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UNTIL 16 JANUARYBOOK NOW AT WWW.TATE.ORG.UKOR 020 7887 8888 SOUTHWARKSPONSORED BYMEDIA PARTNERPAUL GAUGUIN NEVERMORE O TAHITI (DETAIL) 1897.THE SAMUEL COURTAULD TRUST, THE COURTAULD GALLERY, LONDONVisitthe NewARTisSpectrumWebsite!ARTisSpectrum.comCHAOS CLASSICISMART IN FRANCE, ITALY, AND GERMANY, Trace the rebirth of classical beauty through works by Cocteau,De Chirico, Matisse, Mies van der Rohe, Picasso and more.Through January 9Antonio Donghi, Circo equestre (Circus),1927. Oil on canvas, 150 x 100 cm.Gerolamo and Roberta Etro, MilanInformation 212 423 3500Tickets at guggenheim.org/chaosSupported by the NationalEndowment for the Arts andThe David Berg Foundation2 ARTisSpectrumGugg_Chaos_ARTisSpectrum_half_vertical_91410.indd 19/14/10 7:37 PM

ProfilesIf you like to keep up-to-date with the art world and enjoy spotting talentedemerging and established artists, then artists’ profiles are a great way todo it. These profiles showcase the work, motivations and inspirations ofexciting new faces on the international art scene.2679633484177993516267321792903466264906623755649199376233651654AdkaBisa BennettCarl EllisCecilia Fernandez QChad RedlChantal WestbyChris SpuglioClaudia ManperlColin MarcouxCorina SchmidtCristina ArnedoDanielle Dany TremblayDarren JordanDebra FitzsimmonsDebra KayataDenis PalbianiDominique BoutaudFLORAFord WeisbergFrancisco ChediakFred GemmellFred MouGeorgi BaylovGuy MarinoIva MilanovaIvan Hilliard VincentIwasaki NagiJin Hwan ChoJoe LaMattinaJohn David HartJorge BerlatoJose A. GallegoKatrin AlvarezKen Lake29 Koki Morimoto91 Laurence Steenbergen69 Ling-Ting Kao8 Lushana Watson113 Lynda Pogue26 Marcela Cadena51 Michael Grine65 Michael Katz35 Milanda De Mont70 Mira Mitrova63 Monique Daneau69 Nami Yang8 Navah Porat15 Neslihan Özdemir51 Nicolette Benjamin Black9 Nissim Ben Aderet78 Occhi Pinti55 Paola Guerra27 Patricia Brintle70 Patrick Girod68 Paul M. Cote67 Peter Rademacher32 Pilar Fernandez Duarte63 R. Porter Finch54 Ron Himler24 Santina ‘Semadar’ Panetta28 Shifra35 Tamiko Tominaga27 Thanh Mai-Charles75 VéroniKaH90 Wendy Cohen50 Young Zoo You84 Younghee Hong55 Yunkap Jung5 ARTisSpectrum

Navah PoratLushana WatsonHomage to Frida KahloAcrylic & Paper on Canvas 16” x 16”Navah Porat’s work is a fascinating exploration of thefemale body, in which the artist confounds our expectationsthrough the freedom she exhibits regarding proportion, creatingintriguing bodily distortion in her figures. Her subjects are oftenframed by intricate patterns, landscapes, plants or animals ina style that suggests the panels of embroidered quilts. Shearranges a cornucopia of painting techniques around hersubjects, juxtaposing shapes that are round and bulbous withthose that are straight and right-angled. The former are usedprimarily for her female bodies and for wildlife; the latter oftenserve as frames for myriad surfaces in imaginative motifs andabstract, highly detailed spaces.Navah shows tremendous sensitivity in choosing the varioustextures to create the metaphorical universe which her subjectsinhabit and which we are invited to explore. She works with alively palette as her styles overlap into landscapes and otherfeatures, so that her paintings are at times hybrids betweenstill lifes and symbolic tableaux. This balance between formsand their meaning contributes a strong historical facet to herwork. Disparate elements are arrayed in a way that hearkensback to a style reminiscent not only of quilts, but religious iconsas well. As her art expands the definitions of formal aestheticcategories, Navah Porat’s work highlights the power of hersubject matter and its wider cultural referents. The narrativeaspect renders these unique images richly layered, and arewarding experience for us to delve into as viewers.Science tells us that at its core, light is both isolated particleand connected wave. If any contemporary artist capturesthat seeming paradox while also creating an aestheticmanifestation of sublime beauty, it is Lushana Watson. Hercanvases are often composed of individual yet connectedbubble-like circles that create tactile, shimmering surfaces.These forms at times can suggest a juicy piece of fruit, aplume of smoke or shimmering undersea coral. Free of anyreal-world associations, however, Lushana’s work alwaysconveys a feeling of joy for the possibilities of the sensoryworld. The sublime luminescence of her work is supportedby her technique of using repeated shapes. This createsa dramatic balance between the duplicated forms and theglowing spectrum of colors she incorporates in her work.The colors in her paintings appear to shift about the canvasseamlessly, as if they were cells in a blood stream or lightpassing through living coral. Her moods, too, gracefully shiftabout the canvases even as the viewer takes them in. LushanaWatson’s use of patterns creates compositions that capturethe sublimity of nature, and the world’s natural perfectionis communicated in these works with a strong attention totechnique as well as a deep sensitivity.www.wooloo.org/lushanawww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Lushana_Watson.aspxwww.navahporat.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Navah_Porat.aspxWhite #1 Oil on Canvas 48” x 36”8 ARTisSpectrum

The work l showed at Agora Gallery summed up the impressions of my latest visit to New York. It reflected my mood and myreaction to the colors that seemed to stare at me on that particular visit.www.shifrart.com/www.Art-Mine.com/Artistpage/Shifra.aspxVeroniKaH (R) in NYC, 2009VéroniKaHI remember as a young girl the song “If you make it in NYC you’ll make it anywhere…” This sentence stuck in my head for manyyears, so as a new artist, my first instinct was to send my CV and portfolio to many galleries in NYC, praying that one of themwould be interested in my style.My prayers were answered. Since October 2009 and my first collective exhibition at Agora Gallery, my life has changed dramatically.My first time in NYC was just magical and more!!!! I didn’t eat or sleep for 2 days. I was stunned by the constant activity: somany people, so many things to see, hear and feel at the same time. I got back home and created “La dame de Manhattan.” Init, the woman represents the excitement, the energy and the intense imagination in which she has immersed herself. There areno words to express the new inspiration that the BIG APPLE gave me. Therefore, as a souvenir, I created that painting.Since then, I have been in non-stop creation mode, painting every night of every day of the week. I felt like I was in anotherdimension in NYC and my dream is to be able to live there someday.With regards to my status as an artist, there is no doubt that it has expanded tremendously. I was instantly recognized as aprofessional artist and people started to buy my paintings more and more. I was finally able to present myself as I am and it allmade sense. Being able to be represented by Agora Gallery is the best thing that has ever happened in my life. I will be foreverthankful to Angela and her staff, for all the help, support and friendship that I received on my first day in NYC.I was back in no time in March for another exhibition and I was even more stunned by the city because this time I knew what Iwanted to do. I went to see SoHo, Little Italy, Times Square and Central Park. I walked these busy streets and looked at everything.I have started a new series of paintings with buildings, which is one of my multiple creations totally inspired by NYC. The namesof the paintings are: “I Love NYC I & II,” “Art-chitecture I & II,” “Rêveries I, II & III.”My final statement is that there is no place on earth that has as much ENERGY, SPIRIT & ACTION as New York City. On eachnew visit, I discover something new that I had not seen before. This is the very reason why New York City is my Muse and thebest inspiration ever for artists!!!!www.veronikah.com/ Please visit the Abstract section of VéroniKaH’s websitewww.Art-Mine.com/Artistpage/Veronikah.aspx12 ARTisSpectrum

Katrin AlvarezJune 5th, 2008: New York’s charisma caresses my face tenderly. I have fallen in love with the city. My heartbeat is charged bythe hectic rhythm of the streets and I feel at home.As of yesterday, some of my paintings are on exhibition at Agora Gallery. Deep inside I feel a certain pride and wonder “whichartist would not dream of having his art on display in New York?”However, like a stubborn squirrel, self-doubt gnaws at my ego: “Do I pass?”I keep drifting, street by street, avenue by avenue, enjoying the easy friendliness of people, and smiling at a passing remark: “Ilove your red hair - you look like walking flames!”Unexpectedly I find myself at Ground Zero. Something made me take that direction. Like a glass dome, the recollection of thehorrible visions rooted me to the spot, feeling the helpless exasperation that paralyzed not only this city but the whole world in2001.Nonetheless, New York succeeded in regaining her powerful profile. This brave city found the strength to remain a breathtakinguniverse. The whirring vibrations prevail and make me dizzy with happiness. The people of this city have preserved that specialflair that I often miss in my native country of Germany, including simple things you notice in ordinary life, like when you take anelevator and are greeted by a stranger, “How are you today?” This little great pinch of social awareness has embraced me againand again.Since then, New York has been etched into my awareness as my Muse and a major inspiration and driving force in my life.One of these days, I am going to take my easel to Central Park, to sit and to paint - enjoying the easy-going reactions of peoplestrolling by. Then and there, I will try to capture some of this indestructibility, part of which I want for myself...www.katrin-alvarez-schlueter.de/Katrin Alvarez in NYC, 200813 ARTisSpectrum

Lizzy Forrester in NYC, 2010Lizzy ForesterAs a relative newcomer, I have been lucky enough to realize the dream of having twice participated in Collective Exhibitionsunder the much appreciated guidance of the prestigious and respected Agora Gallery, located in Chelsea.However important an exhibition with ensuing sales might or might not be, it is this guidance, especially in the case of emergingartists, who may harbor flagging artistic self-confidence, which is so valuable. Mine was certainly immensely boosted and Ibenefited enormously from Agora’s ever-ready advice, which consequently helped sharpen my focus, purpose and intentions:My drive and need to paint is of course inherent and never fades; however NYC marks a clear ‘before’ and ‘after’ in a fledglingcareer; the ‘after’ being when everything just seems to fall into place, and those attributes have served me well as far afield asChina and Kuala Lumpur.The sense of relief gave way to excitement when I arrived in mid-January, at 530 West 25th Street. ‘First impressions’ on thatvisit seemed amazing at the time, but paled in comparison to the excitement of the opening night of my first exhibition at AgoraGallery: ‘Sensorial Realities.’ The crowds in the street swelled, as more people arrived on foot and taxis drove up for the Thursdaynight Vernissages in Chelsea. There was actually even a bit of pushing going on to get into the lift! I joined in gleefully.The sense of bewilderment, the ‘where to go, what to do next?’ had disappeared. I remember thinking, “Now that will be hard tofollow.” However, a second collective exhibition in August 2010 ‘A Maze of Milieu’ was to prove me wrong. This time it was thestifling heat that I remember, as the yellow cab wove its way across Manhattan towards Chelsea. The gallery was packed, andthe atmosphere buzzed with excitement. As had happened the year before, there were sales before the exhibition opened, andthe turnout once again was fantastic.Classifying my experiences as ‘inspiring’ would be a gross understatement; it somehow falls short. The creative buzz of excitementin the air that you take away with you as an artist is real. Manhattan is palpable, and fortunately it rubs off! It was overwhelming!Awesome in fact! I came away with a heart and head full of renewed ideas.New Yorkers’ thirst for culture is so real, showing a vested interest and keenness to go see the art for themselves. Having galleryrepresentation made me feel like I was part of that family and was welcome in New York. I have come away with my drive,my need and my desire to create, which has never faltered, but somehow the quality of that drive has been polished, and theexcitement lingers. New York indeed whets the artistic appetite.www.lizzyforrestergallery.comwww.Art-Mine.com/Artistpage/Lizzy_Forrester.aspx14 ARTisSpectrum

Darren JordanExplicitly individualistic, an exploding dynamism animatesmulti-media artist Darren Jordan’s work. Largely rhythmicand uninhibited in style, Jordan’s stroke seems to electrify thepaper in deeply charged lines, moving us into a kaleidoscopicsphere of emotional freedom. Though his technique is learned andpragmatic, Jordan’s aesthetic bursts forth to the viewer throughpiercingly peaceful composition. Inspired and affected by humancommunication, Jordan’s works are sumptuously harmonious, andhave an arrestingly spontaneous grace. Charcoal glides over paperin lines at once poetic and practiced. Jordan finds his stimulationin the Primitives, channeling a candidly spiritual mood in his works.It is the traditional human form, however, which provoked Jordan’searliest artistic endeavors — copies of comic book drawings, andthen meticulous transcriptions of Michelangelo’s paintings. Thehuman element in Jordan’s work is both abstract and tangible;indeed, traces of the human figure make the palpable emotions ofJordan’s work especially intriguing. “The role of the viewer becomesthat of an archeologist or art historian as one must look and allowthe drawings to create images or expressions within themselves,”Jordan explains. “The viewer must read them to see what they arecommunicating.” A Pennsylvania native, Darren Jordan receivedhis BFA from Kutztown University before graduating with an MFAfrom the Tyler School of Art. He teaches at the Art Institute of York,in Pennsylvania.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Darren_Jordan.aspxMy Crimes Don’t RhymeCharcoal & Mixed Media on Paper 32” x 27.5”Chantal WestbyAbstract #1, #2, #3 Acrylic on Canvas 36” x 120”By combining representational andabstract forms, French-Americanartist Chantal Westby creates rivetingimages that push the boundaries of whatwe know our world to be. Drawing on adiverse creative background that includesclothing design, interior design and film,she strives to build a bridge betweenher deepest emotions and the interiorlandscape of her viewers. Subjects arealternately recognizable and fantastic,depicted in bold brushstrokes of rich colorhighlighted by the reflections and shadowsof some unseen internal light source. Her use of composition at once conveys a sense of balance but also works to expandthe confines of the canvas, giving the viewer a sense of cavernous depth and limitless space. The thick layering of paint lendstexture and depth to the images themselves, adding to the rich sense of wonder and possibility each of her paintings offers.Though Westby’s paintings are at times deeply mystical, they are always resolutely optimistic, as she seeks to infuse a strongthematic undertone into her work that explores the forces of nature that time and again renew life and uplift the human spirit.By contesting artificial boundaries of space and time, Chantal Westby’s art probes the greater realities and the intense spiritualcontent of the visible world.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Chantal_Westby.aspx17 ARTisSpectrum

Art that comes Naturally:Spotlight on Kristina Garon“When I am creating art, I don’t sweat it or labor, it just comes to me naturally”Your paintings seem to be an extension of yourself, with a style that is unique to you. How did you develop your strikingstyle of painting?I’m often asked this. My answer is: I never looked for my style. It came to me. I believe that the only way to develop a style isto continue to work. Thinking about style instead of being engaged in the creative process is artificial. I strongly believe that themore an artist works, the stronger his artistic voice becomes. Possibilities for discovery are endless.I never try to copy other artists. Their achievements belong to them. I want to find my own form of artistic expression. Art meansalways knocking loudly at the door of the unknown. When I’m creating art, I don’t sweat it or labor, it just comes to me naturally.Your paintings seem to have meaning on many levels. How does that come about?It’s true that my paintings have a deeper, fuller, clearer meaning that can’t be seen at first glance. It is a reflection of my lifeexperience and positive thoughts fueled by my intuition and imagination. Because I grew up in a very negative, suppressiveenvironment I always wanted to be the opposite. It was my decision and as the result of that decision I became a very positivethinking person. Of course, sometimes bad or frustrating things happen, but it is important not to allow negative emotions toplant ‘roots’ in our souls. We artists are Dreamers, we dare to dream and go toward our dream. I believe that it is absolutely essentialto control our thoughts so as to bring forth only desirable conditions. All power is from within and is absolutely under ourcontrol. Our choices determine who we are and what happens to us. Those thoughts are reflected in my recent paintings Powerof Thoughts, Ways of Life, Tapestry of Life, Soul Searching, Harmony and Eruption of Volcano.18 ARTisSpectrum

Power of Thoughts Acrylic on Canvas 48” x 36”19 ARTisSpectrum

Where do you find your inspiration?When I start to paint I’m in a state ofpowerful joy. It is almost ecstasy. I don’tthink of anything, I’m driven by my artisticintuition to apply colors. I simplyenjoy “swimming” in that powerful waveof positive energy. I do not go lookingfor inspiration in everyday life. I knowthat all I need is to stand in front of thecanvas, and inspiration will come rightaway. Maybe it sounds slightly pompousbut I never come to the point that I don’thave ideas for painting. I never look forideas. I leave it to the Universe to decidewhat to send me. All of us are part of theUniverse. We are one with the UniversalMind which is Omnipotent and Omnipresent.Paintings may be “delivered” tome in a rough form. Then it is up to me toturn on my imagination and see what isbeneath the rough surface.This is Phase 2 in my painting: I sit infront of the painting at a little distanceand start to analyze the painting. At firstglance all I see is the “ocean” of beautifulcolors playing together nicely. Now itis up to me to decide whether to leave itas it is, so that it would be just anothernice painting. But with my artistic intuitionI feel that there is much more beneaththe surface. It is hidden, but canreveal a deeper meaning waiting to bediscovered. It is time to use my artisticimagination.What does it feel like, to use your artisticimagination?It’s like when a sculptor looks at a pieceof marble. To ordinary people, it’s just aLife on the Cliff Acrylic on Canvas 48” x 36”block of stone, but to the sculptor, there is a sculpture in there waiting to get out, which he can free to show to the world.I feel similar when I start looking into my painting. At first glance I see only colors but when I turn on my artistic imagination themagic begins. I start seeing images of people, different characters, architecture, animals, plants… It is truly amazing and so farit is for my eyes only. Now the next step is to make it visible for everyone to see and enjoy. And the final result of my painting is aglimpse of human life unfolding in front of our eyes. In the case of my recent paintings, the glimpse is into how people’s decisionshave a positive or negative impact on their lives. Those thoughts are expressed in my paintings “Decisions” and “Transition.”Can you tell us about your creative process?When I paint it seems to me that time disappears. Sometimes I’ve found myself working on a painting without a break from 11pmto 3-4am, yet it felt like it was only minutes. My favorite time to work is at night when it is completely quiet. I believe that everythingis made from energy. When everybody sleeps it is a time when other people’s energies do not interact with my energy flow.This condition allows my energy to flow freely and make perfect contact with the Universe.I work very fast. Sometimes on Sundays I work all day and at the end of the day I’m finishing one big painting. For me the sizeof the space where I’m working is not a priority. It is good to have a studio but if I didn’t have it I would not stop painting, becauseall I actually need is a little corner in a room where my easel and canvas can fit. If there were no choice I’d paint in a closet or abathroom. Nothing would stop me because I have a burning desire to create. It is extremely exciting to me to open doors to theunknown and discover what is there.20 ARTisSpectrum

When I paint, silence is one of the most important factors to me. It helps me to stay focused. I’ve learned that I don’t like to workin a group of artists. I found it very distracting to hear them talking about kids, food and so on while painting… I need to be myselfin complete silence – something even my beloved dog understands! Of course, he might just be afraid of getting splatteredwith paint, since during the first stage of painting I work very fast, applying bold colors without concern for boundaries. Delicatestrokes come later on.I cultivate intuition. It is the ability to perceive and understand without conscious effort. I believe that if we cultivate our intuitionwe will ultimately strengthen our mind, body and spirit through holistic awareness. When I paint I know exactly when I need tostop because my intuition tells me that the painting is finished.Intuition is a natural source of wisdom that resides within each person. When I start the creative process I open myself to allpossibilities, I’m open to experimentation. I believe that there is no risk in the creative process. If you are not satisfied with yourcreation, you simply continue to create until you reach the point when you are mesmerized with what appears in front of youreyes. There is no failure, only feedback.As well as the first, intuitive stage, there is the second stage which relies on imagination, a gift I have inherited from my mother,whose ability to paint without sketches always fascinated me.I like my paintings to be a combination of bold, aggressive strokes and delicate, gentle, intricate detail. The colors in my paintingsare a combination of bright and happy colors with more sober blues. It reflects how life is a combination of joy and sorrow. Wehave both thunderstorms and times of beauty when we can enjoy the blossoming of flowers.Many artists have difficulty making time for their work. How do you deal with this challenge?Time is priceless. I have become very selective in how I spend it. I believe that even if an artist is extremely busy doing manydifferent things in life, a real artist would always find time for creating art because for an artist, art is a passion and a burningdesire.For me it is like air to breathe, it is my excitement and a guiding purpose in my life. Even if I’m very tired from running errandsduring the daytime, when the evening comes I can’t wait to stand in front of a canvas and start to paint. And my tiredness graduallygoes away. I feel rested and rejuvenated. I never feel tired when creating art. Mostly I feel tired when I do nothing. It feels tome to be a complete waste of precious time. This is the reason that I don’t like long, passive vacations. After three days of lyingon the beach I become restless and want to return to my studio to paint. If you feel that time is precious, I think you are carefulto use it well, to make every moment count.Have you always painted using the same techniques you use today?No, not at all. When I studied art in the Academy of Art in Vilnius, Lithuania, we were required to follow the rules of Social Realism.At that point I used mainly oil paint. It was not until I came to America that I learned how to work with acrylics and createabstract works. Only then could I begin to express myself as an artist without limitations.I love to work with acrylics because of the fluidity it gives, the possibilities it provides for varying textures and the speed at whichit dries. All this means that I can work very fast and apply many layers of paint, creating a 3D impression. I work fast because Iam driven by curiosity. I can’t wait to see what comes to my canvas from the Universe this time! I call my paintings ‘Deliveriesfrom the Universe.’How has your life experience affected your work?I grew up under the Soviet Union, in Lithuania. I dreamed from a young age about escape, and finding freedom, like the slavemother with her baby in her arms in the novel ‘Uncle Tom’s Cabin’ by Harriet Beecher Stowe. She jumps from one piece of slipperyice to another to cross the fast river, so that she can get herself and her child to the other side, where freedom awaits. Thisvision helped me develop the courage and determination I needed to get out, so that my own son would not have to grow up aSoviet citizen, crushed in an environment of suppression. Getting to America was a long journey, but I made it in the end.My background continued to have some influence over me, though. I avoided using the color red for years, because of its associationsfor me. I loved pink, because it was a color rarely seen where I grew up. My appreciation of strong colors is, I think,partly due to their rarity when I was growing up, and they are now an important part of my work.From my life experience I strongly believe that we can achieve whatever we want in our lives if we do not give up and continue tomove toward our goals, despite difficulties. We must always hold on to a Hope, which is there even for those who do not believein it. These positive thoughts have been an influence on one of my recent paintings, “The Ray of Hope.”21 ARTisSpectrum

“a visual artist needs to have the following qualities:Intuition, imagination, work discipline and no fear of the creative process”How do you see your art developing in the future?I can see clearly that the more I work, the more my artistic imagination develops. I now see new images even in paintings from1 or 2 years ago.I know that I have a gift, in my artistic imagination, and it would be a shame to waste it. My goal is to paint as much as possiblebecause there are countless ideas in the Universe waiting to be discovered and painted.Your work has touched many people; you obviously have a strong connection to your audience. What advice wouldyou give to someone hoping to become a visual artist?I strongly believe that a visual artist needs to have the following qualities: Intuition, imagination, work discipline and no fear ofthe creative process.www.kristinagaronart.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Kristina_Garon.aspxEruption of Volcano Acrylic on Canvas 36” x 48”22 ARTisSpectrum

Fred MouNo Nature Acrylic on Paper 12” x 16.5” Space Crystal Acrylic on Paper 12” x 16.5”An archetypal dance pervadesFred Mou’s vivid paintings, ashe explores the transformation of theenergy of “hot” intuitive expressionisminto the information of “cool” measuredminimalism. The control he showsover his palette, for example, channelsthe creative impulse’s tendency tounrestricted exploration into powerfullymoving abstract imagery. In addition, alove of the stasis of solid forms is oftenin fundamental balance with a desirefor motion expressed through line. Thenecessary tension one feels in viewingthis imagery is a response to the tectonicshifting of a mature artist at work bringingengaging, deeply beautiful images to thecanvas.The delights for the eye are strong here,too. Fred’s work is pleasingly whimsicalwithout lapsing into cuteness, and italso draws upon graffiti’s strengths - itsaggressive lines demanding the viewer’sattention - while avoiding the well-knownraggedness of graffiti. This artist’s visualsense is also sensitive to the sublime andthe dramatic. He likes jagged horizonsand sinuous patterns that would be athome floating in the air, the sea or evenwithin our own bloodstreams.The added biological aspect to Fred’swork is used powerfully when he wedsit to a commentary on human nature.This dialectic between the micro andmacro touches upon his primary concernover the dynamics of archetypes in thehuman personality. Unearthing suchFred at work in his Studiopsychological structures can oftenrender the subject dry, yet Fred’s work,like all effective visual information, getsin under the radar we put up to live in thecontemporary world. He embraces art’strue calling of getting past our defenses.Finally, the evil that is in nature is alsopresent in this work, overtly or implied,and yet, like his representations ofbeauty and tranquility, is abstracted freeof all judgment, and we see the face ofnature anew, as we recognize the faceof humans within their psychologicalshells.www.fredmou.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Fred_Mou.aspx23 ARTisSpectrum

Santina ‘Semadar’ PanettaSantina in her StudioLike a dazzling close-up of a GeorgesSeurat painting, Santina ‘Semadar’Panetta has created a wonderful andenergetic body of work that expresses joyand optimism through a unique abstractpointillism. Her paintings, done in richlycolored oil paint on large canvases, canbe stylistically considered either abstractor representational. We consume eachpiece much like finding a face in the moon,as we seek to reveal something familiaror like ourselves. Semadar providesclues to her inspiration through varyingdepths of realism or hints in the title, somemore discrete than others. There areoften palpable landscape qualities in herpaintings. One may discern rolling hillsand lush tree lines glittering in the sununder azure skies, or perceive dawn’sfirst light cast on multihued flowers. Theartist has cast aside brushstrokes infavor of solidly colored dots, juxtaposedneatly to tempt our eyes into acceptingthe illusion of variation of hue and tone.24 ARTisSpectrumThis is key to the vibrant nature of herpainting. Semadar’s talent with color lies inunderstanding the nature of simultaneouscontrast, expertly pairing colors for theirrelationship to each other. She is not tryingto portray detail per se, but much like thegreats of Impressionism, she captures thespirit of a place and the energy of beingthere. The artist is obviously interested inseasonal changes, conveying the hopeof springtime, the celebration of summerand the introspective time of autumn. Likethe explosion of life from winter’s dormantperiod, Semadar’s paintings open like aflower’s bud and display a lyrical senseof movement as our senses dance in thepure energy of color.As a former journalist, Semadar left behindthe world of hardened reality to examinethe mysterious truths that lurk behindappearances, and to allow the secrets ofbeing to be told. “The impressionist Arthas lightness in pictorial aesthetic, but isdeeper than we are led to believe,” sheexplains. “Its content is powerful in thephilosophy of existentialism.”Born in Italy, Santina ‘Semadar’ Panettagrew up exploring the fertile philosophyand art of the classical Mediterraneanworld. She emigrated to Canada andlater graduated from the Academie Artsand Beaux Arts in Quebec with honorsand distinction. She has exhibited andsold her paintings in Canada, Australiaand the United States, with recently soldworks going as far as India and Italy. TheNational Museum of Canada and theAmerican Jewish Archives in Cincinnati,OH, hold her portfolio for collectors andart-lovers to consult.www.artfusiongallery.com/works.php?code=407www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Santina_Semadar_Panetta.aspx

Les Champs du Temps Oil on Canvas 48” x 72”Day Break Oil on Canvas 36” x 48”Summer Luminosity Oil on Canvas 36” x 48”25 ARTisSpectrum

AdkaMarcela CadenaThe theme of plant imagery and the process of growth is aconsistent motif in much of the jubilant, beautiful paintingsof Adka, otherwise known as Andrea Jones. In addition to aneclectic range of textures and forms, her skilled palette helpsto conjure a wide range of moods and philosophical insightsinto art and inspiration.Her past studies in psychology have provided her with the toolsto embrace the complexity of human experience. Her workoften sings with a euphoric energy, and even her deep brownspulsate with a vibrant autumnal vigor. Acrylics and black inkhave proved to be an effective combination for her unique,whimsical folk-art style, and the lively patches of color arehighlighted by bits of gemlike sparkles. She uses bold colors,abstract shapes, ornamental flourishes and folk-art textures.Adka has said that creating these images soothes her souland that she is able to carve out a psychological and aestheticspace for herself in her work.Whether the surreal flame-like petals of her dreamlike plantsare made of musical instruments, wildlife or textured patterns, itis clear we have been given an insight into a soul in the momentof self-creation and definition. Adka’s forms reach up and out ofthemselves, transformed from flame to seashell to tree limb, ina stunning interplay of patterns that are inspired by hope.www.Adka.imagekind.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Adka.aspxInundando el SilencioOil & Acrylic on Canvas 55” x 55”Richly vibrant color permeates the canvas in lusciouslines throughout painter Marcela Cadena’s works. Withthick, expansive strokes, she conjures the opulent huesof both the natural and emotional world with an affectinglypersonal approach. Powerfully poignant, yet calmly spirited,the artist bravely looks inward for inspiration. Like AbstractExpressionists Franz Kline or Willem de Kooning, Cadenamaps her soul and the human psyche in pointedly sweepingstrokes with vividly saturated coloration. A tranquil cadencemeets stridently animated forms, speaking to the inherentambiguities of the human condition. Indeed, through her work,Cadena gives shape to emotions not easily conveyed throughthe written word. “My art is abstract because the feelings do nothave forms or boundaries, there is nothing more challengingthan an empty canvas and to fill it with colors with my spatula,”she states. “My art is colorful like life itself, I like to give colorindependence and liberty using my spatula to give differenttextures.”Born in Mexico City, Mexico, Marcela Cadena looks to hermyriad experiences in life to inform her emotively diversepaintings. Critically acclaimed throughout Mexico, she hasexhibited widely internationally. Most recently, her works wereincluded in the 2010 Art Shanghai in China.www.marcelacadena.com.mxwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Marcela_Cadena.aspxBlooming Notes IV Acrylic & Ink on Canvas 30” x 24”26 ARTisSpectrum

Thanh Mai-CharlesThanh Mai-Charles’ delicate paintingsconjure the enigma of nature with a romanticsoftness that is beautiful and mysterious. Theexuberant visions that appear in her work are oftenpresented incomplete. This renders her subjectswith an enigmatic quality, while the animals thatoccasionally appear in her work often seem awareof the modern world’s threat to their survival. Thisextreme pathos comes through primarily due to theartist’s sensitive brushwork and attention to detail.Thanh’s creative process is an interplay betweenpersonal subjectivities and aesthetic andphilosophical concerns. Her preferred method issplashing a canvas with acrylic paints and inks.Endangered Red Crowned Cranes Acrylic & Ink 24” x 35”Only when they are dry does she insert herself intothe process more fully and begin to paint aroundthe splashes of color.Thanh aspires to reflect in her work the deeply felt emotions of a unique experience that can never be truly captured. She saysthat she works with humility under the shadow of nature’s superiority. Her feeling of intimacy with nature extends to her choiceof materials: she likes to use a mix of inks, water and paint because of her mixed French-Vietnamese background. From out ofthat first random array of color conjured by her spontaneous and instinctive technique, she brings forth stunning figures whichmove us with their gravity and their beauty.www.thanh-mai-charles.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Thanh_Mai__Charles.aspxPatricia BrintleThe bold, vivid acrylic paintings of Haitian-American artist Patricia Brintle provide anactive bridge between her native Haiti and theHaitian Diaspora, particularly those like her whohave come to reside in the U.S. Paradoxes of theHaitian experience are entrenched in her work:the material poverty of its people laid against thebackdrop of a beautiful landscape rich in cultureand tradition. You can see this in her choiceof color, which remains as bright as the sun, nomatter the gravity of the subject matter. Often paintis laid on thickly, giving texture and definition to hergeometric forms. There is likewise a great senseof movement in her paintings, as if some unseenforce is bursting with energy from within. Yetsimultaneously her compositions seek constantlyTangerines in Puilboro Acrylic on Masonite 4” x 6”to contain that energy, yielding works that are balanced and peaceful yet hum with a vibrancy all their own.Rather than focusing on what separates the two spheres, Brintle’s work is full of hope as it seeks out the enduring connectionsthat remain between these two very different worlds. Staying true to the artistic hallmarks of color and form that make her workso unique, Brintle brings her viewers face to face with different aspects of history, culture and human experience that they mightnot otherwise ever have encountered.www.patriciabrintle.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Patricia_Brintle.aspx27 ARTisSpectrum

ShifraFaded Memories 5 Photographic Print 9” x 12”Visit the museumthat is a masterpieceT HEF R I C KCOLLECTION1 East 70th Street, NYC212 288-0700Frick.orgIsraeli photographer Shifra chases elusive reflections fromtranquil, picturesque lakes to bustling city streets. Her workhas evolved dramatically, including crisp photos of sparklinglandscapes, digital collages of refracted glass architecture(which were published in her 2007 book The Third Eye Is MyInner Eye) and most recently ghostly black and white urbanscenes set amidst barely perceptible streetscapes. In eachcase, moments and scenes of reflection offer alternate viewsof the world, brief glimpses into a parallel aesthetic planewhere rules of physics and vision are more or less distortedor sharp.Where previous series marveled at the M. C. Escher-esquerelation between reality and reflection in natural and urbanenvironments, her recent work focuses on the human figureisolated in an increasingly washed out picture plane. Shifrafinds isolation in a crowd. Her digital photographs, rendered ingrainy, blurred black and white as if shot during a sandstorm,appear timeless. These throngs, masses of barely distinguishedindividuals, have marched through cities for centuries. Byincluding fleeting glimpses of modern architecture she lets usorient ourselves in a contemporary setting, though the epochhardly matters. Shifra creates these foggy, half-rememberedscenes to accentuate the power of self-reflection: like thebroken mirror or rippling lake, indeterminate memories allowus to transform reality.www.shifrart.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Shifra.aspxThe Frick Collection’s newly reopened Fragonard Room28 ARTisSpectrum

Koki Morimotobold grace, captured through full,A meandering strokes, characterizesthe soul and aesthetic of painter KokiMorimoto’s work. Navigating thecanvas in a state of spiritual whimsy,Morimoto’s line saunters into a realmbetween reality and fantasy. Throughhis work, this artist seeks to harness thechaotic and emergent nature of reality,transforming it into an energetically purebeauty. However forceful in essenceand conceit, these are paintings thatKoki in his Studioeffervesce in cool tranquility. Vigorous,pulsating forms erupt in sleek, luxuriousmonochrome acrylic. Seductively infinite,these works pierce through space with asmooth, painterly tenacity. “Drawing isthe action when one line brings the nextline and something growing beyond theground tries to be shaped on a mediumsuch as canvas. It will keep growingwith monochrome and various colorsto escape from the medium,” statesMorimoto. “I believe that our lives existwith nature and greatemotion is built byintegration betweenthose two factors.”Morimoto is constantlysearching for a poeticbalance of the naturallypure and nuancedabstraction. When hisdaughter was six yearsold she innocently andeloquently recognizedhis voluptuous forms asbean-like, somethinghe feels speaks to theessence of his work.The bean capturesthe spirit of these remarkable paintings,as the seed’s shape metaphoricallyrepresents both tenaciously constantaction and calm, patient presence.This is a style which transcendsabstraction through a curvaceous,biomorphic form, the aspect that evokesthe comparison to the inspirationalbean. Imbibed with paradoxicalsignificance, Morimoto’s works speak tothe contradictions and ironies inherentin life. Organically soft, the paintings areyet seductively effortless, and elegantlymuted in palette.Born and raised in Japan, Morimoto isa graduate of Saga National Universityand shows his work throughout Japanand the United States. He was the 1977winner of the Kyushu Youth Exhibition,and has been exhibiting his work inthe US since 1997. Most recently,Koki Morimoto exhibited work in AgoraGallery’s “Matrix of the Mind” exhibition,an innovative show of contemporaryJapanese art.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Koki_Morimoto.aspxBeans 30-5 Acrylic Limited Edition of 5 35” x 35” With Respect to Area 10-20-2 Acrylic 28” x 23”29 ARTisSpectrum

Fashion meets Fine Artby Hally McGeheanPhotographer: Chip MillerIt has always pained me to throw awayfashion magazines. Though the pagesare flimsy and the best images are often(and maddeningly) interrupted with anexpository box, I cannot toss a HelmutNewton or an Irving Penn into the garbage.As a teenager I began ripping out pagesof outfits I liked and compiling them intovolumes of white binders stuffed withpage protectors. Thus began the slipdown a twenty-year cataloging slope.Once I began saving the clothes, I hadtrouble leaving an editorial behind. Justbecause the dress wasn’t something I30 ARTisSpectrumwanted to wear didn’t mean magic hadn’thappened between the venue and theoutfit and the photographer. I could notrelegate Claudia Schiffer or Nadja Auermannto the bin with any less regret than Icould a Lacroix gown. And once I was alreadyorganizing the outfits and the photographsit was impossible to neglect thegrowing coverage offine art. These havekept me from recyclingyet more pages.There in front of me,mingling with RaquelZimmerman andMariano Vivanco areCindy Sherman andRyan McGinley. I canown them all for only$4.99.A few years ago thiscompulsion took on a new level. I wentabstract with my hoarding. After leavingalmost empty shells of magazines,nothing but text and advertisements, Ibegan to see even those as beautiful,as color on which someone had spent agreat deal of time and money. I could nolonger take a page for granted. I neededto save the gold glitter of aGucci advertisement andthe pink marabou from aParis Hilton promotion.Jewel tones got their ownfiling cabinet.My head became a relationaldatabase. Not onlywere there folders for“purple” and for “horses,”but I knew that in the formerwas a photograph ofa dusty periwinkle ribbonthat was meant to live nextto an illustrated pair ofmaudlin white equine fromthe latter. I was playing agiant game of Memory.My first attempts to engagethe colors of themagazines involved pastingfractured bits on traditionalstretched canvasesusing decoupage andsigning every one with acool sans serif “H” fromChanel ads. But the texture of a canvaswas too natural and even covered inshellac the gritty surface and dull edgeswere not sleek enough to render the satinsand furs precise and glossy in a waythat elevated the theme to the level ofits individual pieces. My forest was toonatural, even if its trees were plastic. Iwanted to make collages without wood,without fabric, without paint, and withoutpaste. In a time when everyone was goinggreen I rejected organic materials.I bought a laminator.

My first was$80 and couldslide no morethan 9 inchesthrough itsheat and rollers.I beganmaking thesame collagesand plasticizingthem.They wereflat. They werebold. Theywere shiny. Iwas gettingcloser. But at9 x 11 inchesno matter howsophisticatedthe balanceand depths ofthe parts, thewhole alwayslooked likea placemat.Both largescalelaminatorsand large-scale laminationwere out of my budget. Necessitybecame the mother of myinventions. What if I laminatedeach piece individually, cut outeach one, and attached themafterward? The size would belimitless. I would be free to coverthe burgeoning eco-populationin plastic.At about the time I was attemptingto fashion a dress out ofasymmetrical and amoebic cutoutsof jewels, putting them togetherlike a puzzle on the bodywith a halter-neck and short a-line skirt, Playgirl called. Themagazine intended to featureartists who made work out ofphalluses and had seen a set ofnesting dolls (my only concessionto wood) I’d made of prettyboy models from, of course,fashion magazines. Thoughthey asked to photograph thedolls I begged for time to presentthem with something morestylish and more salacious. Iwas granted two weeks.My love for this game was fosteredby the quality of images;those found in style magazineswere too good to waste. Thesame cannot be said of pornography.I was determinedto create a party dress madefrom more than 500 1.5-inchlaminated squares of picturesof the male anatomy and Isuddenly realized that thewealth of those images wereout of focus and poorly lit. Iscoured the city, beginning inChelsea, for quality smut. Tomy amazement and dismay, itwas difficult to find and in theend I had to supplement photographsof the most explicitparts, shot in someone’s basementapartment, with photos ofpectorals and abdominals shotfor Calvin Klein and W. The522 most enticing close-upswere each included in a smallsquare, that square was laminated,that laminated squarewas cut into a slightly largersquare, received the punch of1/8-inch holes, and the lot wereattached with 6mm stainlesssteel jump rings. The back wasfastened with large gold snaps,the straps were velvet ribbonsstrung through gold grommets,and it was named The DirtyDirty Dress.31 ARTisSpectrum

The dress could dance! It came to life inways I had not anticipated: it sashayedwhether or not its model chose to andits skirt made a glorious swishing sound.Not only would everyone see this dresscoming, they would hear it as well. I hadfound my medium.I majored in philosophy in college andminored in ancient Greek and was stillengaged by the meta, a Greek prefixmeaning “after” and “beyond” and“self” that my generation (a generationof philosophy majors) employs casuallyto mean self-referential. I do not tire ofthe infinite conversation of the mirror reflectedin the mirror: Take photograph ofself wearing purple panties. Cut out photographof self and make it into a purse.Photograph self wearing purple pantiesand holding purse of self wearing purplepanties. Make purse of photograph of selfwearing purple panties holding purse ofself wearing purple panties. I like to thinkof it as fashionable infinity.It is in this vein, and vanity, that I moveforward. My current project is creating ameta wardrobe. A Dress Dress – a dressmade of hundreds of small laminateddresses culled from magazines, a BagBag, and Boots Boots.I am often encouraged by others to printimages rather than spend my energiesfinding them in publications. In this endeavorit will be more tempting thanusual, given the intricacy of covering abody in hundreds of patterns that werenever meant to fit together. You mightbe surprised to find that most boots areprinted showing the outside of the boot,facing left. That makes it easier to fabricatethe outside of a left Boot Boot andthe inside of a right Boot Boot and rendersthe opposite near impossible. Butnecessity has nurtured me well into mycareer. I’ll not be emancipated from hernow. In working with fashion magazinesI am able to collaborate with the mostchic, most talented people of the lastcentury. I get to work on the most stylishstreet in town: where Chelsea meetsthe garment district and where fashionmeets fine art.Hally is one of the winners of the2010 Chelsea International Fine ArtCompetition. Her work is owned byMichelle Obama, Oprah Winfrey,Judith Jamison, Jacques D’Amboise,and Molly Ringwald.www.hallymcgehean.comAs she begins to paint, Danielle Dany Tremblay releases her controlover the art, organically allowing each painting to develop as instinct andinternal imperative indicates that it should. Continuously rotating and addingto her surfaces with a broad, searching mark, the artist discovers figures andforms emerging from her artistic vision, stories and relationships waiting inthe shadows of her subconscious to be defined in acrylics on canvas. Thereis an engaging suggestion of communication interpreted in the colors andcharacters of her abstractions, a powerfully emotional charge and connectionappearing from the chaos.Tremblay started her artistic career early in life, beginning her studies at age12 with Frère Jérôme, a follower of Borduas, and continuing to learn from thehighly respected master in his studio workshop throughout the 1980s, infusingher own works with his expressive authenticity and spiritual essence of truth.She is a graduate of Concordia University’s Fine Arts program and is affiliatedwith the Atelier du Geste in Montreal under the direction of Andrée Bonnard.www.danytremblay.cawww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Danielle_Tremblay.aspxDanielle Dany TremblaySolitary EncounterAcrylic on Canvas 24” x 30”Pilar Fernandez DuartePilar Fernandez Duarte is a figurative painter from Barbastro, Spain.She is a rigorously disciplined artist who represents the promise of thecontinuation of classical and emotional portraits. She creates images ofhaunting and timeless beauty in monumental faces that are all about sensation.Stunningly executed with uncanny precision, these works are heightened,magnified examinations which display considerable technical virtuosity. Theviewer is given a sense of the incredible force of the eyes and hair in modelswho appear to have transcended the physical and material.Pilar Fernandez Duarte speaks of formative years in which she drew fromclassical sculpture. Later, she worked for several years in Publicity andGraphic Design, where she used to work particularly with ink. She openedher own academy ten years ago, developing her own personal methods andbuilding a solid base of knowledge, all of which she passes on when teachingartistic techniques to her students.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Pilar_Fernandez_Duarte.aspx32 ARTisSpectrumMaskPen on Canvas 40” x 32”

Jorge BerlatoYes We CanAcrylic Silkscreen on Canvas 76.5” x 38.5”Richly saturated color, in a limitless variety of hues andshades, permeates artist Jorge Berlato’s works. Stirredby the local colors of his Mediterranean heritage, he is inspiredby the works of masters such as Matisse and Picasso, andstimulated by contemporary greats such as Banksy. Topicalin theme, Berlato’s works use pop culture motifs spiced withelectrifying, neon or naturally muted colors. Trained in variousartistic mediums, this is an artist who perceptively suits hismedium to his artistic mission — giving voice to the plight ofwomen around the world. Like Warhol, Berlato appropriates andre-contextualizes popular images or themes, speaking to thecontinuing paradoxes and injustices alive in our contemporarylife. His works are universal, endearing to a collective spiritand psyche. “My culture is expressed through my art by thevarying range of colors that I use, whether muted colors orvibrant shades,” he explains. “My art is based on whateverI’ve seen, people I’ve met and anything that has stuck with methroughout the years.”Born in Valencia, Spain, Jorge Berlato began painting during atrip to Brazil, affected by the work of fellow Spaniard, Picasso.With works in several important public and private collectionsworldwide, he most recently exhibited in the Sala MatisseValencia in February 2009.www.jorgeberlato.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Jorge_Berlato.aspxphilamuseum.orgFROM ONE TO MANY CITTADELLARTEThe exhibition is made possible by The Pew Center for Arts &Heritage through the Philadelphia Exhibitions Initiative, and by TheAndy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts and The Kathleen C.and John J. F. Sherrerd Fund for Exhibitions. Additional supportis provided by illycaffè and the Circoli di Michelangelo Pistoletto,groups of generous galleries and individuals.Venere degli stracci (Venus of the Rags), 1967, by MichelangeloPistoletto (Cittadellarte-Fondazione Pistoletto, Biella, Italy) ©Michelangelo Pistoletto33 ARTisSpectrumLaPlacaCohen 212-675-4106 Publication: ART IS SPECTRUM Insertion date: November 2010 3.625”x10” 4CPMA-0016_Pistoletto_ArtisSpectrum_3.625x10_Nov_v2.indd 19/24/10 12:21:20 PM

Denis PalbianiCecilia Fernandez QWhile he is known primarily as a prize-winning underwaterphotographer, Denis Palbiani’s fine art endeavorsexplore the possibilities of the beauty of display, in a creativeinterpretation of nature through more expressive anddeliberately aesthetic means. The mysteries of the naturalworld, as well as the stunning visual beauty he captures,are brought to the forefront in his work. Denis is an eclecticphotographer and is constantly seeking out inspiration toexpand his oeuvre. His current work studies the lines andshapes of organic and inorganic forms, including the particularbeauty found in the human body, as well as the visual lines ofarchitecture. Through gold-tinged light falling upon a femalenude against a dark background, he sculpts a visual tableaufor us. When he isolates a particular section of the body, hisfocus gains a lover’s devouring qualities. His work in moreabstract imagery yields the same dynamic exploration of theworld and its offerings of splendor, and his digital photographyloses none of this passion while also reaching out throughexplorations into real light and virtual object. Whether he isexpanding how we see the realm of ocean life or the beautyof the human nude, Denis Palbiani’s photography rewards uswith its lush images.www.denispalbiani.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Denis_Palbiani.aspxWoman 1 Oil & Charcoal on Canvas 35” x 31.5”Drawing has always been the foundation of CeciliaFernandez Q’s paintings. In her work the structure of therepresentational figure balances the energy of the stunningexplorations she makes into color. The physical details shegives to her figures add a level of pathos to these multiplelayers of paints of varying textures and thicknesses.Her vocation as a painter was inspired by her early work indesign and decoration, specifically in children’s furniture,which was when Cecilia started to learn the vocabulary ofvisual language. At that time she also learned the importanceof a strong base in drawing, a skill which she has maintainedat a high level throughout her painting career.Dramatic zones of hue often sit side by side on Cecilia’scanvases, sometimes running up against each other, with thepaint dripping down the canvas as if squeezed out from thecollision of vivid blocks of color. Figure studies which initiallymay appear half-finished in fact work to subtly draw attentionto the truth of the ever-evolving nature of art, and of life, aphilosophy richly present in her works. Cecilia uses collage,mixed media and text on her canvases. While she employs awide array of techniques and styles, her beautiful paintings areunified by her commitment to an ongoing discovery of art andits hidden meanings.Sensuality Digital Photography 40” x 28”www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Cecilia_Fernandez_Q.aspx34 ARTisSpectrum

Tamiko TominagaTamiko Tominaga’s paintings reveal a faithin the connection of all things. Like visionsconjured in deep meditation, her work invites usinto otherworldly tableaux of a holistic view of theuniverse. Birth, death and everything in betweenis depicted according to a trust in the beauty andsense of the entire cosmos, from galaxies tomicrobes. The inky black of space is prevalentand allows Tamiko the opportunity to exploreforms that glow and swirl in ways that seem alienyet familiar in a pre-conscious way. Light takes onthe quality of a solid or liquid flowing about thisrich, palpable medium, while solid objects seemto have been uprooted.The melding of her subject matter and her artisticBirth Watercolor on Rice Paper 16” x 25”materials also reflects Tamiko’s integrated view of creativity. She paints on canvas as well as rice paper, which is known not onlyfor its absorbency, but also durability. She often uses traditional Japanese colored powders called “iwaenogu” and groundedpigments such as lapiz lazuri and rust of copper. The vibrant colors she favors permeate and saturate her surreal, visionaryworks, which are a perfect melding of science and spirit, of the curiosity and faith that is at the heart of artistic endeavor.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Tamiko_Tominaga.aspxBright Moment Enamel on Canvas 35” x 66”Milanda De Mont’s enamel paintingsexemplify her ideas of artisticexpression as a means of liberation. Herfluid brushstrokes exhibit a vibrancy andlife of their own. Inspired by the energiesand movement of nature, De Mont is ableto personify these energies through colors,lines and forms that transform the canvasinto a unified living image. Describing herprocess as energetic and spontaneous DeMont states, “I let myself be carried awaywithout resistance while my entire being isdedicated to the free-flowing expressionof line, color and form as it coalesces intoliving imagery.” Influenced by the physical urges of Abstract Expressionism, her paintings unleash the fury of Franz Kline withthe colorful lyricism of Helen Frankenthaler. Each painting sustains its own unity while at the same time encompassing a vivid,distinct, abstract expression that is universally appealing. De Mont’s appeal lies in her ability to express relationships that existbetween nature and mankind. The abstract forms she creates express a unification of these natural and humanistic elements.Her artwork creates a visual dialogue and artistry, synthesizing her observations in her lifelong artistic career as painter and worldtraveler, truly embracing a global consciousness. Milanda de Mont is an Australian Armenian artist also working in performance,dance and music. She lives in Sydney, Australia and Mainz, Germany.www.milandademont.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Milanda_de_Mont.aspxMilanda De Mont35 ARTisSpectrum

The High Line, West Chelsea’s public park on a repurposed elevated industrial railway, stands as an artwork unto itself.Full of subtle and dramatic flourishes from exquisite lighting details to the superb traffic panorama up Tenth Avenue at 17thStreet, designers Diller Scofidio + Renfro quite literally lifted infrastructural architecture from function to pure sculptural form.Amidst the park’s maturing seedlings, selected with no less artistic sensitivity by landscape designers Field Operations, publicartworks have begun springing up on the rail bed every season since its opening. These original works, curated and commissionedby Friends of the High Line Director of Arts Programs, Lauren Ross, along with the Department of Parks and Recreationcuratorial staff, and in some cases the public art non-profit Creative Time, have taken root on grounds fertilized by decades ofgraffiti murals, intrepid urban photographers, artists’ studios and art galleries. New pieces planted in the park are attracting otherworks to lush adjacent areas. The resulting cornucopia of public art is in full bloom atop and around the High Line, and spreadingquickly. In the year-and-a-half since its inauguration, the still-growing park has become the city’s foremost venue for public art.With well over two million visitors since the steel staircases opened in June of 2009, the High Line promises the kind of highprofilevisibility for outdoor art that very few other sites in the city provide (the Metropolitan Museum roof and Madison SquarePark may be the only comparable sites). More than a tourist attraction and a one-of-a-kind park, though, the High Line aboundsin unusual and exciting spaces to show art. Sheltered passages through and under buildings create gallery-like spaces, whileadjacent walls and billboards offer supports for two-dimensional works, and sculptures can be installed virtually anywhere on thespacious cement walkways, not to mention the city full of potential architectural pedestals. Beyond its railings, the park bringsmillions more sets of eyes onto adjacent parts of West Chelsea, and neighboring artists and institutions are increasingly takingadvantage of this proximity to art-hungry crowds. As it commissions and attracts more and more contemporary art, the High Lineadds to Chelsea’s already unparalleled art world pedigree.The High Line:New York’s Premier Public Art Spaceby Benjamin SuttonPhotographer: Jason Giordano36 ARTisSpectrum

Off-LineAt the foot of the park, in a space not strictly affiliated with it but best visible from the southernmost point, one such project thatwill only add to the park’s art world clout is about to bloom. The Whitney Museum of American Art has turned another unexpectedfeature of the urban landscape into a public art installation: a construction site. The venerated Uptown institution has begunbuilding its future home–a superb structure by world-renowned architect Renzo Piano–on a lot at the intersection of Gansevoortand Washington Streets. It’s still a long way off completion, but in the meantime the museum has begun a public art programcalled Whitney On Site, whereby every season a new artist is commissioned to wrap the lot’s fences, temporary offices and otherconstruction site necessities in their work. In spring the duo of Wade Guyton and Kelley Walker, better known as Guyton/Walker,turned the space into a massive Pop art-toned fruit bowl. Over the summer, 2010 Biennialist Tauba Auerbach clad the shippingcontainers and prefab buildings in marble patterns, transforming the concrete lot into an open-air quarry. The On Site artist forfall, Barbara Kruger, covered the space in her trademark boldface countercultural slogans. The compelling, high-contrast blackand-whitetext installation poses a challenge to the luxury boutiques across the street. In large, capitalized letters, her messageto visitors walking to the High Line offers as concise a history of the neighborhood as anyone ever wrote: “From blood to meat,to leather, to flesh, to silk.” Like all of the artists exhibiting in the park, those commissioned by the Whitney convert an unconventionalvenue to create wholly new opportunities for viewers to experience and interact with contemporary art and the publicspaces it inhabits.37 ARTisSpectrum

The Hudson LineUnlike that seasonally rotating Whitney commission, the High Line opened with one permanent site-specific installation inspiredby another long, beautiful transportation route that winds along the edge of West Chelsea: the Hudson River. New York-basedinstallation and conceptual artist Spencer Finch’s “The River That Flows Both Ways” (2009) fills 700 windowpanes in the HighLine’s Chelsea Market Passage, where the park goes through the second story of an old factory building. During a 700-minutetrip up the river, Finch photographed the water once every minute, then selected one pixel of color from each digital image andtinted a pane that hue. Read as a giant narrative, the block-long piece presents an abstract travel diary that, like the park, can betaken from both ends and changes its story at every moment along with its environment. During a January storm the blue panes,caked in snow, are almost indistinguishable shades of icy blue, dark brown and olive-green that barely admit the pale winter sun.In spring, with full sunlight, seeing the subtle variations in the tint of each pane provokes a feeling of submersion, of being on ariver bottom moving along with the current. The endless flow of variations in Finch’s installation will never run dry.By its first autumn, another Hudson-themed work was eroding the High Line’s already blurry distinction between manufacturedand natural landscapes. At the current northern edge of the park at West 20th Street, hung on the fence separating the completedfirst phase from the in-progress second section (extending up to West 30th Street and expected to open in summer 2011),Valerie Hegarty’s “Autumn on the Hudson Valley with Branches” (2009) features a replica of a Hudson River School landscapepainting turning back to nature. In her trademark style, the work–inspired by Jasper Francis Cropsey’s 1860 pastoral painting“Autumn on the Hudson Valley”–seems to be falling to pieces, its canvas ruffled, burned and torn, the suddenly visible woodenstretcher bars sprouting branches and leaves. The sculptural installation, like the painting it symbolically destroys and the parkwhose ongoing progress it playfully half-conceals, highlights the fluid relationship between nature and artifice in the painting’sindustrial revolution-era Hudson River valley, and present-day post-industrial Chelsea. As Hagerty’s hyperreal work points out,and the High Line’s flexible design acknowledges, nature always evades total control.Star-LineRecent artists’ projects for the park engage more specifically with its man-made environment. Between September 7 and October6, or a complete lunar cycle, Demetrius Oliver’s photo mural “Jupiter” (2010) took over a High Line-adjacent billboard atWest 18th Street. The 75-feet-wide, 25-feet-tall space had previously been filled with a series of hyper-sexualized Armani ads,a bit of a running joke among neighborhood regulars underlining the fascinating flux of artists, galleries, fashion houses and,increasingly, families and tourists coming to the area. Instead of airbrushed supermodels, Oliver’s work featured a series of fiveglobe-shaped photos floating against a black backdrop. Each pictured a room staged for a solitary camera on a tripod, photographingitself and the scene behind it in a convex mirror. The quizzical photographic installations, each displayed more or lessoff-kilter like rotating planets, featured no human figures, just seemingly random and indecipherable assemblages of furnitureand objects like window frames filled with violin cases, folded umbrellas standing upright on a bed, and a blue globe inside abox, like a miniature version of the Rose Center’s Hayden Planetarium. Throughout the piece’s display students from the NewSchool of Jazz and Contemporary Music performed John Coltrane’s eponymous composition, and on September 21st, whenthe earth passed the closest to Jupiter it had been since 1951, Olivier and the Amateur Astronomers Association’s New Yorkchapter led an evening of stargazing on the elevated park. This piece, or series of interconnected works, performances and happenings,illustrates very eloquently the unique advantages of the High Line as not just a connector between a dense network ofgalleries, but a venue for the display of and engagement with contemporary art. Oliver’s project, with its takeover of coveted andexpensive billboard advertising space, and slightly absurd stargazing in the light pollution-filled city, gleefully reclaimed disparatesections of the urban fabric for public art.Another piece recently installed on the High Line takes the opposite approach, bringing the city into the park rather than spreadingout onto the street. Virginia-based audio and installation artist Stephen Vitiello recorded the sound of bells ringing at sitesthroughout New York City, taping famous rings like the opening bell at the New York Stock Exchange and more obscure or commonrings like neighborhood church bells and bike bells. Installed in the 14th Street passage, another sheltered space wherethe rail bed passes through a building, the resulting work, titled “A Bell for Every Minute” (2010), plays one recorded ring every60 seconds, with an especially composed chorus of bells playing every hour on the hour. A sound map installed on the passagewall indicates where in the city each ring was recorded, connecting High Line visitors to all corners of the five boroughs. Thecurious bells, mysterious and interspersed, wrest our attention from the frenzy of activity just 20 feet below on 14th Street, notto mention the din of construction on the building above, fostering an air of sanctuary in the cavernous, echoing passageway.Whereas Finch’s installation transports us to one constantly changing natural setting, Vitiello’s sound collage takes us to numerousphonic sites throughout the urban environment. Both pieces activate the High Line’s double function as a park and a bridge,as a place one visits and as a place one goes to in order to get somewhere else. Each work transports us by bringing visualand aural fragments from elsewhere to enrich this unique setting. These artists and others open a dialog between the park, itsimmediate surroundings, and the city and scenery beyond.38 ARTisSpectrum

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Sight LinesStill other artworks on or near the High Line follow a more immediate line of approach to the park’s relationship with its setting.London-based conceptual artist Richard Galpin, for instance, takes up some of the site’s voyeuristic possibilities–sure tobecome even more extreme when phase two opens, bringing visitors practically into the bedrooms of the many new luxurycondominiums that cantilever over the elevated park–by inviting us to look through a small telescope-like box mounted onto theconcrete walkway between West 17th and West 18th Streets. Rather than peering at the neighbors, or the stars, as in Oliver’samateur astronomy event, Galpin filters the viewer’s vision through a quasi-Cubist cutout. The installation, “Viewing Station”(2010), throws a mask over the dynamic Chelsea skyline to show it in a completely new way. To be sure, the area already resemblesa jumble of building-block forms, where water tower cylinders sit atop rectangular and trapezoidal buildings, with theodd pitched roof or porthole window contributing a triangle or circle to the geometric collage of richly diverse architectures. Ifanything, Galpin’s installation accentuates the collage-like overlapping of tones and textures in the cityscape. Covering up theedges of buildings, isolating areas of continuous materials and colors in all shapes and sizes, “Viewing Station” transforms thecity into an abstract and arbitrary assemblage of essentially unrelated surfaces, constituting something almost akin to one ofJulie Mehretu’s swirling architectural storms. The relatively simple viewing screen of cut aluminum rearticulates the stunningvisual richness of the city that we so often overlook or choose to ignore. Like the park itself, Galpin’s inviting installation providesa new vantage point from which to re-discover the skyline.For her upcoming installation, a continuation of her Space Available series, Kim Beck will call our attention to another oft-ignoredfeature of the West Chelsea cityscape by creating elaborate fake replicas of it. Three empty frames for commercial billboardsmade of plywood will be erected on rooftops visible from the High Line, bizarrely empty simulacra of advertising space in a verylucrative neighborhood–just look at the aforementioned Armani ad that Olivier’s installation briefly eclipsed. Standing proudlyupright and empty, Beck’s fake billboards not only allude to the strained economy and citywide preponderance of vacant commercialspaces, but like Galpin’s cutout, draw our attention to previously overlooked areas of the skyline, prominent percheswhere advertisers tend to place their messages. Like the park from which we’ll spot them, Beck’s nostalgic constructions willreclaim untapped venues for visual culture.That stunning singularity–the fact that the High Line functions like no other contemporary art venue in the world, and that noarchitectural or experiential site anywhere resembles it–makes the park an infinitely rich and inspiring venue for displaying andframing views of contemporary art. By revealing new, elevated vistas onto the city and its environment, the High Line allows40 ARTisSpectrum

public art to inhabit a space that is neither strictly a park, street, nor public plaza. The artists whose works have been plantedor temporarily grafted onto the suspended greenway grow into the unusual setting superbly, integrating the unique environmentwhile reaching out to the Chelsea streets below and further into the city. As the seeds of these early endeavors begin to sproutbeyond the park’s railings–at the Whitney site, but also other locations like Diller Scofidio & Renfro’s planned phase threeadjacentoutdoor exhibition venue Culture Shed–the High Line’s role as a magnet and incubator for the city’s best public art willonly become more crucial.Benjamin Sutton is the Arts Editor at Brooklyn-based alt-weekly The L Magazine, and his work has also appeared inthe New York Press. He is currently earning a Master’s in Media Studies at the New School in Greenwich Village afterstudying Art History and Cultural Studies at McGill University in Montreal.Photos by Jason Giordano - www.jgiordanophotography.com41 ARTisSpectrum

Creative Paths by Debra FitzsimmonsLooking at art and experiencing art connects us to the person who created the works involved. There is of course, our emotionaland intellectual connection to the message the artist intended. But artwork also connects us to the way of thinkingof the artist who created it. I look at artwork and I wonder in what mindset or thinking mode the work was first conceived. Wasthere a predetermined destination or did the work progress as a discovery process? What transitions between sureness anddiscovery occurred during the creation of the artwork? The creative path revealed through the art has a direct relationship to theartist that produced it. It discloses the HOW of an artist’s thinking.42 ARTisSpectrumIn the beginning…Words or Images?Some artists approach ideas by talking about them andthinking about them through language. This is the mindsetof linguistic thinking. Language gives form to artisticthought and the resulting images. Language as a conveyorfor thought is conscious and often linear. It is easyto plan out ideas and record ideas with linguistic thinking.Language is so strong in its ability to give solid formto conscious thought that it seems inseparable from it.Yet some artists approach ideas through images, instead.This is the mindset of visual thinking. For anyone unaccustomedto intentional visual thinking, lack of wordscan be misunderstood as lack of conscious awareness.The artist creates his work while in a trance! But anyonewho is an artist knows that images are also consciousconveyors for thought and the development of ideas.Hamza Bounoua: Passage on Arrival 3 Mixed Media on Plexiglass 47” x 47”In the late 1900’s there was a lot of scientific researchresulting in popular talk about the contrast between “LeftBrain” language thinking and “Right Brain” spatial/visualthinking. More recent research shows that the brainhemispheres do not operate in isolation from each other.Instead there is constant interactivity. But this makesme wonder, “How it is that when I am deeply involvedin my art, the talk radio is just noise? My husband entersmy studio and says something to me. It sounds likethe “WAW, WAW, WAW” of Charlie Brown’s teacher.” Ittakes several seconds, sometimes stretching to over aminute - a real time delay - for the noise to become meaningful language. Where did that left brain go?The words did not wake me from an unconscious trance. I wasn’t in a trance. I was thinking very consciously and very deeply– but I was thinking visually. I know there are times when I think about artistic ideas through language as well.In what mindset was Michelangelo when he began his ideas for the Sistine Chapel? Were the words of Genius the dominateinspiration for the compositions? Or did he begin his ideas with images, imagining the visual possibilities? Where does any artist’screative path begin?Existent Ideas and Emergent IdeasWhether a beginning idea resulted from language or visual thinking, an artist can work with an existent plan or aim towards anemergent idea. These are distinctly different directions.Consider the following scenarios:#1. You made plans to take a walk. You had directions and a map. You knew where you would start. You were fairly confidentabout where you would end up. The signage was well posted. The sidewalk was a well-lit. The pavement was solid and even. Atthe conclusion of your walk, you ended up at the planned destination.#2. Or maybe as you walked the lights grew dimmer, the once even pavement broke apart, eventually becoming rough gravel,then soft sand. Then floating above, beckoning spirits suggest unsure directions. Do you choose one of these or go back towhere you began?#3. You walk out into the night onto soft sand. No signs with place names or directional markers exist. You don’t know whereyou are going or where you might end up. It doesn’t matter. You only know you have to walk. There is no path, only sand in alldirections. The sand on the path is so soft your feet can’t position themselves firmly. Then floating above, beckoning spirits hintof more solid paths. The view down one path intrigues you so you chose it. As you walk the dawn begins, the sand becomesrubble and then solid concrete bathed in sunlight. Oh! There’s a sign!

Scenario #1 represents the artist who begins with an existentidea. An existent idea can be conclusively or nearconclusively described before the artist begins the artproduct. The final art product exists in the artist’s mindbefore it exists in reality. Visual resources are accumulatedor developed to support the idea. Sketches andthumbnail compositions are conducted with a knowndirection in mind. The artwork is then the result of investigation,analysis and artistic choices that support theexistent idea.An emergent idea comes from the opposite approach. Anintentional direction may be chosen… but it is far fromknown where that direction will take the artist. The artistdoes not know what the work will be like until the artistdeems it complete. Spaghetti-like ideas are thrown at theart to see what will stick. Through processes of experimentation,analysis, discovery and changing paths oneafter another, the art is created. “What is chance for theDebra Fitzsimmons: Not Everything that Counts Mixed Media on Canvas 31” x 47”ignorant is no longer chance for the learned.” (Henri Poincare) Jackson Pollock knew he would randomly toss paint on the canvas.He left himself open to throwing whatever else came to mind during the creation of the work. But he never knew what the artworkwould look like until he pronounced it done. Scenario #3 represents the artist who works toward an emergent idea.But both directions can transform into the other. For the artist, the concrete idea can become sand, and walking in sand canlead to foot-firm ideas. Scenario #2 is one example of transition. Transitions are interesting because they reveal so much aboutthe artistic journey. Even in planned works, there are emergent events that transition the final artwork from the existent plan.The pentimenti lines in Leonardo De Vinci’s sketches for Girl with Ermine reveal a search for both visual accuracy and poeticstatement. These sketches show transitional thought. Although the idea was pre-established before the painting was begun,the actual rendering of it was subject to change. Those transitions occurred spontaneously as a direct result of visual thinking.Pollock intended his works to be about chance. Ironically, this leaves his works with an aspect of predetermination. There wasno question about the finality of the type of work to be produced. Yet his transitions also occurred spontaneously as a directresult of visual thinking, revealing a search for conceptual authenticity and poetic statement. To what extent do individual artistsexperience transitions in direction during the creation of any given artwork?If you take a strip of paper and draw a line down thelength, from one end to another, you will have a definitebeginning and a definite end. If you take that same stripof paper, give it a half turn and tape the ends together,then draw a line, you will have a beginning but nevercome to an end until your pen runs out of ink. It is theflipping of the surface that allows this endless loop to occur.It seems to me that very good artists think in a similarendless-loop of linguistic to visual thinking. Similarly,they think in an endless-loop from planned to emergentto planned, etc...or from emergent to planned to emergent,etc. Although the proportionality of these elementsmay be unique to each artist, it is perhaps the ability tobe both concrete and abstract in thinking that feeds theirgenius.Paul M. Cote: Exodus Acrylic on Canvas 36” x 48”I see western art made before the modern era as havinga strong sense of linguistic thinking and existent idea,while modern art concerned itself more with visual beginningsand emergent images… But in post-modernity,artists commonly mix mindsets, directions and transitions within single artworks. Look at the works of Agora Gallery artists HamzaBounoua, Paul M. Cote, Debra Fitzsimmons, Julio Stanly Flores, Cassie Lements or Stephanie Kristofic’s En Arrieres. Individually,these artworks all evoke both linguistic and visual thought. But imagine HOW the artworks began in the artist’s mind. Individually,these artworks all contain transitions across planned and emergent ideas. Each work represents a unique creative path.Debra Fitzsimmons combines teaching with her career as a professional artist. She creates award-winning works whichdeal with issues facing contemporary society, yet also possess a deeply personal passion.43 ARTisSpectrum

Bread Peopleby Alex BravermanWhen I was a child the world consisted of secrets. The objects were mere containers of these secrets. Take, for example, a loafof bread: there were tiny bread people living in it! Did you know that? I envied them: they knew the secret of bread.“People must work for their daily bread,” said father.I thought the bread people were lucky. They already had their daily bread and they didn’t need to work. But then, long ago, fatherwas always right, so I must have missed something. Perhaps, the bread people did not eat bread? Maybe their “daily bread”was something else? How tragic!Thus I unlocked my first secret.Then I grew up, father became mostly wrong, and the world had transformed into a collection of objects. The objects were familiar;they contained no secrets – they became containers of utilities.The world without secrets has nothing to say. It can only be described and used.I started taking pictures of this world. I started taking pictures of objects. As time went by, I created a perfect image in my head,the image of a perfect photograph. I’d figured what a perfect photograph – the perfect paper world – looked like. And I was gettingcloser and closer to this perfect photograph.Improvement meant describing the objects with ever increasing accuracy.I took thousands of pictures, only to make the distressing discovery that they were all the same – all modeled after my visionof the perfect photograph. They described objects: buildings, trees, sunsets and teacups in various arrangements, and evenpeople were described as objects. It could be Chicago or Tokyo – the picture was the same, it could have been Vladivostok! Atone time I could not find an essential difference between the portrait of a ballerina and the portrait of a zebra I took at the zooon the same day. They were the same photograph. (Different wife – same marriage, one might be tempted to resort to the bittermetaphor.)The compositions followed all the lovely rules: the golden rules, the silver rules, the magnesium alloy rules and when I broke therules – it was more of a show-off than necessity, and also in order to break the boredom.Breaking the boredom did not break the bounds.Apart from the compositional strategy, all the photographs had one thing in common: they evoked no emotional response. Thepreconceived notion of perfection had drained them of all blood and life.The idea of the ideal, the perfect photograph, was so ingrained that there was no possibility of taking a single new picture. I hadalready described everything there was to describe, and plethora of new objects would not have produced a new image.The job was done; I could now sell my camera.Then I remembered the bread people. I forgot to take a picture of them!I was standing in front of the Atlas sculpture in New York. I came to New York for a photography workshop with Lois Greenfield,which was to take place the following day. But now I had a free evening and was taking perfect pictures of perfect buildings, allperfectly soulless.44 ARTisSpectrum

I looked up at the sculpture of Atlas and decided to unlock its secret. Atlas carries the world on his shoulders, but that’s no secret,it’s pretty obvious, and is a well documented fact. I looked up and up and up until I saw the secret: Atlas was surrounded bythe bread people of various denominations: Rockefeller’s and St. Pat’s, living in the trees and in the flags, and all of them werepeeking from the windows, from the rooftops, from behind the steeples and from between the rocks. Atlas was holding the worldand looking at me, while the world was looking at him. He wanted to unload his burden on me, but I was not ready yet. Instead,I screwed on a fisheye to expand my horizon to the entire upper hemisphere and took this shot:ATLAS.POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY 15TH ANNUAL CONTEST GRAND PRIZE WINNER. POPULAR PHOTOGRAPHY, JANUARY 2009.45 ARTisSpectrum

Within minutes I was on top of the Rock, trying to catch the bread people in the act. They were everywhere! They were smilingand winking at me, glad and even grateful that I remembered them. They said they missed me. And did I miss them!At this point, a reasonable person who believes that the world is one big object subdivided into the smaller parts would havegone to a psychiatrist. But I wasn’t a reasonable person, and the world wasn’t an object, I’d simply forgotten this phenomenon,but now I remembered it. The world was a point of view, an attitude; it was full of passion and it was colonized by the breadpeople. You don’t believe me? This is what I shot from the top of the Rock, and since cameras never lie – see for yourself:NIGHTFALL IN NEW YORK.REPRESENTED BY AGORA GALLERY.Can you see them? Can you see that this enormous anthill is a repository of secrets, and the bread people are their guardians?Photography is about what does not meet the eye. It is about the bread people. Reality and unreality are freely interchangeable.This quality is called “art.”My colleagues, when asked for feedback, did not comment on the horizon, or the rule of the thirds, or the monitor color calibrationand paper profiling. One of them declared this image “claustrophobic and catastrophic.” I could’ve kissed him. I have managedto convey my attitude towards New York to one person, in a single image.If someone asks me, “What does New York look like?” – I’ll send them a bag of postcards. But if someone asks me, “what doesNew York feel like? What’s it like being there?” – I’ll whip out this single photograph: “This is what it’s like!”The next day was a big day for me. I went to meet Lois Greenfield. She was my idol; still is. She could break bounds of gravity,and she has a book to that effect. It’s called Breaking Bounds, naturally. I savored this book when no one was looking. I wantedit to be my secret. And now I wanted to know her secret. I wanted to break the bounds; gravity was but one of them.In the world with bread people objects are devoid of any importance; their presence is purely utilitarian, a visual aid and anaccent – not more. Only the bread people can tell stories about these objects. The ability to tell a story in a single image becameparamount. To acquire this ability one has to replace the descriptive part with its emotional equivalent. But is there suchequivalence altogether? How does one approach the task of telling not what one sees, but how one feels about what one sees?Breaking the bounds lies in this trick.46 ARTisSpectrum

An object matters not a whit – my attitude towards it is everything. Let science describe objects – art is to evoke an emotionalresponse. Objects are all the same – emotional response is not repeatable. By taking pictures of objects one is doomed toproduce the same generic photograph: an object here and an object there, and their relations are but nuances, mostly lost onthe innocent observer. By taking pictures of one’s attitude towards the phenomenon we so inadequately describe as “life,” onebecomes incapable of repetition, since the very attitude is ever-changing and fluid. The objects are fixed and rigid, the attitudeincessantly mutates for she is a living organism.Moreover, by demonstrating his attitude, an artist creates a placeholder for the viewer’s own life’s experience – to be filled withthe viewer’s own attitude and understanding of the human condition. Thus, a work of art invariably involves a co-creative processbetween the artist and the connoisseur. If so – then a work of art is never singular; it is always plural and it comprises as manydifferent images as there are viewers. Each will find his own bread people.I deem a work of art that which has a place for me: to enter with my own bag of experiences and to complete the artist’s vision,as well as his story, which instantly turns out to be my story. (A whole new chapter is required to expand on this thought.)Meanwhile, I entered Lois’s studio and shook the hand of the master. This act had imposed on me a whole new standard. Therewas no going back to the old visions of perfection. Ahead lay the great unknown, the mystery of breaking bounds. The old wayshad to be destroyed. The old themes had to face Stalingrad and be defeated.I had to obliterate the rigid, the austere, the deadly Savonarola who knew everything about perfection and nothing about beinghuman; I had to release myself from him and beg Botticelli to retrieve his paintings from the Bonfire of Vanities.One of the first shy shots was of Natasha Czarniewy. It was no longer a portrait of a ballerina in action or an attractive zebra inthe zoo – it was the Arrival of Venus:ARRIVAL OF VENUS.CREDITS: NATASHA CZARNIEWY, AMY MARSHALL DANCE COMPANY, LOIS GREENFIELD WORKSHOP47 ARTisSpectrum

I could sense the presence of Botticelli. Yet, my Venus did not emerge from the sea foam in a seashell, timid and romantic; myVenus is confident and self-assured, she arrives to make substantial modifications to my understanding of Renaissance and thepassion contained therein.The Renaissance aftertaste seemed appropriate, but I had to find a theme of my own. Stealing the ancient beat-up projects orreinterpreting them to death was not appealing. Besides, a photograph is not an event – it is a process. Dance is the art of motion– and so is photography. Could I reveal this process in a single shot?For the first time I had to photograph not what was so abundantly provided by God, nature and the human manufacture: I had tocreate my own reality – to be photographed. I had to choreograph the piece. The most talented dancers took to it like fish to water;their lives’ experiences contained the proposed story, they could easily relate to it, and suddenly this became a co-creativeprocess involving many participants.48 ARTisSpectrumTHE INTERLOPER.CREDITS: PATRICIA FOSTER, GREGORY SINACORI, EILEEN JAWOROWICZ.PARSONS DANCE, AMY MARSHALL DANCE COMPANY, LOIS GREENFIELD WORKSHOP

The adoring bride, the doubtful and uncommitted groom and the dark woman from his past – the Interloper. All objects areremoved, with the exception of the schematic cloud as the foundation, perhaps hinting at the transience of all moments: theunbearable lightness of being. Maybe. And while the photograph bears a number of technical defects, I treasure it, since manybounds were broken in this image alone.In 48 hours I had traversed the road from modern art to the Renaissance and back again. The bread people had a feast. Art wastheir daily bread. I had finally understood why Michelangelo walked around the slab of Ferrara marble for the entire year, dreamingof David without touching the stone. He was consulting with the marble people; he could see them and converse with them,and until they okayed the project – there was no David. But this understanding came later. For the moment I was busy digestingthe variety of forms and subjects unified by the observation that all the themes involved non-existing entities, mere concepts: theburden and the endurance of Atlas, the innocent beauty of Venus, the haunting shadows of the past and their collective abode– the New Anthill. Not one photograph was descriptive of an object, instead – it touched the membrane separating the tangiblefrom the intangible, the reality and the unreality, the common sense and the personal aspiration. The world of phantoms appearedto be infinitely richer in every detail and every shade. The utilitarian universe existed merely as the support infrastructurefor the ephemeral, and so it remains to this day.©Navah Porat: Girl with Flowers 16” x 16”November 23 - December 14, 2010Reception: Thursday, December 2, 2010Rhetorical RealmsBranko Bosnic | Santiago Garci | Simon Norman | Navah Porat | Eleanor Sackett | LeShawn Warren530 West 25th St., Chelsea, New York212-226-4151 Fax: 212-966-4380www.Agora-Gallery.cominfo@Agora-Gallery.com49 ARTisSpectrum

Young Zoo YouFly Me to the Moon Oil on Canvas 67” x 44”Young Zoo You’s paintings are so boldly unconventionalthat it’s hardly surprising to learn that he dropped out ofart school to develop his own singular aesthetic. The Koreanartist’s canvases transmit a frenetic thirst for new ideas andexperiences that stands in sharp contrast to his poised,contemplative demeanor. Within a single work he’s liable tomeld Western Modern art iconography from Expressionismand Cubism through Surrealism and Pop art, with Easterntraditions like Chinese calligraphy, Japanese prints and IndianMadhubani art. The spectacular fusions that come of suchtireless combining register a stunning range of emotions, aswirling mix of despair and optimism softened with irrepressiblehumor.Similar tensions develop in each piece’s formal details.Though Zoo You’s compositions generally feature a centralfigure around which the canvas has been organized – oftena pop culture icon – surrounding sections remain unruly, sothat multiple perspectives, scales and fields of activity existin delicate balance within one painting. The quality of eachbrushstroke echoes the shifts between equilibrium anddelirium. Zoo You applies his oil paints with the finest and mostdelicate calligraphy brushes, so that even his brashest worksare meticulously detailed. His ability to wring such visuallyrich order from these madcap combinations makes Zoo You’spaintings irresistibly exciting.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Young_Zoo_You.aspx50 ARTisSpectrumBecause every kidhas something to say.Since 1991, Art Start has been providing free artsprograms for some of New York City’s mostat-risk youth: homeless children, young people infoster care or teenagers living on the street.Through workshops in painting, photography,music and creative writing, we replace uncertaintyand frustration in their lives with structure andhope. Above all, we provide them with genuineopportunities to change their worlds, and ours, forthe better.To learn how you can become a part of Art Startor to make a contribution visit www.art-start.orgart saves livesAd created and donated by The EGC Group, Melville,NY.

With carefully melodic compositions that whisper across her canvases,Nicolette Benjamin Black makes tangible the majesty of nature. Sinewy,curvaceous forms converge with billowing lines, luring us into their calmcomplexity. Effortlessly organic, Black’s works, which range in media, softlyecho our relationship with our environment. Figuring as a poetically evocativetreatise on the daily exchange between earth and humanity, Black’s worksconjure the inherent beauty and tragedy of the natural world. Eclectic in bothmedium and material, Black is in essence absorbed by the human experience,which she faithfully and gracefully translates into a visual language at onceunique and universal. “I love to watch another person’s engagement with mywork, whatever form it is taking at the time,” Black states. “I would love tothink that my art might make someone look at objects in their world differently,that they might not throw an item away, that they would have before.” TheAustralian-born artist lives in rural Australia, and works in the nearby capitalof Canberra.Nicolette Benjamin BlackMin MinWatercolor & Ball Point Pen on Archival Board4” x 8”www.nicolettebenjaminblack.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Nicolette_Benjamin_Black.aspxColin MarcouxLa Fête Foraine Acrylic 20” x 24”Colin Marcoux discovered that he was an artist as a young child whenhis mother gave him crayons and blank paper to keep him occupied onrainy days. Childhood occupation and an early awareness of the intimateconnection between natural phenomenon and human relationships wouldserve as the foundation for an artistic vision dominated by the urge to examinelife through a natural lens. Life’s intricacies are explored in his work throughan organic creative process that relies on the spontaneity afforded by the useof acrylics. Color and contrast are key to the artist’s revelation of the imitativerelationship between human life and those surroundings which both reflectand support it. For Marcoux, color is the foundation piece of each exploredelement. He uses color combinations to create compositions that define theessence of his subjects and the truth of their mutual relationships. The freedomof his technique reflects the emotional movement that has allowed Marcoux tocreate by surrendering.meggido5.eu/default.aspxwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Colin_Marcoux.aspxdynamic artist with an innovative and highly distinctive style, Michael GrineA draws inspiration from many different sources. Taking a holistic approach,he is influenced by nature, music, literature, other artists and his friends andfamily – these diverse sources all contribute to motivate him to innovate andexperiment in different media. Grine has used more traditional media such asoils and acrylics but more recently has turned to computers, metal and evenfound objects, using them to make marks in new ways and seeking to pushhimself beyond his comfort zone. In his latest series, paint is thrown or mixeddirectly on canvas, which is then spun to force the paint outwards, creatingchaotic radiating forms that explode from the centre of the paintings. Oftengeometric and layered in construction, the intense colors and deft patterningthat Grine develops directly convey the energy captured within the paint.Michael Grine currently lives and works in Nashville, TN.www.michaelrgrineartist.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Michael_Grine.aspxMichael GrineSpace Acrylic on Canvas 24” x 36”51 ARTisSpectrum

EYE ON THE ARTISTAn Interview with Alex BravermanIn your article about the secrets of the ‘bread people,’ you talked about finding the hidden in the everyday. Can youexplain how you approach the world in order to succeed in this search?[Alex] I approach it as a writer rather than a photographer. The world is a grand stage, indeed, in which not only the people butall the objects are actors. Every scene holds a potential story; it is my desire to develop the plot of this story. Photography isabout what does not meet the eye. This story is what does not meet the eye, it is entirely subliminal, and my approach is to elicitit even from the cold rock.For some time you focused purely on technical achievement, aiming for the ‘perfect photo.’ What did you gain from thisperiod, and what made you so happy to move on from it?[Alex] I realized the futility of pure technical perfection, while gaining the ability to use the camera (and post-processing techniques)as easily as my own hand. Yet, the ability to use one’s hand is meaningless in itself -- one must be able to create somethingmeaningful by using it. Consider a chess game: it is not the board and the chessmen that matters, it is neither the abilityto move around the pieces of wood, nor the knowledge of the basic moves. A chess game is a pure, ideal creation of mind; itis something that is in essence entirely not material. A “perfect photo” creates the board and the chessmen -- it does not offerthe game itself in any form. Hence, photographic technique is a mere tool, one of many, that allows the ideal to manifest -- notmore. The real meat is the ideal itself.52 ARTisSpectrum

What is your favorite of all the photographs you’ve taken? Why?[Alex] Invariably, it is the last photograph I took!Concepts play an important role in your work. How do you choose which concept to develop in any given image?[Alex] In exactly the same way a writer chooses the theme and development for a novel. I have over 80,000 photographs, all ofwhich are not in fact yet photographs, but raw material, pretty much as disjointed phrases are for a poet. Here’s a good example:in 2006 I went on a photo trek to Prague and brought back something like 1,500-2,000 photographs. I hated them all, becauseI had no idea what to do with them. The idea of the regular tourist postcards sounded an obscene proposition. And so I did nottouch them for about a year and a half, until one day I showed a couple of samples to my friends. One of them said, “Kafka wouldbe proud.” Eureka! I reread The Trial and The Castle, and turned selected images into the nightmarish world of Franz Kafka (asyou can see in the accompanying image). To this end I had to spend a couple of months learning and I ended up re-inventingthe entire post-processing technique -- just for this series. In short, the Tribute to Kafka took close to two years to mature as apure concept, after the photographs were taken.You mentioned that in your work you seek to create your own reality. What are the greatest challenges you face in doingthat?[Alex] In art, reality and unreality are freely interchangeable. They are forever fluid and morphing. The same basic image canrepresent hope or despair, depending on one’s inclination at the given moment. While toying with the idea of opposite emotiveconcepts developed from essentially the same location, I was astounded by the broad range of response I received from my colleagues:some of them even wanted to swop the titles of Hope and Despair! The challenge is to convey the experience throughthe picture itself, since all the “explanations” of photography are not “in the frame” of the photograph.What does the idea of a co-creative process mean to you, both as an artist and as an art-lover?[Alex] Continuing with the above example... Why would some people wish to exchange the titles of Hope and Despair? Becausethey write their own experience into the story, and that experience happens to be significantly different from mine. In the processof life itself we create a wealth of symbols to designate various emotional states. For me, the roughness of the confined spaceand the blinding light with no hint of the details -- is despair. For others, the mere presence of light is hope. Each writes his ownstory into this pair of images (which is an etude, not more than that), and each completes the story to coincide with his life’sexperience. Hence, the viewer is an active participant, and as such co-creates the final artifact.http://michelangelo-project.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Alex_Braverman.aspx53 ARTisSpectrum

Ron HimlerEucidae Oil on Canvas 45” x 40”Ron Himler creates paintings which confront the viewer withtheir strikingly surreal form and blunt color palette. Shapes- not quite natural in their sharp, twisting contours - saunterthrough these canvases. Akin to surrealists such as Yves Tanguyor even Salvador Dali, this artist’s works are rooted in reality, buteschew bland moments for a more poignant truth. Provokingin their hauntingly sleek texture, his compositions blur the linebetween actuality and the imagination in their use of color andquixotic, accordion-like lines. He uses local, organic color to depictthese intriguing, nuanced forms, furthering a sense of mysticalromance. Himler intends for his works to stand out, forcing theviewer to pause in contemplation, and his unusual style andskillful technique mean he achieves this goal brilliantly.A successful children’s illustrator, Himler is a graduate ofthe Cleveland Institute of Art. The recipient of the Society ofIllustrators Silver Medal, his fine art paintings were invigoratedafter his move to Tucson, Arizona. The provocative, vibrant earthcolors, intermingled with the poetic rhythms of Southwesternlife, inspired him to search out and depict the poetic, dreamlikeessence of desert life. A native of Cleveland, Ohio, RonaldHimler’s paintings now join the pantheon of his achievements inchildren’s book illustration.www.ronhimler.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Ron_Himler.aspxKen LakeNature is an inscrutable force in Ken Lake’sairbrushed paintings, as lakes and dark coastlinesshare the canvas with austere and majestic architecture.The result is a unique universe that is part dreamworldand part utopian aspiration. Exploring what he callsthe ‘architecture of the sky,’ which he portrays withswirling fog and nighttime stars, Ken invites us to walkthrough the boundaries and occupy these ghostly,tranquil locales. The skilled airbrushing techniquehe employs in his large-scale paintings gives thesebeautiful, surreal works countless layers of translucentcolors that shift about with the light.Ken has said that the otherworldly vistas he creates areinspired by his lifelong passion for fantasy and sciencefiction. Each painting also registers the psychologicalterrain of Ken’s emotional responses during hiscreative process. He journeys to a place of personalexploration, of ambiguity juxtaposed with hope. Eachpainting is a personal adventure for Ken, and he aimsThe Long Shore Giclee Print on Canvas 24” x 30”to create imagery that is free from distractions or preconceived reactions from the viewer. In addition to the personal voyagereflected in these spectacular images, Ken’s goal is to offer us the power to lose ourselves in his work so that, as he himselfsays, “the viewers can embark on their own adventures.”www.mythicmichigan.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Ken_Lake.aspx54 ARTisSpectrum

Culture, time and place unite in Guy Marino’s paintings, producingeffervescently euphoric beauty. Stoically painterly, Marino’s works blendthe tangible with the imagined in a practiced aesthetic reminiscent of bothPoussin’s classical purity and Ruben’s evocative stroke. Technically skilledin both painting and photography, Marino’s method is a hybrid of classic andcontemporary. Beginning with a painting or photograph, Marino producesarchival digital prints that are vociferous in color and form. Timeless themesare enlivened through a vibrantly spirited stroke. Moments long relegated tomemory find a fresh voice in Marino’s work. “I tend not to categorize my art,I see it as a living process, always evolving, constantly growing, building onwhat I’ve learned and taking it to uncharted territory searching for that uniquevisual language that can only come through experimentation,” states Marino.Born in Italy, Marino attended Scuola Superiore D’Arte Applicata All’Industria,in Milano, Italy. He lives and works in New York City, where he enjoyed acareer in graphic design before pursuing his passion for fine art.Guy Marinowww.digsarts.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Guy_Marino.aspxPaola GuerraKathyArchival Digital Print, Plexiglass Mount 32” x 30”Paola Guerra’s strong portraits depict confident yet vulnerable womenin a unique style that attests to the varied art historical traditions thatoverlap in her region of eastern Italy. Largely self-taught, her acrylic and mixedmedia aesthetic brings viewers into intimate contact with her subjects, theiralternately playful and defiant poses often crisscrossed with abstract lines, likeexpressive shadows from light reflected off shattered glass. These patternsevoke geometric, proto-Cubist forms, but Guerra’s elaborately rendered styleof neo-realism suggests more contemporary sources. Meanwhile, her choiceof more or less famous photographs of well-known women for many canvasesevokes Pop-influenced Eastern European artists like Martin Kippenberger andNeo Rauch.Guerra synthesizes such precedents into a unique mix of styles and a highlydeveloped mode evocative of deceptively distant mementos, like weatheredfamily photos passed down for generations. In this sense, her remarkablecompositions are rooted in tradition, yet they remain undeniably contemporary,being both proudly youthful and ennobled by tradition.The Filter N. 9Acrylic & Mixed Media on Canvas 18” x 17.5”www.paolaguerra.blog.tiscali.itwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Paola_Guerra.aspxYunkap Jung’s stunning oil paintings on canvas create an immediateimpression and are remarkable in their ability to be both subtle andsumptuously bold at the same time. A masterful draughtsman and colorist,Jung employs vibrant reds, yellows and hot pink with calm blues and greensand flashes of white, lending his works a freshness and vitality that is unusualin realist work. His backgrounds and methods of composition make the shapesin his works abstract to some extent and add to the drama of the pieces,imbuing them with an otherworldly quality. He pays careful attention to thepaint, often using strong texture to add depth to the paintings. The balanceachieved in his works goes beyond the canvas surface. Jung speaks to thebody, the heart and the ideal. Having worked hard for recognition in his nativeKorea, Yunkap Jung concentrates on a holistic approach, creating artworkswhich speak to the soul and promote peace.Yunkap Jungwww.jykkap.com.ne.krwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Yunkap_Jung.aspxWing Up Oil on Canvas 38” x 38”55 ARTisSpectrum

the poet’s paletteMany artists find that exploring more than one form of art enriches their work in a profound and rewarding way. Inthis article some of our artists explain their thoughts on the relationship between poetry and visual art in their livesand creations, and present an example of artwork which is connected to poetry they have written.Contributing Artists: Elisabeth Guerrier, FLORA, Jeff Jackson, Kristo, Luisine Breitscheidel, Tyice Natasha and John NiemanThe artist and the poet are certainlysimilar manifestations of the sameneed to express their views of the worldand everything in ways untypical of themajority of people. This is not to saythat the person who doesn’t draw, paint,sculpt, compose music or verse doesn’tsee the beauty or ugliness of the worldas artists and poets do, but rather theyexpress it in more prosaic ways. Perceptionand honesty aren’t the issue here,but rather style.It should come as no surprise that mostplastic medium artists are pretty goodwordsmiths, either in prose or poetry.And it is a pleasant irony that the reverseis not generally true. Why this phenomenonexists is a difficult subject on whichto speculate. My coarse, personal opinionis that poetry is a far easier mediumto create than artwork. No doubt manyirate poets will politely disagree, someperhaps even in verse, and converselymost artists will agree. But, it reallydoesn’t matter, does it?When I first started writing verse (almostone year ago) I did so because of theneed to express myself to a woman insuch a way I could not in either proseor a painting, despite the fact that shewas abundantly aware of my attempts todo so in those other media. I found thatthere is a tone, color, lilt and an art to thelanguage of verse that doesn’t exist inany other way except singing. And sincemy voice resembles that of a croakingfrog rather than an earnest friend, expressingmyself in verse became theonly alternative. Silence was also theonly other available option and I assureyou I attempted it before finally giving in56 ARTisSpectrumto penning verse. (Note: As a matter ofhistorical fact the verse had little ultimateeffect on the intended victim.)At any rate I was astonished, both thenand now, how easily and naturally writingverse came to me. Prior to attempting towrite verse I had always assumed doingso was a laborious, involved, almost tortuousexercise involving “writer’s block”in the extreme and wastebaskets full ofballs of wadded up paper thrown by frustratedand disgusted amateur scribblers.The fact that I discovered that it waseasy to do, like so many things in life, encouragedme to really start cranking outthe stuff at an alarming rate. And sinceit is the destiny and indeed as Freudput it, the ambition, of all male artists toproduce their work only as a means ofgaining “… the approbation of beautifulwomen…” the stuff came gushing out.The specific source of my verse is directlyrelated to my artwork in the most obviousof ways. Since I draw and paint thefemale figure, always from live models,my opportunities to gain their approbationare frequent, compelling and thoughoften frustrating they are nonethelessavailable and tempting. To speak to abeautiful woman in verse does on occasionhave the desired effect. It indeedacts as a catalyst and even a fuel to thefire at its most elemental level. It perpetuatesitself and it affords me a means ofexpression that relieves the more graphicaltechniques, the forbearance of whichcan become tedious.Poetry writing also engenders other benefitsto expression that making artworkdoes not. As a practical matter it’s lessexpensive, less time consuming, lessmessy, requires smaller pieces of paperand only a pen or a pencil. It usuallygives off no noxious smells unlessthe poem is a truly maudlin stinker. Unlikea drawing or a painting, writing verseleaves behind no bulky artifact or otherwiseannoying physical result. There’sno need for frames or wall space, justa computer file or the quiet and discreetpages of an infrequently opened book.Cookbooks have turned out to be thebest filing system to date.I would encourage all artists to attemptto write verse. Why? Because writingverse will give them a welcome respitefrom their compunctions to expressthemselves in paintings or sculptures.God knows that will come in handy. Ialso believe writing verse also sharpensone’s view of the world. Plus, if done reasonablywell, it’s fun.Lastly, verse by artists leaves behind averbal record of the artist’s perceptionsof the world in a form that may be moreunderstandable to those who view it thanartwork alone. I have yet to compose apoem that, unlike drawings, cannot beappreciated by even the dullest wit. Andif this is not universally true, I can alwaysrely on a painting or a drawing to carrymy message to the less literate. In short,two heads are better than one.Written By: Jeff Jackson

John Nieman“Words are only painted fire. A look is the fire itself.” Mark TwainFrom a sparse palette of three primary colors, 26 letters of the alphabet and seven musical notes, we persist in arranging them,mixing them, spinning them, shading and layering them in ways that are infinitely surprising and fresh. Sometimes, the resultsare heroic. Sometimes, jarring. Usually, they are personal and often illuminating. You’d think by now we would have run out ofoptions. I sometimes believe it’s a miracle. And indeed it is: the miracle of human creativity.If only in that respect, I have always considered art and words (and music) as kindred spirits; in the case of the poem and paintingin this article, I cannot even remember which came first. At their best, all of these pursuits help us feel something that isotherwise not so apparent to the naked mind.“Ask not.”“I have a dream.”“Play it, Sam.”“It was the best of times. It was the worst of times.”“What light through yonder window breaks?”“Who’s on first?”“Somewhere over the rainbow.”“Old soldiers never die.”“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn.”“Either the drapes go, or I do.”All of these words conjur an image, a time and place, and above all, an emotion. They exercise the brain. They connect us toa larger humanity and somehow expand our consciousness of the real world around us.It’s all art. It’s all good. It’s all food for the soul, the spirit and the indefatigable,constantly curious human imagination.Very Old StarsThe glory days are faded.The rust has taken hold.There’s a residue of magic,But these stars are very old.They are fixtures of an epoch,Of another time and place.And yet, their Technicolor beamRefuses to eraseThose glints and flints of bygone days.Their flickers late at night.Still give these antique superstarsAn incessant, effervescent, incandescent light.57 ARTisSpectrum

Jeff JacksonDo paints or words convey the bestOf any story above the restAs both are artful means to tellA tale of life or death’s sad knellThough one has color to plainly seeThe other relies on thoughts to beThe mind’s sole eye and the heart’s true viewFor both work magic as they will doWhich is to set the mind thus freeAnd make the viewer’s heart agreeThat both words and pictures won’t belieOur soul’s true course to amplifyOur love of life in all its hopeLike a multi-colored zoetropeWhich as it spins its merry wayWill twist and turn and always stayUpon its course to beauty boundBoth painter and poet to their renown.FloraIn the medium, I write and put into images the language thatallows me to express myself, the way Poetic tales do.The stories that I tell...Entre rêve et réalitéMon regard se perdDans cet infini du vide qui me fait face.Sans me retourner, j’avance,J’emplis de couleursL’espace que mes jours ignorent.Couleurs de soleilOu couleurs de jourQui, à la rencontre de l’obstacle,Trouvent les formes.De cet obstacle surgissent les ombresQui me ramènent à la lumière.Aveugle et sans guide,J’avance vers des chemins inconnusEt cependant si familiers.Ce vécu de l’invécu, les formes,Les couleurs, le mouvement sans cesse renouvelé,Emplissent mon espace limité.Entre rêve et réalitéJe ne choisis pas, j’avanceJ’avance, car mes pas ne m’attendent pas…Et je ne veux pas me perdre…58 ARTisSpectrum

Dr. Lusine BreitscheidelPoetry for me is the geometry of words, elegantly interleaved to form meaning, describing past, present and future, and showingups and downs of my life and lives of others surrounding me, twisted in surreal scenarios. My poems and paintings tell aboutlove, happiness, sorrow, unmet expectations, “if...then...else” episodes of life, et cetera. Sometimes poems remain unwritten onpaper, and words, simply pronounced, are exhaled in the air and broken up into letters, in order to reappear months later on canvas.I believe that any poem and any painting is a conglomerate of signals, some of which are more evident than the (encrypted)others. Poets and artists aim to share something essential with their audience through their works – they are transmitters ofinformation, and as you know, the common steps of information flow include encoding, transmission and decoding. The commonbarrier that impacts understanding poetry is a language-barrier, for example my poem will mean nothing (or in the worst case willbe noise) to a person who does not speak Russian, and translation into English may change the original meaning of the poem.Similarly, if during an exhibition a curator explains my art work, the explanation from his or her perspective might be radically differentfrom mine. For example, a curator may not know why I expressed myself in the painting “Expectations” as a dark hunchedbeing holding a red flower and presented my daughter as surrounded by snails, though you can guess.I strive to find the most parsimonious solutions in poetry, art and other aspects of life and work to communicate with other people.If people do not understand what I am trying to tell them during a conversation, in email correspondence, through poems orpaintings, then I failed to reach key milestones in personal development.****Стекло фотографий разбито,И некому вытереть пыль.И не ясно, кто друг, кто подруга,Где волшебные сказки, где быль.Наш поезд умчался навеки,Только нас в этом поезде нет.Двадцать тысяч земных километровМежду нами, ты в курсе? Привет!****Застряла я между мирами,Что в прошлом, что в будущем,Не могу различить.Вот и сказочник, отрицающий небыль,Отрицает себя, чтобы что-то постичь.Черный асфальт был когда-то пустыней,А листок дневника - древесиной сосны,Все в процессе, меняются необратимоКак сказочники, так и дети войны.59 ARTisSpectrum

HOPEIf the sun does not shine for you and IThe moon will rise to brighten our nightIf the well runs dry when we should drinkThe rain will fall to give us strengthIn hope we always must travelThe mysteries ahead we’ll unravelTake the lead and not followStay in the light avoid the shadowThe night sky will always have starsIt’s a certainty that they areWe must fly through the mist of despairTo see their light and at heaven stareLife dances to the beat of the heartWhen it stops it goes back to the startMetamorphosis and regenerationThe soul reborn through rejuvenationKristo (Christian Nicolas)Tyice NatashaPoetry is the language of the Divine, it is the language of love.It is the life we breathe in and the act of breathing. It is botha metaphor for life and life itself living in life. There is poetryin the simple act of looking at a flower, making a cup of teafor a beloved, and even in the gentle stroke of the brush on acanvas.I write poetic words on my paintings, but it is the colours ofexpression, the stroke added, the divine elegance and lovethat poetry exudes that makes the art poetic. The art becomespoetry and the poetry becomes art. They possess each otherin the creative finish. This is life itself.The painting shown here is called The Flow of the River. Readingthe line of poetry, you can easily see the connection betweenthe words and the image, developing and strengtheningeach other.Love flows like a slow thought listening to an elegant song.60 ARTisSpectrumWhen he was asked to evaluate my work as an artist, an internationalart critic said the following:“…Kristo’s poems are paintings and his paintings are poems.”No other words could have described better the role played bypoetry and visual art in my life.To me, painting, art photography and poetry are but expressionsof the soul. A stroke of the brush inspires words and aword of wisdom or love sets the most beautiful painting in motion.Adding art photography to the recipe, and the freedom toplay with an image brings out a world of creation where paletteand pen become the bliss from where I, as an artist, experienceecstasy.For Kristo, it is clear that there is a deep and intimate connectionbetween poetry and painting. In his work entitled ‘Hope’you can see the elements that stand out in the poem that goeswith it; the moon, the mist of despair, the night sky and thestars can all be found in both expressions of creativity. In thissense, the different art forms support and develop each otherthrough their mutually binding relationship.

Elisabeth GuerrierIN AND OUTTell me, how can I move forward at the right rhythmWhile I pay attention to your chronic migraine?World of mine, walk by my side,Let me press my palms over your forehead.I know it will calcine most of my expectationsBut I’ll do my best not to run away.I promise I won’t break looseFrom this complete lack of understanding.Look at me.I’ll paint some plastic feathers on your will.I promise to stay quiet and not expel you from In.Come inside, fertilize me.World of mine, lovable, violent world,Tell me how to talk loud enough but not too much.How to keep you intact insideIn spite of our cruel and irreversible separation.Stay patient while I sharpen my eyeTo scratch a little deeper on your surface.Please, while I’m holding you,Do not enlace me too tight.Tolerate my drip-feeding murmur to nurtureYour stunning silence.Let me try to draw my own tiny red line on your back.And just bow your masterly headTo peep at In while I chisel Out.And then feel free and do it, chisel In.Let’s doodle on our doubt, mellifluous world.Let’s consume each other.Let’s contaminate our common substance,I’m right here,Out of reach, this, you won’t stay.In the entire creative process, the only element which remains totally out of the artist’s personal control is the drive.The type of media used for any particular work brings its own potential and constraints to the project, contributing them to the shapingof a known but somehow subconscious subject.Of course the primary function of discourse is as a communication tool, and for that purpose it is organized around space and timeand logical categories. But the nature of poetry, though still using language, is different; while the categories remain chained tomeaning, through poetry it is possible to expose hidden significance.The dynamic of writing poetry is such that it transgresses the preexisting classes, flowing between their blocks of meanings. Thepoet’s specific style is his or her personal linkage of associations, drifting from one imaginary scene to another.This dreamlike process and the interaction with the moving meanings is somewhat paradoxical, in that the architecture of the piecerequires a complete mastery of the form; good luck just cannot suffice. Control is vital; without it, there is no writing. You might saythat writing poetry is a strict exploration of freedom.If that is the case, then you could also say that the creation of visual art compels the artist to a sensuous availability in which theenergy of reality finds expression through the media used and through the body’s independence. It introduces a random dimensioninto the triangle produced by the gesture, the media and the underlying message.The encounter is very playful and exhilarating, and sometimes devastating too since the eyes are working simultaneously as criticalbeings and as creators. Their first grasp is global, immediate and out of control, leaving no time or distance for analysis. Thistransforms the visual game into a more physically seducing encounter, a more emotionally unpredictable adventure.For many artists, a good-enough self-expression can only be found by working with more than one media. By approaching thedesire for expression in different ways, an artist-poet can create in reflection some equilibrium between the overriding related importanceof the drive and subject’s multiple facets.61 ARTisSpectrum

FLORA’s mid-sized acrylic and mixed media on canvas paintings are acontemporary amalgamation of style and content: abrasive textures,swooping brushstrokes and jagged abrupt edges sink into lush, opulent wavesof color. Jewel tones, icy blues and somber greys drift amidst amorphousmeteors, crags and vegetal and anatomical forms which the artist hasarranged in patterns suggesting evolution and transformation. A poet as wellas a painter, FLORA is interested in legends, myths and experiential creation.Her paintings are a song of infinity, imbuing the fluidity of paint with the lyricismof poetry. She uses relief to express the erosion of space in time and thestratifying effects of light. Cosmological, astrological, geological, her creativeproduction is a deeply personal and metaphysical process concerning bodiesin time and space.A French artist and poet, FLORA has been painting since 1981. Her work hasbeen shown in Europe, Japan, Arab Emirates, Canada and the United States.She currently lives and works in the Toulouse region of France.FLORADans le Flot Etoilé d’un Océan CélesteMixed Media on Canvas 51” x 71”www.flora-artiste-peintre.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Flora.aspxCorina SchmidtPainter Corina Schmidt finds ample inspiration in the senses and sightsof her surroundings. Self-taught in a myriad of media, Schmidt’s thick,bravura brushwork confronts the spectrum of expressions and moods inherentin human nature. Color is boldly vociferous, punctuated by nuances of soft,rich textures. Willows of waving pigment and patches of painterly paysageflow through these canvases, which whisper a subtle encouragement to thoseencountering the daily trials and injustices of life. The artist’s preferred tool isthe paintbrush, but she also favors the spatula and book. Schmidt absorbsand understands the literature of aesthetics and artistic practices, exuding herpassion and cultivated knowledge on her canvasses. However, it is her past —enigmatic and anguished — that most fuels her works. “My works are mostlycreated with many color layers, mostly built on a smooth or gross underlinedstructure,” she explains. “The various layers present my way of life with its upsand downs.”Born in Schwerte, Germany, Corina Schmidt lives and works in Dortmund.www.artmenue.dewww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Corina_Schmidt.aspxBogen FarbenOil on Canvas 31” x 24”Decades of experience in other media inform Canadian artist John DavidHart’s texturally rich, wonderfully rhythmic paintings. The deep grooves ofhis granite sculptures turn into thick edges and broad brushstrokes in mysticaloil compositions. An acute sensitivity for repetition and variation developed onover a dozen recorded albums explains Hart’s evocative sense of sequencingand timing, with figures and forms repeating and transforming as they moveover the canvas. He cites the influence of Modern and Classical masters,whose work he alludes to in the mysterious scenes and characters thatpopulate his paintings.Familiar objects and architectural forms become sites for bizarre happeningsand ominous events, as though two realities had suddenly collapsed into oneanother. Sharp, realist figures inhabit untamed, expressionist landscapes,as moments of postmodern self-reflexivity unfold against magical realistbackdrops. There is always a powerful logic to his wild juxtapositions, though, asense that staging encounters between disparate forces will help us understandeach separate ingredient, and perhaps their interactions, more fully.www.zazzle.com/graphicmanwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/John_David_Hart.aspxJohn David HartBaby Train Oil on Panel 22” x 28”62 ARTisSpectrum

R. Porter Finch’s large scale acrylic and mixed media on canvas paintingsexplore the theme of eternal paradox. The serpentine splendors of thedivine feminine meet brash hues and aggressive textures, falling into loose,lyrical abstraction. Finch’s characteristically abundant palette – emerald,vermillion, lemon, indigo and highlights of neon are recurrent hues in his works– sets aflame the mystical content at the core of his oeuvre. Inspired by thespirit world and the indigenous belief systems of the Huichol Indians who livenear where he resides in Mexico, Finch works at the intersection of religion,spirituality and psychology. Considering himself a “mere steward” of creativematerials, this is an artist who utilizes painting as a spiritual modality to explorelight and dark, the material and ethereal, death and resurrection.R. Porter Finch is a native of Little Rock, Arkansas and currently lives andworks in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico. He has been a student of a Course inMiracles for over 18 years.www.artquid.com/finchwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/R._Porter_Finch.aspxR. Porter FinchAscent Acrylic on Canvas 41” x 58”Monique DaneauMoments Serie no. 10Acrylic on Canvas 20” x 28”Chemistry meets artistry in Monique Daneau’s melodically expressivepaintings. Vivacious, lush color pulsing with spirit runs throughout thecanvas, with loose, painterly strokes meandering through structured, nuancedstrata of paint. Trained in oil painting, acrylics liberated Daneau to createthickly whispering compositions, rich in serrated texture. This is an artist whoexplores paint like a scientist scrutinizes a specimen, approaching the canvaswithout preconceived drawings or studies, pure in aesthetic concentration. Shepoetically observes the people, place and essence of the world around her,translating her experience into sumptuously colorful paintings. Daneau creditsacrylic paint for releasing her style from any lumbering materiality. Her workis vivid in its firm base in the present, and in that sense acrylic is emblematicof her zealous approach to life. “I am a passionate person who lives life in themoment,” she says. “I currently seek my inspiration from the people around meand their stories of happiness and sorrow.” A native of Sorel-Tracy, Canada,Monique Daneau has exhibited her work worldwide.www.moniquedaneau.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Monique_Daneau.aspxCarl Ellis’ abstract photographs capture the depth and vibrancy of passingmoments in the natural world. Trained as a commercial photographer,Ellis began his journey into fine art in the pre-press houses of New YorkCity. His in-depth knowledge of film development and printing shows in hisexquisite photo series. Relics of darkroom experimentation, his images cometo life on the metallic photo paper they are printed on. His style focuses on themicrocosmic characteristics of his subject in their natural light. The oxidationof metal, dangerous close-ups of spiked plant life and deteriorating organicmatter are just some of the subjects he has explored. Not limiting himself toa particular style or subject, Ellis has recently broadened his opportunitiesby shooting for NGOs. A photographer at heart, he photographs and exhibitswhenever possible, pouring part of himself into every shot with attractive andriveting results.Carl Ellis currently lives in Jersey City, NJ and works in NYC.Carl EllisSpike Metallic Print 16” x 24”www.carlellisphotography.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Carl_Ellis.aspx63 ARTisSpectrum

Ford WeisbergI’ll Take the Couch Digital Painting - Inkjet Print on Paper 25.5” x 32”Conjuring up expansive visions filled with subtle,expressive textures, hard lines, elongated formsand fantastical color, it is not hard to see that FordWeisberg’s work has obvious affinities with thework of the Surrealists and Abstract Expressionists.However, as extraordinary as they are visually, hispieces are also extraordinary in terms of technology.Weisberg is a pioneer in his field, digital painting,harnessing technological advances to allow him topaint digitally in the truest sense, a tablet sensinghis movements and pressure, relaying it to thecomputer. This allows Weisberg myriad possibilitiesof color, texture and intensity, let alone form – andincorporates things that real paint cannot do. Hetherefore allows his painting to form unimpeded,experimenting, playing with his digital canvas andthen shaping it as it forms until a work is complete.His is the freedom of truly original creativity. Fromthis process, imaginary, organically inspired formsemerge, disembodied in a world of indeterminate duration. Heavily influenced by his training in Classical music, his works havean elegant structural feel to them despite their diverse nature, and color is also influenced by its affinity with and relation to amusical sensibility. Having started working with digital painting in 2004, Ford Weisberg has exhibited widely in the States andhas won several first place awards in competitions.www.fordweisberg.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Ford_Weisberg.aspxIva MilanovaInspired by the rich and colorful folk traditions of her nativeBulgaria, Iva Milanova paints with bold colors and clear lines,situating her vibrant forms against backgrounds that resonate withcolor and texture. Her colors are purely expressionistic, conveyingdifferent moods and imbuing an absorbing depth of meaninginto her paintings. Compositions are edgy yet balanced, andbrushstrokes add movement and rhythm to the overall style. Whatresults are paintings with a distinct emotive quality that are largelyaccessible to the viewer, providing an instant connection to theemotions which have found expression on the canvas.Perhaps the hallmark of Milanova’s work is her incorporation oficons, mosaics and Christian symbols into her paintings. Yet withher background in textile design, these themes are depicted usingan organic approach — quite different from the traditional ornateand stylized techniques often employed for these subjects. Rather,defying conventions and trends in traditional and contemporaryart, Milanova draws her inspiration from a variety of movements,including Cubism and Expressionism, while her forms range fromfigural to the abstract. But perhaps the most striking aspect isthe way her personal search for spirit is translated in her work,resulting in a haven where viewers can catch a glimpse of thespirituality that seems to be vanishing from our world.Madonna Oil on Canvas 35.5” x 31.5”www.iva-milanova.dewww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Iva_Milanova.aspx64 ARTisSpectrum

Michael KatzThe central theme of the work of photographer Michael Katz is theexploration of ordinary truth. He finds arresting moments – those whichboth provoke and transcend – and pushes them beyond their naturalboundaries. In merging the visual and the visceral, he allows the natural tomove into the realm of the supernatural. Through the use of creative tinting,he creates a visual contrast between the seen and the unseen. In daringthe viewer to investigate further, he captures the imagination by awakeningcuriosity. This challenge exemplifies his belief that only in taking the time tolook, can we truly see. He uses light and shadow playfully; in their reluctantsymmetry, they resonate the careful rhythms of a world built around uneasyharmonies. Katz’s goal is not to merely communicate with the viewer, butrather to reach a point of communion where evoked memories creatememory and poignancy lives inside of the timeless echo of awareness.www.michael-katz.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Michael_Katz.aspxMadrid Trees - YellowPhotograph on Metallic Paper 36” x 24”Jose A. GallegoDarkness 3 Photograph 8” x 12”Jose A. Gallego’s photographs sculpt withlight and shadow in a way reminiscent ofseventeenth-century Dutch painting. The subjectmatter of these powerful works ranges fromwildlife imagery to melancholy street scenes andtender, familial moments. Yet Jose’s work also hasan aesthetic and philosophical urgency. Thesephotographs are a powerful reminder of how muchwe have distanced ourselves from our natures tocreate the exotic ‘otherness’ of the natural world.There is a unique, mesmerizing grace and beautyin the world of wildlife and Jose’s images conveythe idea that, no matter how close we feel tonature, there is still something behind it that isinaccessible to us.Perhaps the most powerful aspect of Jose’s workis that he does not expose the subject matter to our measured gaze: quite the contrary, he thrusts us into this other world, whichis at times pitch-black, at others finds us in midair, faced with impossible close-ups. Always we are reminded of our humble placein an enigmatic universe. In this way, his work gets to the core of both art and nature.Even the manmade world is rendered alien and ghostly. Empty streets, park benches, ancient ruins - all are presented with amasterful eye for the beauty of light hitting solid object, capturing details we could hardly be expected to see with the unaidedeye. In this way, we are invited into the wilderness of Jose Gallego’s art and to admire his powerful use of the technology thatcreates it.www.joseagallego.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Jose_A._Gallego.aspx65 ARTisSpectrum

Fred GemmellChildhood Night Acrylic on Plexiglass 48” x 32”Californian artist Fred Gemmell hascreated an entirely new approachto abstract painting using the mediumof acrylic on glass. He spent an entireyear developing specialized techniqueswhereby the painting is composedin reverse as he applies paint to thebackside of special low-reflectivemuseum-caliber coated acrylics andglass. This grants viewers a unique viewthrough the clear surface of the glass tothe colors and forms that lie beneath.Gemmell effectively works backward ashe paints, composing the foregroundof the finished piece first and then laterapplying the final layers of colors meantto enhance the image as background. Ashe explains, “I try to capture with complexdetail and bold gestures the amazingdiversity and adaptability of life in all itsinteraction and beauty. I enjoy creatingabstract living forms that are bright andfeathered, and reflect the interwovencomplexity of life. I love using the toolsof composition, color and detail to createthe feeling of a luminous and unfoldingmystery.”Fred in his StudioInfluenced by a childhood spent inthe tropics of Panama and an ongoingfascination with the natural world,Gemmell’s paintings are vibrant in termsof color and form, illuminated by electriccolors and pulsing with energy and light.Vibrant ribbons of color are set againsta layered backdrop of detailed markingsand suggested forms that reflect theliving, breathing world that surrounds us.The resulting images feature otherworldlyvistas dominated by amorphous formsthat lend an almost celestial bent to theoverall effect. Yet simultaneously thereis a pervading presence of landscape,of solid form that grounds these abstractimages in something recognizable andfamiliar to our everyday world. Thisblending of otherworldly and familiarterrains results in compositions thatleave much to the viewer’s imaginationand compelling images that resonatewith each individual who encountersthem in new and unique ways.www.gemmellstudio.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Fred_Gemmell.aspxRizumu (Rhythm 2)Acrylic on Plexiglass 72” x 42”66 ARTisSpectrum

Paul M. CoteLiquos Acrylic on Canvas 30” x 40”Planet Gasous Acrylic on Canvas 36” x 36”Paul M. Cote, who goes by the artistname of Cody, is a painter withinsight, passion and a drive towardsexperimentation. Upon first glancethese powerful abstractions presentthe viewer with an extremely tactile andlayered surface. As one explores hispainting, one begins to truly appreciatethe magnificently expressive swirls,speckled dots and explosive areas ofpsychedelic color that characterize theworks. This is visionary painting at itsfinest, the creation of an artist who iscrafting a picture of an internal realitynot typically seen, but rather felt with theheart. His artistry is born in the frontierof the mind, a viscous world unfamiliarto the eye that has resulted in incrediblyunique imagery. His creative processcombines spontaneity and perfectionism.Working with an oversized canvas onthe floor, he allows the picture to takeshape naturally but will often rework thesurface many times. Symbolism playsan important role in Cote’s creative life,but of the non-objective kind. Speakingthrough raw abstract forms is a way toopen direct channels of communicationto the audience, each person takingaway a different message. Likewise, theartist has invented a visual language allof his own including multihued dunes,fiery storms and deep abysses which atonce evoke the immense proportions ofthe universe as well as microscopic lifeforms. The impasto surface has beenbuilt up with layer after layer, givingit a sculptural quality and reinforcingthe sense that we are peering at thepockmarked surface of a lost planet.Cote’s paintings have increased both insubject and size over the years, reachingdimensions of twelve feet or more.Paul M. Cote’s evolution into the painterthat he is today has been a spiritualvoyage, from a delighted consumer ofart to an avid creator. He impulsivelyturned to creation during a dark hourof his personal life, which unexpectedlyresulted in his producing expressive andbeautiful art. This spirit is what infusessuch raw vigor and naturalness intoCote’s body of work. He is speaking notonly to us but to himself as well, takingus along for the journey.www.PaulCodyArt.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Paul_M._Cote.aspx68 ARTisSpectrumPaul at work in his Studio

Ling-Ting KaoThe otherworldly forms of Ling-Ting Kao’s stunning mixed-mediapaintings have been known to leap off the canvas like livingorganisms taking flight. She fuses acrylics, oils, charcoal and pastelto create large, solid blocks of color that are often in a visual dancewith thinner, serpentine forms. She frequently skirts the boundarybetween abstraction and representation in these primarily red-tingedworks. She also aims to access primitive urges and bypass censoringthoughts, to bring her impressions onto the canvas free of criticalmediation. Ling-Ting often merges her abstract shapes with identifiablefigures that have a deliberately contemporary pop culture look. Thisoccasional inclusion of real-world graphics also enhances the dazzlingkaleidoscopic expressionism of her imagery.Whether related to real objects or subjective impressions, there is anorganic feel to her shapes, with colors and varying textures that fold intoone another and open to explode in vivid and dramatic sprays. Ling-Ting has said that both classical and rock music are major inspirationsfor her in bringing her dynamic emotions to the canvas. The result is atestament to her commitment and passion, as she creates works thatexpress an engaging, challenging and, ultimately, a generous view ofthe universe.Tap Dancing Mixed Media on Canvas 12” x 10”www.corblimeyarts.com/ForumMemberProfile/show/12www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Ling__Ting_Kao.aspxNami YangPelican Oil on Canvas 30” x 40”Nami Yang’s oil paintings are exceptionallytactile, frequently employing a variety of collageelements juxtaposed against the silky brushwork.Her subject matter is often inspired by impressionsof natural phenomena, personal insights andlucid dreams, which achieve manifestation on thecanvas in an impressionist style reminiscent ofCubism. Nami shows us objects frozen in motionas she transforms time into a pliable raw materialand the foundation for her gorgeous, dramatic andemotional works. Just as colors slide and bump upagainst each other and sometimes meld together,she uses real-world shapes and drops them ontoher canvas to float on the surface of abstraction.Well-known forms become fluid as well as surreal,their identifiable fragments often surrounded bymelting boundaries. The dance of abstraction hasmany tempos in Nami Yang’s work, but it is always exciting. There is also a sculptural touch to the way she manipulates hertransparent forms, as shape becomes line and line melts and thickens into a thick, tangible shape. Colors interpenetrate infeathery boundaries and her imagery curves around itself in a shallow space, self-contained and whole. Nami Yang cites as majorinfluences her grandfather’s skill in Chinese brush painting, as well as her father’s watercolors and her mother’s embroidery, yetshe weaves an aesthetic universe with a voice all her own.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Nami_Yang.aspx69 ARTisSpectrum

Patrick GirodFolles Nuits Oil on Canvas 27.5” x 20”Patrick Girod is a purist. His singular vision, the speed andconfidence with which he works, the utter sincerity of hismarkmaking gives his paintings a magnetism and power that isinstantly noticeable. Starting from the experience of an emotion, Girodtakes the emotion and translates it directly onto canvas at high speed.Almost a form of automatic painting, there is no time for cerebralmeandering or the interpretation of symbols. What emerges is raw, adistilled marker of movement. The elements from which his pieces arecomposed are simple too, as the artist keeps his colors to a minimum,two of three at the most and only in oils. Their foundation is a purewhite ground. Girod may contemplate the subject of each painting fora long or a short time, but for their realization the moment is the keyelement. For him, it is that moment of intense transformation, workingfrom the brink – the last moments of life before death, the point whenlaughter dissolves into deep sobs, the second before the earthquake– that he desires to translate into infinite capsules of brevity.Patrick Girod divides his time between Switzerland and France, wherehe was born. He has exhibited widely in Europe and his exhibitionscontinue to attract intense attention.www.derisoart.blogspot.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Patrick_Girod.aspxMira MitrovaInfused with dreamlike visions of the erotic, the spiritual and an unbreakableconnection with the natural world, Mira Mitrova’s creations recall subconsciousmysteries buried deep in legend and folklore.Nymph-like women emerge from the forest shadows, their bodies and hairentangled in and morphing into leaves, roots and branches. Her mysticallysurreal and sensual deities slowly reveal themselves and their alluring power, atonce immersed in and a part of the darkly shadowed woodlands.An elegant flair for the fantastic lingers in the magic of Mitrova’s visions, asshe paints in oils with a lyrical eloquence. She begins each work focused on asingle form, later dividing and fracturing the image with increasing complexityand detail as her portraits sprout with new growth and possibilities. There is asmooth perfection to her skilled use of the paints, and a feeling of crispness andclarity in her mark that fills her surfaces with life.Renowned throughout her native Macedonia, where she studied graphic artsat the Sts Cyril and Methodius University, Mira Mitrova was awarded nationalhonors for her visually captivating poster designs.Now living in Little Falls, NJ, she has received international recognition in recentyears with exhibitions throughout the art world including Paris, Berlin and NewYork.www.artmira.netwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Mira_Mitrova.aspxPurification 1 Oil on Canvas 31” x 19”70 ARTisSpectrum

Art-making as Searching: Kinship of Country, Body, Ancestorsby Caroline Josephs Ph.D.In north-east Arnhemland, Australian Indigenous storytelling, revealed through intricate visual patterning, is painstakingly appliedto body or bark. Colors and their arrangements are detailed, complex, and layered in meaning for Yolngu people. Allrelate to Mother Earth, or ‘country’. More than that, visual markings are about kinship, connecting body, ancestors, story andsong with earth, sky and sea, and all the creatures, plants and ‘beings’ contained in these spheres. For Yolngu, kinship infusesall life and living Beings.As a ‘whitefella’, a non-Indigenous person, here in Australia, I have been involved for many years with Indigenous people, learningfrom them how they experience country.I was born and raised in Sydney, roaming the bush nearby, exploring rock platforms and swimming in the harbour and ocean asa child. As an adult, I sailed among whales and dolphins in the Whitsunday Islands, squelched through remote rainforests saturatedin mosses, saw giant tree ferns in the Tarkine, ski-toured through Kosciusko’s snow-covered mountains, swam in boneachinglycold mountain rivers, and walked through sand dunes covering the bones of pre-historic animals at Lake Mungo. In theforests of north-east Arnhemland, I have collected pandanas for basket-making, learning the ways of bush healing with Aboriginalwomen. In Central Australia, I have camped in dry river beds, swum in deep cold green waterholes, trekked and rock-hoppedthrough gorges soaring breathtakingly to blue skies with narrow openings and rock faces glowing with orange, yellow, red.Indigenous people have lived in the country now named ‘Australia’ for 60,000 or more years. The Yolngu, because of their remotelocation, have been on their lands for this extended duration. For those most remote language groups who avoided contactwith whitefellas until well into the 20th century - knowledge, stories, and visual patterns are mostly intact.Their tradition of knowing of the land has been refined over millennia, encoded in oral storytelling, singing, dancing, language,and visual ‘designs’. All forms work together like opera – calling up, keeping country alive - earth, sea, sky. Knowledge of whereto find food, ‘right’ relationship, is located in the stories, and the marks….The Yolgnu way is a way of experiencing the cosmos, the earth, sea, and sky that is quite outside our ‘Western’ notions of ‘theenvironment’.For Yolngu, kinship fits within two moieties, Dhuwa, and Yirritja – like Yin and Yang – and all creatures, people, stories, (and evenphenomena, like an itch) fit together in a complementary relationship. If, for example, my dreaming - or ‘totem’ - is a possum,and yours is a dugong, I can eat dugong but not possum. You can eat possum but not dugong. I am the custodian of the possum,you of the dugong. Balance is kept, nothing is over-used. Only a Yiritja person can marry a Dhuwa.Being with Indigenous people over the years has influenced, perhaps infused, my own art-making process… a searching for‘kinship’…It began with the pythons.Living in my home surrounded by the bush for some time, I was writing a doctoral thesis (at that stage it dealt with just Judaicand Zen stories) when I had a number of visits by large diamond pythons, including one that convincingly draped itself acrossmy entry and embedded itself into the jamb of the door. I found myself on a chair looking through the small door window, stampingmy feet, and telling it, ‘Go away! Go away! This is not your place!’ I began dreaming snake stories, recalling the RainbowSerpent Story told to me by Wandjuk Marika, Yolngu Law man, artist, and musician, twenty years before.In questioning many people about the story and asking whether I could tell it myself as a storyteller, I found I couldn’t. It belongedto Yolngu, and there were custodians of the story across five adjoining major clan territories. It would be told only in country,and was associated with three major ceremonies for both men and women. I could only tell the ‘public’ version…an abbreviatedversion of what is mostly referred to as The Wagilag Sisters’ Story.Wandjuk Marika sets out how important visual marks are in relation to The Wagilag Sisters Story, and what deep meaning theyhave for his people. As I read his words, I recall the particular cadences of the way he told it to me in Darwin in 1979:I first see the designs [of the story] on my own body, paint on for a circumcision, tomake me young man. But, before that, I saw some other people who painted themon other bodies …for special ceremonies, like Djan’kawu ceremony, or for specialburial, and on special objects. That’s when I learned the stories.71 ARTisSpectrum

…I am not painting just for my pleasure; there is the meaning,knowledge and power. This is the earthly painting for the creation and for the landstory. The land is not empty, the land is full of knowledge, full of story, full ofgoodness, full of energy, full of power. Earth is our mother, the land is not empty.There is the story I am telling you - special, sacred, important. 1 [my emphases]Painting is ‘story’. To have the ‘designs’ or stories on the body is not merely to ‘re-present’ country. It is to become country,become story, become, or embody, Ancestors in the story.I met Wandjuk in 1979 at an Arts conference in Darwin in the Northern Territory where I was presenting the Arts Education projectI was then coordinating across Australia. I spoke of the project and its teams, its aspects, as a series of color strands, a rainbow.After, Wandjuk came to thank me for the story of the rainbow. Later he told me the story of the Rainbow Serpent - a public versionof the story, not the deeper secret-sacred version reserved for the initiated. Having heard his stories, I had a responsibilityto ‘get them out’.Twenty-three years later, following the python visits to my bush home and my researches with Indigenous people, anthropologists,curators of Indigenous art, and those who have been working in Northern Territory with Yolngu, I was invited to join a smallgroup visiting the Yolngu – to meet singers, dancers, artists.Following our meetings at the Yothi Yindi band studio on a wide turquoise bay, we went on to Garma, a big festival in the bushwhere Yolngu regularly share their culture with a wider audience. Camped among the stringybarks on a wide plateau above thesea, we met in small groups to learn more of the intricacies of Yolngu culture.At Garma, I am standing watching the women, sitting on the sand in the bush shelter making baskets, mats. I wear a simple shelland string necklace I have just recently bought in the Arts centre some distance from this festival camping ground.One woman looks up from her weaving, to say smiling, pointing at my necklace, “I made that”. “Ooh!” I respond, and touch theprecious, oval, pearl-shell object, the colors of the sea and earth. “I love it”. And then I ask, “Can you teach me to make string?”“Djerrkngu can,” she replies, and I am among the women, sitting and chatting, asking them about their country, and their names.Djerrkngu patiently shows me how to ply two pieces of shredded pandanas bark using the heel of my hand on my thigh. It is astep into Yolngu ways…They ask, “And where do your people come from?” I was not expecting this. I tell them briefly, somehow perfunctorily, the storyof my paternal grandparents’ migrations and their escaping from pogroms in the last part of 19th century Latvia, to Glasgow andlater to Sydney, and on the maternal side of the journey from the Ukraine to Manchester, later to Sydney. I am unsure of what itmay mean for them.I am totally unprepared for the response.The two women on either side of me put down their basket and string-making, and begin slowly to stroke my arms from shoulderto wrist, over and over, and croon, a kind of singing or chant, ‘Awww…….awwww…….awww……AAAwwww, AAAwww….aaawww… AAAwwww, AAAwww….aaawww….’Eventually the singing dies away and they say quietly, “We know…We know…. what it is…. to lose country.”I am transfixed. A threshold has been traversed.These people can know the Jewish experience because they have suffered it themselves. Their lands have been threatenedover and over by the mining operations that encroach their country. Also, I discover, their artwork has taken them to Israel, andto Germany.In my own artwork, I am searching for a new story – one that can respect the deep and ancient traditional Indigenous knowledge ofthose Elders I have been privileged to walk with - and at the same time bring my own migrant sensibility into the conversation.Uncle Max (Dulumunmun) is a Yuin Elder (south coast New South Wales) I have known and worked with, and walked with incountry for more than twenty years. He says, Before there can be any ‘re-conciling ‘ between Indigenous and whitefella, therehas first to be a reconciling with the land – by both. Together, we regularly take whitefella groups into country (in the bush) tohear Uncle Max’s stories, to introduce a new way of experiencing country.A tiny label in the National Museum in Canberra on a display of some Indigenous artifacts sings out to me - my body in a kindof tremor of intrigue, excitement.1Wandjuk Marika, quoted in Wally Caruana and Nigel Lendon, (eds.), The Painters of the Wagilag Sisters Story 1937-1997, Australian National Gallery, Canberra, 1997, p.158.72 ARTisSpectrum

The label reads:Ancestral Beings are Stories, and their Sacred Dwelling Places are Story Places.I have no idea what it means. It turns out to be a quote from a linguist/anthropologist who has worked in Cape York with Aboriginalpeople 2 . The phrase resonates, plays like a riff in my mind for many months. It was to open another way of understanding…ancestors, country, body, and present time people re-evoked all at once as the stories are told, in a particular place at a particulartime….right now!All this, and more… began to play out in my own artwork…One day, I found myself wishing fervently to escape the confines of walls and room, ceiling, easel and windows, and taking uppaper and charcoal I set off into the bush, following a path I had never been on before. I was longing for bush, sky, wind in thehair, sun on body. With just one phrase in my mind singing,Ancestral Beings are Stories and their Sacred Dwelling Places are Story PlacesI was searching, for what - a place, a certain ‘felt sense’, an ambience, to suit my mood?I walk for a time along the bush track, coming to a simple, old wooden crossing leading over a small stream. On the far side is a hugeold eucalypt. I put down my paper and begin with the charcoal, to ‘frottage’ from bridge-wood and from the trunk, finding texturesin a random way (from the ancient method of making rubbings from churches as I had done in Europe many years before…..)Ancestral Beings are Stories, and their Sacred Dwelling Places are Story Places…I was bringing my own body to this notion – and its many-layered meanings. The tiny label in the Museum of Australia hadstopped me in my tracks….I worked with it, researched it, over months, years. Each place can for Indigenous people be afootstep in the journey. The story covers country or territory, and may also be replete with deep ecologies, layers of meaning,sacredness. Secrecy holding the power of the sacred.Later, back in the room of walls and polished floorboards, I put the paper pieces on the floor. I look at them… the different texturesof wood… hewn, and tree trunk. Gradually I find a way of placing them that pleases me and I begin to work back into themwith charcoal. Eventually I glue them on to a large sheet of paper on the wall, using color pastels to work into them over daysand days. Forms and figures emerge mysteriously, undeniably, without my bidding.And so begins a series of these works.Ancestral Beings are Stories, 59” x 78.5”, Charcoal, PastelThe second evolved after a weekend in the bush in inland New South Wales…. Near a derelict old school was a huge old pinetree with rough deeply textured bark. I frottaged the bark. Later at home I worked back into the textures with pastels over monthsand watched what happened. Forms emerged, came slowly into being. After, I began to see that the pine was a ‘migrant tree’and perhaps this was a story about my migrant Jewish ancestors….I wasn’t sure.2Sutton, Peter, ‘Dreamings’ in Peter Sutton, (ed.), Dreamings: The Art of Aboriginal Australia, Viking/Penguin, London/Australia, 1988, p. 19.73 ARTisSpectrum

Ancestral Beings are Migrant Stories, 59” x 78.5”, Charcoal, PastelA third in this mini-series followed, the result of frottaging from rocks above the ocean pool where I swim almost every day of theyear, looking out to the horizon….There emerged an Ocean Ancestral Being….Ancestral Ocean Creator 8’2” x 6’6” Charcoal, Pastel, Collage on PaperLater I wondered how to frottage cloud, stars, lightning….I was trying to retrieve significant threads of my own journey, my own songlines or story tracks, my own ancestry and lost heritage(Jewish), as well as a Zen practice over 20 years, and to reconcile with the country where I live, was born in, and love.In a forum of Jewish and Indigenous people, a rabbi asks Uncle Max, “Are Aboriginal people interested in genealogy?” UncleMax says, “Yes we have genealogy… And ours goes back to kangaroos, eucalypts, rocks and more...”One recent artwork is evolving to speak of becoming country, becoming art, where ‘art-making’ and country, body, storytellingare overlaid, – body is country, the journey of ancestral beings, is story - or the meaning that we make. My own intention comesinto being as I paint…74 ARTisSpectrum

Caroline Josephs, with ‘Becoming Country, Becoming Art’, 59” x 78.5” AcrylicAnd that story or meaning-making, can be ‘no story, no journey’, just painting, just the next stroke, and the next….I paint and draw, draw out my quests, refining the searching, to connect with earth, sea, and sky, other ways of knowing. Andperhaps, in some molecular way, to help keep our earth alive.Caroline Josephs Ph.D. is an artist, storyteller, educator -- living in Sydney, and drawing inspiration from close tohome, as well as trekking in remote areas of Australia.www.Art-Mine.com/Artistpage/Caroline_Josephs_phd.aspxVéroniKaHBorn in France and currently living in Montreal, artist VéroniKaHmerges the realms of the representational and the abstract inorder to create images brimming with life and hope. Combining inkswith acrylic and mixed-media, she creates a profound visual effect thatblends color, texture and form in new and unique ways. Compositionbrings rhythm and balance to the canvas, while her choice of huesand surfaces imbue energy into the work. Recognizable forms are setagainst abstract backgrounds to create stunning and forceful imagesthat ultimately speak to the heart and soul of what it is to be human.The influence of VéroniKaH’s passion for dancing is evident in the wayher paintings vibrate with movement, but a lifelong battle with anorexiahas also inspired a personal quest for healing and grace that pervadesher work. In the end, her manipulations of colors, textures and formsall serve to create an artistic vision that eliminates the barriers thatoften separate us as humans. For VéroniKaH, “The paintings create afeeling of connecting with the world and the determination to survive.. . . There are no barriers, no language differences, no age or sexobstacles, nothing to stop the intuition of everybody’s mind. . . becauseat the end of the day, we are all the same.”www.veronikah.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/VéroniKaH.aspxCourage Acrylic & Ink on Canvas 48” X 60”75 ARTisSpectrum

Personal GravitasBy Lynda PogueGravitas: a serious and impressive way of behaving; substance, weightiness, presence.Gravitas.A cool word.Possessing it gives one an air of confidence.Lacking it can make one a ‘lightweight’.Great leaders maintain a significant level of gravitas… as do great artists.They have a kind of depth that is both attractive and compelling to an audience.And it shows in their work.How does one attain one’s own personal gravitas? Perhaps it begins with serious, real, honest self-reflection. Ask yourself… areyou a painter and only a painter? A sculptor and only a sculptor? An accountant and only an accountant?In other words, are you a ‘one trick pony’?Do you feel that by continuing to hang onto the same processes that you use every day in your work, that you will grow?Improve? Get better?Are you relentless with yourself about ‘staying the course’ and never varying your mode of expression because you feel that thisis how you will become a known entity/successful?If you’re nodding, then perhaps it’s time to add some weight to your personal portfolio.Take a moment to look at a few of those outstanding folks who have “made it” in the Arts. You will observe that in their lives andtheir work, they go deeply into alternative inspired methodologies to convey their ideas and simply to add richness to their lives.By adding more layers to their own personal cake/body of work, they become more interesting. More yummy. More confident intheir principal field of work. Gravitas.James FrancoFranco maintains a high level of productivity and takesrigorous university-level courses in creative writing and in thearts, while continuing his incredible career as an actor.His “outlet” is often through painting and he has shown ingalleries in L.A.David BowieBowie was awarded the Webby Lifetime Achievement Awardat Cipriani Wall Street in recognition of his having pushedthe boundaries of art and technology and for his continualinnovation.Click on bowieart.com to see his paintings, sculpture, andphotography.76 ARTisSpectrum

Viggo MortensenHe fills his garage with his paintings and lush collages andsnaps powerful photographs.Helen Mirren - A real Dame!When asked “What is your greatest regret?” she replied “Notpainting more.”Artists and other entrepreneurs periodically drain their own creative juices by walking a straight line and never stepping oversome imaginary wall and into a new secret, inventive, succulent garden.Where’s the adventure and excitement in that way of thinking?Get inspired. Let’s keep going and add a few more names to this list of famous performers who believe that expressing oneselfthrough only one means is limiting, and that their performances are enhanced and enriched by delving into other mediums.Rosie O’Donnell has a gallery in NYC. Since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, she has combined collage with abstract paintingswhile working through her feelings about world events. She now works on her art daily by tearing out articles about currentevents that she finds troubling and converting her reactions into visual expression.To see some of her works go to www.rosiesgallery.com.Vincent Price was a painter.Edward G. Robinson was a great painter (mostly of clowns)Grace Slick (of Jefferson Airplane) creates exciting artwork using a scratchboard.Ronnie Wood paints. And add these names to the growing list: Joni Mitchell, Bob Dylan, Iggy Popp, Tony Bennett, JohnMellencamp, Jane Seymour, Anthony Hopkins and Paul McCartney. Sting is not only a performer, but an actor and writer.Growth is the entire payoff.Exploring your creativity through different mediums, justas these performers have done helps you to reach ahigher ground and moves you a new place beyond theordinary.John LennonJohn Lennon, who would have been 70 this year, was amusician, songwriter, poet, artist, and philosopher.It was the fusion of all these forms of expression that madehim so great.Remember the drive you felt when you first beganto explore your approach of conveying your ideas?Creative people, with gravitas, cannot limit themselves toone medium to communicate their impressions/notions/beliefs. You, as an artist/entrepreneur, must, must, mustencourage yourself to cultivate another channel/methodthrough which you can express your emotions/juices inorder to get better at what you are already doing.Then, the next time you go public, it can be said of youthat you possess great personal gravitas.Lynda Pogue is an award-winning Canadian artist, speaker and writer who lives near Toronto, Ontario. She has writtenseveral articles for ARTisSpectrum. She is represented by Pharand◊Art and FAD Fine Art Gallery in Canada and sheinvites you to visit her website at lyndapogue.com.77 ARTisSpectrum

Occhi PintiTramonto Incantato Oil on Canvas 31.5” x 31.5”Like endless skeins, thin ribbonsreaching to the sky as if to infinityitself, Occhi Pinti’s paintings return againand again to natural forms – to trees andto the wide blue skyscapes of her nativeItaly. She uses perspective to draw usin, making us look up into the canopy inawe. One is again a child, wondering atthe world which towers above, diverseand mysterious. Finely painted inoils, Pinti’s delicate brushstrokes andimmaculate handling lend her works aquality of stillness and tranquillity. ThisOcchi Pinti in her Studio78 ARTisSpectrumstillness is, however, charged with anoverwhelming energy that radiates outfrom the canvas. The rustle of the windjust moving the lush foliage, and the slowswaying of the boughs creates a highlyevocative image, one that allows theviewer to transcend the quotidian andreconnect with something deeper, morespiritual, more profound. Her refinedcolor palette highlights the sophisticationand maturity of her work. The nuancedshades inspire harmony and tranquillitywhilst still maintaining vibrancy – halcyonMistero Oil on Canvas 47” x 31”blue, sap green and Naples yellow sitwith darker shades, creating a tangibleatmosphere and an emotional world forthe viewer.It is the empathic emotional understandingand deep spiritual connections that trulycharacterize these works, and take usto the heart of Occhi Pinti’s creations.She instils her own emotions and soulinto her works, imbuing within them apulsating energy and vivacity that isquite unique. The lively yet consideraterhythm of her work reveals her love anddevotion to the wonders of nature and ofthe universe. Pinti has worked throughboth subtle landscapes and portraits ofanimals and people.Occhi Pinti currently lives and worksin Padova in her native Italy. With apassion for natural landscapes andan insatiable thirst for exploring newtechniques in painting, she now exhibitswidely in Italy and beyond. Notably, shealso participated in the prestigious 2005International Biennale of ContemporaryArt in Florence.www.occhi-pinti.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Occhi_Pinti.aspx

Chris SpuglioInterval 12 Acrylic on Canvas 23” x 23”Chris Spuglio’s inspiration comes in equal parts from hissubjective impressions and his exploration into the naturalprocess of transition and disintegration. Chris uses an impastomethod of paint application, with brushwork that at timesresembles cracks in stone foundations. He focuses his brushupon the specific locations of breakdown on these monolithicfaçades, which also seem to be blooming with colors as if thestone were mutating, or evolving, into organic matter. Deeppurples and luminous yellow-greens suffuse the lines in analmost bruise-colored glow. The brushwork at times resemblesan attempt at stemming the tide of disintegration, while at othertimes the strokes seem an expression of the futility of suchrepair, and become a visual manifestation of the inevitability ofentropy. Chris’ paintings are made up of forms which walk thethin line between abstraction and representation. In addition,his work suggests not just the decay of rock but also the linesand natural variations in crystals and in cellular structures atthe microscopic level. The strong implication is that there isbeauty in disintegration and its accompanying psychologicalstates: melancholy, anger and acceptance. While maintainingan aesthetic distance, Chris Spuglio’s paintings referenceemotional tremors made manifest by his raw, beautiful facadesthat look ready to crumble.www.spugliostudios.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Chris_Spuglio.aspxBisa BennettWith sensitive, powerful brushstrokes and texturedsurfaces Bisa Bennett creates wonderfully evocativeworks centered on the female form. Employing a minimalpalette, the colors she uses are significant – the whites arenot brilliant whites but the complex grey and cream shadesof plastered walls, the blues deep azure smudges that popfrom the canvas and her reds, the color of desire, of love andof passion, are deep almost to the rich brown of dried blood.This sophisticated color range reflects the nature of the workitself. The moods Bennett creates are ambiguous, the figurestwisted to create a tension that tells us they are aware, that ourgaze has imperceptibly shifted something. Their gazes nevermeet ours; their bodies, written in space, are introverted andso a feeling of the vulnerability of these figures and perhapsof voyeurism on our part is developed. The play of light whichexists throughout the works creates a space that is at oncevast and intimate, the shadows bringing us even closer to thefigures that emerge from them. Divorced from any outsidecontext or background detail, there exists perfect solitudewithin these worlds, making our intrusion into the space appearall the more imposing.Bisa Bennett currently lives and works in Toronto, havingtraveled widely through Europe.www.bisabennett.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Bisa_Bennett.aspxPost Acrylic on Canvas 36” x 36”79 ARTisSpectrum

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Younghee HongLotus Flower Oil on Canvas 36” x 36”Younghee Hong’s photorealistic oil paintings on canvasbring lyrical order to the overwhelming beauty of nature.Anthropomorphic plant limbs twist and turn about the canvas,rendered in a characteristic hyper-real palette suggestinginterdependence and the natural hierarchy of the organic.Hong’s exquisite treatment of light brings to the fore lusciousand translucent botanical species. The artist is a devoutnaturalist, something that informs her use of greens – throughlime, emerald and turquoise, these large-scale paintings take aspiritual approach to the phosphorescent. Heightened shadowsand colors shooting through to the eye like gems produce aneffect of omnipresence and tranquility. The lines and spaceof Hong’s plants make subtle allusion to the art of Koreancalligraphy, particularly its vital organizing principles whichemphasize harmony and balance.Younghee Hong was born in 1959 in Taegu, South Korea. Shereceived her BFA from the University of South Florida in 2009and currently lives and works in Tampa, Florida.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Younghee_Hong.aspxChad RedlPowerful, complex and utterly contemporary, Chad Redl’s enigmaticabstract paintings in acrylics are truly striking. Drawing on a diversepalette of vibrant secondary hues, he uses shape and pattern to buildup the structure of his paintings. Pure towers of color race upwards,forming the backbone of the pieces, while smaller fragmented elementscascade or spiral, seeming to swarm at the bases or construct alienformations. It is through this fragmentation that Redl breaks down hisforms into their essential components, aiming for an elemental qualitythat is then used to reconstruct the whole. His previous work in thecreative sector led him to realize that in order to exist as an artist heis constantly forced evolve and adapt to the ever-changing social,environmental and political climate. In his most recent body of work,Redl works with ideas surrounding nature and human interaction withit. In his own words: “Nature and art are something to be interpreted…Despite the control, geometry and balance of my work, the intent is toallow for complete viewer interpretation.”Chad Redl, having worked in the creative sector for the film and theaterindustries, is currently focusing on his career as an independentprofessional artist.www.redlarts.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Chad_Redl.aspxVision Acrylic on Canvas 48” x 36”84 ARTisSpectrum

For those of us who have been exposedonly to western European/American art,the long history of visual artistic expressionhas been dominated at all times bythe reciprocal relationship between theartist and the culture that nurtured theirsensibilities and vision. Since the earliestdays of Western civilization, art has beenboth an agent for the promotion of thevalues and ideas of its respective ethnic/national identity and a means to chroniclethe ascent of that identity through theages toward the modern era.It is true that the national boundaries thatman has used to separate one group ofpeople from another have not alwaysbeen an accurate reflection of who wouldlive in one area as subjects to a particularnation or state, and that the endlessebb and flow of human aggression andambition has endlessly complicated theway these boundaries have been drawn.Despite this, however, Europe, and, later,the New World, divided itself into distinctunits that claimed different culturaltraits and tastes. Each of these nationalor ethnic units evolved somewhat differentlyfrom their neighbors; the artifactsof their civilizations - including their art- developed a unique character.The Specter of ModernizationNotes on the Transformation of Traditional Japanese Art in the Modern Eraby David J. LaBellaYet, much of European culture evolved insuch a way that, instead of creating radicallydifferent forms of art, literature, andmusic, they created artistic vocabulariesand works that evolved in parallel - Italianart was not so different from Frenchart or British art or Dutch art that onecould easily point out its source at once,unless one knew the identity of the artist.The reason for this was that there was atall times an exchange of ideas and methods,of techniques and styles - whetherby design or by accident, by means ofconquest or subjugation, or through themigrations and adventures of individualsor groups of people moving from onestate to another - a constant cross-pollinationof artistic philosophy and inventionflowed throughout Europe, creatingart that, while owing much to the homeculture of the artist, essentially lay openUmeko Okano - Stairs 3 Oil on Canvas 29” x 20”to adoption, imitation, and understandingby all who came into contact with it.The appearance and sophistication ofthe art of western Europe came to be definedfar more by the period from whichit sprang or by the intent and technicalskills of the artists themselves rather85 ARTisSpectrum

than by the national characteristics ofany nation or political entity. If one regionachieved brilliance or distinction, it wasinevitable that the advances in methodand expression that they might boast offor a while would be matched by a similaradvancement by others in ensuingyears.Over time, other influences colored thestyle and vocabulary of European art:the fabulous architecture and encyclopedicknowledge of the Arab Moors whoestablished themselves in northern Africaand southern Europe, particularlyin Spain; the ideas and artifacts broughtback from the Near and Far East by tradersand explorers, even the native art ofthe New World - all of these differentcultural strains invested themselves intothe consciousness of Old World art by, atthe least, opening the eyes of artists andAs a result, the West caught up to andsurpassed the Eastern kingdoms in theirtechnical development. At the sametime, this isolation allowed western artto modernize and become highly diversified,while eastern art remained for manyyears essentially the same in its methodsand works, and this situation remaineduntil well into the twentieth century,when abstraction and expressionismhad transformed traditional western artinto a hotbed of individualistic forms andan incubator of personal vision. Addedto this geographical and cultural isolationwas a strong sense in China andJapan of their ethnic and philosophicalsuperiority to what they felt were barbarianand alien civilizations beyond theireastern frontiers; contact with the Westwas, therefore, something to be avoided,particularly as the European and Americanpolitical systems democratized andand colonization enclaves in the East,the imperial governments of China andJapan began to send their best studentsoverseas to learn the functions and operationsof the modern industrializedstates. Unwilling to accept the notionthat their own cultures were capable ofbeing inferior in any way the those of theWest, the Asian powers sought to adaptthe benefits of industrialization to theirown cultures in a way that would keepthe rigid social stratification of their societiesin place while allowing their economiesto share in the wealth and prestigeof modernity.Nowhere was this idea put into practicewith more diligence and devotion than inJapan - traditionally an over-populated,resource-poor land that relied on theimportation of raw materials for her survivalin spite of an age-old resistance tocontact with the outside. It would be nosurprise in later years that Japan wouldengage in wars with its neighbors to thewest - first with China, then with TsaristRussia, and again with China and thelarger world in the middle of the twentiethcentury - her leadership fully subscribedto the idea that Japan was in every waysuperior to all others, that meddlesometreaties and contact with foreign powersneeded to be carefully managed and limited,and that the only manner by whichindustrial expansion could be attainedwas by a systematic construction of aPacific empire that would provide bothsecurity and access to raw materials.Dan Obana - Illusion Digital Print on Canvas Limited Edition of 20 32” x 46”craftsmen to new ideas and methods.Yet there was little or nothing in the wayof a corresponding transfer of ideas fromthe West back into the East - rather, forpolitical and sociological reasons, therulers of the Asian cultures that had, untilthe Christian expulsion of the Moorsand the age of European exploration inthe sixteenth and seventeenth centuries,been far more advanced in scientific andtechnological knowledge than much ofEurope, actively sought to insulate theirsocieties from outside influence and foreigncolonization.86 ARTisSpectrumallowed their lower classes to share ingovernance and economic opportunity.Still, it was never the case that the easterncultures simply dismissed the characterof the advanced western nations.As industrialization revolutionized themechanical and economic landscape inthe West, both Japan and China soughtto gain a share of the technical and systemicknowledge that was evolving inthe West and transforming every facetof their societies. As the West began toforcibly establish a network of tradingYet in art, the East remained groundedin the past until the latter years of thelast century. Traditional Japanese artand craft, having drawn heavily from themethods and sensibilities of Chinese andKorean artists for centuries, relied on itsBuddhist underpinnings for its contentand means of expression - the art was atall times understated, restrained, elegantand marvelously unambiguous. Aboveall, the art was defined by the conceptknown as “shibui” – the idea that whenbeauty attains and is depicted with greatsubtlety, it has reached into both the consciousnessof the creator and the viewerto present an unassuming, selfless workthat in no way reflects the personal or individualwill of the creator, but rather thenobility of utility and humble devotion tothe essence of the materials and mediaused. It is an artistic tradition that reliedless on the strength of the vision or onthe obvious virtuosity of its creator - as

in western art - than on the resilience of the culture that nurtured it and on the reverence which the Japanese have always reservedfor their ancestry and heritage as a people. Simple beauty is no less relevant and enriching when it is unadorned andunderwhelming - it is, for some, that much more valid and captivating for lacking those qualities. I myself have found it to be anartistic tradition that has drawn me toward it, unwittingly, for many years; providing me with a greater understanding of my ownwork and intuition.In the modern age of Japanese art, there has been a rapid assimilation of the abstract and expressionist techniques of the West.With this has come the rise of great artistic careers and works that are no less meaningful and trenchant than the works of modernwestern artists. There is, however, something that has been lost in this rush into the modern age - just as there was earlierwhen Japan rushed headlong into the industrial age and doomed an entire generation to the excesses of the personal vision oftheir leaders: the notion that artistic creation is something that derives its guidance and execution from the Buddhist principalsof selflessness and anonymous authorship.Modern art is, by definition, the ultimate expression of the individual, of personal will. If it is true that modern art is the most democratizingmovement in the history of art in the way it allows any and all who answer the calling regardless of class or birthrightor social station, it is also true that it has set loose among us the very antithesis of being grounded in the cultural heritage of one’shomeland. European modern art, American modern art, African and Asian modern art, and the modern art of the Far East - allare indistinguishable from the others; abstraction - lacking in definite rules of visual and conceptual execution - homogenizes artand cuts its creators loose from the traditions and defining characteristics from which they came. If it is truly one world, and if itis so that democracy is the hallmark of modernity, it must be so that, if one is willing to follow the siren call of the vagabond ofpersonal vision, a rootlessness and commonality will invest itself into the art that the modern world brings forth.No one would have had us bound to the past indefinitely, yet in this new age there is no art of this nation or that nation; only art of thisperson and that person. Homelessness, perhaps, is not always an economic or social condition. It has come to define modern art.David LaBella is a professional photographer living in Connecticut and working, when time allows, throughout the UnitedStates on the landscapes that suit him best. He feels that landscape photography, like other visual arts, reflects the vision thatthe creative eye draws from life experiences and the human sensitivity to form, light, and texture. He considers that, whencrafted with care, it does justice to the imagination of the viewer, as well as speaking to his own sense of mission as an artist.Sensorial RealmsAlessandra BusanelliChritchRic ConnKen LakeMicheline RaymondSebastian RudkoSantanu Santan KumarKiselev SergeyChritch - Foreign Faces 2 27” x 19”December 16, 2010 - January 7, 2011Reception: Thursday, December 16, 2010530 West 25th St., Chelsea, New York212-226-4151 Fax: 212-966-4380www.Agora-Gallery.cominfo@Agora-Gallery.com87 ARTisSpectrum

The Next Cutting EdgeBy Kathleen LazizaThere is so much more to being an artist than the finished product. In America, where art is put into the same economiccategory as other entertainment forms, it is impossible to compete with corporate conglomerates like Disney, the King Tutexhibit, or major museums’ more commercial ideas regarding motorcycles, jewelry, motion pictures or even the regrettablepainted cows as public art project. For this reason, fine arts will mostly be regarded as a niche industry unless artists have theopportunity to have their own research and development departments headed by energetic and talented MBA’s, steady patronage,and become naturally clairvoyant at predicting new social trends. Yet artists can find infinite possibilities to be successfulas an instrument of change, an inspirational entrepreneur, and to follow in the footsteps of the incredibly ingenious people whomanage adversity with enviable flair.All of this positive activity continues in the background before artists even touch their paintbrushes, computer programs, sculpturematerials, installation parts etc…. It is all part of an industry that has a proven economic record for improving commerce,quality of life and spiritual life all at the same time. So why is this value-adding niche sector always struggling financially whilecreating an extraordinary economic ripple effect for everyone else everywhere it goes? Where’s the love for this industry whichis made of millions of original light manufacturers doing enormous ‘heavy lifting’ for the USA economy?NY/ NJ Port Authority values the ripple income generated from the arts as multiple billion dollars annually.The city of Cincinnati recently completed a focused study asking the question – “is there any public responsibility towards artas an industry in light of the benefits the general public receives from artists being economic development machines in their respectivecities and towns?” Regrettably, it is clear that there is quite a bit of work to be done to win over clear intellectual supportbecause there are many deep misconceptions about the art industry as a whole. Not all artists are capable of interfacing on agrassroots level, nor should they be, but during the process of making the “intangible” tangible, artists would do well to considerthemselves as emissaries to those unfamiliar with art and make the effort to reach out to newer audience members personally.All profound social change occurs at the edges of society on a one-by-one basis.About the author:Kathleen Laziza is the inventor and the current feature artist of Micro Museum – a 25-year-old not for profit art organizationin downtown Brooklyn. Her interdisciplinary career brought her to NYC from Texas where her collaborationsbecame a pioneering destination on Smith Street.Micro Museum123 Smith StreetBrooklyn, NY 11201http://micromuseum.com88 ARTisSpectrum

edThe LEGO ® Brick Sculptureof Nathan SawayaReception: December 2, 2010 6-8pmNovember 23 - December 14, 2010530 West 25th StreetChelsea, New York 10001www.Agora-Gallery.com89 ARTisSpectrum

Francisco Chediak’s mixed media paintings combine contemporaryapproaches to image making with age-old materiality to create works thatare blatant in their critical observation and holistic in their healing properties.Cinder blocked concrete structures litter the picture plane in Chediak’s world,forcing one to notice the environment thus cleverly constructed. Unsettling inits grey nature, the printed image is invigorated by mixtures of paint, sand,dirt and other organic materials, which bring an extra element of nature andspontaneity into the finished piece. Influenced by his time in the AmazonRainforest as well as living in populated cities such as Madrid, Paris andSantiago, the artist has developed a unique understanding of the notion ofstructure which he brings to his work, one that exposes the weaknesses of themodern world yet deals with them in the hope of compassionate resolution.Recognizing the forlorn quality often found in contemporary society, Chediakbrings a sense of the spiritual into his works, and so into our lives.Francisco Chediak lives and works in Quito, Ecuador.Francisco ChediakMagnum OpusPhotography & Mixed Media 26” x 39”www.franciscochediak.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Francisco_Chediak.aspxDebra KayataHyacinth ClusterArchival Digital Pigment Print 14” x 11”With just a camera, digital software, garden and green thumb, DebraKayata cultivates unique and surprisingly foreign views of nature. TheNew Jersey-based graduate of New York’s School of Visual Arts manipulatesunconventional, almost abstract digital close-ups of flowers and gardens thatshe grows, altering textures and tonalities to offer beautifully intimate portraitsof bewitching blossoms. That distinction between human intervention andorganic cycles of growth and decay, lies at the root of Kayata’s work. “Thisseries,” she writes, “seeks to concentrate on the idea of beauty and its artificialpreservation.”Her radical interventions, and the otherworldly plants they produce, furthercomplicate clear distinctions between nature and artifice. Using her own verysensitive aesthetic sense, Kayata captures images of already elaboratelymanufactured environments, and uses specialized computer programs totransform them into seemingly organic forms that appear simultaneouslyfamiliar and alien. By adjusting nature, she makes us reconsider our relationshipwith it.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Debra_Kayata.aspxplayfully bright and lighthearted spirit is found throughout Wendy Cohen’sA whimsically imaginative creations as she takes viewers on a fantasticjourney, her vibrant hues exploding in a joyous dance of color. Faces andfigures tantalizingly emerge from Cohen’s uniquely sensitive movements ofline, texture and form, bringing a lively personality into her art.Inspired by Picasso, Miro, de Kooning and Pollack as well as by a deepappreciation for the majesty of traditional African culture, Cohen works withpassion and a delicate touch to create a surrealism that is at once primitiveand complex in her mixed media works.Born in Cape Town, South Africa, Wendy Cohen felt drawn to the creativity ofthe indigenous tribes which surrounded her and carried their sense of freedomand wonder into her art. Currently living in Australia, she has received muchattention for her works there, and more recently internationally as well.Wendy Cohenwww.wendycohen.com.auwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Wendy_Cohen.aspx90 ARTisSpectrumMountains of AngelsOil with Mixed Media on Canvas 44” x 44”

Ivan Hilliard VincentLaurence SteenbergenSelf-taught artist Ivan Hilliard Vincent’s abstract paintingsdisplay a palpable tension between their intriguingarrays of color and the open spaces of the backgrounds.The interaction of his dramatic shapes with the canvas’ whitespace emphasizes the strong visual line that characterizeseach work. The forms and background also at times seem tobe folded into one another.These works appear both fragmented and unified as Ivancreates layers that turn his paintings into complex explorationsof shape, mood and the power of carefully placed visual objects.Despite the generally square shape of his individual forms,there is a circular quality to their arrangement. As a result,one’s gaze follows the trail that the artist has skillfully createdfor us. We might interpret his composition as architecture or asthe human body radically abstracted.These paintings are also about the balance between presenceand absence within a structure. Background and foregroundoften merge as colors bloom against the scaffolding of thecanvas, as if the artist has allowed us to see not just the finishedproduct but the entire creative process of his work. Ivan’s skillas a draftsman has informed his art, and his commitment toexploring the universe of the canvas yields up works whichengage us in visually satisfying as well as aestheticallypleasing ways.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Ivan_Hilliard_Vincent.aspxCats and Trees Acrylic on Canvas Panel 27.5” X 20”Color and curvilinear line formulate sumptuously intoxicating,puzzle-like compositions in Laurence Steenbergen’spaintings. Created as they are by a professional photographer,these piercingly penetrating works betray an insistent urgeto find the soul of a subject. Shapes — distorted, rounded,circular or jaggedly pointed — articulate a shrill, explosivebeauty through simple yet elegant brushwork. Inspired by life’sjoys and sorrows, Steenbergen’s intriguing, rasping texturespeaks to the contradictory and complex nature of everydaylife. Correspondingly, the artist abstracts the natural world,teasing a poetic exquisiteness from the common and familiar.With a Matisse-like black line and de Kooning-esque use ofspace, Steenbergen admires Van Gogh’s ability to transcendthe banal and electrify canvases in vivaciously expressive color.Spiritedly curious about a myriad of subjects and themes, shecollides Western aesthetics with Eastern conceits. “Very oftenI am inspired by certain combinations of colors, forms or theawareness of something beautiful,” says Steenbergen. “It canbe a spark in the dark, the form of a chair or tree, a lovely colorwithin dirty colors or a moment of happiness.”A South Korean raised in the Netherlands, LaurenceSteenbergen’s works are visual hybrids of Eastern and Westernart historical traditions. A photography correspondent for herlocal paper, the artist lives and works in the Netherlands.Untitled 11 Mixed Media on Canvas 40” x 30”www.laurences11.jalbum.netwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Laurence_Steenbergen.aspx91 ARTisSpectrum

Debra FitzsimmonsConnectionsMixed Media on Canvas Limited Edition of 25 31” x 31”We Measure from OurselvesMixed Media on Canvas 31” x 31”Award-winning American artist DebraFitzsimmons’ background is seatedin the halls of academia, where shehas earned a doctorate of education. Inher art, she turns traditional research,analysis and artistic methods on theirheads, blending both an academicand artistic method in the creation ofher mixed media collages that seek toexamine the effects of social issues onindividual experience. In an approachsimilar to classical research, she worksfrom a study statement or question,conducts literature reviews and recordsobservations. Yet the analysis of theresulting data is presented as a visualmetaphoric statement, with implicationsconveyed through the emotive imagingthat reverberates throughout hercanvases.What results are images riddled withtension and profound meaning that reflectand reveal how contemporary issuesaffect the human condition. Fitzsimmons’works are constructed using multiplelayers of collage, stains, text andpainted images, and amid these manylayers, composition plays a dominantrole in conveying the messages sheseeks to express. Faces are disjointedand truncated but configured in such away that suggests the potentiality forcommon ground. Geometrical forms92 ARTisSpectruminterrupt the continuity of recognizableimages yet relate in a way that draws theentire piece together. Muted colors workto draw further attention to compositionalaspects, creating images that are bothintense and riveting in what they convey.In her art, Fitzsimmons pursues her senseof social responsibility to consistentlychallenge her viewers to look furtherinto political and social issues in orderto probe the repercussions of choice.This in turn drives her art, rendering itweighty with social commentary andhard truths about the world we live in.As she explains: “I am challenged by theabundance of social issues our culturefaces. I am challenged to attract viewersthrough initial images, then confront andstill communicate controversial issuesin a civil way.” It is this that makes herart so poignant and also so compelling,tying the here and now of today’s mostpressing issues to an external contextthat speaks to us all.www.fitzsimmonsarted.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/Artistpage/Debra_Fitzsimmons.aspxDebra in her Studio

Claudia ManperlWoman — at once beautiful, mystical and enigmatic — isat the core of Spanish sculptress Claudia Manperl’swork. Graceful, biomorphic shapes glisten with smooth, silkytexture, tantalizingly hypnotizing the viewer. Absorbed with thenotion of female thoughts and ideas and the magic of femalebeauty, Manperl transcribes these enchanting qualities intotempting, elegant works, enticing us to touch them. The artistallows unbridled inspiration to flow through her nimble handsinto her works, energizing her sculptures with an exceptionallydistinctive poeticism. Reminiscent of British sculptor HenryMoore in technical style, she designates her style as “neorealism,”a polished hybrid of abstraction and strict realism, akinto German sculptress Kathe Kollwitz. “My work is a constantsearch for the synthesis of forms in a subjective universe,” saysManperl. “Through bronze, in a creative game of emptinessand fullness, curves and tensions, I play with the space.”Just as the human mind, no matter its gender, is in constant,rhythmical metamorphosis, so these works parallel the faithfultransformations of our inner psyches.Born and raised in Argentina, Claudia Manperl immigrated toPor QuéBronze with Patina Limited Edition of 20 12” x 8” x 8”Spain as an adult, and yearned to become a sculptress after seeing Michelangelo’s David while touring Italy. Academicallytrained in music education and psychology, her works are lyrical and emotionally stirring. She lives and works in Madrid, Spain,and has exhibited her work internationally.www.claudiamanperl.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Claudia_Manperl.aspxJin Hwan ChoExalted Acrylic & Collage on Canvas 20” x 20”Purposefully broad in medium, theme and concept, the worksof multi-media artist Jin Hwan Cho are sweeping in scope.Like a sensitive sponge, Cho soaks up fleeting, evocativemoments in everyday life, and is then able to bring these tohis paintings, ruminating on our human purpose throughartistic gesture. At once subtle and striking, Cho’s works donot discriminate in style — his works are abstract and realistic,figurative and evocative. A luridly subdued palette colors Cho’sworks, which heightens a sense of comforting tranquility. As anartist, Cho seeks to commune with God, and his universal worksare soulful testaments to the wonders and glory of the Spirit. “Tome, Art is a social voice to communicate with a public audienceand to urge social awareness,” states Cho. “My artwork is aprayer to embrace the pain of society and give them a messageof hope.” Born in Seoul, South Korea, Cho nomadically studieddifferent artistic disciplines at institutions such as City College ofNew York and France’s venerated Ecole des Beaux-Arts. Suchenriching, diverse places and the different strengths of eachobviously, though subtly, inform Cho’s work through delicatelysymbolic craftsmanship. Internationally acclaimed, Jin HwanCho lives and works in New York City.www.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Jin_Hwan_Cho.aspx93 ARTisSpectrum

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14 Questions with Martin LihsInventor of theVirtual Painting SystemInterveiwed by T. MikeyWiiSpray is a virtual spray painting system that incorporates the wireless Nintendo Wii remote control into a pressuresensitive spray can interface that allows users to paint digitally on a projected screen through a Photoshop-like paintingprogram. The resulting application looks and feels so amazingly true to genuine spray paint art, down to customvirtual stencils, that you might not notice there are no fumes.Martin Lihs developed the WiiSpray system as his master’s thesis project while studying art and design at the famedBauhaus University in Weimar, Germany, and was kind enough to talk with ARTisSpectrum Magazine about his creation.1. Could you describe your background a little?You clearly have a design background,but did you start as a spray artist and branchinto technical applications, or do you consideryourself more of an electrical engineerwanting to update the spray media, or somethingentirely different?“Yes, I have an art & design background...I’ve been influenced by Art since I was a child.At that time I attended, twice a week, a publicart school in my hometown where I learnedthe basic rules of drawing.A few years after the(Berlin) Wall came down, everything was intransition and so it was an incredible time foryoung people like me from East Germany.At that time I became very in touch with theskateboarding and graffiti scene. You askedme if I have ever drawn graffiti. Yes, of courseI did graffiti, but nothing really impressive. Atthis time I was more into skateboarding and theelectronic music scene.Some time later, I felt that I’d like to do morewith my creativity and I decided to pursue schooling for Art and Design. At this time some new friends exposed me to computergraphics and media art. So this totally changed my point of view as well as my work. But on the other side I got into trouble withmy teachers and their idea of art. They tried to point me and my ideas more in the direction of classical art.At the same time I spent a lot of time in Weimar with friends who already studied Art and Media at the Bauhaus University. Rightfrom the start, I loved the concept/way of teaching at the Bauhaus University. It’s a non-school based system, which wasn’teasy at the beginning - but it helped me so much to find my own way to be creative. At university I tried many things like radio,film and photography before I found my profession in the interface design major. In the beginning I worked only with softwareinterfaces, interactive and web-based applications. My first hardware-based interface and interactive installation I did in my timeas an exchange student at the Pratt Institute in New York City. There I felt free to try new things and I decided to visit classes forproduct design, electronics, interactive media and ceramics. Yes, ceramics. And it was a lot of fun! Back in Germany I placed astrong focus on developing my ideas of interface and interaction design, a mixture of industrial, hardware, software and screendesign. I think with WiiSpray I’ve shown this idea perfectly. The idea was not to replace the spray can but rather I felt that therewas something missing that could enter new virtual worlds.”95 ARTisSpectrum

2. WiiSpray has elements of spray art mixed withPhotoshop mixed with the Wii Consol; was one ormore of these sources the original inspiration behindthe idea for WiiSpray and how did you go aboutbring them all together? WiiSpray was originallyyour thesis project, how did the project begin andwhen did you feel you might have something with alarger commercial application?“During development in the spring of 2007, I, along withfellow student Frank Matuse, completed Prototype One,forming the groundwork for the WiiSpray. Upon consideration,I chose to further investigate this project for mymaster’s thesis, developing an entirely new prototype,known today as WiiSpray 2nd edition. Complete withnew ideas as to how the interface works, how the physicalmodel appears, and a new 3 dimensional interactionconcept as well as the software that allows for collaborativeworking over the internet and is now in a beta status,it took the idea to a whole new level.However, the original idea of the project was foundedmuch sooner.While doing an internship in Lisbon, I had met street andgraffiti artist “Target”. This caused me to develop an interestin the medium of graffiti and the following questions arose:“Is it possible to create a tool that allows one or more people to interact creatively independent of space and time?“Furthermore, is it possible to exchange thoughts and ideas through this?“Can people who have only been observers take part in the creation process?”These questions and the “Nintendo Wii” technology were the basis for the resulting creative experiment.”3. The system goes beyond just the spray can interface, there are also different nozzles, colors and even virtual stencils.Could you describe your thought process in making the virtual system as close to actual spray paint as possible?Have you worked with other spray artists in order to design the system as authentically as possible, and make it versatilefor the many styles and techniques of the many spray artists out there?“WiiSpray is the result of my master thesis - this means one person and three months time to get it done and three more monthsfor the theory and documentation.As you can imagine it was hardly possible to get it done in time. But in the beginning I spoke with a lot of artists. After this I hadto decide what features were necessary - for the graffiti artist and for the interface design. In the last six months I spoke againwith graffiti artists, and this had a lot of influence over the new, third version of WiiSpray. In the end it’s the spray can itself thatgives the artist the possibilities, but the style and the techniques I got from the artists allow me to take a look at the process itself.Sometimes it’s like a puzzle and you have to find methods and work-arounds to get it right.”4. Do you feel you have achieved a truly authentic spray art simulator, or are there still more elements you would liketo incorporate into the system?“Of course not I’m not satisfied yet, WiiSpray was in the beginning just an idea and the result is a creative interface design experiment.WiiSpray provides a framework of different possibilities without any specifications on how to use it. Every user decides forthemselves what his or her creative expressions might be.WiiSpray, as a project, is still in progress and there are some things that I have not yet shown to the public. I will publish moreand more tools like the stencil feature or an extension of the software that allows collaborative work in real time.”96 ARTisSpectrum

5. Are there elements of the WiiSpray system you feel are an improvement to actual spray paint, or some things thatWiiSpray can do that spray paint cannot?“Of course, there are some things that you can do with a spray can but not with WiiSpray. Furthermore, it’s just a prototypesystem at the moment - that’s why I am working on the third version. But it’s difficult to answer whether there are elements whichare improvements, because I’m not sure if you can really compare both systems, the spray can and WiiSpray. I would say thatevery medium has its possibilities, advantages and disadvantages. These will influence the way artists will use it for their ideasand in the same time it influences the resulting artwork.”6. You have shown your system to the people at Nintendo, could you describe their reaction?“Yes, I had an invitation from Nintendo Europe and we spoke about a possible future for WiiSpray.Nintendo likes the idea a lot, but on the other hand, if I wanted to license WiiSpray for the Nintendo Wii, I would have to developa much simpler controller that fits completely in with Nintendo Wii’s interaction Concept.ii.That’s reason that I decided to develop the third version as not being restricted to Nintendo’s Wii - this looks to be a very gooddecision.”7. What would you describe as the public’s reaction to WiiSpray?What would you describe as the reaction from artists?“It’s different, for a lot of the artists it is highly interesting and for some it’s the worst thing that ever happened to graffiti. But someof these critical people change their minds after they understand that the foundational basis of the project is not replacing realgraffiti. Moreover, WiiSpray should be seen as an interface to give graffiti a new virtual dimension behind the boundaries of ourtangible world.”8. You have announced WiiSprayV3, and the spray can is 60% morelightweight. Is there more you coulddescribe about the new version? Isthe improvement restricted to thehardware or have elements of thepainting software also been improvedupon?“Yes, I am working on “WiiSpray V3”and it will also get a new name.This next version will work without theNintendo Wii hardware. This meansthat there will be no legal or technicalrestrictions anymore and it will be compatiblewith most gaming consoles andPC’s.Now, after 6 months of testing underalmost every condition and with alarge focus group, I know what I haveto improve on in both hardware andsoftware. For sure one point will be theweight - even though the weight of thecurrent prototype is no more than theweight of a regular spray can. If I have enough time I might improve the simulation of a real spray can’s physical characteristics.”9. Who would you say is the target audience for the WiiSpray system, professional spray artists or younger fans ofNintendo or painting enthusiasts of all ages and backgrounds?“This is a very good question - what do you think? I think graffiti has no restriction at all.But you are right to ask me. I would say it is better to distinguish between professional artists and casual gaming applicationsand users. That’s the reason that there will be a “Pro” and a “Light” version of the controller.”97 ARTisSpectrum

10. While many spray artists work legally on commissioned murals, the spray art has its origins in painting at illegal locations.Many of those spray artists see the element of risk as part of the art form; the riskier the site, the more impressivethe artwork (example: painting a subway train or a bridge). Do you feel WiiSpray would not appeal to artists seeking an elementof risk, or would WiiSpray give those artists a more controlled way to practice their skills in a safer environment?“Yes, you are totally right - I think WiiSpray can’t give you the feeling you’d get if you paint on a illegal or risky place - this is aadvantage of real graffiti. The advantage of WiiSpray - in combination or as add-on for a computer game - is the possibly to reacha huge audience throughout the whole world without any limitations in time and space - and this could also be very interesting,even thrilling.”11. Many professional spray artistsare commissioned legally topaint public mural. In times whenthose opportunities become morerare there may be more of a temptationfor younger artists to practicein illegal locations. Do you thinksomething like WiiSpray in a publicsetting might provide an outlet forthose younger artists to expressthemselves and actually reduce illegalspray painting in a city?“WiiSpray was never meant to replacegraffiti as an art form, its interface isintended to bring graffiti to the virtualworld. But, being publicly available, itcan help different people get in touchwith each other - you could use thecollaborative real time aspects to getin touch with people around the world.As a public installation it might inspirepeople to try to make graffiti that theynever would do otherwise, and thiscan change their perceptions of graffiti,from seeing it as destructive to viewing it as a creative and fun art form.”12. Is there anything you feel cities, schools and non-profits could do to provide people such as yourself with moreopportunities to explore and develop the applications of art and technology in addition to encouraging the public’sexposure to it?“A good question. I think it’s up to everyone to develop their own ideas and aim to develop the first prototype of those ideas.Support should be there, though, to provide artists with more opportunities and possibilities, like labs, shops etc. and with professionalsto help out and teach people to work with new tools.”13. What are you currently working on?“On WiiSpray V3, a hardware interface for Twitter and different other experimental interfaces.”14. Where do you envision the WiiSpray system in the next 5 years?“This depends on the market and the interest of people and investors. Currently it is a difficult time for an innovation like WiiSpray,especially here in Germany. I also need to find investors who believe in what I do.”I’m certain you will Martin, thank you so much for sharing with us.For more information visit:wiispray.com98 ARTisSpectrum

Video for ArtistsCrumlicMediaVIDEOGRAPHY FOR ARTISTScrumlicmedia.com99 ARTisSpectrum

The Do’s and Don’tsof Portfolio Submissionby Karin MaraneyYou’re an artist. You have a body ofwork you’re proud of. You’re ready tostart sending your portfolio to galleries,or entering competitions. But you wantto make sure you get it right. What doyou do?There are a number of mistakes thatmany artists fall into when they’re submittingtheir portfolio. Of course, somegalleries and competitions are willingto point out your errors and help youthrough getting it right, but this isn’t thecase everywhere. Moreover, there’s nodoubt that a reviewer is going to be muchmore impressed by a fully organized, accuratesubmission than by one which isincomplete or incorrect. You only get onechance to make that first impression;take the time to do it properly.• Read the Instructions. The first stepcomes before you’ve put anything together;make sure you read the instructionsthe gallery provides for artists in your position.Galleries and competitions oftenhave slightly different requirements, andthey put guidelines out there for a reason– so that you can follow them andmake the whole process a smooth, easyone. For example, artists applying to AgoraGallery should be aware that an artiststatement includes information abouttechnique, style, influence, inspirationand any comments about the conceptuallevel of your work, or a critic’s reviewif you have one. A C.V., or a biography,is your resume – that is the place forinformation about education, previousexhibitions, awards and so on. Thesecategories are distinct, and you shouldbe careful to put the right information inthe right place. On the other hand, theChelsea International Fine Art Competitiondoesn’t require this kind of material,and including it is optional. Check thatyou know the rules.• Send it in the language they speak.If English isn’t your mother tongue, butyou’re applying to a gallery in the U.S. orthe U.K., don’t send everything in yournative language and assume they willfind a translator. Get friends or a professionaltranslator to help you. This is especiallyrelevant to your artist statementor biography; if you want them to read it,send it in the language they speak.• Careful with the cover letter. Don’tuse it to duplicate information you’vealready put elsewhere, there’s no needto put something twice. Instead, use it toadd pertinent information there wasn’ta proper place for elsewhere, such asdetails about the specific works you’vesent, or explaining that you will be in thesame city as the gallery next month andwould appreciate a speeded-up submissionprocess if possible.• Think about which works to send. Thecore of the submission is, of course,your work. Try to send current work; thegallery, and most competitions, want toknow what you’re doing now, not whatyou were doing five years ago. If youhaven’t produced any new work sincethen, you probably shouldn’t be applying!Similarly, to give a reviewer a realidea of your work, you need to have builtup a significant portfolio. If you only haveone available work, or have so far onlycreated three pieces, you may not bein a good position to apply to a gallery,though that shouldn’t stop you from enteringcompetitions, which tend to focusmore on specific pieces.• Pick your medium and stick with it. Ifyou’re someone who works in severaldifferent mediums, it’s better to stick toone when sending in your application. Includingone sculpture, one acrylic painting,one drawing and one watercolorwon’t really give anyone an idea of whoyou are or what you can do. Show yourexpertise in one, chosen field instead. Ifyou’re accepted, you can then explainabout your other interests and perhapsdiscuss using them. If you’re not accepted,you can always apply again focusingon one of the other mediums.100 ARTisSpectrum

• Put effort into your images. The personwho evaluates your work needs to beable to see it clearly. This means that theimage you send should be high quality,and a close-up of your work, not takenfrom a distance with you standing besideit. Ensure the details come through. Thereviewer also needs to understand somethingabout the techniques; remember tolist the type of paint or materials used,the nature of the surface you worked on(e.g. canvas or wood), and the titles andmeasurements of each piece. If you’rea sculptor, don’t forget each piece hasthree dimensions, not two – depth, aswell as height and width, should be included.Just as you should put your fulladdress in your contact details, not justthe country you’re from, you should includeall necessary information for yourimages as well. U.S. galleries and competitionsexpect measurements to be ininches; European ones require centimeters.Target your audience properly.• Point the reviewer in the right direction.You might choose to direct the reviewer’sattention to your website, rather thansending individual images with the submission.This is reasonable, but makesure that all the relevant informationabout the pieces is up on your site, andthat the images are high quality, detailedones. Also, make sure it’s clear in yourapplication which images you want themto look at, don’t expect them to guess. Itcan be a good idea to supply direct linksto the images you are submitting. If youmake it easy for them to see what yourwork is like, they’ll be better able to approachit in a positive frame of mind.All of these things might sound simple,but it’s easy to get them wrong whenyou’re on the spot. Doing it right doesn’tautomatically mean you’ll be accepted,but it does help your chances by puttingthe reviewer in the right frame of mind,and if you’re successful, it will help createa positive starting relationship. Takeyour time, think it through and follow theinstructions you’re given. Good luck!Don’tDo101 ARTisSpectrum

Mexico City by Cristina ArnedoSince its foundation in 1325, Mexico City has been one the most important cities on the American continent, with much of interestin diverse areas such as politics, commerce, religion, science, culture and art.Actual Mexican culture shows the influence of the prehispanic and Spanish cultures, along with many other influences fromEurope, Asia and other American countries. It is a city of extremes like wealth and poverty, or the peace and tranquility of itsparks compared to the chaotic traffic. Its cultural and artistic offering is immense, including prehispanic, colonial, modern andof course, contemporary art. If there’s anything that characterizes the contemporary art world in Mexico now it is a pluralism ofartistic manifestations, communities and circles.Mexico City has a really rich contemporary art scene, always with a multitude of interesting exhibitions on display. With morethan 150 museums, the city offers a wide variety of culture and art selections including excellent collections of modern art fromMexican and international artists. There are multiple galleries specializing in a large range of styles, from the masters of Mexicanpaint and sculpture to graffiti, animation and performance.Besides the museums, a great way to check out the art here is to spend an afternoon visiting galleries. The city´s contemporaryart scene has bloomed with a variety of private collections and several cutting edge galleries that have helped give local artistsexposure at international art fairs and biennales.Two especially trendy zones for contemporary art are Colonia Condesa and Colonia Roma, both home to a fine selection ofcontemporary art galleries, parks, open air cafés and restaurants. Visitors can also enjoy the city´s architecture - a mixture ofmany styles that include Spanish Colonial, Art Deco and contemporary – or indulge themselves with great food and maybe popinto an exhibition opening. So if you are an Art fan and enjoy contemporary art as well as a large variety of cultural expressionsyou will not be disappointed in Mexico City.103 ARTisSpectrum

Dallas by Jim LivelyFor decades, quality contemporary art could be found in every neighborhood of Dallas. While it was there, it was located indisparate areas of the city. You often had to have the nose of an artistically hip bloodhound to find it. Over the past severalyears, a number of the established contemporary art galleries began a trend of relocating to Dragon Street and setting up shopin abandoned warehouses that at the time skirted the Design District near downtown. New major players arrived on the scenein the area, such as the Samuel Lynne Galleries (www.samuellynne.com) which offers over 11,000 square feet of gallery spaceand a state of the art HD theater perfectly suited to video installations. The monthly gallery night on Dragon Street draws teemsof the “see and be seen” crowd.While I appreciate the contribution to the art scene that the major players bring to the table, I also love exploring the more bohemianart spaces that Dallas has to offer. One such place is LuminArte Design and Gallery (www.luminarte.com) located on LeveeStreet which is perched literally on the levee of the Trinity River. This ultra-cool gallery is operated by two excellent Dallas artists,Jamie Labar (www.jamielabar.com) and Christian Millet. On a recent opening, the art hipster was exposed to vibrant visual arts,which included live body painting followed by cutting edge performing arts. Art sensory overload all in one evening.The Kettle Art Gallery (www.kettleart.com) is another unconventional art gallery featuring both emerging and established artistsand is managed by phenomenal Dallas artist Frank Campagna (www.franksart.net). Artists encounter many galleries that eitherhave a no artist submission policy or boast an attitude of indifference and in some cases downright animosity towards artiststrying to have their work reviewed. Kettle Art’s website invitation to local artists is simply “if you are serious about your art, dropby and show us what you are up to.” This approach is a most refreshing change from the usual art submission process.104 ARTisSpectrum

Kolkata by Amitabh SenGuptaToday Calcutta is named Kolkata and the Colonial hangover seems to be over. Instead, everything seems to be embedded in aglobal paradigm where the new art is essentially worldwide art, internationally based. So, it is not a surprise that Indian galleriesare marketing contemporary art with a tag – ‘global.’ They are presenting large shows in India and in Europe, in which artistsfrom Kolkata have a prominent presence. As well, collaborated shows in Europe, the Delhi Triennials and Art Expos have furtheraccentuated the exclusive zone of the gallery-artist-curator consortium. All of this has an impact on the feeling of the galleries inthe city, as the work plays a role both locally and in the wider world.Yet, outside the galleries, the art and culture in Kolkata have always been vibrant within another sphere, popularly describedas ‘Bengali-adda.’ It is an unstructured dialectic process powered by an indomitable urge to converse. An ‘adda’ is an informalgathering of like-minded people having chaotic verbal exchange and exploring a wide range of global issues. Up until the seventies,the coffee house near the university, the art college cafeteria, clubs and some of the popular tea-shops in the city usedto be the usual haunts for the artists, poets, film-makers, academics and journalists. Although the city has changed since then,artist’s addas continue in transformed spaces, like the common art camps and art-residencies which could spring up in the city orsuburbs. In earlier times, social realism was a dominant point and many thoughts were explored in visual art, film and literaturereflecting the Kolkata psyche. Most art groups in Kolkata have actually emerged from such longtime associations; and somehave been active since sixties, but they continue to reinvent and investigate new areas. Often these more informal group activitiesbecame more structured projects, and some can be seen in the galleries today. Adda seems like a small beginning, but ithas informed the work of many prominent artists today, and continues to form a vital, dynamic part of art life in the city today.The photo below shows an Art Camp in the city where artists work and where the public are free to interact with them. Outsidethe events of commercial galleries such events expose the public directly to the artistic process. They can observe artists atwork, interact and even buy art.105 ARTisSpectrum

106 ARTisSpectrumMadrid by Jenifer CareyMadrid is a city which vibrates with art and culture. Its artistic talent can be seen on the streets, in the museums, in its architectureand even in its people who are busily involved with artistic expression in different ways.The variety of new media in contemporary art, such as video, photography, plasma, digital art, conceptual art and new trends inpainting and sculpture have converted Madrid into a capital of international art. Examples of these fascinating new trends can befound in a fine selection of small art galleries around the city. The Soledad Lorenzo gallery exhibits works by some of the mostinteresting names in contemporary art in Spain, including Tapies, Barceló, Valdes, Sicilia, Arroyo and Naranjo to mention a few.The Juana de Aizpuru gallery is located in the ‘hip’ neighbourhood of ‘Chueca’ and is best known for exhibiting photography. Thegallery ‘My name is Lolita Art’, situated in the ‘Huertas’ District, traditionally ´the letters` District, attempts to bring cutting-edgeart to the Madrid audience. The Picasso Mio gallery is one of the most cosmopolitan spaces around, showing the most diverseart in Madrid.Situated in the very centre of this fascinating city, housed in impressive palaces and buildings and surrounded by beautiful parksand boulevards, are the museums which form the ‘Art Mile’ of Madrid. They include the Prado, the ‘Reina Sofia’, the Thyssen,the ‘Circulo de Bellas Artes’ the ‘CaixaForum’ and the ‘Mapfre’ Foundation which hosts some of the most interesting temporaryexhibitions. Recently the Prado exhibited the ‘Meninas’ of Richard Hamilton in homage to Picasso and Velazquez. The Caixa-Forum hosted the trajectory of Miquel Barceló. The Reina Sofia National Gallery will be housing exhibitions of Hans Feldmann`soeuvre and of the Andalusian filmmaker José Val de Omar.The streets of Madrid are also a hotbed of art. To start with, there are the street painters, musicians, performers, living statuesand the graffiti which emerges from the hands of anonymous geniuses who work late at night to avoid the wrath of the neighboursand punishment from the police. Aside from all this, the city is adorned with sculptures including some enormous bronzesmade by Botero, the ‘Meninas’ of Valdes and the steel and bronze abstract art of Chillida and Madrilenian, Gerardo Rueda.The city also provides an abundance of concerts, opera and ‘Zarzuelas’ in its numerous gardens, parks and squares. Combinedwith the ‘vernisages’, art fairs (FotoEspaña, Arco, FotoMadrid), opening parties for exhibitions and ‘happenings,’ these enhancethe light and colour of a city already steeped in art history.

Athens by Debra Cox PassarisThe hot things now in Athen’s art scene are not the artists themselves, but art galleries or exhibition areas, and Technopolis (Arttown) has got to be one of the hottest spots in town.It is situated at the heart of the center of town, near to the Acropolis. Once an old power plant and gasworks, known as theGazi, now it gives energy and inspiration to the city’s cultural landscape. This industrial museum is a landmark, and its uniquearchitecture alone would make it worthy of interest, aside from its status as a tourist attraction, but it is also a meeting point forcitizens regardless of their age or approach to art. With the contemporary ecological crisis before us, this Lazarus project canonly be admired.Technopolis’ 3 courtyards and 13 buildings have been transformed in such a way as to make them the perfect host for all shapesand forms of art. It is definately the ‘in’ place for going to see exhibitions, festivals, concerts, theatre, dance and presentations.Visitors can also enjoy having a coffee, drink or light meal at the cafenio, a beerhouse-restaurant. Lots of bars and restaurantswith an arty, mediterranean atmosphere can be found easily nearby, also buzzing with life.In terms of a gallery area more generally, what the Chelsea art scene means to a New Yorker, or Soho to a Londoner, Kolonakiis to an Athenian. Kolonaki can be found in the centre of Athens. There you find many listed art galleries, cafenios, bars andrestaurants within close proximity, in particular, galleries of all shapes, sizes and importance. The special thing about this areais the magnetic energy there, which comes from the combination of contemporary art and the sense of being surrounded by anancient culture which is continually reinforced by the ancient monuments and excavations all over the city.There are also notable events on the art calendar in Athens, such as The International Exhibition AthensArt-2010, which tookplace in Technopolis and included 250 artists from 50 countries who sent the message of how “Friendship through Art canchange the World.”Just looking around Athens, one can see that any kind of event could take root here, whether it be a festival or a loose happeningwhere anything goes. A new kind of Arts festival recently took place which aimed to take art away from the conventional exhibitionboundaries. The “Floating Art” exhibition decided on taking its works of art to the beach, and some were placed literally onthe waves, hence the title. The festival programme also included other events such as jazz-acoustic-folk rock concerts, theatricalactivities, art workshops for children and daily meetings with organizations which engage with environmental issues: Angels ofthe sea and Mediterranean S.O.S.I went to this event myself, and it left me feeling that art really can be for everyone, something for all the world to see. Anyonespending time in Athens will begin to feel the same way.107 ARTisSpectrum

108 ARTisSpectrumMontreal by Danielle TremblayA typical metropolis, you will find the city of Montreal abounds with galleries, public spaces and events dedicated to showcasingcontemporary art and artists. The most prestigious of these locales is the Musée d’art contemporain de Montréal (MACM) (www.macm.org), which you can see in the photo illuminated by multimedia animations created by Moment Factory (www.momentfactory.com).It was founded in 1964 during a time of dramatic societal transformation in Quebec. A result of the efforts of local artistsseeking a space to promote their work, the MACM became the first Canadian institution dedicated solely to contemporary artcollection, exposition and education. By 1992 it had moved to its current location alongside the Place des arts (www.laplacedesarts.com),closer to the people, to its public, and now, right at the heart of Quartier des spectacles (www.quartierdesspectacles.com) downtown, sharing its space with the performing arts scene.A short walk west along Ste-Catherine Street will bring you to the historic 5-story Belgo Building, transformed during the 1990sinto Montreal’s largest collection of contemporary art galleries. A few blocks south towards Old Montreal, you will find the verywell liked DHC Art (www.dhc-art.org), a private foundation dedicated to international contemporary art exhibition which recentlyrenewed another historic building to accommodate their institution.These are only a few examples of the important presence of contemporary art in Montreal. Even though they are established inall districts of Montreal, contemporary artists also claim a quartier further to the north, known as Mile-End, where many art galleries,studios and workshops can be found. In fact, a recent demographic study conducted by Hill Strategies Research (www.hillstrategies.com) described this area as housing the highest percentage of artists in Canada. Montreal’s affordable cost of livinghas been offered as an explanation, but perhaps other factors are at play. Montreal is a melting pot of creativity in a varietyof domains and is privileged to be home to two renowned university arts faculties, at Université du Québec à Montréal (www.uqam.ca) and at Concordia University (www.concordia.ca).If you visit during the winter, don’t miss the chance to participate in Montreal’s Festival of Lights (www.montrealenlumiere.com).Events include Nuits Blanches and Montreal Souterrain, an art exhibit along 4 kilometers of the underground city that involvesthe participation of over one hundred artists. As spring arrives, Montrealers emerge to more accommodating weather and amultitude of cultural events, such as the upcoming Biennale de Montreal (www.ciac.ca/biennale-de-montreal-2011) in May 2011,uniting national and international artists under the theme: Hasard (Risk/Chance). Extend your stay, explore Montreal’s manyartistic spaces, and experience the many festivals throughout the summer, brimming with humor and musical rhythms that intersectin the zones of contemporary art. You’ll find creative Montrealers welcome you with warmth.

Moscow by Robert NizamovOne of the things you have to know in order to understand the contemporary art scene in Moscow is that there are two competingleading art projects; The Moscow Biennale Of Contemporary Art and the Kandinsky Prize. Each of these encapsulates animportant perspective on the art world, both of which are a part of the way art is perceived in the city.The Moscow Biennale of Contemporary Art was established in 2003 under the Federal Target Program “Culture of Russia.” Itis one of the key systemic implementations of cultural policy of Russia. The third Moscow Biennale of the Contemporary Artwas held from September 25 to November 1, 2009 in the Center of modern culture “Garage,” and the fourth biennale is beingprepared. The curator will be Peter Weibel – curator, artist, theorist of media art and the head of the Center of art and Mediatechnologies (ZKM) in Karlsruhe (Germany). He considers that contemporary art completely displaces modern art, and that weare witnessing the end of the modern art epoch. Now, the artist no longer creates art alone, but rather with spectators; everyoneparticipates. Art is impossible without the partnership of the public, just as an instance of technology cannot be directed solelyon itself.The Kandinsky Prize, on the other hand, was established by The Cultural Foundation “ArtChronika” in 2007, and it objective wasto support the development of Russian contemporary art. Now the Kandinsky Prize is one of the largest independent awardsin the field of the modern art of Russia. The most recent exhibition was held from September 17th to October 13th 2010 in theCentral House of Artists. The award identifies new projects and interesting artists, determines main artistic trends and, mostimportantly, establishes the position of Russian contemporary art on the world stage. In Russia, Kandinsky is more than an artist– he is a symbol of cultural exchange in the world of art, and this is a major factor in what the Kandinsky Prize means and isabout.The total prize fund is 57 thousand Euros, which corresponds to the global practice of national awards in the field of contemporaryart, such as Britain’s Turner Prize or the French Marcel Duchamp Prize.Besides monetary encouragement, artists receive an opportunity to participate in exhibitions.The Prize is not a single event, but a constantly operating process, something that rewards winners but also mounts exhibitionsof works, both in Moscow and abroad. Here the sharing, comparing and developing of art as it is happening now is the focus,rather than the development of art itself in broader terms.Moscow also hosts a biennale directed specifically at younger artists, or those whose career is just beginning. Called ‘Stop! Whogoes there?’, it was held in Moscow for the second time in the summer of this year. It’s a kind of laboratory-biennale, giving theaudience the chance to see what might be just around the corner, and encouraging those who are just starting out. 600 artistsfrom 53 countries take part in 60 exhibitions – many of which involve experiments and creative research on behalf of the artists.This is a more unusual, but equally exciting, aspect of the contemporary art scene in Moscow.109 ARTisSpectrum

Munich by Lusine BreitscheidelBack in 1937, there was a large exhibition of over 650 modern art pieces in Munich. They were mostly expressionist works, andthe overall exhibit was entitled ‘Degenerate Art’ (Entartete Kunst). At the same time, in Haus der deutschen Kunst (House ofGerman Art, which since 1945 has been called House of Art) an exhibition entitled ‘The Great German Art Exhibition’ took place,in the same city, showing artworks from officially approved German artists.The purpose of the ‘Degenerate Art’ exhibition (which showed the works of Kokoschka, Beckmann, Dix, Kandinsky, Chagall,and others) was an official condemnation of modern art. In the post-war period, modern art has been re-evaluated in Munich.Currently, in fact, the art trends in Munich reflect those in Germany more broadly, and are divided into two main categories: neoexpressionismand conceptualism.As of September 2010, there were 69 modern art exhibitions in Munich. It is a style which is increasingly being introduced tovarious corporate settings in the city as a result of art commercialization. Like elsewhere in the world, some of artists here pursuethe goal of quantity and make money with almost identical art works. Others do not focus on marketing their work, but ratherspend their time exploring their minds, asking questions and looking for creative solutions.Gabriele Koch, for example, focuses on photorealistic portrait painting as well as large format imagery works, in which she dramaticallydisplays problems in today’s society, or shares with us seemingly ordinary episodes from her life expressed through asurrealistic prism. Nani Boronat, who works both in painting and sculpture, passionately creates geometric abstract works withpop art elements. Rhea Silvia Will looks for contradictions between hard and soft forms, applying digitally enhanced techniquesto show transitions between elements of our environment. Andrea Altkuckatz, inspired by the contrast between urban and rurallife, presents considerable amount of humor in her paintings and photographs, e.g. a pink bathtub in a peaceful Bavarian landscape.Dr. Lusine Breitscheidel, neo-expressionist and conceptual artist, through energetic and dynamic works initiates dialogswith the viewers to address other important themes, such as challenges to online relationships.The increase in the acceptance of modern art has had many positive consequences in the city, and can be felt everywhere yougo. But there is one disadvantage to this trend; older works and styles tend to be overlooked in the fast-moving world of contemporaryart. The Alte-Pinakothek, one of the oldest art galleries in the world, boasts a famous collection of master paintings, andyet has comparatively few visitors, when contrasted to the thriving modern art scene. To truly appreciate the city, visitors wouldbe advised to appreciate both the old and the new art that can be found in Munich.110 ARTisSpectrum

Yokohama, Japan by Jun KimJapan has a culture of unique art projects springing up in local areas, and in cities, to stimulate the exchanges of culture andinteraction between different kinds of artists and art-lovers. It has been particularly noticeable recently, with a number of suchevents all around the country.One of the more remarkable events happened this past June, in Yokohama city, and was called “KAIR Exhibition: Kamiyamavs. Noge.”The host group was called “Hana * Hana” and they produced this exhibition, in the Noge area of Yokohama, to be the culminationof their “Kamiyama Artist in Residence.” This event started in about 1996, with the purpose of building up excitement for artin the community in Kamiyama-cho in Tokushima, Shikoku. It succeeded beyond expectation, and has since become one of thedefining elements of the city.Since its beginning, “Kamiyama Artist in Residence” has invited many artists, not only from Japan but also from all over theworld, to the area. The most recent Yokohama exhibition was a celebration of what they had achieved in that time.The most noteworthy thing about what has become a kind of institution is that it started out, originally, in one small country townin Japan. This is an indication of how art is everywhere in the country – you just need to look for it.The aim of the founders to bring cultural exchange to their tiny area has now borne fruit in the new culture that it has encouragedin other, often larger areas.111 ARTisSpectrum

Agora Gallery’s 26th Annual Juried ExhibitionThe 2011 Chelsea InternationalFine Art CompetitionFebruary 2 nd - Competition OpensMarch 14 th , 2011 - Submission deadlineMarch 28 th - Results will be announcedJuried by: Elisabeth ShermanCuratorial assistant at the Whitney Museum of American Art530 West 25th StreetChelsea, New York 10001www.Agora-Gallery.com112 ARTisSpectrum

Lynda PogueAward-winning Canadian artist LyndaPogue fuses together vibrantinterplays of color and texture that resultin bold abstract paintings humming withenergy and light. Drawing on a diversebackground in teaching, consulting,keynote speaking and writing, paintinghas become but one of the mediumsshe uses to tell her stories and expressher particular slant on the world. Thereis a powerful immediacy in her art thatis derived from working with encaustic(wax) and water based media, bringingboth passion and a certain degree offreshness to the overall effect.In canvases replete with rich colors andabstract forms, Pogue composes vistas ofpure expressionism, bold brushstrokes ofcolor that stir our deepest yearnings andhint at the emotions that lie at our verycore. Her images are infused with light,made all the more complex by the areasof intense textures that grace the canvas.Compositions are primarily abstract witha hint of geometric form, combining asense of movement with elements ofsolidity that are invigorating to the eyesand yet soothing to the senses. Colors,too, are bold and riveting, yet somehowintermix to create a sense of harmonyand purpose.Lynda in her studio Artwork: Days of Wine and Roses Triptych Acrylic on Canvas 44” x 30””In the end, Pogue strives to infuse herown personal passion into her work,exploring all the emotionality and energythat exist in the world around us. Throughher art, she seeks to remind her viewersof all that lies before them, just waitingto be seen and experienced. This is bestexplained in her own words: “When aviewer stands before a piece of my work,I want something visceral to happen tothem . . . some kind of ‘Internal Wow.’ Myfervent desire is that my work gets seenby many, many people in my lifetime andthat the match between what they know/appreciate about art and my work leavesthem wanting more.”www.lyndapogue.comwww.Agora-Gallery.com/ArtistPage/Lynda_Pogue.aspxUndulations Acrylic on Canvas 24” x 48”FireskyMixed Media & Acrylic on Canvas 16” x 16”113 ARTisSpectrum

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Elements of AbstractionGeorgi Baylov - The Citadel 41” x 35.5”Georgi BaylovFrancois DaubagneTamara DimitroffDalgis EdelsonJMNELLStephanie Rado TaorminaTirilRachel ZollingerDecember 16, 2010 - January 7, 2011Reception: Thursday, December 16, 2010530 West 25th St., Chelsea, New York212-226-4151 Fax: 212-966-4380www.Agora-Gallery.cominfo@Agora-Gallery.comARTisSpectrumSubscription InformationGive yourself or a friend the gift of contemporary art and receive four issues featuring profiles ofcontemporary art, artists and important articles.NameAddressSubscribe to ARTisSpectrum for $24 in the US and $35 for international.Subscribe by sending a check or money order to:ARTisSpectrum Subscriptionsc/o Agora Gallery530 West 25th StreetNew York, NY 10001115 ARTisSpectrum

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