Why are YOU ignoring art galleries?

Great article by The Stranger interviewing and tracing the reasoning behind lack of (most) gallery's attendance. As an artist, this is a topic I've been battling for years. You can read the article here. 

For those of you in Montreal (the city I reside in) who want to explore galleries, here is a great start compiled by Montreal Gazette.   

Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibit!

People of ‪Toronto‬: looks like I will see you again soon!!! More specifically: July 8-10 at the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition! (More details to follow in the future.)

Photo  © Robby Bernstein, http://www.facesoftoronto.com

THAT LAUGH! - collection photo

 Pret-ty cool! My painting 'THAT LAUGH!', hanging in it's new home! (And yes, that's a Warhol on the left and Basquait on the right!)

Arnold Bocklin, Alexandre Cabanel and Jacek Malczewski

I've been planning some new paintings to complete for TheArtist Project in February 2016. Montreal's 'le Grande Bibliotheque et ArchivesNationales du Quebec' (the large library and national achieve of Quebec) is my favorite place in the city. (Half the first floor of this massive library is books related to art!)

 I like looking at art books before I fall asleep. (Sometimes it gives me weird dreams, but I'm OK with that.) 3 amazing artists I've introduced myself to from the eminent dead category are: Arnold Bocklin (Swiss, 1827-1901), Alexandre Cabanel (French, 1823-1889) and Jacek Malczewski (Polish, 1854-1929). I have a strong affinity to symbolist painters (Bocklin and Malczewski being two of them. Cabanel was more of an academic painter.)  

                                                                        Arnold Bocklin

                                                                             'The War'

                                                                                  Oil

Alexandre Cabanel

'The Death of Moses'

Oil

 

 Jacek Malczewski

'Eloe and Ellenai'

Oil

Matt Wagner: "This is My Day Job: The Bravery of the Artist"

"I sort of feel like 'artists are the cultural plumbers'. It's like: we need them, we just don't know we need them until we need them."

Great talk I saw recently by Matt Wagner, owner of Hellion Gallery (http://www.helliongallery.com/). Recommended watching for both artists and art enthusiasts on the lifestyle risks artists take, how the gallery system works and economic factors of the art world. (Points in particular worthy of note at: 4:36, 8:53, 26:30, 32:32 and 40:53)

Art for Dummies

Two things:

 

1) You can never learn too much about your industry.

2) It's important to be able to explain what you do to people outside your industry in very comprehensible, digestible terms.

I've been flipping through this book (not necessarily reading it in order). If you're still intimidated by art, it is an accessible read from a credible source.

Click here to buy the book on Amazon.com

THAT LAUGH! - reference sculptures

Meant to share this with you all and then (I admit) I totally forgot about it, even after customizing a box for it and everything. While I was making the painting 'THAT LAUGH!', I had made small head sculptures of Daffy and Porky to draw them from tricky angles. With Daffy, I was trying to figure out what his bill would look like in an oblique angle (not often seen in cartoons). With Porky, I cheated a little bit - Porky doesn't actually have much of a neck, but in the painting he does, even though you don't see it.

YES Montreal Art Expo 2015!

I've been selected to participate in YES Montreal's Art Expo coming up March 19-21! You can expect to see 60 artists from multiple disciplines selling and promoting their work. I will have prints, drawings and paintings to sell and will AT LAST present the COMPLETED painting of 'THAT LAUGH!'. To learn more about the Expo and see the others artists involved, click here: http://www.yesmontreal.ca/en/artists/library/1339

XXI (21th Century) art auction at IEGOR

Tomorrow night, I have two works in an auction called 'XXI' (21st Century) at IEGOR, international auction house, featuring only contemporary works. You can join us and 'get your bid on', or check out all the available works from the show by clicking the image above.

Also, I'm sending out a new newsletter tomorrow. If you want updates before anyone else, you can sign up here: http://bit.ly/1vauKPv

Feature on Wondereur!

THANK YOU Wondereur and Andy Nulman (http://andynulman.com/) for the excellent featured interview! Wondereur is an award-winning online publication that combines photojournalism with the experience of buying art.  

You can experience the interview here: http://wondereur.com/

(Scroll down and click on one of the images for sale, then click on the 'Enter Story' for the rest of the experience.)

You can learn more about Wondereur here: http://wondereur.com/?view=about-wondereur

You can download the app FOR FREE on your mobile device here:   https://search.itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZContentLink.woa/wa/link?mt=8&path=apps%2fwondereurinc

This photo (and all photos from the shoot) was taken by photographer Dario Ayala. You can see more of Dario's captivating work at: http://darioayalaphoto.com/features.php#

“It is beautiful! From the intuitiveness, artist bios, photos and art work, I felt immediately connected to the artists in a personal way - getting to know their quirks, deep dreams and desires for self expression. I felt I had been let into a personal space that few are allowed. Very cool. Very thoughtful.”

— Wondereur user from Australia