Artists Quarter

The 2007 Isle of Wight Festival has got underway and the Rolling Stones will be taking to the festival stage on Sunday 10 June. Coincident with the bands performance is an exhibition by band member, Ronnie Wood, at the Island Fine Arts gallery in Bembridge. The exhibition runs through to 13 June, 2007.

Ronnie Wood is an accomplished artist and has been exhibiting around the world for twenty years. If you cannot get to the gallery, you can view his work online and also arrange for a private viewing, in a partnering gallery on the UK mainland at Chichester.

Labels: 2007, art, Exhibition, Isle of Wight, Ronnie Wood

I was browsing the courses on offer at Princeton's Art and Architecture faculty when I chanced upon 'Zen Figure Drawing', which led me to 'Awakenings: Zen Figure Painting in Medieval Japan', and what an awakening it was. In the last 60 years, there have only been two major art exhibitions outside of Japan related to medieval Japanese Zen Buddhism, most recently at the Rietberg Museum, Zurich in 1993. The earlier exhibition was held at the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston in 1970, so the 'Awakenings' exhibition, which is part of the Japan Society's centennial program, is the first major international exhibition of its kind in the U.S.A. for over 35 years.

47 important and rare Chinese and Japanese paintings from the 12th to 16th century, are featured in the Awakenings exhibition, including the Japanese National Treasure 'Budai and Jiang Mohe', a painting by Yintuoluo.

Japan Society is located at 333 East 47th Street, New York; Gallery hours are Tuesday through Thursday, 11:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.; Friday, 11:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday, 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.. Note that the Gallery is closed on Mondays.
Admission is $10; students and seniors $8; Japan Society members and children under 16 free. Admission is free to all on Friday nights, 6:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Labels: Exhibition, Japan Society, Painting, USA, Zen

The photographic exhibition Far from Home: Photography, Travel, and Inspiration currently running at The Art Institute of Chicago, through to May 6, 2007.

The exhibition examines the impact that travel has had on on the photographic style and careers of acknowledged masters such as Edward Weston, Walker Evans, Robert Frank, Harry Callahan, Irving Penn and Joel Sternfeld. It is part of the museum's year long celebration of Silk Road Chicago, exploring the themes of travel and transformation.

Fittingly, the Art Institute of Chicago holds an interesting place in the world of American travel, marking the start of the celebrated Route 66. The old 2-lane highway, Route 66, from Chicago to Los Angeles, is not indicated on modern road maps and the start of Route 66 moved a few times during its lifetime, but it is generally accepted as being opposite the Art Institute at the junction of Adams Street and Michigan Avenue. This may not be strictly, historically accurate but the institute serves as a memorable starting point for anyone wishing to retrace the route.

Labels: Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, Exhibition, Photography, Route 66, Travel, USA

The Auckland Botanic Gardens and the Friends of the Auckland Botanic Gardens have announced the line-up of sculptors for next year's inaugural Sculpture in the Gardens exhibition.

Twenty seven of New Zealand?s most popular and up-and-coming artists have been chosen to produce a sculpture to exhibit at the Auckland Botanic Gardens during the sculpture exhibition, which runs from November 2007 to the end of January 2008.

The Auckland Botanic Gardens, Manukau, are one of the city?s most cherished icons. It is 65 hectares of stunning sub-tropical plant collections including a splendid magnolia collection, native woodland, lakes and wandering paths, making it an ideal venue for painters, photographers and walkers.

During November, it hosts the Ellerslie International Flower Show, New Zealand's premier gardening event. This year the show is scheduled for 14 - 18 November, 2007.

The inaugural Sculpture in the Gardens exhibition will run for the summer months, from 4 November 2007 to 31 January 2008 and the selected sculptors are:

Tanya Ashken, Island Bay, Wellington
Bing Dawe, Hoon Hay, Christchurch
Paul Dibble, Palmerston North
Charlotte Fisher, Westmere, Auckland
Fiona Garlick, Ponsonby, Auckland
Christine Hellyar, Western Springs, Auckland
John Ioane, Laingholm, Auckland,
Barry Lett, Mt Eden, Auckland
Neil Miller, Glen Eden, Waitakere
Phil Neary, Otahuhu, Auckland
Terry Stringer, Warkworth
Llew Summers, Christchurch
Marte Szirmay, Mt Roskill, Auckland
Filipe Tohi, Onehunga, Auckland
Greer Twiss, Ponsonby, Auckland
Jim Wheeler, Onehunga, Auckland
Steve Woodward, Kingsland, Auckland
David Guerin, Havelock North
Virginia King, St Mary?s Bay, Auckland
Fred Graham, Waiuku
Matt Pine, Tangimoana
Jeff Thomson, Helensville
Peter Lange, Mt Eden, Auckland
Warren Viscoe, Ellerslie, Auckland
Chiara Corbelletto, Ponsonby, Auckland
David McCracken, Parnell, Auckland
Samantha Lisette, Laingholm, Auckland

Labels: Auckland, Auckland Botanic Gardens, Exhibition, gardens, sculpture

John Brack died in 1999 but is regarded today as one of Australia's most respected artists. His picture, 'Collins Street 5pm', has become an emblem of Australian culture and another of his paintings, 'The Bar', recently sold for $3.1 million at Sotheby's in Melbourne.

The Nude in the Art of John Brack, at the McClelland Gallery and Sculpture Park, Victoria, is a quite exceptional exhibition which runs through to March 25, 2007. Never a sensualist, his nudes stand eery and angular on canvases heavy with meaning, writes Ashley Crawford in an informative article about Brack and the exhibition. The article also carries a picture of the hypnotic, 'Nude with a Dressing Gown' which features in the exhibition; surely a must-see for anyone that has the slightest hint of an opportunity to visit the gallery.

Labels: art, artist, Australian, Brack, Exhibition, John Brack, McClelland Gallery, nudes, Victoria