Last Saturday, I visited the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (familiarly known as Mass MoCA or just MoCA) in North Adams. It was my first time there, and while it’s on the other side of the state, I would say that it’s worth the road trip from Boston. One of the best things about this museum is its space; the buildings were originally a 19th-century fabric printing factory, then a …more…
Arts America Blog
The Art Institute of Chicago’s “Capturing the Sublime” Highlights the Spark of Creativity
May 12, 2012 by
The Renaissance was one of the greatest periods of achievement in human history. The arts flourished, and we have countless masterpieces of panting, fresco, sculpture, and architecture that continue to awe us with their wonder and beauty. However, there is one element from these years of humanism and rebirth that has been largely absent – drawing. The Art Institute of Chicago highlights these largely unknown works with their exhibit, “Capturing …more…
The Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra Provides Soundtrack to New CMOA Exhibit
May 12, 2012 by
Music and art come together for the opening of the Carnegie Museum of Art’s exhibition Impressionism in a New Light: From Monet to Stieglitz. On May 12, the event will kick off with a performance from the Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra’s Paris Festival: The City of Light, immersing patrons in one of the most vibrant periods in the history of modern arts and culture.
The pairing of the performance with the exhibition …more…
Small Houses of Great Artists at the Dallas Arboretum
May 11, 2012 by
Seurat House
I know there’s been a bit of controversy surrounding the lovely Dallas Arboretum lately. As you may or may not know, there have been protests over the arboretum’s plans to mow a prairie and wildflower area at White Rock Lake in order to create temporary parking for arboretum visitors. While tensions have been a bit high, for now it looks like the land will stay in it’s natural …more…
Environmental art has a story to tell
May 9, 2012 by
Shelly Leitheiser’s latest exhibit, “Kinetic Connections,” is currently showing at the WARM Gallery in the Minnesota Women’s Center. Aside from being powerful commentaries about the environment, Leitheiser’s paintings in this exhibit raise questions about art and politics.
"Erosion" by Shelly Leitheiser
For starters, Leitheiser’s paintings tell a story. That fact in itself draws the artist into a minefield. While narrative painting was once a popular and accepted style, 20th-century modernists refused …more…
Grand Center Art Walk 2012
May 6, 2012 by
grandcenter.org
The Grand Center, St. Louis’ cultural arts center, is hosting its 2012 Annual Spring Art Walk on Friday, May 11, from 5 to 9 pm. Every year, the Grand Center hosts this celebration of art in its four blocks of galleries, museums, theaters, and restaurants. The Art Walk brings together art lovers all over the city for a joyous spring evening. Visitors can follow the 1.5 mile …more…
Assemble Gets Unblurred With ‘Animals Eating Animals’ and ‘Post-Digital Explorations’
May 4, 2012 by
Assemble, a new gallery at 5125 Penn Avenue in Pittsburgh, PA, has a mission – to provide a place where people can engage their intrigue through hands on activities while making “physical and nonphysical, community connections.” Described as a community space for arts and technology, it seeks to encourage interaction through events such as live performances, weekend workshops, and open studios where visitors can work on projects. This month, they …more…
NKU educator photographs residences of every US president
May 1, 2012 by
Matthew Albritton, Assistant Professor at Northern Kentucky University, has always sought out far away lands, exploring places like Scotland, Cuba, Japan and Hawaii, according to his website. ...more...
Simsbury Open Studio Tour: Catherine Elliott & Mandy Adendorff
April 30, 2012 by
On April 14 and 15 this year the Third Annual Simsbury Open Studios weekend was held. Artists opened up their homes and personal studios to the public, a rare and wonderful opportunity that I was very happy to be able to attend. There were a huge number of artists and this will be the second post in the series about the Open Studio Tour. The focus this week is …more…
Music: Big Easy Style
April 30, 2012 by
Music is the soundtrack of life and the inspiration of Dario Robleto’s new exhibit at NOMA. In The Prelives of the Blues Robleto explores music through the eye of a conceptual artist. Dario in internationally known for his talent of sculpting with unique items and giving them powerful meaning. The new exhibit at NOMA is no different. This new work focuses on music and specifically the heart of music in New …more…
Taboo Tattoos?
April 30, 2012 by
Jessica Goldfinch’s new exhibit is a smartly crafted art exploration of the world of tattoos with a backdrop of religious relics. Tattoos are art in their own right, hence the name tattoo artists. Honing in on the underground world of symbolic prison skin art Jessica explores the deep religious and political meanings this type of art carries with it. Not only is there an unspoken language in this art form …more…
‘Colorful Realms’ in D.C.
April 30, 2012 by
Living in Washington D.C, it’s easy to forget just how close I am to some of the world’s greatest art. I am literally a 30-minute drive from the fabled, but oft-publicized monuments and statehouses that comprise our nation’s capital. These neo-classical structures are themselves works of art. Seeing them on TV (and on currency) has somehow elevated them to a near-mythical status in my eyes. But, as I recently discovered, …more…
Madeleine Albright at the Denver Art Museum
April 30, 2012 by
Photo via the Denver Art Museum
You might be asking yourself, “How is an art exhibit related to the the former US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright?” The answer? She is the exhibit – or, at least, her vast collection of decorative pins is. Over the years, Albright collected an odd assortment of jewelry with rich personal and symbolic meanings. She would communicate her moods or messages to fellow diplomats …more…
Detroit Artists Market: The First 80 Years, Now on View at Detroit Historical Museum
April 28, 2012 by
Since its start, The Detroit Artists Market has played a critical role not only in fostering Detroit’s art scene, but also in challenging public perception of art with its history of controversial, trendsetting exhibitions. Marking the DAM’s eightieth anniversary this year, The Detroit Historical Museum is hosting the exhibition, “Detroit Artists Market: The First 80 Years.”
Paintings and drawings hung salon-style on the walls of the Museum’s Community Gallery show a …more…
Slow Art Day
April 28, 2012 by
It started with food, and has finally reached the world of art. Yes, the global movement of all things slow is happening today, ala Slow Art Day. Of the 101 venues around the world, Axle Contemporary and SITE Santa Fe play host to this celebration where the creative boundaries and lines are blurred between “the people who make art and the people who look at it.” For the Slow Art …more…
Antiwar Art: An Idea Whose Time Has Come—Again
April 28, 2012 by
"The Volunteer" by Shelly Leitheiser
Social and political contradictions — a daily reality of life in America — are often tough to acknowledge, and most of us spend our days ignoring or denying the most egregious of them.
Take war. The hard truth is that war kills people, harms the environment, bankrupts nations, destroys international relations, endangers democracy and rarely solves political disagreements. Americans have lived with uninterrupted war for over …more…
Top 10 Picks for the St. Paul Art Crawl
April 28, 2012 by
"Mears Park" by Richard Abraham
It’s Spring—and that means art crawls! From Friday, April 27th, through Sunday, April 29th, hundreds of artists and art dealers will open their studios and galleries throughout St. Paul. Deciding which to visit can be daunting, especially if your time is limited. Here are my top ten artist picks (in no particular order)!
1. Jesikah Orman (Lowertown Lofts Coop 5th Atrium): works in mixed media on …more…
Artist Bernadine Stetzel at the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas
April 27, 2012 by
The Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas, TX
The Sixth Floor Museum is displaying a 17 piece portion of a collection of paintings by American artist Bernadine Stetzel who has painted 71 portraits of the life, both public and private, of John F. Kennedy.
Ms. Stetzel, a supporter of Kennedy’s, was devastated by the terrible assassination of JFK in Dallas in 1963. Shortly after visiting the late President’s grave site in 1968, Ms. Stetzel began working on …more…
Composer Robert Sirota Commemorates Appleton Organ’s 30th Anniversary at the Met Museum
April 26, 2012 by
Composer Robert Sirota. Photo by Richard Frank; culled from the composer’s web site.
While the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City may be best recognized for its expansive collections of visual art and historical artifacts, musical instruments are also significant to the museum’s holdings. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of the installation of one such instrument at the museum—the Thomas Appleton pipe organ—the Met’s Department of Musical Instruments …more…
A View of America’s Past: Timothy O’Sullivan’s King Survey Photographs
April 25, 2012 by
The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art in Kansas City, Missouri is known for showing works that have had significant impact on the American mindset. Its current exhibit of “The King Survey Photographs” by Timothy H. O’Sullivan is one such body of work. Taken between 1867 and 1872 as well as 1868 and 1869, the King Survey photographs were part of an exploration of land in Wyoming, California, Nevada, and parts of …more…
Going Dutch and So Much More at Pittsburgh’s Downtown Gallery Crawl
April 23, 2012 by
Four times a year, The Pittsburgh Cultural Trust hosts a free Gallery Crawl where the public can view shows at the many galleries and art spaces in the downtown Cultural District. On April 27, 31 venues will open their doors, enticing patrons with the promise of cutting-edge visual and performing arts and live entertainment.
Among the attractions offered this month is the world premiere of THE NEWS, a 90-minute “reality opera” …more…
Top 10 Picks for the St. Paul Art Crawl
April 21, 2012 by
Mears Park by Richard Abraham
It’s Spring—and that means art crawls! From Friday, April 27th, through Sunday, April 29th, hundreds of artists and art dealers will open their studios and galleries throughout St. Paul. Deciding which to visit can be daunting, especially if your time is limited. Here are my top ten artist picks (arranged according to gallery)!
1. Jesikah Orman (Lowertown Lofts Coop 5th Atrium): works in mixed media on …more…
Christo’s Massive Outdoor Installation One Step Closer To Approval
April 20, 2012 by
Image from The Denver Post
Christo’s controversial “Over the River” project, which would suspend fabric panels across a 42-mile stretch of the Arkansas River, has been approved by Fremont County. The project still needs to get the go-ahead from Chaffee County, the Colorado State Department of Transportation, and the State Patrol.
“Over the River” has already been approved by the US Bureau of Land Management, which has determined that the project …more…
Write Now: Artists & Letterforms brings together the Visual and Verbal
April 20, 2012 by
As I’ve mentioned before, the Chicago Cultural Center is a great place to take in free art exhibitions the Loop. During my latest visit, I decided to investigate the exhibition “Write Now: Artists & Letterforms” before it closes at the end of the month. As a writer, I have a fondness for the written word, and I am always fascinated when artists incorporate the visual and the verbal.
“Write Now” features …more…
Simsbury Open Studio Tour: Julie Parker-Post & Jacie Jakubowski
April 18, 2012 by
On April 14 and 15 this year the Third Annual Simsbury Open Studios weekend was held. Artists opened up their homes and personal studios to the public, a rare and wonderful opportunity that I was very happy to be able to attend. There were a huge number of artists and so I will be devoting a couple of blog posts to their work, this week to Julie Parker-Post and Jacie …more…
