Starr Review

A Note to My Readers: Making Comments

2012-03-15T03:29:00.000-07:00

Several readers have mentioned recently that they've wished to post something on the blog, but have been unable to get the comments box at the bottom of the page to publish what they've written in it. I find that in order for readers to post, they must be signed in to Starr Review. There's a sign-in spot in the upper right corner of each review. Feel free to enlist as a "follower!" But many

Murano Glass Master, Davide Salvadore

2012-03-15T03:09:00.001-07:00

Davide Salvatore, Tirata. Author photo. At his recent opening at the Sherrie Gallerie in Columbus, I asked Davide Salvadore (through his congenial translator), if there is any room for chance in the process of creating his glass works, or if he has everything mapped out before he begins. This master glass artist from Murano, the Venetian island that has been the center of glass works since

David Smith's Plane Geometry

2012-03-10T08:44:00.001-08:00

David Smith, Cubi I, 1963Stainless steel, 124 x 34 1/2 x 33 1/2 inches. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, Special Purchase Fund© The Estate of David Smith/VAGA, New York. Photo: David Smith, courtesy The Estate of David Smith Most of us have seen David Smith's geometry-based sculpture at least in photographs: his perilously piled cubes with insanely shiny

What a Piece of Work is Man: Contemporary Figuration at the Canzani Gallery

2012-03-01T03:00:00.000-08:00

A thematic show is a work of art in itself. A group show built around a subject will have the visitor not only engage with individual works, but will find each enhanced by its neighborhood. The curator prepares the music for the event—the resonances, harmonies, discords, and even tempos that might propel our observing selves through the galleries. Michael Goodson's Bending the Mirror: Figure

Location, Location, Location! Cityscapes of Harvey Gilliam and Kojo Kamau

2012-02-19T17:44:00.000-08:00

The 2012 bicentennial of Columbus, Ohio is inspiring a panoply of art shows. Cityscapes Yesteryear, currently open at the King Arts Complex and co-sponsored by Art for Community Expression, is a particularly sweet example. It features the work of photographer Kojo Kamau (website), most from his student days when he was getting to know his camera and 35mm film. "Buildings don't move," he laughs,

A Film by Michael Snow at the Wexner Center; Thoughts on Gallery Notes

2012-02-11T13:55:00.000-08:00

Wexner Center for the Arts. Photo by Brad Feinknopf The Wexner Center for the Arts at The Ohio State University is a contemporary arts venue worthy of any city in the world. The Peter Eisenman building houses (among much more) four major galleries that ascend a hillside via a ramp of shallow stairs illuminated by a high, angular canopy of glass. The wonderful art space balances airiness and

Leah Wong, Moving

2012-02-03T07:39:00.000-08:00

Leah Wong, You and Others, 36 x 48 inches, 2010. Courtesy of the artist. Leah Wong, Things I See, 36 x 48 inches, 2009. Courtesy of the artist. It's been two years since Chinese-American painter Leah Wong's last show at the Sherrie Gallerie in Columbus. Her haunting 2010 show came

Elijah Pierce, Sanctuary in the 1960s

2012-02-01T09:01:00.000-08:00

Columbus, Ohio lays claim to its share of famous artists: George Bellows was born and raised here, as was James Thurber. Roy Lichtenstein studied and taught at Ohio State during the '40s. Currently living and working among us are the pioneer of computer art, Charles Csuri; photographer Tony Mendoza; Ann Hamilton, and Aminah Robinson. Elijah Pierce, 1892-1984Christ with Rose of Sharon,

Life Process: Hiroe Saeki at the Pizzuti Collection

2012-01-20T07:24:00.000-08:00

It's not going too far to suggest that any viewer, of any age or acquaintance with art, will react with dropped jaw to Hiroe Saeki's three mixed-media drawings in the Pizzuti Collection's Teasers show. Some form of the question, "How could she have done that?" will leap to mind, or its variant, "I could never do that!" While the second is probably true, it would be too bad to leave the first as

Nothing Like a Dame: Some Women Artists from the Pizzuti Collection

2012-01-17T14:20:00.000-08:00

To the incomparable benefit of the public, Ron Pizzuti will begin to exhibit his famous collection of contemporary art in a dedicated building now being prepared in the Short North district of Columbus, Ohio. The building is scheduled for a fall, 2012 opening. Linda Gall, Centerpiece with Marine Decoration, acrylic on panel, 16" x 20." Courtesy of the Pizzuti Collection. The Collection's

Attack on an Abstract Painting

2012-01-10T17:23:00.000-08:00

On January 6, 2012 The Columbus Dispatch ran an Associated Press article about a shocking occurrence at the Clyfford Still Museum. "Motive a mystery in defacing art" tells how $10,000 of damage was done to a monumental Still painting. The attack took place on December 29 by a woman "punching and scratching it, then removing her pants and sliding down the art-work." Clyfford Still painting.

Norman Rockwell, In the Picture and Out

2012-01-07T10:35:00.000-08:00

The Dayton Art Institute is showing American Chronicle: The Art of Norman Rockwell through February 5. It's a great big show with 42 original works and all 323 covers Rockwell created over 47 years for The Saturday Evening Post. I've always thought Rockwell a low-brow artist of treacly subjects, though a witty storyteller with a great aptitude for visual characterization. A man of ideas whose

An Untitled Drawing by Ahmed Alsoudani

2011-12-30T14:36:00.000-08:00

Ahmed Alsoudani was born in Baghdad in 1975, but forced to flee his homeland in 1999 after the notable indiscretion of defacing an image of Saddam Hussein. His mother and siblings still live there; he watched the war on the television while learning English and working his way through two art schools. Al Jazeera English presents an excellent two-part interview with him on YouTube. Ahmed

Wax Cloth and Textile Designs on the Street in St. Louis, Senegal

2011-12-22T10:52:00.000-08:00

On a recent visit to the northernmost city of Senegal, St. Louis--located near the border of Mauritania, where the Senegal River meets the North Atlantic--I had a few hours to watch people come and go downtown. The Senegalese are touchy about being photographed, so I've found it frustrating in my travels there to get photos of the vivid daily dress that I so admire. My hostess assured me

The Values of Craft: Hand Made in Dakar

2011-12-05T06:39:00.000-08:00

In the New York Times on December 2, 2011, Alice Pfeiffer writes about The Return of the Artisan to the Art World . "Dedicated...university programs are contributing to the renewed recognition of these trades..while also providing young artists with marketable skills." A young English artist, chosen as an example, makes works that "comment on consumerism, using traditional techniques." She

"Work of Art, the Next Great Artist," or, How to Fuel Public Disdain for Contemporary Art

2011-12-01T07:05:00.000-08:00

Work of Art, the Next Great Artist, the Bravo network's Wednesday evening reality show produced by Sarah Jessica Parker and hosted by China Chow, pits an initial class of fourteen artists against one another in a competition for Fabulous Prizes. What's hot for an artist these days? The same things Bravo's Top Chefs and Project Runway fashion designers want: Fame and Fortune. For artists, these

Homeless in the World of Harry Underwood

2011-11-24T10:38:00.000-08:00

The Lindsay Gallery in Columbus (http://lindsaygallery.com/) is currently featuring the work of Harry Underwood, a self-trained artist whose work reflects the influence of popular and advertising culture, but little from the world of fine art. Underwood's works have a look reminiscent of tinted post cards from a by-gone era; of advertising enticements to visit or to buy property in Florida; of

The Human Image in Ancient Ife Art

2011-11-13T09:49:00.000-08:00

"Awe," once a word meaning reverence, fear, and wonder, is currently considered to have broader application. "Awesome" may be used without prejudice to describe the flavor of chewing gum. I hesitate to use "awe" and its derivatives for the sake of clarity. But no other words will do for "Dynasty and Divinity: Ife Art in Ancient Nigeria." This show of ancient treasures lent by the National

Is there a Message in this Medium? Consumer Materials in Contemporary Art

2011-11-04T12:08:00.000-07:00

The Canzani Center Gallery at the Columbus College of Art and Design (CCAD) is now, as so often, an excellent place to slow down and enjoy an encounter with cutting-edge contemporary art. "Supply and Demand," the first show from exhibitions director Michael Goodson, is curated by Lisa Dent, CCAD faculty member and associate curator for contemporary art at the Columbus Museum of Art. The exhibit

In the Works

2011-11-02T17:49:00.000-07:00

Here's what's cooking at Starr Review: This week I'll post about a show of cutting-edge contemporary work that uses mass-produced items as art materials. After that, I'll be writing several pieces about African art. First, I'll return to Indianapolis for another look at "Dynasty and Divinity: Ife in Ancient Nigeria." It's a show of heads and figures made in the 12th through 15th centuries

Dispatch from Underground Indianapolis

2011-10-25T15:29:00.000-07:00

The Indianapolis Museum of Art with sculpture by Robert Indiana Courtesy the Indianapolos Museum of Art The Indianapolis Museum of Art has so much to recommend it to potential members—stunning building, great collection, excellent programming, historic gardens, and its new 100 Acres of contemporary outdoor sculpture. If all that weren't enough, though, this would be the clincher: an annual,

Ceramist Joe Bova: Fully Formed Figures in Tacit Stories

2011-10-23T13:22:00.000-07:00

I'd never heard of Joe Bova before I received the announcement for his show at the Sherrie Gallerie here in Columbus. Shows at Sherrie Hawk's gallery are always worth seeing because she has a fine eye, lots of information about her specialties—contemporary ceramics and jewelry—but, best of all, she is infinitely curious. Because Sherrie learns from every artist she brings into her space, I'm

A Painting to Take Home and Love: "The Assassination" by James Ensor

2011-10-14T14:44:00.000-07:00

Emil NoldeSunflowers in the Windstorm, 1943. Oil on board, 28 5/8 x 34 5/8 in.Gift of Howard D. and Babette L. Sirak, the Donors to the Campaign for Enduring Excellence, and the Derby Fund, Columbus Museum of Art The Columbus Museum of Art is currently showing "Monet to Matisse: Celebrating the 20th Anniversary of the Sirak Collection." In 1991 the Museum acquired this nonpareil private

The Schedule for Contemporary Art

2011-10-10T14:09:00.000-07:00

In a conversation this morning with a potential new reader, I was pleasantly surprised by his excitement to find that I was writing about contemporary art. "Do you travel?" he asked. "When I can," was my wistful reply. I always hope to. And I do. I shall, and I will. "Were you at the Venice Biennale? My wife and I spent four days there with friends from California. I wondered if you'd written

Ear Training: William Gottlieb Listens to Jazz

2011-09-26T14:38:00.000-07:00

One of the great images from the 1940s is Billie Holiday singing full-throated, lovely and anguished. into shadowy space. In another, Thelonious Monk turns a little shyly to the camera above him, posing his hands on the keyboard. He withholds who-knows-what quixotic notions behind his half smile, his super-cool glasses, his jaunty beret. By these iconic photos, we know jazz greats almost as