January 17, 2023
Crammin' At The Columbia Art League
‘Nibble’ is the exhibit theme open now at the Columbia Art League, offering the opportunity to talk about exhibit themes in general.
‘Nibble’, or something food related, is an annual and quite popular exhibit at CAL. It provides the basis for one of the gallery’s fundraisers, wherein area chefs are invited to use any of the exhibit’s works as the inspiration for culinary creations. One of my works has been selected on a couple occasions for this honor. For the exhibiting artist, a theme is a means of saying, ‘ok, submit a work that pertains to this particular subject’. It’s an effective way for galleries to promote and build expectations for new showings. How, exactly, an artist’s work pertains to the theme is up to the artist, and that’s where it gets interesting.
I don’t usually create new work based on gallery exhibition calendars, and I don’t know any artists who do, but my universe is limited. I suspect truly successful artists will indeed produce new work targeted for a particular exhibit theme. And sometimes, yeah, the theme is so specific the only way to handle it is to create something tailored accordingly. Most of the time I simply go to my portfolio and look for a work that fits an upcoming theme.
Sometimes, the ‘fit’ is literal – for example, actual food for an exhibit pertaining to food. I thought about submitting a semi-abstract strawberry but changed my mind.
Sometimes, ‘fit’ is an exercise in artistic rationalization. The more abstract the work the harder the artist has to stretch the connection.
Sometimes, and the best times, the work is a creative expression of the theme itself. Yeah, it fits, but it’s not so direct, it’s not obvious, it makes the viewer think.
I’m hoping ‘Finals Crammin’ At The Coffee Shop’, on display for the ‘Nibble’ exhibit, falls into that last group. A surreal vision of a couple guys off to the side in Starbucks with their laptops and their coffee and their scones.
I don’t usually exhibit a work so soon after creating it (I just did ‘Crammin’’ in November) – I prefer to take my time and let a work incubate first. See if I really like it as much as I think I do. In this case it all just seemed to come together. It’s a style I’ve been working towards for some time. A morsel, perhaps, of where I’m going.
- CH
‘Nibble’, or something food related, is an annual and quite popular exhibit at CAL. It provides the basis for one of the gallery’s fundraisers, wherein area chefs are invited to use any of the exhibit’s works as the inspiration for culinary creations. One of my works has been selected on a couple occasions for this honor. For the exhibiting artist, a theme is a means of saying, ‘ok, submit a work that pertains to this particular subject’. It’s an effective way for galleries to promote and build expectations for new showings. How, exactly, an artist’s work pertains to the theme is up to the artist, and that’s where it gets interesting.
I don’t usually create new work based on gallery exhibition calendars, and I don’t know any artists who do, but my universe is limited. I suspect truly successful artists will indeed produce new work targeted for a particular exhibit theme. And sometimes, yeah, the theme is so specific the only way to handle it is to create something tailored accordingly. Most of the time I simply go to my portfolio and look for a work that fits an upcoming theme.
Sometimes, the ‘fit’ is literal – for example, actual food for an exhibit pertaining to food. I thought about submitting a semi-abstract strawberry but changed my mind.
Sometimes, ‘fit’ is an exercise in artistic rationalization. The more abstract the work the harder the artist has to stretch the connection.
Sometimes, and the best times, the work is a creative expression of the theme itself. Yeah, it fits, but it’s not so direct, it’s not obvious, it makes the viewer think.
I’m hoping ‘Finals Crammin’ At The Coffee Shop’, on display for the ‘Nibble’ exhibit, falls into that last group. A surreal vision of a couple guys off to the side in Starbucks with their laptops and their coffee and their scones.
I don’t usually exhibit a work so soon after creating it (I just did ‘Crammin’’ in November) – I prefer to take my time and let a work incubate first. See if I really like it as much as I think I do. In this case it all just seemed to come together. It’s a style I’ve been working towards for some time. A morsel, perhaps, of where I’m going.
- CH
January 15, 2023
'Anything Goes' Starts The Year At Capital Arts
A tiny bit of explaining is in order, because it LOOKS like two of these works, ‘Sunday In The Park’ and ‘Dreaming In Color’, were just in the last exhibit. Well, yes and no.
I was asked last fall to specifically produce works from my most recent Chalk Art series for a fundraiser to be held on behalf of the gallery. By produce we mean larger metal prints in custom frames – upscale works priced accordingly. I was further asked to reproduce smaller, ink jet versions those same works in inexpensive framing for the Gifting show held during the Holidays. The idea being to fulfill the expensive tastes of the fundraiser while also providing budget-friendly options for the person just trying to fill out their gift lists. Sound and logical thinking.
Then the fundraiser had to be cancelled, leaving the grander works sitting unseen on the shelf.
As the theme for this new exhibit is ‘Anything Goes’, meaning for the artist, do whatever you want. Well, I want these works to be seen, so here we go.
The third work here, ‘The Flock’ predates the Chalk Art pieces by only a few weeks, and thus reflects another vision of the abstract direction I’m taking. As so many exhibits are specifically themed, this is not a work likely to have found an easy path to a showing, and that’s too bad. It was a perfect selection for ‘Anything Goes’. As an ink jet print in simple framing, it’s a very cost-effective way to add an extreme splash of color to any living or working space.
Reception the evening of Thursday, January 19 at the Capital Arts Gallery. Snacks are free. Come out and have a look.
- CH
I was asked last fall to specifically produce works from my most recent Chalk Art series for a fundraiser to be held on behalf of the gallery. By produce we mean larger metal prints in custom frames – upscale works priced accordingly. I was further asked to reproduce smaller, ink jet versions those same works in inexpensive framing for the Gifting show held during the Holidays. The idea being to fulfill the expensive tastes of the fundraiser while also providing budget-friendly options for the person just trying to fill out their gift lists. Sound and logical thinking.
Then the fundraiser had to be cancelled, leaving the grander works sitting unseen on the shelf.
As the theme for this new exhibit is ‘Anything Goes’, meaning for the artist, do whatever you want. Well, I want these works to be seen, so here we go.
The third work here, ‘The Flock’ predates the Chalk Art pieces by only a few weeks, and thus reflects another vision of the abstract direction I’m taking. As so many exhibits are specifically themed, this is not a work likely to have found an easy path to a showing, and that’s too bad. It was a perfect selection for ‘Anything Goes’. As an ink jet print in simple framing, it’s a very cost-effective way to add an extreme splash of color to any living or working space.
Reception the evening of Thursday, January 19 at the Capital Arts Gallery. Snacks are free. Come out and have a look.
- CH