Speed of Life

A brazen armed robbery of paintings by Picasso, Matisse, Monet and Dali marked the opening of the Carnival in Brazil on Friday. Gunmen burst into the Chácara do Céu museum in Rio de Janeiro and made off with their most valuable paintings and a book by Picasso. Sources in Brazil say that the stolen paintings were Pablo Picasso's "The Dance", Claude Monet's "Marine", Henri Matisse's "Garden of Luxembourg" and Salvador Dali's "Two Balconies". Museum director Vera de Alencar told reporters that at least four men brandishing firearms had been involved in the heist - including one holding a hand grenade. Art lovers inside the museum were also relieved of their wallets, cameras and cellphones during the robbery. The assailants rushed out of the museum into the cobblestone streets of the Santa Teresa district and disappeared into a crowd following a Samba parade. With its steep, almost precariously tilted streets, cable car line, and bo...

Gregg Chadwick City of Desires (Cidade dos Desejos) 72" x 96" oil on linen 2005 Opening tonight at the Santa Monica Art Studios from 6 to 8pm is the exhibition: LEAVING AZTLAN (redux) February 25 – April 9, 2006 Opening Reception Saturday, February 25, 6-8pm ARENA 1 A project of Santa Monica Art Studios 3026 Airport Avenue, Santa Monica, CA. 90405 Directors: Sherry Frumkin and Yossi Govrin My studio will also be open.

Sergio Arau and Yareli Arizmendi This Tuesday, February 21st at Cal State University, Monterey Bay, Sergio Arau and Yareli Arizmendi will be leading a lecture and discussion on "Images of Latinas/os in Film and Media". The husband-and-wife team will lead the free event at 7 p.m. in the University Center ballroom. Together they wrote the screenplay for the film "A Day Without A Mexican." Arau also directed the movie; Arizmendi is the star. In today's Monterey Herald , Marc Cabrera reports that "were it not for the couple's shared vision, the surprising indie hit "A Day Without A Mexican" would have just been a funny idea that Arizmendi had shared with her husband, who was also the film's director." "There is some competition when it regards whose idea was that," said Arizmendi over the phone from a Los Angeles studio, where she and her husband are working on individual projects. "I was the one who said the line, ...

Cover by Helen Frankenthaler "Her placement of words was like the placement of paint on a canvas," said her daughter, Hadley Guest. Modernist poet and art writer, Barbara Guest died on February 15, 2006 in Berkeley, California. During the 1950s, she created collages that later became covers for her books, and along with her poet colleagues in the New York School wrote for Art News magazine. In her recent collection of art writings, "Dürer in the Window" , gathered from a lifetime of looking, thinking and creating, Barbara Guest describes her experiences as a poet among painters and sculptors in a time when there was no "recognized separation between the arts." Her poems are crisp and visual with a taste for color and painterly image. "The Blue Stairs" inspired by a stairway in the Stedelijk Museum of Modern Art in Amsterdam is a good introduction to her work: "The Blue Stairs" by Barbara Guest (audiofile) There is no fear in taking the...

William Blake "Death of the Strong Wicked Man" watercolor on paper 1805 William Blake "The Grave Personified" watercolor on paper 1805 The recently rediscovered William Blake watercolors to be sold at Sotheby's in the spring should be bought by the Getty and the Tate jointly so both institutions can make the works available for scholars and the public. In Carol Vogel's piece on the rediscovered Blakes in the New York Times, Martin Butlin, a Blake scholar, expresses that breaking up the collection and selling them one by one at Sotheby's is "absolutely philistine. The seller has no regard for the integrity of works of art, only for money. As a group they tell a story." The nineteen artworks are from a series of 20 watercolors that Blake originally created as illustrations for the poem, "The Grave," by the Scotsman Robert Blair. With luck the William Blake watercolors could be showcased in an exhibition that moves between Los Angeles...

Gregg Chadwick The Stillness Between 48"x48" oil on canvas 2006 INTELLIGENTLY DESIGNED: Supreme Art by gallery artists: Johnny Apodaca, Aleah Koury, Anita Hilton, Bud Gordon, Kevin Flynn, Dianna Cohen, Gregg Chadwick, Brian Behnke and Richard Newman 18 February - March 2006 Reception: SATURDAY, 18 February 4-6pm - (note different time!) Hope to see you there. LISA COSCINO GALLERY / 216 Grand Avenue / Pacific Grove / CA / 93950 / 831.646.1939

Monk & Rembrandt at the Getty * In response to a few questions sent my way, I would like to clarify my thoughts on the Getty's future. I hardily agree that the Getty should think big but I consider Kimmelman's idea of a merger with MOCA to be in the category of "loony" ideas that Christopher Knight suggests will occur during an open period of brainstorming. I do think that the Getty has shown it can collect and exhibit contemporary photography very well and that an expansion on their own into contemporary painting and sculpture could be quite interesting.

At the Castro Theatre, San Francisco, Before A Screening of "Wings of Desire"

The Getty Collection Tyler Green at Modern Art Notes and Christopher Knight at the Los Angeles Times have been following the events at the Getty closely and it is my opinion that their combined efforts were a major factor in Barry Munitz's decision to step down. Who says that the press is irrelevant? Now Michael Kimmelman in the New York Times joins in and poses the question ,"Why doesn't the Getty think big?" Kimmelman's ideas are welcome as the Getty deals with the aftermath of its curatorial carcrash (Marion True) and presidential trainwreck (Barry Munitz). Kimmelman advises the Getty to focus on the art and to "broaden the collection. Los Angeles doesn't have Byzantine art to speak of. It also doesn't have a place with enough room and firepower to import landmark exhibitions like the Met's Byzantine extravaganzas. The Getty could provide both." Sunbrella at the Getty Kimmelman concludes his piece by suggesting "an all-out merger w...

by Gregg Chadwick On February 8, 2006 in Los Angeles at the Grammy Awards, Bruce Springsteen roused the audience with his solo acoustic performance of the title track to his 2005 album, "Devils & Dust." Springsteen's haunting rendition was the most intense performance of the evening and offered the only political commentary during the show. Springsteen added a coda to his song, about a soldier in Iraq, by declaring, "Bring 'em home." "Springsteen makes me keep faith in America." -Billy Bragg Bruce Springsteen is a man who takes risks with his music and his politics. On May 3, 2005 in Hollywood at the Pantages Theater it seemed that Springsteen let everything ride musically in a last chance to save America's soul. In two numbers culled from his Reagan era album "Nebraska" - "Reason to Believe" and "Johnny 99" - like numerous blues artists and Bob Dylan before him - Springsteen howled the lyrics throug...

Michael Govan The Los Angeles County Museum of Art's new director Michael Govan called the museum "a sleeping giant" in the Los Angeles Times. After a period of intense recruitment, which included a phone call from Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa , Michael Govan signed on last week. In LACMA's official press release Michael Govan expressed: “I am so honored to lead LACMA at this great time of transformation. Tremendous opportunities exist to build upon the successes of the past four decades." "Already, LACMA plays an important role in the region’s unique and vibrant communities. Many extraordinary artists are based here. They are both members of the larger community and great resources for it. I champion their deeper involvement with the museum. Working with them, and others, we’ll make it possible for our visitors—from the region or from around the world—to experience art in fantastic new ways.” LACMA Underground Christopher Knight in today's Lo...

Between Moment and Memory at the Julie Nester Gallery Almost back in Los Angeles after a stint in the mountains of Utah. Traveled without a laptop. No email. Spotty cell phone connections. Snow falling, almost covering our steps as we walked. Kelly Colbert Baynham and "The Chinese Sky" Of course the Sundance Film Festival was raging nearby - in Park City. And that too was rich in moments and inspiration. New paintings are forming in my mind. New images emerging as if from a dream. Back to the studio this evening. More soon.

Wim Wenders, his latest film "Don't Come Knocking" is screening at Sundance, has a nice history of the Sundance Film Festival on his site: Wim Wenders Newsreel Lian Lunson's film, "Leonard Cohen I'm Your Man" is also screening at Sundance. Lian is blogging the festival for the Sundance Channel: Lian Lunson at Sundance Jesse Garcia and Emily Rios in Quinceanera One of the screenings I am looking forward to most is Brian Glatzer and Wash Westmoreland's "Quinceanera". The Sundance Institute has 50 short films you can watch online from this year's Festival. Each day a few premiere online so keep checking to see what else is new. Watch them here - Sundance Shorts Much more on Sundance when I return.

"Between Moment and Memory" at the Julie Nester Gallery From the Salt Lake Weekly : Artist GREGG CHADWICK believes that great attention must be given to each moment. One instant, he believes, holds a complete host of meanings as the world rushes by. Maybe that’s why his paintings in the exhibit BETWEEN MOMENT & MEMORY resemble fast-paced, dreamlike blurred images. See his work before it, too, rushes by at the end of the month. From the Daily Utah : Good Idea 1) Taking a third-grade class on a field trip to the aquarium 2) Planned Parenthood 6) Gleefully living your life in the ether Between Moment & Memory, by Gregg Chadwick at Julie Nester Gallery

Gary Rhine and Phil Cousineau Book Passage, Corte Madera November 11, 2005 Filmmaker Gary Rhine died this week while doing something he loved - flying a small plane. The plane crashed in Lancaster, California, on January 9th at 1:40 p.m. In the past decade, Gary Rhine completed a series of documentary films with the writer Phil Cousineau in defense of the religious traditions of Native Americans. The actor Peter Coyote was appreciative of Gary's work and described how, "Native Americans are recognized the world over as keepers of a vital piece of the Creator's original orders, and yet regarded as little more than squatters at home." Peter Coyote goes on to describe that through his " fine footage and impressive interviews, (Gary Rhine), gives a voice to the voiceless". "A Seat at the Table" Directed by Gary Rhine Written by Phil Cousineau "Religions represent insights and experiences rather than masses of followers and while many religious t...

The Eighth Annual San Francisco International Art Exposition originally planned for January 13 - 16, 2006 has been canceled. Thomas Blackman Associates (TBA), which has organized the San Francisco fair, explains in a press release: "Many factors led to this decision: despite steady sales and strong attendance, the show has diminished in size in recent years by about 30%. Support for the show from local art galleries has also weakened over the past two years, which contributed to the organizer’s concern for the success of the visiting galleries from outside San Francisco. " Thomas Blackman, President of TBA explains that, “It is with great reluctance that I have taken this step; it has been a very difficult decision to make and announce. Many of our exhibitors developed lasting relationships with clients in California, and I sincerely hope they will have the opportunity to re-connect at SFIAE again at some point in the near future.” Currently there are no plans to stage anoth...

Gregg Chadwick "The Chinese Sky" 48" x 48" oil and silver leaf on linen 2005 Between Moment and Memory New Paintings by Gregg Chadwick at the Julie Nester Gallery, Park City, Utah January 6-29, 2006 Artist's Talk: Friday, January 6, 6:00pm "What is the Place of Beauty in the 21st Century" Reception for the Artist: Friday, January 27, 4:00-7:00 pm (During the Sundance Film Festival) “A poet or a painter must commit to a life of deep attention and even reverence for the multitude of meaning around us. An artist friend of mine, Gregg Chadwick, calls this 'pulling the moment,' a way of looking deeper into experiences that inspire him.” -Phil Cousineau, Once and Future Myths Strike a hard rock edge with a piece of carbon steel and a spark will spread onto dry tinder and burst into flames. In the same way, when artistic cultures strike against each other, new fires can erupt. To build on these experiences, careful attention and reverence must be f...

The Art Institute of Chicago, December 2005 Happy Holidays with Great Thanks and Hope for Peace in the New Year -Gregg Chadwick

"Art hurts. Art urges voyages - and it is easier to stay at home, the nice beer ready." -Gwendolyn Brooks

Stephen Foss "I Forget You Every Day" enamel on canvas 60x60 image courtesy Sense Fine Art An art gallery's van containing paintings by the artist Stephen Foss was stolen in San Francisco on November 23rd. Steve Rubenstein reports in the San Francisco Chronicle today that the alleged thieves tried to sell the stolen paintings to the Sense Gallery in Menlo Park. The bungling bandits did not realize that the Sense Gallery owned the van from which the paintings were stolen. The suspects arranged to meet the gallery owner who then contacted the police. A dozen sheriff's deputies laid in wait, and stormed the gallery when the suspects brought in the stolen Stephen Foss paintings. Two of the suspects were arrested in the gallery. A third took off running and was caught after being bitten by a deputy's police dog. Sheriff's Sgt. Jerry Quinlan said that he didn't think that the crew was trying to extort the Sense Gallery to pay for its own stolen artworks- ...

LACMA Garage Demolition There was a last minute effort led by Los Angeles City Councilmember Tom LaBonge to save the murals by Margaret Kilgallen and Barry McGee that graced the LACMA garage, but it seems to have come up short. Yesterday, workers were hammering away at the structure with heavy machinery sending cement chips into the air. Tom LaBonge echoed Tyler Green's point that the main issue was one of value. We have lost not just artworks but visual clues to our time. In fifteen years curators and artlovers will look back, aghast, at our rush towards some sort of progress. After watching the destruction of the garage for a while, I walked over to the Page Museum at the Rancho La Brea Tar Pits in the heart of Los Angeles. The museum holds an immense collection of fossils of extinct Ice Age plants and animals. I wandered the exhibits and gazed at reconstructed skeletons that attempt to piece together Los Angeles as it was between 10,000 and 40,000 years ago when saber-toothed ca...

Still from Counting Crows' "Mr. Jones" Anna Conti has a great compilation of songs about art and artists - Anna Conti's Art Songs I suggested that she add a couple : Originally from the Bay Area- Counting Crows' "Mr. Jones" ("Grey is my favorite color...If I knew Picasso I would buy myself a grey guitar and play.") from the album "August and Everything After." I used to drive around SF in my old car playing a demo tape from a band called the Himalayans. One day I found myself in a record store on Market Street singing along to a song playing over the store's sound system. I sang till I realized that it was the Himalayans. I babbled something about knowing the band to the clerk at the register. He nodded in a Hi-Fidelity sort of way and informed me that the band was now known as Counting Crows and that T-Bone Burnett had produced the album. David Bowie's "Joe the Lion" from "Heroes" is written about perform...

"To say these pictures required a kind of monkish devotion to draw is in part to reiterate his inherited Dutch Reform ideas about nature and the revelation of God. Nature was virtually supernatural to him. There is no better proof that he wasn't the mad hatter of movie legend than these painstaking tributes to sublime countryside - as Robert Hughes once put it about van Gogh's paintings, "if sanity is to be defined in terms of exact judgment of ends and means and the power of visual analysis." -Michael Kimmelman, New York Times Van Gogh's drawings have a quality of vision that astounds. Each area in the Zouave is drawn with a different series of marks from Van Gogh's reed pens. It is as if each part is presented in a different artistic language: the stippled face, the vertically marked wall, the crosshatched hat. Seeing With the Brush, Esalen "The Painted Word" , December 2005 Last weekend at Esalen, Phil Cousineau and I presented our thoughts ...

John Lennon & Yoko Ono photographed by Allan Tannenbaum two weeks before John's death on December 8th, 1980. "So we got something when we had John Lennon, and we lost something when his voice was killed. We lost somebody as fucked up as us, who worked his whole life to overcome himself, and, in doing so, his creativity would help us overcome the madness of our times -- at least for a while. Through it all, he told us to keep faith, to keep courage, to defy our hurt, our fear, to find love and hope and to fight for meaning." - Mikal Gilmore, Rolling Stone John Lennon & Yoko Ono photographed by Allan Tannenbaum two weeks before John's death John Lennon in conversation with Rolling Stone's Jann Wenner is now available as a free podcast: John Lennon Podcast on iTunes John Lennon Podcast via Rolling Stone 25 years on - NY Times

Here's where we stand with LACMA and the McGee/Kilgallen murals: Demolition has begun on a part of the parking structure, but efforts are still underway to try and save some of the murals. More details to follow as info develops. Barry McGee LACMA Garage Margaret Kilgallen LACMA Garage Barry McGee LACMA Garage

Gregg Chadwick Siddhartha 8"x6" oil on linen 2005 This weekend is the 1st Anniversary of the Santa Monica Studios. We are holding a free reception which is open to the public. My studio- #15 will be open. I will be at Esalen this weekend leading a workshop on Creativity with Phil Cousineau - The Painted Word: A Conversation between Word & Image - Phil Cousineau & Gregg Chadwick at Esalen, Big Sur But don't worry, Evelyn Gonzalez Figueroa will be studio sitting to answer your questions. Many of the paintings on view in my studio will be part of my next solo exhibition- "Between Moment and Memory" which will be held at the Julie Nester Gallery in Park City, Utah during the Sundance Film Festival. The historic 22,000 square foot hangar at 3026 Airport Avenue at the Santa Monica Airport will be open on Saturday, December 3rd from 6 to 9 pm. More than 30 artists will open their studios for the event which continues on Sunday, December 4th from 1 to 5 p...

A scribe was asked, "What is pleasure?" He answered, "Parchment, papers, shiny ink, and a cleft reed pen." A card bearing this quotation sits in a glass case among precious manuscripts and instruments of writing at the McGill Library in Montreal. Magnificent Octopus reports on this fascinating exhibit: Scribes, Scholars & Conservators .

Barry McGee (detail of a mural currently in the LACMA garage) Mayor Villaraigosa, I want to thank you for the bold steps that you have taken to create a Los Angeles for the 21st Century. Your vision and ideals are inspiring. Not long ago you attended the opening of Sergio Arau and Yareli Arizmendi's film: "A Day Without a Mexican" . Your commitment to challenging (and humorous) art is evident. Last May - Sergio Arau, Yareli Arizmendi, and the film's cinematographer Alan Caudillo - attended the opening of my exhibition at the LACMA Art Rental and Sales Gallery. It was an evening of spirit, camaraderie and possibility. We pledged our support to you in the upcoming election and knew that if the time came for the art community to reach out for your help that you would listen. That time has come sooner than we thought. It has been reported that in a few days, on December 1st, the Los Angeles County Museum of Art is slated to demolish its parking garage to make way for a ...

Eye Unidentified Artist 3/4" x 3/4" watercolor on ivory ca. 1900 Smithsonian American Art Museum Kriston Capps announces: "I'm excited to introduce Eye Level , the blog for the Smithsonian American Art Museum. It's one of just a few museums forging new ground with new media (and is host to the Smithsonian's first blog!). Today's the official launch and I hope you'll check in frequently. When the Smithsonian American Art Museum reopens its renovated historic main building in July 2006, it will be a showcase for American art that celebrates this nation's vision and creativity. SAAM's blog Eye Level is part of the museum's continuing effort to explore the stories central to the American experienceand to search for what connects Americans today. Using the museum's collection as a touchstone, the conversation at Eye Level will center on the ways in which the nation's art connects to its history and culture. The discussion will extend ...

Edwin W. Dickinson American, 1891 - 1978 The Cello Player, 1924 - 1926 oil on canvas 60" x 48 1/4" DeYoung Museum photo by Gregg Chadwick "Dickinson is not a name that carries instant recognition outside the circles of art historians and artists. He spanned (1891 - 1978) a period in American art history which jumped from academic Realism to Cubism and Abstract Expressionism and through all of these changes he retained his own style, pausing here and there to prove that he was thoroughly informed by all the new schools in the arts while continuing his mission as a representational artist. His studios were in New York and in Cape Cod and it is here that he observed and painted the world as he saw it. Some of his canvases took years to complete." -Grady Harp