Kansas Art Gallery's Exhibit Inspired by Judaica Collection

KANSAS CITY JEWISH CHRONICLE
By Barbara Bayer

Photo by Kevin Blayney: Michael Klein (left) discusses the upcoming ‘Between Thee & Me’ exhibit at Epsten Gallery with the gallery’s curator, Marcus Cain. Klein is holding a 1950s Bible with beautiful sterling silver bookbinding.

KANSAS - Michael Klein began collecting Judaica quite by accident. Now his Judaica is the inspiration for a new exhibit, Between Thee & Me — Artists Respond to the Judaica Collection of Michael Klein and the Van Ackeren Collection of Religious Art at Rockhurst University. This project features two independent, invitational group exhibitions, the first of which will be presented at the Epsten Gallery at Village Shalom July 24 through Sept. 4. It opens with a reception at 2 p.m. Sunday, July 24, with an artists’ discussion at 3 p.m. A second group exhibition will be presented at The Greenlease Gallery at Rockhurst University Aug. 26 through Oct. 1. [link]

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Review: Buddhist Art Inspired Illusions at NYC's Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery

NEW YORK OBSERVER
By Will Hienrich

Desktop (Cave Paintings) by Allyson Vieira.

NEW YORK - The title of this small but powerful exhibition, Discursive Arrangements, or Stubbornly Persistent Illusions, is either an ironic feint or it’s begging the question. Centered discreetly but unmistakably around what a Buddhist art critic might call the “emptiness” of images, the show forcefully makes the point that it can’t be quite right, in light of their persistence, to call images illusions. [link]

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A Christian Lens Defines the Lens of NYC's Cobi Moule

ART DAILYNEW YORK - Cobi Moules creates a fantasy world in which only he exists. Throughout, there are many different narratives, coexisting to create an alternate world with a sense of excitement, self worth and play. Through the figure's multiplication and overwhelming presence within the landscape, it takes precedence over the landscape and integrates into it. The landscape, based off the Hudson River School style, is a stand in for the artist's own Christian upbringing, seeking to renegotiate his relationship, as a queer and transgender person, with his religious upbringing and of being seen as 'unnatural' through such Christian lens. The importance becomes the experiences of his multiple and overall presence in the landscape; engaging in different activities: playing, exploring his selves and nature, and thus becoming part of it. Cobi Moules,"Untitled (Coast of Mount Desert Island)", 2010 (above). Oil on canvas, 44 x 68 inches. Moules is part of an eight member exhibition currently on view at Lyons Wier Gallery through August 21.[link]

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San Diego's "Space 4Arts First Open-Call Includes "Must Sees"

BLOGCRITIC
By Kevin FreitasCALIFORNIA - [A] must-see work is entitled Dewdropic by Lea Anderson. It's a stunning work, one of many that can be found on her website. Dewdropic is impressive for its size (a large oval) and uncanny ability to rest passively on the wall (it’s not the first piece your drawn to in the show) until you come closer. I’m not much for artist statements but Anderson’s, like her work, is succinct yet elusive enough to respect the viewer’s intelligence and imagination. “Through my creations, I convey the heightened sense of inspiration and wonder one feels when encountering the beauty and complexity of the natural world. (See detail below) [link]

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Christian Art Gallery Selected to Assist in Pope's Art Exhibit

AOA NEWS

PENNSYLVANIA - Philadelphia's White Stone Gallery was selected to assist in the multi-denominational exhibit, Art & Faith, for Pope Benedict XVI's visit to Madrid, Spain. Contemporary artists from around the world will be featured in this historic exhibit for World Youth Day. For the first time in Europe, contemporary artists from different countries are gathered together to exhibit art influenced by Christian faith. The exhibit is scheduled for August 9-26, 2011 at the Fundación Pons headquarters. White Stone Gallery, a leading gallery in contemporary Christian art is writing an introduction for the exhibit catalog as well as providing a selection of artwork for the show. Photo: Reaching by Ruth Naomi Floyd. [link]

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Ex-Stone Roses, John Squire Uses Islamic Design to Show Contempt for Celebrities

MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS
By Mike Keegan

Shipman, thought to have killed up to 215 patients before hanging himself in jail,
is represented by white stars on a brown background.

UNITED KINGDOM - Former Stone Roses star John Squire has created a new artwork inspired by Harold Shipman. The guitarist-turned-artist chose the Hyde mass murderer as one of the case studies for ‘Celebrity’, a new exhibition of abstract paintings depicting the famous and infamous. Squire uses shapes including eight-pointed stars, a traditional Islamic art symbol, to represent them. Strict Islamic teaching discourages depictions of people - instead geometric shapes and patterns are used. Squire says he chose the same technique to question whether celebrities and notorious killers have become our own modern-day ‘idols’. Squire, 48, said: “It’s a combination of my love for Islamic designs and contempt for celebrity culture. [link]

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Campaigner Against Sistine Restoration is Subject of Film

LAGUNA BEACH INDEPENDENT
By LB Indy Staff

CALIFORNIA - Film director Sonny Quinn and producer Scott Mason will host the screening of their feature length documentary film, “A Light in the Dark: The Art and Life of Frank Mason” Thursday, June 16, at Newport Beach’s Orange County Museum of Art. Artist-educator Frank Mason campaigned against restoration of the Sistine Chapel.

The filmmakers will take questions following the 8 p.m. screening. The event coincides with an exhibit of Mason’s seascapes and landscapes at Laguna Beach’s Wendt Gallery, 1550 S. Coast Highway, through the end of June. Mason was classically trained in the techniques of the Baroque and Renaissance periods. He wove these techniques into his own style reminiscent of the plein-air Impressionists. He extended these skills and trade secrets at the Art Students League of New York for over half a century, one of the most significant artist-educators of the era.

His infamy came from his personal quest opposing restoration of ancient works of art. He rallied public protests and spearheaded the creation of watchdog organizations to protect masterpieces from restorations. His battles with the art establish culminated in the 1980s with the Vatican’s controversial cleaning of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel frescos. “A Light in the Dark” takes an in-depth look into this controversy and reveals never before seen footage of the Sistine Chapel before the restoration. [link]

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A&O Prize (2009) Winning Artist Helen Zughaib Fosters Dialogue

WASHINGTON CITY PAPER
By Mimi Kirk

Detail from Zughaib's "Another Wall."

WASHINGTON DC - The exhibit, at the Jerusalem Fund Gallery, “Breaching the Wall” runs through June 24, features 11 artists’ works [including Helen Zughaib] that respond to the barrier that has divided Israel from the West Bank since construction began in 2002—through sculpture, paintings, photographs, and film. [link]

Helen Zughaib with one of her "Abaya Series" paintings.

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Farah Osuli's Paintings on Display at Islamic Art Exhibit in Pittsburgh

TEHRAN TIMES
By Arts News Desk

"My Bird, Your Cage" by Farah Osuli

PENNSYLVANIA - “My Bird, Your Cage” from the collection of Iranian artist Farah Osuli is on display at an exhibition of Contemporary Islamic Art in America now underway at the Michael Berger Gallery in Pittsburgh. Entitled “Dis(Locating)Culture, Contemporary Islamic Art in America”, the exhibition features works by four other Iranian artists, Negar Ahkami, Shiva Ahmadi, Shoja Azari, and Amir Fallah, as well as one American and three Arab artists, she added. According to Osuli, the organizers aimed to make use of art to fight against the Western media, which has long tried to distort the image of Islam. As the organizers believe, the exhibition showcases some of the finest Islamic artists and aims to challenge notions of cultural and religious homogeneity. [link]

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