Photo Synthesis

This month, DaVinci Art Alliance (http://www.davinciartalliance.org/) is hosting the show Photo Synthesis. The criteria of the show was that the work had to use photography or any part of the photographic process. The pieces were selected and judged by internationally known photographer, Jon Naar (http://www.jonnaar.com). They received over 150 entries by 36 artists and I was fortunate enough to have had two works accepted into the show, which was narrowed down to 22 artists and 36 pieces. I am also thrilled to be able to say that I won an honorable mention in the show, for the piece "Witness" (above). I am a DaVinci member and board member, and I encourage everyone in the area to get there sometime to see one of our shows. Our last month's show, Found Objects, New Contexts, also got rave reviews.

RIP - Pirate Don (AKA Big Don) Cossaboon-DeGregorio

Today, Millville lost a great artist and entrepreneur, and we lost a great friend. Don was something you don't often find today - a truly honest and uncompromising person. He will be sorely missed. Whenever you see a Jolly Roger, think of Don the Pirate.

Housing Authority Mural - Complete!

Here it is, installed in the common room of the facility. The staff is suggesting a contest to name it during the grand opening on Friday.

MHA Mural - Day 3

Today we finished tiling. Tomorrow is grouting day. The architect for the job came by today to check it's progress and was very happy with our work. The residents and employees that work in the building also like it, and seem to take ownership since they are seeing it installed piece by piece. Here it is, tiling complete, ready for the next step.

The Five Senses

On First Friday, June 6, our new show The Five Senses premiered at Gallery 50 in Bridgeton, NJ. http://www.gallery50.org/ The show features work by myself and Carl B. Johnson, and the poems of Kevin Smith. We interpreted the tiltle quite loosely, as you can see by my mixed media piece U.S. Census - 1790. Here is a photo of the piece, along with a shot of myself, Carl, and Kevin at the opening.

MHA Mural Day 2

Good progress on this second day. We have one more day of tiling, then we will be ready for the dreaded job of grouting (at least for me - I HATE that job). Some of the residents of the building have been observing the work from the beginning (we call them our supervisors, and they love it). They ask questions about the mural, and tell us stories about their lives, which passes the time while we work. One lady, who is usually crocheting lap robes which she donates to local nursing homes, has a long history of working for the glass factories here in Millville. Her stories about the old days, when glass was king in South Jersey, are fascinating, and a real piece of local history. This concept is the theme of our opening this Third Friday. The show, Fading Ways, is a tribute to a disappearing way of life. I'll have pics here after the opening, which is at the Riverfron Renaissance Center for the Arts. http://www.riverfrontcenter.org/

New Mural - Millville Housing Authority

My partner, Carl B. Johnson, and I have the honor of creating a mosaic mural for the Glasstown Residences, the only completely green affordable senior residence in New Jersey. Today was Day 1 - we anticipate this project will take about a week to complete. Here are a couple of photos from todays work - Carl taping the walls, and the panels mirrored with tiling started. More on our progess tomorrow.

More on the Atlantic City Medical Center Project

Most of you readers are familiar with the large mural I created in Atlantic City last year. They are a wonderful group to work with, and, in fact, I am working on another mural for them right now, which will be installed indoors in Phase 3 of the project. In the meantime, the healing arts philosophy of the hospital and their design firm, Aesthetics, keeps getting press and accolades for their work with local artists, and their "1% for art" program. I was very fortunate to be named in this latest interview with hospital representative Gary Hill which appeared on News 40 http://www.nbc40.net/pages/bl_vid.php?id=18.

TSKW

Yesterday, I mentioned that I went to Key West to teach a mosaic workshop at the Studios at Key West (http://www.tskw.org/). It's located on White Street, in a building that used to be the old armory. The building has space for exhibitions, classes, and all kinds of special events, many of which are open for free to the community. I was welcomed by the dedicated staff, and had a class of 11 wonderful women, many of whom are already artists in their own right. Above, you can see a before and after shot of one the projects.

Key West - Round 2

Just got back last night from a fantastic week in Key West, Florida. For those of you who have been, you know it's pretty hard for a stay there to be anything but fantastic. We stayed at our usual spot, Courtney's Place ( http://www.courtneysplacekeywest.com/) which I highly recommend - but not if your idea of vacation is staying at the Hilton. Their slogan is "stay in Key West like a native", and that's a pretty accurate description. Friendly staff, close enough to walk to everything in old town, relaxed and casual atmosphere. Here's a shot of the main courtyard, around which all the cottages are located.

While I was there, I was fortunate enough to spend three days teaching a mosaic workshop at the Studios of Key West. More about that later!

The "F" Word - Female, Feminine, Feminist

Friday night, March 14, was the opening of my first show in 2008, The "F" Word, at the S.M.I.L.E. gallery. I am fortunate enough to be showing with 5 wonderful women artists: Betsy Alexander, Rachel Citrino, Liliana Didovic, Francine Strauss and Madelen Warhola. It was curated by my good friend, art historian Dr. Debra Miller. This is the first time my reliquary boxes have been shown in public. Here is one of them "As I Promised" , which attracted a lot of attention because the teeth in it are real.

Our best friend in the world, artist Morel Pagano, was present in all his glory. Mo will be 79 next week, and can still kick anyone's ass, artistically or otherwise. Here is Mo, with the Italian vice-consulate, Renzo Oliva, and his beautiful wife, Juri, who is also a painter.

Afterward, we went downstairs for an excellent Thai dinner at the S.M.I.L.E . cafe. The chef, Ken Tutjamnong, is not only a master in the kitchen, but another fabulous painter. He and Liliana had a killer two-person show this February at the DaVinci Art Alliance. Here are Carl and I at dinner. Also present was Kevin Quigley, a surrealist painter and cartoonist who lives in Newport, New Jersey in a haunted lime green house. Kevin, Carl and myself will be having a show in June at the Riverfront Renaissance Center for the Arts in Millville, NJ "Fading Ways".

If you get a chance to stop by, the gallery is located at 105 S. 22nd Street, Philadelphia. It'll be up through the beginning of April. Hours are Monday through Friday, Noon- 5pm, and Saturday from 5 -10pm.