by Shem Tane ALLSTON, MA -- On the evening of March 5, sandwiched between two nor’easters, I was fortunate to have the opportunity to watch the band, Ezra Furman, led by its namesake, a Boston native turned nomad, perform at the Great Scott down in Allston. In an ever-shifting political climate and divisive political scene, Ezra plants their feet on the ground and spits back in the collective face of conformity. Their musical toolbox varies from performance to performance, with a backing band of drums, bass, saxophone, synth, guitar and electric cello. There is a certain grit to Erza's voice that dips its toes into the glam soaked pitch of T-Rex as well as the stale cigarette stained ramble of Tom Waits. As the set rolled on they announced to the crowd, “You thought we were fun, but turns out we were really just weird.” This statement was a comment on the success and … [Read more...] about COLD AND ALIVE: EZRA FURMAN AT GREAT SCOTT
Review
THE BOSTON OPERA COLLABORATIVE PRESENTS AS ONE AT LONGY SCHOOL OF MUSIC OF BARD COLLEGE
by James Foritano CAMBRIDGE, MA -- It sometimes happens that you don’t know you’re looking at art. For me, “As One,” a chamber orchestra for two voices and string quartet, performed, over the last weekend of January by the Boston Opera Collaborative, qualified, eminently, for that accolade. As usual, many elements contribute to this grand illusion — which doesn’t seem to be an illusion, but life itself. Firstly, all the elements cohere, from conception to execution. “As One’s” story evolved from a long and happy collusion between a much-practiced librettist, Mark Campbell, and filmmaker Kimberly Reed. Ms. Reed contributed not only the montage of film that contributes such depth and illumination to the on-stage action, but also unique insights into the operetta’s theme of growing up and into a transgender woman’s torturous journey from one gender to another — Ms. Reed’s … [Read more...] about THE BOSTON OPERA COLLABORATIVE PRESENTS AS ONE AT LONGY SCHOOL OF MUSIC OF BARD COLLEGE
INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY AT THE ARMORY SHOW
by Nancy Nesvet MARCH 8, 2018, NEW YORK CITY -- Happy International Women’s Day! In celebration, I focus on women artists and those who make work about women. That was not a difficult perspective, as about 60 percent of the work at the 2018 Armory Show in New York features women artists or female subjects. I do not think that is a reflection of there being two women curators at the show, Gabriel Ritter of the Focus section, and Jen Mergel of Platform, showing large works and installations, but as women, they are aware of who is out there and the difficulties they may have faced in getting their work shown. At Platform, which shows work of single artists, South African artist Mary Sibande’s Cry Havoc, 2014, at Gallery YOMO’s booth shows female figures she has costumed in Victorian era dresses, negating the domesticity inflicted by the colonialist empire against her black … [Read more...] about INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY AT THE ARMORY SHOW
The Armory Show New York
by Nancy Nesvet (With all East Coast planes and buses cancelled, and only one train coming up from the south through Washington, D.C., still going to New York, Nancy Nesvet, Artscope’s national correspondent, made it to the New York Armory Show. She files the first of her reports here). MARCH 7, 2018, NEW YORK CITY -- It was totally worth slogging through the slush and being pelted by falling unnamed precipitation to make it to the New York’s Armory Show. Strangely (or maybe not), a lot of the work in the Pier 94 pavilion, on the Hudson River, featured water; steamy water, as in Rafael Lozano-Hemmer’s amazing installation, where I stared into a pool of steamy water, which then recorded my face, which was then projected onto a grid of six faces, all awash in white steam. Robert Pan’s droplets of blue water, Untitled, 2016-17, of resin and mixed media, where he applied … [Read more...] about The Armory Show New York
IT DOESN’T HURT TO ASK: MIAMI 2017 SATELLITE FAIRS
EVENT MIAMI ART WEEK ART MIAMI ARTMIAMI.COM CONTEXT ART MIAMI CONTEXTARTMIAMI. COM RED DOT MIAMI REDDOTMIAMI.COM SCOPE ART SHOW SCOPE-ART.COM SPECTRUM MIAMI ART SHOW SPECTRUM-MIAMI. COM UNTITLED ART FAIR UNTITLEDARTFAIRS. COM by Nancy Nesvet Taking advantage of the huge crowds of art collectors in Miami and Miami Beach for Art Basel Miami 2017, the artwork at satellite fairs — often blatantly political — this year was new, older, relevant, colorful, glitzy and humorous. Work at Art Miami and Context, over the bridge into downtown Miami, was gutsy, with artists using new technology and materials; artists were having fun but asking important questions and expressing opinions in unambiguous language. These were the standout artists and works and the fair in which they were shown: CONTEXT ART MIAMI Represented by the Blink Group Fine Art Gallery, Boston artist … [Read more...] about IT DOESN’T HURT TO ASK: MIAMI 2017 SATELLITE FAIRS
TWO ROADS DIVERGED…: VON MERTENS AT UMASS LOWELL
REVIEW ANNA VON MERTENS: COLOR: A LOVE STORY UNIVERSITY GALLERY AT UMASS LOWELL MAHONEY HALL 870 BROADWAY STREET LOWELL, MASSACHUSETTS JANUARY 22 THROUGH MARCH 3 by Greg Morell There are two divergent roads of aesthetic departure for New Hampshire artist Anna Von Mertens. In one direction, we discover works of popular whimsy — a lighthearted exploration of the emoji. Fanciful, playful, vibrantly colorful and deliciously cute, it’s art candy you just want to eat. However, the other path that Von Mertens explores is far different. Both will on view in “Color: A Love Story,” an exhibition running from January 22 through March 3 in the University Gallery at UMass Lowell. In the main gallery, Von Mertens will present two beds, side by side, in the open expanse of the gallery floor. It is not the beds themselves, but what is on the beds that is the point of the … [Read more...] about TWO ROADS DIVERGED…: VON MERTENS AT UMASS LOWELL