News
Gallery news – Dalet Gallery is partnering with Headlong Dance Theater for a special body performance installation, “Situations for Unlikely Bodies,” a work-in-progress by Sheila Zagar, Jaamil Kosoko and Caroline Stinger of Headlong. The performance is Sunday April 15 — drop in between 7:30pm and 9pm. Fjord Gallery, 2419 Frankford is a new-to-us Kensington contemporary gallery and studio space started by Lindsay Chandler and three other local artists. opens on the First Friday of May.
We think this is a terrific tool for artists who lack access to live models! The Croquis Cafe, an online collection of artist’s models, provides one-, two- and five-minute poses for you to draw, brought to you via your computer.
Hacking did in the public voting portion of the West Collects 2012. Their iPhone app was hacked. The Prize will go forward but there will no longer be the $25,000 people’s choice prize (that money will go into the West acquisition fund). More details on the issue here. Thanks for the tip, Kelsey Halliday Johnson!
Unfortunate news – Bruce Campbell’s room-spanning sculpture at Vox Populi was damaged by a visitor on Friday and can’t be repaired during the show’s run. Bruce is asking that anyone who has pictures of the work prior to the damage (with or without people in the shots) send them to him at smashed.sculpture@gmail.com – thanks in advance for your help! He’s also issued an appeal for people to be more respectful of art. It’s a shame that he even has to do so, but since Linda Yun’s installation (also at Vox) was knocked down more than once last weekend as well, it certainly warrants a conversation about audience interaction.
In Philly tech week news – Bluecadet Interactive is holding “Designing for Touch Happy Hour,” a free workshop on touch-based projects on April 25 from 5 to 7 pm, facilitated by the Hacktory. And join Leah Kauffman as she hosts and moderates “Blogging about Philadelphia’s Creative Spaces,” a panel discussion at PhilaMOCA from 6 pm to 8 pm on Tuesday, April 24th; although free, registration is required.
In closing its 25th anniversary exhibition “Turning to Art in Wood: a Creative Journey,” the Center for Art in Wood presents a public conversation with Tyler professor Gerard Brown, who curated the show, and Michelle Holzapfel, whose “Self Portrait” is among the works displayed. This conversation takes place on April 21 from 2-4 PM.
Creative Capital’s new online initiative, On Our Radar is a great idea – a database of work vetted for excellence by Creative Capital but not funded. We searched it for Philadelphia artists and found a few of our favorites: Douglas Bucci, Roderick Coover, Daniel Heyman, and Michael O’Reilly. The database will be active through August 31st, 2012.
The Philadelphia Art Alliance presents “So You Want to Be an Entrepreneur?”, a discussion by textile artist Harshita Lohia followed by a conversation between Harshita and renowned fiber artist/former MCAD textile professor Lewis Knauss, Tuesday, May 2 at 6 pm. More information and pre-registration form found on the Art Alliance’s site.
Elizabeth Catlett passed away on Monday at age 96. An instrumental figure in art depicting African-American and Mexican-women, she had a show of works from the 1940s and 50s at Moore College in 2001 in conjunction with a citywide print festival sponsored by Philadelphia Print Collaborative, precursor of Philagrafika. Karen Rosenberg of the New York Times has written a profile of Catlett’s life and legacy.
In the aftermath of the dispute over its use of the elevator in the Vox building, The Sustainable Shaft is being transitioned by its creators into a mobile space, independent of the elevator. From Maiza and Lauren: “While we feel it is impossible for us to continue the project in the elevator without incurring further attacks on our work and our character, we feel that we have more than achieved our artistic goals with this project. We are fully committed to the ideas and premises behind the Shaft, and are going to move forward in a positive and productive way.”
Opportunities
Our Hidden City friends just issued a call for proposals for the 2013 Hidden City Festival — very exciting! The deadline for submissions is July 1, 2012, and the final projects accepted will be announced in October 2012 (accepted projects will typically be funded to $5000, or more, if need be). Hidden City’s mission is the exposing the hidden architectural gems in the city and making them vibrant in a new way and with new audiences. Check out all the great sites they are partnering with.
Chester, PA is having its first Plein Air Event, May 4-6, which includes a competition (judged by major Brandywine artist Mary Beaumont). All work submitted to the competition must be created on site and dropped off by the end of the competition’s final day. For more information, contact lbrace@comcast.net or jessicabarber77@gmail.com.
MoMA PS1 is calling for applications for Volkswagen Fellowships. The fellows will work on developing a large scale international exhibition at PS1; the year-long fellowships come with a $20,000 stipend. The deadline to apply is April 30th, and more info can be found on the MoMA website. (Via eflux)
Philadelphia Photo Arts Center has an open call for its 3rd Annual Contemporary Photography Competition and Exhibition. Juried by Natasha Egan and Kathy Ryan. The show runs July 12- September 8th, 2012, with an opening reception July 12th from 6 to 9 pm.
Philadelphia Sculpture Gym, soon to open its new Frankford Ave location, is holding three open calls, the details of which can be found here. And Sculpture Gym co-founder Darla Jackson will be giving demos in clay sculpting and mold making at the Art Star Craft Bazaar on Saturday, May 12th & Sunday, May 13th, 11-6pm.
40th Street Artist-in-Residence program is now accepting submissions for 2012-2013. Applications are due Monday May 7, 2012; email 40th.AIR.app@gmail.com for details and an application form.
4 opportunities via Wooloo – New York’s Foley Gallery has an open call for a summer show project, in which an emerging photographer and an emerging works on paper artist will work with gallery owner Michael Foley to create a 2-person exhibition of their works. The One Shot 10th International Film Festival, hosted by the Armenian Center for Contemporary Experimental Art, is looking for submissions of very short (as in one minute) or slightly longer (40 minute) film and video work. Writer Flounder Lee wants to interview artists living outside the country’s major art centers (NY, LA and Chicago). He is looking for interview subjects by April 26th, to answer the question: how do artists sustain themselves outside the big city?
Registration is now open for Artomatic 2012, the DC area’s biggest free arts event, held from May 18 to June 23 in Crystal City. Artomatic is well known for transforming empty spaces into places where arts communities flourish – something with which Philadelphian art types should be more than familiar!
Philly’s own Ingrid Schaffner, ICA Senior Curator, is the juror for a Biennial at A.I.R. Gallery, the renowned NYC women’s gallery. All women artists, including self-identified women, may submit original works of art, and the deadline is April 30th. A.I.R.’s site contains more info, including the application form.
Artist News
Matthew Cox has ten pieces from his “Heartthrobs and Avatars: Embroidered X-rays” at Chicago’s Packer Schopf Gallery this month; the show runs April 13 to May 26.
Laurence Salzmann is part of “De Pueblo a Pueblo” at the Magic Gardens honoring the Mexican community of Philly. Salzmann’s photographs document the lives of immigrants. The show runs April 27 – June 16, 2012
Photographer Ellie Brown’s next solo exhibition of her BAG project opens May 4th, 2012 at The Carr Gallery in Idaho Falls.
UArts illustration Professor Tim O’Brien is the designer behind the Mockingjay pin seen in “The Hunger Games,” which has become ubiquitous with the books’ and film’s massive success — Congratulations!
A number of Bridgette Mayer artists are showcased in the Gallery’s booth at the Dallas Art Fair: Neil Anderson, Mark Brosseau, Eileen Neff, Paul Oberst, Rebecca Rutstein, David Slovic and Shelley Spector. Rutstein and her husband Mike Stifel also have a pop-up POD on the Parkway for Philadelphia Science Festival.
James Johnson was nominated for an Independence Foundation Grant for an ongoing project at NextFab incorporating multiple artistic disciplines, a departure from his work as a photographer. He’ll be showing the results of the project at a Vox show this November.
