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Please join us for the opening of “Censored”, a show sponsored by artDC. “Censored” will be held at the artDC gallery in Hyattsville, MD. The opening will be Saturday, March 13th from 6pm to 9pm. Light refreshments will be served.

“Our theme, “Censored” is in response to the typical thought process that nudity is taboo. Our intention is to poke fun at the long-running practice of moral and societal censorship of art by covering the genitalia in each work with post-it notes. Visitors will be encouraged to take a sneak peek of what’s going on underneath the notes. The artists in this month’s show were specially chosen for their work in fine art nudes and erotica. The artists are Billy Monday, Chris Brady, Jerry Harke, Jesse Cohen, Kollin Bliss, Michael Woodward, Rahul Saha, Raju Singh, and Renee Woodward.”

Facebook invite here.
artdc.org discussion here.

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Reception: February 14^th, 2010 1 to 5pm

HYATTSVILLE, MD– artdc Gallery, Design Studio Art Gallery, and Cheryl Edwards Studio will host this exhibit. An opening reception will be held on Sunday, February 14, 2010 from 1-5pm. The exhibit will run from February 8^th – March 3^rd 2010.

In collaboration with multiple Arts District galleries, we will work to create a movement in celebration of that wonderful time full of love.  You know the day–February 14th!  V-day.  We will be developing a semi-all inclusive show that will be curated in one space, and then split between galleries.   This movement goes beyond space limitations and activates the neighborhood through multiple gallery collaborations.

Saint Valentine’s Day is a holiday celebrated on February 14.  There’s an energy which drives us to fall in love. Philosophers, scientists, and artists study it.  Lust is an intense craving for one’s lover and has been a tremendous force in the creation of art and spirit.  Lust is joyful and painful at the same time.

Dante compared it to the sweeping force of a whirlwind with no hope of escape to cleanse your soul and purge your minds from desire.  Lust controls many of us with muscle truck unstoppable force!  We are exploring lustful creativity with a tremendous, ground-breaking show which crosses individual gallery barriers.  As a group, each gallery director will assist in curating the show. We will then divide the work between our spaces.  Lust will create a movement for the month of February!

The art will range from publicly accessible art PG-13 to much spicier concepts! This is not an erotic art show.  We need to explore this unstoppable whirlwind of fear, need, anxiety, love, and desire.  Lust and love move deeper than sex, it’s power.

The artdc Gallery in the Lustine Center (appropriate name for the show!)

The Design Studio Art Gallery

Andrea Waldron Bates’ photo of the Lustine Center sign in celebration of the show.

Gallery Websites:
www.artdc.com
www.designstudioartgallery.com
www.fineartamerica.com/profiles/cheryl-edwards.html

Addresses of Participating Galleries:
artdc Gallery:   5710 Baltimore Ave, Hyattsville, MD 20781
Design Studio Art Gallery: 5702 Baltimore Avenue, Hyattsville, MD 20781
Cheryl Edwards Studio:   4303 Rhode Island Ave, Studio 215 Brentwood, MD 20722

View the call for artists here.

The artdc Gallery gives back to supporting artists with a patrons’ exhibit.

HYATTSVILLE, MD (December 3, 2009) – The artdc Gallery will feature a Patron Members’ Exhibition from December 6, 2009, to January 3, 2010. A reception, open studio, and cash-and-carry event, titled “Cool Yule Arty Party,” will be held on Saturday, December 12, 2009, from noon to 6 p.m.  The doors open at 11am!

The gallery is located at The Lustine Center, 5710 Baltimore Ave., Hyattsville, Maryland 20781. Gallery visits are by appointment.

“This is a great way to give back to the patron members who support artdc’s discussion forum and other projects,” said gallery director and artist Jesse Cohen. “You’ll see an amazing variety of work in a broad range of mediums. If you’re looking to build your collection–or start one–this show brings together talented established and emerging artists in the metro DC area who offer unique, top-quality work at recession-friendly prices.”

On the same day, the “Cool Yule Arty Party” will also feature performances by 4 bands and a Legal Lecture by John Mason, and the amazing work from a fine group of local vendors selling their hand made Fine Art and Holiday Craft Items.  The group is diverse ranging from DC Conspiracy graphic novelists to artists, and stunning crafters.  Come support your local art scene and economy.  Works in the Art Fair and Patron’s show are commission free.
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We had a tremendous reception for Michael Winger’s, “I cure myself…”  We had a good number of people passionate about supporting a strong gathering of creativity.  To celebrate, we were pleased to present 2 fascinating groups, the DCIC and Anorak.  Find details about the bands can be found here.  DCIC and Anorak both explored the limits and boundaries of creativity and improvisation in the moment.  We thought the music was a fantastic addition to the artist’s reception.  Patrons came to view the work, then stayed to enjoy the sounds gushing out of the studio.

Here’s a breif video of Anorak in the space.

“I cure myself…” is an exhibition developed by Michael Winger, a man, and an artist on a pathway to find solace in world where the medical system leaves you asking questions with an unsure fate for one’s health and well being. He’s been on a journey to cure his own bouts with Cancer. Through this process he’s developed art based on natural products, and the process is as important as the final out come of the objects.

On November 8th, a group of artists including Lauren Pond, Grayson Heck, and Jesse Cohen met at the Gallery to aid Michael in developing a one-o-a-kind gallery installation.

This work is an example great spiritual enlightenment.

We’ll have a limited supply of extra materials for you to build your own nest.

We would be honored to have you view this work before our Fringe Jazz Concert the same night. Details on the music can be found here.

Visit the, “I cure myself…” facebook event invite here.

Here’s a video of the installation:

Before developing this exhibition we wanted to get a better handle on Installation art, so we turned to the net, and read this link.   Specifically, they write, “Installation art describes an artistic genre of site-specific, three-dimensional works designed to transform the perception of a space.”  The end of that line is important, …designed to transform the perception of a space.  That’s what the installation at “I cure myself…” does.  You walk in, and there’s a perception of energy, peace, and tranquility.

We had a very positive time at the closing reception for Sculpture: 301.  We has the opportunity to meet a large portion of the UMD art grad students.  It was a warm crowd and they seemed excited about the show and our desire to collaborate.  To us, there’s nothing like sharing tremendous art with the public, and this show certain gave us that opportunity.   We send our thanks to Steven Jones for his curatorial energy! 

Here are a few snapshots of the reception:

At the artdc Gallery
Curator: Steven Jones

Dates: October 4 – November 8th, 2009
Reception: October 30th 6:30pm to 9:30pm

The works for the Sculpture:301 show are all recent work by artists who live, work, or go to school in the neighborhood.  This show will introduce these young and mid-career artist to the artdc Gallery.  The work runs a gamut of styles and materials but are tied together by a level of craft and a certain wit.

Two pieces fall in the figurative side of sculpture, Greyson Heck’s “Mixed Emotion’s” and Zac Jackson’s “What” explore how the face can convey a gut reaction.  “What?”’s latex noses and mouth slowly and rhythmically repeating a silent phrase over and over to you, and after a few minutes with the piece, your own mouth with start mimicking the work trying to decipher what it is calling out.  Greyson’s two cast pieces are frozen in a pose full of expression, but more of a death mask of angst rather than joy.

Sculptors Sarah Laing and Jack Henry both use simple found objects as a starting point, and end on different planets.  Laing’s small cast bronze mushroom grows from the wall like a forgotten fungus, but its simplicity and perfection in the metal acts as a frame asking the viewer to reconsider the toadstool as an object of possible beauty.  In contrast to Laing’s simple object protruding quietly from the wall, Jack’s wall seems to vomit out bright colors and shapes which beakon the viewer.   On closer inspection you make out the source of the shapes; a collection of trash and found kitsch.  It is only the work of the artist that has transformed dollar store junk and side of the road debris into something that the viewer can explore as pretty.

Find more about the artists here:

Jack Henry
jackhenryartist.com

Sarah Laing
cookiesordoughnuts.blogspot.com

Jim Vose
jamesvose.com

Felicia Glidden
feliciaglidden.com

Zac Jackson
zacjackson.com

Stewart Watson
area405.com

December will be an exciting month. We look forward to the positive things that will come to the artdc Gallery in the year to come.  To celebrate, we will give back to the artists who support our activities by offering a Patrons’ Exhibition.  Patrons are invited to submit 5 works of art, and we’ll pick at least one or more from each patron.  Here’s where it gets exciting: we’ll allow patrons to submit another artist’s work with their approval if the patron chooses to be a curator rather than an exhibitor.

What’s so great about the this show?  The month of December will include a Hyattsville open studio day, which attracts great attention, on December 12th.  We had a similar event in May during the arts festival and managed to sell over 20 works of art!  This was unheard of as far as I’m concerned.  We’d like to develop the same kind of energy.

It would be our goal to hang at least 50 works of art.

There will a lot going on during the reception. In addition to our Patrons’ show, we’re planning a cash and carry event, during which we’d also like to schedule lectures and performances to make this an amazing experience.

Become a patron of artdc and exhibit your work in our annual Patrons’ Show at the artdc Gallery in Hyattsville!

Find the call for entry here.

Our reception was a powerful event with an unrepeatable atmosphere due to the art and the brave patrons that fought back roads to work their way past the tremendous emergency presence from the fire across the street.  We made the best of a tough situation, and Steve, Antoinette, and I were so pleased to see friends, art collectors and dealers visit our reception.  At “Pinned,” we had a wide range of work, and we were pleased to find a great number of people who asked many questions about our work and what it means to us.

We decided to add to the atmosphere by Inviting Grayson Brown to play our event.  Some of you may know him from David Fogel’s “X” events.  Some said that the rhythmic energy of the lights from multiple emergency response vehicles added to an environment where art and music mixed.

Crowd at the reception

Steve, Antoinette, and Jesse

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There was a fire across the street  from our gallery minutes before the artist’s reception. A warehouse burst into flames producing a brilliant blaze with a significant amount of smoke with the scent ranging from burnt plastic to burn rubber. This is a first for us to witness a natural disaster during a gallery reception. Something tells me that our higher powers were playing a game with us. Rain is one thing, but who sends fire? Luckily the warehouse was not occupied as far as we know, there were no injuries. After the smell had permeated the gallery, we started to look around for a short in a wire, only to see the smoke developing from the warehouse. As the smoke grew, our shock increased.

Check out these intense images.  I rattled off to many, it’s close to 2am after the fire, but I wanted to get this up on the site so you can have a feeling for our situation.  More later…

Dense Smoke!

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