imagery and text courtesy of ChinaSquare Gallery.

MUTO- a wall painted animation by BLU

The powerHOUSE Arena and Juxtapoz announce "The HUSTLE"

Opening Reception:
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
6-9pm

The powerHOUSE Arena
37 Main Street
Brooklyn, NY 11201

Music by DJ Emz
Drinks courtesy of Union Beer

RSVP: sophie@powerhousebooks.com

www.powerhousebooks.com
www.powerhousearena.com

Imagery and text courtesy of powerHOUSE books.

Duke News -- Duke's Nasher Museum Presents 'Black Mirror / Espejo Negro: A Museum Installation by Pedro Lasch'

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Tuesday, May 27, 2008

CONTACT: Wendy Hower Livingston
(919) 684-3314 (office); (919) 247-8223 (cell)
wendy.hower@duke.edu

DUKE’S NASHER MUSEUM OF ART PRESENTS ‘BLACK MIRROR / ESPEJO NEGRO:
A MUSEUM INSTALLATION BY PEDRO LASCH’

DURHAM, N.C. -- The Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University has commissioned a large-scale sculptural installation by artist Pedro Lasch to accompany the exhibition “El Greco to Velázquez.” The installation will be on view through Jan. 18, 2009.

“Black Mirror/Espejo Negro: A Museum Installation by Pedro Lasch” incorporates 16 works from the Nasher Museum’s collection of pre-Columbian art, among them 2,000-year-old ceramic figures and a black obsidian mirror. In the installation, the ceramic figures are placed in front of black reflective panels through which images of Spanish old master paintings are visible.

The installation will be on view in one of the museum’s permanent collection galleries, opposite the exhibition “El Greco to Velázquez: Art during the Reign of Philip III,” a timed and ticketed show that will be on view Aug. 21 through Nov. 9.

Lasch was born and raised in Mexico City and has been based in New York and North Carolina since 1994. He is a member of the 16 Beaver Group in New York and recently was awarded the 2007 Joan Mitchell Painters and Sculptors Award from the Joan Mitchell Foundation. An exhibition of his work, “Open Routines: Recent Projects by Pedro Lasch,” was on view at the Queens Museum in New York in 2006. He teaches art and art theory in Duke’s Department of Art, Art History and Visual Studies.

“Pedro Lasch’s work invites a poetic and aesthetic dialogue between our permanent collection and two important upcoming exhibitions at the Nasher Museum,” said Kimerly Rorschach, the Mary D.B.T. and James H. Semans Director of the Nasher Museum. “This installation makes thought-provoking connections between ancient American cultures and art from what was the conquering Spanish empire.”

“Black Mirror/Espejo Negro: A Museum Installation by Pedro Lasch” will be complemented by programs at the Nasher Museum that include an opening reception and round table discussion on June 7, a panel discussion on Nov. 20 and a family day event.

The exhibition and related programs are sponsored in part by the North Carolina Arts Council, the Mary Duke Biddle Foundation, the estate of Bettie Ferrell, Latino/a Studies and the Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies at Duke University and Diamante Inc.

_ _ _ _

The Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University

The Nasher Museum of Art, designed by Rafael Viñoly, is located at 2001 Campus Drive at Anderson Street. The museum, which opened Oct. 2, 2005, also includes a café and gift store.

The museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday; and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday. The museum is closed Mondays. Suggested admission is $5 adults, $4 for seniors and members of the Duke Alumni Association, $3 for non-Duke students with identification and free for children 16 and younger. Admission is free to Duke students, faculty and staff with Duke Cards. Admission is also free to Durham city residents who present a valid identification with proof of residency, courtesy of The Herald-Sun.

Additional information is available at www.nasher.duke.edu.

Press release courtesy of The Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University.

Pharell Williams x Domeau & Peres = Love?

Pharell has teamed up with Domeau & Peres to design select pieces of furniture that will be featured in a show in Paris at the Emmanuel Perrotin Galerie. The show runs from October 21, 2008 until January 10, 2009. The chair is suppose to represent a love between a man and woman. What are your thoughts?

Imagery courtesy of Billionairs Boys Club blog.

gap teams up with 2008 whitney biennial artists...

GAP introduces the Artist Editions T-Shirts, a limited edition collection of t-shirts designed by 13 of today’s most influential contemporary artists, including Chuck Close, Jeff Koons, Marilyn Minter, Kiki Smith, Cai Guo-Qiang, Barbara Kruger, Ashley Bickerton, Kenny Scharf, Glenn Ligon, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Kerry James Marshall, Hanna Liden and Sarah Sze.

GAP worked in close partnership with the Whitney Museum of American Art and Art Production Fund to create the collection with the 13 artists, who are all previous Whitney Biennial participants. The Whitney Biennial is a special exhibition held every two years at the Whitney Museum of American Art that features the most important contemporary art in the United States. GAP is a proud sponsor of the 2008 Whitney Biennial.

The t-shirts will be available exclusively at GAP stores in the U.S., Canada, the U.K. and franchise markets, as well as online at gap.com starting on May 15th. It’s also available at the Whitney Museum of American Art, the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Museum of Contemporary Art Chicago, the Museum of Contemporary Art Los Angeles, the Walker Art Center in Minneapolis and at Colette, a Paris-based boutique. The t-shirts range in price from $28 to $38.

Imagery and text courtesy of Freshnessmag.com

Designers team up with ELLE and Sigg to benefit Stopglobalwarming.org

Even though the bidding started on April 14, you can still participate in this eco-fabulous event. By clicking here, you will be directed to Elle's homepage then you can click on whichever bottle you would like to bid on and it will direct you to ebay.com. Partnering with Sigg, the 100-year-old Swiss maker of reusable aluminum bottles, the purpose of this auction is to help eliminate the disposal of empty plastic bottles into landfills; plastic is known to take years to biodegrade and can eventually affect our food supply. Helping to put an end to this situation are the following designers how have decided to lend their talents:

Donna Karan
Zac Posen
Sienna and Savannah Miller
Phillip Lim
Peter Som
Brian Reyes
Stella McCartney
Tommy Hilfiger
Kenneth Cole
Michael Kors
Derek Lam
Chris Benz
Diane von Furstenberg
Anna Sui

To learn more about Stopglobalwarming.org, click here.


All imagery courtesy of Elle.com.

THiRSTNY/GALAPAGOS ART SPACE/MAY 29, 2008

Performance....Art..Theatre...Music...much more...

Be sure to check out THiRSTNY & GALAPAGOS ART SPACE as they collaborate to bring you the very best of art in all of its forms. Held in the uber-chic Williamsburg, this promises to be the start of many events that will make most of Manhattan snobbery cross the bridge and enter another (gasp) borough. See you there as the unofficial four day weekend begins.

THiRSTNY
Thursday, May 29, 2008
9PM
GALAPAGOS ART SPACE
WILLIAMSBURG, BROOKLYN
COST: $10

For more information, clich here to be direct to THiRSTNY's website.

P.S., if any of you Brooklyn residents are attending please comment and give me directions; I have no idea where the hell I am going.....

Antonio Lopez Garcia @ the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

It is impossible to describe Antonio López García simply as a painter in the “realist” school. His masterful paintings of the prosaic, familiar places of his world and of the family and friends comprising it reveal an unusual sensitivity to his subject. Through uncompromising study of his subjects, he has imbued the commonplace with a haunting and extraordinary character, seen in his exceptional depiction of light—at once brilliant and subdued, ethereal and fleeting, and palpable. His unrelenting examination and depiction of his subject means that he sometimes spends years to finish a single canvas. This penetrating approach, as well as his exceptional skill, has singled out López García as one of Spain’s most revered artists.

This exhibition of approximately sixty paintings, drawings, and sculpture is presented as a complement to the exhibition “El Greco to Velázquez: Art during the Reign of Philip III.” López García is in the lineage of artists to be examined in this historical exhibition, artists who introduced naturalism into Spanish art, from an attention to detail and the depiction of space in court portraiture, to the flourishing of still life, to the humanizing of saints.

This exhibit ends on July 27, 2008 so be sure to catch it if you are ever in the Boston area. Listed below is a podcast of the artist that accompanies the exhibit; the artist explains his inspirations and motivations behind his works of art. For more information pertaining to this exhibit as well as the Museum of Fine Arts-Boston, please click here.



All information courtesy of the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and Youtube.

powerHouse Books " 25 UNDER 25: Up-and-Coming American Photographers", Volume 2

BOOK SIGNING:
Thursday, May 22, 6-8PM
powerHouse Arena
37 Main Street, Brooklyn, NY

EXHIBITION OPENING:
Thursday, May 29, 6-8PM
Tisch School of the Arts
Gulf & Western Gallery
721 Broadway, New York, NY

RECEPTION:
Thursday, May 29, 6-8PM
Mansion
530 W. 28th Street, New York, NY
RSVP: powerHouse@mansionnewyork.com

www.powerhousebooks.com

All information courtesy of powerHouse Books.

Atsushi Nishijima "100 FACES IN HARLEM" @ N Boutique

These pictures speak a thousand words and can be translated universally through human emotion. Make sure to venture to New York City (if already here head Uptown or Downtown to Harlem) and stop by N Boutique to view this exhibit in full.

N Boutique
114 West 116th Street
(Between 7th & Lenox Avenues)
New York, NY 10026
212.961.1036
email: info@nharlemnewyork.com
www.nharlemnewyork.com

For more information on Atsushi Nishijima, please click here.

All imagery courtesy of Atsushi Nishijima.

Whitney Museum: AFTER HOURS, Friday, May 23, 2008

The Whitney is pleased to announce that global law firm Clifford Chance will sponsor the Museum's popular Friday night program featuring art exhibitions, live performances, artist appearances, education events, and pay-what-you-wish admission. The program, newly named Whitney After Hours, occurs at the Whitney every Friday evening from 6:00 - 9:00 p.m.

Whitney Museum of American Art
945 Madison Avenue at 75th Street
New York, NY 10021
General Information: 1 (800) WHITNEY

Hours
Wednesday–Thursday 11 am–6 pm
Friday 1–9 pm (6–9 pm pay-what-you-wish admission)
Saturday–Sunday 11 am–6 pm
Mondays & Tuesdays - Closed

For more information concerning this event, please click here.

all imagery and text courtesy of The Whitney Museum of American Art.

Tenderpixel presents "HUGH PRYOR & JEREMY WOOD: SLIT SCANS"

SLIT SCANS
JEREMY WOOD & HUGH PRYOR
T E N D E R P I X E L

PRIVATE VIEW: MAY 22ND 6:00-9:00PM
EXHIBITION: MAY 23TH - JUNE 25TH

T E N D E R P I X E L G A L L E R Y
An Innovative Exhibition Space for Emerging Artists

Tenderpixel Gallery
10 Cecil Court
WC2N 4HE

020 7379 9464
www.tenderpixel.com
mail@tenderpixel.com
Nearest Tube: Leicester Square

http://www.myspace.com/tenderpixel
http://www.artreview.com/profile/TenderpixelGallery

all information courtesy of Tenderpixel.

LUXURY LIFESTYLE ART: The Goyard Trunk for ASSOULINE

ASSOULINE,the first luxury brand that uses publications as medium, has teamed with GOYARD to create a steamer trunk for their core demographic group. As a GOYARD owner, I am baised when I say there is nothing like the feel and look of a piece from this ultra-luxe malletier (trunkmaker) and the currently the oldest trunkmaker in history. For the small price of $20,000 you can own this piece of luxury art and be the favorite topic of discussion during your travels. The website is listed below for your purchasing pleasure.

www.assouline.com

Image courtesy of Assouline.

Roman Abramovich brings home the $86.3m Bacon and the $33.6m Freud

The Art Newspaper can reveal that the London-based Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich is the mystery buyer of Francis Bacon’s Triptych, 1976, which sold at Sotheby’s New York this week for $86.3m as well as Lucian Freud’s Benefits Supervisor Sleeping, 1995, at Christie’s for $33.6m.

Both works made auction history this week: the Bacon made the highest auction price ever for a post-war work of art, while Lucian Freud became the most expensive living artist snatching the title from Jeff Koons.

Neither Sotheby’s nor Christie’s disclose information on buyers but sources close to the market confirm that Mr Abramovich, whose fortune is estimated at £11.7bn by The Sunday Times’s Rich List, purchased both lots, apparently for display in his London home. He has not previously been known to purchase works of art at this level.

These purchases demonstrate how the balance of power in the art world is shifting away from the US. Last month we revealed that the so-called Rockefeller Rothko, which sold for $72.8m at Sotheby’s New York in May 2007, has gone to the Royal family of Qatar whose other recent purchases include works by Francis Bacon and Damien Hirst.

The Bacon Triptych purchased by Mr Abramovich was consigned to Sotheby’s by the Moueix family, owners of Château Pétrus, one of the world’s most expensive Bordeaux wines. In March we revealed that they had owned it since it was bought from a show in Paris at the Galerie Claude Bernard in 1977, where it was illustrated on the cover of the catalogue. It has figured in all major exhibitions of Bacon’s work.

Earlier this week we revealed that Mr Abramovich’s girlfriend, Dasha Zhukova, is to open a new gallery in Moscow in a 1927 bus depot designed by Konstantin Melnikov. CCC Moscow will open in September with a Kabakov retrospective. Speaking to The Art Newspaper, Ms Zhukova said she hoped “to start a dialogue with a Russian audience. We hope to attract all kinds of people to the gallery, even those who know nothing about contemporary art.” She also said that CCC Moscow had long-term plans to build a permanent collection.

Article and photographs courtesy of The Art Newspaper.

Alex Pardee x Obama x Upper Playground

The 008 and Upper Playground Partner with Alex Pardee to Support Barack Obama

SAN FRANCISCO, May 14, 2008 In an ongoing effort to secure Democratic hopeful Barack Obama's presidential bid, The 008 and Upper Playground have collaborated with Northern California-based artist Alex Pardee to create new limited screenprints of PardeeÕs portrait of Obama. The Alex Pardee poster is part of an ongoing series of artist collaborations in support of Barack ObamaÕs presidential campaign.

The Alex Pardee designed, 18" x 24" limited screenprint is now available for purchase through www.upperplayground.com. The print comes in two colors, blue and gray, with 100 prints available in each colorway. Each print will be signed and numbered by Alex Pardee and retail at $200. Each poster is a pre-sale item and will not ship until June 2, 2008. All proceeds from the sales of each design from the Alex Pardee Obama poster will go directly to creating more campaign T-shirts, posters and stickers by other artists in support of Obama's bid for President. The previous Munk One poster design was used in bus shelter and billboard advertisements throughout Philadelphia prior to the primary in Pennsylvania.

For more information on Alex Pardee (www.eyesuckink.com) and his endorsement for Obama, please visit www.upperplayground.com.

The 008, Alex Pardee, and Upper Playground would like to thank everyone who continues their support of the Barack Obama campaign.

About Alex Pardee
Alex Pardee’s unique style is one conceived through watching years of horror movies, writing graffiti and listening to gangster rap. His work best represents that of a circus sideshow cemetery. Final pieces are often brought to life by translating random shapes and colors into signs of torment and absurdity. By juxtaposing these two conflicting moods, Alex makes his works more personal to his viewers, forcing them to project their own feelings and emotions onto each character in his twisted universe.

About Upper Playground
Based in San Francisco, California, Upper Playground was founded in 1999 and has become a leader in today’s progressive art movement with its innovative apparel line and art gallery, FIFTY24SF. Recognized as a catalyst for the fusion of fashion with art, Upper Playground produces apparel lines bi-annually and features designs from notable local and international artists. The apparel line is sold nationally and internationally in over 300 boutiques and online. Upper Playground’s FIFTY24SF Gallery showcases art from some of the best contemporary artists in the world with its monthly art exhibits. Please visit www.upperplayground.com for more information.

About The 008
The 008 is a volunteer group of young professionals with extensive entertainment and political experience who have united with the common goal of electing Barack Obama President of the United States. Pooling rolodexes, social and intellectual capital, along with the objective of fueling a Movement that strategically unifies and mobilizes a new generation of inspired, politically-active Americans. The 008 formed in December of 2006. For more information about 008 visit www.008themovement.org.

###

Media Contact:
Lisa Revelli
Director of Public Relations
Phone: (510) 387-3097
Email: pr@upperplayground.com


Press Release and Photos courtesy of Upper Playground.

Lovis Corinth (1858-1925) "Between Impressionism and Expressionism"

To celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Lovis Corinth, the Musée d'Orsay is presenting the work of this original artist, famous in Germany but still little known in France.

Between 1884 and 1887 Corinth stayed in Paris where he studied in Bouguereau's studio, and then in 1900 he went to live in Berlin where he became one of the most active members of the local Secession alongside Max Liebermann and Max Slevogt. Corinth tackled almost every style: mythology, religion, portraits and self-portraits, genre scenes and landscapes. Drawings, engravings and illustrated books played a key role in disseminating the work of this artist, regarded as one of the forerunners of German Expressionism.


Musee d'Orsay
1 April- 22 June, 2008
Exhibition Hall

www.musee-orsay.fr.

All text and imagery courtesy of Musee d'Orsay.

Video Tribute to Robert Rauschenberg (1925-2008)

Charles Ethan Porter @ The Studio Museum of Harlem, Apr. 2-June 29, 2008

Charles Ethan Porter (c. 1847-1923) is under-recognized today but was revered in his own time by well-known contemporaries such as Henry Ossawa Tanner and Edmonia Lewis, who worked in a more popular, figurative tradition. His paintings are masterpieces of American still-life tradition. Porter, who began painting in the aftermath of the Civil War and worked well into the twentieth century, was celebrated in his day as a skillful colorist and was one of the first black artists to exhibit at New York’s National Academy of Design. This exhibition will feature dozens of Porter’s still lifes, landscapes and portraits, and introduce audiences to this shadowy painter who deftly combined the American luminist tradition with that of the French Barbizon school. Accompanied by a new scholarly publication, the exhibition will elucidate Porter’s skill and the unsettled biography of an artist whose brilliance is only now being inscribed into the annals of American art history.

This exhibit is on view from April 2-June 29, 2008. Please go check it out before departing elsewhere.

The Studio Museum of Harlem
144 West 125th Street
New York, New York 10027
tel 212.864.4500
fax 212.864.4800
www.studiomuseum.org

All imagery and text courtesy of The Studio Museum of Harlem.

Photo: Charles Ethan Porter, Cherries, 1885.

"Cuba Art and History from 1868 to Today" @ The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts

Organized and presented by the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts from January 31 to June 8, 2008, ¡Cuba! Art and History from 1868 to Today, which brings together some 400 works of art, is the most important exhibition ever presented to showcase the art of this Caribbean island, which Christopher Columbus described as “the most beautiful land eyes have ever seen.” Thanks to the collaboration of the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes and the Fototeca de Cuba, and of many collectors and museums in the United States, including the MoMA, this exhibition draws a broad panorama of Cuban art and history. This lively and well-conceived multidisciplinary exhibition brings together about one hundred paintings, including a huge collective mural produced in 1967 by many artists, two hundred photographs and documents, approximately one hundred works on paper (in particular two collections of pre- and post-1959-Revolution posters), installations and videos, in addition to music and film excerpts.

Exhibition Summary

This ambitious exhibition features the art of Cuba, an island that has witnessed the twentieth-century’s principal historical events (decolonization, the search for a national identity, wars of independence and the Revolution, the building of political utopias and ideological clashes). Located at the crossroads of Old Europe and the New World, Cuba is a rich cultural terrain: its music and literature are well known outside of the country, but the same cannot be said of its visual arts.
The Intellectual or The Young Intellectual

The exhibition is divided into five sections: Depicting Cuba: Finding Ways to Express a Nation (1868-1927); Arte Nuevo: The Avant-garde and the Re-creation of Identity (1927-1938); Cubanness: Affirming a Cuban Style (1938-1959); Within the Revolution, Everything, Against the Revolution, Nothing (1959-1979); The Revolution and Me: The Individual Within History (1980-2007).

The exhibition’s historical narrative is told through a selection of significant photographs: from those that have never been shown to the iconic, these pictures illustrate the chronology of events as recorded by remarkable photographers. Within this account are images illustrating the major chapters in the history of Cuban art, from the nineteenth-century’s wars of independence through to the uncertainties of the future. Throughout the twentieth century, artists engaged in international discourses sought to define a national identity, Cubanidad. Intermingling a re-examination of its colonialist past and openness to the avant-garde, Cuban artists created a profoundly original art of synthesis (Baroque and academic legacies, Spanish and African roots, Catholic and traditional spirituality). Central to the century and the exhibition, with the presentation of twenty paintings, the landmark work of Wifredo Lam embodies this synthesis.
Salon de Mai Mural

At times a vehicle for collective political action and at times a personal expression vis-à-vis history, Cuban art deals with matters pertaining to a sense of place and the role of the artist in society, issues that outstanding contemporary artists continue to explore in relevant ways.

For more information on The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, click here.

All imagery and text courtesy of The Montreal Museum of Fine Arts.

Daniel Edwards immortalizes Oprah Winfrey again but with Sophie and Grace on top..

Artist Daniel Edwards has done it again by immortalizing Oprah and her beloved, deceased canines. Check out the article below which was published in the New York Daily News. Also make sure you stop by Leo Kasting's Gallery, located in New York's famed West Village, and see the artwork up close and personal.


Oprah Winfrey is the subject of a new statue by controversial artist Daniel Edwards.

Oprah Winfrey is now immortalized with dogs on her gold-painted head, thanks to the latest creation by controversial pop culture artist, Daniel Edwards.

"Memories of Sophie and Gracie: A Puppies' Memorial" is inspired by the passing of the talk show host's beloved Cocker Spaniel, Sophie, who died after choking on a ball last year, and her Golden Retriever, Gracie, who recently died from kidney failure.

"If those were two children that died under those causes, I think the world would freak out," said Edwards, adding that he made the piece to point out there are precautionary measures pet owners can do to keep their pets safe. "I think having two pets die within a year means its time to re-evaluate your home. ... Oprah just went through this. I think most people would be devastated if it happened to them."

Gallery co-director John Lee said the dogs were placed on Oprah's mane to suggest the loss might be weighing heavily on the daytime TV icon's mind. Winfrey recently dedicated a show investigating abuses at puppy mills to Sophie, whom she said "gave me 13 years of unconditional love."

This isn't the first pro-animal statue for Edwards. He made a pro-horse monument dedicated to Kentucky Derby-winning racehorse Barbaro this winter to correspond with the proposal of "Barbaros's Law," urging the mandatory disclosure of race-related horse injuries. He's also done other pieces in Oprah's likeness - a one a half-scale model depicting Oprah's Sarcophagus at Gardenfresh Gallery in Chicago last month and a life-sized Oprah burial mask.

Edwards said he uses Winfrey as a recurring motif because she's a mega-celebrity. "She's beyond celebrity," he said. "She's a lifestyle for many people."

Some of his past works include a sculpture entitled "Suri's Bronzed Baby Poop," which some believe to actually contain excrement from Suri Cruise. Other works include a sculpture of Fidel Castro and a life-size naked likeness of a dead Paris Hilton, aimed at helping to prevent women from drinking and driving. Hilton was convicted of DUI in 2006. Perhaps the most press Edwards received was for his statue of Britney Spears giving birth on a bear skin rug.

Gallery director David Kesting said Winfrey didn't know about the newest installment in the series, and the gallery has never heard directly from her camp. According to Kesting, there is speculation she had something to do with halting promotional materials and a story from being printed in local Chicago newspapers covering the previous two pieces that were held on display a few blocks from her Harpo studios.

The resin cast statue will be on display at the West Village's Leo Kesting Gallery on May 22.

All text and imagery courtesy of the NY Daily News.

NYPH 08(New York Photo Festival), May 14-18, 2008

Listed below is information pertaining to New York Photo Festival 2008 which many consider to be the "first international photography festival" to ever take place in the United Stated. Enjoy and hope to you see amongst the other photobugs!

NEW YORK PHOTO FESTIVAL 2008
The First International Photography Festival in the United States

Photography, one of the most important visual media of our lives, has been surprisingly uncelebrated, particularly in the United States. New York City, home to the most influential commercial and fine art photography community, has lacked—until now—a large-scale event dedicated to photography.

powerHouse Books and VII Photo Agency have joined forces to launch the new, annual New York Photo Festival, the first international-level festival of photography to be based in the U.S.

The inaugural New York Photo Festival (May 14–May 18, 2008) promises to deliver a dynamic, high-quality event in what is arguably the photographic capital of the world. The festival will celebrate both contemporary photography and the creative, inspirational talents of the people who produce this work.


The New York Photo Festival will be headquartered in DUMBO, an off-the-beaten-track, but easily accessible neighborhood on the Brooklyn waterfront between the Brooklyn and Manhattan Bridges.

World-Renowned Curators

The goal of the New York Photo Festival is to document the future of photography in all its forms. Our group of internationally-respected curators will deliver their personal vision of the newest and most important trends in contemporary photography, each exhibited in their own pavilion and promising to draw the attention of the entire photographic community.

Curators include Magnum photographer Martin Parr, The New York Times Magazine picture editor Kathy Ryan, Lesley A. Martin of the Aperture Foundation, and Tim Barber of tinyvices.com.

Four Days Celebrating Contemporary Photography

In addition to the curated pavilions, the festival will offer visitors an extensive range of activities that will generate dialogue and buzz among all the communities of photo professionals, amateurs, students, and aficionados of art and culture: seminars, slide shows, book signings, photographic workshops, live performances and events, and a gallery row. The festival will also be documented online in a regularly updated virtual environment.

Our Growing Support

The New York Photo Festival has already received support from major institutions and individuals in the U.S. and abroad: museums and galleries, photo agencies, the media, scholars, and more (for references, please refer to our list of advisory board members on page 4). The scope of our support demonstrates the expectations of the festival and the high standards on which it has been built thus far.

Over 100,000 Visitors Expected

With its unique scope and focus, the festival will appeal to all people involved in image-making and collecting: professional photographers and artists, arts editors, scholars, curators, collectors, as well as everyone with an appreciation for what is undoubtedly the most popular fine arts medium. The four primary international photography festivals in Europe and Canada each draw between 100,000 and 1,000,000 people per year. Our ambition is to attract a comparable audience to the inaugural festival in 2008, and to increase substantially in subsequent years as the scope and real estate available for the festival grows.

www.nyphotofestival.com

All imagery and text courtesy of New York Photo Festival.

"Back to My Roots"-Photography By Stanley Lumax Jr

The exhibit chronicles the photographer's journey to his homeland of Ghana in 2007 and back again to experience the African Cup of Nations a year later. Please take in this spectacular exhibition.

Back to My Roots
Photography by Stanley Lumax Jr.

Opening Reception:
Thursday, May 22, 2008
7-9 pm

Habana Outpost
757 Fulton St. & South Portland
Brooklyn, NY
rsvp: info@stonefacephotography.com

To be directed to Stone Face Photography's site, click here.

All imagery courtesy of Stone Face Photography.

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Presents "Superheros: Fantasy and Fashion"

The symbolic and metaphorical associations between fashion and the superhero are explored in this compelling exhibition. Featuring movie costumes, avant-garde haute couture, and high-performance sportswear, it reveals how the superhero serves as the ultimate metaphor for fashion and its ability to empower and transform the human body. Objects are organized thematically around particular superheroes, whose movie costumes and superpowers are catalysts for the discussion of key concepts of superheroism and their expression in fashion.

The exhibition and its accompanying book are made possible by Giorgio Armani.


May 7, 2008- September 1, 2008
Special Exhibitions Galleries, 1st Floor

The Metropolitan Museum of Art
1000 Fifth Avenue at 82nd Street
New York, New York 10028-0198
General Information: 212-535-7710
TTY: 212-570-3828 or 212-650-2551
www.metmuseum.org

All text and imagery courtesy of the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

ChinaSquare/HONG KONG INTERNATIONAL ART FAIR 2008

Hong Kong International Art Fair
Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center
May 14- 18, 2008

ChinaSquare will be located at Booth J-04 and will be presenting works by Chihung Yang, Cui Guotai, Mao Yan, Su Xinping, Zhao Nengzhi and Zhang Xiatao. For more information on this inaugural event, please click here to be directed to the official website.