January 2009 Archives

Jacob Magraw
Untitled, 2007
Gouache on Paper

San Francisco collectors, this is for you: 20x200 artist Jacob Magraw has work in a group show, First Things First, which will open this Thursday at 111 Minna Gallery.

The gallery will host an opening reception on January 8, 2009 and the exhibition will run through January 31, 2009.

111 Minna Gallery
111 Minna Street
San Francisco

Jacob's 20x200 edition prints:
Drawing
AA, 2007
Jacob's site

Greetings and Happy New Year to you, my collector friends! As evidenced by my absence from your inbox yesterday and today's titillating subject line, your favorite art pushers are not quite back to business as usual. As you well know, we like doing things in twos here at 20x200, so it makes perfect sense that today marks the beginning of our 20% More Ridiculous Sale: The Sequel.

Like it says right there on our home page, 20x200 offers new original editions weekly at ridiculously affordable prices. We're getting even ridiculouser around these parts, for a limited time only. Starting rightthissecond, we're offering a staggering 20% off your already ridiculously affordable print purchase of $50 or more. Enter the coupon code RIDIC at checkout to get your discount.

You can apply the discount to any available print, in any size AND you can buy as many prints as you want. I have a hunch that those new shopping carts we've got are going to come in handy for the particularly addicted among you.

It's a great opportunity to pull the trigger on the pieces you've had an eye on, or maybe you want to take it to the next level and check out our larger prints. Perhaps you're really late to the game with your holiday gift-giving? Fear not! Your indolence has been rewarded. (Ah, if only things always worked this way...) If you're more like Tracy Flick, you might want to get a jump start on next year's shopping list, but I'll tell you right now: you scare me.

A quick rundown of the details before you start your engines:

- The coupon code RIDIC is working right now.
- It will expire at 11:59PM on Saturday (1/10/09).
- The discount is applicable to your purchase of ANY prints in our available inventory. (That's $400 off a large print! Sweet bejeezus!)
- You can buy as many prints as you want. (Hello, shopping carts. We love you.)
- It can ONLY be applied to purchases of $50 or more.
- Gift Certificates purchases are NOT eligible. (Sorry, Charlie.)

We'll resume our regularly scheduled programming next Tuesday, and I can't wait to get to it. We've got some seriously great stuff lined up for the new year and I'm looking forward to sharing it with all of you!

Tree, Giardino dei Semplici, Florence, from the series In the Garden

Later this month beloved 20x200 photographer Beth Dow will be showing at Joseph Bellows Gallery in California.

The exhibition will feature a selection of Dow's photographs from her series, In the Garden. The exhibition will be on view from January 23rd through March 7th, 2009. An opening reception will be held on Friday, January 23rd (5-8 pm).

Interested in garden history and historical concepts of paradise, Beth Dow photographed formal English and Italian gardens in her most recent series, In the Garden. For Dow, the shape and mystery of these places not only offer glimpses of the rich traditions of garden making, but also reveal attempts to control and dominate nature. Dow aims for pictures that have a meditative quality to reflect the spiritual urges that inspired the earliest gardens centuries ago.

Read the full release here

Joseph Bellows Gallery
7661 Girard Avenue
La Jolla, CA

Beth is represented by Jen Bekman Gallery
Images from her last solo show, Fieldwork, can be seen here
Beth's 20x200 edition prints:
Bags
Clearing, Wakehurst Place
AAA Editions
Beth's website

Beth will be showing at the gallery this April, but don't worry, I promise to remind you.

Mossball
by Don Hamerman
Buy one now

Hello beloved collectors. This fine Friday I bring you an interview with denizen photographer Don Hamerman.

Has participating in 20x200 helped your art career?
Where do I start?!
My association with 20x200 has helped me put my work in front of countless collectors and those who keep an eye on the art world. I'm hoping to connect with more gallerists and collectors in the coming year.

Any good news for the new year?
In April, one of my baseball images will appear as the cover art for an autobiography by a former player and current broadcaster. What is especially gratifying about this, is that the book's designer is a 20x200 fan and collector who discovered my work through my first 20x200 edition last year. If it wasn't for my association with 20x200, he never would have known about me.

How did you become involved with 20x200?
I'd heard of Jen, and approached her last winter when a slideshow of my images appeared on the blog, Design Observer. Having my fingers tightly crossed must have worked because Jen responded, and before I knew it I'd sold out two small editions in one day. Amazing.
I feel so lucky, and thankful to Jen Bekman.

Stricken
by Don Hamerman
Buy one now

How important is it to you to keep art affordable?
Essential for me. It's nice knowing that through 20x200 my pieces have made it onto the walls of several hundred new collectors.

Do you collect art?
I'm not a collector, per se, but I do have a few prints by some legends: Harry Callahan, André Kertész and Berenice Abbott. All of them came into my hands through a weird combination of luck and the inexperience of some thrift store owners.

Any 20x200 favorites?
I have respect for anyone who pursues their vision with conviction and dedication.

© Don Hamerman

What are you working on?
I'm continuing to photograph more baseballs, as odd as that may be, and I am exploring several other ideas. I spend most of my time on the commercial side of my photo life, but would love to invert that ratio: work on art, take the occasional commercial shoot.

How did you become interested in photographing baseballs?
Well, it started when my family decided that we needed a dog. I was not convinced, but I was outvoted. I soon found myself walking our pup through a nearby park where, over a couple of years, I'd find these baseballs.
They accumulated in my studio and I would occasionally explore techniques of shooting them until finally I settled on an approach and began the series. Almost all of my commercial work is shot on location, so having a project which I can work on without travel is a treat.

If I were to walk in your studio right now, what is the first thing I'd notice?
Many found baseballs, and many piles of prints, brochures, tearsheets and just stuff that I'm going to clean up "any day now".

When did you decide to be an artist?
After college I worked as an administrative assistant; after 3 months I left and began life as a photographer.

What were you first drawn to photograph?
Portraits

Can you remember your first photograph?
Yes, it was taken in the 4th grade with my Kodak Instamatic.

What did you make a photo of?
A dusting of snow on our lawn.

If you could live anywhere...?
This week, I would like to live anywhere where it is 75 degrees and sunny. Austin? The perfect formula would be summer on the coast of Maine (or the south of France) and winter somewhere closer to the Equator.

© Don Hamerman

Describe an ideal day:
Let's go back to that idea of 75 degrees and sunny, then throw in a blank calendar. No agenda, free to work in my studio or a walk on the beach or a day knocking around New York City.

Aisle or window?
Aisle, exit row

Walk or bike?
Walk

Favorite color combination?
Black and white

Number of minutes spent on the internet a day?
Too many

Pet peeve?
Involves cellphones...

Last dessert you enjoyed?
Apple and dried cherry galette with warm caramel sauce

Lastly, if you didn't make photographs what would you make?
Pizza

Bravissimo!
Don's 20x200 edition prints:
Hemi
Mossball
Stricken
Untitled (Elephant)

Don's website
Don's blog

Running Track
by James Deavin
Buy one now

I know, I know! All of you darling collectors rightfully believed that our 20% More Ridiculous Sale: The Sequel ended yesterday, but as the benevolent Art Gods would have it--the sale has been extended to end tonight at 11:59pm! Now you have a little more time to fill your carts with delectably discounted art (get 20% off your purchase of $50 or more) for you and yours and (of course!) don't forget to enter coupon code RIDIC when you checkout.

Here are a few more edition prints that really should find a new home on your wall this year:

Say Goodbye
by Linzie Hunter
Buy one now

Untitled (Geese, London)
by Dana Miller
Buy one now

Diamonds
by Superdeluxe (Adrienne Wong and Karin Spraggs)
Buy one now

Natural Selections XIII
by Jason Burch
Buy one now

Dustin Hostetler from John Maeda on Vimeo.

20x200 artist Dustin Hostetler is a busy man. He is a designer, curator and publisher. Who doesn't love an multi-talented artist? Not us at 20x200! Dustin was recently interviewed by fellow designer John Maeda.

Enjoy.

Dustin's 20x200 edition print:
Color Study #4
Dustin's website

“Aerial #65″
by Sarah McKenzie

Congratulations are in high order for 20x200 painter Sarah McKenzie! Sarah has an image illustrating an article, What Will Save the Suburbs?, in this week's New York Times. Bravo, Sarah!

Sarah is currently in a group show, curated by Andrew Blauvelt and Tracy Myers, Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes. The touring exhibition which opened at the Walker Art Center is making the rounds of some very distinguished spaces.

Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes is presently at the Carnegie Museum of Art through January 18, 2009. It will then travel to the Yale School of Architecture until May of 2009.

The show has garnered some nice press; here are two articles:
The suburbs as a museum piece
Last arts frontier: Walker exhibit explores, explodes suburbia myths

Sarah was also recently interviewed by myartspace.com, read it here.

Sarah's 20x200 edition print:
Site
Sarah's website

Tuesday greetings to my collector friends, old and new. Your ranks have swelled considerably since my last dispatch — last week's ridiculousness and Domino's I-couldn't-have-asked-for-anything-better feature seem to have sparked the artistically acquisitive instincts of lots of people. It's been quite a while since we've introduced a new edition, so this newsletter is both a hearty welcome to the newcomers and a "it's good to be back!" to established subscribers. Having twice weekly deadlines can be punishing, but the fact is that I love introducing new artists, and I get an awful lot of inspiration from the collectors who read and respond.

Today's fine art edition, Hermaphrodite, is by Amy Talluto, a New York denizen and New Orleans native who I had the pleasure of meeting in person just yesterday. I'm very smitten with Amy's work, which reminds me simultaneously of the golden era of our National Parks, some of my favorite roadtrips, Van Gogh (in a good, not cliched kind of way!) and Japanese scroll paintings, but I confess to being initially confused by this edition's title. It wasn't until I read Amy's statement that I realized it was a sly reference to what she describes as "curious and unexpected phenomenon that appeared while painting the main pine tree trunk." See what she's saying? Now you get it, right?

I was only able to chat with Amy ever-so-briefly yesterday, but the title seems to speak to what I got a glimpse of during our interaction: someone who's serious about her work, but doesn't take herself too seriously, and someone who both enjoys unexpected discoveries and finds humor in them. It's always great to put a face to a name, and it's especially the case when it also allows me to connect a painting with its artist.

It takes a certain kind of bravery to inject one's own psychology into the majesty of nature, as it requires the striking of a delicate balance. Amy navigates the treacherous border between representation and abstraction, using what I consider to be a really risky technique, with assurance. Her style is so assertive, her choices of color so bold and her brushstrokes so gregarious — it's like she's playing a game of chicken with cheesiness, one that she always wins. My eye follows a stroke, or encounters a color that could be garish, but she manages to exhibit just the proper amount of control over hue and medium, reigning things in before it all gets to be too much.

I'm not the only one smitten with Amy's work — as you can see on her site, she's in the midst of a busy exhibition schedule, with a solo show up in Chicago right now and work in two upcoming New York area exhibitions. She's one busy painter, and for good reason!

Me? I'm busy too, just like the rest of you are, so I'll take my leave 'til tomorrow, when I'll be back with an edition from one of the artists featured in that aforementioned Domino article.

Hello to you, my fine collector friends, on this arctic Wednesday. Apparently today's briskness is just the tip of the iceberg — the Northeast is headed into its first dramatically deep freeze of the season tomorrow with temperatures diving into the single digits. Knowing this, I had the presence of mind to savor an open-coated stroll after dinner last night, knowing that the evening was positively balmy in comparison to what's in store.

The cool tones of today's edition, Nymphenburg are a good match for the icy clime, especially since my affection for its creator, Mr. Gregory Krum, makes me feel all warm and fuzzy. I can't help but adore an artist who begins his statement with "I am totally uninterested in telling the truth" and then goes on to describe his photography as truth-telling. I completely disagree with this statement, and yet there's something about Gregory's eye that allows me to totally surrender to his truth.

As I said when introducing Chateau Pool, his previous 20x200 edition, I cannot for the life of me articulate what makes Greg's work magic for me. It just is. Sure, we can discuss formal qualities, and subject matter and the thinky-but-not-snobby intellect that informs his practice, but none of that justifies the way that it seems perfectly acceptable for me to allow his truths to serve as impostors for my own memories.

All of this makes the assertions of an article I read while back — one that's really stuck with me — seem somewhat less preposterous. The article describes a phenomenon where the movies and television consumed when we are young gets inserted in our memories as our own experiences. In other words, people become convinced that they've experienced something that was, well, just a movie. Which seems crazy, and kind of sad, but does it matter, really? Is memory about experience or an emotion? Is recollection fact or sensation?

In his statement, Greg talks about "the narrative present in all spaces." Narrative is one of the most compelling qualities in photography for me. I've always said that I feel like an exhibition at the gallery is successful when people come in and start telling me what's happening in the images that they're looking at with utter certitude. (And the stories vary widely.) And while it's true that Nymphenburg and its companions in Greg's Hard Times series are all ripe with narrative, those narratives are never anything I'd have found if visiting those places on my own.

This is partially because I am not an artist. The ability to frame something uniquely and present it as the truth is something I admire and envy in all artists. I just can't do it, in the same way that I can't sing. Words are all I have, that's where I find my truth. It's pretty unlikely that I'll ever get to Nymphenberg, but Greg's given me enough to go on with his photo. His framing allows me to imbue the air with a quality of dustiness that has a chalky smell, and to insert distinct individuals in the unpeopled space, that are wearing certain clothes and shuffling about in a certain way. It's as if I was there.

20x200 photographer Luke Stephenson is a busy bee who enjoys making portraits. Both of his edition prints are from an ongoing series in which he makes portraits of show birds. Hopefully you didn't miss reading about Luke's involvement in the Best Budgerigar & Foreign Bird Competition. Let's just say it involved birds and Jane Mansfield.

Late last month I posted a video that Luke recently made, and yesterday I received this email:

Hello Kara

Hope all is well and Happy New Year. I just want to let you know that I have just updated my website with a new project called DART which is a collection of portraits I took at the British Darts Organisations World Championships at the start of January. I photographed various officials and player over 3 days.
Please take a look at the results, and I hope you enjoy.

All the best,
Luke

You gotta love another industrious 20x200 artist.
See more of his portraits of dart enthusiasts here.

Luke's 20x200 edition prints:
Yellow Canary #1
White and Grey Canary #1
Luke's site

Untitled #8
by Kent Rogowski

20x200 superstar and Hey, Hot Shot! panelist, Kent Rogowski, has just launched an exciting non-profit organization called Scaffold which will give fellowships to artists in need. Visit the Scaffold site to learn more, and then check out Sara's interview with Kent over on the Hey, Hot Shot! blog.

Sweet William
by Amy Talluto

Happy MLK Monday!
Last week Jen introduced you to the work of artist Amy Talluto. Amy happens to have a solo show, The Devil's Dream, up this very moment at Packer Schopf Gallery in Chicago.

In The Devil's Dream, Talluto's investigates the impact of nature, and natural space on the mind. Individual works describe scenes that are bright, lush and flowering, or sometimes dissonant, murky and foreboding. Tree branches twist and writhe, color turns acidic, and sky flattens to meet form. Contrasting areas of dense hyper-detail with areas of breathe-ability, Talluto wrangles anxiety with visual relief. Snippets of the saturated under-painting peak out and are left raw. Heavily painted areas of density and deformity creep in, creating a final puzzle-locking composition that confuses the appearance of flatness and space, invented and natural color, and ugliness and beauty.

See installation images from the show here

Packer Schopf Gallery
Chicago, IL
Jan 9 - Feb 14, 2009

Amy's edition print:
Hermaphrodite
Amy's site

Walker, Minnesota from the series The Last Days of W
by Alec Soth

Happy Inaugural Tuesday, dear collectors. If you didn't score VIP tickets to any DC balls this evening perhaps you should consider heading uptown to Gagosian for Alec Soth's opening, The Last Days of W., for a convergence of art and politics.

From the press release:

Although originally conceived without explicit political intent, in retrospect Soth considers this selected body of work, which spans both terms of George W. Bush's presidency, to represent "a panoramic look at a country exhausted by its catastrophic leadership." Soth's earlier series such as "Sleeping by the Mississippi," "NIAGARA," and "Dog Days, Bogotá" – all subjective narratives containing disenfranchised figures and decaying landscapes -- laid the conceptual groundwork for "The Last Days of W." It provides a wry commentary on the adverse effects of the national administration, perhaps best exemplified by an unwittingly ironic remark that Bush made in 2000: "I think we can agree, the past is over."

Opening reception: Tuesday, January 20th (Inauguration Day). from 6 to 8 pm
THE LAST DAYS OF W. JANUARY 20 - MARCH 7, 2009
Gagosian Gallery
980 Madison Avenue
New York, NY 10075

Greetings collectors! Seems crazy to put a fresh edition out into the world when everyone's glued to their TVs (or being endlessly frustrated as they try to get functioning video stream from their overwhelmed network of choice.) Instead I present to you some of our previous editions to celebrate this amazing day of welcoming our new president, Barack Hussein Obama.

Team 20x200 is in a celebratory mood — we just can't believe our good Fortune at having such a fine and fit leader of the nation. Confetti and Balloons — lots and lots of 'em — are certainly in order! Not to mention some fireworks to make a dazzling display across the sky. Maybe even a little flag-waving, although we've yet to take it that far. (Also fitting, but not illustrated: the several delicious glasses of champagne that have left me a little tipsy on this winter afternoon.)

President Obama (oh, how I love to type that!) might've been nervous for the actual swearing in part, but he really hit it out of the park with his speech. We're all feeling awfully proud to be Americans. I mean, let's face it — we've come a long way. Like flying to the moon, this is surely a moment that will go down in American history.

We're having some hard times in small towns and big cities all across our country. I'm not entirely sure how we're going to fix it all, but we can cross that bridge when we come to it. I have a good feeling — everything is going to be OK.

On that optimistic note, I'll take my leave for now. I'll see you all after Tomorrow's Sunrise, once the party's over. As for today, let's celebrate!

Delayed by one-Inauguration-Day, new Wednesday edition greetings! It's Sara, serving as the messenger for Jen today because she's SO. BUSY. More on that later but things always seem hectic around here, don't they?

Fortunately, the thing that keeps us all going is that we're surrounded by art that we love and most of what we do (aside from a few nitty-gritty tasks, of course) is in the name of getting that art out to all of you. It's a good thing and makes our over-full days more satisfying than draining, in the most unlikely ways, even when we're out of the gallery/studio/office and we'd like to give our eyes and brains a break. But again, that's the thing, once you get into looking at and experiencing art, there's no way out, it's with you for the better, for the rest of your days whether you're looking at a print, a painting, a photograph, an installation, or... a scarf...

Yes, even when you're looking at a scarf, or any other seemingly or previously mundane detail of your life. I think you'll see what I'm saying when you read Jen's stream of consciousness thoughts about today's edition, Where is that Middle Way? by Emily Noelle Lambert. We IMed before she dashed out the door:

12:11 PM
Jen: So, Emily's proof is so beautiful! It's been sitting around the office and it's definitely got a strong better-in-person presence. Which I love - I love the surprise of that. I love having something catch my eye in the chaos of all the beautiful art books and invites and scraps of paper on my desk, only to discover that it's ours - which means that thousands of other people are going to be able to discover that beauty online and then hundreds of people get to live with it.

12:13 PM
Jen: And so, since I've seen the proof, and since the way it grabbed my attention was so distinct, it's been on my mind a lot.

12:14 PM
Jen: The other day, I was standing in the mirror, bundling myself to go out in the cold with a woolly stripey scarf that I have always loved. And as I knotted it, it reminded me of Emily's painting. It was so exciting; it's a different facet of what I described in my email about Gregory's photo.

12:16 PM
Jen: I felt as if she had taught me to see. I've always loved that scarf, and its colors, but taking its stripey-ness and twisting it into a knot, coupled with this imprint on my mind of the colors and forms of the painting, gave it a whole new dimension. It was literally thrilling, and it made me feel more alive, which sounds kind of cornball, but I really mean it. And I really think it matters. We're all so busy and stressed; and it's winter and it's cold and we're run down. And I just feel like a healthy diet of art gives us a vocabulary to use, allowing us to have surprises like this, to look more closely.

12:22 PM
Jen: Does it make sense?
Sara: Yes. It makes sense. For sure.

Doesn't it? It makes sense. It's a bit to consider so I'll bid my farewell and let Jen fill you all in on what's been keeping her SO. BUSY. tomorrow. Yes, tomorrow! She'll be here to release a new photography edition that will have you reconsidering the way you see. For sure.

Back in August we asked you all to go check out SXSW's Interactive Panel Picker and vote on a panel put together by our very own Ms. Bekman. Votes have been counted and decisions made and Jen's panel, Curating the Crowd-Sourced World is almost ready for, well, the crowds at SXSW Interactive '09. Joining her on the stage to spill smarts about crowd-sourcing vs. curation are some pretty amazing people:

Dustin Hostetler (aka UPSO), Special Projects Curator, Threadless
Paddy Johnson, Editor, Art Fag City
Nion McEvoy, Chairman/President of Chronicle Books, CEO/Owner Spin Magazine, Chairman/CEO The McEvoy Group
and
Gina Trapani, Founding Editor, Lifehacker

What's the panel all about? Jen writes:
With all the stuff we weed through online, good filters are crucial. Who's best-suited to determine what's best – curators or the crowd? People have their religion about one or the other, however this panel will focus on the overlap, the grey areas and how curating and crowd-sourcing enrich each other.

Have Qs about SXSW Interactive '09? Visit their FAQs or sign-up for their monthly newsletter for updates and FREE giveaways.

The Downtown Chalet by Jane Mount

Multi-talented and apparently tireless 20x200 all-star and artist, Jane Mount, was selected to participate as one of three designers in Bloomingdale's and Apartment Therapy's big window challenge.

If you're saavy, you'll spy 20x200 art in the display, including:
an original drawing by Jane and Jason Polan from Thrilla in Manila,
Jason Polan's Rocks at the American Museum of Natural History,
Jane's 132 Birds Leaving AMNH (Response to Jason Polan), and
Clifton Burt's think-make-think.

See the window for yourself until January 29th at Bloomingdale's flagship store here in New York, on Lexington Ave between 59th & 60th Streets.

Jen Bekman and 20x200 are the recipients of some very kind words in the current issue of Domino Magazine. Jen is lauded as one of the most innovative online shopping pioneers as a result of 20x200's success. Jen shares the spotlight with today's edition artist, Matthew Tischler, as well as:

Nymphenburg
by Gregory Krum
Buy one now

Untitled (Black Blocks)
by Todd St. John
Buy one now

And, lastly, an edition artist that has yet to be (but will soon be!) featured on the site, Christian Chaize. His photograph, Praia Piquinia 04/08/07 16h04, is quietly selling as a result of Domino's praise:

Viva 20x200!

Greetings, collectors! I'm super excited about today's editions and looking forward to toasting our very own Ms. Jane Mount later this evening. She's participating in Apartment Therapy's cool competition, the Big Window Challenge. More on that later, and I'm only going to give you the briefest of weather reports before moving onto the editions. It's cold! What's left of the snow is icy and dirty! Ick.

There's a respite to be found in Untitled #15 and Untitled #4, by Hot Shot photographer Matthew Tischler. These gorgeous digital c-prints are the stuff that summertime rainstorm daydreams are made of, and having them around keeps all the senses of warm, languid afternoons close at hand. I know this firsthand, as I've lived with another one of the images from this series for several years now. As Proust's madeleine conjured his auntie's old grey house, Matthew's screen-obscured figures evoke the smell of wet dirt and the singing of cicadas that I so strongly, and fondly, associate with sitting on my grandmother's porch after thunderstorm.

I've been enjoying Matthew's work since 2005, when he was selected to exhibit in our very first Hey, Hot Shot! showcase. He's worked on several different projects with me since then. When suggesting images for the Domino feature, his work seemed like a perfect fit and the editors agreed. Untitled #15 appears in the article, along with fellow Hot Shot Gregory Krum's recent edition, Nymphenburg.

Like I said there's lots going on these days. There's Jane's event tonight — don't forget to vote for her room, which features work from several 20x200 artists — plus the upcoming opening for the most recent round of Hey, Hot Shot! I'm also planning in advance for Curating the Crowd-Sourced World, the panel that I'm moderating at South by Southwest. And I'm involved with a bunch of great photography events including American Photography 25 and I'll also be curating a selection of images for 20x200 from Center's amazing triumvirate of Calls for Entry that includes Review Santa Fe, which I consider to be one of the best portfolio events around.

I have to have some fun too, which recently included attending my pal Alec Soth's fancy-pants opening at Gagosian Gallery and taking in the just-about-to-close Eggleston exhibition at the Whitney. If you're a photographer, you've got your work cut out for you — deadlines are coming up fast on these competitions! If you're a fan like me, I suggest an Upper East Side sojourn this weekend. Alec's show is in flatteringly close proximity to the venerable Mr. Eggleston, and also nearby is Michael Werner gallery, which just opened a show of paintings by Peter Doig. Top it all off with a cocktail at Bemelmans and you'll have had yourself a picture perfect New York City afternoon.

The Mountain of Tomorrow's Sunrise
by William Crump
Buy one now

Dear Collectors,

The gallery will be closing X Marks the Art, Saturday, January 24th. X Marks the Art, is a unique opportunity for you to see original works and framed, limited edition prints by 20x200 artists:

Ky Anderson
Kotama Bouabane
William Crump
Kevin Cyr
Beth Dow
Scott Eiden
Don Hamerman
Gregory Krum
William Lamson
Carrie Marill
Christina Muraczewski
Kent Rogowski
Jennifer Sanchez
Aili Schmeltz
Kelly Shimoda
Luke Stephenson
Todd St. John
and
Bert Teunissen

X Marks the Art will be on view through January 24, 2009
Jen Bekman Gallery
6 Spring Street
New York

Congratulations are in order for 20x200 artist (and Fall'07 HHS winner), Scott Eiden, who has a show up now at the Milwaukee Institute of Art and Design. Scott's latest edition print debuted alongside his brother, Steven's print. Need a refresher? Read Sara's newsletter about the editions here.

Scott Eiden
January 12 - January 30, 2009
Milwaukee Institute of Art & Design
273 E. Erie St.
Milwaukee, WI

Scott's edition prints:
Opp, Alabama
Hank Williams' Bed, Georgiana, Alabama
Scott's site

Steve's editon print:
Leonard's Bed, Niland, California
Steve's site

Image by John Mann from the series folded in place

Here's something to look forward to: Hey, Hot Shot! (volume iv, edition ii) Showcase will open this Friday, January 30th, 2009, from 6 to 8 p.m. at Jen Bekman Gallery.

Edition ii Hot Shots
John Mann
Hosang Park
Cara Phillips
Donald Weber
Yijun Liao

Work will be on view through Saturday, February 14th, 2009

Jen Bekman Gallery
6 Spring Street
NYC
Wednesday - Saturday, from noon to 6:00 p.m.

Tuesday greetings, my collector friends. We are buzzing with activity at JBP HQ, preparing for Friday's Hey, Hot Shot! opening at the gallery, and trying to get a jump on everything we've got planned for February and beyond. All that stuff crowding our springtime calendar seemed far off in the future until I looked at the calendar and was forced to calculate in days instead of months. Maybe it's the bleakness of February that makes it impossible for me to remember that it's the shortest month of the year? I get tripped up every time! The good news is that I'm catching myself earlier than usual this year, and aside from that, the weeks ahead are chock full of fantastic editions, which makes me downright chipper.

I've been looking forward to introducing you all to the work of Ann Toebbe for quite a while now, in large part because I'm so fond of her distinctive way of looking into her past. Drying Our Boots by the Stove and Burning Down the Second House are composed in a fashion that mimics her memory. In her statement she writes: I place everything as I remember it and render all the elements of the space up to the same level of detail, which allows me to include everything I want to remember about the room in one picture.

It all adds up for me too — her style, which she aptly describes herself as a kind of folk-cubism, seems to mimic how we might construct memory. Being older and wiser gives us a broader, more sophisticated way to communicate our pasts — our dexterity refined and our knowledge broadened, we can reference the world that existed before, and after, a long-ago moment's essence was fixed by our childhood self. At its core, memory is shaped and held by the skewed perspective of childhood — our smallness and our wonder and our forming selves mix together to create something altogether different than what we might revisit if we could.

As is well-evidenced by my previous newsletters, my own memories — real and imagined — play a huge role in how I connect with the work we publish and the artists who make it.* In their reconstructions of childhood and memory I see more of them and of myself. I don't have much in common with Ann's childhood experience, but the way that she represents those memories shows me that we share a way of seeing. That kind of connection opens all kinds of doors into the past and future.

*Tangentially: Sara Distin teases me about my Walter Benajamin ways. She gave me his incomplete (yet mighty hefty!) tome, The Arcades Project, for Xmas. Inquiring as to whether I'd cracked it open yet (I had not) she recently assured me that it's just perfect for my ADD-addled free-associative mind, in that I can open it anywhere and read a snippet and put it back down again. (She's right — I just tried it!)

Slushy Wednesday greetings, my collector friends! It's a snowy soupy mess out there, which Ollie and I discovered during our morning walk. One of the nice things about the magic of the interwebs is that I've managed to have a very productive day from the comfort of my cozy apartment, with the Otter at my side. (For the record, she's not really an otter, she's a dog. A dog that looks like an otter.) That Charles Schultz fella was onto something when he said "Happiness is a warm puppy."

Today's edition Amish Horses, is by an artist who should be familiar to 20x200 collectors and Hey, Hot Shot! fans alike. Colleen Plumb, a Hot Shot who showed in the first 2008 exhibition, is someone who shares my affinity for creatures great and small. She showed several photos from the Animals Are Outside Today series at the gallery. (I was deeply smitten with Sleeping Lion, which reminds me of my dog, the one that's not an otter.) She also released two editions here on 20x200; I had a fantastic time writing about those two photographs Field Museum Sue and Tiger Rug, Cabrini Green.

Amish Horses come from that same series. As with many of Colleen's other images, there's a softened focus that heightens the dreamy mood and yes, I'm totally anthropomorphizing here, but it sure does seem like they're making googly eyes at each other, doesn't it? And with Valentine's Day a few weeks off, I can't help but notice how the union of their heads seems to form a heart. It's an incredibly sweet image, but there's something about it that keeps it from being downright saccharine. It could be that there's nothing soft about the horses themselves; they're lean and strong and their energy seems ready to burst forth. I'm pretty sure they're nuzzling, but it's also possible that they're butting heads. (Kinda like how love works, huh? For me at least.)

I read this James Wright poem a while ago, and was really taken by it. I also immediately connected it to Colleen's horses, so I thought I'd include it here.

A Blessing

Just off the highway to Rochester, Minnesota,
Twilight bounds softly forth on the grass.
And the eyes of those two Indian ponies
Darken with kindness.
They have come gladly out of the willows
To welcome my friend and me.
We step over the barbed wire into the pasture
Where they have been grazing all day, alone.
They ripple tensely, they can hardly contain their happiness
That we have come.
They bow shyly as wet swans. They love each other.
There is no loneliness like theirs.
At home once more,
They begin munching the young tufts of spring in the darkness.
I would like to hold the slenderer one in my arms,
For she has walked over to me
And nuzzled my left hand.
She is black and white,
Her mane falls wild on her forehead,
And the light breeze moves me to caress her long ear
That is delicate as the skin over a girl’s wrist.
Suddenly I realize
That if I stepped out of my body I would break
Into blossom.

And on that happy, bucolic note, I'll take my leave for the day. I'm not done for the week yet, however! We've got a special surprise heading your way right around this time tomorrow. Look for me then.

Insects and Myriapods at The American Museum of Natural History
by Jason Polan was featured on HGTV's blog today
Buy one now

Did Valentine's Day arrive early this year? It sure seems like it with the love that 20x200 is garnering today! First there was this most generous post on HGTV's Style Sheet: Cheap Artwork Find: Original Art for $20, $50 and $200.

The best part about 20x200.com is that it’s not only providing collectors with cheap art, it’s providing new talent with exposure and income.

Passage, Levens Hall
by Beth Dow
Buy one now

Nymphenburg
by Gregory Krum
Buy one now

Bus
by Juliane Eirich
Buy one now

Close Call
by Coke Wisdom O'Neal
Buy one now

ny.08.#06
by Jennifer Sanchez
Buy one now

Then came this sweet little shout out from Greg Allen: Sweet, Cheap & Available: amnh By Joseph O. Holmes

amnh #62
by Joseph O. Holmes
Buy one now

I don't know about you, but I'm looking forward to see what good news tomorrow will bring!

Foam Magazine #13 / searching

The most recent issue of Foam Magazine, the gorgeous quarterly photography magazine, includes "Jen Bekman: Gallery Without Walls", a long format interview with Jen by writer Eric Miles, accompanied by portraits from the very excellent Stefan Ruiz.

You can read the full interview online (pdf).

Doubly extra special Thursday greetings, my collector friends! I'm really thrilled to be releasing today's editions, but quite frankly, I'm also totally nervous. It's a little intimidating for me to be writing about photographer Stefan Ruiz, and it's not just because he has some very impressive credentials. (Former Creative Director of Colors Magazine! Insanely successful editorial and commercial career! Monograph published by the venerable Chris Boot!) What makes the task most formidable is that, talent aside, Stefan is one of the nicest, most decent, thoughtful, compassionate, interested and interesting guys I've ever met. There's not really anything I can write that'll do him justice. So, I'm telling you up front: I'm relying on that old "a picture's worth a thousand words" chestnut, which I can do confidently, considering the gorgeousness of the photographs on your left. They are dazzling! The details included on this page offer just a taste of their overall impact — be sure to have a look at the large versions of each one too.

Cairo, Egypt and La Paz, Bolivia reflect Stefan's globe-trotting ways. He could have a perfectly comfortable existence traveling between Paris, London and New York, but his curiosity and compassion have placed him on roads considerably less traveled. When he came by the office to review proofs a few weeks back, he regaled us with tales of his recent (and, from the sounds of it, at times perilous) trip to Zimbabwe. Other projects have taken him from Kazakhstan, to psychiatric hospitals in Cuba, to the soundstages of Mexican telenovelas; and he's made portraits of subjects as various as Texan rodeo queens, Rwandan refugees and, well, yours truly.

I first met Stefan a bit over a year ago, when he was assigned to take my photograph for the amazing Dutch photography magazine Foam. I'll admit that I wasn't familiar with his work, and the cover of his monograph, People, didn't do much to alleviate the considerable uneasiness I have about having my picture taken at all, ever. A quick conversation with Andrew Hetherington made me realize that Stefan is a photographer's photographer, which meant that the people I cared about most would be paying close attention. It also occurred to me that a fella as accomplished and well-traveled as our Mr. Ruiz had the potential to be, well, kind of a jerk.

So I was just a wee bit nervous heading into our first meeting, and I couldn't have been more wrong about... everything. Stefan was totally low key and unassuming, so much so that I quickly relented when he asked to shoot me in the one part of my apartment that I wanted to keep out of the frame — my kitchen was in chaos, a sink full of dirty-dishes as its centerpiece. So it came to pass that people all over the world now know that of any talents I might have, those pertaining to the domestic arts are not among them. What also came to pass is a friendship, and after a bit of gentle cajoling from me, today's 20x200 editions.

Once we chose these two images for Stefan's 20x200 debut, we knew we'd need to make larger prints in order to do justice to their complexity and scale. The smallest size of each edition is 11"x14", which is a good start, not to mention an excellent value at $50. We also have an extra special uber-glorious 40"x50" version, which is pricey ($5000) but absolutely stunning.

As for describing what's so wonderful about them, Stefan does so best in his statement: Often, one of the things I try to do is find calm amidst the chaos, to simplify things. To me, a good photograph works on many levels. It should be interesting to look at and hopefully have some sort of social context. It should make you think, even if momentarily.

Juckjeon Dong
by Hosang Park

Hey, Hot Shot! (volume iv, edition ii)

Yippie! It's time for an exhibition of photographs by the fab five second edition finalists! Please join us at the gallery tonight Friday, January 30th, from 6pm-8pm, at a reception for the artists:

John Mann
Hosang Park
Cara Phillips
Donald Weber
Yijun Liao

The show will be on view @ Jen Bekman Gallery from January 30 through February 14, 2009.

Jen Bekman Gallery
6 Spring Street
(between Elizabeth + Bowery)
New York City
The gallery is open Wednesday — Saturday from 12-6pm or by private appointment

Florentine
by Amy Talluto

20x200 artist, Amy Talluto, has work up in a small group show, Second Nature, at Metaphor Contemporary Art in Brooklyn.

Amy Talluto is a painter for whom the romance of the natural world still exerts a powerful draw. She takes us to remote places where the influence of human activity is out of sight and rediscovers the intense magic and silent strangeness that nature can hold. Talluto's high keyed Technicolor palette and assured, brutal, and painterly, brush strokes give the paintings a vibrant physicality. Her work reminds us of the rough virgin territories that provided a home for Native Americans and that so excited America's pioneers. Her un-peopled landscapes may also remind us that wildness still exists, for now, by the grace of our stewardship.

Amy's lush landscape paintings share the walls with painters Lauren Gohara and Timothy McDowell.

SECOND NATURE
January 30 – February 22, 2009
Metaphor Contemporary Art
382 Atlantic Ave
(Between Hoyt & Bond Sts)
Brooklyn, NY

Amy's 20x200 edition print:
Hermaphrodite

Amy's site