Blog
August 07, 2013, 9:00am
Timeshares at LVL3
Is the myth of paradise all that compelling? The resort paradise, the motel bliss, dreams of tropical shores and youthful ocean air – are these the same dated visions of vacationing we still cling to, or has anything supplanted their modern aspirations? Do we really delight in a shallow image of shared retreat locations, or long to buy our piece of time from out of a brochure or agency – just another one of many touristic occupants? The theme of the temporary vacation and all its shortcomings has garnered quite a lot of attention by contemporary artists over the past few years. An exhibition by this very namesake, Timeshares, currently on view at LVL3, pictures three artists preoccupations with the idealism the term represents – if not the effects that summer tends to have on more “relaxed” thematic group shows, as well. Paintings and objects by Josh Reames (NAP #89, #95), Calvin Ross Carl, and Maria Walker prod at this artificial fabrication of time as it relates to art and practice; while some pieces directly picture seascapes, palm trees, and other brochure-ready visual ephemera, others take the spirit of vacation as a material cue – works that deal with pattern, perhaps belonging to a swimsuit, a lawn chair, or mosaic brickwork, and detritus wrapped in colored fabrics, the idea of something less refined simply wrapped into a higher context, masking themselves as paintings. – Stephanie Cristello, Chicago Contributor
Calvin Ross Carl and Josh Reames, “Mañana,” 2013. Sand, 136” x 54”
August 06, 2013, 8:30am
Value Judgement: Jason Webb at grayDUCK Gallery
One person's trash is another person's treasure. That message resounds in Jason Webb's acrylic paintings, on view as Bulk Collection, his solo debut at Austin's grayDUCK Gallery. Rooting through these photorealistic accumulations of...stuff...we discern degrees of worth, on what is kept and what is left behind. — Brian Fee, Austin contributor
Jason Webb | Discard Pile 22, 2013, acrylic on illustration board, 10 x 8 inches. Image courtesy grayDUCK Gallery, Austin.
August 05, 2013, 10:00am
A Conversation: Samantha Bittman
In between the literal and the representational lies an oscillating, reverberating state of experience. When this is applied to painting, that experience is one of working through the visual tumult or engaging with your senses and letting your eyes play the part. What is it to just “see”, to meet a work on its terms and trust in its parts? Samantha Bittman (NAP #87 & #101)offers work that addresses this question while building paintings that visually vibrate. In her work, Bittman employs the process of weaving; interlocking material to create a surface, an image and a sense of optical splendor. Bittman’s recent two person show at Thomas Robertello Gallery in Chicago presented new work. We had a conversation about it. - Arthur Peña, Dallas Contributor
Samantha Bittman | Longest Distance, 2011, 15" x 12", acrylic on hand-woven textile
August 01, 2013, 9:00am
Beverly McIver on Huffington Post
Congratulations to past featured artist Beverly McIver (NAP #42 and #94) for getting some love from the Huffington Post yesterday. After the jump, read the entire interview conducted by Priscilla Frank for the arts section.
July 31, 2013, 9:00am
An Icon and his Iconic Images: Mandela’s 95th Birthday
Just two weeks ago, Nelson Mandela celebrated his 95th birthday, along with the rest of the world. While Madiba, as South Africans lovingly and reverently call him, has faced a great deal of health problems this year and more recently after a long stay in the hospital with reports of his potentially critical condition, many have taken this time to celebrate and honor his long life of service, leadership, and most famously, his fight against apartheid. - Ellen C. Caldwell, Los Angeles Contributor
All images courtesy of the Mandela Poster Project Collective.
July 30, 2013, 9:20am
Now Accepting Northeast Submissions
Our first competition ever held on the new website will be for artists living in the Northeast. Artists living in CT, DE, MA, ME, NH, NJ, NY, PA, RI, VT, this one is for you!
Learn more about this year's juror, Al Miner, Assistant Curator of Contemporary Art, Museum of Fine Arts Boston, by visiting his NAP Profile.
All artists living in the Northeast, visit our competitions page and click APPLY!
Our annual deadline for the Northeast competition is August 31st, Midnight EST.
July 29, 2013, 8:30am
Navigating The Mentholated Roads: Michael Ottersen at SEASON
There is something deceivingly friendly about Michael Ottersen’s paintings. The Seattle artist’s dense canvases pop with solid, inviting hues. As pointed out by Robert Yoder, artist and owner of SEASON, where Ottersen’s show The (Mentholated) Roads Around Naples is on view, most of the canvas-spanning forms can be contorted into geometric faces. But then, there are the titles, which counter the initial straightforwardness with an esoteric sense of humor that reads as equal parts inside joke and non sequitur wordplays—Stinky Pinky/Wigwamery and Mary Krishna stand out among the more confounding. This tug of war happens within each of the works, sucking you in at the first encounter and remaining stuck in your head long after. – Erin Langner, Seattle Contributor
Michael Ottersen, Mary Krishna, 2012, oil and acrylic on canvas, 64 x 48 in. Image courtesy of SEASON.
July 26, 2013, 8:30am
#GUYYANAI
Guy Yanai’s solo exhibition, Lived & Laughed & Loved & Left at La Montagne gallery is a show of paintings corresponding to recent photographic technologies in mobile devices. Looking through his iPhone, Yanai is always taking notes of things he sees in the world around him by making pictures. With this information he begins to build his paintings. - Anthony Palocci Jr., Boston Contributor
Drive In, 2013 oil on linen 40 x 40cm photo courtesy of La Montagne Gallery
July 24, 2013, 8:15am
Race & Art Matters: Three Artists’ Reactions to the Death of Trayvon Martin
After George Zimmerman’s recent acquittal in the Trayvon Martin case, I, Iike many, felt a sense of helplessness and dismay. On the one hand, the ruling was not altogether surprising, but on the other, the very fact that the innocent verdict is even remotely un-shocking has stirred feelings of further disillusionment, sadness, anger, and disappointment. - Ellen C. Caldwell, Los Angeles Contributor
Byron Bradley | “Trayvon," digital, 5400 x 2700 pixels, 7/14/2013, Courtesy of the artist.
Pages
Categories
- Alabama
- Art Fairs
- Art Market
- Art World
- Artists on Artists
- Atlanta
- Austin
- Behind the Scenes
- Boston
- Boston/Cambridge
- By the Book
- Chicago
- Collecting
- Competition
- Competitions
- Curator Watch List
- Dallas
- DC
- Features
- Gallerist at Home
- Heart to Art
- Houston
- In the Studio
- Interview
- Kansas City
- Los Angeles
- MFA
- Miami
- Moving Up
- Museum Admission
- Must-See
- Must-Sees
- NAP Artists on View
- NAP News
- New Jersey
- New York
- Noteworthy
- Oakland
- On the Road
- One of a Kind
- Other Voices
- Pacific Coast
- Philadelphia
- Philly
- Poll
- Portland
- Process Of A Painting
- Q&A
- Review
- San Francisco
- Santa Fe
- Seattle
- Sneak Peeks
- South
- Special Offers
- Spotlight
- Staff
- Studio Visit
- The Conversation
- Uncategorized
- Unlocking The Vault
- Video
- Vote!
- We've Got One Question
- Weekly Recap
- What's the Deal?