Valentine’s Day is approaching and “Love Stories,” a fabulous exhibition of portraits from the National Portrait Gallery, London, is a perfect way to explore love and sex vicariously. Over 100 paintings of famous people, famous artists, famous love affairs and famous sex scandals fill the Worcester Art Museum gallery. Almost every art style and medium is represented beginning with the 1571 oil portraits of the Archbishop of York and his wife, through 2018 photos of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. The exhibit is almost overwhelming in its visual riches and storytelling. “Scandal and Tragedy” and “Love Against the Odds” are two topical groupings — out of seven — of portraits that have the most contemporary appeal. An example is the famous sex scandal of Oscar Wilde’s outlawed love for Lord Alfred Douglas for which he was sentenced to “hard labor” (Gillman & Co., 1893, … [Read more...] about A RARE OPPORTUNITY: LONDON’S NATIONAL PORTRAIT MUSEUM’S TREASURES AT WAM
Artscope Issues
HIROSHIGE’S LASTING LEGACY: MOKUHANGA SISTERS UPDATE JAPANESE PRINTMAKING AT SVAC
To its devoted proponents, Japanese water-based printmaking, known as “mokuhanga,” is more than a means of self-expression — it is a discipline, a practice, even a way of life. Each aspect of mokuhanga demands a spirit of humility and respect for the art form, with an attentiveness and regard for the storied legacy the technique carries. Among modern-day practitioners working in the medium, some have abandoned vocations and professional careers to devote themselves to mokuhanga as a dedicated life’s path. Traceable to eighth-century woodblock printing, water- based printmaking became celebrated and prevalent in Japan during the Edo period (1604-1868). The genre has seen a resurgence of popularity in recent decades with new applications and aesthetics, and some controversy regarding the naming of the technique. Among modern-day artists, the term mokuhanga — moku (wood), han … [Read more...] about HIROSHIGE’S LASTING LEGACY: MOKUHANGA SISTERS UPDATE JAPANESE PRINTMAKING AT SVAC
CAPSULE PREVIEWS FOR ARTSCOPE 95
As reports grew on the large number of freighter crates sitting off the coast of California and with them, the warning that consumers best start their Christmas and holiday shopping early this year, postings of a social media meme also grew: “The work of local artists is not sitting on cargo ships.” It’s a message the art world, both regionally and nationally have been trying to share for years. The end of the calendar year is traditionally filled with holiday arts and crafts shows aimed at attracting gift shoppers; similarly, many galleries host exhibitions intended to assist those looking to give a unique special gift. The Copley Society of Art “Holiday Small Works 2021” show features its 300 plus member organization in a wide variety of mediums whose scenes offer a unique, special painting of a New England location whose meaning will warm the homes of its receiver for … [Read more...] about CAPSULE PREVIEWS FOR ARTSCOPE 95
GAME ON: ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH 2021 PREVIEW
The art fair game is changing. It’s fast approaching the game of slip and slide, ad schedules change along with rules for admittance due to the Covid-19 pandemic, making attendance by galleries, artists and the art market public a game of chance. Following Art Basel and satellite fairs in Switzerland in September, that had been rescheduled from June 2021 with the June 2020 fair cancelled, Art Basel Miami Beach 2021, open privately and by invitation only from November 30 through December 1 and open to the public from December 2 through 4, promises 254 exhibitors, including 43 first-time participants, at the Miami Beach Convention Center — the same venue used in 2019 before the pandemic hit. With five sectors, including Galleries; Positions, presenting solo exhibits by emerging artists; Nova, showing new work by multiple artists; Survey, with art created pre-2000; and Editions presenting … [Read more...] about GAME ON: ART BASEL MIAMI BEACH 2021 PREVIEW
34TH SÃO PAULO BIENNIAL OPENS ITS DOORS: CELEBRATING A RETURN TO CULTURAL LIFE IN STYLE
One year after its original opening date, on September 4, 2021, the 34th São Paulo Biennial finally opened its doors to the public. The title, “Though it’s Dark, Still, I Sing,” inspired by a verse published in 1965 by Amazonian poet Thiago de Mello, brings a message of tenacity, hope and resilience to enlighten the hardship that has been terrorizing humankind by so many contemporary happenings and for some, for more than 500 years. A positive perspective seen through art is always encouraging. The arts continue to serve its purpose, working as an outlet for channeling emotions, a toolbox to help us make sense of the world that we coexist. The second oldest Biennial, followed by the Venice Bienalle, happens at the Ciccillo Matarazzo Pavilion, located inside Ibirapuera Park (“Old Tree” in Tupi native language). Recently elected on social media as the best park in South America, it … [Read more...] about 34TH SÃO PAULO BIENNIAL OPENS ITS DOORS: CELEBRATING A RETURN TO CULTURAL LIFE IN STYLE
DISCOVERY & REINVENTION: BRIDGEPORT RETURNS FOR IN-PERSON EXPLORATION
The Bridgeport, Connecticut creative community is formidable. After adapting the annual Bridgeport Art Trail to an online event in 2020, they are planning a robust schedule of events for this November. The 2021 BAT theme is “Discovery and Reinvention.” Here’s a sample of the rich and unusual activities taking place from November 11 through 14. Bridgeport artists will open their studios to the public on Saturday and Sunday, November 13 and 14 from 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Sites include Read’s ArtSpace, American Fabrics, The Knowlton, The NEST Arts Factory, and the newest site Metro Arts Studios. The full listing and the arts directory will be available in a printed program book at participating spaces and on bridgeport-art-trail.org. (To read more, pick up a copy of our latest issue! Find a pick-up location near you or Subscribe Here.) … [Read more...] about DISCOVERY & REINVENTION: BRIDGEPORT RETURNS FOR IN-PERSON EXPLORATION