George Bellows

It's been a season of last minutes. I got to the Frick on Sunday, the very last possible day to see the George Bellows exhibit.

It was a striking exhibit, three rooms of beautiful drawings and prints. Very active compositions, great observations. The materials he used in his drawings were of special note. He combined two or three drawing materials to achieve the effects. I am sorry that I didn't get over sooner. I would have made at least one more trip.

Besides, I like the Frick. It's a beautiful campus.

England and Poland's Finest Hour

My dad, who is now gone was a WWII veteran and my mom narrowly escaped Poland with her family (not all) as a child. Her mom, and uncle were part of the Polish Government in Exile and she knew many pilots, both Polish and English who fought in the Battle of Britain.

On June 18th, Winston Churchill gave this speach thanking the RAF for it's role at Dunkirk, with full knowledge of the trial to come and how little they had to face it.

More on Jacob Young.

Just as I expected, the new Jacob Young film was both interesting and entertaining. Todd Walker (along with his "brothers" Davy and Dale) proved to be likable, amusing, and obsessive. The object that Walker suspected to be the biblical artifact of divination (the Urim and Thummin) was indeed wholly unidentifiable. As a focal point of meditation, it did have the requisite qualities to promote hallucinatory visions. Its surface (especially the interior) was both luminescent and oddly-shaped. Walker put the thing in the hands of many witnesses, and their testimony is (at least) indicative of the power of faith.

What passes for expert authority in the Appalachian communities of the film certainly made me chuckle. When Walker wants to find some especially convincing support, he turns to a two-time Jeopardy champion and the manager of the local Auto Zone. Only later does he drive to Vanderbuilt University, where academics in religious studies, archaeology and psychology demonstrate tremendous diplomacy and tact in meeting with him. Truth be told, it would have been quite easy for them to laugh at Walker from their "ivory towers". Perhaps Young's cameras restrain them. Nevertheless the scholars give generously of their feedback, while every established religious institution pushes Walker away. While Young claims the resistance from church leaders amazed him, I wasn't at all surprised by it. Walker's claims are a direct challenge to their perceived authority. If a bumpkin can receive a holy gift of true vision, then what does that say about the role God has bestowed upon HIS priests?

It was clear during the Q and A session that Young had great affection for his subjects. The director explained that the project was initiated because his producer and partner (Dub Cornet) had a phone number that Walker responded to numerologically. Cornet shot a bunch of video that Young was later tasked with making into a coherent film. Although Young never derived the same otherworldly experiences from the object that others had, he was sure to avoid passing judgment on the phenomena. He absolutely refused to discount Walkers' beliefs. Young pointed out that he needs to be on his subject's side if he is to make a quality documentary. And in order for his films to have any real depth, he has to convey the spirituality of the people in front of the camera. Any element of obvious skepticism would introduce a confrontation that would spoil his intentions. Young is, by his own words, inspired by people on a mission- and the more unlikely his subject is to succeed, the more interesting a subject he/she becomes.

Anyone who spends any substantial time with the works of Jacob Young will understand the purity of his intentions. But that wasn't the case with the network (CBS) executives who pulled the plug on his latest project- The Real Beverly Hillbillies. Cornet and Young had decided to update the original concept for reality television. They identified an Appalachian family (the Griffeys) and planned to install them in a genuine multi-million dollar mansion in Hollywood. The idea encountered political resistance from people who believed that the show would prove to be patronizing and exploitative. But that was never the intention of the filmmakers. It was Young's contention that all the truly negative portrayals in the original Beverly Hillbillies centered on the city sophisticates. The countryfolk were shown to be caring, authentic and morally sound. Young made it a point to select a family that would be an ideal representation of Appalachia. He claims that anyone that met them couldn't help but like them.

When the project was killed, Young and Cornet felt bad that the Griffeys had been promised so much that was later snatched away. They took the money they had left from pre-production and rented a motor home to take the family cross-country. The intention was to both give the Griffey's the grand tour of America and to film a defense of the original concept. The result was a documentary called The True Adventures of the Real Beverly Hillbillies (2006). Although I haven't seen it, I expect it to be a perfect palliative to the corrosive belief that authentic regional phenomena ought to be sugar-coated or homogenized for public consumption.

In fact I'd say that what I most enjoy about Young's films is their honest depiction of a widely misunderstood region of the country. This is most evident in his Different Drummer collection. I was lucky enough to buy a rough copy of the DVD set from the man himself. I stayed up late last night watching all the episodes. Now you too can be so fortunate as to own this set. Visit the Dancing Outlaw website to purchase it and other fine products.

Jacob Young @ Film Kitchen on Tuesday, June 12th.

I know that, during the run of this blog, I've made only scant mention of West Virginian filmmaker Jacob Young. That's a bit of an egregious oversight. Young is one of the most compelling documentarians working in the United States. He's focused his efforts on presenting people and stories from his home state. Of course when you're born in the Mountaineer State (the most beautiful and enigmatic place in the Eastern United States), there is plenty of ground to cover.

Some of Young's early subjects have included Appalachian junkyard owners, the rich industrialist who plagues the land with those goddamned three crosses, the warden from the Moundsville Penitentiary, white supremacist author Dr. William Pierce (author of The Turner Diaries - a book found on Timothy McVeigh after the Oklahoma City bombing), and the swami-turned-felon of the North American headquarters of the Hare Krishnas. Young has received some well-deserved praise for his West Virginia Public TV-produced Different Drummer series, which (of course) documented the antics of a string of eccentric WV characters. One episode is about a senior citizen hussy, who dolls herself up and sings show tunes in the dives of the hollers, performing as "Amazing Dolores".

But Young has received his greatest notoriety with The Dancing Outlaw. This was a documentary about the "Last Mountain Dancer", Jesse White. This Boone County native has appropriated at least two alter egos- Elvis (The King) and Satan himself (nicknamed "Jesco"). Young presented White, his family, and his girlfriend in all their backwoods splendor. Jesco assumes center stage as he relates stories about his lamentably departed father and siblings, and his own gas-huffing, thieving, and alcohol-sodden childhood. But when he's not raising hell White plies his trade in a mix of clog and tap dancing, accompanied by bluegrass music. This was his own father's stock-in-trade, and Jesse has aspired to keep the dying art alive.

Having received his fifteen minutes of fame, Jesco later resumed his place in the spotlight when Roseanne Barr became a fan of The Dancing Outlaw. He was actually invited to Hollywood to appear on her show, and Young was along for the ride to document his adventure. All did not go as expected. Barr had Jesco removed from the set when she noticed a tattoo of a swastika on his arm. White later had the offending symbol covered up when he realized its significance. He explains that it was merely a youthful indiscretion.

It would be a more just world if Jacob Young had received as much acclaim and name recognition as Jesco. But his misfortune pays off for us tomorrow. We can actually meet him in person at Pitsburgh Filmmakers in Oakland (Melwood Street). He'll be at Film Kitchen, presenting his newest documentary- Urim and Thummim*. It's about a man named Todd Walker who bought an object at a Nashville Goodwill for 69 cents. Apparently he was pleased to discover that the thing proved to be a visual gateway to both Heaven and Hell. But evidently others were skeptical about his claims. Young followed Walker on a "witness tour" aimed at convincing the locals that the relic was a genuine and miraculous holy object.

If you are so inclined, you can chat with Jacob Young at the reception (7PM) that precedes the screening. I've spoken with him on two previous occasions, and I've found him to be both accessible and generous with his thoughts. But if you are the shy sort, stick around for the Q & A session after the film. It's sure to be illuminating.


* - Find out more about this obscure-sounding title here.

Zoe Strauss Punched My Face

Zoe Strauss's, "If you are reading this" show was one of the most powerful things I have seen in a while. She is doing a closing party and slide projection outside the space on June 22nd. If you are in NY you should make this.

Roberta Smith's review in the Times was on the mark.

" Stylistically, her images of down-and-out people, many of them her neighbors, and derelict places suggest a gritty street photographer with a certain awareness of Nan Goldin’s work. But Ms. Strauss, who is self-taught, veers more toward Helen Levitt in both her refusal to sentimentalize or exploit her subjects and in her instinctive grasp of the drama of the street. "

" Ms. Strauss’s images are not without tenderness, but their harsh, unblinking force is a bit like a punch in the face. They show us what most Americans don’t want to see. "

Zoe's show got a lot of attention and all of it was deserved. sometimes behind a lot of sizzle, there's a really great steak. Here's her blog and her flickr
Friday June 22nd
8:30 PM Slide presentation around 9pm
Sivertein Gallery
525 West 24th ST.
NYC

Blog Becomes Gallery In Detroit

The seems to be a little trend of people taking virtual identities from blogs into the real world. Ann Gordon, the 26 year old artist and art nut behind the great Detroit Arts blog will be trying her hand at curating and running a gallery for the summer. Needless to say she will likely a lot more known and connected in the scene there and likely has a pent up audience eager to see her shows as well as a lot awareness of local artists.

Ann's goal of mixing Detroit and non Detroit artists will also be helped by the following and support her blog has developed out of town. Ann will have some of her own work in my upcomming blogger show.

St. Anthony's Chapel, Troy Hill, PA.

Every once in awhile it's refreshing to pretend to be a tourist in your hometown. Inevitably there are things going on in the city that rarely cross your mind. It's easy to tell yourself, whenever the attraction lasts several months to a year, that someday soon you'll make the time to pay a visit. But then things come and go, and you realize a week or a month after it's gone that you've simply missed out. When these destinations are "permanent" there is even more of a chance that you will neglect them.

For years I've been telling myself that I'm going to take a trip over to St. Anthony's Chapel in the Troy Hill section of Pittsburgh. A few years ago a group of my friends and I tried to stop by on Easter Sunday. But it was closed to the public that day. We laughed at the irony, and resolved to return again in a few weeks. We never did. Why did we want to see St. Anthony's, anyway? Well... it houses the largest collection of saint's relics in the United States. A man named Father Suitbert Mollinger began acquiring these holy objects in the 1800's, and built the chapel to house them between 1880 and 1883. As their brochure points out- "Over five thousand relics of the saints have reposed peacefully in the chapel for over a hundred years."

The most revered relic in the Chapel is from St. Anthony of Padua. Unfortunately, I don't know what it actually consists of. And since I didn't take the tour, there was no real way to figure it out. Is it a tooth, a femur, a gallstone, or what? There are literally hundreds of sacred containers labeled only in Latin. Where's the the "splinter of the True Cross" (yeah... that one)? Where is the thorn from the Crown of Thorns (uh-huh... you got it)? Where's that piece of stone from the Holy Sepulchre (and just what the heck is a "Sepulchre")? Indeed, other than the top of some unfortunate's skull- many of the actual relics are completely unidentifiable. Yet despite the overwhelming presentation, it's certainly an impressive assemblage.

But one might ask, "How is one to know whether all (or any) of these relics are authentic? Apparently there are documents of authenticity for every last one of them. They are "retained with security provisions by the parish" (so says our friendly brochure). The ambiguity of that assertion is puzzling. Imagine the hellfire and damnation that a theoretical burglar would face if attempting such a heist. Evidently the church caretakers are not confining their preventive measures to heavenly methods. I guess that keeping the artifacts and their accompanying papers in different locations is prudent. Because really... who is going to believe that inner cheek swab originally belonged to St. Francis of Assisi? How are you going to convince the aficionado that the wart scraping at the center of that gilded cross once grew on St. Bartholemew's thumb? It reminds me of the freaky girl in Linklater's Slacker- buzzing around and accosting strangers on the street in order to sell Madonna's pap smear. And shit... that Madonna is still alive.

After you've had a chance to check out the biggest church trophy case in this hemisphere, take a look at the large wooden sculptures representing the "Stations of the Cross". They were made by artists at the Royal Ecclesiastical Art Establishment of Mayer and Company in Munich. And there's plenty of stained glass to look at too. There's even a gift shop. We chose not to stop by, assuming that the good stuff was not for sale. I did notice an advertisement for a picture book of the "Stations" sculptures ($5). That sign was next to another one warning the pilgrim not to take any photographs in the chapel. Since getting some photos was my main reason for coming, I was pretty disappointed. Why are these religious groups so damned proprietary about their treasures? You'd think they'd want to spread the word in any way possible. But since they've cornered this particular market, I guess they can call the shots.

In any case, it is still worth stopping by (it's open to the public on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays from 1-4 PM) . It's an amazing place and a true 'Burgh diamond-in-the-rough. The one piece of advice I'd suggest to the curators- get a more appropriate container for the "Blessed Water". It's sitting there in an oversized plastic jug that makes me think that a rogue gang of monks is going to sieze it and tip it over the head of the Holy Father, in celebration of some celestial victory. That's just not right.

Review OF Swoon Show

By the way there was finally a well written and insightfull review of the Swoon show in the City Paper. From what I can see, that was about it in terms of coverage here.

"Stain and Swoon, derive their inspiration, and in which they define their creative practices. Put simply, they see the outside world of pedestrians and walls as a more potent display space for their ideas than the comparatively sterile pretenses of art patrons and the white cube. Swoon, in an interview with The New York Times, once said that outdoor display avoids the "quiet, boring preciousness" of the gallery world."

You can see very clearly in the show how much all three artists valued and loved the tragically sacred setting of Braddock.

Score One for Richard Florida

One of the things that supports Pittsburgh reputation as a provincial backwater is it's tendency to ignore and ostracize people with new ideas. Richard Florida was a long time CMU professor with a way of looking at things that cut straight against the way things are done here. His Breakthrough book openly used Pittsburgh as an example of how not to do economic development.

His theory was that we were in a new age in which employers and capital chased skilled, creative people and placed issues of culture, openness, diversity and quality of life at the forefront of economic development discussion rather than government subsidies, backroom deals and sports stadiums.

One of his concepts is that regions are increasingly looked at by people as job and talent pools. Growing a new drug company would be easiest in an area with a large base of qualified researchers, investors and managers knowledgeable about the field etc.. Well anyway, here is another real life example of why he might be right.

Images From Maggy Show

Maggy Aston's show makes a complete whole and I haven't gotten around to shooting instalation shots yet but here a few images of works in the show that she provided. She will be adding to and changing parts of the work as the show goes on so come in more than once to see how the work changes.

Her working process of layering multiple images results in lots proofs and experiments so I also have a lot of her prints, drawings and watercolors in my files -- with some for as little as $100.

Opening reception on June 16!

Join us tonight -
Opening reception on June 16
6-9pm


Maggy Aston: Drawings and Constructions - Side I more information

In June, Digging Pitt will present a solo exhibit of the work of Maggy Aston. Maggy works with naturally occurring forms rendered with sensitivity to line and form. Maggy Aston earned her B.F.A. from Maryland Institute and her M.F.A. in printmaking from West Virginia University in 1995. She currently lives on the banks of the Monongahela River in a small rural town south of Pittsburgh, PA. Aston teaches drawing and design at the California University of Pennsylvania.



Inside Out Six: Selections from the Flat Files - Side II more information

Digging Pitt Gallery welcomes new artists to its flat file archive on a continuing basis. Every once in a while we like to let every one know whose work can be found by digging through the flat files. Currently, Digging Pitt Gallery represents over 190 local, regional and national artists. The archive houses hundreds of works, from the experimental to the whimsical.


Big F***ing Thing @Digging Pitt Too more information
John Eastman

In June, Digging Pitt will present Big F**king Thing: John Eastman @Digging Pitt Too. John Eastman is a painter, writer, and mixed media artist. His education of abstract art and skills are self-taught.

Digging Pitt Gallery 4417 Butler St. Pittsburgh, PA 15201 p 412.605.0450 f 412.605.0451	Gallery Hours TH 12 - 9 FR 12 - 7 SA 11 - 7 SU 11 - 7
Digging Pitt Too 45th and Plummer Pittsburgh PA 15201 p 412-605.0450	SA 12 - 5 by appointment and other random times

Digging Pitt
Digging Pittsburgh Arts
Digging Pitt, MySpace

Three Rivers Arts Festival

At the last possible minute, I took a trip downtown to visit the Three Rivers Arts festival: the festival ends on Sunday. Controversy surrounds this year's festival, from the reduced footprint of the exhibition to the censoring of one of the works.

The Best of Pittsburgh exhibit is held in PPG's Wintergarden this year. The giant atrium lends itself more to installation than to the plastic arts, and there was plenty. The Post Gazette review is a good overview of the exhibit. My stand-outs were Rise Nagin's installation and Josh Tonies' mixed medium works.

The art community is alarmed by the trend of the Three Rivers Arts Festival. Recently, the curator for the Best of Pittsburgh exhibit, who also coordinates the juried art exhibit as well as other visual arts components to the exhibit, was eliminated from the festival staff. Katherine Talcott did her best to bring more of the visual arts into the festival by expanding the festival's footprint to other venues in the downtown area. However, this tactic was not very successful because the core of the festival had migrated to food and entertainment years ago.

Let me step into my time machine....

I lived in Portland OR for many years. When I first arrived, they had an arts festival in downtown. The streets were closed to traffic, huge tents were installed, and a range of artists and artisans presented a a diverse selection of art. Entertainment was generally provided by buskers and a few local restaurants had booths to feed the hungry masses. As the years rolled along, the arts component diminished to be replaced by more and more food vendors. Within five years of my arrival, the festival had been moved to Waterfront Park and had been re-named Food-Fest. Seriously.

So, it could be worse. Instead of the death knell of visual arts and the rise of performance-based art, TRAF could become some gargantuan food festival. At least there is some art involved in the festival. At least the artists and artisans of the artist market still have a place.

Goth prom queen @ drink and draw

Ha!
This was a good one. Lauren at drink and draw on June 12.
Next session is June 26 with Sarah Austin.

Also, the little film clip at the end of the post is me looking over Steve Dine's shoulder while he was drawing.






Everybody had a blast with this pose --

Musicians, Take to the Streets! Day of Music—June 21st

I’d never heard of this until the other day, when my aunt told me about her Argentinian friend who is flying from Greensboro to Paris soon for the annual Fête de la Musique, a day when every square in the city boasts live performers, and especially amateurs. Turns out that in the early 80s, a fellow named Maurice Fleuret was in charge of the music portfolio at the Ministry of Culture in France. He heard a statistic that there were five million people in his country who owned musical instruments, and the idea hit him—what if everyone took those instruments to the street on the same day!

France began its Day of Music in 1982. When the European Year of Music was celebrated in 1985, the Day got exported to London, Rome, and Istanbul. Ten years after that, a charter for the “European Fête de la Musique” was introduced, imposing the original principle of the event--that the music had to be free and open to the public. Now, over 100 nations participate in this sonic celebration of the longest day of the year.

So, if you own a musical instrument, find a street corner next Thursday! And shouldn’t your next Sprout Grant proposal involve the organizing of Pittsburgh’s Fête de la Musique 2008?

The Undressed Art

The Undressed Art: Why We Draw
Peter Steinhart

I finished reading The Undressed Art about a week ago. It's taken awhile for what Mr Steinhart wrote to really sink in. The book is an easy read, at least for me because I do have an interest in the subject. I have been going to drop-in model sessions, off and on, for over twenty years. I've been coordinating them for the last several years. (Follow the tags for Barely Brunch and Drink and Draw at the end of this post)

Mr Steinhart concentrates on the function of life drawing in training an artist to see and examine. I think that Mr Stenhart wrote a very in-depth view of these model sessions from this viewpoint. While I have found this to be a primary function of attending drop-in sessions, I think that there are other motives for going to theses sessions.

I use these sessions to experiment with materials. While a small part of me hopes to hone my hand and eye skills in drawing from life, a larger part of me finds a greater satisfaction in examining the relationship with the model.

Another reason I go is for the companionship. It is the one place that artists meet in a work environment. There is a lot of give and take in theses sessions, where you can pick up the odd technique or information about the use of an unfamiliar material. I know from looking through this blog that it seems like working from live models consumes a lot of my artistic life, but it doesn't. I am willing to put the effort into these endeavors because I have learned so much from both the models and my peers.

Sometimes, if I am stuck on an issue with a current body of work, I go to extra drop-in sessions. The immediate reaction of hand to paper sometimes opens a level of my subconscious that resolves whatever difficulties I am experiencing.

For another take, read Serendipity's review.

ART & TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOPS
Thursday Evenings in June and July7:00 - 9:00 pmStephen Foster Community Center286 Main St., Lawrenceville
June 7, June 14, June 21, June 28July 5, July 12, July 19
FREE AND OPEN TO ALL !
for more information contactCarl DiSalvocarl.disalvo[at]gmail.com

I bitch a lot about what seems to be the lack of ground level interaction between Pittsburgh's universities and the general community. This looks like a good chance to tap into some of the CMU geek energy.

More John Morris at the famous Odessa

From left to right, The Food Network's Vince Camillo, The Butane Group’s Noel Salzman, and John Morris. June 6th, 2007, East Village, USA.

John Morris In New York

Here's John at the old Odessa on Tompkins Square Park, making an emphatic point. With him is New York film editor, Emily Gumpel.

John says: ( I am getting treatment for my problems )

New Projects

Sorry for not posting more, several trips to NY and a busy schedule of gallery shows have kept me from seeing a lot of shows and from posting on a lot of things I did see. I am planning rent a space in NY for a show of artists with blogs and other events involving flat file artists. That show, if i can pull it off would involve both the Pittsburgh and NY spaces and will require a lot of help from the art blogging community. The idea has been kicked around for a long time to do a show involving bloggers but somehow it has never been done.

BARE III @ SPACE 101

The opening reception for BARE III was on Friday. The show looks absolutely wonderful. Thanks to the installation team for all of your hard work --

Pat Barefoot
Laura Conkle
Steve Dines
Kristen Divers
Kim Freithaler
Helen Song
Heidi Wettlaufer

This exhibit is pretty rare for a community show. The work has only the common theme of being created from the inspiration of working from a live model. Barely Brunch has been operating for several years now at the Brew House. We have been very lucky to have the space for the sessions and for having such a lovely facility for exhibiting.

Stop by SPACE 101 to check out the exhibit. We will be having an artist talk on --

Saturday, June 22 @1PM
Pat Barefoot
Rich Brown
Steve Dines
... and others

Images from the reception --
Fran Frederick and Jim McManus

Images from the exhibit--
Pat Barefoot
Ruth Renee Ickes
Rich Brown
Kristen Divers
Olwyn Best
Susan Constanse (above: Scroll II, below: Detail of Scroll II)
SPACE 101 Gallery
The Brew House Association
2100 Mary Street
Pittsburgh PA 15203
412-381-7767