January / February 2017

Cruisin' by Donalee Nelson Hangs in Los Angeles County Hospital

The Importance of Public Art

Reflecting on the recent opening of the Smithsonian Museum of African American Art and Culture and the effort it took to bring it about, I am even more convinced of the importance and value of public art. Obviously I think it’s worthwhile since I write a blog about where to find the most current offerings. It’s just that so many think of museums as places full of old “stuff”; places that are snobbish. The current trend seems to be a reverse snobbery where it is popular to go for the least common denominator. In fact, this has been going on for quite a while since it is easier to embrace that which is common. What a shame. Anything that informs the creative process is worthwhile whether it is the journey of a particular piece or its evolution throughout history. The great arts are built upon one another and are the basis of our culture…art defines who we are as a society and great art is the product of inventive minds. Those who spearheaded the new African American Museum, the monuments men who heroically went to Europe to save as many pieces of art that they could, and Debbie Reynolds who relentlessly tried to save as many pieces of movie memorabilia as she was able are examples of efforts to inform society of its past and inspire its future. Art inspires as it shows different ways of thinking and problem solving. Exposure enables us to progress.

Highlights

The Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo, New York is one of my favorite places. A wonderful exhibit just opened there. Picasso: The Artist and His Models is set to run through – February 19, 2017. It includes works from 1906 – 1960 and is accented and put in perspective by the art of some of his contemporaries such as Matisse, Georgia O’Keefe, Juan Gris, Stuart Davis and many others. Included are paintings, sculptures, drawings and prints which show the artist’s versatility. His contribution to the development of modern art is exemplified by the trajectory of the works on display. If you are in the area be sure and check it out. All the details are at the website www.albrightknox.org so be sure and take a peek.

Where you can see my artwork

My artwork is available at Rons. For further information call the shop at 805.489.4747.  Rons is located at 850 W. Grand in Grover Beach a few blocks from the train station, a golf course and the beautiful Pacific Ocean. For more information go to Rons website at www.ronsingroverbeach.com or find him on facebook.

Not To Be Missed –Museum Exhibits

Coming soon to the Palm Springs Museum of Art is Women of Abstract Expressionism. The exhibit opens February 18 and ends May 28, 2017. This is exciting as it is the first time there has been a show devoted specifically to these ground breaking women. The abstract expressionist movement in art was the first truly American art movement in modern times. Included are over fifty major works by twelve painters active in the ‘40s and ‘50s. Mary Abbott, Jane DeFeo, Elaine de Kooning, Perle Fine, Helen Frankenthaler, Sonia Getchtoff, Judith Godwin, Grace Hartigan, Lee Krasner, Joan Mitchell, Deborah Remington and Ethel Schwabacher are those artists being celebrated. The museum also has a subsidiary museum in Palm Desert known as the Galen. It is surrounded by the four acre Faye Sarkowsky Sculpture Garden that features over ten significant sculptures surrounded by landscaped gardens. A visit to these two venues make it worth the drive. Google the museum or go to www.psmuseum.org for current information.

The Bowers Museum in Santa Ana will host Frida Kahlo: Her Photos beginning February 25, 2017 – June 25, 2017. During her lifetime she amassed a large photo collection, mostly single prints, which were stashed away on her death. The collection came to light recently. This exhibition consists of over two hundred images, some taken by her but many by other artists such as Edward Weston and Tina Modotti. You will not want to miss this so go to www.bowers.org for all the pertinent information.

Highlights of the Permanent Collection celebrates the Santa Barbara Museum of Art’s 75^th anniversary. The exhibit features some of the museum's most well-known pieces. The Armand Hammer Foundation has loaned some amazing Impressionist and Post-Impressionist paintings to the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. Of course, Portrait of Mexico Today, painted by David Alfaro Siquerios while living in political exile in Los Angeles in 1932, has a home in the front façade of the museum. It is intact and is in a protected spot. We are so lucky to have it. Check online at www.sbmuseart.org/ for more details.

Picasso & Rivera: Conversations Across Time is currently at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and is there until May 7, 2017. The exhibit compares the two contemporary artists…where their paths intersected and how both incorporated inspiration from the arts of the antiquities. Included are over 150 works. More information is at www.lacma.org on this exhibit.

Wow! States of Mind: Picasso Lithographs 1945 – 1960 is on display through February 13, 2017. The Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena has one of the most extensive collections of Picasso prints anywhere. Toward the end of WWII the artist became more interested in the movement of his thoughts than of the thoughts themselves. Due to the nature of paint and its density the process is often covered up. Prints, on the other hand, offer an easier way to see the process as a series of prints is easier and quicker to do so the artist can change, add and subtract from print to print. I personally love to see the evolution of an image. Also on loan from the Chicago Art Institute and on view through March 6, 2017 is Van Gogh’s Bedroom. More information is available at www.nortonsimon.org so be sure to take a look.

Frank Stella: A Retrospective is at the de Young in San Francisco through February 26, 2017. The exhibit follows his fifty-plus year career and features fifty works by the artist. This exhibit is the first comprehensive U.S. show of Stella’s work since 1970 and includes paintings, reliefs, sculptures and maquettes. Check www.deyoung.famsf.org which will have all pertinent information and includes some notes by the artist about color, shape and volume which are very interesting. The de Young prides itself in making its exhibits accessible and has instituted a plan for people who are unable to come to the museum whether for medical reasons, distance or finances. They have two robots that will take visitors on a tour via the internet. Rebecca Bradley is the Accessibility Curator. You can email her office at access@famsf.org if this great idea is of interest.

Ongoing at the Seattle Museum of Art is Big Picture: Art after 1945.The exhibit includes some amazing works by Rothko, Motherwell, Newman, Hoffman, etc. Go to www.seattleartmuseum.org to obtain more information.

Now at the Clyfford Still Museum in Denver through January 15, 2017 is Clyfford Still: The Works on Paper. This is a unique exhibit in that, with few exceptions, paintings, for which he is most known, will not be on view during this exhibition. Many think of abstract expressionism as a New York City art movement. Still was a westerner so his role in the movement is sometimes diminished. Abstract expressionism is also thought to be impulsive and spontaneous. Still did over two thousand drawings, many of which led to his larger paintings. Like many artists, Picasso for example, these drawings served as a kind of diary and a way to experiment before working on the final piece. This project offers a broader view of Still’s place in art history as visitors can visit a hands-on gallery featuring drawing activities and demonstrations and a community-created art installation. On January 19 Artists Select 2:Julian Schnabel opens. The artist has selected 60 of Still’s abstract works for this exhibition. These were made late in Still’s life and most have not been seen by the public. It is on display through April 2, 2017. Check out www.clyffordstillmuseum.org for all the details.

Make Room for Color Field is a continuing exhibit through December 31, 2018. The installation consists of 4 works by the most prominent painters of this genre, Helen Frankenthaler, Jules Olitski and Morris Louis. The museum’s website at www.nelson-atkins.org will provide more information.

The Chicago Arts Institute is hosting Whistler’s Mother: An American Icon Returns to Chicago for the first time in 60 years. The painting was originally known as an Arrangement in Gray and Black No. 1. The exhibit starts March 4 and runs through May 12, 2017. Chicago has deep holdings of works by Whistler and this will allow the exploration of Whistler’s use of family members as subject matter. More details are at www.artic.edu for this fascinating exhibit.

Francis Picabia: Our Heads Are Round so Our Thoughts Can Change Direction opened at the Museum of Modern Art in New York on November 21, 2016 and goes through March 19 of next year. Picabia is best known as a leader of the Dada movement but he was extremely versatile and refused to settle into one particular style. This is the first exhibit in the United States to focus on his entire career. The show includes paintings, periodicals, printed matter, illustrated letters and a film. It should be very interesting. One and One is Four: The Bauhaus Photocollages of Josef Albers is also currently at MoMA. Known primarily for his Homage to a Square paintings, the artist taught at the Bauhaus and later at Black Mountain College and Yale University. His photocollages were only discovered after his death and many are seen here for the first time. This exhibit goes through April 2, 2017 so go to www.moma.org for more information.

        

Max Beckmann in New York at the Metropolitan Museum of Art will be there through February 20, 2017. The artist was popular in his native Germany and in the late 1920s was at the height of his career. That is, until the government labeled his art as degenerate. He moved to Holland and later took a teaching position in St. Louis. In 1949 he moved to New York where he painted several very powerful paintings. In December 1950 he left his apartment to go see one of his paintings being shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He never made it, suffering a fatal heart attack. This is the inspiration for this exhibit, which features 14 paintings created during his year in New York as well as 25 earlier works from New York collections. More on his story can be found at www.metmuseum.org as well as dates and times.

        

Although the exhibit has closed, there is a wonderful video that came out of this show, Monet and the Post Impressionists. So many artists found inspiration in their gardens. Now there is a video available, Painting the Modern Garden: Monet to Matisse. Find out more by visiting www.royalacademy.org.uk and get the whole scoop.

Currently at the Victoria and Albert is You Say You Want a Revolution? Records & Rebels 1966-70. Examining the upheaval in all areas of society, the exhibit will bring together objects relating to music, fashion, film, design and politics. Sex, drugs and rock and roll will be the mantra of this major exhibition which runs through February 26, 2017. For more information on both exhibits www.vam.ac.uk will have everything you need to know.

Right now at the National Portrait Gallery in London, PicassoPortraits holds center stage. The exhibit of over eighty works by the artist runs through February 5, 2017. This major exhibition emphasizes his work inspired by family, friends and lovers, examining his creative process along the way. Information on these exhibits can be found at www.npg.org.uk so you can plan your trip.

Simply the Best:

The best place to find books on the arts, Arcana, is a very special book store located in the Helms Bakery complex in Los Angeles…it’s wonderful! I have known owner Lee Kaplan for decades and his selection of books is as superb as his taste is impeccable. Arcana: Books on the Arts is at 8675 Washington Boulevard, Culver City, CA 90232. For information go to  http://www.arcanabooks.com or call 310.458.1499.

Michiko Jewelry Design is an incredible jewelry store in downtown Seal Beach, CA, featuring excellent one-of-a-kind gifts. The shop owner and artist, Carol Matsumoto, custom designs beautiful pieces. Michiko is at 228 Main Street. Call 563.431.3237 for more information or check www.michikojewelrydesign.com.

Places to Go, People to See

Batchelder: Tilemaker will be at the Pasadena History Museum through February 12, 2017. The exhibit celebrates one of the leaders of the Arts and Crafts movement in Southern California. Batchelder started with a kiln in 1910 in Arroyo Seco. His tiles are highly prized and some of you may be lucky enough to have some in your home. This is a great opportunity to learn more about the man and the process. Check out www.pasadenahistory.org for more information.

Santa Barbara’s International Film Festival starts February 1 and goes through February 11, 2017. It will feature over 200 films from 60 countries. There will be educational events as well as star sightings. Check out www.sbiff.org for all the facts.

Special Mention:

The recent opening of the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington D.C. is the culmination of over a century of work. Founding Director Lonnie Bunch said that “The African American experience is the lens through which we understand what it is to be an American.” The website welcomes us with its opening words: A People’s Journey, A Nation’s Story. It is part of our national history. The museum contains much memorabilia including both negative and positive. Of course, there is much history here including examples of slave ships. However, there are some more current examples including Carl Lewis’ journey, clothes from James Brown and Pearl Bailey, a trumpet owned by Louis Armstrong and Chuck Berry’s red Cadillac. Items also includes some owned by Harriet Taubman, the dress Rosa Parks was sewing when she refused to leave her seat, and clothes designed by Geoffrey Holder for the award winning Broadway play The Wiz. Areas include a sports museum and a visual arts museum among others. The galleries will also feature changing exhibits so check out www.nmaahc.si.edu for information.

Continue to check back as we will be posting upcoming shows here and on the exhibits page of my website…and again, there is always Facebook.