Web muster

Starkwhite reports on charity art auction fatigue, and comes up with some good alternatives. I imagine being hit up by people all the time for donations must get on artists' nerves, and wouldn't exactly thrill their dealers either.

Over the net sticks with the table tennis motif, announces opening of the On the table exhibition space on 19 November.

The Collections Australia Network is running a careers seminar for people interested in the Australian museum/gallery industry - I wonder if this would work in NZ? I wonder what speakers would say? I wonder if there are enough new jobs in the sector each year to warrant it?

The annual Science Communicators Association NZ conference wrapped up yesterday, and I wish I'd been there. Hopefully, with the Humanities Council moving over to the Royal Society (with its terrific Science Media Centre) we might see things like the Aussie's Transformations in Cultural and Scientific Communication Conference happening over here. In fact, given that sometimes the only way to make something happen is to work on it yourself, I might add that to my 2010 'things to explore' list ....

Follow my mental leaps

Over the net have dissected today the over-done ( under-done?) lighting of the Bill Hammond survey show Jingle Jangle Morning at City Gallery Wellington. As they point out, the lowered ambient light and strong spot lighting in one of the galleries has created some problems: glare which makes the works harder to see, dimness which prompts visitors to step over the lines to see details and read wall texts, and an unfortunate side effect of turning some of the works into lightboxes.

So far, the lack of lighting does not appear to have caused injury - for example, people walking into walls. You may scoff, but take the example of the Tate's current installation by Doris Salcedo, Shibboleth, a crack running the length of the Turbine Hall which has, in the first 4 weeks of showing, resulted in 15 reported accidents.

Dennis Ahern, the Tate’s head of safety and security, said: “With Shibboleth this hazard differs from equitable ones in that physical protection measures which would normally be applied to a gap of this nature are not deemed appropriate due to its artistic nature.” By which I think he means: "apparently it's art, so we can't board it up like we normally would".

In other art-related danger news: you would need a very large piece of board indeed to cover up Urs Fischer's latest work in New York, (as reviewed by Jerry Saltz). A sign at the door says: THE INSTALLATION IS PHYSICALLY DANGEROUS AND INHERENTLY INVOLVES THE RISK OF SERIOUS INJURY OR DEATH.

Commentary

A few weeks ago a friend drew my attention to this post on David Cauchi's blog. On the upside, he pairs me with Jim Barr and Mary Barr's Overthenet (yay!) - on the downside we're paired as his 'most hated johnny-come-lately art blogs' (ouch).

David hates my blog partly because the comments are turned off. I'd actually forgotten that I'd done this way-back-when, and just assumed that I got most of my comments in person. So thanks David, I've turned them back on, although I am going to moderate them - apologies if that insults your sensibilities.

The other reason David hates my blog is because it's anonymous. To quote:

I really dislike anonymous bloggers.

Part of it is that, if you don't think enough of your opinion to put your name to it, why should I care?

Another part is that it's one-way communication. They set themselves up in an unassailable position of power, with no transparency or accountability.

It's simply not an intellectually or morally respectable position to take.

I must say I quite fancy the idea of being in an unassailable position of power. Makes me feel ... powerful . Unassailably so. In reality, I know most of my regular readers, and I appreciate that they keep in touch with me this way. Anonymity stays, David - I guess you're stuck with not caring about my opinions.

Of course, if I'm flooded with requests to come out via the comments I may have to rethink that ....

Better than a coffee table book

Today Over the net points out that you don't need the Affordable Art Show (or its door charge) to find budget-friendly New Zealand art.

To their list of galleries offering editioned work (most of which can be browsed online) , I'd add Papergraphica, offering prints by John Reynolds, Lonnie Hutchinson and Bill Culbert, amongst others.

If you do want a coffee table book, like Over the net I have to recommend the limited edition version of the Mike P book published by Michael Lett. An absolute snip when you compare it with Taschen's limited edition photography books.

The next best thing

As Jim Barr and Mary Barr have noted in their blog postings about the Basel Art Fair, antlers are big in Europe this year.

If you're not so fortunate as to be in Germany right now - but are fortunate enough to live in the Wellington region - you can see Regan Gentry's gorse wood antlers (pictured above) in his current exhibition 'Of Gorse of Course' at the Dowse, Lower Hutt.

Image: Regan Gentry, Oh Dear, 2006. Gorse wood. Image from the Massey University website.

No art was harmed in the making of this video

From Over the net: the video of Hamish McKay completing Julian Dashper's drum kit work at the Auckland Art Fair.

Type cast

Gwynneth Porter and Warren Olds (of Clouds) have apparently taken Over the net to task for daring to suggest that the Venice un-publication might use Helvetica.

To my mind, Helvetica is one of typeface's silver foxes (alongside Gill Sans). The Swiss font is 50 this year, and still proudly utilised by brands ranging from Gap to Tupperware. MoMA saw fit to throw it an exhibition to mark its half-century (Helvetica, by the by, was the first typeface the Museum acquired). These people baked it a birthday cake. Lars Muller's written a book about it (he calls it the 'perfume of the city'). Gary Hustwit made a film.

But I guess there's always Comic Sans.

Designer joke: Two fonts walk into the bar and the barman says "sorry lads, we don't serve your type".

Today's new feature

In the right-hand sidebar, I've added a widget providing recent feeds from Over the net, ArtWorld Salon and Peter Peryer. Enjoy.

Bile.

Jim Barr and Mary Barr have posted a mock FAQ on Overthenet, based on the 11-page letter sent to artists taking part in City Gallery Wellington's Telecom Prospect 2007 exhibition.

The letter invited artists to submit a multiple for sale as at the Gallery as part of the show. I'm all for galleries making multiples (particularly large editions) available to the public. I'm not so hot on the following factors:

- City Gallery will be adding 40% to the sale price nominated by the artist - and then keeping this as their cut. If the artist has to pass a cut on to their dealer, this has to come out of their original price.

- Based on previous artist fees, it would seem likely that the Gallery will make more money off the artists than they'll give them to take part in the show.

And then there's the bigger question - should our public galleries be engaging in dealer practices?

FAQ - Overthenet

Collecting art - it's, like, so hot right now

This May the second Auckland Art Fair is being held in the Viaduct Harbour. Overthenet has posted a list of dealer galleries who have joined the event, after apparently sitting back and watching the inaugural event, have signed up for this one.

On the AAF's website, Jennifer Buckley and Deborah White describe the event's objective: "to secure Auckland a place on an International Art Fair circuit which includes Melbourne, Basel, Miami and London and we expect it to produce significant long term economic benefits for artists, galleries and Auckland City.".

The aim of the AAF is to "provide the opportunity for existing and aspiring art collectors and aficionados to meet and discuss their art interests with the people who have an extensive knowledge of – and dedication to – their profession."

The best bit though is the inclusion of this quote, from Elaine W. Ng, Editor-in-Chief, Art Asia Pacific:

“Art fairs are the new Biennales. Even the New York Times coverage of Art Basel Miami describes it as an event where 'young, hip hedge-fund managers, Fortune 500 executives and A-list actors are shopping side by side in a spree fuelled by new wealth, a hot art market and the headlong pursuit of membership in a glamorous , elite club'.”

Auckland - the new Miami.