Chances are, if you had New England relatives, there was a ‘Frank Vining Smith’  in the house somewhere. Seems like I’ve spoken to more that one New England man in the last few weeks with a clear recollection of a Frank Vining Smith print in their childhood bedroom.  Much like Norman Rockwell or Andrew Wyeth,  the word on Frank Vining Smith  just keeps gaining momentum and his work is enjoying a new generation’s admiration. (The mounting auction prices say it all.)
So, here it is, hot off  the presses: the new, complete, definitive, comprehensive survey of the works of Frank Vining Smith. The publication coincides with a major exhibit of his work at the Heritage Museum and Gardens this summer (2010) in Sandwich, MA. I’m also lining up a bunch of lectures for author James Craig (from the opening of the exhibit at the Heritage Museum and Gardens to the Rockport Library, the Mariner’s Museum, the Hingham Historical Society with more to come).
Smith has great childhood ties to Hingham, Massachusetts and this rugged, untouched New England shoreline helped to inspire Smith’s palette and imagination on canvas. To support his painting, Smith worked as an illustrator for magazines such as Field and Stream and Outdoors and his illustrations  really set the tone for defining that post world-war, peace-time pastime of leisure. Frank Vining Smith was able to enjoy critical and financial success in his lifetime, but it wasn’t until he was 47 that he actually felt comfortable enough to leave his day job and pursue painting full-time.
If I can figure out how to do it, I’ll feature a couple of interior spreads by designer Michelle Quigley here, in  a couple of days.

Easel at Killick River, Pangnirtung, Canada. All images courtesy of the artist.

I didn’t actually work on the production of this book ( I was with newborn at the time) but I’ve been working with Mike a lot since this baby was born. If you aren’t familiar with his painting, I’d suggest it’s  time to get acquainted. Mike Glier is represented by Gerald Peters gallery in New York and Santa Fe. He is also a professor of art at Williams College, which, I guess, allows him to trapse off into these swaths of landscape for extended periods of time (something not all of us can do). Just picture yourself with an easel, your laptop, and a giant backpack — oh, let’s say, in the Amazon jungle of Ecuador, or next to wildlife in Botswana. 

The interesting thing is these are not just stand alone, pretty travel images that have no correlation to one another. These works are the basis of an ongoing project using the web of geography as a connection between canvases. In Along A Long Line (which Hard Press Editions turned into a book) Glier was curious about the longitudinal line (70th) that sits under his studio.  He got out a map and followed that line to see what else was on it, and then, a project was born: the Antarctic, New York City, the Amazon and St. Johns Virgin Islands all sit in close relativity to that line. With weekly reports from the front lines, Glier was putting together canvases, doing sketches for some he’s work on later on metal, and taking photos. The connections and variations on landscape, vegetation insects made for an explosive color palette and a 21st century artist’s perspective on a very Darwinian approach to planet earth. After you look at the book, and Glier’s paintings, you not only have a different take on the planet earth, you also appreciate the uniqueness of its diversity.

(And right now, all I can think about is BP and those millions of barrels  of crude oil pouring into the ocean,ravishing the eco-system for years to come.  Mike Glier’s paintings take on a whole new meaning, now. Talk about accelerated environmental changes.)

This summer,  Mike Glier is in Hawaii — the second segment of his current project entitled Antipodes. The antipode for Hawaii is Botswana, where he spent several weeks last summer. You can see weekly updates here:

http://www.antipodes.us/

It’s an amazing diary and complement to the paintings that are produced simultaneously.  He’ll be in a group show in September at the Cue Foundation in NYC: That is Then. This is Now. He’ll be signing copies of Along A Long Line at the opening reception, September 9th at 6PM. I hope you can make it.

Since the publication of this book, Mike Glier has been featured on NPR’s Here and Now and also in Bomb Magazine, just to name a few.

http://www.hereandnow.org/2010/01/rundown-120/

http://bombsite.com/issues/999/articles/3440

One of Jon Gam’s greatest passions was the Mission Critical Series: THE avenue for contemporary art critics to publish current thought and debate about art.

The mission critical series evolved out of his relationship in particular with art critic and professor Raphael Rubinstein.  Jon edited Raphael’s poetry in the 90’s (it’s amazing how many critics are poets under their skin) and then collaborated on several art criticism and monograph titles together. Rubinstein then became the Mission Critical Series editor, — the latest in the series being Seeing Out Louder  by Jerry Saltz.

The cover of this book is so eye-catching — it just, well, pops.  Marjorie’s beautiful bombshell is poised rather That’s a three dimensional radish in the mouth of Marjorie’s bombshell! With those red lips,  blue eyes and thick eye lashes (that also extend from the canvas), you just can’t take your eyes off her!

I was introduced to Raffaele D’Onofrio by Jon Gams and was instantly taken by his artwork that explores science, nature and the human connection to our botanical and biological surroundings.  His work is made up of a series of fine dots and strokes. At times, you think you spot a DNA helix or an amoeba floating, hobbling over the canvas.

He asked me to help him design his website. Together, we designed a portfolio of images incorporating the major fundamental themes in his work and peppered the site with his thoughts and writings and some stellar  criticism and reviews of his work. Raffaele D’Onofrio lives and works in Brooklyn, N.Y. and I hope you will look at his website but also take the time to see his work in person.

Foraging for Light

Hungarian born, he moved to Brooklyn as a married child with a young son. He worked as an architect for most of his life, making his Op Art pieces in the evenings and enjoyed quite a bit of celebrity at the height of his career.

The Painting Center

Tibor Freund

Kurdistan: In the Shadows of History by Susan Meiselas

One of the first projects I worked on was as a researcher at Magnum Photos in New York City one college summer. Most of that time I was in the Editorial Department, but one day a week, I went to  Magnum Photographer, Susan Meiselas’ expansive basement office.  Most days, I set off for the New York Public Library where I was charged with reading and culling through 19th century Western newspapers for interesting mention of Kurdistan. Meiselas granted me participation in just one small part of this project.  When I received a copy of the book in the mail almost a year later, what an amazing gift it was to see how my research fit into the whole story.  A premier photographer, Susan Meiselas is a passionate storyteller and  a visionary. This book magnifies her commitment to journalism,  humanity and her art.