Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Clemson University Art Department Alumna, Faculty Emeritus and Current Students Exhibit and Win Awards in the Thirty-Fifth Annual Juried South Carolina Artist Exhibition at the Pickens County Museum

Awards Announced for the
Thirty-Fifth Annual Juried South Carolina Artists Exhibition
At The Pickens County Museum


Clemson University's Art Department is so proud to represented in the exhibition by: professor emeritus of photography, Sam Wang; BFA alumna Jamie Lee Gillespie; and current BFA candidates, Katelyn Chapman and Kolton Miller!  And if I've missed anyone, please let me know!

The Pickens County Cultural Commission is pleased to announce that the Pickens County Museum of Art & History’s “Thirty-Fifth Annual Juried South Carolina Artist’s Exhibition” reception and awards ceremony was held on Saturday April 26. The competition was open to all artists working in any medium, 18 years of age or older and living in South Carolina. The exhibition is on view until June 12, 2014.


The Juror for this year’s competition was Clark Whittington, an artist and the creator of the Art-o-mat; retired cigarette vending machines that have been converted to vend art. After moving to Winston-Salem, NC, Whittington was setting up a show at a local venue and he used a recently banned cigarette machine to create the first Art-o-mat. The show opened in June 1997 and the original machine was installed along with 12 of his assemblage paintings. Scheduled to be dismantled in July 1997, the owner of the space asked that the machine stay permanently. Clark felt that the machine would create a conflict in the space unless it was open to artists in the community. She then introduced Whittington to a handful of other local artists and Artists in Cellophane was formed. Today, there are 90 machines around the world and over 400 artists involved. Six of the machines are featured at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas.

Whittington spent April 11 & 12 looking at, and contemplating 315 works of art representing 170 South Carolina artisans. The vast array of paintings, drawings, photographs, prints, ceramics, fiber and other mediums made for the difficult task of selecting works for, and eliminating works from, the final show. The impressive final selection of 113 works of art represents 94 individuals currently creating visual art in this state.

About the jury, Mr. Whittington said, “It was an honor to be asked to be a juror for this show and to be allowed to experience what is happening culturally in your community & state. When entering the space, I was immediately overwhelmed with the quantity of submissions. Shortly after, I was overwhelmed by the quality until eventually pulling myself together. This was when it became obvious that the work submitted to this exhibit was very strong while encompassing a wide range of approaches, techniques, vision, etc.”

Clark continued, “With any exhibit of this nature, the juror's job is to make selections based on their background, vision and general preferences. Being an artist who has always lived in the western half of the Carolinas, I feel connected to the landscape and its inhabitants. At the end of day, the artworks awarded in this exhibit were chosen because they made me feel comfortable.....as if we were having a visual conversation.”

The awards for this year’s competition represent not only a cross section of what is taking place in the visual arts of South Carolina today, but are also a fair representation of the variety of artists actively “at work”. Mr. Whittington chose the mixed media painting, “Escape Pod # 13" by Hopkins’ Richard Morgan as the First Place Award. Second Place was presented to Karen Maters of Liberty for her collage, “Eat Your Asparagus”. The Third Place honor went to Spartanburg’s Jim Creal for his lithograph, “Donnelley Wildlife Management Area: Storm Clouds Gather”.

Juror’s Choice Awards were bestowed upon Linda Hyatt Cancel of Laurens for her oil painting, “A Mother's Glove” and to Clemson’s Sam Wang (Clemson University Professor Emeritus) for his photograph, “Untitled (Dogwoods)”.


In addition to the above awards, Whittington presented Honorable Mention Awards, denoting artwork of special interest, be presented to: Jamie Lee Gillespie (Clemson University BFA 2006) of Pickens for the oil painting, “Table Rock from Papa's Canoe”; to Easley’s Shaula Jo Johnston for her paper & acrylic collage, “Some Glad Morning”; to Hamed Mahmoodi of Greenville for his mixed media painting, “Monkey Maze”; to Greer’s Tracy Metge for her acrylic mixed media painting, “A Singing Bird Will Come”; and to Patricia Stalb of Central for her jewelry work, “Bird in Hand”.

The Museum’s Director, Allen Coleman chose the charcoal & white pastel drawing, “Portrait of Mona Canino” by John Schaeffer of Seneca as the recipient of the 2014 Director’s Choice Award.

Thanks to the kind sponsorships of Pickens County & the Pickens County Cultural Commission along with Mary Howe Benjamin, Roger Benjamin, Sherrill F. Benjamin, Dan & Kathy Brazinski, Doreen Heimlich, Larissa Heimlich, Philip & Gilda Hendricks, Wayne Kelley and Mrs. Shirley Sarlin, the Susan B. Benjamin Memorial Fund and the Seth Schafer Heimlich Memorial Fund, the Pickens County Museum selected six works that, within the scope of their mission directive, will be added to the museum’s permanent collection.

The Pickens County Cultural Commission’s Purchase Award honoring Shirley Sarlin was presented to Kolton Miller (Clemson University BFA Candidateof Central the watercolor and graphite work, “Aristocracy”

    The 2014 Susan B. Benjamin Memorial Purchase Award was presented to Diarmuid Kelly of Moore for his oil painting, “I was Just Thinking”.

Sprawl, Katelyn Chapman, oil on panel, 24"x24" 
   The 2014 Seth Schafer Heimlich Memorial Purchase Award was presented to Patricia Stalb of Central for her copper, enamel, onyx, silver & steel jewelry “Not For The Timid.

Additional Museum Purchase Awards were made to Easley’s Bill Jordan for his photograph, “Paul's Birthday”; to Kathleen Wiley of Walhalla for her oil painting, “Tiger Portrait”; and to Greenville’s Lu Wixon for her acrylic painting, “Paris Mountain from Pickens Wildlife Overlook”.

   In addition to the seventeen works of art singled out for special mention, there are ninety-six others on the walls and pedestals throughout the museum’s Sealevel Gallery, G-1 Gallery and Focus Gallery. No matter where your individual taste in art may lead, you will find some satisfaction in this exhibition. The variety of work represented is a generous reflection of the community of artists presently at work in South Carolina.

Pickens County Museum of Art & History
307 Johnson Street
Pickens, SC 29671
Phone: (864) 898-5963

Open Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.,
Thursday from 9:00 a.m. until 7:30 p.m. and Saturday from 9:00 a.m. until 4:30 p.m.
Closed Sunday and Monday

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Dedication of Atelier InSite and CAFLS Public Art Installation by Klari Reis, April 25, 2014

Clemson University's new Life Sciences Building

Klari Reis: Clemson Genus Project
Please join the Art Department's Atelier InSite and the College of Agriculture, Forestry and Life Sciences (CAFLS) in celebrating the installation of this new public art project by artist Klari Reis in the Life Sciences Facility on Friday, April 25th at 1:30 pm. The installation spans three floors of the Life Sciences facility, and features 600 circular petri dish paintings.

Refreshments will be served. 
Free and open to the public.

Life Sciences Facility
190 Collings St., Clemson, SC 29634

The initiative is part of Atelier InSite, a Creative Inquiry program that focuses on the implementation of public artwork at Clemson University. This student-driven program encourages cross-disciplinary collaboration and provides hands-on opportunities for students to conduct research on the nature of public art, investigate the design build process, conduct site analysis and identify site locations for artwork.

“Atelier InSite is uniquely Clemson because we’re engaging students as the primary generator of this project,” said Detrich. “You see a lot of top-20 schools with similar programs, but those are not student driven. We want to establish a precedent for student engagement in similar programs.”

Artist Website: klarireis.com
Klari Reis uses the tools and techniques of science in her creative process, constantly experimenting with new ways to apply materials and methods. She is driven by curiosity and her desire to explore and document the natural and unnatural with a sense of wonder and joy.  The artist currently works in San Francisco, close to one of the largest concentrations of life science companies in the world. Klari takes advantage of this proximity to collaborate with local biomedical companies and thus receive inspiration from the cutting edge of biological techniques and discoveries; this context grounds her artwork and lets her authoritatively explore the increasingly fuzzy line between the technological and the natural.
The unifying theme of Klari’s art is her mastery of a new media plastic, epoxy polymer, and the fine control she brings to its reactions with a constantly-expanding variety of dyes and pigments. The UV-resistant plastic, similar to resin, supplies a common framework for the methods and language that she uses to explore and express interactions of material and color on a microscopic level. Compositions display brightly colored smears, bumps and blobs atop aluminum and wood panels. She pigments the plastic with powders, oils, acrylics and industrial dyes, built up through many layers of the ultra-glossy plastic. The shapes and colors bleed, blur, shift, and spread becoming remarkable through their eccentric detail. A skilled technician with a studio for a laboratory, Klari has turned these processes of her own invention into science in the service of her art.
Klari Reis is represented by The Cynthia Corbett Gallery. Her work has been exhibited worldwide and public collections include Microsoft Research in Cambridge, UK; Next World Capital’s offices in San Francisco, Paris, and Brussels; the MEG Centre in Oxford, UK; Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines; The Peninsula Shanghai Hotel; Theo Randall restaurant in London’s Intercontinental Hotel; Standard Life Investments in Bristol and London; Morley Fund Management, The Pullman Group, T.Rowe Price and Great Ormond Street Hospital (Morgan Stanley Clinical Building part of the Mittal Children’s Medical Centre) in London; the Stanford University Medical Center Hoover Pavilion in California; and Elan Pharmaceuticals, Genentech, Acetelion and Cytokinetics in South San Francisco.
 Klari’s work has been featured in international publications such as The New York Times, GQ, Wired UK, Nature Chemical Biology, Elle Magazine, Time Out London, Artweek San Francisco, Art in America, Art Ltd. Magazine, Giornale Del Medico, Science Magazine, The Times, The New York Post, The Independent, Evening Standard Magazine, Frieze Magazine, The Financial Times, San Francisco Business Times, BBC1, CNN Business Report and CBS News Market Watch.

Monday, April 21, 2014

Your Story for a Mug: The Potent Objects Project Moves to the Edgar Brown Digital Resources Laboratory

Stop by Cooper Library in the heart of the Clemson University campus from April 21-25, 2014 to experience this wonderful exhibition/exchange project by Patricia Fancher and Brent Pafford.

To whet your appetite, read this informative article by Neil Caudle for the Spring 2014 issue of glimpse magazine. 

Patricia Fancher and Brent Pafford in the Acorn Gallery,
with their handiwork. Photo by Benjamin Hines.
Would you swap a story for a mug? So far, several hundred people have taken the deal. What happens next is anybody’s guess, which is sort of the point.
Patricia Fancher, a Ph.D. candidate in rhetorics, communication, and information design, got together with Brent Pafford, a potter and master’s candidate in fine arts, to test the notion that a mug can hold more than your coffee, hot tea, or a motley bouquet of pencils and pens. A mug, they thought, could also hold meaning. We grow attached to our mugs and include them in our everyday rituals, at work and at home. If we share a mug, or borrow one, or spill our secrets while we cling to one, the mug is also a conduit between people, Fancher says. So the mugs become, as Fancher and Pafford put it, “potent objects.”
“With use and time they gather significance,” Fancher says. “Everybody who touches them makes them different.”

Four hundred takers

The Potent Objects Project, which debuted at the end of January with an opening at the Acorn Gallery in Lee Hall, involves trading a handcrafted mug to anyone willing to pony up a story. Fancher estimates four hundred takers. And the project is already out of control because Fancher and Pafford planned it that way.
“We want to expand the notion of what it is to be an author,” Fancher says. “Authorship is not always about one individual controlling the work. Rhetoric and art are both inherently social. With this project, we are deliberately choosing to give up our authorial intent to four hundred participants. Which makes it far more interesting, I think, because it’s so massive.”
So the mugs go out, the stories come in, and Fancher and Pafford explore the connections. They are recording the stories as audio, to play in a gallery, and are using a website to follow the fate of their mugs. Each mug has been tattooed, on its bottom, with a QR code, which a smart phone can use to open the Potent Objects Project website. On the site, participants can log their locations, post photos, add stories, and describe what the mug has been up to lately. Fancher and Pafford hope that each participant will bond with a mug for a couple of weeks and then pass it along, to gather more stories and steep new connections. The mugs, they say, could go global.

Over his holiday break, Pafford throws another mug on the potter’s wheel as ranks of unfired vessels wait for handles. Photo by Jessica Hilvitz.

Babysitting five hundred mugs

All of this sounds a lot simpler than it was. For one thing, the team didn’t just go out and buy a few crates of cheap mugs. Fancher and Pafford supposed that a mug made by hand, by a potter with artistic intention, might conceivably elevate the potency of a potent object. Pafford isn’t making any philosophical pronouncements on that point, but his basic design for the mugs is meant to suggest human touch and to stir up personal associations. He began with a basic mug form and added a slight bell curve to the top, to hold heat. “We made them fairly thick,” he says, “like the mugs from a diner, and heavy, so you can feel some weight in your hand.”
Handcrafted potency came at a price. First, the team had to mix the four ingredients of white porcelain clay, eight hundred pounds of it in fifty- to seventy-five pound batches. They used a pug, a heavy-duty mixer of sorts, to extract air and align the particles. After the clay rested for a week, Pafford spent several days throwing mugs on the wheel. He “pinched off” the mugs to shape them and leave his fingerprints in the clay. When they were firm enough, he put the mugs back on the wheel, one by one, upside down, and trimmed the bottoms. Throughout, he had to keep checking each mug for dampness, to keep it from cracking.
“It was like babysitting five hundred little mugs,” Pafford laughs, “which is wonderful, and a disaster at the same time.” The endless repetition didn’t bother him, he says, because “I became aware of each detail and what it could mean to someone else.”
Fancher helped him attach the handles. “The worst day we had was the day we put handles on everything,” she says. “That took about thirteen hours. We call it The Day We Shall Not Mention. The clay was cold, so our hands got cold and dry, and it was the same repetitive motion, over and over. It was like a long car trip that’s fun at first, because you’re laughing and talking about bands you like, and that kind of thing. But then it gets tiring, and you’re saying, ‘Are we there yet?’”
As any potter can tell you, not every mug survives the kiln. For the initial firing, the team loaded mugs into all five of the art department’s electric bisque kilns. Thirty-six hours later, they opened the kilns and found what the firing had wrought. “We made five hundred mugs, and in the process we lost about a hundred,” Fancher says. “They cracked or fell off the shelf.”
The losses were especially poignant because of what Fancher and Pafford had invested to create the mugs. “We spent our Christmas break,” Fancher says. “We gave our participants our Christmas break.”
They unloaded the kilns and applied a clear glaze to the interiors and lips of each of the four hundred intact mugs. They left most of the exterior surfaces unglazed, not only to let the mugs acquire a natural patina but also to allow users to write messages directly on the porcelain. To prompt such writing, the team laboriously inscribed, by hand, three blank lines on the side of each mug.
The team’s debut at the Acorn included fifty stories and one hundred mugs reserved for the event. The culminating exhibit, planned for April 22 to May 2, will make use of digital media in the recently renovated Edgar Brown Digital Resources Laboratory, part of Clemson University Libraries.
How good are the stories, so far? Fancher laughs about a crazy party where a mug made a storied appearance. But as of this writing, her favorite story is the one she received first, from Greg Shelnutt, chair of the Department of Art. Here, with his permission, is what he wrote:
One of the most potent objects I own is an image. It is an image of an apple. It is a photograph made by my father. He made it the summer I became ill with a nerve virus that kept me from being able to walk for the entire summer. He had come early home from a large-format camera workshop with Ansel Adams to make sure I was all right.
My recovery was a slow process, and in addition to listening to Monty Python albums, we spent a lot of time talking and just being. My father was still in the mindset of Adams’ concept of “making” a photograph and giving the viewer the “equivalent” of what he felt. Thusly, one day he pulled a Granny Smith apple out of the refrigerator and put it on the dining room table to photograph. He ducked under the cloth hood, studying the light as it changed, watching the moisture condense, form droplets, and roll down its shiny surface, finally clicking the shutter at the appropriate moment.
He then sat down and contemplated the changing light through the dining room window, waiting for it to change in a way that might reveal another aspect of the apple. When he judged that the light seemed just right, he ducked under the hood again.
To his consternation, the apple was gone. He began to search the room, but to no avail…Until he looked down, and in his hand (I don’t recall which one), there was the apple core. The consumed apple was thus the subject of only the singular image, the singular moment.
My father died of cancer on January 7, 2003. At his eulogy, I talked about that apple, that moment, and that photograph, and how I wished that I knew where it was, since I did not have a copy.
On November 5, a package arrived from a longtime friend of the family, John Baskin, Jr. In that package was a framed copy of the photograph of the apple. When I called John to thank him for the meaningful gift, he was saddened to learn of my father’s passing; in my grief, I had failed to inform him. My father’s birthday was November 5.
In exchanging this story for Brent’s mug, I knew from the start that I wanted to pass the mug along to my daughter, Emily. It was both a chance to share this story with her again, and an opportunity to ask her what objects, stories, what moments are important to her. I have no expectations about what she will say, or to whom she will give the mug.
I am, however, thankful to The Potent Object Project for sparking this dialogue and future exchange. Ultimately, it made me think of a favorite quote from Claes Oldenburg: “I am for an art that imitates the human, that is comic, if necessary, or violent, or whatever is necessary. I am for an art that takes its form from the lines of life itself, that twists and extends and accumulates and spits and drips, and is heavy and coarse and blunt and sweet and stupid as life itself.”
Story by Greg Shelnutt

The Potent Object Project was funded through a grant from the College of Architecture, Arts, and Humanities.

Spring Ceramics Sale: Lee Hall, Art Department, Clemson University


The Ceramics studio in the department of art at Clemson University will hold the Spring Ceramics sale on 10 a.m.-5:30 p.m. April 23 in the Lee Hallway in front of the Lee Gallery.

This popular annual sale is a fundraiser that supports students to travel to the next upcoming National Council on Education for the Ceramic Arts conference in Providence, R.I., as well as other professional activities which help further student research and collaborations.

The sale showcases a wide selection of both functional and sculptural artwork by ceramics undergraduate and graduate students, and faculty. The annual Ceramic Bowl Sale will be held again in fall 2014, in time for the holidays.


Wednesday, April 16, 2014

City of Slidell’s Mixed Media 2014 Call For Artists


The City of Slidell and Mayor Freddy Drennan are inviting artists from ten southeastern states to submit their works for the Slidell Cultural Center’s upcoming Mixed Media juried exhibition.

This annual competition, now in its twenty-second year, always proves to be a unique exhibit. To qualify as mixed media, artists must use two or more mediums to create their art. Last year’s exhibit included works created with paints, pastels, clay, wood, metals and fabrics, plus a wide assortment of other atypical media such as golden thread, rice paper and bamboo.

Patricia Brown, Professor of Art and Gallery Director in the Fielding Wright Art Department at Delta State University in Cleveland, MS, will serve as the juror for this year’s exhibition. She also maintains a private studio where she works in textiles, mixed media, handmade paper, drawing and wetplate collodion photography.

Brown’s work is included in the corporate collections of the Alluvian in Greenwood, MS; Peat, Marwick & Mitchel in Jackson, MS; Lenox Hilton in Atlanta, and Holiday Inn, Inc.; also in the collection of Arkansas Arts Center, City of Tampere, Finland and USM. A two time recipient of the MississippiArts Commission Artist's Fellowship, she exhibits extensively in juried and invitational shows including the Brooks Museum of Art (Memphis); Kyoto, Japan; and FIT's "Show Biz" in NYC. Brown is also a workshop instructor and researcher/lecturer on ethnic textiles of South America.
  • All artists 18 years or older, and 
  • Residing in the states of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, or Texas are eligible for entry in the City of Slidell’s Mixed Media exhibit. Up to three works may be submitted by each artist, with a 
  • Flat rate entry fee of $25.00
  • A total of $600 in awards will be given to artists selected by the juror for first, second and third place. 
  • Entries must be submitted no later than Monday, May 5, 2014
  • Artists will be notified of acceptance into the exhibit by Thursday, May 8.

Complete entry details are available in the prospectus, which can be obtained from the Department of Cultural & Public Affairs (250 Bouscaren Street, Ste. 304) or downloaded under the Cultural & Public Affairs’ section on the city’s website, www.slidell.la.us, or via: http://www.slidell.la.us/blog/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/MM14-prospectus-digital.pdf

Mixed Media will be displayed in the Slidell Cultural Center at City Hall located at 2055 Second Street, in Olde Towne Slidell. The exhibit opens on Friday, May 16, 2014, with an opening reception and awards presentation from 7 to 9 p.m. Gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday, from 12 noon to 4 p.m. and on Saturday, June 14, from 9 a.m. to 12 noon.

This event is held in conjunction with the Louisiana Cultural District and Slidell Olde Towne Main Street programs. Mixed Media is presented by the City of Slidell's Department of Cultural & Public Affairs, its Commission on the Arts and the 2013 - 2014 Cultural Season sponsors, including the East St. Tammany Chamber of Commerce; Friends of the Arts; NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune; Slidell Magazine; Slidell Memorial Hospital; Sophisticated Woman Magazine; CLECO Power; Ronnie Kole Foundation; Van Geffen Wealth Strategies, LLC; Bargains Plus!/Postal Plus!; Lowry-Dunham, Case & Vivien Insurance Agency; The Slidell Independent; 4G Printing; Baskin-Robbins/Coy and Donna Faucheux; Chateau Bleu; Councilman Bill & Laura Borchert; Dr. Nathan Brown, Northlake Oral & Facial Surgery; State Representative Greg Cromer; In Memory of Wayne Dunne; Northshore Harbor Center; Pontchartrain Investment Management; Rotary Club of Slidell Northshore; Signs Now; LA Public Service Commissioner Eric Skrmetta; Sunrise on Second Street; Terry Lynn’s Café & Creative Catering; Vicky Magas Insurance Agency; and Tanya Witchen, RE/MAX Real Estate Partners.

This exhibit is supported by a grant from the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation and Tourism in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council as administered by the St. Tammany Commission on Cultural Affairs.


For more information about Mixed Media, please call the Department of Cultural & Public Affairs at (985) 646‐4375 or visit the city’s website at www.slidell.la.us. For the latest city news updates and information about upcoming events, follow the official “City of Slidell, La. – Municipal News” page on Facebook and the “City of Slidell, LA” page on Twitter.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

Adrienne Lichliter, Clemson University Art Department MFA Candidate, Accepted into the 2014-2015 Kala Artist-in-Residence Program



Adrienne has been accepted into the Kala Art Institute's Emerging AIR Program and will be working in the Intaglio, Lithography, and Monoprint area.  Adrienbe will be in Berkeley for a month this summer.

The Kala Artist-in-Residence Program:

Artists working in various printmaking techniques, photo-processes, book arts and digital media including video production can apply to become an Artist-in-Residence at Kala Art Institute. Residency applications are accepted online three times per year. Artists who apply for residency should be familiar with at least one of the media offered at Kala. Considerations for acceptance are conceptual creativity and technical knowledge. Kala encourages use of both traditional and new technologies, and their admixture.

Resident artists receive 24-hour access to the printmaking workshop and/or electronic media center, individual storage space, possible exposure on Kala's website and in other exhibitions at Kala or outside exhibition spaces, and participation in a vital, international artistic community.
Kala Art Institute:

Founded in 1974 by Archana Horsting and Yuzo Nakano as an international workshop and forum for ideas, Kala Art Institute provides exceptional facilities to professional artists working in all forms of printmaking, digital media, photography, and book arts. Located in the former Heinz ketchup factory in West Berkeley since 1979, Kala’s 15,200 square foot facility houses an extensive array of artmaking equipment, as well as a public exhibition gallery, an art library and an extensive print archive. Established artists associated with Kala over the years include Squeak Carnwath, Roy de Forest, Jessica Dunne, Bella Feldman, Barbara Foster, Sonya Rapoport, Peter Voulkos, and William Wiley. In addition to the artists in residence program, the organization’s annual activities include over 100 classes and workshops open to the general public; 8-12 visual art exhibitions in Kala’s gallery as well as off-site locations; on-going lectures, artists talks, and special events open to the general public; and an Artists- in-Schools program that provides curriculum-based visual arts education to children in schools in Berkeley, Emeryville and Oakland. Kala currently serves approximately 25,000 individuals annually, many of whom reside in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area.


A print by Adrienne Lichliter
Kala Art Institute
Gallery:
2990 San Pablo Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94702

tel: 510-841-7000

Studios:
1060 Heinz Avenue
Berkeley, CA 94710
tel: 510-549-2977 (office)
tel: 510-540-0935 (emc)
fax: 510-540-6914

Sierra Kramer, Clemson University Art Department Alumna, Accepted into Master of Fine Arts Program at FSU!

Sierra Kramer, installation detail, Lee III, Clemson, SC

Starting in the fall semester of 2014, Sierra (Clemson University BFA in Art, sculpture emphasis, May 2013) will attend  Florida State University's MFA in STUDIO ART program, a fully-funded, three-year, interdisciplinary, contemporary art program.  It is an interdisciplinary program with a strong focus on research and practice.  Readers of this blog may remember that Sierra's work was mentioned as a part of, A Meandering Thought, Sierra's two-person exhibition with Sharon Linnehan that ran at The Arts Center of Greenwood from May 8-30, 2013. 

Congratulations Sierra!

Monday, April 14, 2014

Lindsey Elsey, Clemson University MFA Candidate (Art-Ceramics) to Exhibit as a Part of the Mug Shots: 6th Annual Juried Cup Show

Below is an image of Lindsey's cup which is a part of the show.  To see all the cups on exhibit, please visit: http://luxcenter.org/gallery/mug-shots-6th-annual-juried-cup-show/.

Lindsey Elsey, Cupcake Mug, 
thrown and altered porcelain, cone 6 oxidation
4.50″ x 5.25″ x 3.50″
Mug Shots: 6th Annual Juried Cup Show
Reception: Friday, April 4, 5-8pm
View through May 31

Our 6th annual juried cup show will feature the selections of juror Ted Adler, associate professor of art and area head of ceramics media at Wichita State University. Featured extensively in national and international shows, Adler is known for his contributions to conferences, workshops and print media as well as his residency with the Archie Bray Foundation, the international center for ceramic arts in Helena, Montana. He has also apprenticed with internationally respected artist Toshiko Takaezu.
At the First Friday opening reception, April 4 from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., Best in Show and two Honorable Mentions will be awarded. The show will be on view through May 31, 2014.


Selected artists: Jeremy Ayers, Marian Baker, Brett A. Beasley, Jillian Blackwell, Jenni Brant, Chris Drobnock, Lindsey Elsey, John Giesin, Rebecca A. Grant, Benjie Heu, Molly Johnson, Deanna L. Johnson, Mark D. Johnson, JD Jorgenson, Lucien M. Koonce, Joshua Kuensting, Carol Long, Coleton Lunt, Scott Lykens, Kyounghwa Oh, Aubrey Purdy Rude, John-Thomas Richard, Luke Sheets, Miles Spadone, Iren Tete and Theo A. Uliano.


Saturday, April 12, 2014

CALL FOR ENTRIES: Nelson Gallery in Lexington, Virginia, 15th Annual Juried Show


  • August 1–29, 2014
  • DEADLINE: JUNE 24, 2014
  • Original 2-D or 3-D; all media; max 50” any direction; not previously shown at Nelson Gallery; no crafts.
  • $30 for up to 3 digital submissions.
  • Entries must be RECEIVED at Nelson Gallery by 5 PM, June 24, 2014
Download prospectus and entry guidelines at www.nelson-gallery.com

THE 15TH ANNUAL JURIED SHOW is one of the ongoing exhibition opportunities offered to Mid-Atlantic artists by NELSON GALLERY, a gallery owned by artists in Lexington, Virginia. There is NO THEME.

AWARDS include Best in Show: $1000; other cash awards; Members’ Choice: solo show in July 2015 (or 2-person show if there are 2-D and 3-D winners). Awards will be announced during the

OPENING RECEPTION at Nelson Gallery on Friday August 1, 2014, 5PM to 7PM, and the next day at nelson-gallery.com.

ELIGIBILITY: Residents of Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.

ELIGIBLE WORKS: Up to 3 artworks; 2-D or 3-D; all media; max 50" any direction; not
previously shown at Nelson Gallery; no crafts. Juror’s decisions are final. ALL WORKS MUST BE FOR SALE.

DEADLINE: Entries must be RECEIVED at Nelson Gallery, 27 W. Washington Street, Lexington VA 24450 by 5PM on Tuesday, June 24, 2014. Gallery hours: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday, 11AM to 5PM. Closed Wednesday and Sunday. See ENTRY INSTRUCTIONS opposite and ENTRY FORM on reverse.

JUROR: KEATON WYNN, whose research interests include the impact of theory on contemporary art, works as a practicing artist and exhibits nationally and internationally. He received a BFA in Ceramics from Missouri State University, an MFA in Ceramics from Kent State University and an MA in Art History from Virginia Commonwealth University. An Associate Professor of Art (History and Ceramics) in the Department of Visual Arts at Georgia Southwestern State University, Wynn is also a visiting Professor of Art at Lanzhou City University in China and Creative Advisor to the
Dunhuang Creative Center in Lanzhou, and has been a Visiting Scholar at the Xi'an Academy of Fine Art in Xi'an.

ACCEPTANCES: Entrants will be notified by e-mail as soon as results are available. Be sure all information on the ENTRY FORM is accurate and legible, and notify us of any change of e-mail address or telephone number.

ACCEPTED WORKS: Deliver to the Gallery ON (or ship to arrive BY), Tuesday, July 29, 2014, 11AM to 4PM. If shipped, enclose a check (in the same amount as the cost of shipping to us) to cover return shipping, which will be in the packaging in which the work is received. 2-D works must be fitted with wire for hanging; stands must be provided for 3-D works. The Gallery may decline to exhibit any work it deems unsuitable for any reason.

SALES are handled by the Gallery and are subject to its 40% commission – the artist receives 60% of the price specified on the ENTRY FORM. Works may not be removed from the Gallery during the show except upon commissioned sale.

PUBLICITY will be provided by the Gallery, which will use images of accepted works and related information (artist’s name, city, title of work, size, medium, price) in digital and print media.

UNSOLD WORK must be picked up ON Saturday, August 30, 2014, 11AM to 4PM. Work not picked up by September 30, 2014 may be sold for any price, in the Gallery’s discretion, subject to its 40% commission, and if not picked up before December 1, 2014, will then become the Gallery’s sole property to dispose of as the Gallery sees fit.

DISCLAIMER OF LIABILITY: Nelson Gallery does not insure property on its premises. By entering this Juried Show, the artist agrees (i) that delivery or shipment of artwork to and from the Gallery and its presence on Gallery premises are at the artist’s expense and at the artist’s risk; and (ii) that the artist will not seek to recover any amount from the Gallery or its members for any loss, damage, fee or cost of any kind, regardless of any other statement, oral or written.

THE PROSPECTUS (which may be downloaded at nelson-gallery.com), comprises all the provisions governing entries and participation in the 15th Annual Juried Show, and its terms may not be modified.

QUESTIONS: E-mail all questions to info@nelson-gallery.com. Please do not telephone, because often there is not a juried show representative on duty who can provide accurate answers.

NELSON GALLERY JURIED SHOW
27 West Washington Street
Lexington, VA 24450

Friday, April 11, 2014

Clemson University MFA Candidate, Ayako Abe Miller, Accepted into Contextile 2014 International Exhibition in Portugal

Ayako Abe Miller, Nervous Fragment, 2014
Ayako Abe Miller, Nervous Fragment (detail), 2014
Contextile 2014 - Contemporary Textile Art Biennial, selected Ayako's work, "Nervous fragment", to be a part of the International Exhibition.

INTERNATIONAL EXHIBITION - SELECTED ARTISTS

The team of Contextile 2014 – Contemporary Textile Art Biennial welcomes and thanks the 263 artists (from 34 countries ) who submitted about 500 works competing for the International Exhibition.  This was a difficult task to the jury, due to the general quality of the artworks .
The Contextile 2014 invited a multidisciplinary jury, consisting of Virginija Vitikiené (art critic and director of Kaunas Biennial, Lithuania),
 Lala de Dios (textile artist and director of Actm, Spain), Paulo Leocádio (visual artist and director of ESAP – Guimaraes),
 Pedro Loureiro (director of Gallery Trema – Contemporary Art, Lisbon), Claudia Melo (visual artist, artistic direction of Contextile 2014), who met in the past 22 and February 23 in the PAC (Platform of Arts and Creativity) in Guimarães.
The jury at the meeting and by consensus, selected 55 works by 51 artists from 20 countries, from Portugal to several European countries, North and South America, Twain, Armenia, Norway, from the basic criteria of the terms and conditions: high creativity, originality and expertise around the textile element, construction, theme, concept or material used. The Acquisition Award and honorable mentions will be assigned in the opening, July 26, in Guimarães / Portugal.



Selected Artists:
 
Alves Dias
Aino Kajaniemi
Alessandra Sequeira
Amanda Salm
Amparo de la Sota
Andrea Noeske-Porada
Ann Naustdal
Anna – Mária Orbán
April Dauscha
Ayako Abe-Miller (CU MFA candidate)
Barbora Gediminaitė
Brigitte Amarger
Carla Mañosas Mas
Céline Tuloup
Conceição Abreu
David Catá
Deepa Panchamia
Diana Mott-Thornton
Elena Brebenel
Elisa Gutiérrez
Elżbieta Kuźniar
Giedrė Kriaučionytė
Giulia Caredda
Hélène De Ridder
Henrique  Neves
Isabel Quaresma
Jenine Shereos
Jiun No Paula
Karina Siegmund
Kerstin Bennier
Kristina Daukintyté Aas
Krisztina Vigh
Leonor Hipólito
Lily Martina Lee
Lina Bartkutė
Linda F. Schmidt
Lívia Pápai
Lívia Ugolini
Magda Soboń
María F. Zubizarreta
Mariana Sales
Marina Mamyan
Minnamarina Tammi
Mireia Coromina Portas
Miriam Medrez
Rosa Godinho
Silvia Piza-Tandlich
Sue Stone
Susana Bredt
Tseng Yen-Yu
Ulrike Lindner

Thursday, April 10, 2014

CALL FOR ARTISTS: Clemson Festival of Arts, May 17, 2014, Clemson, SC


Artists are invited to apply to participate in the 4th Annual Clemson Festival of Arts in Clemson, SC on Saturday, May 17, 2014.  

When
Saturday May 17, 2014 from 10:00 AM to 5:00 PM EDT

Where
Catherine Smith Plaza and Jaycee Park
Edgewood Ave
Clemson, SC 29631

The Clemson Festival of Arts is held in downtown Clemson, SC city parks.  It is a great venue with ample room for a growing number of artist's booths.

This one-day festival is popular not only with the community but visitors from throughout the region. We ask that artists with original artwork for sale only apply. Sales have grown each year and our goal is to increase the participation in attendees, as well as the mix of artwork.  There will be interactive art activities for all ages, artists demonstrations, food vendors, community partners (non-selling booths), and live music throughout the day.  This is a family friendly festival. All activities are free.  The only  items for sale will be artwork and food. Please consider joining us for a fun, festive day as we grow our festival!  

You may click Register Now!  and we will get you the full information package and application. 



Once you are registered, you will receive a packet with your booth number and parking pass.  Thank you for helping Clemson become an arts destination.

Sincerely,

Tommye Hurst
The Arts Center
864-633-5051

Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Chronicle's Spring 2014 Release Party


Come celebrate the Chronicle's Spring 2014 Release Party this Wednesday, April 9, 2014, at 356 Sushi & Martini Bar! 

The Chronicle, Clemson's only arts and literary magazine, accepts and publishes student art and literary works in a beautifully designed, student-driven magazine.  The Party will run 7:00-10:00pm and will feature two local bands, Silvermane and Tytus, as well as readings from Clemson students and free food

 If you have any questions about the event, contact Parker Essick at editor@cuchronicle.com.

Friday, April 4, 2014

The Mir­ror of Race Project Wel­comes Sub­mis­sions from Artists and Writ­ers from Across the Dis­ci­plines and Careers


The Mir­ror of Race project wel­comes sub­mis­sions from artists and writ­ers from across the dis­ci­plines and careers, both aca­d­e­mic and non-academic. See below for a list of sug­gested topics.

Sub­mis­sions will be peer-reviewed by schol­ars, artists or prac­ti­tion­ers in the appro­pri­ate field. See below for fur­ther details on the review process.

Con­tri­bu­tions may be in the fol­low­ing forms:

1) Com­men­tary or art­work inspired by a spe­cific image in the collection.

2) Essays or art­work relat­ing to gen­eral themes raised by the exhi­bi­tion and the project as a whole.

Con­tri­bu­tions should be orig­i­nal works. Con­trib­u­tors will retain rights to what they pub­lish with us; we ask only for acknowl­edge­ment in future publications.

The Mir­ror of Race project intends to engage audi­ences at all lev­els, from ele­men­tary school to grad­u­ate stu­dents, as well as the gen­eral pub­lic. For the most part, we are look­ing for con­tri­bu­tions that a gen­er­ally informed reader could under­stand. We would like to avoid aca­d­e­mic jar­gon and scholas­ti­cism as much as pos­si­ble. While we expect discipline-specific rigor from essay con­tri­bu­tions, we seek work that mod­els per­sonal reflec­tion and engage­ment with the images and issues, not the con­ven­tional aca­d­e­mic style of imper­sonal detachment.

ARTISTIC SUBMISSIONS

We are seek­ing artis­tic sub­mis­sions from all fields, from pho­tog­ra­phy and film to paint­ing and to poetry and sto­ry­telling. Artis­tic sub­mis­sions should con­sider the fol­low­ing criteria:

1) Sub­mis­sions by artists should enter into a con­ver­sa­tion with the pho­tographs in the online exhi­bi­tion in a man­ner appro­pri­ate to their genre.

2) Sub­mis­sions should be suit­able for exhi­bi­tion online. We will cre­ate exhi­bi­tion pages on the project’s web­site for suc­cess­ful submissions.

3) Sub­mis­sions should meet the stan­dards of their respec­tive fields, to be assessed by peer review.

4) Artists are encour­aged to pro­vide a nar­ra­tive explain­ing their sub­mis­sions and their rela­tion to the pho­tographs and the themes of The Mir­ror of Race project. 

SUBMISSION PROCESS

Please do not sub­mit unso­licited work. Instead, please write to the project direc­tor (see below) with a brief abstract or syn­op­sis of your intended contribution.

Because the Mir­ror of Race has a vari­ety of poten­tial audi­ences, please include a brief state­ment about your intended audi­ence (for exam­ple: ele­men­tary school teach­ers; gen­eral read­ers; high school stu­dents; col­lege stu­dents; etc.).

Note that you do not have to be an aca­d­e­mic scholar or artist to con­tribute to the project! If you are not, please pro­vide a resume or cur­ricu­lum vitae so that we may know more about your background.

Writ­ten work may vary in length, from rel­a­tively short sto­ries or close read­ings of indi­vid­ual images (about 1000 words) to longer research essays (up to 5,000 words, or longer). Exist­ing pub­li­ca­tions aver­age around 2500 words. The author’s pre­lim­i­nary pro­posal should give a pro­vi­sional indi­ca­tion of length.

If your pro­posal seems appro­pri­ate to our needs after a pre­lim­i­nary review, we will invite you to sub­mit the com­plete work for a for­mal review.

The project has edi­tors in the arts, the human­i­ties, the social sci­ences, and the nat­ural sci­ences. Once we have your com­pleted work, the appro­pri­ate edi­tor will find a suit­able expert to make the review. Peer review will be blind.

Detailed guide­lines for the peer review process may be found here.

To make an inquiry about sub­mis­sion, please email Gre­gory Fried, the project direc­tor, at gfried@suffolk.edu.

SUGGESTED TOPICS

The fol­low­ing list of sug­gested top­ics is not exhaus­tive by any means, but it does cover some of the themes we would like to see addressed by essays, com­men­tary, and works of art (visual, spo­ken word, writ­ten – all kinds). We wel­come other ideas.

• Visual “pro­fil­ing” of race and ethnicity

• Sci­ence and pseudo-science of racial identification

• Gen­der, race and passing

• Race and the law

• Race and the idea of America

• Analy­sis of spe­cific mar­gin­al­ized “racial” groups

• “White­ness” as a social construction

• The “raced” lan­guage of cloth­ing and the pose

• Race and the his­tory of pho­tog­ra­phy in the period

• Depic­tions of fam­ily, friend­ship, and intimacy

• Vio­lence, war and race

• Class, occu­pa­tion, race

• The Cen­sus: at mid-19th cen­tury and in the present

• The native and the foreign

• Race and nature; land­scape and cityscape

• Con­struct­ing the beau­ti­ful and the ugly

• Close read­ings of indi­vid­ual images

• Teach­ing race

• Immi­gra­tion and race

On-Going Project: Your Face No Longer Belongs to You + Your Identity is Being Stolen = Knitters Needed.



Your identity is being stolen. We have the power to stop that. Knit us a balaclava and send it to us. 


Your work and name will become part of an international exhibition protesting against a new form of surveillance technology. 

"Non-collaborative photography" allows the government or private organizations to take a 3D image of anyone without their knowledge. 

In the spirit of the 'Tricoteuse', the nickname given to the women who sat beside the guillotine during public executions in Paris in the French Revolution, who continued to knit in between executions as an act of protest. We call on you to knit or crochet balaclavas, in any form, colour or shape as long as they resemble a balaclava. 

These are in fact the only device that eludes or fools this new technology. As each piece is complete it will form part of the display in the museum and the artist will be credited. the first incarnation will take place on March 21st at FoMu in Antwerp.


https://www.facebook.com/groups/knittersneeded/

Please send your balaclava to our studio:

7 Princelet Street
E1 6QH
London, UK

Remember to put your name so we can credit you!

If this is of any interest please be in touch and please join this facebook group.

By the way, a little bit of history about the Balaclava; during the siege of Sevastopol, in the terrible winter of 1854 British troops were held up in the little port of Balaclava. They were running short of food and supplies, and soon began to suffer from starvation and frostbite. Reports from the battlefield began to reach Britain; the commissariat sent out protective clothing in the form of a hood which covered the top of the head and exposed just two eyes above a nose above a mouth.



Adam Broomberg was born in South Africa in 1970; Oliver Chanarin, born in England in 1971. They both live in London and have been collaborating for over a decade. Together they teach at the Zurich University of the Arts and are Visiting Fellows at the University of the Arts London. Their work is represented in major public and private collections including Tate Modern, the Stedelijk Museum, Victoria and Albert Museum, Musee de l’Elysee and the International Center of Photography. They are the recipients of numerous awards, including the Vic Odden Award from the Royal Photographic Society and are trustees of the Photographers’ Gallery and Photoworks in the UK. Most recently they were the winners of the celebrated Deutsche Börse Photography Prize, with their project 'War Primer II'. Broomberg and Chanarin’s photography takes the form of formal, methodical projects that challenge the relationship between photographer and subject. As a result, they present a subversive interpretation of documentation, most notably around the themes of history, war and society.

Art Department at the Clemson University 2nd Annual Graduate Research and Discovery Symposium

Friday April 4th, 2014
Poster Session 1-4 PM
Social and Awards Ceremony 4:30 – 6:30 PM
Hendrix Student Center

Hilary Siber & Alexandra Giannell
xClemson’s Graduate Student Government is proud to present the annual Graduate Research and Discovery Symposium (GRADS). The GRADS event showcases the innovative and outstanding work of Clemson’s graduate students while promoting the studies being conducted in the arts, humanities, sciences, business and engineering. In addition, the event provides an opportunity for students to enhance their presentation skills and disseminate their research to those outside of their discipline.

Lindsey Elsey
GRADS is intended to spotlight exceptional graduate student researchers, artists, historians, and architects during Clemson’s Focus on Research Month. The goal of the symposium is to not only provide an opportunity to present one’s work, but give students the opportunity to present and receive constructive feedback from affiliated faculty, staff, students and other guests.
Ali Hammond
Graduate Program Coordinators are invited to nominate graduate students, either master’s or doctoral, to represent their program (during the selected nomination period). Nominated students are asked to present posters and will be judged by faculty, staff, and other Clemson associates from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds. Students who wish to apply should contact their program coordinator. Those nominated to present are asked to submit an abstract that summarizes their research and addresses those outside their academic discipline. Students who wish to present physical work in addition to their poster (art, video, digital display, etc.) are more than welcome but are asked to seek approval from the GRADS committee prior to the event.

Awards: The first, second, and third place winners from each college will receive a cash award and certificate. Winners will be highlighted on the GRADS symposium website, in the Graduate School bulletin, and distributed via email. Awards will be presented to all winners during the closing ceremony in the following amounts:
  • 1st Place: $300
  • 2nd Place: $150
  • 3rd Place: $75

Tuesday, April 1, 2014

Michael Marks, Clemson University Art MFA Alumni, Also in FALC 19th Annual Juried Exhibition

Michael Marks, blue mass/paint cube, colored pencil on paper, 11"x14"




















The Fine Arts League has also included a work by Michael Marks (CU MFA - Art, 2010) in their juried exhibition [Note: an earlier post about this same exhibition highlighted Aubree Ross.]. The show will be at the Page Walker House in Cary, NC and will be open from March 26 to April 21.  The award ceremony will be held at the Page Walker House on the 30th of March from 2pm-4pm.

The juror for this exhibition is Dr. Beth Mulvaney, professor of Art, Art Historian, and Department Head, Meredith College, Raleigh, North Carolina. She has juried various art exhibitions across the United States and is a highly regarded member of the art community.

A specialist in Italian late Medieval and early Renaissance art, Professor Mulvaney is fond of nearly all periods of art, including modern and contemporary. She has participated as a fellow in two NEH seminars, both of which have resulted in two rich avenues of research.  The study of Franciscan art and architecture, particularly that at San Francesco in Assisi, has occupied her for several years and resulted in numerous conference presentations, several essays in books, and her work as an editor of one published volume of essays focused on St. Francis of Assisi and a second one that is in process. Building on her Franciscan research she began a new focus in Venice on working on Clarissan (Franciscan) nuns’ patronage at Santa Maria dei Miracoli and the convent once adjoined to the church. In February, 2013 she was selected to give the J. Bernard Schultz Endowed Lecture in Art History at West Virginia State University on this current research.

FALC 19th Annual Juried Art Exhibition
FALC Treasurer
P.O. Box 3361
Cary, NC 27519-3361

The Fine Arts League of Cary (FALC), which was established in 1993, is a visual arts group of over 200 members including painters, sculptors, photographers and all others engaged in producing visual art as well as those wishing to support these endeavors. Although its home base is in Cary, NC, the FALC membership includes, and is open to, professional, non-professional and emerging artists as well as supporters of the visual arts from any location.