Rug Cutting Ceremony: Some SF Office Favs Hypnotize Us With Moves (From the Shadows)


$800 Raised for Bay Area Food Bank from Candygram Sales



SAN FRANCISCO -- Sort of like elementary school all over again, but
with a twist: Last week, the SF office had people send candy canes to
one another as "candy grams" (anonymously or otherwise), for a donation
of one dollar. We figured we might raise a couple of hundred dollars,
and we planned to donate the money to a local charity.

Dawn did a great job marketing the sweet initiative internally. I know I
had way too much fun doing this; I think I sent over 40 anonymous
candygrams to unsuspecting coworkers! Apparently I wasn't the only one
who got into the spirit: As a result of this effort, we have netted
close to $800 and counting!  All proceeds will go to the SF Food Bank to
help feed those in need.

Going to do this again next year, for sure!

Tis the season,
-Tracy

NEW YORK -- A group of folks got together last Thursday and watched the annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade from the office windows as the big ballons floated through Manhattan. Here's some quick pics...more to come.

T-day dinner pics available upon request.

--Nicole Goldman

Hello,

It's been a while since I last posted.

I spent time at the auction houses this weekend. A dealer pointed out while people are looking to sell, what you see now isn't necessarily people rushing to sell because of the financial climate as these decisions are made well in advance. I told her the Fuld's as in Lehman Bros. have work for sale. I'm told there are bargains to be had at the gallery level in private, of course. I feel times like these are especially good for the emerging artists, the prices are just right for collectors who are curbing their spending.

I went to the Print Show on the Sunday before the election, at the Old Tunnel disco. At the Brand X Projects booth there was a wonderful print titled Michelle O by Mickalene Thomas, an emerging artist of note. So, I whined to myself about the price, $750.00, the dealer told me the price would not be affected by Obama's win or loss but the price would go up as more prints are sold. So, again, I waited too long and bought the print today for $1,250.00.

Lesson:

Buy when you see something you really like buy it, you can tell it's affordable if you can pay it in 3 payments over 3 months without putting a strain on your expenses. Note: I'm paying this one off in 6 months since it's over $1000.00, that works for me.

Yvette Durant 

More pics here and here

Common Threads

Until July 31^st

 

Michael Rosenfeld Gallery

24 West 57^th Street, 7^th Fl.

212-247-0082

www.michaelrosenfeldart.com

 

This is a show with works by female artists. All of the works speak through fabric worked and molded in various constructions. The show features artists such as: Faith Ringgold, Lee Bontecou, Bety Saar. I loved them all, the sculpture by Yayoi Kusama(image above)  is something to see, it's a sculpture make of painted gold (think the color of 18kt gold) it's an elaborate intertwining of tubular constructions, maybe phallic. Barbara Chase-Riboud's piece of silk and bronze creates tension between the strength of metal with the fluidity of silk. I had a chat with Michael; he said what makes this show unique is the fact that few male artists have done work using fabric as extensively as women artists have.  I believe this is a female thing. Is this related to the role women played in society years ago? We sewed by hand, we mended, darned and quilted; even the wealthiest women spent many a leisure afternoon in the drawing room engaged in needlepoint.

We've come a long way baby.

 

Neo Rauch

Currently showing at David Zwirner

525 West 19^th Street

www.davidzwirner.com

Until June 21^st

(Image above is not part of the current show)

 

Think brooding big- shouldered handsome men in top coats, women of healthy stock, turmoil, legs that morph into waves, 18^th century mixed with the 20^th. His canvases are large, you're looking at dreams, they're surreal. There may be 3 completely different scenarios on one canvas. Lots of blood, violence, maybe a revolution is in the planning. Why else are there flags in the making, there's an old man sitting off to the side the flags are folded neatly under his chair.

 

The colors are murky, the weather is stormy. There's one painting of an artist in front of a canvas, he has a noose around his neck, is he suffering a creative block, is that what's causing strangulation, is the noose holding him hostage to that which he must begin? I asked one of the gallery assistants what the artist is like. She said he's very quiet, tall and handsome; his face is in several canvases.

 

This show is a must see, you will not be disappointed.

 

Kerry James Marshall

Jack Shainman Gallery

513 West 20^th Street

212-645-1701

www.jackshainman.com

May 22^nd - June 3rd

 

Black Romantic

 

No, not mother and child. A couple, they're both black and shiny as tar, they're on the beach, in the sunset, and the male is tossing the female in the air.  The show feels breezy, clear, and brisk. His faces remind me of a piece of African sculpture my mother has, the lips are broad the rims are sharp.

 

There is also an installation, there's a mini ship adorned with medallions of photographs, some faces are recognizable. The base of the piece is shiny and black.  I interpreted this work as a depiction of black people being shipped from the motherland and how we were spread out all over on the journey over. Some became famous, some not. Jack Shainman is one of my favorite galleries; they have a diverse group of artists on their roster.

This is a copy of the email from Chad in Emerging Platforms to the NY team and some senior managers...groove on this technology for a bit...radio tags! The full note is after the jump...we'll just see how high the water-to-bathroom ratio is. Over-under is at about 2-1, which you can parlay against the coffee line.

Minds will be blown. More to come!

---------------------------


I have spoken to some of you about the current Emerging Platforms project
> which we call the "RFID Fair." The purpose of the project is to demonstrate
> what can be done with simple RFID technology and create a learning
> atmosphere for our employees.
>
> I have put together this quick overview to provide you all with an update as
> to what we are doing.
>
> Ive also copied the dev team on this email so they can follow any questions
> that come up.
>
> We are going to start the NYC initiative with data collection on 6/9 and
> present the results at beer bash on 6/13.
>
>
> Chad
>

 

 

Auctions:

 

I love going to auction previews; it's like going to a museum for free with no alarms or security guards blocking your access. There are several coming up in May. You'll have an opportunity to see works you've heard and read about. I once saw a Monet upclose at Christie's; it was breathtaking. At Christie's I'm looking forward to seeing Richard Prince's Man-Crazy Nurse #2.  The previews are also good people watching events; you'll see dealers, art consultants and big time collectors. I enjoy hearing what the viewers have to say about the art. Go, it's fun and free.

 

I recently attended a lecture on African art and the Contemporary market and heard Heinrich C. Schweizer, Department Head of African & Oceanic, Pre-Columbian Art at Sothebys discuss the influence African art had on Picasso, Calder, and Andre Derain to name a few. In his slide presentation he coupled works from Africa with works of these artists. You'll have a chance to see these influences at the preview for the upcoming auction of African Art, details are below. In case you're interested in how to buy at an auction, take a look at the link below under Sothebys.

 

Christie's

20 Rockefeller Plaza

Auction: May 13th

Post-War and Contemporary Art

Viewing: May 9^th-13th

10-5PM

May 11^th 1-5PM

May 12^th 10-5PM

May 13^th 10-noon

 

20 Rockefeller Plazas

http://www.christies.com/features/welcome/

Sotheby's

72^nd Street and York Avenue

Auction: May 16^th

African & Pan Oceanic, Pre-Columbian Art

Viewing: May 10^th-May 15^th

10AM -5PM

May 15^th 10AM -1PM

http://www.sothebys.com/help/buy/index.html

 

Impressionists and Modern Art

Viewing: May 2^nd -7^th

10AM to 5PM

May 7^th 10 to noon

 

YDurant

 

 

This past weekend several Organics attended the NYC iPhone Dev Camp at Brooklyn Polytechnic University to share their views, questions, and experiences with development on this exciting new platform.

I was able to attend two sessions, one on user experience/interaction design and the other on business models. Most agree that the UI conventions employed on the device are well thought out and user-friendly, but there's a lot to consider when designing an iPhone app and there are still some areas where there is room for improvement. UX designers will want to think carefully about balancing the intuitive standards they need with some unique elements that differentiate and improve on the core app set.

The interface builder emerged as a hot topic for its promise of WYSIWYG development for the non-coder. Unfortunately, it's nowhere near ready.  

There are still a lot of unanswered questions about Apple's app store. There is also a great deal of enthusiasm about its potential to improve the mobile app economy. Most developers seemed to like the idea of iTunes for apps. In particular, developers seem to like the idea of setting their own prices. If the opinions of the Dev Camp discussion's participants prove an accurate gauge, we can expect to see most apps released at somewhere between free and $15 dollars.

Dan Neumann

Happenings

Last Call

Liu Xiaodong
(Curated by Karen Smith)
Mary Boone
724 Fifth Avenue
Closing April 26th


Ai Wei Wei
541 West 24th Street
Closing April 26th

Mary Boone is an amazing woman with an amazing business, she's also quite stunning.

http://www.maryboonegallery.com/exhibitions/2007-2008/index.html

Current
 
Chelsea
Taxter & Spengemann
504 West 22nd Street
Scott Olsen
Xavier Cha
Both thru May 10th


This is a young gallery owned by Kelly Taxter and Pascal Spengemann, they met in art school. It's a good place to start if you want to begin a collection. They represent emerging artists (affordable). I like them because they really take the time to educate you about the artist, they will never steer you wrong.

Tomory Dodge
CRG Gallery
535 West 22nd Street, 2nd fl.
6:30-8:30


I bought an early painting of Tomory's when he had his first show in New York at Taxter and Spengemann, his success came early.  He moved to CRG after his first show at T&S. I'm glad I bought him early; he's a bit out of my price range at the moment.

http://www.crggallery.com/exhibitions/2008/dodge/
 

Gregory Crewdson
Luhring Augustine
531 West 24th Street
Through May 3rd

http://www.luhringaugustine.com/index.php?mode=current

I saw Crewdson's photography in the Sunday NY Times Magazine several years ago, they were haunting. You got the feeling something really bad was going to happen to the people in the photograph (Gwenyth Paltrow was one of the characters). I saw this show this past Saturday, the photographs are huge. Looking at his work brings to mind an Edward Hopper painting. The setting is small town depressed USA, perhaps one photograph is gray and dreary and then you see light, there's a couple in a car, the lighting inside the car is very much Hopper. A naked pregnant woman is emerging from a shed, you wonder why, what's happened in that shed?  While the houses are shabby, you may want to walk inside, there's something cozy and inviting.

This is a must see.

 In my last blog I mentioned going to the home of a couple who are among the top 200 collectors in the country. The Horts, Susan and Michael have a Foundation called The Rema Hort Mann Foundation in memory of their daughter Rema who died of cancer at the young age of 30. They raise money to aid cancer patients and their families. They also distribute unrestricted grants to promising artists. I've volunteered several times at the Art Walks they've sponsored and at their annual brunch. The next event will be a non-event. Instead of spending money on catering and flowers, you can stay home and enjoy a goody bag for $150.00 or donate a bag to a cancer patient for $100.00.

Please check out the site. The Online auction begins May 1st. 
http://www.remahortmannfoundation.org/

 

 

 

Saturday -- Noon at Pier 94

I saw Chuck Close, Bianca Jagger, Calvin Klein and the most exquisitely dressed 5 year old boy. The fair is huge; I spent 4 hours there and still didn't see everything.

Graphite was big, I saw beautiful drawings, graphite with paint, graphite used as paint, and some drawings looked like black and white photographs from afar. I saw many gorgeous paintings, some by one of my favorite artist, Michael van Ofen. There were lots of collaged works. The artist friend I was with pointed to one painting that was all paint, yet he said it's collaged. My friend Onyedika is an art student at Cooper Union, he's from Nigeria; he's especially drawn to collage. He explained how you just see layers of stuff on the streets of his home town due to the lack of resources; so the layers of refuse become found objects for a work of art.

Sunday

The next day I went to an open house at the home of a couple who own a massive contemporary collection.  The brunch starts at 9:30 and ends at 1:30. It's a lot of fun, you see dealers from all the shows, collectors and artists. The collection is housed in a triplex; they have works from Richard Tuttle to Kehinde Wiley to John Currin and many works of emerging artists. Artists' works are exposed to some very influential people in the arts at the brunch. In fact they have a foundation in memory of their daughter who died from cancer. The foundation awards grants to 3 or 4 graduate students. When they buy they really commit to the artist, so they won't buy one painting, they'll buy 5 or 6, and they have several installations throughout their home (those they obviously don't buy in multiples). When I saw their collection for the first time, I realized there was not right or wrong way to collect art.  They have paintings, drawings, and installations. I was thrilled to see works by an artist I collect. I'm in good company, it seems.

I started collecting art 7 years ago. The first piece I purchased was a very small, sweet oil still life for $500.00; I was a nervous wreck when I went back to The Black Fine Art show to purchase the painting.

My interest in art started with a postcard of the Number 5 by Charles Demuth. I love that painting. I worked near Christie's Auction house when it was on Park Avenue and 59^th Street. I would go on my lunch hour; it was like going to a museum for free. After a while I could pretty much look at a painting and identify the artist. I never thought about buying art until I started dating an artist. I knew little about black artists outside Romare Bearden and Jacob Lawrence; he introduced me to the work of many artists, some of whom I had the good fortune to meet. I decided after buying my first piece I would buy what I like without any parameters except for what I could afford.

I didn't want to build a collection of work only by black artists. I buy what I like with no regard to race. I was especially drawn to abstraction. The artist I dated taught me how to see movement in a piece, composition, how one part of a painting flowed into another, I learned about the different mediums artists use. I was taken by color, though I have a lot of earth toned paintings and a wall filled with black and white ink drawings, linocuts, water colors, etc. Black and white keeps my mind still, when I see color I may think of the beach or a sunny day in the park, there are times I don't want to be anywhere or think anything, so I look at the black and white wall.

I'm in galleries every other weekend. I've traveled to Basel Miami twice; I attended the inaugural Freize Art Fair in London. This weekend, 3/29, I plan to spend hours roaming The Armory Show here in New York with a promising emerging artist. I love studio visits, most artists are happy to oblige.

I look forward to sharing what I know about the art scene with postings on shows, interesting articles, advice on starting a collection and any other points of interest.

--Yvette Durant

Happenings

March 27^th-30^th

The Armory Show New York City

Pier 94

12 Avenue at 55^th Street

www.thearmoryshow.com

NEW YORK -- By now, many of you have noticed a new fixture in our New York office.

Several weeks ago, Dean and I purchased a bright orange espresso machine. It’s named Francis Francis, pictured in black above. It’s waiting to meet you.

We welcome you to stop by for a short. Here are some tips we’ve compiled to make your first visit a little more enjoyable.

Operating the espresso machine.
Below is a link to instructions for how to use the Francis Francis X5. Beginners welcome. (Check out the video)

http://www.wholelattelove.com/showVideos.cfm?itemID=31

The ritual of making espresso.
Truth is there’s no perfect way to make espresso, only your way. Here are some ideas to get you started.

http://www.wholelattelove.com/articles.cfm?articleID=27

Cleaning your cup.
Cleanliness is next to godliness. The one thing Dean & I ask is that you clean your espresso cup. Below are some instructions for 

http://www.thriftyfun.com/tf778145.tip.html

Tipping.
Customs vary by country. In France, it’s service compris. In Vietnam, baristas prefer US currency. At Organic, no tips are necessary. See why:

http://www.chow.com/stories/10507

Coffee is all about community. Please honor the code above, and please come by as often as you like.

--Bryan Fuhr