Los Angeles Art News, Art Blog

ART BLOG

ARTICLES FOR THE MONTH OF MARCH 2011
Contributing Bloggers: John Harbinger Jr.and David Harbrenig

L.A.’s Art Museums attendance numbers 2010 –Not too bright!!!

The Art Newspaper (April 2011 edition) has released its annual compilation of the “Top 100 Museums” worldwide based on attendance numbers for 2010. Los Angeles’ art institutions have not fared too well in the listings. The Getty comes in at number 33 worldwide with 1,205,685 visitors and the LACMA at #53 with 914,356 visitors. MOCA and the Hammer didn't make the cut. The numbers dampen our burgeoning image as one of the world’s primary art centers.

Extrapolating data from the worldwide figures, the Getty makes the list of Top Ten US Art Museums when ranked by total yearly visitors while LACMA takes the number 11 spot. New York (as if we didn’t know it already) is still the center of the US art world by far.

Here’s another statistic which is gleaned from the Art Newspaper. The Getty's Leonardo da Vinci and the Art of Sculpture is Los Angeles' only representatives on the list of top-attended exhibitions worldwide.

In yesterday’s LA Times, directors from LACMA, Hammer, and MOCA were quoted as citing reasons like urban sprawl, limited public transit, and exhibitions which lacked mass appeal for their comparatively low visitor numbers.

Here is the list of the “Top 10 Art Museums Worldwide” by total attendance numbers 2010.

8,500,000 Louvre Paris *** 5,842,138 British Museum London

5,216,988 Metropolitan Museum of Art New York *** 5,061,172 Tate Modern London

4,954,914 National Gallery London *** 4,775,114 National Gallery of Art Washington

3,131,238 Museum of Modern Art New York *** 3,130,000 Centre Pompidou Paris

3,067,909 National Museum of Korea Seoul *** 2,985,510 Musée d’Orsay Paris

What can an artist do to promote his/her own work?

Success is elusive in any field of endeavor. In the fine arts, competition is enormous and the opportunities to break through the doorways leading to fame and fortune are rare. Many artists might proclaim they’re not creating their art for any ulterior purpose beyond their own personal passion to paint or sculpt etc, however, let’s be honest –aren’t we all hoping for some kind of wider recognition and with it, a few extra dollars in the bank? If you’re working in your studio waiting to be discovered you’ll almost certainly have a long wait. You have got to spend as much time marketing yourself as you spend before the easel. So, what can you do to promote your work and yourself and get things moving?

For building an image and a personal brand, PR remains the most effective and validating form of promotion. Public-relations is basically creating “buzz” –getting people to talk about you and your work -you become the local news. I’m not talking about paid advertizing, I’m talking about being a “character”, or doing or creating something that grabs attention. Only if you create a noteworthy package of those elements will the press be interested and write a feature article about you without obliging you to pay for an obligatory ad that accompanies the article. Remember, people tend to read and remember news stories more than printed ads.

Now, if you’ve got the attention of the local media, how do you magnify the effect? How do make local global? Through the internet, of course. By utilizing online techniques and social media like YouTube, Flickr and Facebook you can amplify that local article in a way that, not long ago, would have been impossible.
We have all witnessed the phenomenal viral successes on the internet of short videos, interviews, images and quotes etc. How do we replicate them to promote ourselves? Though it is sometimes difficult to understand why some generate so many online visits, it appears that the source for many of the successful ones exciting international and even global interest comes initially from small regional media coverage that first published whatever it is about.

So if you feel that fire, that need for the world to know who you are, do whatever it takes to get the buzz going. Get the buzz ball rolling - and keep it rolling.

Marketing yourself as an artist is an ongoing, cumulative process and one that you must implement yourself unless you have the means to pay for professional PR service.

Only a few days left to enter the event at Women’s City Club of Pasadena

Only a few days left before the April 1^st 2011 deadline to submit work to “Spring Forward” –Celebrating Women Artists of Southern California –an open call to professional women artists based in Los Angeles County and Orange. The theme of the exhibition is the glory of spring and the heat of summer.

Curator Margaret Danielak, owner of DanielakArt, and member of the Board of Directors of The Women's City Club of Pasadena, will select the artwork. Professional artists may submit up to 8 works of art for consideration of which 3-5 will be considered for acceptance.

Artists must be 18 or older and must be living in Southern California - Los Angeles County or Orange County. Professional artists only (no students) are invited to apply. All artwork must have been created in the last three years and not have been exhibited previously at The Blinn House/Women's City Club of Pasadena.

Oil paintings, acrylics, pastels, watercolors and colored pencil drawings will be considered however no photography please. Tabletop sized sculpture in bronze, glass, stone or wood will also be reviewed. Lighter, brighter paintings in gold frames are preferred. Artwork suitable for an historic home only will be considered (No nudity). Artists are encouraged to visit the website for the Women's City Club at www.womenscityclub.com to learn more about the venue.

The Entry Form and administrative fee must be completed and returned to Curator, Margaret Danielak by April 1, 2011 to be considered. It may be mailed to: Margaret Danielak, DanielakArt - P.O. Box 91656, Pasadena, CA 91109 or artists may email the completed form and up to 8 images only to Margaret.danielak@gmail.com. Electronic images should be in JPEG format. The artist's name should be included in the file name (e.g. J_Doe_SunsetOverHills.jpg). Clearly indicate medium, size, title, and sales price for each image in the submission. Email subject line should read: SPRING FORWARD SUBMISSION.

All artists are responsible for dropping off (on April 29 at a time to be determined) and picking up their own artwork at the end of the exhibition. No exceptions. There is a $30 administrative fee for up to 8 entries. For further details and application form, visit www.gallerywithoutwalls.blogspot.com or email margaret.danielak@gmail.com

Phone: (626) 683-9922: Website: www.gallerywithoutwalls.blogspot.com

Artists must balance self-assurance with criticism

Artists are faced with a confusing contradictory situation. On the one hand, as they confront the arduous realities of the art world, persevering and struggling to maintain faith long enough to get a foot in the door, every artist needs an unshakable belief in the importance of his/her art. On the other hand, an artist must be capable of self-criticism, accept outside criticism and be able to disengage from his/her own work to judge it in the context of the greater art community.

It is a fine balancing act which few manage with success. Too much of the first without the second leads to arrogance, while too much of the second, without the self-confidence necessary to pursue one’s art, leads to dejection and renouncement. To phrase it more succinctly: A bit of humble pie is good for you while too much humble pie ruins your appetite!

Many successful artists have attained ultimate recognition only after their own absolute belief in their work was bashed and battered innumerable times by rejection and bad reviews. They remained resolute and ploughed on. So, when those “no thank you” letters and emails keep arriving from the galleries – don’t despair and don’t give up. Nevertheless don’t blindfold yourselves to realities; if others can’t see in your art what you see, try to understand what it is they do see. The really important question to be addressed is how can you make better art and carry on doing what you love to do – ART?

Somewhere between our self-assured feeling we send in an application to a gallery or competition and the moment those rejection letters arrive, there ought to be a time-out of our ego; a time when while hoping for the best we must be prepared for the worst. It helps to realize that one rejection of one piece of art is not a guilty verdict of you as an artist. In my opinion there is no real contradiction between feeling strongly about one’s art and secure in that feeling, being able to accept and deal with rejection of it.

Check out your “droit de suite”

Droit de suite is a legal term stemming from the French for “right to follow.” It is a right granted to artists or their heirs, in some jurisdictions, to receive a fee on the resale of their works of art. In the USA a different policy has been adopted almost everywhere. “First-sale doctrine” grants no rights to artists to control or profit from subsequent sales of their work.
However, in California (luckily for California artists) the droit de suite statute, the California Resale Royalty Act, which was enacted in 1976 applies to all works of fine art resold in California, or resold anywhere by a California resident, for a gross sale of $1000 or more. It mandates a five percent royalty on the resale price of any work of fine art. An artist may only waive this right “by a contract in writing providing for an amount in excess of five percent of the amount of such sale.”

I’m not really sure exactly what that last phrase amounts to in concrete terms so I advise artist readers of this blog to do their own research into the subject if they wish to better understand what their rights are.

During the past 15 years or so, the US Congress and the European Commission have been called upon to review demands to extend copyright laws for written material, sound recordings and film. Recently the same exigencies have risen in relation to fine art.

Now, I am all for assisting living artists to earn a living and even to become rich if the markets embrace their work. It allows them to continue to create and produce great works of art –which is ultimately in the public interest. However, if the droit de suite is enacted in the manner of the French, who accord rights from resale not only to living artists but also to their heirs, I think it will have an adverse effect on art sales in general. Public support of artists should be expressed through a supportive cultural and political environment with a focus on recognition and contemporary financial recompense and not by proffering the possible prospect of rewarding future heirs.

We all know poor old Vincent Van Gogh died in utter poverty but I see no reason why those who administer his estate should benefit from profits of sales after his death. Rewarding his heirs will not bring Vincent back into this world to create anymore of his outstanding work.

Obstacles to Google’s plans to digitalize artworks and photographs into a huge database

This week the Southern District Court of New York denied a proposed settlement between Google and the Authors Guild concerning the giant search engine’s ongoing quest to digitalize millions of books allowing for easily searchable texts and online perusal.

In 2005, the Authors Guild, the nation's largest organization of book authors, and the Association of American Publishers filed a complaint against Google for copyright infringement.

The presiding judge wrote: “While the digitization of books and the creation of a universal digital library would benefit many it would also grant Google significant rights to exploit entire books, without permission of the copyright owners.”

In addition to authors, organizations representing photographers and artists have objected to the online giant’s unauthorized digitization of their work by alleging copyright infringement.

I guess the already successful photographers and artists, who can sell images of their works through reproductions, prints, posters and postcards, see this as another opportunity for royalties. The vast majority of contemporary creative artists will be glad, I think, to be included in any serious online database which exposes their work to a wider public.

Liz #5 A Portrait of Liz Taylor will come under the hammer on May 12th

Phillips de Pury & Co of New York have announced the sale of a rare, iconic portrait by artist Andy Warhol of the legendary actress Elizabeth Taylor, painted in 1963. Given the actress’s death yesterday (March 23) the interest in this work will surely be doubly intense when it comes up for auction on May 12th in the Contemporary Art event in New York. The painting titled Liz #5 will be offered for sale with an estimate at between $20,000,000 to $30,000,000.

Liz #5 is an example of Warhol at his very best with a perfect screen and glowing colors, painted at the height of Liz Taylor’s Hollywood career and fame which coincided with the most significant and creative period of Warhol's career. Like many of his portraits, it embodies themes Warhol chose to highlight - celebrity, glamour, wealth, romance, scandal, sex, Hollywood and death. Liz Taylor epitomized them all.
The portrait, which comes from a private collection was previously part of the estate of famed art dealer Ileana Sonnabend whose gallery was instrumental in boosting the careers of other American artists from the early sixties such as Jasper Johns and Robert Rauschenberg.
Liz #5 will certainly incite intense bidding as a testament to the legend and beauty of one of the world's most beloved and iconic actresses.

Blog March 24 2011

Leo Steinberg Art Historian and Art Critic

It is not surprising that the death of Leo Steinberg in New York on March 13 at age 90 was so widely reported in the media and blogosphere. He was no ordinary art historian and an extraordinary personage on the art scene for years. After retiring from his teaching position in 1991 as a University of Pennsylvania professor in Renaissance and Baroque art he continued to speak to a far wider public through his writings, and in doing so changed the way an entire generation looked at and thought about art.
During the 1950s and '60s the reigning orthodoxy, articulated by Clement Greenberg, the most influential art critic of the day, held that what mattered in a work of modern art were its formal qualities—color, form and their disposition across the flat canvas support. Subject matter and symbolism were considered of no account.
By contrast, Steinberg's own experience of art, and his academic training, had persuaded him that works of modern art are far more complex than the formal qualities of color, form and their disposition on the canvas. He felt that subject matter and symbolism were of more importance and pushed this point of view in his lectures and published works.
In "Other Criteria: Confrontations with Twentieth-Century Art," Steinberg presented another way of seeing modern art and gave full expression to his alternative aesthetic outlook. This 18 essay anthology had an immense impact of the hitherto “accepted” interpretations of other historians and critics.
He seemed to transform every work of art he wrote about; you never looked at one the same way after reading what Steinberg wrote about it. The three essays on Picasso were ahead of their time in seeing the artist's career as a unity of motifs, themes and obsessions spread across eight decades, rather than, as had long been the practice, in narrowly stylistic terms.