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On his blog Brian Sholis raises a couple of good questions. I understand the need to make thought accessible, but a balance can be struck between potentially revelatory insight and rote description (which, I know, can offer revelatory insights of its own). I don't think of myself as a particularly intellectual critic—more like a fairly smart guy who casts his net wide enough to see and read more than the average art viewer (or, based on conversations I've had with others in the profession, even the...

06 January, 2005 /

Sorry about the non-art related post but this is important news. Paul Westerberg is coming to to town and I had to share the good news. He'll be in LA & OC in Feb. and more info can be found here. I'll be at the House of Mouse show in Anaheim. Hope to see you there. ...

06 January, 2005 /

HB's own Naida Osline will be opening a show of new work at Acuna-Hansen in Chinatown this weekend. Be sure not to miss it. Acuna-Hansen Gallery 427 Bernard St. Los Angeles, Ca 90012 323-441-1624 ...

06 January, 2005 /

Bag of TricksCurated by Darlene DeAngelo Featuring: Dee SmallDanielle SeguraPaul Frank Reception for the artists Saturday Jan. 8th, 2005. From 6-9pm The Office is pleased to present a Group Show guest curated by Darlene DeAngelo, Curator of Exhibitions for the Huntington Beach Art Center. Bag of Tricks is a group exhibition featuring artists that re-use scrap or a material from previous works in the creation of new works. Their individual "bags" contain items like doilies, upholstery scraps & paint drops. Please join us to celebrate the artist's on...

05 January, 2005 /

I ran over to the Santa Ana Artists Village tonight to drop off some artLA post cards, catch the show "post" at OCCCA and make the final opening at Bob Pece's gallery in the Santora building. After 10 years of showing many notable OC artists Pece will be closing his space (pictured) at the end of the month. It seems the inevitable is happening in Santa Ana. It's the same old story, the artists move in for the cheap rents and then the shops...

01 January, 2005 /

If you haven't noticed already I tend to be partial to Photography when collecting. So I was happy to discover Zoe Strauss via Roberta Fallon and Libby Rosof's Philly based Blog. I was also especially happy to receive four of her photograph's this week. Zoe Strauss is based in Philadelphia and has a very unique way of selling her art. Anything goes for $5 bucks. Sure it's a great deal but the real treat is that she takes great photograph's. If you are a...

30 December, 2004 /

There are a couple of lectures/events coming up quickly as part of the current OsCene show still up at The Laguna Art Museum. Mark you calendars as follows: Sunday, January 9, 1:00 p.m.Jody ZellenThe artist will discuss her site-specific installation at the Museum, Other Places, and past work Wednesday, January 12, 7:00 p.m.Feature FilmFarther Than The Eye Can See, an award-winning feature documentary by Michael Brown, about a blind hiker’s quest to climb Mount Everest. Guest film curator. I just rented the IMAX film Everest again and...

30 December, 2004 /

(I found this under my tree this morning) Dear Christopher, I'm leaving you this note to let you know, for the most part this year you have been a good boy. However there are a few items I would like you to tend to in the coming year. They Include: 1. You are not a writer. I know you feel inadequate in comparison to Tyler at MAN and Franklin at Artblog.net. I know you wish you could write as intelligently and biting as Sarah at Forward Retreat and...

25 December, 2004 /

I received an early present today when I discovered in the mail my "Contemporary Art According to Jen" power point presentation on CD that I purchased from Andrea at Curator's Office in Washington D.C. Jennifer Dalton is represented by Plus Ultra in Brooklyn and had a recent showing of this piece at Andrea's space in DC. I forgot were I heard about the CD but it sounded very interesting to me because we in the art world often take ourselves a little too seriously and...

24 December, 2004 /

For those of you interested in the current art market. Richard Polsky, author of the great book "I bought Andy Warhol" does his auction market update over at Artnet. I think he makes a solid call on the work of Francis Bacon. I'm of the feeling that Bacon's time is due in the auction market. It's just a matter of timing and available work. ...

23 December, 2004 /

Photo LA is just around the corner and it is always quite an event with quite a crowd. Last Jan. I purchased a triptych by young German artist Loretta Lux from Yossi Milo Gallery. She does creepy/charming portraits of children. During my most recent trip to Europe her work seemed to be in all the Euro art mag's. It also looks like if you are into art as an investment it was a good buy, judging by her work's reception at the recent...

19 December, 2004 /

Jessica over at Insurgent Muse was kind enough to forward me her Top Ten list so here it is. Be sure to check out her blog as there is always some interesting art related topics to be found there. 1. Tracy + the Plastics     There is this new movement out there that I like to call “post-punk electro feminist performance art.” Examples include Le Tigre, Chicks on Speed and Peaches. Blurring the lines between visual art and music, these women carry on the tradition...

16 December, 2004 /

While I'm thinking about about my next post go check out Tyler Green's Top Ten for 2004 here. ...

16 December, 2004 /

This weekend The Office was visited by the Laguna Art Museum's Contemporary Collectors Council. I was able to give them a little background on how The Office came about and Adam Bryam one of the artists in the current show was there to answer any questions they had about the work. If you are interested in collecting art or just in the artistic process, collectors councils/organizations that are attached to institutions are a great way to get access that you may not be able to...

13 December, 2004 /

Due to unfortunate circumstances I found myself in Westwood on Saturday, so while I was there I had the opportunity to catch the Undiscovered Country show at The Hammer. Highlights for me included Luc Tuymans work. I was in London in Sept. and was able to catch his retrospective at the Tate and I walked out a little underwhelmed. After some mental digestion and seeing his work here at the Hammer in this context I now can see how Tuymans has served as a link...

06 December, 2004 /

Well we're headed towards the end of the year so that means it's Top Ten time in the art world. I hope to post a few top tens here before the end of the year. Let's start with ArtForum's which can be found here. ...

03 December, 2004 /

Although this show is taking place outside of the OC, I wanted to mention it because it is being curated by Orange County's triple threat atist/curator/nice guy Tyler Stallings and will feature a couple of artists I believe are on the fast track specifically Sherie' Franssen and Lisa Tucker. As an added bonus I hear that the openings at Gallery C are quite an event with plenty of food and the red carpet treatment. So be sure not to miss the opening this Thursday. More...

30 November, 2004 /

Why I'm not an art writer My take on Matthew Greene’s show at Peres Projects: “Very Good” Brian Sholis’ take on ArtForum.com: In his solo debut, Matthew Greene outlines the contours of a world devoid of hierarchy and false dichotomies, populated by an idiosyncratic amalgam of mushrooms and redwoods, guitars and Marshall amps, and armies of louche figures (often hermaphrodites) based on 1970s-era pornographic magazines. His landscape paintings, as large as twelve by ten feet, and black ink drawings, as small as seven inches square, are sensoriums skeptical...

30 November, 2004 /

Ran up to Downtown LA yesterday to shoot some photo's with George and Adam, the two artists in the Ulteriora show. It seems NPR is going to tag along with them next weekend on one of their explorations and do an audio piece. I'll keep you posted. After we walked the dirty streets of LA, I talked them in to heading over to Chinatown to catch a few shows before the openings that night. Please somebody help me understand this. The last time I...

28 November, 2004 /