I’m going - but just found about about it tonight - it’s a film festival,  registration is closed. 

I’ve never been to one of these before - I’ll cover the details here in the next day or so.  I found out about it via the Lazy Limabean (A.K.A. Daron Jenkins).

“…Come kick back with other film & media folk at this months SCENE Networking event, at Lotus, 409 West 14th Street (9th Ave/Washington Street), NY, NY.

Professionals and organizations from film, fashion, television, print & online media come together to promote cooperation and collaboration within the NYC creative industries.

Admission is free. There’s superb happy hour specials and fun Door Giveaways for first 35 Attendees. One lucky person will win a Ipod Shuffle!*

Date/Time: Weds., March 21st from 6:30-10PM

I went to the Artist’s Panel discussion on The Optical Edge last night and got a chance to see the exhibition as talk to a professor whom I studied with at Hunter College during the 1970’s,  Sanford Wurmfeld. 

Note to myself: Strange, but Sanford Wurmfeld has no official website - I’m not sure that’s by design or just omission - but you’d think an Artist of his stature would have a site where he displays his work as he’d like it to be seen - weird!   Here’s a guy that talks the talk, an eloquent speaker - and an eloquent painter of hard edged color field painting …… and yet in 2007 ….. no official website!

Anyway, I saw a couple of paintings I really liked at The Optical Edge, including one of Sanford Wurmfeld’s - a large color field painting that I hope my less than optimal camera and photographer’s ability does not take too much away from it:

I did my best to capture this large color field, Op-Art, piece by Sanford Wurmfeld, who still teaches at Hunter College (Hunter has a pretty strong Art Department - I’ve found, a department with a lot of Tenured Artists, it seems to me, many well known - though none are “superstars” of the Art World). 

I don’t know what this painting is called - but if Wurmfeld ever sees my blog post (doubtful - given he does not seem to have his own website), he’s free to comment here and I’ll update this information.

The Artist Soonja Han (who does not speak English and lives in Paris; Soonja had a translator with her and prepared most of her statements in writing before the panel discussion) has the strongest work in The Optical Edge show - and perhaps, transcends the rest - her work, more than any other - is actively engaging the viewer - it can not be ignored and many a visitor last night was stumped into staring at the work below (whose name I don’t know - it’s another large painting - but with square dimensions).

 

I could not stop looking at this Soonja Han painting - which my photo probably does not do justice to.   In a way, Soonja Han, to the greatest extent, and the rest of the artists in the show (to a lesser extent) work does exactly the opposite of what they say their work is doing!

Note to myself:  One of the artists, either Jon Groom or Ryszard Wasko, said that “Painting” is a “passive” artform whereas most other media directly engage you … Painting is something where you need to slow down, be still and take the work in - a painting “shows” itself to you over time.

In practice - The Op Edge Artists in this show did the reverse of what they say painting is supposed to do - they’re making artworks that actively try to engage the viewer with geometric patterns of ambiguity that force the brain of the viewer to make resolution - to make sense of what they’re seeing.   I’d say, Soonja Han’s and Sanford Wurmfeld’s work - actively engages the viewer - just the opposite of what all the artists were saying about their work last night on the Panel discussion that I sat in on.

Just shows you … don’t listen so much to what the Artist says … look at what they’re doing - and remember - your interpretation is just your interpretation - someone else may see it differently.

In my next post, I’ll present the notes and thoughts I had while listening to the Panel Discussion on The Optical Edge.

I went to a book signing for 100 New York Painters by Cynthia Maris Dantzic  tonight; of course I bought a copy of the book and got it signed by some of the artists and Cynthia Maris Dantzic, who were present and in the book. 

 

There was about 25-30 people in the room, on the 6th floor of the YMCA rooftop.

 

  

Personally, I’ve met, known or studied with a couple of the artists in the book - which seems to have a lot of the people around in the 70’s and 80’s when I was studying painting in NYC and briefly in Vermont.

First, I never met Cynthia Maris Dantzic, who is an Art Professor at LIU, but she spoke very well and warmly (she’s wearing a black jacket, seen in the background with her arm resting on a chair).

I studied with Harvey Dinnerstein (who was not present) in 1974-75 at the School of Visual Arts, I was in one of his drawing classes and his work is shown on pages 80-81 of the book.  I met his brother, Simon Dinnerstein, at the book signing tonight and his work is on page 84-85.

Janet Fish, who is featured on pages 100-101, visited the Vermont Studio School when I spent the summer there in 1987 - she often goes there, even now - I may have personally met her but I don’t remember speaking with her if I did - and I like the paintings in the book.

I can’t swear to it, but I may have studied with Louise Fishman at Hunter College (unless I’m mixing her up with another artist with the first name Louise -and that would be in 1971-1972) - Fishman’s work is on pages 102-103.  Audrey Flack also visited Vermont Studio School when I was there in 87, and her work is on page 104-105.

Sonja Gechoff was a personal mentor of mine in 1987-1988 after I returned from Vermont but lost contact with her shortly after.  I even took her to see my painting, After The Bath, when it was hanging in a show I had in the East Village.  It’s nice to know that Sonja is still active and Gechoff’s work is featured on pages 112-113.

I went to Cecily Kahn’s art opening several weeks ago in Chelsea and immediately recognized her as the daughter of Wolf Kahn, who also visited Vermont Studio School and who I saw at Hunter College in the late 1980’s along with his wife, painter Emily Mason.  All three artists are in the book, pages 130-133 and 152-153.

I also notice that Vincent Longo’s work is featured in this book, pages 144-145, and I think was a teacher of mine at Hunter College in the late 1980’s.

Helene Manzo was at the opening and her work is on pages 148-149; got her signature.

I’m not sure, but I may have also taken a class with Don Nice at the School of Visual Arts sometime between 1974-76, his work is on pages 160-161.  Doug Ohlson was a teacher of mine at Hunter College in 1971-73 and I remember him well. 

I seem to recall meeting Paul Resika, that I was influenced by him many years ago, but it’s not clear to me how or when, and his work on pages 174-175.

Susan Sills was at the book signing and lives in Park Slope, I got her signature on the book, on pages 194 and 195; I liked her paintings which are adaptions from Manet, mainly.

Pat Steir’s name sounds familiar - I probably met her in Vermont, her work in on pages 196-197.

Come to think of it, I also studied  with Robert Swain at Hunter College in the 1970’s; his work is shown on pages 200-201.

I met Ella Yang a couple of months ago, she has a studio in the same building Brooklyn Artists Gym is located in - and I first heard about the book from her; Ella’s work in on pages 214-215.

OK, those were the artists that I studied with or personally met - many that I knew well enough that I could say some of them might remember me (15 artists out of 100).

What about the other New York Artists in the book that influenced me but who I did not personally meet?  Well, I remember hearing about Lennart Anderson while taking classes at the Art Student’s League in the 70’s-80’s, but I don’t think I studied with him.  Will Barnet has been a well known figure in the New York Art world and while I took some courses at Cooper Union as a teenager - (Saturday courses) I never personally met him (though I know he taught there).

I also am very familiar with Chuck Close (pages 66-67) but I never met him; I knew of Richard Estes (pages 92-93) via William Beckman, who’s not in the book but whom I studied with and knew in 1973-76 when Beckman taught art in Staten Island Community College - as it was called then. 

Of course, everyone knows of Eric Fischl (pgs 98-99) though I never met him - I saw his work around NYC often, there were many shows of his work, esp in the 1980’s. Jack Levine is well known, and I recall looking at his work though I was never influenced by it; same goes for Philip Pearlstein and Robert Mangold.  I am also very familiar with George Tooker’s work - and yes, he’s still alive and living in NYC, but very old by now.

And that’s about it - I studied with, met, knew or was influenced by half of the artists in the 100 New York Painters book! 

Yes, I had to buy the book.