Author Archives: Denver Art Matters

Happy 108th Birthday, Clyfford

73  The pairing of Denver & Clyfford

Last Friday night, amidst the Parade of Lights’s tacky, colorful floats, kids lagging behind focused party-animal parents, fire engines, cars and roped off sidewalks and streets, The Clyfford Still Museum hosted a birthday party for what would have been their namesake’s 108th birthday.

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The opening of the museum in 2011, will forever be remembered as one of John Hickenlooper‘s major deals.  When most Denverites, art lovers to boot, had barely heard of Clyfford Still, Hickenlooper was on the East Coast negotiating an agreement to bring the artist’s entire body of work to the Mile High City. Our Hick (was he governor or mayor then?) conceived before anyone else that Still’s work would create an art destination for Denver. Actually there was no other way but to bring the whole kit n’ kaboodle because the artist’s will firmly stated his work could not be separated, and could only be shown alone and in a dedicated museum. I think we all thought that was rather arrogant at the time, but it has ultimately proven to be a significant art coup for Denver. As we’ve become comfortable with the museum and Still’s work, it is understandably, the only way it could have been.  And Hickenlooper was spot-on.  Still’s art and state-of-the-art museum has put Denver on the world art map. We are sincerely thankful to the largely, unfamiliar, mysterious 20th century American artist and his heirs, for this incomparable gift. Clyfford Still will forever be Denver’s.

Clyfford Still was a multi-faceted, cantankerous man. He was among the group of Abstract Expressionist artists in the 1950s , you’ve heard of: Jackson Pollack, Franz Kline, Willem de Kooning, Robert Motherwell, Mark Rothko. But his temperament and talent entreated him to sever ties with the art world and the renown Betty Parsons Gallery in New York City and, thus, leave the world of commercial promotion and galleries behind him.  He then moved to Maryland where he worked for the next twenty years. Meticulously he rolled his finished, dried canvases then stored each one in his barn. He died in 1980.

IMG_1865Clyfford Still

His birthday party was an opportunity for fans to take another look around at this all inclusive art gem. The museum itself, is a work of art. Designed by Allied Works. The structure is a continuous form that is opened up by natural light. From every doorway and angled gallery, one of Still’s exquisitely large, colorful abstract creations is in full view. The building, walls and all, is made of textured concrete. Each gallery highlights Still’s larger than life art with changing scale, proportion, and varying light intensity. There is a serene beauty to the layout and one can never get enough of the artist’s changing styles and moods – from representational to severe abstract. I plan to learn more about this artist. What I’ve read and heard so far…he was the real thing.

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At the party, left to right: Candice Pulliam, Art Services, http://www.locatefineart.com; Dean Sobel, Director of the Clyfford Still Museum, http://www.clyffordstillmuseum.org, Robin & Jack Lima, owners of the Native American Trading Company & Gallery, http://www.nativeamericantradingco.com. The Lima’s confirmed that people come from all over the world to see the museum and the work of Clyfford Still. Explaining that after visiting the DAM and the Still Museum, tourists wander into their gallery across the street.

The Clyfford Still Museum, 1250 Bannock Street, Denver, 80204. 720-354-4880.

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Coors Show 2013, features Jill Soukop – January 8 – 27

Coors Western Art Exhibit and Sale

View All Artists

The Exhibit and Sale

The 2013 Coors Western Art Exhibit and Sale will open with a Red Carpet Reception on Tuesday, January 8, 2013. Advance reservations (prior to December 15, 2012) are $175 per person; after December 15th, they are $200.00. For additional information or to receive an invitation, please call National Western, 303-299-5560 or e-mail. The exhibit will be open to the public each day of the National Western Stock Show, January 12-27, 2013. For directions to the show click here.

Location:
National Western Stock Show Complex
4655 Humboldt St | Denver, CO

Exhibit Hours:
Sunday – Thursday 9 A.M. – 8 P.M. (On the last Sunday the Stock Show closes at 6:00 P.M.).
Friday & Saturday – 9 A.M. – 9 P.M.

Featured Artist for 2013: Jill Soukup

Jill Soukup was born in Buffalo, New York. Shortly thereafter, her family moved to Colorado, where she still resides.  Jill’s affinity for horses as a young girl resulted in countless drawings and studies of them, which made for a strong drawing foundation. As a teen, she started a pet-portrait business, acquired jobs painting murals, and designed logos for local organizations. She graduated from Colorado State University in 1991 with a Bachelor of Fine Art. There, she received awards for illustration and design and worked as an illustrator and designer for the university. She initially pursued a career in graphic design while continuing to paint part time. After 11 years as a designer, she made the switch to full-time painting.Read More

2012
People’s Choice Winner
2012 People's Choice Award: Scorpion Dust by Teresa Elliot
“Scorpion Dust”
By Teresa Elliot
Click picture to enlarge
2013
Featured Artist
Hold Steady, 2013 Featured Artist“Hold Steady”
By Jill Soukup
Click picture to enlarge
Order Posters
“More Than A Feast For Crows”
By Don Stinson
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Coors Western Art Sponsors

Sponsors of the Coors Western Art Show
Henry and Lorie Gordon

Sean Penn loses drag queen contest

“This Must Be the Place”

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If you’re reading Denver Art Matters you’re probably a fan of Sean Penn. I just wonder if you think, like I do, that he is the most amazing actor of our time?  From the first time I laid eyes on him in “Fast Times at Ridgemont High” (1982), his goofy, intelligent intensity and superb talent, placed him at the top of my favorite actor list. His career has proven that he has an unsettling instinct for choosing roles that suit his talents perfectly.

That’s why I decided on, “This Must Be the Place,” over the-getting-rave-reviews Spielberg’s “Lincoln,” movie last week.

O.K. TMBTP is a weird film. But Penn’s portrayal of an aging rockstar living in Dublin, a la Ozzy Osborne in Goth, emitting mumbled Truman Capote-esque lines, brilliantly showcases the talents of one of today’s most talented actors. I trust Penn’s acting choices.

The story line takes Cheyenne, the retired rock star, back to New York for his father’s final breath. After the funeral, even though he and his father hadn’t spoken in twenty years, Cheyenne necessitates revenge for his Auschwitz survivor father. Deciding to confront the depraved Auschwitz guard who tormented his father’s every waking hour after WWII. He discovers he is now living gratis in the U.S.  Thus, his cross country search begins.

The cast is impressive, Judd Hirsch, Frances McDormand (his wife), David Byrne. It’s doubtful Penn or any of the cast will be nominated for an award, but stranger things have happened. TMBTP debuted at the 2011 Cannes Film Festival produced by the Weinstein Company. Written and directed by Italian filmmaker Paolo Sorrentino, Penn gives an atypical, compelling performance, but quite honestly, he is a terrible looking drag queen.

Brushstrokes Gallery is moving….

Talk about Christmas shopping – 4 of Denver’s most beloved artists have your holiday shopping in mind. 

2012 logo
Brushstrokes is moving!

(And we’re hosting a one-time sale,
just in time for the holidays
!)

After 10 years on Denver’s South Gaylord Street, we’re relocating to 1487 S. Broadway–just minutes away in the heart of revitalized
“antique row”–in a gorgeous
turn-of-the-century space.

Moving Sale
November 23 – Dec 24
(11 am- 5 pm, Mon – Sat, or happily by appointment)
25% discounts on most original art and prints

We’ve greatly appreciated your support over the years, and look forward to reconnecting at our new location!
With best wishes,

Kelly Berger, John K. Harrell,
Kit Hevron Mahoney, Anita Mosher
Brushstrokes Studio Gallery LLP
1059 S. Gaylord St.
Denver, Colorado 80209
303-871-0800
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Bill Amundsen to talk at Denver Art Museum Wednesday, November 28, 2012

Wednesday, November 28 2012, 7:00pm – 8:30pm
November 28, 2012Nervous_Patriot

With meticulous draftsmanship, Bill Amundson infuses social commentary and satire in portraits and in images of Middle America. He captures the absurdities and eccentricities of life in witty and humorous visual critiques. In works such as Teen Excavation andNervous Patriot – both in the Denver Art Museum collection – he addresses existential predicaments, from typical teenage angst to grown-up political anxieties. Amundson’s work has been widely exhibited and is in many public and private collections.

Image Credit: Bill Amundson, Nervous Patriot, 2004. Graphite on Paper. (c) The Artist. Image courtesy the Denver Art Museum.

General Lecture Information:

All lectures begin at 7:00 pm in the Sharp Auditorium at the Denver Art Museum’s Frederic C. Hamilton Building. Doors open at 6:15 pm. For more information, or to purchase tickets, call: 720-913-0130 or go online to https://tickets.denverartmuseum.org/Bill_Amundson_LL

INDIVIDUAL LECTURES:
$8 Students and DAM volunteers
$12 DAMC members and artists
$15 DAM members
$18 Non-members
SERIES:
$45. This special price is available only to DAM Contemporaries members and available here:https://tickets.denverartmuseum.org/LL_Series

SPONSORS:
This series is made possible with the generous support of Vicki and Kent Logan and DAM Contemporaries.

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Clever Art Forger would turn 114 today – Happy Birthday, Rene

From the Huffington Post
This is more interesting than anything I could say….

Today is the birthday of Belgian surrealistRene Magritte. Born on this day in 1898, the man with an amusing predilection for bowler hats would turn 114 years old if he were miraculously alive.

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Los Angeles, UNITED STATES: Gallery security guard J. Dulay poses beside ‘Decalcomania’ (‘La Decalcomanie’) by Belgian surrealist artist Rene Magritte (1898-1967). AFP PHOTO / Robyn BECK/Getty Images.

Magritte began making art in 1916, creating paintings similar in style to Impressionist masters. The following year, he enrolled at Académie Royale des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, moving more in the direction of Futurist and Cubist artists like Jean Metzinger. It wasn’t until 1926 that Magritte produced his first Surrealist work, “The Lost Jockey,” launching his association with Andre Breton‘s circle in Paris.

The young artist threw himself full force into the manifesto-making sentiments of the Surrealists. With the exception of a brief painterly detour known as his “Renoir Period,” Magritte became known for his provocative pieces incorporating ordinary objects into unusual spaces. One of his most famous works, “The Treachery of Images,” plays on the tendency of works to deceive as it features a painting of a lone pipe with the caption, “Ceci n’est pas une pipe” (“This is not a pipe”).

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‘Le Beau Navire’, a painting by artist Rene Magritte, was on display at Sotheby’s during a preview, January 20, 2010, in New York. AFP PHOTO/Emmanuel Dunand/Getty Images.Though Magritte is now famous for his mystifying paintings, during his life the Brussels based artist allegedly supported himself at times through the production of fake works by Picasso and Braques. His clever art forgeries later turned into forged banknotes, featuring King Leopold of Belgium smoking a pipe, which highlights the smirky-worthy deceit present in nearly everything Magritte touched. The feisty artist painted well into his later life, exhibiting a major retrospective at the Museum of Modern Art shortly before his death in 1968. His work has since received widespread attention across the globe, inspiring artists from Jeff Beck toJean-Luc Godard.
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You’re Invited to a Tupperware Party

                                                                      

It’s a Par-tay. Honestly. Girls and boys get your ticket to Dixie Longate’s riotous, “Dixie’s Tupperware Party,” at the Denver Center Attractions, Garner Galleria theatre.

Not knowing what to expect, I reckon’d I’d laugh, hear profanity and off color jokes about the venerable Tupperware product. Sure enough, I did hear all that…and more.

Dixie Longate is an institution. She’s kind of like Jill Connor Browne’s Sweet Potato Queen and our very own Nuclia Waste. It’s what one might consider high struttin’ and dissin’. But hey, where can you go see an intimate performance, witness a demonstration for airtight plastic storage, toast your neighbor with the special par-tay punch in a vagina tight holder, and best of all, buy a complete set of Tupperware at an honest to god, Tupperware Party, I ask you, where  can  you  do  all  that?

Dixie is a bonafide starlette. I’ve rarely seen an actor ad lib and improvise as she does. After ten years of selling tupperware, a la Brownie Wise style, it’s safe to say Miss Dixie’s heard it all and answered every question in the book. By the way, Dixie applauds Brownie Wise as the victor of Tupperware products. It was she who took those stacks of plastics into her friend’s living rooms, calling them home parties a la Sara Coventry. Who’da ever thought those plastic bowls would rival costume jewelry, and skyrocket Wise onto the history pages of home parties. She and her friends sold bazilions of forever plastics crowning Tupperware and Brownie the queen of a woman’s can’t-do-with-out-kitchen-items.

At the Galleria, Dixie invites you right into her living room accompanied by the ghost of the hallowed Miss Wise. With gratitude, Dixie smacks her indebtedness for Tupperware which has given her a new life she could never have lived without Mr. Earl Tupper’s invention. After all, before her party skills, she was a single mom, semi-raising three children Wynona, Dwayne and Absorbine, Jr.

The audience sings along with Dixie as she demonstrates her gum chewing wit explaining items such as the nifty pickle keeper. She cracks with well informed knowledge,  “You simply lift out the strainer and grab a liquid free pickle – from the #443,” wickedly adding,  “so your fingers won’t smell like ass, when you’re done.” Then there’s the #1289, Can Opener. Dixie swears that after the nuclear war there’ll be three things left on this earth: Cher, cockroaches and the #1289 can opener. She’s knows things like that. She knows that things come into focus better after that second shot of tequilla and she’s forever grateful for Brownie & Earl,  “There ain’t a day that goes by that I don’t pick up a piece of Tupperware and thank my lucky stars at how much better off I am now than I was just a couple of years ago.”

Stuttering, laughing, gum chewing, drinking wine, poking fun, engaging innocent audience participants is the uncut version of a top rated fun evening. The dialogue is clever and naughty and Dixie is without a doubt one of the funniest character actors on the stage today.

Don’t be surprised. You’ll actually love the new tupperware and by golly, it is quality stuff, still. Everyone gets a catalog and order form at your seat. You will quickly recognize the changes over the years. The lettuce crisper was a standard for all new wives in the 50’s -70’s, now costs a whopping $59.00. Crisp or not, lettuce can’t last long enough to pay for that piece of plastic. But if you listen to Dixie, you’ll be buying the berry colored tumbler set, the meat tenderizer, and airtight bowls our mothers swore by.

In fact, I bought the party punch in a Berry Bliss tumbler and by golly, not a drop of sweat on the outside and, the ice was perfect at the end of the evening.

Dixie’s Tupperware Party is the real thing.

www.dixiestupperwareparty.com

www.dcpa.org

http://www.nucliawaste.com

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