ARTifice and friends at "Stories From the Woods"

Work by Christine Buckton Tillman (top right)


Current Gallery in Baltimore, MD, saw an excellent turn out Friday night for the opening of "Stories From the Woods," which featured work by 2nd year AU MFA'er Bonner Sale. The show was curated by Alex Ebstein, of There Were Ten Tigers fame.

Other artists in the show included: Christine Buckton Tillman, Emily Nachison, Emily Slaughter, John Bohl, Annie Gray Robrecht.






Work by Bonner Sale:




Bonner Sale and fans




Work by Emily Nachison on the wall, Christine Buckton Tillman in the foreground:



Installation view



Annie Gray Robrecht:



Christine Buckton Tillman:



Alex Ebstein enjoys the fruits of her labors



John Bohl:



Emily Slaughter (really awesome installation + video!!!)



Some of the AU crew in attendance:


"Stories From the Woods" will be on view at Current until October 31st. It is definitely worth the trip to Baltimore!

Stories From the Woods at Current Gallery

AU artist Bonner Sale has work in this show, opening Friday!!






Stories From The Woods investigates a fascination with the natural world. The showcased artists explore a contemporary reinterpretation of nature, while simultaneously drawing from past folklore and classic painting. Through stylized, representational, sculpture, narrative paintings, and whimsical installation pieces by a group of invited, regional artists, Stories from the Woods seeks to transform the space into a platform for these fantastical narratives.


October 3 - 31
With a Reception on Oct 3 from 7 - 10 PM
Artists: Bonner Sale, Christine Buckton Tillman, Emily Nachison, Emily Slaughter, John Bohl and Annie Gray Robrecht
Curated by Alex Ebstein (There Were Ten Tigers blog buddy)

ARTifice and friends at "Quart Bag," Civilian Art Projects

A few pics from the well-attended opening for "Quart Bag: A Community Art Show," at Civilian Art Projects: (all photos by n.p.)




"Quart Bag" featured a widely varied assortment of works from over 100 DC area artists. Works were displayed inside of quart-size plastic bags, and were priced at $50 or $100.

Recent AU alum Lauren Rice's "Seedling"


2008 alum Brian Barr's "Self-Portrait as a Tough Guy"


Bonner Sale's "a little longer" (current AU student)


Nikki Painter's "Optimist" (current AU student)


ARTifice friend Alex Ebstein's untitled drawing (Check out some more great images from the opening on Alex's blog There Were Ten Tigers.)


Rachel's "Girls Grow Up Faster"


Cara Ober's "Truth sounds like a pistol"


Megan Blafas's "Parts of a Whole"



Matthew Spahr's "Mr. Blake died in Wisconsin" (ARTifice does not know Matthew Spahr, but we thought this work was nice.)


To see even MORE images from the opening, check out artist Nikolas Schiller's blog, The Daily Render. Schiller also had work in "Quart Bag" (see previous "Quart Bag" post).

"Quart Bag" is on view at Civilian Art Projects until August 16th.

"Quart Bag: A Community Art Show" at Civilian Art Projects

"Without You I Am Lost," by Nikolas Schiller


AU artists Bonner Sale and Nikki Painter will have work in "Quart Bag: A Community Art Show," opening Friday, August 8th at Civilian Art Projects.

Recent AU Alumni Brian Barr and Lauren Rice will also exhibit pieces in "Quart Bag."

AND Artifice blogger buddies Alex Ebstein of There Were Ten Tigers, Rachel Fick of ArtCade Forum, and Cara Ober of BMore Art will have work in the show.

Here's some more info:

QUART BAG: A Community Art Show at Civilian
August 8 - August 16, 2008
OPENING RECEPTION: Friday, 8/08/08

Inspired by the many things you can do with a quart bag, Civilian Art Projects has invited 100 DC area artists to participate in a community art exhibition called Quart Bag. The exhibition provides an imaginative opportunity for artists to use thirty-two ounces of space within a plastic quart size bag. All works of art will be sold for $100 or less, providing an opportunity for all people to walk home with a piece of art that is FAA approved.

When: Friday, August 8, 2008 - 7:00pm to 9:00pm
The exhibition will run from August 8 - 16, 2008.

APES/FIASCO - After the opening, head up to Comet Ping Pong for beer specials, pizza, ping pong and rock. 10pm. $10.

Comet: 5037 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC

Partial List of Artists participating in QB:
Seth Adelsberger / Brigitte Anders-Kraus / Brian Barr/ Jon Bobby Benjamin / Matthew Best / Kristina Bilonick / John Bohl / Marissa Botelho / Martin Brief / Emily C-D / Colby Caldwell / Nick Carr / Page Carr / Erin Cluely / Cynthia Connolly / Patricia Correa / Dane Austin Criner / Caitlin Cunningham / Dmetrious / Mary Early / Alex Ebstein / Steven Eson / Briony Evans / Annie Ewaskio / Edward Fendley / Rachel Fick / Steve Frost / Scott Gursky / Paul Jeanes / Rebecca Juliette / Brook Halvorson / Elizabeth Huey / James Huckenpahler / Anamario Hernandez / Bridget Sue Lambert / Alberto Gaitan / Victoria Gaitan / Carlos Gomez / Jason Gubbiotti / Annie Gray / Adam Griffiths / Erick Jackson / Amanda Kleinman / JW Mahoney / Katherine Mann / Nathan Manuel / John Marra / Cara Ober / Ayo Okuseinde / Betsy Packard / Nikki Painter / Annie Peters / Dana Reifler-Amato / Ding Ren / Lauren Rice/ Bonner Sale / Sara Seidman / Emily Slaughter / Matt Spahr / Noelle Tan / Denise Tassin / Lisa Marie Thalhammer / Robert Tifford / Rene Trevino / Justin Tsucalas / Andrej Ujhazy / The Scott Twins

Future Cities- Check it out! (Bonner's gonna be there!!)

Blogger extraordinaire and ARTifice friend Alex Ebstein over at THERE WERE TEN TIGERS is helping organize and promote an evening of art and music, and YOU are invited:


(work by Daniel Stuelpnagel)

Here is what you need to know:


Taurus Development Group has moved to 1341 H Street, NE and will be having an opening reception and art show on June 3rd.

The exhibition is called Future Cities, and it features new art works by local artist Daniel Stuelpnagel

Opening reception is Tuesday, June 3 from 6-8pm, the event is free but rsvp requested rsvp@taurusdev.com

This event will also include an ambient dj set by Adrian Varallyay of the local noise band Stymphalian Birds and AU MFA student Bonner Sale.

Please come check out the new Taurus headquarters, the neighborhood and (of course) the artwork. We would love it if you could attend.

Thanks so much

Alex Ebstein
Clark Priftis Art, LLC.



Come check it out!!!

Baptista and Sale in Artomatic

AU artists Josh Baptista and Bonner Sale have work on display in Artomatic!

photo by Alex Ebstein

Check them out before Sunday, June 15th!

About Artomatic from Artomatic's website:

Artomatic is a month-long multimedia arts event that draws together visual artists, musicians and performers and brings their work to the community without charge.

It was originally conceived as a way to break down the geographical and social segmentation of the Washington arts scene, to bring art directly to the public and to build cohesion among artists. The city's ongoing development in recent years has diffused the arts community by breaking up pockets of artist studios. In addition, local artists are sometimes overshadowed by national blockbuster shows and federal landmarks. Artomatic provides a forum for all of our area's artists to convene, perform and exhibit, strengthening the visibility, cohesion, and marketplace of Washington's arts community.

Visit Artomatic's website for more information about this event.

What the Hex?

Erin Womack’s Enchanted Forest at the Transmodern festival.

Photo by Alex Ebstein

By Kitten Sale


"What the Hex," indeed. Erin Womack is obviously working alchemy on top of the art game. While entering the installation "Enchanted Forest," you are automatically transported into a distant land that lies somewhere between Sleeps Dopesmoker and Dagobah, the planet system where Yoda claimed residency. Starting with the senses, a heavy cloud of party fog fills your nose as you succumb to the sound of a drone noise looped over and over creating a seance-like atmosphere. With the lights turned down it's hard to understand as the viewer what you are walking into at first, but then your eyes adjust and it's clearly an Enchanted Forest with silver painted birch tree limbs climbing the patterned silver walls and a large video projection of more trees, and most importantly a godlike tree creature lurking from side to side. If this wasn’t enough of a transformation of space, 3 to 4 performers greet you with baskets of dried bean shells and silver rings. It's confusing on how to confront or not confront the performers due to long robed costumes and tree or patterned masks.

On a dry level, the entire installation works a pattern of recognition in which it is an iridescent living forest complete with fog and sound to convey the viewer into another world, as opposed to just looking into one. This entire world-building idea in art is so popular, but I never before felt transformed by a surrounding or felt that my identity as a viewer had been diminished for this greater cause of the installation, which is exactly what I want to feel as a viewer with this type of work.

The only seen problem was the second time I visited, the focus of the performers had died down, but Transmodern Festival lasts for roughly four hours.
The entire installation was a "gift" more than a piece of art that one is supposed to understand on a critical level. "Enchanted Forest" had a theatrical quality to it, making a viewer want to sit and watch as these "tree god" performers lurked good charms to new viewers to the room. When a "tree god" approached me, I took a silver ring.

Basically it boils down to the fact that "Enchanted Forest" is probably the best piece of art I have seen in the past year, hands down. Which brings me to the question: why should the current push of art be for some who would have to have an educated background of study? When a piece works on an entire ethereal backing instead, and relies on wisdom instead of knowledge which one could break down such a piece with knowledge, but this would completely destroy the identity of magic in a work like "Enchanted Forrest."

I recall trying to tell friends about it the next day and my words came out sounding like lies because it's such a strange identity to break down without wanting to tell people "You just should have been there".

For more images from the Transmodern Festival, check out There Were Ten Tigers!!!

NINE opening

(photo by Alex Ebstein)


Last night's opening of "NINE," showcasing work by AU's first year MFA students was well-attended.

If you missed it, you missed out on some awesome krab dip, sweet ASICS, and of course, ART JUMPING!!!!

(photo by Alex Ebstein)

(photo by Alex Ebstein)



Luckily, you can still see the terrific art. "NINE" will be up until Tuesday, so be sure to check it out.

"Proximity," our MFA Thesis Exhibition will open Friday, April 18th, from 6-9 pm. Mark your calendars!

To read more about "NINE" and for more awesome images of the opening, check out ArtCade Forum and There Were Ten Tigers.

ArtCade-Sponsored Crit Night at AU

Jeffry Cudlin spoke at AU's Crit Night (artworks by Lana Stephens, photo taken by Emily Cunetto)


By Nikki Painter

Sunday night, March 30th, six first and second year American University MFA students presented work for critique by fellow classmates, students from George Washington University, the Corcoran, and local artists.

Area artist, writer, critic, and Director of Exhibitions for the Arlington Arts Center Jeffry Cudlin also participated in the evening’s events, taking time to inform the audience about opportunities to exhibit at the AAC and some upcoming events. Cudlin mentioned that many of the proposals for shows received by the center were not from Baltimore and DC artists, and that this was something that puzzled him.

Critiques were timed to last about fifteen minutes, and the students whose work was being critiqued opened the discussion with introductory comments about his or her art.


Installation by Lauren Rice (photo taken by Alex Ebstein)

Questions asked several times during various critiques had to do with origins and inclusion of pictorial elements. Were AU artists considering their use of (socially and historically) content-laden imagery?

Other questions that arose during the evening:

What kind of research are we doing about our work? What are we reading? What other artists are we looking at?

What kind of relationship do we want viewers to have with our work? How does a viewer interact with our work?

How and why are we choosing our materials? Why draw instead of paint and vice versa? Why not use animation?

How do you know when it is finished? What “looks” finished?

How do you differentiate yourself from your contemporaries who may be working in a similar manner?

Overall, questions asked during critiques were incisive and addressed important issues AU students continue to grapple with.

“Thank you” to Jeffry Cudlin for taking time out of his busy schedule to hang out with us and talk about our work!

Thanks also to Rachel Fick and ArtCade for sponsoring and organizing our evening- check out ArtCade Forum for another account of the evening’s events.

AND be sure to read another response to the evening at There Were Ten Tigers.

Thank you to everyone who came out- there has been some really great dialog started as a result of Crit Nights, and we hope to continue to get to know our community.