Angelika Rinnhofer at Light Work in Syracuse NY.

Angelika Rinnhofer's exhibit Sammelsurium will be opening on Nov 5 at Light Work in Syracuse, NY. A reception for the artist will be held on Thursday, Nov. 8. The exhibit will be on view through Dec 28.

Continental divide

I had a delightful drive cross country this week and made it into Denver last night. Next week I'll be preparing for an exhibit I'm doing with Marc Willhite at the Curtis Arts and Humanities Center in Greenwood Village, CO. The Center is located just south of Denver, and the exhibit opens on Saturday Nov, 3. Marc and I will be giving a gallery talk on Thursday Nov, 15 at 5:30. I'll be posting more informatin and images from the show at christopheralbert.com and my personal blog. The exhibit will be a selection of paintings sculpture and installation work that investigates the Six Memos for the Next Millenium by Italo Calvino.

Also in Denver next week: Michael Zansky, from Rockland County will be exhibiting work from his Supreme Court Series at the Sandy Carson Gallery in Denver beginning on Nov, 2.

Jazz standards in POK by Margaret McDuffie

In continuing the thread from the previous post of performance this weekend, Margaret McDuffie has been performing jazz standards as on the last Friday of every month at The Dubliner Irish Pub in Poughkeepsie.

And so shall she be doing so this evening with her trio partners. The line up is:

Margaret McDuffie - vocals
Eddie Diehl - guitar
Lew Scott - bass

Showtime is 7-10pm

The Dubliner Irish Pub
796 Main Street (just east of Raymond Ave.)
Poughkeepsie, NY(845) 454-7322
They are dressing up the sidewalk, so you will need to enter the Dubliner's parking lot from an alley off of Raymond Ave.

Flying Swine: Poe's Mask of the Red Death. This weekend only.

Beginning tonight, Flying Swine will be performing Edgar Allen Poe's Mask of the Red Death in the theatre at Beacon Studios. Poe's The Raven will also be presented.

Performances will be held at:

8pm Friday, Oct 26

7pm &10pm Saturday, Oct 27

7pm Sunday, Oct 28

Admission: Adults, $10. Students, seniors, and groups of 15 or more, $7

For information and reservations, call the Swineline: 845-230-7010.

I could be wrong, but I believe that these performances will be the first to be held in the old high school's theater since the students moved in 2002. At one point, here were big plans for the use of the theater under the direction of The Beacon Cultural Foundation, but other than a few community meetings, I think the theater has remained dormant for years. If someone knows otherwise, please let me know.

On the lay of the land and the remote survey

America Sive India Novaby Michael Mercator, first printed in 1595.
From a catalogue entry by Andre Guimand "Sixteenth-Century Renaissance Cartography"
appearing on a website for the Art history 110 course at Cornell University.
Ulster Publishing, the publisher of the Weekly Almanac, and the recently emergent Dutchess Beat has produced a special publication this month heralding all things Fall here in the Hudson Valley. The resident art writer Paul Smart has written a 'cliff notes' description of the character of art activity in the towns and areas around the Valley.

In the past, Paul Smart has written about art in Beacon in terms of two anchors of art on Main St.- bau and VanBrunt Gallery, one very special lady, one touted renaissance that hasn't yet turned the corner, and not much else. In this recent fall overview, Smart does allude to other spaces beside the the two aforementioned bastions of Beacon Art. The Concentric and Backroom gallery are mentioned as two of a number of galleries to open recently near Van Brunt (Backroom has been open since 2002 in the backroom until last year when it spread into the store front.) I'm guessing that Smart was referring to Go North when he mentioned Concentric since Concentric Gallery was located at the other end of Main St (near bau.) and has not recently opened, but recently closed after three years of doin bidnizz.

Visitors spurred on by Smart to trek to Fovea, "a worldclass space for documentary photographers" might be a little disoriented as he placed the gallery "above the firehouse" near bau when it's on the ground floor of single story building across the street and around the bend from the firehouse. On the upside, these folks will be treated to a glass blowing demonstration and gently put back on track by the fine folks at Hudson Beach Glass.

I know Mr Smart has been to Beacon at least once. I've seen him. I just wonder if he's getting his intelligence from scurvy-afflicted culture pirates that, along with doggie bags from the Piggy Bank, have brought back tales from the distant southern reaches of Dutchess County. *

Alas dear reader, lest you thinkst I sit here before my computer fuming at the indignancy that this misrepresentation of location has wrought upon my fair ville, let it be known that I realize that mere facts are fungible and snark can be a rewarding hobby. An thank goodness somebody is writing about art.

On another note, in the realm of opens and closures, I've heard that Freshman Fine Art will be closing, and I noticed a for rent sign in the gallery's window.

For your navigation pleasure, here is a google map highlighting art venues in Beacon, NY.

* Please note that I am not implying in any way that the food at the Piggy Bank promotes the development of scurvy in its customers. There are indeed salads and other sources of Vitamin C on the menu, I'm sure. Just not in the pulled pork sandwich.

Goings on at Dia:Beacon, Oct 27

Dia is currently operating under the first phase of its winter hour schedule. Between now and Nov 12, the museum is open from Thurs to Mon, 11am to 4 pm.
From Nov. 16 to April 14 the museum will be open from 11 to 4, Fri. to Mon.

There are several events scheduled for this coming Saturday:
1pm, Gallery Talk: Tim Rollins on Robert Ryman.
2pm, Conversation: Lynn Cooke will be speaking with An-My Le
4-6pm, Reception: Public opening of George Trakas' Beacon Point.

Unfortunately, I'll miss these events as I'm currently in South Dakota, en route to Denver.

I'm waiting for Dia to offer podcasts of audio from gallery talks and other events. I have been present for some really good talks...and a few eh talks, but an online resource is something I would certainly appreciate.
I'm interested in hearing how Rollins approaches Ryman in his talk.
I'm also interested in hearing An-My Le discuss her suite of Trap Rock photos commissioned by Dia . I find the group of works to be a real yawner and I'd like to try to understand what she intended with this work. It could be said that the photos allude to the legacy of the Dia Foundation's relationship with the earthwork activities of Heizer and Smithson. It's possible that, within these photos, one could attribute a linkage between the invasive scuptural language of those far flung projects and the use of landscape as object/subject by artists of another time in this art-historically laden Hudson River Valley, and by framing the violence of man's exertion on the land, An-My Le creates a locally ocurring visual rhyme tying the cultural footprint of this museum to the efforts of those artists of the 19th Century who worked in this same place.
But it just doesn't roll with me. Looking at these, I keep thinking that I'd rather be looking at Burtynsky.

I came across a blog originating from a class at Vassar that has some recent photos of George Trakas' ongoing project at the waterfront.
Additionally, Matthew Coolidge will be speaking about the Hudson River School as part of Dia's Artist on Artists series down in NYC. Coolidge's talk will take place at 6:30 on Oct 29. More info on this and other stuff can be had at www.diaart.org

News from the Pumpkin Patch: Job opportunity

As an addendum from the previous post, more pumpkin carvers are needed for the Great Pumpkin Blaze:

wanted: artists to carve foam pumpkins (funkins) using pre determined templates....
start: asap until ? pay: $15.00/hr. contact: michael natiello, 914-217-8981, x18 or khamaidesign@yahoo.com.

Michael Natiello to brandish his knife on The Martha Stewart Show on Oct 25

A view of the undersea aquarium at The Great Jack O' Lantern Blaze at Van Cortlandt Manor.
Photo by Matt Gillis.

Michael Natiello, local artist and overall crafty guy will be appearing on the Martha Stewart Show tomorrow, (Oct 25, 2007) demonstrating pumpkin carving techniques. Check your local listings.

Since it's inception, Michael has over seen the creative preparations for The Great Pumpkin Blaze held every year at Van Cortlandt Manor.

Three years ago, I was among the phalanx of carvers assembled to make short order of thousands of gourds while braving nonstop monsoon rains. Matt Kinney, Alexis Elton, Sara Mussen, Peter Iannarelli, and Jeff Caramagna were my carpool buddies and fellow carvers that year. I believe Sara was among the carvers last year too.

Matthew Kinney was not invited to appear with Martha.

Brown Bag tour: Charlotte Schulz at the Aldrich, Oct. 24 11-1pm

Charlotte Schulz at her opening at the Aldrich on Sept 16, 2007

Charlotte Schulz will be on hand for a discussion of her work as part of the series of Brown Bag Tours & Discussions at the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, CT.

The discussion will be held on Weds. Oct 24 from 11am to 1pm. Visitors bring their lunch and the museum provides coffee tea and dessert.

For registration or other information, click on the link above.

Zahra Studio in the news and the news according to Zahra Studio

photo by Keith Zahra

Retrogression, the exhibit on view at the Gallery at Zahra Studio was featured in Kathleen Murray's column in POJO's Friday, October 19 edition.

Keith Zahra has recently added to his website his account of his drawn out and personally expensive fight with the City of Beacon to secure his ability to lawfully operate his tatoo studio on Main St.

In his narrative, Keith mentions a law passed in December 2000 that was intended to do an end run around his business' grandfathered status for a previous regulation limiting the approved locations for tattoo parlors to industrial areas. The cited law is from Chapter 223, Article III relating to General Regulations regarding zoning in the City's code.

Below is the text of the regulation:

K. Discontinuance of existing tattoo and body-piercing
parlors. [Added 12-4-2000 by L.L. No. 18-2000]
(1) Legislative intent. The
City Council hereby finds that certain business activities, in this case tattoo and body-piercing parlors, by their nature have seriously objectionable operational characteristics which can lead to significant impacts on the surrounding community. The City Council further finds that the establishment of such uses would be inconsistent with the existing development and future plans for the City of Beacon in that such uses often result in influences on the community which undermine its economic, physical and social welfare. Further, such uses have been found to contribute to the blighting of surrounding residential and commercial areas as a result of the deterring of investment in and improvement of surrounding properties. For these reasons, such uses can adversely impact the general health, safety and economic well-being of the entire community. In addition, the location of these uses may be in areas where youth may regularly assemble, and the general atmosphere encompassing their operation is of great concern to the City Council.
Prohibiting the establishment of tattoo and body-piercing parlors in the City will eliminate their potential accessibility to children and ensure that the effects of such businesses will not adversely affect the health, safety and economic well-being of the community. Further, it has been the experience of other municipalities, including the City of New York, that tattooing has led to increased cases of serum hepatitis. It has also been their experience that regulatory measures have proved ineffective in eliminating this health risk because of the inability to supervise tattooing establishments at all times. The City of Beacon also lacks the resources and personnel to supervise tattooing establishments on an ongoing basis. Accordingly, the City Council finds that in this City, as in other communities, a ban on tattooing
establishments under the City Code, except for medical purposes, is the only
feasible means of protecting the public against disease from this source.

(2) Discontinuance. The following provisions pertain to tattoo and body-piercing parlors which are in existence on the effective date of this section. Said tattoo and body-piercing parlors shall be discontinued for the reasons stated in Subsection K(1) above, in accordance with the following schedule which is based upon the amount of
capital investment involved in the conversion of a subject premises into a tattoo and/or body-piercing parlor. The owner of each building or the operator of each establishment to which this section pertains shall provide capital investment information, which has been certified by a registered architect or engineer, to the Building Department, and the Building Department shall have the authority to make the final determination as to the amount of capital investment which has occurred.
Capital Investment as of Effective Date of this Section
Date on or Before Which Use Shall Terminate
$0 to 25,000 June 30, 2001
$25,001 to $50,000 June 30, 2002
More than $50,000 June 30, 2003

The section I highlighted in red sounds more indicative of the kind of activity you're likely to find outside of our Main St. gas stations than what you'd ever see happening at Zahra's.

Keith has been touting October 15 of this year as the Lucky 7 Year Anniversary of when his struggle began.

It seems like this issue is still very much open, and so is Zahra Studio, but Keith wants this regulation stricken from the books so that he can operate lawfully and without fear of any capricious action of enforcement.

Folkert De Jong at HVCCA, opening reception and artist talk Oct. 21

Folkert de Jong, Studio view (detail) of Mount Maslow (2007)Styrofoam, polyurethane foam and pigment. Dimensions variable

Over the past week, Folkert De Jong has been taking a neatly stacked mountain of styrofoam blocks crowded into the storage and classroom areas at the HVCCA in Peekskill, and creating a slightly less tidy mountain for his current installation entitled Mount Maslow which will be opening this Sunday at the museum.

Folkert, who gave a highly enjoyable talk about his work at HVCCA back in November of 2005 will again be giving a talk at 4 pm on Sunday, Oct 21. A reception will follow the talk.

Gallery Talk @ Ann St Gallery Oct 21 2pm

Image by Eugene Cuttica.

On Sunday, Oct 21at 2pm, the Ann Street Gallery in Newburgh will be hosting a gallery talk in conjunction with the current group exhibit, Chi.

Argentinean artist Eugene Cuttica will be giving a talk entitled "Art as Chi."

Chi refers to the natural energy of the Universe, which according to Mr. Cuttica “permeates everything, all matter from the smallest atoms and molecules to the largest planets and stars. It is the vital force of life”. Mr. Cuttica will talk about how to connect to the “CHI” energy inherent in all things, and how “CHI” has been an inspirational force in the creating of his own artworks.

The Ann Street Gallery group exhibition entitled “CHI” features the work of nine Latin American artists and runs to October 27th.

This show was curated by Gallery Director Virginia Walsh and co-curator
Alejandro Dron.
Both events are free and open to the public. For more
information, please contact the gallery at: (845) 562-6940 x 8 or (845) 656-1132

Panel discussion & book signing @ Fovea Exhibitions Gallery Beacon, Oct 20

Photograph by Ron Haviv.Young teenage girls leave a refugee camp to gather firewood. For some the work will take
more than seven hours, and lead them past government checkpoints, which leaves them
vulnerable to attacks. Girls as young as 8 years old have been attacked, raped and killed
trying to collect fuel and water.

In conjunction with the current exhibition of work by Ron Haviv, The Children of Darfur, Fovea Exhibitions Gallery Beacon will be hosting a panel discussion and book signing.

The panel discussion, scheduled for 4pm, will focus on the current situation in Darfur. Participating panelists are: Ron Haviv, Alison Morley of the International Center for Photography and Ellie Tolmie of UNICEF.

After the discussion, Ron Haviv will be signing copies of the book Darfur, twenty Years of War and Genocide in Sudan (a compilation of images by world renown photographers)

Haviv's exhibit will be on view through Nov 4.

Open Friday through Sunday, 11am to 6pm, and by appointment.
Group tours available, please call 845 765 2199 or e-mail:info@foveaeditions.org
FOVEA EXHIBITIONS BEACON GALLERY 143 MAIN STREET BEACON NY 12508

Fovea Exhibitions Beacon Gallery launches program with talks by Ron Haviv

Fovea Exhibitions Beacon Gallery is launching an educational outreach program. This first endeavor in this program will happen Ron Haviv will be speaking with local junior high school students at the gallery on Friday Nov. 19.

The students are attending as a part of a local program designed to provide
lower-income youth with educational after-school alternatives to spending
time in the streets.

Earlier in the day, Haviv will be visiting with students of Beacon High and Washington High Schools.

Mr. Haviv is donating his time to educate these and other students on the plight
of the refugees in Darfur, including stories about young Sudanese teenagers
roughly the same age as the children to whom he will be lecturing. Mr. Haviv
will also be visiting the Beacon High School and Washingtonville High School
students earlier in the day. FOVEA is an educational charity designed to
promote awareness of international and domestic news events through the works
of photojournalism. It opened in May of this year, and this event marks the
start of FOVEA’s educational programs with regional schools and community
organizations.

For more information contact the directors:
Sabine Meyer 917 848 3436 SMeyer@FoveaEditions.Org
Stephanie Heimann 845 765 2199 Stephanie@FoveaEditions.Org

The Beacon Institute hosts free seminar on digital photography in November

Nature photographer Robert Rodrigues Jr will be giving a free seminar on digital photography on Nov. 17 from 6-7:30 at the Beacon Institute at 199 Main St. RSVP by Nov. 10 to reserve a seat. Contact information and details on the seminar here.

Currently on exhibit in the gallery at the Beacon Institute are the photographs of Beacon photographer John Fasulo. John's work will be on exhibit at the gallery through January 2008.

James Westwater at Navta Schulz Gallery in Chicago

Plywood Chateau by James Westwater.

James Westwater hit the road this morning. He's heading out to Chicago with a couple of his Plywood Chateaux pieces and other work that will be in the exhibit "Plywood Chateaux" opening on Friday, Oct. 19 at the Navta Schulz Gallery. James' work will be on exhibit through Nov. 24.

Second Saturday revisited

I bagged my plans to head down to the city on Saturday. I wasn't feeling the passion, and I had stuff to do in preparation for my exhibit in Denver in two weeks.

So staying home allowed me to catch the conversation between Open Space Beacon's Dan Weise and Michael De Feo whose work is currently on exhibit at the gallery. I appreciated the format of the two guys sitting and talking. De Feo spoke about his development in the Street art scene, and the different artists that inspired him. De Feo also spoke about his full time career of teaching at a school in Connecticut, and the fine line he must walk between the expectations set for him as a teacher, and the process of practicing his art which can bring him in conflict with the law.

DJ Bobby Collins at Open Space.

Retrogression at Zahra's Studio.

After the discussion, I stopped into the exhibit at Zahra's Studio, and met the new gallery curator, Vanessa. The exhibit documents several derilict locations in the area. Each location photographed was accompanied by a small timeline of the site's former use and demise. Dennings Point is among the locations included. The trippiest of the buildings was a 50's era hotel near Albany, I believe. The condition of the space was just any other decrepit, neglected building. The bizarre part, for me, was this veneer of decay overlaid not on to an Industrial Age environment, but on a mid-century, modern interior. The building I was musing about previously is known at Bennett College, and it's located in Millbrook.

Megan Maloy at Go North.

After Zahra's, I bought a couple of artbooks discounted in the moving sale at World's End Books as Deb moves the business from brick and mortar to the internet exclusively. The idea of not having a book store in town to peruse and fondle the books sucks a bit. There's alway the Beacon Reads bookstore, if you can catch when it's open.

Then on to Go North where Megan Maloy's Harford Fair photographs are on exhibit.

Those are all the openings I made it to. I ran back home to work for another couple of hours in the studio before heading back for the After Party at the Piggy Bank. Of Course there were several other openings happening, and Cafe Chronogram was happening at the Muddy Cup, but there's only so much you can see and do in one night.

One of the liquid chalk sidewalk tags that raised the hackles of various shopkeepers and landlords.

El Jef(f)e and DJ Bobby C at the Next Step at the Piggy Bank.

As there is still very little night life in Beacon to speak of (although, there is more to do, and more venues sporting live music) any dance night at the Piggy Bank has the feel of a post hibernation thaw when all the woolly critters come out and sniff each other - even now as we're heading into that frigid season.
It's a party, and because it doesn't happen very often, it feels special. This Next Step Party was put on by the folks at the Beacon Art Supply, Open Space and the Piggy Bank. It was fun, the music was great and a lot of folks blew off some steam.

Dan Weise and Jim Darling doing a little live painting.

Art can bring us together, Art can tear us apart

Today's NYTimes Magazine has a lengthy article by Joe Nocera titled chronicling the working relationship of former Dia Foundation Board Chairman, Leonard Riggio and former Dia Foundation Director Michael Govan. I've only just perused the article thus far, but as it is a business and not an arts article, it gives a good overview of the museum and foundation to anyone not familiar with the institution. The article tracks the inner workings of the Foundation from the point when both men became involved with it, to when they departed from it, and through today under the leadership of Jeff Weiss, who came on as Director earlier this year.

Links:
Feb 20, 2007-Carol Vogel article on the appointment of Jeffrey Weiss as Govan's replacement.
May 17, 2007-Carol Vogel article on the resignation of Riggio from the Dia Art Foundation's board.

Openings tonight

Again, here it is, Second Saturday again. Once again.

Megan Maloy, Shaving with Cows.

Harford Fair, an exhibit of photographs by Megan Maloy opens at Go North; reception from 6-9pm. The exhibit runs through Nov 4.

VanBrunt Gallery opens tonight with exhibits of work by Christie Scheele and Tom Christopher. The opening reception is happening from 6-9pm. At 9pm, VanBrunt will be doing a public screening of "First Person" a selection of video work curated by Robert Ladislas Derr and Marcy B Freedman.

New bau member Tom Holmes will be exhibiting his sculpture at bau. The reception happens from 6-9pm.

I know there are other openings happening today, but I don't have the information, nor the time to cull the information.

Don't forget, Open Space is hosting an artist talk by Michael De Feo at 5pm., and beginning at 9pm, NEXT STEP - The Second Saturday After Party at Piggy Bank. See my previous post for details.

I'm off to Manhattan, I hope to be back for the After Party later on.

"Retrogression" at Zahra Studio Gallery

The Gallery at Zahra's Studio at 496 Main St. is coming out of hiatus. If I'm not mistaken, the last exhibit at the gallery was this graffitti show in August 2006, which was excellent. Keith Zahra has announced that the gallery is back, with a new gallery curator, Vanessa Tellez.

The exhibit "Retrogression" features the photographs of Andrew Sorkin and Tony Alves. The exhibit opened on Oct 6 and will run through Oct 30. There will be an opening party from 6-10pm on Saturday, Oct 13.

Here's a statement from the photographers.

Abandoned... Decaying... Forgotten...

All around us are the remains of buildings and structure where generations of
people lived, worked, played and were cared for. What were
once important parts of our society have been left unattended and
crumbling. Everyday more of these sites are destroyed by fires and strip
malls, by condos and golf courses.
retrogression photography was started to document this part of our history before they are reclaimed by man or by nature. What began as a trip to shoot an abandoned steel mill before it is torn down to make room for a casino has become the main focus of our photographic activities. Many times these locations are remote
and difficult to find and just as often they are right in front of us, places we all pass everyday but seldom see. Our focus is on trying to convey the dark and derelict nature of the subjects we photograph. There are a lot more to many of these places than the visual elements. Smells and sounds are amplified by the stillness of areas
that were once the center great activity. Although many of these places are bright and colorful the mood there is not. Through the use of muted colors and black and white photography the somber reality of what these discarded relics have now become is translated to the observer.
Photographers Tony Alves and Andrew Sorkin are both long time residents of
Dutchess County, NY. We are both musicians, currently working together on
several projects. Tony has also worked as a tattoo artist. Andrew is a website designer and graphic artist. We own and maintain photographic websites http://photo.gazzmik.com/ , http://aveteva.com/ and http://retrogression.us/.

I was doing a job recently outside of Dover Plains. Everyday, I passed by this giant ruin at the junction of rt 44 and 343, not knowing what it was. I still don't know what it is, but there is an image of this joint on the retrogression website. It's the black and white image, third thumbnail down on the left. It must be an old asylum or resort. I'll be sure to find out now.

I'm pleased to see the gallery back on task and showing the type of stuff you won't, and probably shouldn't see anywhere else.

Spirit of Beacon Day: some images.

Here are a few images taken by Matthew Freedman of the "Beacon Artists At Large '07" contribution to the Spirit of Beacon Day Parade, Sept 30, 2007. There are more images on flickr, here.

Jill "Brick_HOUWSE" Reynolds

George Mansfield's tape measure evoked the majesty of Princess Di's fairytale wedding and the gentle gregariousness of the turtle from that "can you draw" ad that was always in the TV Guide. I'm just concerned for the #2 pencil to the left. The poor fella looks a bit stiff.

Dan Spitzer demonstrating the slimming, lengthening line effected by this striking hammer ensemble.

Materials, space up for grabs

Alexis Elton is packing up her studio at Spire and heading out to New Mexico in two weeks. She's placed a selection of misc. materials up for grabs in the common area at Spire.
There's some clear vinyl tubing, adhesives, I can't even remember what is there, so if you're into rummaging about for some "mixed media" check it out before it's tossed out.
Also, Alexis' studio will be available for rent. Contact Todd at Spire for details.

Art 21

A motley selection of seating available prior to screening Art 21 at bau.

Five of us gathered to watch the preview screening of Art 21 at bau on Saturday afternoon. two of the four episodes were screened: "Romance" and "Ecology".

Thanks to Jill, Dan and Jeff for putting it all together.

The Beacon Art Salon will be hosting a preview screening of "Protest" at the Howland Cultural Center, 477 Main St. at 7 pm on Friday Evening. Earlier in the day, Dia: Beacon will be screening "Paradox"

Critique group meets tonight at Spire Studios.

Tonight, 7:30 at Spire Studios.
I'll have a few pieces on hand, looking for some feedback. Also we may mosey over to Steve Rossi's studio to check out some of his work.

for more information on tonight, call Sara Mussen at 845.269.1065
or me at 914.844.6515

walk on.

Final days at Concentric Gallery in September.

I took a walk along Main St a couple of weekends ago. It's not something I get to do often as of late. I had made it out to September's Second Saturday for only about half an hour, before my anxiety about some unfinished work sitting back in the studio drove me back in to work. I managed to only stop into the inaugural opening of MJ Art at 177 Main, and then press my face against the window at bau, which was closed, to see Gary O'Connor's piece sitting in the dark.

So I took two weeks before I got around to any other joints. I stopped in to Mount Beacon Fine Art at 155 Main St. which also just opened in September and spoke to the owner, Eileen Mctiernan. She explained that she is directing the gallery toward featuring work by young artists who have little or no exhibition experience and allow them to develop their chops. The gallery is open during the week, and Eleanor plans to teach classes to help support the exhibitions.

Around the bend and up the block, I saw a sign in a paper covered window at 181 Main saying that later this year, an artist collaboration called Gallery 181 will be opening in the space. Later online, I found this listing of the gallery here. I called the number listed for information, but as of yet, I haven't heard back.

When I stopped into Van Brunt, Carl told me about Open Space which also opened in September. I went down and spoke one of the owners, Daniel Weise. During a stint of a couple of years in Denver, Daniel started an art and literary magazine called sherbert. the gallery's location will also serve as workroom and headquarters for the magazine and other the Thundercut art and design studio. The gallery's website states the mission of the space as:

The gallery will primarily explore the intersection of contemporary art and
underground culture. Exhibiting artists with a wide range of influences
including street culture, urban environments, independent music, architecture,
graphic design, zines, illustration and pop culture. By challenging each artist
to use the entire gallery space for their exhibitions and to explore alternative
methods of presentation, OPEN SPACE looks forward to offering a truly unique and
unexpected gallery experience to it's visitors.

An artist discussion by Open Space's current exhibiting artist Michael De Feo on Saturday, Oct 13, at 5pm.

Saturday, Oct 13 9pm - 1am, @ the Piggy Bank

Open Space, along with the Piggy Bank, and Beacon Art Supply will be hosting the Second Saturday After Party on Sept 13, from 9pm - 1am at the Piggy Bank, 448 Main St.

Finally, I stopped in to Kate Rogovin's Concentric Gallery which was in its final days. Kate opened the storefront space in 2004. Ready for a change and a chance to get deep into the studio, she has closed the doors of Concentric and has now taken a studio space in Ron Sauer's building, and she is excited to begin some new weaving and metalwork and focus on that work in a way she wasn't able to while also minding the shop.

Change is good.

MODA reception images.

The post opening sociable sculpture stylings of Adam - but where's he hiding the tap.

Here are a few images from last week's opening reception of The Museum of Drunken Art at bau. There are more images on MODA's blog. Today, Sept 7, is the last day to check out the MODA collection.
Tim Harrod adding to MODA's collection.

Peter Teraberry, left, Director and Curator of MODA speaking with Eleanor White and Karlos Carcamo who facilitated the exhibit at bau.

Paradise Revisited: Alison Moritsugu in Honolulu

Invasive Repeat, Banana Poka, (detail), 2007
digital wallpaper on wood panel 96 x 146 1/2 inches

Alison Moritsugu's exhibit of recent work, Paradise Revisited opened on Oct 5 at The Contemporary Museum at First Hawaiian Center in Honolulu, Hawai'i. The exibit will run through January 8, 2008.
Alison who was born and raised in Hawai'i says "This new work is about my return visits to Hawai'i and about the changes I have seen affecting the island's culture and land. "

Dec 9, 2007 story in the Honolulu Star Bulletin

Mercy Me

The NYTimes has a review by Alistair Macaulay of the Merce Cunningham Dance Company performances that were going on at Dia:Beacon over the weekend.

All the world is your living room - Art 21 preview screenings

The fourth season of Art 21 will be broadcast on PBS toward the end of this month, but there are numerous preview screenings happening all over the nation, and several locally in the next few weeks.

Here in Beacon, three of the segments will be screened.
Saturday, October 6, 2007 at 4:00 pm - "Romance" & "Ecology" Episodes
Beaconstruction at BAU Beacon Artist Union, 161 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Artists featured : Laurie Simmons, Lari Pittman, Judy Pfaff, Pierre Huyghe,
Ursula von Rydingsvard, Iñigo Manglano-Ovalle’ , Robert Adams and Mark Dion

Friday, October 12, 2007 at 7:00 PM - "Protest" Episode
Beacon Art Salon at the Howland Cultural Center, 477 Main Street, Beacon, NY
Artists featured: Jenny Holzer, Alfredo Jaar, An-My Lê, and Nancy Spero

Friday, October 19, 2007 at 2:30 PM - "Paradox" Episode
Dia:Beacon Riggio Galleries, 3 Beekman Street, Beacon, NY
Artists featured: Mark Bradford, Catherine Sullivan, Robert Ryman (Dia:Beacon artist), Jennifer Allora and Guillermo Calzadilla
Note: This screening is free with admission.

HVCCA in Peekskill will be screening two episodes:
Saturday, October 6th, 2007@ 4:00pm Episode 2: Protest: Jenny Holzer, Alfredo Jaar, An-My Lê, and Nancy Spero
Saturday, October 13th, 2007 @ 4:00pm Episode 4: Paradox: Jennifer Allora & Guillermo Calzadilla, Mark Bradford, Robert Ryman, and Catherine Sullivan

These screenings are being organized in the interest of community access. With that in mind, I'm now wishing a screening would have been organized at the Howland Public Library as the potential to reach a traditionally non-art audience might be extended.