What does it take to become a celebrated artist? One who kicks the edges, who does it their way. One who accumulates all the credentials and accolades. One who keeps growing, even in their 80s. Well, if that definition fits anyone, it undoubtedly fits the two artists who are exhibiting concurrently at the Ogunquit Museum of American Art (Ogunquit, Maine). Both are 83. Both are highly accomplished. Both are distinctly unique artists. Both are worth the trip to this beautiful backroad coastal area of Maine. But the similarities end there. We are all products of our life experiences. But I think artists tend to express those experiences more readily than other professions. Certainly, writers who write fiction (and often portray characters who reflect those they know or themselves) also do this. But visual artists oftencan do it blatantly, and it’s not always immediately discernible by … [Read more...] about DISTINCTLY UNIQUE LIVES: WALKER & MILLER STILL KICKING THE EDGES AT OGUNQUIT
Artscope Issues
PUTTING DOWN ROOTS: GROWING NUMBER OF ARTISTS TURNING TO THE BERKSHIRES
There is something, in addition to the mountain air, the beautiful surroundings and the vibrancy of the Berkshires, that attracts artists of all types like moths to a flame. Between the lush and well established areas like Lenox and Williamstown, and the gritty petri-dish of energy like North Adams, the settings for artistic evolution are boundless. Add in the great institutions like The Clark, Mass MoCA and countless others, and the area becomes more and more a destination for artists to put down rootsandcontributetoanever-growingvesselofcreativity. Upon arriving, one will discover a vast network of like- minded artists sharing a common goal: living, breathing and ingesting art. Artists are magnetized to one another in the Berkshires, and a supportive creative community continues to grow. There are those who are more established in the area, having been here for many years, providing … [Read more...] about PUTTING DOWN ROOTS: GROWING NUMBER OF ARTISTS TURNING TO THE BERKSHIRES
“A CRASH COURSE IN POSTWAR L.A. ART”: ON THE EDGE BRINGS QUINN COLLECTION TO ARMENIAN MUSEUM
The rollicking energy of “On The Edge,” an exhibition of mostly Southern California artists of the 1970s through the ‘90s from the Jack and Joan Quinn Family Collection, is only rivaled by the exuberance of its collector, Joan Agajanian Quinn. This vibrant art lover, in partnership with her now-deceased husband, the prominent Los Angeles attorney Jack Quinn, lived and entertained amongst layers and layers of art, art objects and Armenian rugs they amassed over their 56 years of marriage. Architectural critic Martin Filler called the collection, on view through November at the Armenian Museum of America in Watertown, Massachusetts, “a crash course in post-war L.A. Art.” Quinn said that people asked her if she would show the exhibition at their galleries and women’s clubs and community things. “And I said no,” she replied. “Because I thought it was so narcissistic to take your … [Read more...] about “A CRASH COURSE IN POSTWAR L.A. ART”: ON THE EDGE BRINGS QUINN COLLECTION TO ARMENIAN MUSEUM
GROUNDED IN SPIRITUALITY, ABSTRACTLY: NEW HAMPSHIRE’S EDWARD KINGSBURY III IN BRATTLEBORO
When Edward Kingsbury III was diagnosed with severe Crohn’s Disease in 1997, he had no idea the illness would lead him to creating art that would be shown and appreciated around the world. A college student at the time, he was studying business and engaging in athletics so his limited ability to be active was a shock, and a challenge. Luckily, he was inspired by an artistic friend to consider creating art, especially abstract works. It proved to be a groundbreaking and life-saving experience. “I felt a real release and I was filled with new energy when she and other friends encouraged me,” Kingsbury recalled. “I started creating art works in an organic way that gave me a kind of positive flow and new energy and I enjoyed the visual stimulation.” Originally recognized for pen and ink abstractions as well as digital art, Kingsbury also focused on painting at the start of his artistic … [Read more...] about GROUNDED IN SPIRITUALITY, ABSTRACTLY: NEW HAMPSHIRE’S EDWARD KINGSBURY III IN BRATTLEBORO
A RARE OPPORTUNITY: DALÍ’S SURREALISTIC STACKED DECK IN SPRINGFIELD
Games of luck and chance hold their own natural order, outside the rules of measured existence, and into the realm of magical construct. Who better to visually celebrate the random structure of games of chance than Salvador Dalí? During the 1960s, Dalí (Spanish, 1904-1989) worked with the French printing firm Draeger Frères to produce a set of limited-edition playing cards, and created lithographs of the designs shortly after. Eight examples from Dalí’s “Playing Card Suite” are featured in “Card Tricks: Salvador Dalí and the Art of Playing Cards” currently on view at D’Amour Museum of Fine Arts, Springfield Museums. Bearing the artist’s trademark asymmetrical illusions, the images are at once lighthearted and arrestingly bold in content and style. From childhood, Dalí’s persona was complex and often self-contradictory. Having lost an infant brother nine months before his own … [Read more...] about A RARE OPPORTUNITY: DALÍ’S SURREALISTIC STACKED DECK IN SPRINGFIELD
A SHARED SPOTLIGHT IN NEWPORT: O’KEEFFE’S THE STAR, BUT DONNAMARIA BRUTON SHINES
Creating art is a puzzle. Interpreting art is also a puzzle — not a crossword type of puzzle, where one and only one word fits the squares across and another word down — art is a puzzle filled with possibilities. Should the huge flower be painted red or orange? And if Georgia O’Keeffe decides “red,” then what color could the background be? Blues and greens? Yes, red flower with blue/green background she decides. Now it is our turn to puzzle over the “meaning” of the red flower with the blue/green background. We decide; “The red flower is about sex.” “No,” says O’Keeffe, “it is an abstract red flower.” The color red has many meanings in our Western society: anger, blood, love, Valentine’s Day, sex and more. So, when O’Keeffe chooses to paint a “red” flower she automatically teases us to answer “sex” to our interpretation of her puzzle. The puzzle becomes more complex, the … [Read more...] about A SHARED SPOTLIGHT IN NEWPORT: O’KEEFFE’S THE STAR, BUT DONNAMARIA BRUTON SHINES