MFA | Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts

Corin Hewitt at the Seattle Art Museum
Saturday, April 4, 2009 - Sunday, October 18, 2009
SEATTLE, March 12, 2009 – SAM Next, the Seattle Art Museum’s contemporary art exhibition program, continues in 2009 with a solo exhibition of work by New York-based artist Corin Hewitt, on view April 4–October 18, 2009. The 2009 SAM Next exhibitions are curated by Marisa C. Sánchez, Assistant Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at SAM.

CORIN HEWITT, APRIL 4–OCTOBER 18, 2009
Through photography, sculpture and performance, Corin Hewitt explores memory, preservation and transformation. Hewitt spent one week in September 2007 on view in a gallery in Portland, Oregon, creating a body of vivid and complex still lifes out of a variety of materials, both organic and inorganic. He photographed and often rephotographed these still lifes, producing a dynamic body of seventy-five color images. The collection, called Weavings: (Portland, Oregon), goes on exhibit to the public for the first time as part of the SAM Next series. These photographs are the subject of a limited-edition book Weavings: Performance #2 (Portland, Oregon), published by J & L Books and available to purchase in SAM’s Gift Shop and through Amazon. The book includes an interview with the artist by critic and art historian Michael Brenson, and an essay by Sánchez.

Lectures and Shows by Sabrina Gschwandtner
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 - Sunday, September 13, 2009

The Edge of Vision: Abstraction in Contemporary Photography
Friday, May 15, 2009 - Thursday, July 9, 2009
From the beginning, abstraction has been intrinsic to photography, and its persistent popularity reveals much about the medium. The Edge of Vision: Abstraction in Contemporary Photography, curated by Lyle Rexer, and on view at Aperture Gallery, showcases the work of more than twenty contemporary photographers who base their practice in some form of abstraction. Join us as Rexer and several featured artists debate a host of approaches to the abstract photographic experience, including the chemistry of traditional photography, the mediation of lenses, the direct capture of light without a camera, temporal extensions, digital sampling of found images, radical cropping, and other deliberate destabilizations of photographic reference. This panel moderated by Lyle Rexer, features artists Jack Sal, Silvio Wolf, and Penelope Umbrico. The panel will be followed by a book signing of Rexer's recent Aperture publication The Edge of Vision: The Rise of Abstraction in Photography.

The second annual New York Photo Festival, founded by Daniel Power and Frank Evers, is an initiative of powerHouse Books. For the second year, the festival features Aperture Presents, a series of panel discussions curated by Aperture's editors. Panels will take place every day from 5 to 6 pm. Visit our booth in the powerHouse arena to see new books and limited-edition photographs exclusively from Aperture.

'1998 … 2008. Ankäufe aus der Bundeskunstsammlung'
Sunday, May 17, 2009 - Sunday, July 26, 2009

Curated by Pierre-André Lienhard and Eva Inversin.

Christoph Büchel, Michel Grillet, Fabrice Gygi, Eric Hattan, Hubbard / Birchler (MFA Photography Faculty), Daniela Keiser, L/B, Lutz & Guggisberg, Claudio Moser, Gianni Motti, Claudia & Julia Müller, Shirana Shabazi, Shahryar Nashat, and others

'Parades & Processions. Here comes everybody'
Thursday, May 28, 2009 - Friday, July 24, 2009
Francis Alÿs, Fiona Banner, Jeremy Deller, Thomas Hirschhorn, Rachel Hovnanian, Teresa Hubbard / Alexander Birchler (MFA Photography Faculty), William Kentridge, Michèle Magema, Annette Messager, Amy O’Neill and Hiraki Sawa.

This spring Parasol unit foundation for contemporary art is delighted to present Parades and Processions: Here comes everybody. The exhibition features works by twelve UK-based and international artists who take their inspiration from the traditional meanings of ‘parades’ and ‘processions’, creating works that epitomise the social and political context of our time. The resulting works, ranging from sculpture to installation, films and videos, are powerful forms of expression that address issues of history, culture, identity and politics. They also highlight the recent and increasing phenomenon in our society of holding parades and processions. This exhibition aims to show a selection of works by contemporary artists who see in these themes considerable possibilities for expression.

A ‘parade’ is usually a festive occasion for which people dress up in extravagant costumes and create elaborate and highly structured artefacts, while a ‘procession’ is more often an organised group of people proceeding in a formal or ceremonial manner, often with a religious or political connotation. Throughout civilisation, parades and processions have been integral to the human experience and social customs have been abundantly illustrated on ancient monuments. Often connected to religious, sacrificial or triumphal occasions they eventually evolved into festivals and carnivals. Nowadays parades and processions have become democratic activities in which people participate, interactively sharing a special experience with a group of like-minded people. They have become the perfect vehicle for communication and solidarity, and also raise questions about sociological and behavioural phenomena of our time, such as the increased surge in urban life, group selection, self-expression and the marked focus on the body.

The expressive power of parades and processions allows many contemporary artists to adopt these traditional themes, and by replacing some of its emblems and icons with other symbols and objects, bring new meaning to the work. In so doing they revitalise the concepts of parades and processions, which in the past have been considered formal traditions. In their quest to create new ways to express themselves, these artists have benefited greatly from the efforts of those artists who in the 1960s and early 1970s, liberated art from the museum walls and placed it in the midst of society and public spaces in the form of happenings and performances.

This exhibition is curated by Ziba Ardalan de Weck and is accompanied by a new publication.

Supported by Arts Council, England, the Swiss Cultural Fund in Britain and Pro Helvetia, Swiss Arts Council.

ELISA LENDVAY: Force of Things
Thursday, June 11, 2009 - Sunday, July 19, 2009
The term Force of Things alludes to circumstance and the powers beyond our control that exist in nature and human nature, and matter that surround us. In this exhibition, Elisa Lendvay absorbs ideas and the underlying poetics of natural phenomena, and in combination with formal considerations about art-making creates work that is a byproduct of what she terms “colliding forces.” She depicts this force or surge in her work as dispersal – each of the works seems to come together and break apart simultaneously. Like a chemical or atomic reaction, Lendvay intuitively adjusts the tactile and literal qualities of her materials and influences attempting to make sculpture and drawings that that probe the nature of reality.

Elisa Lendvay has lived in New York City since 2003. A BFA graduate of Bennington College and the University of Texas at Austin, she received her MFA in sculpture at the Milton Avery Graduate School of the Arts at Bard College in 2006. She has exhibited in group shows and project spaces in New York, and throughout the United States. She exhibited a solo project, “Fabled Agents,” at Moti Hasson gallery in New York in 2007. Lendvay was born in Dallas in 1975, and is part of growing group of artists in NY with Texas history and New England and New York training. This is her second solo exhibition in New York.

V&A is located on the Lower East Side in Chinatown at 98 Mott Street, Second Floor.

V&A is situated among the shops and businesses of Chinatown/Lower East Side in an intimate second-floor setting. In line with its mission to present emerging, contemporary art in an unconventional location, V&A's distance from traditional art world center in a highly unique space provides an immediate critical context for the work.

Gallery Hours:                  Wed – Sat 12–6 PM
Subway:                            6 to Canal Street; B or D to Grand Street, NRQ to Canal Street
Further info:                      Vicky Donner   212.966.5754
victoria@vandanyc.com   www.VANDANYC.com

ALTERNATOR
Friday, June 12, 2009 - Wednesday, July 8, 2009
PLATFORM centre for photographic + digital arts in partnership with Wasagaming Community Arts Inc. is pleased to present the two-person exhibition, ALTERNATOR featuring Dominique Rey + Collin Zipp curated by J.J. Kegan McFadden.

To some, it seems, the world has been turned up side down. Such a sense of confusion is prevalent in the recent photographic series of Winnipeg artists Dominique Rey and Collin Zipp. Choosing to engage with the all-encompassing question of climate control, each artist has proceeded differently. The exhibition consists of recent series by these artists, brought together for the first time in order to comment on, and address understandings of recent global concerns with climate.

"An alternator is a device for converting one form of energy into another, from mechanical to electric. It seems as though Rey and Zipp are engaged in a similar process of converting images of our once-familiar landscapes and vistas into the new reality of the ever-changing ecosystems. This idea is further mirrored in the fact that PLATFORM has converted energy from our space in downtown Winnipeg into an exhibition in Wasagaming Community Arts..."
[excerpt from McFadden's curatorial essay, Topsy-Turvy World]

ALTERNATOR is organized by PLATFORM centre for photographic + digital arts and co-presented by Wasagaming Community Arts Inc, as part of PLATFORM’s new series of sporadic off-site projects loosely organized under the designation f_l_o_a_t_i_n_g in honour of our antecedent, The Floating Gallery (1981-2003).

Exhibition: The Sum and All Parts
Thursday, June 18, 2009 - Sunday, July 26, 2009

Beauty Underfoot
Saturday, June 20, 2009 - Sunday, August 2, 2009
curated by Jeanne Gerrity

Adriana Farmiga, Petrova Giberson, Isola and Norzi, Fawad Khan, Gareth Long, Alison Owen, Mike Quinn, Yumi Janairo Roth, Jen Schwarting, Secret School and the K.I.D.S., Charwei Tsai

Workshop: BODY; SOUND; OBJECT; STORY
Saturday, July 11, 2009 - Sunday, July 12, 2009

This workshop delves into the idea of PRESENCE on stage (observing, reacting, simultaneity, interaction),
drawing from the innovative work of Eugenio Barba, Joseph Chaikin, and S.I. Witkiewicz, as well as concepts
from non-theatrical performance (free improvisation, sound poetry, performance art). How can theater-makers
expand the possibilities of their voice and body to create extraordinary theatrical moments?

The two five-hour days will include exercises that are physical, vocal and text-based, as well as
discussions of related readings. Please be ready to sweat and think!

GREAT for actors, dancers, directors, performers and students looking to incorporate new ideas
and methods into their practice.

Very limited spaces available so reserve now!

To reserve a spot, email connellydamour@gmail.com or call (917) 991-6424.

Fee: $200 (some tuition assistance available).

'Conflicting Tales'.
Saturday, September 5, 2009 - Sunday, December 13, 2009
Adam Adach, Monika Baer, Stephan Balkenhol, Rafal Bujnowski, Fiona Banner, Norbert Bisky, Fernando Bryce, Verne Dawson, Atul Dodiya, Dongwook Lee, Urs Fischer, Sabine Hornig, Hubbard / Birchler (MFA Photography Faculty), Tim Gardner, Douglas Kolk, Elke Krystufek, Nalini Malani, Muntean / Rosenblum, Anna Niesterowicz, Grayson Perry, Thomas Ochoa, Hans Op de Beeck, Jaume Plensa, Damien Roach, Julian Rosefeldt, Charles Sandison, Vittorio Santoro, Collier Schorr, Dennis Scholl, Steven Shearer, Fiete Stolte, Mathilde ter Heijne, Susan Turcot, Paul Winstanley, Zhou Jin Hua

The Burger Collection is going public with the group exhibition Conflicting Tales. The temporary exhibition will feature works by more than 30 artists from the collection and is curated by Daniel Kurjakovic, curator and head of program. It will take place in Berlin from September 5 through December 13, 2009 (opening: September 4, 2009).

Conflicting Tales is the first of four planned exhibitions from the holdings of the Burger Collection. The show focuses on the issue of subjectivity. Three further exhibitions in coming years will probe the issues of narration, historicity, and language as they play out in the Burger Collection. The concept for the presentation of the Burger Collection foresees changing sites around the world for the exhibitions.

The Burger Collection is a private collection of contemporary art. Monique Burger and her husband, who started collecting art in the early 1990s, placed a great deal of personal commitment into building up a collection of international artists. The collection currently contains more than 1000 works. It includes paintings, drawings, and photography as well as sculpture, new media, film, and video.

More information about the exhibition Conflicting Tales and the collection can be found here.

'No Room to Answer'.
Saturday, September 5, 2009 - Sunday, November 8, 2009

Touring solo exhibition which was shown previously in a modified form at the Modern Museum Fort Worth, USA, curated by Andrea Karnes and at the Württembergischer Kunstverein Stuttgart, Germany, curated by Hans D. Christ and Iris Dressler.