What percentage of what you do is performance art? I asked myself that question on December 15 as Art Basel Miami Beach 2019 was coming to a close. Earlier that morning, Artscope’s national correspondent Nancy Nesvet suddenly woke up around 4 a.m. realizing the reality behind the strange performance built around the global reaction to the sale of two — and eating of one — banana that composed Maurizio Cattelan’s “Comedian” installation on the wall of Galerie Perrotin’s booth at the Miami Beach Convention Center. “Whether appropriation or inspiration, Samuel Beckett’s single-actor play, “Krapp’s Last Tape,” is clearly the motivation,” Nesvet wrote. “With representation of failed work and an illusion to repressed sexuality often cited as the theme of the Beckett play, the banana held and used for gesturing throughout the one act is a phallic shape resembling a microphone, a … [Read more...] about WELCOME STATEMENT JAN/FEB 2020
welcome statement
WELCOME: FROM BRIAN GOSLOW
“Art may yet save the world.” Thus writes Nancy Nesvet in her wrap-up of this year’s Art Basel international art fair in Basel, Switzerland, in this issue. She’s addressing what she sees as a need for the world’s citizens — and especially its artists — to “band together to work to solve environmental and political problems if we are to survive as a people.” Much of the artwork she reports on takes on these concerns as does some of the exhibitions covered in this issue of Artscope. How those messages will be conveyed remains to be seen. We work hard in giving a voice to artists, addressing their societal concerns through their artwork and share them to create public participation. That also means constantly opening the ways we get those messages out to you. The loss of traditional media publications and journalism outlets available for artists and art organizations and … [Read more...] about WELCOME: FROM BRIAN GOSLOW
WELCOME: FROM BRIAN GOSLOW
As we were putting the final touches on this issue, our 80th, our publisher, Kaveh Mojtabai, told me, “The fashion work on our cover harkens back to an era of family, honor and Sufi creed (compassion, love, patience and peace with all religions and people) to keep unity within tribes and clans for the betterment of future generations. It reminds me of one the most popular shows in the world on Netflix, Diriliş — or ‘Resurrection’ in Turkish, taking place in the 13th century during the founding of the Ottoman Empire.” The storyline follows a nomadic Kayı tribe caught “in the designs of a violent world that has lost its way,” with different tribes pitted against one another and innocent villagers being plundered in the process. “Eventually, the tribe can settle and create a new era based on its cultural humanitarian values.” It doesn’t sound too different from how today’s arts … [Read more...] about WELCOME: FROM BRIAN GOSLOW
Welcome Jul/Aug 2016
Welcome Statement, July/August 2016 by Brian Goslow I always compare the final week of production for our upcoming issue to landing an airplane safely, as it becomes a frantic race against our deadline while I track down missing images and stories and wait for copy on shows that opened days before we go to press — all with the goal of having our new issue waiting for you at First Friday activities around the New England region during each odd-numbered month. This issue brought the extra challenge of having our publisher, Kaveh Mojtabai, in Switzerland during most of the production period attending Art Basel with Nancy Nesvet, president of the Art, Labor, Education Institute and a curator of art exhibitions in Maine, Massachusetts and other East Coast cities. We were there representing those whose work we passionately share in each issue — and it’s always a thrill seeing … [Read more...] about Welcome Jul/Aug 2016
Welcome January/February 2016
Welcome to our first Artscope magazine of 2016. We hope you had a chance to follow our coverage from Art Basel Miami Beach on Instagram and Facebook in early December; this issue features two reports by Suzanne Volmer from the event and its satellite fairs as well as impressions from three of New England’s top gallery directors — Adam Adelson of Adelson Galleries, Mike Carroll of Schoolhouse Gallery and William Baczek of William Baczek Fine Arts. As we were putting this issue together, we learned that we’ll be returning to the Art Basel Collective Booth in Basel, Switzerland this June and more pressingly, will be represented in the media exhibition area at Art Palm Beach in West Palm Beach, Florida from January 20-24, allowing us to continue our mission to bring New England’s artists, galleries and museums to the attention of audiences and collectors outside the region. Art … [Read more...] about Welcome January/February 2016