Contemporary Fine Art News and Advice from Agora Gallery

News items from the week:

“Arts funding is not a grant. It’s an investment” Why funding the arts makes political and strategic sense for all http://bit.ly/9SuzXB

The dangers of taking art too seriously http://bit.ly/9Qif57 Any thoughts on this? Please share, I think it’s an interesting question.

A new discovery opens up a whole new window into El Greco’s work – a Greek insight http://bit.ly/dpU2ZK

Exhibitions about the unknown – museums who are saying ‘we’re not sure’ http://bit.ly/9ukTfR

The impact of Asian buyers in the art market (and what auction houses are hoping it will mean) http://bit.ly/9dDhn6

Popular stories this week:

Artists are so often afflicted by perfectionism – here’s an analysis to help concentrate on the positive side http://bit.ly/bHxk8F

Addictive, non-material art comes to an empty Guggenheim http://bit.ly/bRpuay

The days of basement museum cafes are fading – enter new, stylish dining options http://bit.ly/dDfQYq

And last but certainly not least, the tale of the uncollectable work of art that’s taken off with a bang http://bit.ly/dgMzjU and what people think http://bit.ly/bifReV

As ever, we are delighted to hear what you think – share thoughts, projects and grumbles in the comments section!

NOW OPEN

Agora Gallery is delighted to announce the opening of the 25th annual Chelsea International Fine Art Competition. Entries can be sent in from February 4, 2010 until March 14, 2010 when the submission process closes.

The competition is open to all international visual artists of 18 and above. Emerging, established and mid-level artists are all invited to enter their work. A variety of media is accepted, with the exceptions of video art, film, performance art, jewelry and crafts.

This year, entry is only through the online entry system and requires contact information, details about the artwork, and, of course, images of the artwork itself. Please remember to submit high quality images – even the best work cannot be properly appreciated if the image viewed is of poor quality.

As a result of the competition, 15-20 artists will be selected by the juror to take part in a contemporary art exhibition in the summer of 2010. The exhibition will take place in New York’s art district, Chelsea.

Six artists will win the prize of being able to place six images on online gallery Art-Mine, whilst one other will be awarded a page-long review in contemporary art magazine ARTisSpectrum, including two images of their work. There are also three cash prizes, of a total of $1,000.

The competition is judged every year by an independent juror. This year’s juror is Megan Fontanella, Assistant Curator at the famous Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York. She engages in research for the museum, particularly focusing on areas of provenance and institutional history, and has also been involved with curating installations for the museum.

Agora Gallery is proud to sponsor this annual event, which encourages talented artists from around the world in their ambitions and provides them with an opportunity for greater exposure and publicity, as well as valuable professional experience.

Agora Gallery’s director, Angela Di Bello, speaks of the sponsorship of the competition as part of the gallery’s efforts to promote new talent and increase the possibilities open to artists who are considering breaking into the competitive New York market – an openness that benefits artists, galleries and the art world as a whole. “Carving a space for new talent is very much at the core of our business,” she says, speaking from her own considerable experience of the art scene.

In addition, 25% of Agora Gallery’s proceeds from the sale of artwork from the competition exhibition will be donated to local city charity Art Start, which brings art into the lives of underprivileged children through the volunteered time and effort of artists. Last year’s competition exhibition featured work by an Art Start student.

News stories from around the art world:

Another casualty in Haiti – the once robust and rich art culture http://bit.ly/8HVZuK

London’s Institute of Contemporary Art in danger of closure – the first major British recession victim http://bit.ly/7K5LQE

Concern over the ripped Picasso http://bit.ly/7Zzn16 and how to fix it http://bit.ly/5G21eP

Being a freezing artist can be a life choice http://bit.ly/5Tfdtb

Encouraging artists to come into the center of towns http://bit.ly/62PC97

Popular stories from the week:

Strange and beautiful images – straight from Mars http://bit.ly/7ErNeO

Digging up da Vinci, in an attempt to tie his face to the Mona Lisa’s http://bit.ly/5HjQwI

Art museum directors betting lease of major artworks on Superbowl outcome http://bit.ly/9aF4y1

Yes, she fell into a Picasso – but that kind of mishap isn’t as rare as you might think http://bit.ly/aPNAoh

The dazzling detail of a solar eclipse http://bit.ly/9mUtrA

A new collection of exhibitions comes to Agora Gallery starting February 2, 2010 and running until February 23, 2010, with the opening reception being held on February 4, 2010 at 6-8pm. The tripartite exhibition covers diverse themes and styles, showcasing a range of talented, thought-provoking artists.

Elemental Realms presents works from artists who are exploring the world they live in with its myriad possibilities and variety, as well as their own relationship with it. The scope of the material is reflected in the challenging and innovative ways the artists seek to portray and interact with their subject matter and the emotions it generates, and viewers will respond to the vivid celebration of life represented by this exhibition.

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News stories from around the art world:

UK parties warn that the arts are set for tough times ahead http://bit.ly/8vBOAx while the UK Arts Council proposes a “politician-proof” plan to keep publicly funded arts from becoming “stale and boring” http://bit.ly/6AnEXu

Art in Iran, and why it matters http://bit.ly/8zPg5z

A ‘women artists’ exhibition’ isn’t enough; what is important is to exhibit women artists’ work properly http://bit.ly/4N2wHa

Photographers band together to produce fundraising magazine showing the hopeful side of Haiti http://bit.ly/8Z85DK

European arts look to US for funding model example http://bit.ly/5GzPcD

Popular stories from this week:

Dressing up construction in NY – http://bit.ly/70cefs

Images of the icy Earth – chilled and beautiful http://bit.ly/7AzShI

The pain of fame; a connection between artistic success and hypochondria? http://bit.ly/5zZFVQ

And I couldn’t resist this one, relating as it does to last week’s blog post: Real or fake? Artifacts sometimes hold some astonishing surprises – though that’s not always a good thing! http://bit.ly/5xkq0Y

Imitation might be the sincerest form of flattery, but that doesn’t mean that it is always appropriate in the art world. On the contrary, for centuries great importance has been placed on the notion of an ‘original’. This word has various meanings and comes with ‘baggage’, so to speak – it once was a term used in philosophy and science meaning the thing from which something arises, a usage which is no longer current but which of course relates to art in the sense that pieces which show an ‘original’ (that is to say, innovative) train of thought are sometimes the instigators of new movements or trends in art. More commonly, though, it means that the work was created firsthand, and can be shown to be made by a particular person. It is The Work, the real thing – and from it, copies can be made. The copies are generally harmless – I am not talking about instances of fraud, but merely reproductions of a painting or sculpture (for example) that can give those who will never see the original the chance to do so, or allow ordinary people to take that Van Gogh home with them – even if it is, after all, only a print.

Copies of this nature if anything only contribute to the mystique surrounding the original, because they publicize the image and familiarize people with it whilst always remaining separate and in a sense in a lower sphere. You might have seen a reproduction of the Mona Lisa a hundred times, but if you get the chance you would probably like to see the original itself, which retains a hold on popular consciousness regardless of the millions of copies available – there’s a reason it lies behind bulletproof glass surrounded by alarms. A reproduction, even an extremely convincing and clever one, is not the same – consider the insult that Isabella II of Spain paid to the Vatican when she presented the Pope with a painting she claimed to be by the Spanish master Murillo and which she in fact knew to be a copy (it seems she was too fond of the painting to give the original up at the time – though she did later give it to King Luis of Portugal).

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Our weekly summary, with a definite international flavor this week:

News from around the art world:

The Frick Collection looks as good as new in its new setting http://bit.ly/7cwihT

Irreplaceable Warhol negatives have gone missing in strange circumstances, and scholars are worried http://bit.ly/4yJDMy

Choosing between apparently identical Van Dycks – the difference is under the surface http://bit.ly/7W4W3Q

Plans move ahead in Santa Monica for Broad’s projected public museum http://bit.ly/7q0Dik

Taking American Indian art seriously – as art http://bit.ly/5JnvzW

Popular stories from the week:

More Kahlo ‘fakes’ appear in Mexico – an expert greets the news with the complaint that it’s a ‘farce’ and that this attempt is due to the success of the previous batch http://bit.ly/4Ba8lx

Burning Man is now accepting proposals for 2010 http://blog.burningman.com/?p=6302

And, in a nod to the white weather that hit around the globe:

A history of snow – through art http://bit.ly/8SHCXO (you may be surprised – it seems it hasn’t always been a symbol of purity or peace)

And a satellite photo of a frosted UK – seen from above, Britain covered in snow http://bit.ly/6youY1

The topic of this week’s blog post is one that seems to cause perennial problems for artists and editors alike – the artist statement. We all know the agony of trying to express something of great significance in our lives, something that touches the core of our being, and we have shared the frustration of finding, too often, that the words at our disposal simply aren’t enough. Either it takes far too many words to explain, long-windedly, the concept that is so clear in your mind, or you are left with staccato sentences that lack the resonance of your intention. Sometimes there just aren’t the words for what you want to say. It is, perhaps, particularly galling to artists, because the very nature of their talent generally means that they are more comfortable – and more used to – expressing themselves in some visual manner – paint, sculpture, photography, etc – rather than the written word. Writing it down, you might feel, can never really say what you mean.

Then, when you have finally managed to get down an approximation of what you wanted to say, you inevitably send it to a friend, a colleague, an editor, to get their feedback. And they usually want to change something or add or remove a word or a detail, which starts the whole process off again. Believe me, it is just as painful for the editor to cut or change as was to write it in the beginning – everyone knows how difficult it is to find just the right format, the best expression, and people frequently feel a natural delicacy about helping craft something they know to be important to another person on a personal level. It can be extremely challenging to polish the grammar or shorten the length without feeling that you’re disturbing the flow of self-expression. On the other hand, it can be easier than the original task, because at least there is something there to work with right from the start.

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Here’s this week’s news summary, with stories from the first full week of 2010.

News stories from the art world:

A look back at a decade of interesting – and diverse – art trends around the world http://bit.ly/8Q65sB

Might restoring paintings sometimes be a mistake? http://bit.ly/6iSWLs

New Rome art museum is set to impress – though it’s not yet clear whether the art will do likewise in the space http://bit.ly/4UbPYO

An arrest in stolen Degas case http://bit.ly/6oY0hL while other art thefts hit the area http://bit.ly/770zU5

New computer method helps ‘technical art history’ to rule out fakes http://bit.ly/6TZVl3

Popular stories from the week:

Rumors of a potential da Vinci, only just rediscovered after centuries – but authentication is going to be tricky http://bit.ly/7JwUjh

Trading optics for electricity – with some impressive results http://bit.ly/7Faa4h

A tip for creating and printing sharp photos – a test to help photographers find their ’sweet spot’ http://bit.ly/8lY9lg

A new source of inspiration in Asia – and it’s a bit like comic art http://bit.ly/52LCfB

The postal worker-librarian couple who amassed the 20th century’s most important survey of American minimal & conceptual art; in their one-bedroom apartment http://bit.ly/5TAHFW

Agora Gallery welcomes the new year with three new exhibitions, starting January 8 2010 and running through until January 29 2010. The opening reception will take place on Thursday January 14 2010, 6-8 pm.

Enigmatic Perspectives encourages all viewers to relate to the works presented on an individual basis and interpret them according to their own personal experience and emotions. The artwork on display combines an instinctive approach, full of passion and feeling, with an intriguing symbolism that helps to capture the attention as well as the eye, indicating that a deeper perusal will be fascinating and beneficial.

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