ArtFocus Okl a h o m a O k l a homa Visual Arts Coalit io n
$300
Vo l u m e 2 0 N o . 1 J a n u a r y / F e b r u a r y 2 0 0 5
A New Home The newly renovated and expanded Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art reopens to the public on January 21, 2005.
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contents
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profiles 3 stanley hess 6 fred jones jr. museum of art 8 stuart asprey
reviews/previews 10 iao review 11 radiant simplicity: feininger 12 george wilson’s sculpture 13 masterworks from the wadsworth atheneum museum of art
13 untitled [artspace]: 14 at a glance: show shorts
features 15 promoting art 16 eat your peas and carrots: art marketing 101
on the cover
OVAC news
Artist: Benjamin Harjo Jr. (Seminole/Shawnee, b. 1945) title: Singing For Rain, 1993,
17 round up / thanks to new/ renewing members
Monotype, 23" x 17", Gift, The R.E. Mansfield Collection,
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2003
member agency
gallery guide
This program is supported in part by the Oklahoma Arts Council
ArtFocus Ok l a h o m a Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition P.O. Box 54416 • Oklahoma City, OK 73154 ph: 405.232.6991 • e: director@ovac-ok.org visit our website at: www.ovac-ok.org Executive Director: Julia Kirt director@ovac-ok.org Editor: Janice McCormick artreview@mindspring.com Art Director: Anne Richardson Spec Creative; anne@speccreative.net Art Focus Oklahoma, formerly CrossCurrents of Oklahoma, is a bimonthly publication of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. It is dedicated to stimulating critical insight into and providing current information about the visual arts in Oklahoma. Mission: The Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition supports visual artists living and working in Oklahoma and promotes public interest and understanding of the arts. OVAC welcomes your comments and suggestions. Letters addressed to Art Focus Oklahoma are considered for publication unless they include the note “Not for publication.” Letters may be edited for reasons of space or clarity. Anonymous letters will not be published. Please include your telephone number if your letter is to be published so that we can confirm their origin. The Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition is solely responsible for the contents of Art Focus Oklahoma. However, the views expressed in articles in Art Focus Oklahoma do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Board or OVAC staff. Editorial Board: Janice McCormick, Bixby; Carissa Bish, Stephen Kovash, Randy Marks and Sue Moss Sullivan, Oklahoma City; Debby Williams, Shawnee; Teresa Valero, Tulsa. Assistance from Edward Main, Bixby; Cecil Lee, Norman/ Chickasha is editor emeritus. OVAC Board of Directors 2004-05: Richard Bivins, Cleveland; Elliott Schwartz, Rick Vermillion, Edmond; Diana Brown, Lawton; Maya Christopher, Joan Goth, Norman; Thomas Batista, Ellen Berney, Carissa Bish, J. D. Merryweather (Treasurer), John Seward (Vice President), Carl L. Shortt (President), Lila Todd, Oklahoma City; Suzanne C. Thomas (Secretary), Spencer; Chris Ramsay, Stillwater; Pam Hodges, Claudia Doyle, Teresa Valero, Tulsa. Member Agency of Allied Arts and member of the National Association of Artists’ Organization. © 2005, Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. All rights reserved.
profile
Stanley Hess: STRONG VISION Stanley Hess expresses himself—strongly in words and images. Mr. Hess has created artwork leaving a lasting impression. He does not try to smooth things over. He is too impassioned. When he speaks about his work, he wants you to listen and look carefully. When he paints, he obviously looks carefully. By Julia Kirt For many years, Mr. Hess has created paintings as well as completed large-scale mural works and constructed finely detailed, ancient instruments. Now based in Tulsa, he creates smaller scale paintings that could be enlarged to the same effect. His work is enigmatic and yet accessible and, he himself is a gregarious puzzle.
AF: What was your first artwork? SH: The earliest work that I remember was a violin I made while in middle school. I bent the ribs out of a bushel basket. The peg box terminated with an eagle’s head rather than the Fibonacci scroll. The inlaid eyes were fashioned form a toothbrush handle. It was a pathetic instrument like those you see on the walls of quaint restaurants. continued page 4
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(from page 3) Spectre of the Brocken, acrylic, 28”x35” Spectre of the Brocken Resembling Martin Luther may require some background information. The Brocken is the tallest mountain in the range that is near the birthplace of Martin Luther. Since the time of Thomas De Quincey (“Confessions of an English Opium-Eater”), the Brocken has been known for strange, ever changing apparition. When climbers of the mountain reach the summit in a raking sunlight, shadows are cast on the pervading mist. These same size shadows give the illusion of figures standing on the adjacent mountain that is quite distant. In the absence of perspective, the figures appear to be a race of giants. It is said to the present day that climbers of the Brocken cavort and posture to create pictorial shadows. Viewers of the painting are near the summit but not yet casting shadows. I trust they see a phantom in the rising mist. And I leave it to them to surprise a link between lore and Luther.
AF: Who has influenced you the most in art? SH: I always wanted to be a musician. Unhappily, my calling wasn’t accompanied by talent. Then unexpectedly I saw a reproduction of Franz Marc’s painting “Blue Horses” (that was about 67 years ago). I was astounded. It turned out to be what is called a defining moment. I forgot all about talent.
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In the 1940’s before and after the war, I was an art major at OU. A number of the art faculty were uncommonly impressive as teacher/artists. I count it an honor to have been in the classrooms of Emilio Amero, John O’Neil and Duncan Stuart. At one time, I shared studio space with two of them. All three remain a lasting influence on my professional life.
AF: Please describe your studio space. SH: I have an excellent, cluttered shop that I now use mostly for making panels and frames, and repairing my neighbor’s broken chairs. Across a short patio is my painting place. My small, orderly studio suggests small paintings, which suits my tastes perfectly. I once worked with egg or casein tempera. These media are much too fragile for some handling. For years I’ve worked with jar acrylics—durable but dreadful pigments. I feel they ought to shorten my time in purgatory. I have 16 running feet of shelf space for my books, a 7 foot by 7 foot expanse of glass to watch the birds, my walls accommodate a half dozen or so paintings. I use no easel. A unique mobile, kept in slow motion by an air vent, hangs from the ceiling. To remind me of the real world, I have a small, green email devise as close to the exit as possible. Altogether, my studio is a wonderful place for picture making. AF: Tell me about your painting style. How have you developed it? SH: I see style as a recognition value that includes the degree of abstraction, color preferences, choice of subject matter, perceived relevance and others. I don’t believe any serious artist seeks or cultivates a style. Rather, a style is a by-product of one carrying out his/her intentions. I’m told that I have a “distinctive” style, that my work can be identified in any painting line up. This easy identity may be a liability as well as an asset. My own style, however it is received, will probably not change much since my intentions are not forever fluctuating. AF: You seem to set up a different perspective for the viewer. Do you have an intent or a desire for how your audience sees your work?
SH: I try gamely to reach an audience that I find isn’t eager to be persuaded. My painting is rational, however, to a point of approaching mere reporting; my painting is a model of restraint—even if it doesn’t come off that way. Years ago I painted large scale murals (up to 15 feet by 65 feet). These murals often required different viewing distances, angles, even elevations. Columns, counters and chandeliers were always in the way. In short, they were ideal mural problems. A wonderful public watched, anticipated and kept tabs while a mural was in progress. When I could no longer do scaffolding, I decided to paint small pieces that borrowed mural problems, especially varying distances. I wanted viewers to see my paintings from two or three feet, then from 15 feet or so, while looking away inbetween views, if they chose. They don’t bother to comply. Unfortunately, slides and other reproductions are a stay put situation. Projected slides actually reverse close-up clarity. My whole conception is flawed, if not futile. My friendly audience is invariably polite but invariably confused. AF: What are your sources of inspiration for your imagery? SH: Like all artists I know, I don’t know exactly how my imagery comes about. Pasteur said that chance favors the prepared mind. I think I’m “prepared.” Ideas invariably come when I’m not trying to surprise a subject or idea. The source may be a photograph, another artist’s painting, a view of some person or some thing, recollection and so on. I convert that first conception (about the size of a large postage stamp) to paper. I develop the idea in color about the size of a post card or somewhat larger—and then throw it away or attack the painting. AF: What do you think about the state of the arts in Oklahoma?
I always wanted to be a musician. Unhappily, my calling wasn’t accompanied by talent. Then unexpectedly I saw a reproduction of Franz Marc’s “Blue Horses”. I was astounded. It turned out to be what is called a defining moment. I forgot all about talent. SH: I try not to think of the state of the arts. Addressing it is hardly a happy occasion. There is a nationwide agreement that the arts have suffered. In spite of some of the enlightened people, who wish it otherwise, Oklahoma isn’t an exception. Areas of excellence are around but ten miles out of town, indifference prevails. I conclude that the arts are at ebb tide and the visual arts, to put it badly, are often below sea level. AF: I saw your work quite a few years ago at exhibitions in the Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art and the Oklahoma City Museum of Art. But it was very different work. Will you tell us about your instruments you build (built?)? SH: When the Abstract Expressionist Movement was in its ascendancy, there was also an extraordinary revival of interest in early music as well. The AE Movement struck me as being exceedingly intolerant of those artists who didn’t profess unwavering wonderment. Since I couldn’t cope with that, I turned to making Renaissance and early Baroque soft choir instruments: viols, recorders, the harpsichord and others that I enjoyed and respected. I was poorly equipped to make musical instruments although I had played recorders since the 1960’s and for a time scrimshawed Von Huene’s ivory recorders. I had no tools, no shop background, no models (except for small recorders), no historical knowledge. There followed a lot of fascinating research and correspondence with thoughtful early music performers. There was a lot of trial and error, too. All told, I made over 50 instruments. All but one was figuratively carved in low relief or in the round. No two instruments were alike. Those were memorable years. I’m grateful to the AE Movement, which ran its course. So after a 15-year hiatus, I returned to painting.
Afterimage in Africa, acrylic, 19" x 24" Matisse, when asked which painting was his best, always said it was the last one. Afterimage in Africa is my most recent painting. I would not characterize it as my best but only the most difficult one to manage. My original working title was Rose, Roosevelt, Veldt. It was my intention, muralstyle, to do a painting that would read quite differently from three disparate distances. After numerous sketches and several rough studies over a period of many years, I gave up on the “Rose” part. At any distance, I was unable to make that Theodore Roosevelt 60 watt bulb nose and walrus mustache resemble any rose petals I could imagine. But I don’t regard the painting as a complete failure. At an average viewing distance, the likeness of Roosevelt is, I think, convincing. The painting, however needs to be seen in the original. When seen from about two feet or less, the bust of Roosevelt disappears. What remains are three native hunters and three animals in a veldt with Mt. Kilimanjaro looming in the background. Unfortunately, when focusing on a small reproduction, the dramatic change can only be described or imagined, not duplicated. Roosevelt, literally, has the last laugh.
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profile
Intimate Home for
Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art’s Expanding Collection By Julia Kirt You can’t miss it. An atypical front elevation, the building is clad in warm limestone and covered in graygreen slate roofs with large pyramidal skylights atop each area. Impressive, but not bulky, unusual, but not strange, the newly renovated and expanded Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art reopens to the public on January 21, 2005. The museum is located on the University of Oklahoma campus in Norman. Spurred by the bequest of the Clara and Aaron Weitzenhoffer collection
Barbara Hepworth Two Figures Bronze, 1968 95” (left), 90 1/2” (right)
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of French Impressionism and PostImpressionism, the museum began the project several years ago.
of Art’s collection has always been strong and has grown dramatically over the last ten years.
Designed by architect Hugh Newell Jacobsen, the new wing is described as a suite of nine identically sized pavilions, organized in a square and linked to one another by corridors of stone and unframed glass. There will be natural light from skylights in the new building, which totals 34,000 square feet.
Director Eric Lee is especially proud of the American Indian collection, which has its roots in founder Oscar Jacobsen’s drive. Most recently, the museum received about 500 works from the private collection of R. E. Mansfield. Showing the significance of the collection, an equal number of works from his collection went to the Smithsonian National Museum of the American Indian. The Mansfield Collection focuses on 20th century work, including important works by Maria Martínez, Margaret Tafoya, Barbara Gonzales, Nampeyo, Allan Houser and Fritz Scholder.
Describing the challenge of adding to the existing museum, Jacobsen said, “I finally decided that the new wing was going to have to look like a building of its own. The kind of rooms that the artworks demand and the light they need can’t be readily accommodated in anything like the existing building. So, I pulled my building 30 feet away and joined it to the existing building by an allglass link.” Each gallery will be on a small intimate scale to view the works. Jacobsen describes the scale as “domestic.” Areas will be dedicated to the Witzenhoffer Collection of French Impressionism, American art, Asian art and a select number of works of African sculpture. Recently acquired collections include impressive works by artists such as Claude Monet, Vincent Van Gogh and Pierre Bonnard. However, the Fred Jones Jr. Museum
The Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art is also known for its outstanding photography collection that began in 1937. Lee said that the museum staff has grown the collection “systematically to get good examples from as many of the major photographers as they could.” The museum now holds more than 1,300 prints, including artists such as Berenice Abbott, Ansel Adams and Garry Winogrand. Through acquisitions and bequests, the museum’s collection includes some quality works by significant artists such as Sam Francis, Kiki Smith, Dieter Roth and David Salle. The museum further fulfills its strong commitment to contemporary art by hosting annual school of art, biennial faculty, and visiting artist exhibitions. A new entrance will greet visitors on the west side of the building (555 Elm Avenue) as they walk into a pavilion with a 38-foot-high atrium.
(top) Georgia O’Keeffe Cos Cob 1926, Oil on canvas 16x12
The renovated East Building will now feature an auditorium and classrooms as well as the collection storage. The grand opening will be Friday, January 21st with a campus-wide Day of Learning focusing on the new art museum. Watch the website or call 405-325-3272 for more announcements and information. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 am until 5 pm, Thursday from 10 am to 9 pm and Sunday from 1 to 5 pm. The museum is closed on Mondays and university holidays. Admission is $5 for adults, $4 for seniors, $3 for ages 6 to 17, and free for children under 6 and OU students. More about the museum can be found at www.ou.edu/fjjma.
Benjamin Harjo Jr. (Seminole/ Shawnee, b. 1945) Singing For Rain, 1993 Monotype, 23 x 17‰ Gift, The R.E. Mansfield Collection, 2003
Joe Andoe (U.S. b., 1955) Untitled, 1994 Oil on canvas, 70 x 84‰ Gift of the artist, 1994
Olinka Hrdy (U.S., 1902-11987) Study for Riverside Studio Murals, 1928-29 Watercolor on paper, 18 5/8" x 4 1/2" Gift of the artist, 1966
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Layers LAYERS LAYER 8
Stuart Asprey: LAYERS By Julia Kirt
AF: Please describe your studio space: SA: Depending on the season, it is hot or cold. My studio is my garage (which also doubles as one of Norman’s largest doghouses), it has no heat or air conditioning so I can definitely say that I sweat and freeze for my art. I construct and decorate my pieces at a big, used “L” shaped desk that is cleaned once a week (otherwise I am constantly looking for my “fave” paintbrush). Other than that, the walls are semi-covered with images of reptiles, fauna, other art, pictures of my girlfriend (Jodi), our previously mentioned dog (Jude), and other images that suit my fancy. AF: What was your first artwork? SA: Besides the perfunctory hand impressions in clay and other kindergarten masterpieces, I have a vague recollection of drawing a pirate ship. I know I drew one because it still hangs in my grandpa’s house in England, I just have no idea when I did it. It isn’t very good, straight lines are crooked and wavy ones are jagged, but it was one of those things that took a lot of time and when I was done my parents were awfully proud of it and decided it should grace the walls somewhere, just not in their house. AF: Who has influenced you the most in art? SA: Aside from family and friends, various artists working in a slew of mediums. In ceramics Louis Marak, Sergei Isupov, V’Lou Oliveira, and, of course, Robert Arneson. Other artists include John Waters (film), Phil Kutno (litho prints), Robert Williams (painting), Mark Ryden (painting), Robert Crumb (drawing) and Ron English (painting). AF: Tell me about your ceramics style.
How have you developed it. Has it changed through the years? SA: After formally being introduced in a Beginning Ceramics class in college (Humboldt State University, Arcata, CA), I soon fell in love with clay. I find clay’s versatility to be its most irresistible quality; I can combine the formal attributes of ceramics with aspects of drawing, sculpture, painting, and design. Using various hand-building techniques I create threedimensional greenware canvases that are painted and illustrated with extensive layers of colored slips. Working primarily with a Cone 10 porcelain clay body, I fire my pieces two times. A Cone 08 bisque after all painting and detailing are completed and then a final glaze firing to Cone 6. I see the final work as on-going journal entries with little bits of information splattered here and there, just enough variety to create boundless visual voyages through fragments of time. Development is a continual process. When I started getting interested in ceramics I wasn’t very good, not terribly bad, but clay was foreign to me. It took almost a year to finally get a piece out of the kiln that I didn’t consider throwing against the wall, and another five or six years to feel truly comfortable with myself and what I was producing. That pretty much brings us up to date with what is going on. AF: What are your sources of inspiration for your imagery? SA: Each of the artists I mentioned earlier has helped in one way or another, either by what they are saying or by what they are doing. That’s one of the great things about art, it can be about anything, a line from The Simpsons, something funny you saw at the fair, a bizarre news story, absolutely anything goes. I draw everyday, whether the mood is splendid or terrible, it is a way to celebrate life and exercise demons without getting in too much trouble. From those sketches I pick and choose what to include in my ceramics. It reflects upon life, every nook and cranny of it, from the good to the bad, all the little pieces in between, and some that never even existed. Getting out there, experiencing life for what its worth, that’s what it is all about, that’s where you will learn what makes you tick. AF: What’s been going on with your career? Shows? Traveling? What’s the plan? SA: Since finishing graduate school three years ago, I have participated in various types of exhibitions in Oklahoma, Indiana, Illinois, Oregon, Ohio, and California. Some
profile
SRS
At first, I just didn’t know what to make of Stuart Asprey’s artwork. I first saw his work when he submitted a few vessels to a summer event that OVAC had organized. They are colorful, illustrated, and quite strange shapes. He uses unusual imagery and curious shapes to make ceramics look differently that I had ever seen. In addition, Stuart’s artwork has both a rough edge and a mythical quality. Then, he submitted a delightful diminutive and vivid teapot to a show and my curiosity was piqued. I had to find out about this Norman ceramic artist who delivers his artwork to exhibitions via motorcycle and is known among students as a great instructor. Now I know that Stuart’s work springs from imagination, lots of sketches and many layers. A fairly recent MFA graduate from the University of Oklahoma, Stuart has exhibited nationwide as well as had work published in “Clay Times.” His combination of humor and technique are refreshing as is his candor about this process and work.
invitational, some groups exhibitions, but mostly juried shows. I have been focusing on entering as many exhibitions as possible, shipping the work across the country, and trying to get my name out there. Eventually I plan on teaching full time at the university level somewhere, it doesn’t matter where, though different places offer varied possibilities. Travel as much as possible. Learn about other people and ways of life. You don’t have to go far either. I don’t do half as much as I would like to, but then I would never make art or make any money. AF: Tell me about teaching. SA: As an adjunct professor at a local university, I teach courses on twodimensional design, ceramics, and art for non-majors. Without a doubt, the greatest art education I ever received was teaching art. No offense to anyone who was a teacher of mine, but getting prepared for classes provides a level of knowledge that was unobtainable through any other instructional device. It is a constant quest for more information to offer the students. My approach to creativity and education is that knowledge for knowledge’s sake is a wonderful thing, and if you can put a smile on the face of a student in the process then all the better. AF: What do you think about the state of the arts in Oklahoma? SA: I have seen great improvement during my (on-going) six-year stay here in Oklahoma. Tulsa has always had a decent scene and now with the new museums in Oklahoma City and Norman it’s only bound to grow. Besides that, the land run project in Bricktown is huge, the fairs and festivals help support another side of the art community and I really enjoy all the buffaloes that are popping up around the city. All in all, it appears that the state of the arts is improving as long as people continue to support the arts and especially the individual local artists.
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reviews Allison, Steve Cluck, screenprint, 2004
Steve Cluck and Enise Carr at the IAO By Stephen Kovash According to Steve, his approach to art is to let the muse take over. “I allow inspiration to run free within my soul, commanding the choices I make in the creation of my art. Much of this inspiration is rooted in the inner: philosophies, experiences felt, and musings. Inspiration, however, also comes from the outer.” Cluck’s exhibit focuses on the female form, often combined with the mundane and the sensual. According to Cluck, “My art is guided by my adoration and fascination with women, my muses. My muses can be divided into categories: women I know well, women I wish to know better, women I hardly know, women I no longer know (sadly), women I no longer know (gladly).” Hmmm.
November provided a show of interestingly disparate artists at the Individual Artists of Oklahoma Gallery, one artist elusive (Enise Carr) and one artist (Steve Cluck) presenting more literal, immediately accessible work. Steve Cluck is a printmaker, painter, and art instructor living in Tulsa. The recurring themes of his work are the issues of sexuality, personal style, consumerism, advertising, and community. Much of his work consists of screenprinting, lithography, intaglio, relief printing, oil painting, and installation (watch for the word “installation” later). Highly active in the local art world, Steve is the founder and editor of the Enewsletter Upcoming Tulsa Art Events, a nonprofit publication that informs over 500 readers monthly about happenings in the Tulsa art world. Steve is also the co-chair of the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition’s Momentum Tulsa committee.
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The Vending Machine 1-6 screenprint series and one Vending Machine oil on canvas all depict an attractive woman making rather commonplace purchases from a…vending machine. What make these pieces really stand out is the artist’s use of vibrant reds, yellows, blues and even some mauve, green gray and black. The oil paintings, also including Isabella with a Camera, are very graphic arts oriented, vaguely reminiscent of Andy Warhol. Cluck’s exhibit also includes a number of black and white images consisting of screenprinting, etching, intaglio and relief prints. One of the more accessible images is the screenprint Allison that portrays a female who seems to be a cross between Carmen Miranda and Rosie the Riveter, draped in an American flag. More primitive work can be seen in the intaglio series Megan I and Megan II that depicts a rather haggard woman smoking a cigarette. We met Enise Carr and found out a lot about him recently in the November/ December edition of Art Focus. Outside of making art, Carr works as a professor in the Humanities department at the University of Oklahoma and as a facilitator for the Oklahoma Healthcare Project.
The IAO press information referred to Enise’s show as an installation, but the artist insists that it is not an installation. “Nothing was installed and there is no architecture to it,” the artist states. “It is about breaking lines and borders, leaving many things to the unknown.” Carr hopes the viewer will be challenged into a new way of thinking and a new way to see the work. You can’t view the piece as if it were a static painting or sculpture, you have to move around and see it from different angles. According to the Carr, “the placement of work and how people see pieces and walk as spectators around my work are important to me. Colors are important as well as light. I know that certain people see things in different ways.” In reviewing Carr’s show, I certainly was challenged by what I thought was an art installation (emplacement?). I looked around the gallery for the handy cards or labels indicating Carr’s work and couldn’t find any. In the back of the gallery were some stacked cardboard boxes with some painting on them, some rectangles outlined with tape on the floor and wall, a display case with a mirror and a strobe light and some boards leaning on the wall. Art Philistine that I am, I just assumed that the artist never showed up and that IAO neglected to clean up after the last party. My wife, who is an artist and can be enigmatic, inscrutable and profound, thought the same thing. I spoke with the artist and he chided me for not asking him if the stacked boxes were a sculpture or painting so I knew that there was more to the exhibit. I planned to revisit the show and “move around and see it from different angles.” The different angle I took turned out to be from Broadway Avenue at 5:00 a.m. the next day. I travel down Broadway each morning on my way to work each day and glanced through the front window of the IAO gallery as I was zipping by. The gallery lights were turned down low, but the lighting embedded in Carr’s exhibit was still on. What I saw from the street was fundamentally different from what could be viewed with the gallery lights on full. In
Simplicity By Scott Hurst
reviews
A Radiant Untitled [Elm Leaf] n.d., gelatin silver print Gift of the Feininger family and the Bonni Benrubi Gallery ©Mrs. Andreas Feininger
one of the wall corners, Carr had strategically placed some boards with yellow fluorescent light behind. The yellow light added a dramatic dimension to the work, making it very organic and cohesive. I returned the next day when the gallery was actually open and asked the gallery manager to lower the gallery lights while I walked around the exhibit. I definitely had a better feel for the relationship of the various aspects of the work. It is difficult to draw the two artists together in summary. I was soothed by the familiar and recognizable art of Steve Cluck and challenged by the work of Enise Carr. All and all it was an enlightening and stimulating experience. Megan I & II, Steve Cluck, etching, 2003
Sometimes words just can’t catch up. I mean, occasionally it happens that we are so struck by the sheer sight of this or that particular object that an effort to describe it or define it seems somehow misplaced, almost ill-advised. Such is my feeling when faced with the prospect of writing about the wonderful exhibit Structures of Nature: Photographs by Andreas Feininger at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History this fall on the O.U. campus in Norman. Feininger’s pictures seem not to have anything to do with art in the sense that they look purely reportorial, without ego or point of view. The photographer’s mission where this body of work is concerned surely must have been to get out of the way, to let his lens capture the amazing complexity and, yes, beauty of such ordinary objects as feathers, leaves, trees and sea shells without human interference. Truly interdisciplinary in scope, Structures of Nature was a reminder of how limited our awareness of what surrounds us typically is. It also raised some interesting questions about the nature of meaning (Do we find, produce it or some combination of the two?) as well as the nature of photography: how, exactly, does one get out of one’s own way? Something the Italian writer Casare Pavese once said comes to mind: I have nothing in common with experimentalists, adventurers, with those who travel in strange regions. The surest, and the quickest, way for us to arouse the sense of wonder is to stare, unafraid, at a single object. Suddenly – miraculously – it will look like something we have never seen before. This is what Feininger manages to do. Somehow – miraculously – he reveals to us what we thought we already knew, but obviously didn’t. What we knew less well then, we do now know thanks to these incredible photographs. The best of them - Elm Leaf (n.d.), Birches Near Klockarberg in Dalarna, Sweden (1959), Brecciated Limestone (ca. 1974) and Betula populifolia Marshall (Gray Birch, 1964) manifest a kind of “concrete, finite presence” (Pavese’s words), a glorious intractability which forces you to look on their terms and in terms of their much slower time-frame. Isn’t one of the characteristics of genuine art that it forces the viewer to see the familiar in a new way? Feininger certainly accomplished that and with great aesthetic aplomb to boot.
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reviews
George Wilson’s
Sculpture
By Janice McCormick Wilson’s work, recently at the USAO Art Gallery in Chickasha, makes an interesting demand on the viewer. It asks the viewer to imaginatively to enter into fairly small sculptural pieces. This is especially true of pieces comprised of fairly simple geometric shapes painted in bright colors. A quick glance and you might come away with the impression of seeing toys, not serious works of art. But, spending the time to take the imaginative leap into Wilson’s art is well worthwhile. By covering a long span of the artist’s creative life (1981 to the present), this exhibit helps the viewer see how motifs evolve over time. Such reoccurring motifs include trees, branches and leaves; birds, feathers and wings; boats; buildings; mummy-like figures, and ladders. The tree in particular becomes the tree of life, while the bird stands for freedom. Sometimes, however, Wilson uses only part of the object to suggest its symbolic meaning – a leaf instead of the entire tree, for example. Yet, this visual shorthand does not result in a poverty of meaning. On the contrary, it allows for a complex and rich buildup of connotations – connotations dependent on context, i.e., how one symbolic object fits in with other symbolic images in any given sculpture. (top image) George Wilson A View from the Other Side of the Illusion Mixed media, 1989 (above) George Wilson Life Is Linear, Learn to Swim Mixed media, 1998-2000
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A View from the Other Side of the Illusion (mixed media, 1989) consists of an open framed building on stilts, with each stilt resting on a small mirror. Only the back wall and floor are solid, the rest of the walls are merely outlined in wire. Within the building, on the floor, is an open hole that contains a human figure completely wrapped in dark wire. A series of wires form a hammock-like support to hold up this figure. A parallel set of wires partially covers him. On the back wall is a jagged diagonal crack in the metal, like
a wound. A metal rectangular plate crosses over this crack at a right angle. It is bolted on from the other side of the wall so that the two metal bolts jut out toward the viewer. The result suggests a tilted crucifix. This crucifix motif can be found at the four corners of the opening in the floor as well. It is this motif that helps not only to identify the building as a church but also to grasp the significance of the work’s title. The “illusion” of the title, both symbolized and exposed by the magic of mirrors, is that of the religious promise of an after-life. Life Is Linear, Learn to Swim (mixed media, 1998-2000) is a larger, more ambitious undertaking, quite narrative in content. A ladder leads up to a slightly tilted, metal boat caught up in the bare-limbed branches of a tree. The boat holds a very pale, nude male lying down. The boat has an oar jutting out one side and a red bird wing on the other side. The oar ends with a flamelike shape and the rudder is a flame as well. The tree trunk is wired to a building that has gold leaf on one wall, while the other walls are white. This building, perhaps a home or a church, is the only element that conveys a sense of stability. The branches, oar, flames, bird wing and even the wire strands that hold the tree trunk to the home – all jut out in different directions, pulling the eye every which way. The figure’s naked and vulnerable pose, coupled with the fact that neither oar nor rudder are in his hands, all add up to a life out of control. In conclusion, Wilson’s works are created on a scale that, on the one hand, allows the viewer to take in all the elements presented but, on the other hand and paradoxically, suggests an enigmatic significance that exceeds a simple, child-like reading.
previews Hudson River School Masterworks from the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art Niagara Falls, the Hudson River, Yosemite Valley, and the vivid leaves of autumn as natural wonders of the New World fascinated the participants of the Hudson River School, America’s first school of landscape painters. The world’s best collection of Hudson River School paintings resides at the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art in Hartford, Connecticut and is traveling to Tulsa’s Philbrook Museum of Art. The exhibition features 55 exceptional works that encompass all of these themes by every major figure in the Hudson River School, including thirteen paintings by Thomas Cole, eleven paintings by Frederick Church and five by Albert Bierstadt. The national tour, sponsored by MetLife Foundation opens February 6 and runs through April 24, 2005. The core of Wadsworth Atheneum’s collection was determined in the 19th century by two major patrons of American artists: Daniel Wadsworth, picturesque traveler, amateur artist and the founder of the Atheneum, and Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, widow of arms manufacturer Samuel Colt and the creator of a major private collection. As one of the earliest patrons of Cole and Church, Wadsworth nurtured the artists’ careers and introduced the two, resulting in Church’s two-year apprenticeship with Cole. Later acquisitions and gifts, primarily from Elizabeth Hart Jarvis Colt, added significant works by all of the major Hudson River School artists. By the end of the 19th century, the style that was pioneered by Thomas Cole had virtually disappeared. Nevertheless, the Hudson River School painters left a notable legacy to American art, capturing the reverence for nature and the idealism of the nation that prevailed at the middle of the 19th century. Hudson River School: Masterworks from the Wadsworth Atheneum Museum of Art thus enables museum visitors to view this unique artistic legacy in its totality. These paintings offer a survey of the entire 19th century American landscape tradition, from John Vanderlyn’s iconic The Murder of Jane McCrea of 1804 to Frederick Church’s near-mythical scene A View of Cuernavaca, Mexico painted c. 1898-1900. The exhibition also shares many artists in common with Philbrook’s permanent collection, including Asher B. Durand, George Inness, Worthington Whittredge and Alexander Wyant, providing opportunities for the dedicated visitor to compare and contrast Philbrook’s masterpieces with those from the Atheneum collection. The exhibition is accompanied by a color catalogue available in the Museum Shop written by Elizabeth Mankin Kornhauser, Krieble Curator of American Paintings, Sculpture, and Works on Paper at the Wadsworth Atheneum. The Philbrook Museum of Art is located at 2727 South Rockford Road, just five minutes from downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The museum is open 10am – 5pm Tuesday through Sunday; Thursday evenings until 8 pm; closed Mondays. Daily admission is $7.50 adults; $5.50 seniors and groups of ten or more; museum members and children 12 and under are admitted free.
Martin Delabano, Spike Installation
Folk Meets Conceptual Art:
Martin Delabano
Delabano, a Texas artist of national acclaim, will have work on display at Untitled [ArtSpace] located at 1 NE 3rd from February 4th through March 26th 2005. An Opening Reception is scheduled for Friday, February 4th, from 5pm to 9pm. Delabano has been featured in Art in America and this will be his first Oklahoma exhibition. Admission is free and the exhibit is open to the public. Martin Delabano is known for his drawings and sculpture that portray the artist’s admittedly juvenile sense of humor. Included in his exhibition will be Delabano’s 12.5’ constructed dog installation titled “Spike.” Martin’s subject matter is a juxtaposition of folk and conceptual art forms. The most recognizable influence is the human figure which is usually portrayed in a mixed media sculpture and commonly paired with two-dimensional elements, thereby offering the viewer a different take on the imagery. In addition to Spike, the exhibition will include over fifteen pieces featuring both mixed media sculptures and drawings. The public is invited to observe the artist execute a large mural size drawing on-site at Untitled [ArtSpace] beginning January 31st and to attend a free gallery talk given by the artist on March 24th at 7pm. About the Artist: Martin Delabano was born in Dallas, Texas in 1957 to Barney and Barbara Delabano. Barney Delabano His early life was saturated with art. The Delabano home was filled with drawings, paintings, lithographs, and ancient artifacts from all over the world. Martin enrolled in a succession of art classes at the Dallas Museum of Art, and there were always abundant art supplies on hand at home. In 1974 he met Louise Nevelson, an early influence, when she had a one-person show at the Dallas Museum of Art. In 1975 Martin traveled to Florence, Rome, Venice and Paris with his family. The entire trip was dedicated to art, museums, archaeological sites and churches. In 1975, Delabano also met another source of early inspiration, Robert Rauschenberg, at the Dallas Museum of Art. During this time he was also working in SMU’s sculpture studios. He married Jill Gaines in 1979 and earned his BFA from East Texas State University the following year. Gallery Hours are Wednesday - Saturday, 11am - 4pm and Friday, 11am - 8pm. For more information about Untitled [ArtSpace] visit www.1ne3.org or phone 405.815.9995.
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photo credit: Don Emrick
reviews (above) The Island by Randy Marks from his Voyagers and the Voyage recently at the Tulsa Artists’ Coalition Gallery. (top right) Brooke Madden “Untitled”, seed pods & twine, 28” x 18”---2004 (bottom right) In the foreground of the exhibit installation 3 Dimensions is Elise Derringer’s Weighted Down (rocks, wood & twine) at the OU’s Lightwell Gallery.
At a Glance 3 Dimensions Elise Derringer, Brooke Madden, and Angela Renke were featured in an exhibition entitled 3 Dimensions was featured in the Lightwell Gallery at the OU School of Art from October 30 until November 5. The sculptors are University of Oklahoma students who have an uncanny sense of space. The exhibition was spare, but well arranged. With interesting materials and use of multiple perspectives, the works had strong continuity.
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Each artist, however, distinguished herself with color, theme, and concept. Brook Madden’s use of seedpods and twine to create floor sculptures was eerie and organic. The works used angles and interplay of light for compelling effect. Angela Renke pushed a contemplative vigor through carefully chosen materials and use of positive and negative space. Her sculptures are consistently dynamic. Elise Derringer literally tied together her ideas, using fiber and mixed media to define rhythms and sensations. This exhibition should be repeated and expanded
where more can see it! Muse America Tulsa artist Steve Cluck takes over Oklahoma with his printmaking in the recent Muse America at the Individual Artists of Oklahoma Gallery. The exhibition ran in November 2004. Filling the gallery with prints and paintings, Cluck united the work with an analogous palate and linked subject matter. Most unique, Cluck offered viewers an opportunity to vote for their favorite muse between his three models for the series. I proudly wore my “I voted in Muse America” sticker for the rest of the night. We’ll watch for Steve to take over the country with his muses. Voyagers and the Voyage Tulsa Artists’ Coalition featured a dozen sculptural works by Randy Marks in his exhibit Voyagers and the Voyage during the month of November. Besides two ships (one wall-mounted, the other free-standing), a navigational device (Armillary for the
New Order), and an elongated tower (Dark Pharos – referring to the ancient lighthouse of Egypt), there were several intriguing figures: The Merchant, The Captain and A Person of Interest. This last title hints at a subtle, post-modern undercurrent of socio-political commentary. Indeed, The Warning features a tornado-like trumpet. Of what are we being warned? Is it the dangers of traveling in terrorist times? Perhaps. Or, does it warn of the political dangers to civil liberties to be faced in this time of terrorism, of a civilization whose lighthouse of ideals has gone dark? The whimsical, almost Dr. Seuss-like quality of the figures keeps this body of work from a straightforward answer. But, there is that post-modern “nudge, nudge, I know what you’re getting at” lurking about this exhibit. There is one port in the storm: The Island, with its oriental sensibility, gently wells up out of the imagined watery depths of the sea.
Your Exhibition or Open Studio
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PROMOTING
By Alyson B. Stanfield
You’ve finished the artwork, had it framed and photographed, and are just about to start the installation when you slip into panic mode. Uh-oh. You forgot the most important part! You are not having an exhibition just to send your work on a vacation from your messy studio. You are having an exhibition to advance your career. And it’s not going to do anything for you unless you tell people about it. If you’re not working on promotions at the same time you’re creating art, you’re falling behind! Way behind. And the consequences are enormous. Let’s get this clear from the start. Yes, you are an artist, but if you’re trying to make money, you’re also a businessperson. And there is no fairy godmother (or agent or rep) that’s going to swoop to your rescue and do the work for you. You have to do it yourself. The standard way to promote an exhibit is through postcards. If you are printing invitations, make them simple but memorable. For last-minute postcards, concentrate on design and keeping it clean and legible. If they are printed at your local copy shop, liven them up by hand coloring, rubber-stamping, or adding embellishments and special envelopes. If you are industrious
and have a crew to help you, a handdelivered invitation in an unusual envelope (or other vessel!) will pique the interest of any recipient. You can attach a treat, such as a cookie or ornament, or have the delivery person appear in costume. Get creative! If you’re having an open studio, you must feel safe and comfortable about letting people in your front door. Why not give your friends and family five invitations each to distribute to their friends and family? This broadens your audience base. At the same time, you can rest easy because most people were invited by those you already know and trust. Fine. We expect to get postcards in the mail. But what else should you be doing? Build your mailing list. Most artists get their mailing list from people who sign their guest books. I just don’t get it! Why, when your livelihood depends on it, would you wait for people to come to you? You should be building your mailing list constantly. If you don’t have 250 names on it already, commit to adding 50 names a month until you have at least that many. Send out media releases. And don’t wait for your venue to do it for you. Your success depends on it. Before you add a media contact to your mailing list, ask yourself1: • Is this a publication I want publicity in?
But, and this is important, you have to make a pitch that your story is newsworthy. Turn your exhibit into an event. A media release for an exhibit opening usually lands in the calendar listings. What can you do to distinguish yours from all the others? And how can you deliver it in a way that is sure to get noticed? Find out the best ways to build your mailing list, contact the media, and turn your exhibition into an event in my Tulsa workshop: “From Frame to Fame,” Saturday, February 5, 2005. I’ll also share with you the number one mistake most artists make. To register or get all the details, go to <www.artbizcoach.com/tulsa>. Alyson B. Stanfield, of Golden, Colorado, is an artist marketing consultant with ten years’ experience as a museum curator and educator. She founded ArtBizCoach.com in 2002 to help artists promote themselves and build their businesses. In conjunction with the Artist Survival Kit program, she will offer the seminar “From Frame to Fame” on February 5, 9:30a-2:30p in Tulsa. Check her website for registration information. (Footnotes) 1
Adapted from “Elements for a Successful Press Campaign,” (November 4, 2002), published online at http: //www.entrepreneur.com/article/ 0,4621,304234,00.html.
• Do my potential collectors or prospective business contacts read this publication or listen to this radio show? • Does this person write about art such as mine? Or, if an editor, does this person assign articles that would include art like mine? • Is there another writer or editor at this publication who would be interested in my art?
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Eat Your Peas and Carrots: ART MARKETING 101 BY CONSTANCE SMITH By Sue Clancy
Around age 34 I realized that I could no longer eat the quantities of pizza that I did at age 24 - at least not without doing regular physical exercise. In fact I’ve discovered, as I’ve gotten older, that a number of unglamorous ‘body maintenance’ things really are beneficial. Things like eating vegetables, getting a good night’s sleep, drinking more water and less beer - at some point you grow up and ‘just do it.’ Likewise being an artist professionally has some unglamorous aspects (read business aspects) that are essential to helping an artist’s creative work/ livelihood ‘stay regular,” if you know what I mean. A book I’ve read recently titled Art Marketing 101 by Constance Smith is full of tips about those things you’ve gotta ‘just do’ in order to be a successful professional artist. Ms. Smith, in this second edition of Art Marketing 101, covers such business basics as: • Getting Organized, • Scheduling, • Keeping Records, • Pricing Art, • Press Releases, • Shipping and Displaying Art, • Planning Exhibits, • Resumes, • Photographing Art, • Self Promotion, • Presentation Techniques, • Sales Techniques, • Locating Markets - and much more. All the stuff you need to keep a working art studio healthy. I think of the book as Metamucil for an Artist’s Career.
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Fortunately an artist’s life isn’t only business - in fact ‘business’ can often be done in small regular intervals. This book is structured to be taken in small chunks and consulted on an as needed basis. For example, when getting ready to plan an exhibit or to participate in one, you can flip to the section titled “Planning an exhibit” and view a checklist of what needs to be done when in order to have a successful exhibit. In the book it’s just that - an easy-to-read checklist. Recently I received an art commission that was a bit different from my usual thing. Pricing art is one of the un-sexy parts of an artist’s life but it’s gotta be done. So I consulted the section titled “Pricing Methods”. There was another checklist and a formula reminding me to include Time, Overhead, and Market Value (among other things) when setting the price. It also had a review of how to determine market value. This was a valuable reminder for me. In fact this section of the book was why I’d purchased Constance Smith’s book. That, along with its clear simple coverage of business basics, made me think this was a good reference book for its $24.95 cover price. I must confess that I did see one teensy thing that caused me to seek a second opinion. A little line in an otherwise excellent section of advice on pricing says “Soon your pricing will establish itself rising slowly - no more than 10% per year (page 88).” 10% per year actually sounded like ‘rising fast’ to me based on
what I’ve read elsewhere. So I consulted Connie Seabourn a professional local artist who has sold her art far and wide. Connie had this to say and I paraphrase with her permission, “10% a year?! That’d be like McDonalds raising their prices 10% per year or the way gasoline keeps going up in price now! No, my dad’s (Bert Seabourn’s) advice is much better! He has always said to raise your prices ONLY when you can’t keep up with demand for your artwork.” That made a lot more sense to me and I was glad I got a second opinion! I can see that when the demand for one’s art has increased to not raise the price more than 10% at that time. Which is possibly what Constance Smith meant. Perhaps in the quest to keep simple what, for many artists, is an unappealing topic Ms. Smith erred on the side of brevity. In spite of needing to seek a second opinion on that one thing I’m still glad I got the book. Just like Life, being an artist is a lot more enchanting when the business end of art flows smoothly. It makes the glamorous part - the actual creation of art - a lot more fun. Art Marketing 101 is a good book to have on hand and use just like a first-aid kit. You can get the book through <www.artmarketing.com>, <Amazon.com>, Borders and many other bookstores. Walk a mile for a slice of pizza - anyone?
Momentum OKC is January 8, 2005 at 1100 N Broadway. Visual art, live music and performance create the fun. Check www.ovac-ok.org for tickets and more info. A big thank you to the Momentum Committee for all their hard work, especially the co-chairs Trent Lawson and Robin Chase. Thanks also to the great sponsors of the event who made the increased awards possible. CD Warehouse, Doerner, Saunders, Daniel & Anderson LLP, and Pitchy Patchy were our awards sponsorships.
round up
Momentum committee member Clint Stone helping to hang last year’s Momentum.
Congratulations to OVAC Executive Director Julia Kirt and Nathan Guilford who married on December 31, 2004. The newlyweds will be back to work right away. Nathan is preparing to open his own dental practice (Toothbrushers Dental) in northwest Oklahoma City. Julia continues to enjoy working with artists around the state through OVAC.
“Cigarette” girl selling hand made post cards at last year’s Momentum.
Thank you to our New and Renewing Members from September and October Asia Marrilyn Adams Jennifer Alig John and Teresa Andrus Marty and Martha Avrett Donald L. Baker Cody and Kelly Barnett Heidi BigKnife Rankin Julie Marks Blackstone John Brandenburg Diana Brown Shane Brown Cynthia Brown Stephanie Brudzinski Steven Burroughs Abi Chodosh Dian Church Janey Carns Crain Beverly Creed Bob Curtis Jacqueline Zanoni de los Santos Lacie Deitz Bill and Janie Deupree
Linda Dixon Robert Dohrmann Lynn Deal Doyle Gloria Abella De Duncan Tiffany English Janene Evard Ron Fleming Ellen Frank Ron Franklin Diane Glenn John and Stephany Gooden Jeannie Graham Martha Green Brenda Kennedy Grummer Steven Haught Edwin Helm Shane Hemberger Connie and Richard Herlihy Stanley Hess Skip Hill Jonathan Hils David Holland Shirley Houx Kristy Jennings Willard Johnson
Abby Jones Ellen Jonsson Debby Kaspari Jim Keffer Jena Kodesh Tom E. Lee Art and Betsy LeFrancois Monika Linehan Katherine Liontas-Warren Steve Liggett Kelsey Longanacre Phyllis Mantik Dru Marseilles Janet Massad Chris Maupin Kenny McCage Andrew McCoy Sharon McCoy Davis Susan J. McKee Julie Miller Kate Arnott Morgan Elizabeth L. Muller Sabzeh Nakhchi Dan and Elaine Nealey Laura Nigliazzo
David Nunneley Keena Oden Ann Ong Nathan Opp George Oswalt Wallace Owens David Owens Bob E. Palmer Daisy Patton Suzanne Peck Elizabeth Peveto David Phelps Jim Powers Gus Friedrich and Erena Rae Sara Ramsey Lisa Rhoades Melyta Tadefa Rodriguez Diane Salamon Paula and Don Sanders Roger Saunders Barbara S. Scott Mike D. Smith Karin Stafford Leigh Victoria Standingbear Joe Staskal
Jesi Stinchcomb Julie Strauss Brock Surles Gwen Suthers Cindy Swanson Laura Teske Andrew and Mary Tevington Adrian Thompson George and Lila Todd Adam Todd Jim and Beth Tolbert Leigh Tomlin Tom and Diana Tunnell Denise Waible Jeri Wensel Janie Wester Carol Whitney Charles and Renate Wiggin Sarah Williams Cindy Williams Jacque Collins Young Tom Young
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Gallery Listings Ada 24 Works on Paper January 10- February 9 Works from the ECU Collection February 21- March 13 University Gallery East Central University (580) 310-5356 www.ecok.edu Ardmore Selected Artists from the I-20 Group, Louisiana Through February 26 Charles B. Goddard Center 401 First Avenue SW (580) 226-0909 www.godart.org Bartlesville Giambologna: Master Sculptor of the Renaissance Through January 9 Bold Improvisation: 120 years of African-American Quilts January 21- March 6 Price Tower Arts Center 6th and Dewey (918) 336-4949 www.pricetower.org Broken Bow Forest Heritage Center Beaver’s Bend Resort (580) 494-6497 www.beaversbend.com Chickasha Centerfold Show January 9- February 5 Opening reception January 9, 4 pm James Cobb: Paintings and Drawings February 16- March 14 Opening reception February 16 at 4 pm University of Sciences and Arts of Oklahoma Gallery-Davis Hall 1806 17th Street (405) 574-1344 www.usao.edu/~gallery/ Claremore Foundations Gallery-Baird Hall Rogers State University (918) 343-7740 Durant Southeastern OK State University 1405 N. 4th PMB 4231
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Exhibition Schedule
Durham Metcalfe Museum Rt. 1 Box 25 (580) 655-4467 Edmond Unmentionables II: Historical Undergarments Rarely Seen January 4- February 26 Edmond Historical Society 431 S. Boulevard (405) 340-0078 www.edmondhistory.org Senior Exhibition Through January 31 Chambers Library Gallery University of Central Oklahoma 100 University Drive (405) 974-5931 www.camd.ucok/events.edu El Reno Dean Hyde Through January 28 Gordon Parks Photography Competition: Celebration of Culture and Diversity February 3- March 30 Redlands Community College (405) 262-2552 www.redlandscc.edu/visitors/ gallery.htm Idabel Life Ways, Being and Becoming Opens January 19 long-term exhibition Exhibit of Recent Acquisitions January 19- February 27 30 Years, 30 Treasures March 1- April 15 Museum of the Red River 812 East Lincoln Road (580) 286-3616 www.museumoftheredriver.org Lawton Coral McCallster and Carol Sinnreich January 5- February 28 Opening reception January 5, 7-9 The Leslie Powell Foundation and Gallery 620 D Avenue (580) 357-9526 www.lpgallery.org
Yosef Kahnfer In Search of Peace Photography, at the Capitol Gallery
Norman Chocolate Festival Preview Show January 14-23 Chocolate Festival Gala February 4 5 to 9 Group Collaborative Show January 28- February 26 Firehouse Art Center 444 South Flood (405) 329-4523 www.normanfirehouse.com Closed through January 17 Jacobson House 609 Chautauqua (405) 366-1667 Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art Under construction until January 21, 2005 410 W. Boyd Street (405) 325-3272 www.ou.edu/fjjma/ Emerging Artists Through January 22 Mainsite Contemporary Art Gallery 122 East Main (405) 292-8095 www.mainsite-art.com Oklahoma City Under the Influence: Music and Art Through January 8 City Arts Invitational January 21- February 26 City Arts Center 3000 Pershing Blvd. (800) 951-0000 www.cityartscenter.org Printmakers of the Prairie- 50 Years of Printmaking, 1920-1970 January 1- February 12 JRB at the Elms 2810 North Walker, The Paseo Arts District (405) 528-6336
www.jrbartgallery.com Suzanne Peck and Adeline Sides January 7- 29 Geoffrey Krawczyk and Joe Slack February 4- 26 Individual Artists of Oklahoma 811 N. Broadway (405) 232-6060 www.iaogallery.org ALASKAWild December 1- January Richard Buswell’s Echoes: A Visual Reflection Through January 3 Huntington Witherwill Through January 3 International Photography Hall of Fame and Museum 2100 NE 52nd Street (405) 424-4055 www.iphf.org Kirkpatrick Galleries at the Omniplex 2100 NE 52nd 800-532-7652 www.omniplex.org Beneath a Turquoise Sky Through January 30 2005 Helicopter Cowboy Through March 6 National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum 1700 NE 63rd (405) 478-2250 www.cowboyhalloffame.org Augusta Metcalf Governor’s Gallery January 10- March 18; Bob Davis East Gallery Through February 11; Bill Jaxon East Gallery February 21- April 22; Tulsa Photography Collective East Gallery Through February 18; Yosef Kahnfer East Gallery February 28- April 29 Oklahoma State Capital Galleries 2300 N. Lincoln Blvd (405) 521-2931 www.state.ok.us/~arts
Andrew Storie’s Green Me and Stone Faced will be at the Tulsa Artists’ Coalition Gallery in January.
Kid Size: The Material World of Childhood Through March 20 Oklahoma Museum of Art 415 Couch Drive (405) 236-3100 www.okcmoa.com Trent Lawson January 9- February 4 Oklahoma Watercolor Association February 13- March 11 Nona Hulsey Gallery, Norick Art Center Oklahoma City University 1600 NW 26th (405) 521-5226 Rob Phenix- Large Gallery Blake Collins, Shelly Collins- Small Galleries Through January 22 Martin Delabano February 4- March 26 Untitled (Art Space) 1 NE 3rd St. (405) 815-9995 www.1NE3.com University Gallery Oklahoma Christian University 2501 East Memorial Road (800) 877-5010 Ponca City All That Southwest Jazz Oklahoma Museums Association Through January 22, 2005 Women of Biblical Proportion: 50 Quilts January 29-March 12 Artsplace Ponca City 319 East Grand Ave (580) 762-1930 Ponca City Art Center 819 East Central Shawnee Spatial Meditations: works by Randy Marks and Byron Shen January 7- February 27 Mabee-Gerrer Museum of Art 1900 West University (405) 878-5300 www.mgmoa.org
Yosef Kahnfer Touch Me Light Photograph showing at the Capitol Gallery
Stillwater Gardiner Art Gallery Oklahoma State University 108 Bartlett University art.okstate.edu/gallery.htm Tulsa Waterworks Photography Association 4th Annual Members’ exhibit January 6- February 3 GC Roundup by Brian Magnuson February 10- March 10 Apertures Gallery 1936 South Harvard (918) 742-0500 www.aperturesphoto.com Holiday Market Through January 7 Boston Artists Gallery 23 East Brady (918) 585-1166 1000 Years of Native American Art January 22- long-term exhibition opens Wrapped in Tradition: The Chihuly Collection of American Indian Trade Blankets Through February 20 Gilcrease Museum 1400 Gilcrease Road (918) 596-2700 www.gilcrease.org Holliman Gallery Holland Hall 5666 East 81st Street (918) 481-1111 Evidence of Toolmaking: Chris Vecchio January 7- 27 The Very Bad Art Show February 5 Living ArtSpace 308 Kenosha (918) 585-1234 www.livingarts.org
Floating World Gallery 3714 S. Peoria Avenue (918) 706-1825 Focus 1: George Legrady Through January 16 Hudson River School: Masterworks from Athenaeum Museum of Art Through April 24 The Philbrook Museum of Art 2727 South Rockford Road (918) 749-7941 www.Philbrook.org
Woodward Oklahoma Watercolor Travel Exhibit January 1-31 Watercolors by Cletus Smith February 1- 28 Plains Indians and Pioneers Museum 2009 Williams Ave www.pipm1.com (580) 256-6136
Scratching the Surface: Work by Andrew Storie January 7-29 Wrap: Terri Higgs and Cassandra Wonderly February Tulsa Artists Coalition Gallery 9 East Brady (918) 592-0041 www.tacgallery.org Tulsa Performing Arts Gallery 110 East 2nd Street (918) 596-7122 Places I Have Been: Members’ Show January 9 – February 12 Opening January 9, 6-9pm Tulsa Photography Collective Gallery North Hall at OSU-Tulsa 700 North Greenwood
Kid Size: The Material World of Childhood at the Oklahoma City Museum of Art
2005 Scholastics Exhibition January 4- 22 Alexandre Hogue Gallery Phillips Hall, the University of Tulsa 600 South College Ave. (918) 631-2202 www.cas.utulsa.edu/art/ Waterworks Art Studio 1710 Charles Page Blvd.
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