Newest Features
By CHARLES GIULIANO During a tour of the small but intense and insightful exhibition “The Last Ruskinians: Charles Eliot Norton, Charles Herbert Moore and Their Circle” the co-curator, Virginia Anderson, and I paused before the remarkably detailed, full scale study of a peacock feather by Moore. “We looked at it under a microscope and it was just amazing,” she said. “He created it using tiny brushes.” It evoked comparisons to a similar study of a feather by Moore’s mentor the great British art historian and watercolorist John Ruskin. She suggested that I…
By CHRISTIAN HOLLAND This week, the ICA Boston presents Zidane, A 21st-Century Portrait (2005), a film in which 17 35mm cameras follow the French footballer Zinedine Zidane for 90 minutes. The film runs from the moment the first whistle commences the game until the player is ejected for scuffling with an opposing player and walks off the field near the end of the match. This past Sunday, the film was introduced by the ICA’s Director of Film and Media, Branka Bogdanov, who described the film as “plot-free” and a painting that should…
By BEN SLOAT The famed Russian born novelist (and noted lepidopterist) Vladimir Nabokov once wrote to his mother of the creative process: “We are translators of God’s creation, his little plagiarists and imitators, we dress up what he wrote, as a charmed commentator sometimes gives an extra grace to a line of genius.” Nabokov understood his artistic methods as being the captured translation of surrounding creative miracles, of which he was witness. It’s no wonder that his twin passions were writing and butterfly hunting; the first an act of creation, the second,…
By MATTHEW NASH Sometimes it seems as if there is a deep divide in the ways we discuss art in our current moment. On one hand, there is a form of dialogue that begins with ideas and intentions, exploring how the artist translated those through their media and how successful that statement was made. This type of conversation involves theory, conceptual practice and an understanding of the discursive nature of contemporary art; it is also the primary mode of consideration for much of the work in the Boston Cyberarts Festival. On the…
By JENNIFER MCMACKON Much is said in our time about the intersection of art with public space and the idea of the art gallery that exceeds the limitations of it’s walls. But for Patrick Macaulay, Visual Arts Curator at Harbourfront’s York Quay Centre it’s just another day in the life of an institution mandated to make art do just that. Working with a seasonally changing umbrella of themes shared by all of the centre’svarious organizations, Macaulay is consistently innovative, proactively looking to his community to ensure every nook and cranny under his jurisdiction…
By BIG RED Thursday, April 19th & Friday, April 20th, 2007 Candid snaps from a Big RED night on-the-town at the opening receptions for two student shows. The gallery at the Porter Exchange features work by Shelby Skumanich, Lucy Huffman and Amanda Kilton. The gallery at 601 Newbury features work by Laurel DeMarco, Erin Eriksen, Marissa Molinaro, Erin Thompson, Erin Mushalla and Michael Degutis. Art Institute of Boston, Lesley University
By BIG RED Thursday, April 12th, 2007 Candid snaps from a Big RED night on-the-town at The Museum School for the opening reception of the “Fifth Year Exhibition”. Grossman Gallery at The School of the Museum of Fine Arts
By BIG RED NEWS EDITOR Boston artist Ravi Jain has been nominated for a Webby for his DriveTime video blog. Voting is open until April 27th, so log in and cast your vote! DriveTime is created by Ravi and his wife Sonia, who shoot the talk show in their car while driving to work. The show has become an entertainment staple for many people, and it does a great job of showcasing the art and culture of Boston while remaining funny, smart and witty. If you aren’t familiar with DriveTime, you can…