Where does Anthony van Dyck fit in the history of art? Grabbing the nearest art reference books on my shelf, I find one calling him "the most important Flemish painter of the 17th century apart from Rubens" and another saying "It is not too much to say that he created the English portrait tradition almost single handed." The question arose in my mind when a press release from Sotheby's landed in my email box yesterday announcing that it would soon sell "an outstanding self-portrait" by van Dyke. And: This masterpiece, which is van Dyck's … [Read more...]

The Albright-Knox Art Gallery in Buffalo is scaling back again in response to its economic woes. It will close the Collectors Gallery, which featured the work of local artists, permanently at the end of October. The Collectors Gallery dates to 1933, according to WBFO, the public radio station that broke the news (here's the link) yesterday. It said, "The volunteer-run gallery spotlights regional artists and gives the public a chance to become art patrons." I checked the museum's website, and there's nothing … [Read more...]

I'm not in Grand Rapids, but I've been keeping an eye on ArtPrize ever since I mentioned it in April. From afar, it seems to be living up to expectations, at least in terms of excitement. Monday's Grand Rapids Press had an article about performance art entries, describing one work as "a live duet between [Ritsu] Katsumata's riveting electric violin work and [her husband Stafford] Smith's digital camera shots and film clips flashing on stacks of television sets." It's called Fearscape and is ranked as one of the most … [Read more...]

Art, it turns out, wasn't just for ladies at the G-20 summit in Pittsburgh last week, which I've written about here and here. President Obama decided to give a gift of art to the world leaders in attendance. Inspired by an exhibition at the Phipps Conservatory in Pittsburgh, where the Obamas held a reception on Thursday night at the start of the summit, it's the glass tree at right, made by Frabel Studio. Frabel Studio, the Atlanta home of flamework glass artist Hans Godo Frabel, posted this description on its … [Read more...]

Well, the Pittsburgh G-20 summit is over, and as I mentioned here in early August, Michelle Obama took her fellow spouses to a couple of art venues. All went well, but it seems that Carla Bruni, wife of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, managed to get off the best line -- as repeated by Mrs. Obama when she spoke to her colleagues and about 250 students at the CAPA magnet school for the arts: As my good friend, Carla Sarkozy, said, you know, in America, you know, here you have people who can sing, and they can dance, and they can … [Read more...]

It's good news that the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art is getting the Doris and Donald Fisher collection, on loan, to fill planned new galleries. But if you've read just the bare-bones announcement in today's papers, you may have missed a couple of significant parts of the deal. Quick recap: the Fishers wanted to build their own museum in the city's Presidio, but were turned down. Rather than taking their art and going elsewhere, the Fishers (happily) are remaining loyal to the city where they made the … [Read more...]

Grand Rapids, with its Art Prize contest now underway, is stealing a lot of thunder this week. But it's not the only Michigan city in the art game this fall. Art Detroit Now, a weekend event set for Oct. 2 and 3, is an attempt to raise the profile of contemporary art and artists in the erstwhile Motor City, normally viewed as far from the madding art crowd. Buzz, the organizers believe, works. The event, which involves an art crawl, gallery open houses, museum open houses and workshops at about 50 … [Read more...]

The Milwaukee Art Museum, a symbol of the city, took on a new hue last night: The winged Santiago Calatrava-designed addition began to glow in the dark, in a bright shade of pink. This will continue for 10 days, all told, enhancing its spectacle value and prominence in the city's skyline. The glow is a product of marketing and what the museum is calling community involvement. Staff had already chosen pink as the prime color for the ad campaign for its big fall exhibition -- Andy Warhol: The Last Decade -- when along came … [Read more...]

Every now and then you run across an exhibition that blends art that's fun with creative marketing. I thought I found one today. But after investigating further, I'm not at all sure: The sponsorship makes me a tad queasy -- and some activities, well, I wonder if they are more about foot traffic, and never mind the art. My tip-off to the exhibit came in a pitch for annual support from the Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum in Ridgefield, Ct. When you donate to the annual fund, it said, "you will … [Read more...]

Just before Jackson Pollock entered his intense "drip period," he painted his famous Mural, 1943-44, which resides in the University of Iowa Museum of Art. But did he "sign" it, hiding his name among his paint strokes? That is a contention of a forthcoming book, Tom and Jack by Henry Adams, which chronicles the relationship between Pollock and his teacher, Thomas Hart Benson. If true -- and not everyone agrees -- it would add yet more evidence of Pollock's self-regard, according to a new article published … [Read more...]