Shepard Fairey takes on Aung San Suu Kyi

Burma is one of the most compelling, haunting, complex counties I have ever visited. The prolonged forced exile of Aung San Suu Kyi is beyond comprehension. If you are unfamiliar with the situation, I suggest renting the DVD, Beyond Rangoon. I watched it before I visited the country and the image of Aung San Suu Kyi facing the guns is the most dramatic and gripping demonstration of the power of peaceful protests.
A must see.



Courtesy Shepard Fairey

Shepard Fairey created this poster in support of Burmese dissident Aung San Suu Kyi. I loved his Obama image and am so glad he is using his influence and art to continue the dialogue.

Green Balloons World Over

in solidarity with supporters of freedom of speech in Iran, green balloons will be released today all over the world...

White House Art

As I head off to DC I am reminded an article, Changing the Art on The White House Walls in the Wall Street Journal. I was intrigued and thrilled as it was another indication of how their choices and actions impact the rest of the world, in this case, the art world.

here are a few excerpts..by Amy Chozik and Kelly Crow

"The Obamas are sending ripples through the art world as they put the call out to museums, galleries and private collectors that they’d like to borrow modern art by African-American, Asian, Hispanic and female artists for the White House. In a sharp departure from the 19th-century still lifes, pastorals and portraits that dominate the White House’s public rooms, they are choosing bold, abstract art works.


National Gallery of Art, Washington
The Obamas have borrowed Ed Ruscha’s ‘I Think I’ll...’ (1983) from the National Gallery.

History of White House Art

The overhaul is an important event for the art market. The Obamas’ art choices could affect the market values of the works and artists they decide to display. Museums and collectors have been moving quickly to offer up works for inclusion in the iconic space.

Their choices also, inevitably, have political implications, and could serve as a savvy tool to drive the ongoing message of a more inclusive administration. The Clintons received political praise after they selected Simmie Knox, an African-American artist from Alabama, to paint their official portraits. The Bush administration garnered approval for acquiring “The Builders,” a painting by African-American artist Jacob Lawrence, but also some criticism for the picture, which depicts black men doing menial labor.

Last week the first family installed seven works on loan from the Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden in Washington in the White House’s private residence, including “Sky Light” and “Watusi (Hard Edge),” a pair of blue and yellow abstracts by lesser-known African-American abstract artist Alma Thomas, acclaimed for her post-war paintings of geometric shapes in cheery colors.

Obamas Cast a Wider Net for Art

The Obamas are looking to update the storied White House art collection to include modern art and work by minorities and women. Washington reporters Amy Chozick and art reporter Kelly Crow explain.
The National Gallery of Art has loaned the family at least five works this year, including “Numerals, 0 through 9,” a lead relief sculpture by Jasper Johns, “Berkeley No. 52,” a splashy large-scale painting by Richard Diebenkorn, and a blood-red Edward Ruscha canvas featuring the words, “I think maybe I’ll…,” fitting for a president known for lengthy bouts of contemplation. The Jasper Johns sculpture was installed in the residence on Inauguration Day, along with modern works by Robert Rauschenberg and Louise Nevelson, also on loan from the National Gallery.

Collectors say the art picks by the Obamas will likely affect the artists’ market values—or at least raise their profiles. After George W. Bush displayed El Paso, Texas-born artist Tom Lea’s “Rio Grande,” a photorealistic view of a cactus set against gray clouds, in the Oval Office, the price of the artist’s paintings shot up roughly 300%, says Adair Margo, owner of an El Paso gallery that sells Mr. Lea’s work. (Mr. Lea passed away in 2001, which also boosted the value of his work.)

A White House spokeswoman says the Obamas enjoy all types of art but want to “round out the permanent collection” and “give new voices” to modern American artists of all races and backgrounds.


The Estate of Richard Diebenkorn
The Obamas have borrowed Richard Diebenkorn’s abstract ‘Berkeley No. 52.’

The changes in White House art come as the Obama administration seeks to boost arts funding. Mr. Obama included $50 million in his economic stimulus package for the National Endowment for the Arts and on Monday Mrs. Obama delivered remarks at the reopening of the American wing of the Metropolitan Museum of Art."

When a chair is not just a chair

I woke up yesterday morning with this image in my head.



I had not seen Diane Cummins's work for over 8 years and have no idea why the image was there floating in my unconscious but decided to search for it. I was happy to find her work online and with her permission, am sharing this very evocative, wonderful series.



In Diane's own words on Light to Dark Places

"The photographs in this series were taken between the day's last and first light. They correspond to a period of self-examination, mind to soul, undertaken during a sequence of losses which required learning to let go. Also reflected in the series is the concept of "power of place." The few acres surrounding my house, which served as a setting, contributed equally as an inspirational force. A humble farmstead gone wild and wooded, it had always been a sacred place to me. The land had become so familliar I knew my way through its tangle of trees and briars in total darkness.



I tried to bring each picture to visual form as it first appeared in my mind. Its look determined the place and means of its production. Most exposures began at dusk. The shutter was locked open for the film to expose in the quickly failing light. When it was totally dark and with the shutter remaining open, I walked into the scene to light certain areas with a flashlight or partial flash. Exposures were long, extending over several hours.



One image influenced the next. Each photograph continues to reveal new levels of meaning, especially as it connects to another photograph. As the completed images fell into sequence, it becomes clear that many initial interpretations were far from the mark. Most surprising were the happy accidents, when a slip or a miscalculation actually added an important element. No longer does that really seem surprising."

Recycle the Raindrops

After yesterdays torrential rains, I thought it appropriate to introduce a new project that is underway in Chicago, Recycle the Raindrops.

Did you know that if a large bucket equals all the seawater on Earth, than a coffee cup would equal frozen unfiltered glacier water so only a teaspoon is left for drinking water. Of that fresh water available on the entire earth, 20% of it is contained in the Great Lakes. Much of the world is currently forced to deal with the dwindling supply of fresh water.

"Recycle The Raindrops" Water Barrel program was launched this week in Chicago at the opening of The Field Museum's blockbuster Water Show.

If you are interested in getting involved with the rain barrels project, email crpr22@aol.com.

Frank Yamrus on Bottled Water

One of the things I like best about blogging is being able to share other photographer's work. Frank Yamrus is based in San Francisco and has produced many stunning portfolios, including Rapture (check it out on his site). His latest work, Rune Lagu, discusses the bottled water industry.



Here is what he has to say...

"This series of typological photographs documents the plastic bottles that house our drinking water, an index of semiotics and perhaps an archive of evidence in a looming ecological crisis. In 2006, the global bottled water industry reached $50 billion with over 3,000 brands of bottled water worldwide, 180 in the United States. Just thirty years ago commercially produced bottled water barely existed in the United States – today, Americans are the leading consumers of bottled water at 32 billion liters per year.

According to the Environmental Protection Agency, one in five Americans drinks only bottled water. In a July 2007 article in Fastcompany.com, Charles Fishman theorizes: “Bottled has become the indispensable prop in our lives and culture… . [T]he food phenomenon of our times… . A chilled plastic bottle of water in the convenience-store cooler is the perfect symbol of this moment in American commerce and culture. It acknowledges our demand for instant gratification, our vanity, our token concern for health.”



Considering that there is no evidence that bottled water is healthier than tap water; that 40% of bottled water comes from the tap; that 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce the plastic bottles used in the United States in one year; that 86% of plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter; its success seems illogical and unlikely. Recently, in the developed world, bottled water consumers are the folks most concerned with the very environmental and social issues associated with bottled water and sales growth has not stopped but is stalling. Perhaps a new awareness has pushed the bottled water industry to Mr. Gladwell’s epidemiological “Tipping Point?”



I am certain that tipping point will be reached sooner thanks to Frank's photographic essay.

Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran on TED

"This is it. This is the big one." NYU Professor Clay Shirky


TED Blog: Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran

16 June 2009
Q&A with Clay Shirky on Twitter and Iran on TED

NYU professor Clay Shirky gave a fantastic talk on new media during our TED@State event earlier this month. He revealed how cellphones, the web, Facebook and Twitter had changed the rules of the game, allowing ordinary citizens extraordinary new powers to impact real-world events. As protests in Iran exploded over the weekend, we decided to rush out his talk, because it could hardly be more relevant. I caught up with Clay this afternoon to get his take on the significance of what is happening. HIs excitement was palpable.

What do you make of what's going on in Iran right now.
I'm always a little reticent to draw lessons from things still unfolding, but it seems pretty clear that ... this is it. The big one. This is the first revolution that has been catapulted onto a global stage and transformed by social media. I've been thinking a lot about the Chicago demonstrations of 1968 where they chanted "the whole world is watching." Really, that wasn't true then. But this time it's true ... and people throughout the world are not only listening but responding. They're engaging with individual participants, they're passing on their messages to their friends, and they're even providing detailed instructions to enable web proxies allowing Internet access that the authorities can't immediately censor. That kind of participation is reallly extraordinary.

Which services have caused the greatest impact? Blogs? Facebook? Twitter?
It's Twitter. One thing that Evan (Williams) and Biz (Stone) did absolutely right is that they made Twitter so simple and so open that it's easier to integrate and harder to control than any other tool. At the time, I'm sure it wasn't conceived as anything other than a smart engineering choice. But it's had global consequences. Twitter is shareable and open and participatory in a way that Facebook's model prevents. So far, despite a massive effort, the authorities have found no way to shut it down, and now there are literally thousands of people aorund the world who've made it their business to help keep it open.

Do you get a sense that it's almost as if the world is figuring out live how to use Twitter in these circumstances? Some dissidents were using named accounts for a while, and there's been a raging debate in the community about how best to help them.
Yes, there's an enormous reckoning to be had about what works and what doesn't. There have been disagreements over whether it was dangerous to use hashtags like #Iranelection, and there was a period in which people were openly tweeting the IP addresses of web proxies for people to switch to, not realizing that the authorities would soon shut these down. It's incredibly messy, and the definitive rules of the game have yet to be written. So yes, we're seeing the medium invent itself in real time.

Talk some more about the sense of participation on Twitter. It seems to me that that has spurred an entirely deeper level of emotional connection with these events.
Absolutely. I've been saying this for a while -- as a medium gets faster, it gets more emotional. We feel faster than we think. But Twitter is also just a much more personal medium. Reading personal messages from individuals on the ground prompts a whole other sense of involvement. We're seeing everyone desperate to do something to show solidarity like wear green -- and suddenly the community figures out that it can actually offer secure web proxies, or persuade Twitter to delay an engineering upgrade -- we can help keep the medium open.

When I see John Perry Barlow setting himself up as a router, he's not performing these services as a journalist. He's engaged. Traditional media operates as source of inofrmation not as a means of coordination. It can't do more than make us sympathize. Twitter makes us empathize. It makes us part of it. Even if it's just retweeting, you're aiding the goal that dissidents have always sought: the awareness that the ouside world is paying attention is really valuable.

Of course the downside of this emotional engagement is that while this is happening, I feel like I can't in good consicence tweet about anything else!

There was fury on Twitter against CNN for not adequately covering the situation. Was that justified?
In a way it wasn't. I'm sure that for the majority of the country, events in Iran are not of grave interest, even if those desperate for CNN's Iran info couldn't get access to it. That push model of one message for all is an incredibly crappy way of linking supply and demand.

CNN has the same problem this decade that Time magazine had last decade. They simultaneously want to appeal to middle America and leading influencers. Reaching multiple audiences is increasingly difficult. The people who are hungry for info on events of global significance are used to instinctively switching on CNN. But they are realizng that that reflex doesn't serve them very well anymore, and that can't be good for CNN.

Do you get the sense that these new media tools are helping build a global community, forged more by technology and a desire for connection, than by traditional political or religious divides?
You can see it clearly in what's happening right now. And it cuts both ways. The guy we're rallying around, Mousavi, is no liberal reformer. But the principle of freedom of speech and fair elections and the desire for reform trump that.

So how does this play out?
It's complex. The Ahmadinejad supporters are going to use the fact of English-speaking and American participation to try to damn the dissidents. But whatever happens from here, the dissidents have seen that large numbers of American people, supposedly part of "the great Satan," are actually supporters. Someone tweeted from Tehran today that "the American media may not care, but the American people do." That's a sea-change.

today in iran

I don't normally get political but what is happening in Iran is riveting. Also, who knew that "social networking" on the internet would ever be so critical. This morning the press was been banned from reporting. The silence will be deafening.



1:46 PM ET -- State Department working with Twitter. CNN: "Senior officials say the State Department is working with Twitter and other social networking sites to ensure Iranians are able to continue to communicate to each other and the outside world."

Also, Voice of America Iran today launched a Twitter account

11:37 AM ET -- Sabotaging Twitter. If you've been watching the Iran unrest unfold on Twitter, I think you'll agree that there's been an increase in messages, allegedly from Iranians, that seem phony or meant to cause confusion. Surely, some of this is due to pranksters, in the U.S. and elsewhere, who simply enjoy disrupting social networking technology.

In addition, legitimate Iranian tweeters are getting concerned about something more sinister.

# DO NOT RT anything U read from "NEW" tweeters, gvmt spreading misinfo #gr88 #iranelection
# RT @RobertHooman: RT @stopAhmadi Security forces opening twitter accounts 2 pose as protestors n spread disinformation

The Work of George Steinmetz

One of the many remarkable things about the internet is how much information is available. I became aware of George Steinmetz'z work thru a facebook friend who attended the Look3 - Festival of the Photograph. What a pleasure it was to go thru his website. His African Portfolio is breathtaking. Many of his images were taken while paragliding. I have often thought about flying and here is someone who actually did it.... and with a camera in hand! His compositions, lighting and subject matter add up to a visual extravaganza. Enjoy.

Step to the Right of your Left Hemisphere ~ Jill Bolte Taylor's stroke of insight

I have been reading My Stroke of Insight by Jill Bolte Taylor and just learned that she had a talk on TED. Very, very moving.

Culture and Community

I attending the opening night of the Grant Park Music Festival Wednesday night in Millennium Park. I was so amazed at how many people were there. It was PACKED! The concert was fabulous with music by Tchaikovsky and Mussorgsky. It was heartwarming to see so many people and an indication of how important the arts are in nurturing the human spirit, especially in these difficult economic times. If you are a Chicagoan or just visiting, the summers here are rich with so many festivals. Here is a sampling of what is coming up this weekend....enjoy!

FREE SummerDance, Jun 11–Aug 23 Grant Park, Spirit of Music Garden, 601 S Michigan Ave. Thu, Fri, Sat 6–9:30pm; Sun 4–7pm. Organized by the Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, this series of outdoor dances features a variety of global sounds. Before each show, dance lessons are given by professional instructors.

FREE Chicago Blues Festival, Jun 12–14 Grant Park, Jackson Blvd at Columbus Dr (chicagobluesfestival.us). 11am–9:30pm. Retro soulstress Sharon Jones headlines. Betty Levette, Pinetop Perkins and a host of locals also bring on the blues. The “Blues Capital of the World” honors guitarist Eddie C. Campbell’s 70th birthday.

FREE Fiesta Back of the Yards, Jun 12–14 47th St between Ashland and Damen Aves (bync.org). Fri 5–10pm, Sat 10am–10pm, Sun noon–10pm. The Latino community throws a huge heritage bash, complete with live bands, cultural performances, children’s entertainment and around 100 vendors.

Party at St. Mike’s, Jun 12–14 St. Michael’s Church, 1633 N Cleveland Ave (st-mikes.org). Fri 5–10pm, Sat 4–10pm, Sun noon–8pm; $10, three-day pass $15. The quiet streets around the Catholic church will be replaced with loud rock and roots bands.

FREE Pride of the Fox RiverFest, Jun 12–14 Along the banks of the Fox River, on Illinois Rte 64, St. Charles (prideofthefox.com). Fri, Sat 11am–11pm; Sun 11am–10pm. Try duck racing and other waterside activities at this river-themed bonanza.

Ribfest Chicago, Jun 12–14 Lincoln Ave at Irving Park Rd (ribfest-chicago.com). Fri 5–10pm; Sat, Sun noon–10pm; $5. If you are looking to start a heated argument, ask, “Who serves the best ribs?” This topic is as hot as the grills and sauces at this fest. Check out live local bands on Friday.

Humboldt Park Art Fair, Jun 13 Humboldt Park Boathouse, 1359 N Sacramento Blvd (773-319-3112, graffitizone.org). 10am–9pm. Graffiti Zone, a nonprofit community art studio, organizes its third annual festival devoted to music, visual art, poetry and film.

* Andersonville Midsommarfest, Jun 13, 14 5200–5450 N Clark St (starevents.com). 11am–10pm, $5. This fest’s a Swede deal: Andersonville celebrates its Swedish heritage (and its gay and lesbian newcomers) with two days of Nordic food and performers.

FREE City Wilds Festival, Jun 13, 14 North Park Village Nature Center, 5801 N Pulaski Rd (chicagoparkdistrict.com). 10am–3pm. Tour the 46-acre preserve, while learning how native plants attract wildlife. Also receive a lesson in worm composting.

Old Town Art Fair, Jun 13, 14 Between Menomonee and Wisconsin Sts, from Lincoln Park W to Sedgwick St (oldtownartfair.org). 10am–6pm; $7, kids 12 and under free. Celebrating its 60th year, the fair welcomes nearly 260 exhibitors, and includes a children’s corner and a self-guided garden walk.

Wells Street Art Festival, Jun 13, 14 Wells St between North Ave and Division St (chicagoevents.com). 10am–10pm, $7–10. More than 300 fine artists feature their work in the prestigious art fair. Would-be buyers, food vendors and a silent auction round out the entertainment.

A complete listing for the summer in Time Out can be found here.

"Bed" Show Opening tonight in NYC @ Umbrella Arts

I took this photograph when I was shooting for CITY 2000 (Chicago In The Year 2000) and covering several hospice patients. Joe, pictured above, had parkinsons disease. He lived at home and was cared for by his common law wife, Gloria, who was an unsung hero.





And on a lighter note, my friend Larry Chait, another Chicago photographer, is also included in the show. I first got to know Larry's work when I juried a show at Morhpo Gallery a few years ago. This image, Late Night Television, was used on the invite.



You can see a slide show of the BED juried exhibition on line by clicking here.

and more....

Bridge © Jane Fulton Alt

"Remain sitting at your table and listen, simply wait. Do not even wait, be quiet still and solitary. The world will freely offer itself to you to be unmasked. It has no choice. It will roll in ecstasy at your feet."
Franz Kafka

Creativity

Burn No. 29 ©Jane Fulton Alt

" In no mind there is no intent. The activity, whatever it may be, is not forced or strained. The art just slips through the intellectual filters, without conscious effort and without planning. In the instant there is intent there is expectation. Expectation is deadly because it disconnects us from reality. When we get ahead of ourselves, we leave the moment. No mind is living in the moment, without preoccupation or projection….hesitancy or deliberation will show in our art when we leave the moment."

Excerpt from The Zen of Creativity by John Loori

Take Your Time ~ Olafur Eliasson at the MCA

Went to the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago to see the Olafur Eliasson exhibit, "Take Your Time." It was a very interesting experience and became better and better the more I allowed myself to settle into the art. In a video about the artist he states that it is less about what the art is and more about the observer/participant and how they become involved with the work.



My favorite piece was "Beauty, 1993" where a totally darkened room is lit by a single spotlight shining thru a curtain of fine mist. It was mesmerizing. The light and waves of mist continually changed depending on where you stood and how you interacted with the light and mist. It reminded me of how one can be in nature, if we are quiet enough to pay attention.

Art Letter 6_5_09

from Paul Klein's The Art Letter

"I’m pleased that the Chicago Artists Coalition now has an exhibition space. Long a bastion for all Chicago area artists, it has provided lots of services for artists. This is its first effort at a permanent exhibition space. Located in Wicker Park, this opening exhibit features 30 works with 10 each selected by 3 unnamed, unaffiliated jurors. As expected the show is uneven, which in this case means there are some unexpected surprises." (not sure why he did not mention the names of the artists)

Chicago Artist Coalition Gallery Opening

Just thought I would share a few pix from the opening last night of the Coalition Gallery.





The space is beautiful, as you can see. There are still some studios open on the second floor for rent for one year and available at $2 per square-foot with utilities included. It is in a happening neighborhood. Congratulations to the Chicago Artist Coalition and its new director, Laura Harper.

Chicago Artist's Coalition Gallery

Burn No. 21©2008

Tonight is the grand opening of the Chicago Artist Coalition Gallery. They have moved into a new space that beginning next month will be a cooperative gallery. Located in Wicker Park, this opening exhibit features 30 works with 10 each selected by 3 unnamed, unaffiliated jurors. Paul Klein reviewed it today in his Art Letter. The opening is from 5:30 - 8pm at 2010 W. Pierce - map.

Here is the information on submitting to become a member of the gallery. I think the deadline to submit has been changed to June 15th.

May 23, 2009
Coalition Gallery, located at 2010 W. Pierce Unit 101, showcases Chicago Artists' Coalition members through an application and jury process that takes place annually. Those accepted into the gallery become cooperative members for 12 months. The gallery seeks a good mix of sculpture, textiles, ceramics, printmaking, photography, painting, drawing and mixed media art. The gallery will also have a display cabinet for smaller items, which will be open for use by all CAC members, who create smaller works, and will be a separate structure than cooperative membership.
BECOME A MEMBER OF COALITION GALLERY!

Benefits
COALITION GALLERY gives CAC members the opportunity to finely focus and really steer the direction of their exhibiting career. As a cooperative member you demonstrate the importance of taking a stake in your own work. The ball is in your court. Here are the benefits:
1. Each member will be on exhibit in the group gallery consistently throughout the year.
2. Each member is entitled to be featured as part of a 2/3-person exhibition within their 12-month tenure.
3. Each member will be displayed on our Coalition Gallery webpage with a link to his/her own personal site.
4. Each member will be able to house a number of pieces, not on display, in the back room to share work samples with gallery clientele and others.
5. All members will have a strong voice in the structure and happenings within the gallery. The Executive Planning Committee, with feedback from all co-op members, will curate shows, select display case artists and consider other developments to diversify work and create an additional draw.
6. Members can take advantage of the inherent network of ideas, techniques and resources available at Coalition Gallery

Eligibility/Responsibility
To be eligible for cooperative membership in the gallery, you must meet the following criteria. You will:
1. Be a Chicago Artists' Coalition Member (Or become one upon invitation to the cooperative)
2. Show quality work that is switched out every month to keep exhibits fresh.
3. Show work that's been created within last 12 months
4. Only display work that has been quality finished and presented*
5. Exhibit work for purchase only (everything must be for sale-nothing NFS)
6. Proactively promote your work and the gallery to your community
7. Commit to one year as a co-op gallery member at $45 per month
8. Take an active role on at least one coop committee and complete required duties in a timely fashion
9. Commit to 2-3 four-hour gallery attendant/sales shifts per month
10. Take part in one 2/3-person feature show within your 12-month tenure.
11. Accept 60% artist / 40% CAC split of sales of your work.

Committees
1. Executive Planning - Responsible for communications with CAC staff, curation, selection of works for the display case**, insuring quality presentation of work, making sure work stays fresh, keeping members on task, evaluation of committees and cooperative structure, development of new ideas, decision-making, dealing with issues amongst the group, etc.
2. Hanging/Display - Responsible for measuring out the placement of pieces and using the proper tools and materials to hang work. Also choosing the best and safest way to display 3-D works. Finally, creating labels or info sheets with the content provided by members.
3. Events/Openings - Responsible for choosing best time for openings (with direction from Executive Planning Committee), sending out press releases, getting info to the CAN Editor a month prior to the show, creating flyers or other marketing materials, presenting snacks and refreshments, etc.
4. Maintenance - Responsible for patching holes, painting walls, building any additional display props, sweeping/mopping as needed, ensuring the bathroom is stocked (through CAC staff), etc.

Start Dates (committee dates approximate)
Executive Planning Committee: June 15, 2009
Events/Openings Committee June 15, 2009
Hang/Display Committee: June 28, 2009
Maintenance Committee July 3, 2009
Gallery Coop Opens: July 3, 2009

* Paintings on stretched canvas may be left unframed only under these conditions: 1) if the edges of the canvas are painted as an integral part of the work or 2) if the edges of the canvas have been neatly primed and do not contain staples. All other canvases, including those with unprimed edges, marks or staples, must be framed! Plexiglas or Glass (use at your own risk, as glass is not insured) must protect artwork if they have a fragile surface (pastel, charcoal, wet oil, etc). Warped or shoddily constructed frames, canvasses or board will not be exhibited.

**The display cabinet will be filled with smaller items selected by the Executive Planning Committee. These items can be from any CAC member and do not have to be from members of the cooperative gallery. The cost to users of the display cabinet, who are not already cooperative members, will be $15 per each month their pieces are on display. Sales commissions are a 60% artist / 40% CAC split.
APPLICATION PROCESS

Petitioning artists should submit a letter of intent with top two committee choices, curriculum vitae, artist statement, and a website link or minimum of 12 images of current work to coop@caconline.org. Images should include title (if any), medium, dimensions and year completed. We are only accepting digital applications. Please submit websites in place of images, if you have one.

The CAC will put together a membership committee made up of 4 art administrators, curators and gallerists to review applicants. The Membership Chair will review applications and present them to membership committee. If after review, the committee has chosen you for membership, the committee or a CAC staff member will notify you. The Executive Planning Committee of the previous year's gallery, will select the applicants for year two of the gallery with input from CAC staff, curators and gallerists. Membership in Coalition Gallery is based on excellence of work and personal commitment to the goals and mission of the gallery and its cooperative structure.

Application Deadline
June 8, 2009

Any thoughts for a title?

In going thru my digital negs the other day, I found this image, taken about 2 years ago in Washington DC.

Jane Fulton Alt ©2007

Any thoughts for a title?

On Nature

A wonderful read is The Spell of the Sensuous by David Abram, discussing man's place in the natural world.

monarch chrysalis on a milkweed plant

In it, Abram says..." I first learned of the intelligence that lurks in nonhuman nature, the ability that an alien form of sentience has to echo one's own, to instill a reverberation in oneself that temporarily shatters habitual ways of seeing and feeling, leaving one open to a world all alive, awake and aware. It was from such small beings that my senses first learned of the countless worlds within worlds that spin in the depths of this world that we commonly inhabit, and from them that I learned that my body could, with practice, enter sensorially into these dimensions...."

fish eggs

I have been much more aware of all things living in my backyard this spring. The birds are wonderful companions and are becoming more accustom to my presence. I am happy to report that the milkweed that I spoke about in an earlier post is alive and well. Looks like I may have 6 -8 plants this season. I will keep a steady gaze to see if the monarch lays its eggs on the leaves.

If I can quiet my mind long enough I begin to notice the multitude of all things living in my own backyard.