Here’s a peek at Gravers Lane’s first show in their new space!  Featuring the works of Rick Beck, Anne Currier, Daryls Ewoldt, James McNabb, Paula Winokur, Robert Winokur and Joël Urruty, it’s a beautiful welcome into the new home. The show runs April 15-May 30, 2015.

On April 27, Slought is hosting “Ghost stories,” a film screening and conversation. Taking on the politics of urban renewal, the program features Keg de Souza’s documentary film “If There’s Something Strange In Your Neighborhood…” and a conversation between de Souza in dialogue with Rahul Mukherjee of Penn Cinema Studies. The entire event runs from 6:30-8pm, and is well worth checking out.

For those eager to pick up a crucial guide to today’s best artists who draw, the recently released Drawing People features work by 70 artists, including Francis Alÿs, Charles Avery, Louise Bourgeois, Francesco Clemente, Adam Dant, Marlene Dumas, Dr. Lakra, Paul McCarthy, Nalini Malani, Wangechi Mutu, Raymond Pettibon, Rosemarie Trockel, Tal R, Marcel Dzama, Barry McGee, Amy Sillman and Kara Walker. Published by D.A.P./Distributed Art Publishers, Inc., it’s edited with text by Roger Malbert.

Opportunities

Fleisher needs the help of able-bodied and enthusiastic volunteers for a variety of activities. From pitching tents to setting up tables, hauling gear, working booths and entertaining the crowds at the 9th annual ARTspiration, the free family friendly street festival held at Fleisher is seeking volunteers for over 40 booths, free art making stations, a stage and food vendors for the event on June 13 from 10 AM-3 PM. If you are interested in volunteering please fill out this form or contact Adrianne Waxman, Audience Engagement Coordinator at awaxman@fleisher.org or 215-922-3456 x 320.

Through May 27, the fifth annual Detroit Design Festival is accepting applications from local, national, and international designers for large-scale public design installations with the theme of “play.” Inspired by Laavu Design’s public swing installation from the 2014 Detroit Design Festival, the DDF team seeks up to ten installations. Winners receive a 2,500 USD award to support their projects, to debut during the 2015 Detroit Design Festival, scheduled for September 22–26. There are more than a few different applications for various programs within the Festival, and all of them are equally intriguing, so be sure to review them all before selecting the one that’s best for you and your team.

Artist News

The “in depth” statistical survey for Ann-Marie LeQuesne’s 17th Annual Group Photograph is now online! “Did You Have Breakfast This Morning?” was on display at the Henry Moore Galleries – Royal College of Art last year. For the event, eleven questions were printed as long banners and pinned high on the gallery walls. Possible answers were also printed out (letters, numbers, NO, YES, etc.) and laid on tables for participants to select from as needed. The amalgamated group of 66 online participants (seen as b/w photographs in the images) and 36 event participants presented some surprising answers as well as some statistical aberrations. (All statistics are represented as shapes on the floor of each image.) They also tested the birthday problem, which states that there is a 50% chance that two people will share a birthday if the group numbers at least 23 people, and found that in the combined group of 100 participants there were 9 shared birthdays and 1 further birthday (Oct 31) shared by 3 people! Errors acknowledged in this survey were both “random” (noise) and “systematic” (bias). For Noise, Ann-Marie could not assign “hair colour at age 3” to participants under 3 years of age (so she guessed). Bias – she knows almost all of the participants. Very honest!

School of Visual Arts (SVA)’s 2015 BFA and MFA Fine Arts Department open studios are happening soon. The BFA open studio dates are Saturday, April 25 – Monday, April 27, and the MFA ones are on Friday, May 1, 2015 and Saturday, May 2, 2015. Led by department chair Mark Tribe, faculty members include Polly Apfelbaum, Marilyn Minter, Eve Mosher, Wangechi Mutu, Laurel Nakadate, Mickalene Thomas, and Fred Wilson. Graduates of the program include Katherine Bernhardt, Sarah Sze, and Phoebe Washburn.

Rollins College in Florida just opened the doors on a wonderful show for lovers of Women and Abstraction. Held April 18–August 2, 2015, at Rollins’ Cornell Fine Arts Museum in Winter Park, the exhibition gives stage time to both major artists and those who are undoubtedly underappreciated. They include artists in the exhibition includes Ruth Asawa, Lee Bontecou, Barbara Kasten, Julie Mehretu, Joan Mitchell, Louise Nevelson, Hayal Pozanti, Amy Sillman, Shinique Smith, Barbara Sorensen, Pat Steir, Alma Thomas and Dana Hargrove.