Posts archive: April 2004

Lawrence R. Rinder, curator of contemporary art at the Whitney Museum of American Art for four years, has resigned to become dean of graduate studies at the California College of the Arts in San Francisco.

- Meredith Tromble [Monday, April 26th, 2004]

Curious about the art of Chris Bratton, the first practicing artist in some years to head the San Francisco Art Institute? Glen Helfand offers this brief look at his work.

- Meredith Tromble [Monday, April 26th, 2004]

Ant Farm @ the Berkeley Art Museum
Through 4/25/04

Michael Arcega, Libby Black, and Lee Walton
California Dreamin’ @ the Heather Marx Gallery
Through 4/28/04

Jim Campbell,
Narrating Time @ the Palo Alto Art Center
Through 4/25/04

Dawn Clements, Russell Crotty, Hans Hemmert, Kelly McLane, Shaun O’Dell and Alessandro Pessoli @ New Langton Arts
Through 5/1/04

Vik Muniz
Rebus @ Rena Bransten Gallery
Through 5/1/04

Charbel Ackerman, Ingrid Calame, Young Kim, Lordy Rodriguez, Adam Ross, Tam Van Tran, John Baldessari, John Roloff, Ed Ruscha, David Hinman, Anna Von Mertens, Allan Kaprow, Charles La Belle, Sabina Ott, Alex Slade, Shirley Tse, Bull.Miletic, Jessica Bronson, Susan Silton, Rigo 03, John Roloff, Anna Van Mertens, and the San Francisco Bureau of Urban Secrets.
Topographies @ Walter and McBean Galleries
Through 5/8/04

- Cheryl Meeker [Friday, April 23rd, 2004]

The word is that slides are still preferred and press releases might not be read: http://www.soex.org ">Southern Exposure kicked off a great new program for the artist community last night with the first in a series of monthly workshops. Gallerists and curators gave advice and answered questions about submissions, selection processes, and the missions of their venues. Panelists included Jim Christensen & Emily Sevier, Southern Exposure; Eleanor Harwood, Adobe Bookstore; Berin Golonu, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts;  Heather Marx, Heather Marx Gallery; and Julie Casemore, AOV Gallery. Next workshop: Wednesday 5/19/04: Submitting your artist’s packet.

- Cheryl Meeker [Thursday, April 22nd, 2004]

You have until April 30 to see Carter’s project at the bulletin board on your way in to see the “Likeness” show at CCA. The piece explores Carter’s ongoing concern about mens’ hairlines with his signature self-portrait/dummy head drawings, but this time in sort of a Sasquatch way. Images from classified ads are altered with ink drawing, yielding some midway gendered appearances and some very hammy masculinity. Peaceful snow scenes in small, modest B&W photos add a touch of poetics.

- Cheryl Meeker [Monday, April 19th, 2004]

would that be an indicator that it’s time to change jobs? Barry Hessenius, Director of the California Arts Council, apparently thinks so. He threw in the towel last week. Despite the nice-nice talk that is de rigeur for such events, reality oozes between the lines of this Sacramento Bee story by Patricia Beach Smith.  “This is a Republican administration and a Republican appointee may have a better chance, a better ear and more success raising money for the arts. Unfortunately, here in California, not so much in other states, the arts are a partisan issue and it shouldn’t be,” she quotes Hessenius as saying.

- Meredith Tromble [Sunday, April 18th, 2004]

one of the liveliest alternative exhibition spaces in San Francisco, has been threatened with loss of lease because of complaints from a neighboring merchant, Vintage Idol. Eleanor Harwood, who has been curating the space, asks Adobe supporters to act immediately, asking that they:

1. Write a letter in support of the store to Mr. Glass, the landlord. A short note about why Adobe is vital to the community would be great. The address is: Adobe Books, attention Eleanor Harwood, 3166 16th St. San Francisco, CA 94103

2. Go next door to to Vintage Idol and buy something and let the owner know that you come into Vintage Idol BECAUSE it’s next door to Adobe. Please be kind—this is an attempt at reconciliation. Nothing will be gained by being unkind or confrontational.

3. If you attend the opening on Friday stop in for a short time and then move on. Hopefully this is a temporary situation. But this is really critical—the landlord threatened to evict if there is one more “party”. AND NO DRINKING OUTSIDE ON THE SIDEWALK! This is one of her major complaints—and it is after all illegal so she has irrefutable grounds for complaint.

- Meredith Tromble [Thursday, April 15th, 2004]

The Guardian’s David Thompson has an intriguing theory of his own. Hint: it has everything to do with advertising…

- Jeannine McDonald [Thursday, April 15th, 2004]

The Ventura City Council has struck a deal with nonprofit Artspace, a Minnesota-based firm, to start work on a plan to provide homes and studios for at least 25 artists, reported the Los Angeles Times yesterday. The Council hopes they’ve structured the deal to provide a “permanently affordable community for artists,” Chris Velasco, Artspace Vice President, told the Times, with rents established far below market rate and let only to artists with moderate incomes. Artspace will own and manage the project. Why are they doing it? According to the Times, “Officials say the business of art brings revenue to localities in a way that other businesses do not.” If you’re a registered LA Times-er, you can read the full story here.

- Meredith Tromble [Wednesday, April 14th, 2004]

Matthew Higgs and Dave Muller play DJ Ping Pong. Higgs and Muller are internationally-recognized artists and curators, but have also gained recognition as DJ’s in the art world.  Longtime friends, Higgs and Muller will engage in DJ tactics, matching and countering one another’s plays in the manner of a ping pong game. The event is scheduled to begin Friday, 30 April 2004 at 9:00 pm at the Lower Potrero Hill bar, Il Pirata, located at 2007 16th Street at Utah in San Francisco. For more information, call 415.626.2626.

- Meredith Tromble [Tuesday, April 13th, 2004]

San Francisco’s Mayor Newsom announced Wednesday that Jeannene Przyblyski, she of “Bureau of Urban Secrets” fame, and Maya Draisin, Executive Director of International Academy of Digital Arts & Sciences and President of the Webby Awards, Inc. will be joining the San Francisco Art Commission.

The official release calls Przyblyski an “art historian, curator and conceptual artist/urban strategist,” in addition to being the Executive Director of the San Francisco Bureau of Urban Secrets. You can join the Bureau’s good work by visiting the topnotch Topographies show, now on view at the San Francisco Art Institute.

Maya Draisin is also President of the Webby Awards, Inc., and an accomplished screenwriter. She lectures and comments worldwide on the intersection between people and technology, as well as the elements of excellent web development. Ms. Draisin has been an active participant in the development of the new media industry since 1991, from Web Information Architecture to CD-ROM production.

- Meredith Tromble [Monday, April 12th, 2004]

as a “changing of the guard.” His pick for best-of-show: Alec Soth, a photographer from Minnesota.

- Meredith Tromble [Sunday, April 11th, 2004]

but you can put November 20 on your calendar for the re-opening of New York MOMA in its spiffy renovated digs. It’ll be free that day, too.

- Meredith Tromble [Sunday, April 11th, 2004]

A vernal greeting from Jack Fulton…Winter into Spring (2004)

- Meredith Tromble [Sunday, April 11th, 2004]

One of the most meaningful shows we currently have the opportunity to see in San Francisco is at the SF Arts Commission Gallery. The People’s Republic running through May 29, 2004 is by turns poignant, masterly, humorous, uncomfortable, and deeply human. A documentary video by Chinese artist Ning Ying, Railroad of Hope, sets the tone for the show with conversations engaging Chinese agricultural workers on a long train trip, telling stories from their own lives. Other pieces by an international roster of artists including Erick Beltran & Alejandro Magallanes, Sergio de la Torre, Stefan Gec, and the wonderful Emily Jacir, take the work formally and emotionally in various welcome directions.

- Cheryl Meeker [Friday, April 9th, 2004]

Alicia Foster observes that only 2 women have been given the Turner prize, and examines the reasons why in the Guardian.

- Cheryl Meeker [Wednesday, April 7th, 2004]

The arguments are always fun when a critic anoints a “greatest living artist.” Here, Robert Hughes makes his case for Lucien Freud.

- Jeannine McDonald [Tuesday, April 6th, 2004]

Ed Ruscha models cool artist’s ‘tude in today’s Chronicle, telling Kenneth Baker that he’s “not into communication” and he “never grew.” We’re talking Raybans of the soul, but one must admit he does look pretty good behind those shades.

- Meredith Tromble [Tuesday, April 6th, 2004]

The New Five Foot Shelf.

- Meredith Tromble [Monday, April 5th, 2004]

Digital distribution has the potential to break the monopoly and monotony of big studio films on theater screens across the country. Film and video artists may want to note the tactics of Emerging Pictures, which on April 1st sent an entire film festival to places like Kalamazoo using computer hard drives.

- Meredith Tromble [Saturday, April 3rd, 2004]

Anish Kapoor has been chosen to create a World Trade Center memorial. If sited properly and realized according to the artist’s proposal, it may become the most effective of the several permanent memorials in the works.

- Meredith Tromble [Saturday, April 3rd, 2004]

From the editors