Monday, July 11, 2011

Moving

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We're moving again. All the commentary about art in Montreal will now be happening over at zeke.com.

Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Rupert Bottenberg makes it into the National Post

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The Q+A hyping the Toronto Comic Arts Festival is here. Although you should really check out lostmyths.net that's where the meat is.

Tuesday, May 3, 2011

CultureTrack 2011

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More statistics than you can shake a stick at! The Overview, The Report, The Research.

Thanks to insidethearts.com.

Selling art at auction

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Over at artbusiness.com they have a pretty good really good article about selling art at auction, that while aimed at artists, is equally informative for collectors. The only thing that they miss is having a dealer (with deep pockets) who represents you at the auction to make sure that your work doesn't sell for less than it is worth.

Biennale Videos

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Who would've thunk?!?







And why is the interview with Dave (oops! sorry) David Liss the shortest?

Monday, May 2, 2011

Jean-François Talbot, Alain Gaulin, Alan Dumouchel and Sylvie Dubuc, getting good press

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Quebec's art crime team gets interviewed over at ARCA's Journal of Art Crime. Some of the better lines: "The number of investigations has increased since the creation of the team." Ummm, I thought the whole idea was to reduce the number of art crimes, not make them increase... And "To become an art crime investigator in Quebec, you must employed as a police officer. A background in art history or related field is desirable." Talk about stating the obvious!

You can read the entire interview here.

The Biennale de Montreal Press previews

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They might want to consider hiring someone professional to do their PR and publicity...

The Art Newspaper - 213 Words and a photo of "Radicaux Libres", 2006, by Jean Dubois and Philippe Jean.

Canadian Art Magazine - 383 words and an artsy photo of Claude Gosselin and Dave oops! sorry David Liss.

The Montreal Gazette - 674 words and an ironic photo of John Bock.

La Presse - 874 words and a reproduction of a work by Keith Tyson.

Le Devoir - ??? words, it's behind a paywall.

L'Internation'ART in Roberval does it up right

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First they get on TV (which they then subsequently post to the internet)


Then they get a highlight reel up as well...


I just might have to get myself up to Roberval...

Friday, April 29, 2011

Marc Mayer acting silly

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I don't know which Marc Mayer (one and two) wrote this article in Macleans, but no matter how hard you try to convince me that Winnipeg is the new black, I won't fall for it.

"[A] decent school of art," "a centenary art museum now new and improved," "a one-time artist-run centre now pushing 40... with fancy new digs" and one art magazine do not make for an "art scene." Not even if you name drop Marcel Dzama, Jon Pylypchuk, Karel Funk and Sarah Anne Johnson.

If it was the National Gallery's Marc Mayer that wrote the article, in the exhibit of recent acquisitions by the National Gallery ten of the 54 artists could be considered Montreal Artists. While I'm not as up to date with who the Winnipeg artists are I sure ass shootin' don't count ten in that list.

And if it was Art21's Marc Mayer who wrote the article, in the exhibit of recent acquisitions by the National Gallery ten of the 54 artists could be considered Montreal Artists. While I'm not as up to date with who the Winnipeg artists are I sure ass shootin' don't count ten in that list.

The Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal continues it's slide

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Over at Marc Gauthier's blog he makes some quick comparisons between the expansion projects of the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal and the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec. The one that jumps out at me is that the private sector contributed only $900,000 to the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal, while the private sector contributed $22,600,000 to the Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec.

First they exhibit dildos, then they get a fundraiser to curate a show, and then they use their own press releases to puff up their collection of reviews, and now this. Man, the Musée des beaux-arts de Montréal needs help in a big way. Quickly.

[Edit May 2: According to this tweet by the head of the Membership Office at the museum, Marc Gauthier's figures are wrong.]

[Edit May 5: Marc Gauthier clarifies things and points out that the numbers come from the third paragraph of a press release published by the museum themselves.]

Gotta find me an hour and a half to listen to David Morris talk about Paterson Ewen

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Right here.

Thursday, April 28, 2011

More reasons to tread very carefully in the art world

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The New York Times reports on the Wildenstein Gallery and its lawsuits.

Press Coverage of stuff we can't see

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I don't get it... Why would the museum have a press conference about a building that can't be seen by the public, yet. And on top of it, not a single one of the newspapers has an architecture critic. The Gazette, The Gazette's Pictures, La Presse, Journal de Montreal (who makes a humongous blunder).

Will Le Devoir cover this show?

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Last week Le Devoir got Annie Cohen-Solal to cover and 'review' Marc Séguin's exhibit at the Mike Weiss Gallery (in between he other more 'important' gigs, what?! Is her book not selling well? And that's why she needs to get freelance gigs?). The day before the New York Sun mentioned the Sam Borenstein exhibit at the Yeshiva University Museum.

Somehow I don't think the Borenstein exhibit is going to get covered in Le Devoir...

Wednesday, April 27, 2011

Richard J Evans on the Spoils of War

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A timely (and good) piece of writing by Richard J. Evans on looting, given the recent news that Litzlberg am Attersee by Gustav Klimt is being taken down from a museum's walls and being put up for auction so that Georges Jorisch and his heirs can get richer.

Litzlberg am Attersee by Gustav Klimt

Now this is VERY Cool!

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The Inuit Art Foundation has started something called Nunavik Art Alive. I could spend hours checking things out.

Almost as cool (but not quite) are the conversations with Inuit Modern artists hosted by the AGO.

The problems with a civic art collection

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This article from the New York Times, about the San Francisco Public Art Collection, points out some of the difficulties in having a civic art collection. But what I found most interesting is "the Art Enrichment Ordinance. Enacted in 1969, it mandated that 2 percent of civic construction costs go toward acquiring public art." Or double what is the law in Quebec.

Tuesday, April 26, 2011

Les Sphères Polaires by Lucion Média get recycled

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I what seems like another lifetime I wrote a rather long screed declaiming Les Sphères Polaires, the ubiquitous orbs that graced Place des Festivals by Bernard Duguay, Pierre Gagnon and Lucion Média this winter.



Well I would guess that Win Butler and co. were in town during the winter, because for their recent gig at Coachella they took them (actually to be fair, the ones that they used were smaller and more numerous) and had them thrown from the top of the stage, much to the joy of the crowd.



and a third viewpoint (to be honest, my favorite).



And if you are interested, there are lots more.

We have our own Art of the Streets exhibit here in Montreal

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While the one in Los Angeles might be getting all the press, we have our own Art de la rue exhibit right here in Montreal.

I want a postcard!

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Congratulations are due to Véronique La Perrière M. She (along with Elizabeth Cardell and Thomas Arnatt) are going to Gwaii Haanaas to be artists-in-residence this June. Pretty Cool.

Monday, April 25, 2011

Rebecca Hiscott on Art dans la rue

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Nice article by Ms. Hiscott on Art Alley.

Mat Gleason on "Art In The Streets"

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Allan Gregg talks to Ross King about the Group of Seven

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I don't think I would call Ross King's book"a fresh look at the iconic Canadian artists." It might have something to do with Allan Gregg's questioning. But you can decide for yourself. Thanks to Frederick Winston for the head's up.

Then if you're really keen there's this bonus material, Wow!



And upon doing a little more research I came across this video from The McMicheal, where Mr. King goes into a little more detail, but as far as I can tell doesn't come up with anything new.



And this is the Tom Thomson painting that gets his knickers in a knot.

Tom Thomson: The Pointers

Friday, April 22, 2011

Maybe I should learn to speak Dutch?

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And I'm not certain who I like more, Lernert & Sander or Arno Coenen's dad.

I might have to go get me a tattoo

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Yann does some pretty cool tattoos.

More Jim Evans

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Last year I posted the trailer. Now there's more... (unfortunately it can't be embedded)