Artscope’s publisher, Kaveh Mojtabai and I had expected to be at Art Basel, for which Artscope had accepted the invitation to mount its own booth in the Magazine Sector, in June 2020. Due to COVID-19 restrictions on travel and Switzerland’s 1000-person limit at gatherings, Art Basel initially rescheduled the event for September 2020, but as that date approached, it became necessary to cancel the fair in Switzerland and adopt a virtual format with participating galleries and artists showing their work in online viewing rooms. The viewing rooms provided a silent space to contemplate the work, unimpeded by crowds, generally presenting well online and reflecting this extraordinary time. They included many works on paper, using graphite, charcoal and other materials that do not demand studio access for artists, nor use of facilities required for producing sculpture, and limiting … [Read more...] about Art Basel 2020, Virtually

Midmarch Arts Press publisher Cynthia Navaretta recently passed away at 97 in New York after a remarkable career of cultural imprint during which she published numerous books championing the creative perspectives of artists and “Women Artists News,” a galvanizing magazine that provided a forum for women artists. She also made a huge impact as a founding member of “Artists Talk on Art,” the longest running in-person art panel discussion series in New York. I met Navaretta at a College Art Association (CAA) Conference held at the midtown Hilton during a blanketing February blizzard. I had walked over in deep snow to help her at the Midmarch Arts Press book booth. The CAA focus was Feminism and its many waves. The umbrella of Midmarch made it possible for me, as an independent artist, to attend CAA that year. Afterward I kept in touch with Cynthia. Reflecting on Navaretta as a catalyst, … [Read more...] about Dismantling The Status Quo: Building A World That Works For Everyone

According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, 113 Confederate memorials have been removed as of June 2020, but as of this writing, over 1700 remain. Recent removal and destruction of statues worldwide has resulted from public anger at the presence of statues of colonialist and racist individuals, and the racist incidents, hate crimes, murders and demonstrations encouraged by these portrayals. After Charleston, South Carolina’s mass church shooting in 2015, former Baltimore Mayor Catherine Pugh, with the unanimous affirmative vote of Baltimore’s City Council, ordered the removal of three statues: the Jackson and Lee statue; the Confederate Soldiers and Sailors Monument and the Confederate Women’s Monument. As they were cut down from their bases, members of an activist group sang, “Baltimore, Get Out of the Way,” recalling the Bob Dylan song, “The Times They Are A-Changin’” urging the … [Read more...] about Symbols Matter: Public Anger Leads To Statues Removal

Just over a decade ago, with the financial collapse of 2008, the first wave of Millennial college graduates were thrown into economic uncertainty. For many, the landscape was a repudiation of the tentative “deal” that had been made between them and American society at large: get yourself a college degree — become credentialed — and you will have economic stability. Now, with the COVID-19 pandemic still raging, a second economic fallout has begun, coinciding with the tail end of the Millennial generation entering the job force. The socio-economic situation of Millennial artists who have started their professions between these two fallouts is precarious. Many are encumbered with student debt; the community is fractured and difficult to navigate; rents and the cost of living continue to rise at shocking rates; opportunities to have their work paid for — let alone publicly seen — are few … [Read more...] about Skeptical But Optimistic: Millennial Artists Enter The Great Unknown

Alnoba, a sculpture garden and leadership training organization in Kensington, New Hampshire, touches lives on many levels. Designed as a facility for non-profit leadership training, it also embraces conservation sustainability, supports health and wellness by promoting local farms and enfolds it all in an art sculpture garden often trumpeting social justice themes. A fascinating array of internationally eclectic artists’ works are displayed — including pieces by Andy Goldsworthy of Scotland, Pablo Atchugarry of Uruguay, Ernesto Neto of Brazil and South Dakota artist John Lopez. Scattered about 400 acres and 10 miles of trails, you’ll find sculptures of stone, bronze, fishing line, recycled metal and various other mediums. … [Read more...] about Leading By Example: Alnoba’s Social Justice-Themed Sculptures

“You are more than your sexuality, your skin color, your tax bracket, your mortgage, your 501c — whatever you call it. You are your mind. Your mind is vast; it has more windows in it then Downton Abbey. So why not open a few? Do something so bizarre that people start questioning YOUR sanity. And, POOF: you’re an artist.” — from Ryan Landry’s “Escape the ‘Cage of Normalcy’: Be more” TEDxProvincetown, September 14, 2019. There are many ways that you may have stumbled across the name Ryan Landry over the past few decades. Perhaps from the extensive catalog of pop-culture-bordering-on-acid-trip parody pieces of theatre that he’s produced in Provincetown, Boston and New York City with his troupe, the Gold Dust Orphans. You know, the plays with names like “Thoroughly Muslim Millie,” “Brokelahomo” and “The Ebonic Woman.” Maybe it’s from “Space Pussy,” Landry’s recurring, glam-punk, … [Read more...] about Following the Voices: Ryan Landry’s Paintings Take Center Stage