The Writing Life, Do Exhibition Reviews Matter?

This week was distributed across several projects, for example several days ago I was advised that C magazine was out on the stands and that the current issue contains my review of Phillipa Jones' show at The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery, MIRIAD.  That was a pretty fast turn around as the show review was finalized in April and is out in June.

 http://cmagazine.com/

That isn't always the case.  My review of BOXED IN, for Espace magazine, was due June 5th. It was not an easy show to review because of the large number of artists - 67 - deciding who gets left out is tricky business.  But I felt the show gave me a chance to speculate on current trends on sculpture practice in Canada as it contained work from every province and two territories. While I am happy to report that it was accepted for publication it will only run in December –for the artists waiting for feedback that feels like forever.  Receiving an informed opinion on new work is probably the single, strongest reason why an artist wants a review.  Yes, it builds a resume and a career but just having someone sit down and think about your work and share those reactions and insights is valuable and an antidote to being alone in your studio month after month.

Exhibition reviews come and go in favour.  It used to be that magazines ran reviews if galleries advertised on a regular basis with a publication.  Thankfully, we don't see much of that anymore.  And negative reviews have also gone out of favour.  I know in my case, if I feel negatively about a show I will not review it.  I will however meet with the artist and share my concerns and see what else I can learn about the work.  But I don't think it helps anyone to print negative commentary unless it is an opinion column or an editorial, in which case, it is issue based as opposed to an exhibition by a specific artist.  A magazine's pages are prime real estate and editors are very careful as to what they include.  A review is also usually the first step in getting an artist profile down the line.  They are a valuable introduction to an editor and an audience of readers.

One of my other projects this week was being one of three jurors for the Craft Gallery's Annual Member Exhibit.  I think it is relatively easy to pick out the most successful or appropriate pieces for an exhibition.  And I enjoy learning from my fellow jurors who inevitably have different perspectives as they bring different experience to the table.  What I find harder to determine is "what will sell?"  I often feel that the work I most enjoy is the least commercially viable.  In this financial climate, every sale is an important one for both artist and gallery.  So, the thorny issue is often not what is best but what will hit the right chord with collectors and buyers in general.  After all, having your work purchased may be the most valuable form of feedback.  It is encouragement or endorsement that keeps everyone producing.

More Than Skin Deep

Why does someone make the commitment of using their body as a canvas?  How do they choose their imagery or designs?  How do the images reflect taste and society?  Where do the individuals - a growing number of them women- choose to put their tattoos?  Tattoos are both private and public and the narratives are endlessly engaging.  I've talked with young men who have brought their own drawings to ink masters and it appears that some are even doing their own inking in a version of the Do-It-Yourself movement.  I think I've stumbled into an area of contemporary craft with huge accessibility and the energy and edginess of street culture. 

Tattoos, as a combination of visual culture and deeply felt personal meaning, have fascinated me for years.  It has always struck me that in tattooing we had a world of visual meaning that did not have the commercial and ego laden baggage of the fine art world.  Make no mistake about it, a good tattoo takes time-tested skill.  And the labour is rewarded with a suitable price tag. To me that's the craft part.  Like working in a precious metal, working on human skin is not an area for the faint of heart and mistakes are not easily tolerated.

For several months now, I have taken great delight in talking to complete strangers on the streets and cafés about their ink. People have been consistently positive and generous in sharing their stories and passions.  The more time went on the more it became clear that I needed to do a tattoo themed exhibition and publication.  To my delight, photographer Ned Pratt stepped forward at a party and asked if he could get involved.  Ned Pratt is someone with whom I've done some of my best work and I welcome his partnership with enthusiasm.  This is a link to Ned's site: http://www.nedpratt.com/

Dave Munro the ink master and owner of TROUBLEBOUND STUDIO in St. John's has been a spokesman for the  professional tattooist and is widely respected in the field.

The majority of local tattoos that I have most admired have been produced by TROUBLEBOUND STUDIOS and the name I have come to recognize is Dave Munro's.  I am trained as a visual art critic and a scholar in the field of fine craft but the culture of tattooing is new to me.  I would be foolish not to try and find an expert to tell me when I've gone wrong in my theorizing.  This week I was profoundly fortunate to be granted an hour+ interview with Munro.  It was informative, intense and positive; my mind was going so fast I  left  feeling giddy.  I am at my happiest when I am learning something.  Hell ya, I am one happy camper.  Here's a link to TROUBLEBOUND'S site: troubleboundtattoos.com

Multiply and conquer

On the 7th, there was a notable buzz in the air at the Christina Parker Gallery as novelist Lisa Moore and (this time) poet Michael Crummey teamed up for a double launch of their latest titles.  Both uber-talented and celebrated and both delightfully humble, they were generous in acknowledging each other's accomplishments.  Lisa said she had approached Michael as she did not like "launching alone" and Michael differed saying he was "riding on her coat tails".  Either way, combining a launch of a novel with a collection of poetry by two of our best made good business sense, doubling their audience and avoiding cannabilizing each other's parties in a city where the choice of cultural things to do outweighs the city's audience size.

Our problem in St. John's is that we suffer from an embarrassment of cultural riches.  For example this afternoon, there is a great strings concert on the go with top caliber talent with the proceeds going to benefit Oxfam.  And this evening there is a fundraiser for Shakespeare By the Sea with traditional Newfoundland set dancing at The Rocket Room.  On the same evening of the double-book launch the Anna Templeton Centre was hosting a major event in the same time slot.  A few days prior Mary Dalton was launching her collection of poems Hooking at the LSPU Hall.  How many days a week do you want to go out?

Pairing up seems to be the best strategic bet in winning the war against limited resources of time and money.  It worked for our latest dynamite duo in the visual arts Peter Wilkins and Will Gill.  They were both there at the Friday launch still dizzy from their fresh success at the Venice Biennale.  Christina Parker was still glowing and shared that the elite corps (my words) of mainland curators all made it to Will and Peter's two man show and were suitably impressed for all the right reasons.  Rather like poetry and prose, this visual arts pair have styles and approaches that are completely different –complementary rather than competing.

Again similar but different, I noticed that when Kelly shifted her Britainnia Teas from a physical storefront to an on-line business she was next seen as a pop-up store feature at potter Alexis Templeton Studio Craft Day May event. 

In closing, I'll point out that Marlene Creates in her visual arts practice has evolved a very intriguing version of multidisciplinary pairings.  I am thinking of her Boreal Forest with its experiential focus on a complete sensory experience.  This July and August Marlene has invited a series of three different musicians to respond to the stimulus of natural environment.  At it's best, this kind of inspired pairing reminds of accounts I've read about when Picasso, Stein or Diaghliev would work together on projects.

Musicians in Concert with The Boreal Poetry Garden

3 walking and listening events in 2013

Join Marlene Creates as she leads a walk with readings of site-specific poems in The Boreal Poetry Garden — six acres of boreal forest where she lives in Portugal Cove — with musical responses to the site provided by 3 acoustic musicians. After the walk, we will gather around a bonfire with some refreshments.

The events this summer will focus on the audible. We will experience the boreal forest by listening to its soundscape –– and its silences. Come hear the resonance of words and wind, of wind instruments and woods, of percussion and ancient volcanic rock, of river rhythms and phrases, of vibrating strings and stars, of sparks from the bonfire and toasted marshmallows.

Wednesday July 17 at 7:30 pm

poetry by Marlene Creates with Rob Power, percussion 

Tuesday July 23 at 7:30 pm

poetry by Marlene Creates with Rozalind MacPhail, flute 

Sunday August 4 at 2:00 pm

poetry by Marlene Creates with Ilia Nicoll, violin and viola

Limited to 25 people. Advance registration required.

For directions and to register:

marlene.creates@nf.sympatico.ca

or phone 709.895.1020

$25 | $20 students & seniors

If you are determined to succeed, it seems your best bet is to find a kindred soul who can bring resources and goals to align with yours.  You've heard of divide and conquer?  Well, this seems a trend of multiply and conquer.

Behind the Scenes of the Strathbutler Award

Lithospermum weaving on Rococo Revival balloon-back side chair.

Giving out an award can be a little like being Santa Claus:  deciding on who's naughty or nice and then waiting until the big day to make the decision public. As the official announcement goes, "The Strathbutler recognizes excellence in any field of visual arts or fine craft by an artist who has made a substantial contribution to the province of New Brunswick. It is given biennially on the recommendation of an independent panel of visual art professionals. Established in 1991, the award has grown in value and prestige and is now valued at $25,000."

This year the worthy winner is Susan Judah, whose work in textiles we, the aforementioned "visual arts professionals", described as "exquisite visual poetry.” And our 3-person jury was unanimous and without hesitation in the decision. My two colleagues were:  Robin Metcalfe, Director of Saint Mary’s University Art Gallery and current President of the Atlantic Provinces Art Galleries Association, Dr. Elizabeth Finch, the Lunder Curator of American Art at the Colby College Museum of Art. The three of us worked seamlessly together and still found time for bilingual jokes and casual shop talk like, "and what do you make of Atlantic realism?"  This was also the first time I'd gotten to discuss business with Kathryn McCaroll, the Executive Director of the Sheila Hugh Mackay Foundation and I was impressed with her special blend of idealism, pragmatism and strategic thinking –like partnering with the Atlantic Provincial Art Galleries Association annual conference this June. 

Congratulations are in order for Susan Judah!

Susan Judah's solid nomination package was put together by Peter Laroque and Beth Powning, who lauded the significant contribution Judah has made to the vitality of visual arts in New Brunswick. Judah will be presented with the Strathbutler Award by His Honor, Lieutenant Governor of New Brunswick, Graydon Nicholas at a gala reception on June 21st during the SHMF sponsored event The Jack Weldon Humphrey Forum to be held at the New Brunswick Museum.

Consult www.sheilahughmacksay.com for a full jury statement, complete juror biographies and details on the Strathbutler Gala Reception and Jack Weldon Humphrey Forum.

One of the things that I delight in with the Stratbutler is that visual art and fine craft are on an equal footing.  That way of thinking is also why Shary Boyle is representing Canada this year at the Venice Biennale.

The consequences of how you define art…

Fogo Island Inn is scheduled to open soon!  An exciting example of architecture, community development and inspired patronage by the Shorefast Foundation.

During the spring in NL it is time to roll out the red carpet and give out the awards.  Tonight is the Excellence in Visual Arts Awards ceremony at The Rooms.  So get out that extra red lipstick and celebrate.  We are also still reeling from the double whammy of cuts to funding, an explosion of arts festivals and fierce competition for a relatively small audience for "cultural products".  

I can't think of a single profession where an individual works so hard for so little dollars than the professional world of visual arts, music and attendant cultural industries like independent film and dance.  In the province of NL there has never been so much to choose from when it comes time to spend that arts and entertainment dollar.  In Canada, many of us look to our sponsors - some of them government- to pick up the slack between what it costs to put on a show and what it brings in.  Profit?  What's that?  And that's how art gets to be seen as a vocation…where you are expected to take a vow of poverty in order to practice your art.

But if you regard art as self-expression that's a different story.  If it tells the story of an individual, well let the individual get a day job.  If that story reflects cultural identity well it is at least good press for regionalism, etc…government.  Now, if art is seen as an education– something that teaches us– well that almost makes it an inalienable right in Canada where we regard education highly.  What about art as community building?  There's a whole new relationship to consider.

So, if you consider art as a luxury, an indulgence, a status object, a lesson it all has an impact on whether art deserves your time and money.  Think about it.

All hail matriarch Mary Pratt

CBC photo of Mary Pratt at The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery May 11,2013.

The Friday evening reception for the Mary Pratt retrospective at The Rooms Provincial Art Gallery was a major event that truly felt like a celebration.  It was a much-needed pick-me-up after the provincial government cutbacks, which matriarch Mary Pratt denounced on the Radio Noon call in program on CBC the following Monday.  She said that any government that put oil before art was doomed to failure because the oil would go but the art would remain.  Politics were put aside on opening night and the event was attended by all and sundry.  It was good to see the opening attracting not just the regular art community but also a wide cross section of the public.  In her remarks, Pratt expressed surprise that "so many of you apparently like painting".

Pratt took a very casual approach in her remarks and did not talk about her inspiration or process.  Instead, she talked about the loneliness of her early life in Newfoundland out in Salmonier, pointing out that she only learned to drive at age 52.  She was clearly thrilled by the attendance of her family members, particularly her children, grandchildren and a great-grandchild.  The show will be touring for three years after its summer at The Rooms and representatives from the other venues were present - as was Mary's commercial dealers such as Emma Butler (St. John's) and the Mira Goddard Gallery (Toronto).  (The Mira Goddard Gallery in Montreal was the first gallery I ever got thrown out of!  I think it was because my photographer from the Loyola News took a photograph of a Jackson Pollock without permission.)

Mary Pratt says this painting of her daughter with cold cream is the fastest painting she has ever done - 2 hours from start to finish.  Usually her paintings take months.

The exhibition is a grand sprawling show filled with riches including many of Pratt's best-known and iconic works.  One of my favourite images is of dainty porcelain figurines of gentlewomen that have been placed in a glass fruit bowl.  I believe it dates from 1997 and I recall discussing the painting with Mary when she first made it.  She explained that she had been dusting a shelf and put the figurines in the bowl for safety on a nearby table.  Boldly I commented, "so you felt trapped in your domesticity" to which Mary remarked that I was too smart for my own good.  Pratt has always avoided interpreting her painting.  She describes herself as a "visual artist not an intellectual one".  Pratt paints something because she likes the look of it.  I will be curious to see what curator Mireille Eagan had to say in her catalogue essay.  Eagan is still a relatively young curator (I remember when Mary Pratt first met Mireille she commented "you can't be a curator you look like your sixteen".) and this show will be a feather in her cap.  It is unfortunate that Eagan's position has been eliminated with the cuts but she couldn't be going out with a bigger bang.

Building a Bridge Between Business and the Arts

I love the caption for this photo of Ted Rogers on Google Images:  Cellular Guru.

I have had the pleasure of working in both the business and arts sectors.  Some of the most creative people that I have worked with were not artists but business folk.  I am thinking particularly of the late Ted Rogers, whom I admired.  He was a real pioneer with a sense of adventure, risk taking and long range thinking that I have not seen in many quarters.  He had the ability to make lots of things, like the evolution of technology or the cycles of the economy, make sense to me with only a sentence.  What Ted Rogers also understood superbly was the relationship between business and the community it served.  There is more than one way to make your client happy and loyal– and giving to the arts is one way of doing that.

The reason why the relationship between the arts or culture and the business world is on my mind is that I saw, about ten days ago, a posting for the CEO position of the Business and Arts NL.  Et voilå:

The arts in Newfoundland and Labrador are thriving, and the business community is supporting the arts at unprecedented levels. Business and Arts NL is a new organization whose aim is to build on this activity and expand the collaboration between arts organizations and business partners.

Business and Arts NL is looking for a Chief Executive Officer.  Reporting to a Board of Directors led by members of the business community, and including representation from Memorial University and cross-sectoral arts organizations, the CEO will initially focus attention on developing a three year operating plan, membership development and program development. The initial period of employment is three years.

What splendid news! Whether it is in the arts or business community or the minds' of the general public, it is characteristic to see the two communities as opposites or mutually exclusive.  I believe this is a misconception and despite the characterization of art as a vocation and business as profit driven there is much that unites the two.  Core values, standards of excellence, audience development and the need for communication are just a few of the things that could form a bridge or partnership between the two communities.

 Forging a partnership between the arts and business communities within this province is a key activity in the well being of Newfoundland and Labrador, where our cultural identity of independence and resourcefulness is reflected in both communities.  I wish Business and Arts NL every success in this endeavour.