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Boyd, Benefiel and Frankel and the Hamiltonian

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

Feb. 3, 2009 (Happy 200th birthday Felix Mendelssohn)

With the current show, the Hamiltonian Gallery has reached its goal to pair established artist mentors with emerging artists in ways that clarify and illuminate the work of all. (One is tempted to say “add value”. Gee, I did say it, didn’t I?) As I have remarked before, I am not a big fan of conceptualism stripped of visual interest, but in this show, the artists have achieved a satisfying synthesis of the two.

Mark Cameron Boyd

Hasidic Jew adding Talmud to Mark's piece

The established artist is Mark Cameron Boyd, who teaches at the Corcoran and other local institutions and is a decidedly conceptual artist (E.g., his Corcoran class is titled: Post-Conceptualism: Epistemic Myth and the Metonymic Avant Garde). Mark uses text as his language of painting; he writes extended texts on blackboards, sometimes original thoughts, sometimes the words of others, then bisects the lines by erasing half of them horizontally. What is left has the look of ancient hieroglyphics and is oddly intriguing. Off to the side of the board, mounted on the wall, is a small tray with a few pieces of chalk. There is no sign calling attention to it and no directions. Eventually, someone brave may decide to use the chalk to write on the board. In the case of the current show, I was the first person to add something, but I take no credit because I already knew the secret and I just wanted to get the interaction going. Mark may come back at various times during the course of the show and take pictures to document the development of the piece.

wood?

The “emerging” artists here are Chrisitan Benefiel and Leah Frankel, who share a University of Maryland connection, have shown together previously and share an affinity for tweaking the expectations associated with various materials. There are luminous slices of wood cast in metal and then finished to appear like the wood they were. There are books combined and re-assembled, then sliced into other forms. This show works and the gallery looks great.

Paul So - happy guy

So a big "you go, fella" to Paul So, the brain and heart behind the Hamiltonian (not to mention the bucks) who has made his vision real, and to Boyd, Benefiel and Frankel.

The Nevin Kelly Grand Opening

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

January 28, 2009

Nevin Himself (from the spy in the sky)

My "Nov. 5, 2008" - how did it get up there?

Late but still here (the story of my life), let me report on the grand grand opening on January 17 of Nevin Kelly Gallery’s new space in the uber-stylish Highland Park building in Columbia Heights at 1400 Irving St. NW., #132. The building has gorgeous public spaces with back-lit translucent walls, parts of which slowly change color. The first time you notice that, it’s kind of startling.

Bye Bye, Gene Pool

Nevin’s two–story space was filled with the work of gallery artists and lots of clients and friends, both old and new, came by to visit. (A bunch of my newest encaustic pieces from the gene pool series, went home with them, I’m happy to report.) NKG is the first outpost of contemporary art in this latest of DC’s mutating urban neighborhoods. I expect that more will follow apace. Avast, ye hearties.

And Another Thing About the Hirhhorn Visit

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

January 27, 2008

DeKooning

Gorky

I have remarked before that the Hirschhorn curators do a really good job of staying in touch with what the museum owns in its permanent collection and displaying and re-arranging it in the public spaces in ways that illuminate and enlighten. They currently have a roomful of DeKoonings (the Hirshhorn owns an unparalleled collection of DeKoonings since old man H was a big time patron of DeK) hanging just one room removed from a roomful of Arhsile Gorkys.

DeK

Gorky

While I knew that Gorky was an influence on DeKooning, I really did not grasp just how important an influence until I viewed their respective art in this proximity. See what I mean?

A Visit to the Hirshhorn - Ori Gersht Wows me

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

January 26, 2008

Schutte

Mueck

I had a couple of free hours not too long ago so I dropped into the Hirshhorn, interested in seeing “Strange Bodies”, a selection of figurative works from the permanent collection that has been installed in the basement. That turned out to be mostly mediocre; I love Thomas Schutte’s maliciously expressive little men, the originals displayed in high vitrines and big photographs behind. And I am always caught flat-footed despite myself by Ron Mueck’s huge naked man, each pore on his skin delineated. But most of the rest was essentially ho-hum.

Gersht

The big surprise was just across the hall. I had read about Ori Gersht’s work, which includes two super-slow videos of Renaissance-looking still life paintings with the fruits very very slowly exploding. And cool they are. But the real revelation was the video inside the Black Box.
The screen is large and it displays a beautiful forest in the early summer light. The viewer’s vantage point is in the trees about ¾ of the way up. The camera pans slowly around, the only sounds are muted natural sounds of wind rustling and the occasional bird. Without any warning, one of the massive trees starts to fall and you can hear the sound of it scraping against the others as it descends surprisingly slowly and with immense dignity. Breaking branches as it goes, it finally lands on the forest floor with a rumbling boom that can be felt as much as heard. Then all returns to silence and the camera starts to pan again. After a few moments of exquisite suspense, another tree is felled. This continues and, instead of being boring, it is spectacularly engaging. After a time, I defy any viewer to avoid thinking about mortality and the randomness of life – one moment a majestic example of nature at its most impressive, the next moment a dead inert pile of wood. See this while you can.

Bye Bye, Wheelchair Willy

p.s. - I've been out of town for a bit. Did something happen while I was away?

Wendy Garner at Cross MacKenzie

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

January 18, 2008

a big new wave painting

Wendy Garner herself

I have been molto busy the past couple of weeks but don’t want to let any more time pass before I call out Wendy Garner’s show at Cross MacKenzie in Canal Square in Georgetown. The show is called “New Wave”, which I give a high grade for titling, since Betsy’s newest pieces are impressively scaled paintings of waves from the perspective of a viewer in medias res. You can practically feel the boat capsizing under you as it is tossed by the huge breakers. My only disappointment is that the narrowness of this gallery space doesn’t allow one to get back far enough to get the best perspective on the largest pieces. A quibble.

Inaugural Art Part Deux

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

Jan. 16, 2008

"Got Change" installed at the Warehouse

Sondra hangs some hope

Ms. Sondra and I just finished installing our room at the Warehouse Gallery, the site of the Artists Inaugural Ball, "The Art of Change." I was, as usual, next to hopeless when it comes to the actual act of installation. It shames me to say this, but I am severely tool-impaired, as well as naturally piggish (If you see any blue fingerprints on the wall, those are mine.) Thankfully, however, Ms Sondra comes prepared for anything, with electric laser level, power screwdriver and back-up everything, not to mention the skills to use them all.

Hope/Change

Change wraps around the wall

The room is called "Hope and Change: An Artists Interchange" and I think that, on the whole, we achieve what we intended, an interplay between her serene and sensual encaustics (hope) and my evolving monoprint and mixed media images (change) . The city is overflowing with excitement and it feels very good to be able to be a part of this amazing event.

Betsy Stewart and Patrick Craig at MacLean Project for the Arts

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

Jan. 15, 2008

Betsy and Richard Dana enjoing the show

They're looking at one of the Metascules

My studio-mate Betsy Stewart has had a fabulous year, including two shows running concurrently, one in New Orleans and one that opened Friday at MacLean Project for the Arts, the jewel of the town of the same name. I have moaned with envy before about the exceptional level of support that northern Virginia communities give to the arts and to individual artists. MPA is one of the sterling results – an arts-oriented full-service community center that offers, among other things, educational programs and an absolutely first-rate exhibition schedule.

"Shrouds" by Patrick Craig

Did I mention they put on a spread at the MPA?

Betsy Stewart and Patrick Craig are both well-established artists who have developed unique and individual voices and whose work shows an assuredness and confidence as well as technical mastery and compelling imagery. Betsy’s work creates worlds that pulse and push at the edges of the canvas. Her large canvases especially give her the scope to produce entire fanciful ecosystems, surfaces overflowing with gorgeous teeming life.
Patrick’s canvases are from any entirely different imagined environment – one that I envision as peopled by anime characters and video game machines. The surfaces are slick, deeply colored, strangely inter-twined.

See my work at the Artists Inaugural Ball

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

Jan 14, 2008

I have been half crazed (maybe 3/4) this week trying to make something new and appropriate for "The Art of Change", the artists inaugural ball. It's a big bash co-sponsored by the Warehouse, Artomatic and lots of others, orgnized by the local art community, to be held at the Warehouse, where we have congregated and shown for years, and several nicely decaying surrounding buildings on Seventh St across from the Convention Center.( official poop below). The front room on the second floor of the Warehouse has been given to Sondra Arkin and I to show our version of Hope/Change. Also in other rooms will be Kristina Bilonick, Bridget Sue Lambert, Anita Walsh and several others.

"Change" - almost done

I am almost finished with mine - it's an installation series of connected handprints (i.e. no press) with collaged elements, coloring, etc., morphing and changing.

Official Poop:
Artomatic, Inc. and Playa del Fuego, Inc. – institutions of the mid-Atlantic arts community – have joined together to create this year’s most distinctive inaugural celebration, The Art of Change (www.artists-ball.org), on Jan. 20, 2009 at 8pm.

With the generous support of corporate sponsor Scion (www.scion.com) and location sponsors The Warehouse Arts Complex (www.warehousetheater.com) and Douglas Development (www.douglasdevelopment.com), this event brings Washington, D.C., a unique opportunity to celebrate the inauguration of Barack Obama as President.

Tickets are available immediately for $50 at www.artists-ball.org.

Occupying three separate venues on the 1000 block of 7th Street, NW in downtown Washington D.C., The Art of Change will feature visual and performing arts, multiple dance floors, fire dancing and live music. DJs from across the mid-Atlantic region will be spinning an eclectic mix of musical styles on two dance floors, and in The Art of Change Galleries, displaying artworks created for this celebration. The Variety Stage will showcase performances all night long, including live music, comedy, belly dancing and spoken word poetry. And outside, attendees will enjoy fire-dance performances while dancing to up-and-coming DJs in the heated White Tent.

Nevin Kelly Scales the Heights

Latest News and Thoughts from Ellyn Weiss

Jan. 8, 2009

November 5, 2008, my new big guy

Biowarriors

Columbia Heights, that is. Ever the vanguard, Nevin Kelly has moved to the haute New York Highland Park Building at 1400 Irving Street, right at the Columbia Heights Metro Station. He’s having a gallery-warming bash on Jan.17 to show off the new space and should have the two pieces pictured hanging somewhere – if he can figure out how to deal with the twelve-footer. The concept of the gallery is going to evolve and it will be most interesting to see how.

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