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Immersive Van Gogh’s New Creative Director

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IMMERSIVE VAN GOGH AND DESIGNER DAVID KORINS (HAMILTON) JOIN FORCES TO CREATE THE LARGEST AND MOST ELABORATE ITERATION OF THE EXHIBIT

Slated to be Seen in 19 Cities Across North America in 2021, Immersive Van Gogh Brings the Artist’s Masterpieces to Life Via 500,000 Cubic Feet of Projections Indoors in New York

Hailed as “Mind-Blowing” (Toronto Star) and “Undeniably Impressive” (–Time Out Chicago)

Immersive Van Gogh, the highly-anticipated immersive art installation coming to New York this summer, announced today that Emmy Award-winning and Tony Award-nominated designer David Korins, known for his set designs featured in numerous Broadway hits including Hamilton and Dear Evan Hansen, will serve as Creative Director New York for the installation. Scheduled to open on June 10, a new block of tickets will go on sale to the public Saturday, April 24 at 10 a.m. ET. The New York location and further details, including a preview of David Korins’ designs, will be revealed at a virtual press event on Friday, April 23 at 10 am ET.

As the Official Card Sponsor of Immersive Van Gogh in New York, American Express® Card Members have exclusive pre-sale access to the new block of tickets before the general public beginning Monday, April 19 at 10 a.m. ET through Wednesday, April 21 at 9:59 a.m. ET here.

Korins will join creative team for Immersive Van Gogh, the original North American immersive celebration of Van Gogh’s art. The team includes Creator Massimiliano Siccardi; Composer Luca Longobardi and Art Director Vittorio Guidotti. This winning team will make Immersive Van Gogh the most impressive staging to date and the most expansive in the world, having already opened to tremendous acclaim in Toronto, Chicago and San Francisco, with additional openings scheduled for 16 cities across North America, including Los Angeles, Dallas, Denver, Las Vegas and more. Since its North American premiere in July 2020, more than 1 million tickets have been sold to Immersive Van Gogh, making it the most popular attraction currently in North America.

Immersive Van Gogh invites audiences to “step inside” the iconic works of post-Impressionist artist Vincent van Gogh, evoking his highly emotional and chaotic inner consciousness through art, light, music, movement and imagination. The gallery space offers patrons more than 500,000 cubic feet of animated projections. Renowned Creative Director Korins will create a custom design to fit the architecture of the exhibition’s New York home, adding elements to the gallery space as well as adjacent auxiliary elements. Korins will create numerous New York-specific installations, viewing platforms and high-tech, experiential and interactive elements previously unseen in any other venue.

“Immersive Van Gogh has been hailed as an entirely new way of encountering art and has been enthusiastically embraced by press and patrons in every city in which it currently is being presented,” said Producer Corey Ross. “Our New York exhibition will be by far our most ambitious. Not only do we have the talents of our ingenious Italian creative team, we also have David Korins bringing his distinct creative vision to the project to provide an unsurpassed guest experience.”

“This will be an event that New Yorkers and visitors can enjoy safely, quite literally surrounding themselves with the work of Vincent van Gogh, one of the greatest artists who ever lived,” added Producer Svetlana Dvoretsky.

“I am thrilled to be collaborating with the creative minds behind the Immersive Van Gogh exhibit to create a truly unique experience for the city of New York to enjoy and be inspired by,” said David Korins, Creative Director New York. “I have always been deeply moved when looking at Van Gogh’s paintings, which are universally beloved for their color and unique use of texture, or his transcendent ink drawings, and I’m humbled by the opportunity to develop an experience that will enhance the viewers’ time spent with his powerful art.”

It is expected that Immersive Van Gogh will be the first event of its magnitude since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. “We have a track record of producing this event safely in numerous cities throughout North America,” said Co-Producer Irina Shabshis. “We hope that this will lift the spirits of so many New Yorkers, who have not had the opportunity to experience cultural attractions for the past year, with first-rate production values that will make this one of the top events in the city this summer,” added Co-Producer Maria Shclover.

“David Korins is a very experienced and creative; he is giving his professional and artistic contributions to the implementation of the New York venue that will host my creation Immersive Van Gogh“, said Creator Massimiliano Siccardi, “I have enormous respect for his creativity, and I feel that his vision will be able to excellently enhance the audience experience, priming their minds as they enter and exit our exhibit, and also creating architectural enhancements that will provide unique vantage points from which they can observe my work. Most of all, I know that David shares a deep appreciation of and respect for the work of Vincent van Gogh, and that he, like me, wants to pay homage to the brilliance of his body of work, a legacy that influenced us all in our individual development as artists.”

Immersive Van Gogh has received rave reviews from critics and patrons. The Chicago Tribune exclaimed “entire rooms pulse with imagery and emotional resonance.” The Toronto Sun declared, “the mind-blowing imagery, brings Van Gogh’s best work to life — including Sunflower, Irises, and The Starry Night — for a cathartic and liberating experience.” “Immersive Van Gogh ups the emotional ante,” Toronto Star stated, “I wondered: could projections of paintings on walls and floors be thrilling? The answer is ‘yes.’” Called a “completely new way of encountering art” by CTV and a “blockbuster digital experience that has taken the art world by storm” by Artnet News, the exhibit “cleverly embraces creativity,” according to Washington Post. The San Francisco Chronicle summed it up saying “It’s one hell of a way to wake up from our long pandemic art nap.”

The hour-long walk-through installation has been designed with health and safety as a priority. Admissions will be limited according to New York City’s capacity guidelines with touchless ticket-taking; temperature checks upon arrival; hand sanitizer stations and social distancing markers prominent throughout the venue; and digitally projected social distancing circles on the gallery floors to ensure appropriate spacing. All guests must wear a face covering at all times during their visit to Immersive Van Gogh.

Immersive Van Gogh was designed by Creator and Italian film producer Massimiliano Siccardi, with original, mood-setting music, both original and curated, by Italian multimedia Composer Luca Longobardi, who provided a score that combines experimental electronic music with pure, ethereal and simple-seeming piano. Vittorio Guidotti is the Art Director. Siccardi and Longobardi are both pioneers of immersive digital art installations in Europe, where they created the world-renowned Van Gogh, Starry Night exhibition, among others. With approximately 100 state-of-the-art projectors illuminating over the exhibit space, visitors to Immersive Van Gogh will be encircled from head-to-toe in Van Gogh’s brushstrokes and colors, including animated details from works such as Self Portrait with Felt Hat (1888), The Bed-room in Arles (1889), Irises (1889) and The Starry Night (1889).

Tickets for the exhibition are on-sale now online and by phone. Tickets range in price from $29.99 for kids to $99.99 for VIP Flex tickets, which comes with priority access, flexible admission, a limited-edition poster, a souvenir laminate and a van Gogh cushion. Basic timed tickets are $49.99. The New York location will be revealed at a virtual press event on Friday, April 23 at 10 am ET. To RSVP and receive a link to the press event, click here.

The new block of tickets will go on sale to the public Saturday, April 24 at 10 a.m. ET.

For more information about Immersive Van Gogh, visit this website or call. Follow the exhibition on social media at @goghnyc on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

About Vincent van Gogh

Legendary Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh (1853 – 1890) is recognized as one of the world’s greatest and best loved artists. He was born in the Netherlands to his father, Theodorus van Gogh, and his mother, Anna Cornelia Carbentus, a moody artist whose love of nature, drawing and watercolors was passed on to her son. He worked at his uncle Cornelis’ art dealership when he had already been fluent in French, German and English, as well as his native Dutch. He fell in love with English culture when he was transferred to the Groupil Gallery in London in 1873.

During his short life he painted more than 2,000 artworks ranging from ordinary household items and self-portraits to surreal landscapes that inspire awe. Van Gogh was a post-Impressionist painter whose work — notable for its beauty, emotion and color — highly influenced expressionism in 20th-century art. He struggled with mental illness and remained poor and virtually unknown throughout his life.

He was tragically admitted to a psychiatric hospital after offering his severed ear to a woman at a local brothel. For hope, he turned to painting and nature, until one day when he went out to paint in the morning with a loaded pistol in his hand and reportedly shot himself in the chest. In his 37 years alive, Van Gogh only sold one painting, The Red Vineyards, to his brother Theo.

About the Creative Team

DAVID KORINS, Creative Director New York

David Korins is the award-winning Creative Director, Designer and Founder of his eponymous New York City based creative studio. In his two decades of creating omnidirectional experiences, he has, along with his expert team, reached hundreds of millions of people all over the world while helping the most influential brands, companies and individuals bring their stories to life. From stage to screen, museums to hospitality, experiential design to singular live events, Korins has traversed the landscape of world building and storytelling through almost every medium available. Korins created the worlds for the Tony Award-winning musicals Hamilton, Dear Evan Hansen and Beetlejuice: The Musical. He has also designed the set for the musical Mrs. Doubtfire as well as over 20 additional Broadway shows. Among numerous TV credits, Korins is the Production Designer for the 91st Annual Academy Awards and Grease: Live!, for which he received an Emmy Award.

Collaborators include Bruno Mars, Elton John, Lady Gaga, Kanye West, Mariah Carey, Andrea Bocelli, Sia, and Takashi Murakami, and presented at venues such as Madison Square Garden, Coachella, Gagosian, Lollapalooza, SXSW, and Sotheby’s. Brand partnerships include the NFL, Twitter, Google, Spotify, YouTube, and Microsoft. As the Creative Director for the USC Shoah Foundation, he has led the organization’s rebranding efforts, the creation of several new experiences, and state of the art testimonials. In 2019, through an ongoing collaboration with Sotheby’s, Korins unveiled a unique exhibit at their New York City headquarters in celebration of the company’s 275th Anniversary. In addition, he designed the Time Square restaurant Bond 45. His work has earned him an Emmy Award, three Tony nominations, Drama Desk, Lortel Awards, three Henry Hewes Design Awards, and an Obie Award for Sustained Excellence in Design.

MASSIMILIANO SICCARDI, Creator

Massimiliano Siccardi studied at the London School of Contemporary Dance of London. But in 1990, he left the world of dance to begin a new journey in the world of video art. Siccardi quickly became the artistic force behind several visual mise-en-scène for choreographers around the world. He also created video scenographies for numerous prestigious festivals and galas around the world. He also re-constructed the video mapping of the Basilica di Giotto and for the Teatro Petruzzelli of Bari, where one of his permanent installation’s virtually reconstruct the frescoes of the Cupola. Siccardi is also a celebrated photographer and has had photo ex-hibitions in Spoleto and Rome, to name a few. He is professor of digital image elaboration at the Accademia di Comunicazione e Immagine of Rome. In 2012, Siccardi received the prestigious International Award “Romaindanza” for his talent in the visual work of dance theatre. Since 2012, he has been artist in residence at the Carrières de Lumières – Atelier des Lumières where he authored the mise-en-scène of numerous immersive shows. He is currently creating projects within Italy as well as New York, Berlin, Leipzig and Rome.

LUCA LONGOBARDI, Composer

Italian composer and pianist Luca Longobardi is a classically trained musician who incorporates the contemporary electronic music into his pieces. Born in 1976, Longobardi studied classical music in Italy and New York and went on to earn his doctorate in digital audio resto-ration in Rome in 2011. His works reveal a strong interaction between classical and contemporary music. The experience he has gained as a theatre musician has increased his interest in the relationship between sounds and spectacle; he has composed music for ballets and films and accompanied installations and experimental art productions (Atelier de Lumières – Paris, Carrière does Lumières – Baux-de-Provence, Kunstkraftwerk – Leipzig). At his multimedia performances and in his recordings, strong experimental electronic music meets pure, ethereal and simple-seeming piano playing that nevertheless relays deep emotions.

About the Producing Team
The producers of Immersive Van Gogh New York are Corey Ross and Svetlana Dvoretsky, working with Co-Producers Maria Shclover and Irina Shabshis. Together they founded Immersive ArtSpace NY, LP to bring Immersive Van Gogh to New York.

Corey Ross is the founder of Starvox Entertainment which has ranked in Profit Magazine’s Fastest growing Canadian companies for 5 years in a row. The company produces and man-ages cross-over performing arts shows and exhibition including the Art of Banksy in London, Canada, the USA, Taiwan, and Japan. He is also a co-founder at Lighthouse Immersive – a company producing the Immersive Van Gogh in 19 North American cities and Illusionarium in Toronto.

Svetlana Dvoretsky is the founder of Toronto’s Show One Productions and a proud recipient of the Order of York by the Government of Canada for her “significant role in arts and culture.” Show One Productions is leading presenter of high-profile international artists in classical music, theater and dance. She is a co-founder of Lighthouse Immersive and co-producer of Immersive Van Gogh.

Maria Shclover and Irina Shabshis are the co-founders of Maestro Immersive Art. Shclover founded Maestro Artist Management in 2004, Shabshis in 2005 and together they have presented more than 1,000 theatrical and classical music performances across the United States, including projects with Michel Legrand, Mikhail Baryshnikov, John Malkovich and more. In 2012, Shclover and Shabshis formed a non-profit organization, Cherry Orchard Festival Foundation, presenting an annual international theatrical festival to audiences in New York City and beyond.

Adrian Stein – Quantum Mirror

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World’s First Physical NFT Installation, “Quantum Mirror” by Adrian Stein, Debuts in Chicago.

The Immersive Work Contextualizes the Nature of NFT Art in the Real World.

As NFTs Have the Capability to be Infinitely Reproduced, “Quantum Mirror” Explores the Concept of Infinite Consciousness in the Digital Era.

In recent months, Non-fungible tokens (NFTs) have rushed the cryptocurrency scene and taken the art world by storm. This new way of buying and selling digital art using blockchain technology has disrupted the art market and created overnight sensations out of formerly obscure artists such as Mike Winkelmann, also known as Beeple, who recently sold a collage of his digital works for the staggering sum of $69.3 million. Another rising artist in the new media art world, Adrian Stein, is unveiling what he describes as the world’s first immersive NFT installation in Chicago’s contemporary art gallery ARTSPACE 8.

“Quantum Mirror,” a 300-square-foot immersive installation, is an environment where the digital and physical worlds of art merge and multiply in a kaleidoscopic array created by over 150 mirrored surfaces. In-person visitors can see their own reflection infinitely juxtaposed alongside Stein’s digital works of human figures, which will be screened within the mirrored installation and accompanied by resonate soundtracks.

Stein’s digital art, available as NFTs that can be acquired via online marketplace Mintable, are displayed on screens in the center of the installation, representing the original copy of each NFT. These images are then reproduced within the geometrically mirrored walls, representing how NFTs exist online: they commonly have a single “original” with the ability to be infinitely duplicated. The installation acts as a physical representation of our virtual environment, using light and reflections to visualize how human consciousness and the economy have become entangled in a network of blockchains and social media.

Speaking to humanity’s deep dependence on technology, the installation lays inactive without its virtual core, in the same way as modern consciousness would be paralyzed without virtual connection – representing how everyday human life has crossed over to become a spectrum between raw humanity and cyborg consciousness.

“This work is meant to continue the conversation that Yayoi Kuzama began with her infinity rooms, by recontextualizing it into the digital world of artists like Beeple” said artist Adrian Stein. “As Kuzama’s work encourages the viewer to contemplate their place in the never-ending cosmos, “Quantum Mirror” encourages the viewer to contemplate their digital existence within the never-ending world online.”

The installation is viewable at ARTSPACE 8 on the third floor of 900 N. Michigan, starting March 20 through late April and viewable Monday through Saturday from 12:30 – 5:30pm at no charge. Online registration is required through this website, allowing ten people in the gallery at a time while following COVID-19 safety guidelines. More of Stein’s artwork can be viewed on Instagram.

ABOUT ADRIAN STEIN

Guatemalan-born, Chicago-based new media artist Adrian Stein seeks to understand how humans view themselves through the many mirrors viewed in everyday life which reveal the borders, glass walls, and masks built between one another in the process.

By representing the human form as a prismatic lens in constant shift, dynamically morphed and affected by the medium it is inhabiting, Stein’s work engages the concept that different states of consciousness give rise to different views of the self, elaborating on how perceived identities can create a hybrid existence that merges both virtual and physical personas.

Through the use of colloquial digital languages and visual commonalities, he seeks to create an aesthetic medium to reveal how his own duality as a Guatemalan-born American has given rise to a hybrid identity, forcing him to exist in both places at the same time.

ABOUT ARTSPACE 8

The 14,000 square foot gallery is located in Chicago’s Gold Coast neighborhood, specializing in contemporary fine art showing a number of paintings, prints, sculpture, and works on paper from emerging and established artists, based both locally and abroad. ARTSPACE 8 prides itself on taking a democratic approach to its affluent surroundings, engaging experienced collectors and the masses alike in the viewing and collecting of intriguing artworks through highly-curated exhibitions and events.

Cut A Rug A Round Square

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Curated by: Jessica Stockholder

The American artist curates an exhibition of works from the collection of “la Caixa” Foundation and CRT Foundation for Modern and Contemporary Art and turns them into a large environmental installation.

Many times has the “end” of painting been declared and just as many times its “rebirth” has been attested: with the desire to investigate the limits and contemporary potentialities of painting, from February 11 OGR–Officine Grandi Riparazioni–presents Cut a rug a round square, a new site-specific commission developed for the former industrial spaces of OGR Turin by the American artist Jessica Stockholder.

Chosen for her peculiar perspective, Jessica Stockholder has played over the last twenty years a crucial role in the ongoing debate on painting and its limits, expanding the concept in a relentless dialogue amid various media, between form and space, by forcing the limits of painting towards the sculptural and installation dimension.

In her work, the artist combines apparently disparate and ordinary objects to create complex installations that hoard and stratify materials and colors: plastic bags and containers, extension cords, lumber, carpets, and furniture: in her hands, these often-neglected objects recover aesthetic and formal qualities in a practice reminiscent of abstract expressionism, color field painting, and minimalism.

For the project set up inside Binario 1 of OGR Cult, the area of OGR dedicated to art and culture, the artist Jessica Stockholder converted into an exceptional curator and created a unique installation with works from two important collections: the Collection of Contemporary Art “la Caixa” of Barcelona, and that of the CRT Foundation for Modern and Contemporary Art, whose works are on permanent loan to the Turin museums Gam – Gallery of Modern Art and Castello di Rivoli, Museum of Contemporary Art.

To plan her route across the rich heritage at her disposal, the artist developed a concept that is both rigorous and poetic: “I am exploring how the generally rectilinear geometry inherent in the contour, or edge, of paintings, generates meaning both inside and outside the paintings. – states Jessica Stockholder – In relation to both their exposure and internal mechanisms, paintings make use of geometry and its resonance with the scale and form of the human body. (…) Casting a glance through the collections, I was struck by the many works in which the circle and square intersect. Often these works literally feature circles and squares themselves. I began to think of the representation of the human body as a kind of circle within the square, as in Leonardo da Vinci’s Vitruvian Man. The paintings are themselves usually characterized by rectilinear geometries. What happens inside pushes against the edges. The edges are both literal and abstract and are defined by the end of the material support, but the rectangle, identified as a mapping, is understood by virtue of abstraction.”

Combining works of disparate production and origin, the artist investigates the ways of painting and its categorical definitions across genre boundaries, studying its literal and metaphorical edges.

Works range from Directions by Vito Acconci, a photograph documenting the exhausting performance of a man with his arms and legs spread to evoke the Vitruvian Man, to Combustion by Aurelio Amendola, whose shots portray Alberto Burri in the act of melting plastic with a flashlight to create a circle in a square. From Bonded Eternmale, Monica Bonvicini‘s installation of two chairs covered in studded black leather exhibited on a circular red carpet, to A REMOVAL OF THE CORNER OF A RUG IN USE by Lawrence Weiner where written words protrude from the surface of the wall like paint does on his canvas. From 9 to 5 by Edward Ruscha, who painted the time cycle of a working day trapped inside a claustrophobic rectangle to Undercurrent (Red) by Mona Hatoum where the floor surface acts as a pictorial plane for a large carpet of electric cables. And again, among others, the works of Marlene Dumas, Richard Tuttle, Tracey Emin, Diego Perrone, and Jessica Stockholder herself, are exhibited in a display specially designed by the artist who succeeded in transforming the entire exhibition into a work of art in itself, a large environmental installation that evokes, in an experiential form, the clash between the circle and the square as an image of the productive clash between rationality and imagination, order and superabundance, body and idea.

Cut a rug a round square is an opportunity for the public to admire, in complete safety and free of charge, in the spaces of OGR, a treasure preserved by the city’s museums and enriched over the years by the CRT Foundation, with a newfangled interpretation from the point of view of an artist across the works of yet another international collection. The exhibition focuses on the theme of painting, dear to both collections, which have a rich heritage of pictorial works, by taking the cue from one of the most discussed and loved media – even by the more general audience. Cut a rug a round square reshapes the boundaries of this discipline and weaves a discourse that takes from the forms and phantasmagorias of painting, keys to reading the contemporary world, and invites visitors to lose themselves in a world of shapes and colors.

Jessica Stockholder (1959, Seattle, WA. Lives and works in Chicago, Illinois) has exhibited widely in museums and galleries internationally. Her work is in the permanent collections of numerous museums including the Whitney Museum of Art, New York; The Art Institute of Chicago; MoCA Los Angeles; MoMA San Francisco; the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; The British Museum, London; and the Stedelijk Museum, Amsterdam. Recent solo exhibitions include Stuff Matters at the Central Museum, Utrecht and Relational Aesthetics at The Contemporary Austin, Austin in 2019.

From February 11
Free admission
Thursday and Friday, 3PM – 8PM, last admission 7.30PM
OGR Cult, OGR – Officine Grandi Riparazioni

2021 U.S. Premiere of Glasstress

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Some of the world’s leading contemporary artists are invited to breathe new life into centuries-old glassmaking in Venice ― maestros of glassblowing from the legendary Berengo Studio residency help artists manifest their visions.

Among the 34 artists: Ai Weiwei, Fred Wilson, Joyce J. Scott, Jimmie Durham, Ugo Rondinone, Fiona Banner, Vik Muniz, Monica Bonvicini, Jake & Dinos Chapman, Laure Prouvost, Renate Bertlmann, Thomas Schütte, Loris Gréaud, and Erwin Wurm.

“There is every reason this year to have a world view,” says Irvin Lippman, the Boca Raton Museum of Art’s Executive Director, as South Florida boldly ushers in the new year with the national premiere of Glasstress 2021 Boca Raton.
“Three years in the making, with 2020 being such a challenging year to coordinate an international exhibition of this size and scope, the effort serves as an important reassurance that art is an essential and enduring part of humanity.”
“This is also a tribute to the resilience of Venice’s surviving the floods and continuing to make art through the pandemic,” adds Irvin Lippman.

The new exhibition runs January 27 through September 5, 2021 and the Museum will feature online initiatives for virtual viewing. Watch the video here featuring interviews with some of the artists in the new exhibition. The 34 artists in this new, never before seen edition of Glasstress were all invited by Adriano Berengo to work alongside his master glass artisans at the Berengo Studio on the island of Murano in the Venetian lagoon. Most of these works in glass have never been seen elsewhere, and were handpicked by Kathleen Goncharov, the Museum’s Senior Curator who traveled to Italy in 2019.

With incredible energy, the Studio has brought a new vision on how to stimulate today’s leading artists into thinking how the medium of glass can be made into dramatic and provocative works of contemporary art. Most of these artists have, during their careers, been invited to participate in the Venice Biennale. Some of the works were created during the pandemic lockdowns, with artists collaborating remotely via Zoom with their glass artisan partners after initial on-site work at the studio in Venice.

“Unlike the past and the present, what comes next for our world presents itself as constant possibility, always transforming as we move forward in time,” says Adriano Berengo. “This concept of transformation has always held an affinity with glass, a medium which – as the name Glasstress suggests – exists in a state of constant tension. Life needs tension, it needs energy, and a vibrant exchange of ideas.”

The exhibition presents 34 new works that explore some of today’s pressing subjects, including human rights, climate change, racial justice, gender issues and politics. The Boca Raton Museum of Art has dedicated more than 6,500 square feet of exhibition space to this collection. A fully illustrated catalogue is also available.

The mission of Glasstress is to restore the visibility and reputation of Murano glass, after decades of closures of ancient, centuries-old glass furnaces. Instead of creating decorative objects with glass, these artists are invited to create original works, often on a massive scale. They collaborate with glass masters whose expertise has been developed over generations in Venice. Most of these artists have never worked with glass, so they unite their artistic ideas with the technical expertise of their skilled collaborators.

The results are breathtaking. The first installation visitors to the Museum will encounter is Sala Longhi by Fred Wilson. He created this series at Berengo Studio after the Biennale exhibited his work about Black residents of Venice from the Renaissance to the present. This installation features an ornate white chandelier with 29 glass panels that mirror 18th-century Venetian artist Pietro Longhi’s paintings. Instead of canvases, Wilson shows the viewer only the whites of the eyes of his Black subjects through cutouts in black reflective glass.

“We have brought Glasstress to countries around the world for ten years, seeking to expand and enliven international awareness of the variety and richness of contemporary artists using glass in their creative practices,” adds Adriano Berengo. “In the past, its place in the art world might have seemed uncertain. But now in this latest edition of Glasstress, the first after a global pandemic, one thing we know for certain: glass endures. Life is fragile, just as glass is fragile, yet in this fragility there is also strength.”

“It is in this spirit of experimentation that Glasstress Boca Raton 2021 explores the limitless potential of glassblowing. “We realize how far we have come as we approach the 60th anniversary of the American studio glass movement that launched in 1962 through the efforts of Harvey Littleton and Dominick Labino,” adds Irvin Lippman. “This presentation of Glasstress is also a tribute to them.”

This show also unveils the Museum’s new acquisition for its collection, created in the Berengo Studio – Glass Big Brother, a sculpture by Song Dong, one of contemporary Chinese art’s leading figures. The large-scale ceiling installation is 11 feet long and reaches all the way to the floor. Thirty surveillance cameras are ensconced from top to bottom, looking out at all directions around the chandelier.

The installation Rosemarie’s Divorce, by Renate Bertlmann, unites aspects from Rosemarie’s Baby (1983), her multi-part installation about the ambivalent relationship between mother and child, and Discordo Ergo Sum, a field of knife-roses she exhibited at the Venice Biennale in 2019. The monstrously enlarged glass pacifier is an image she has used since the mid-1970s referencing sexuality and motherhood. It is flanked by two knife-roses made of deep black glass.

The Italian artist Monica Bonvicini’s deeply psychological work addresses themes of sexuality, power, and relationships in male-oriented domains. Her visits to sadomasochist nightclubs with Gay male friends are the inspiration for Bonded. She won the prestigious Golden Lion award at the 1999 Venice Biennale. DNA HAS NO COLOR is a new statement from Nancy Burson that is a powerful work about the illegitimacy of racism. This is a continuation of the project that Zaha Hadid commissioned Burson to develop for the London Millennium Dome. Burson is known for biology-related work, including her use of cutting edge facial morphing technology for art that shows what individuals would look like as a different race.

The Pandemic Oculus, (2020), by Tim Tate, whose work explores the worlds of loss, memory, recovery, and hope. As an HIV-positive man, he lived through the worst of the AIDS epidemic during the 1980s and 1990s, and now through the current pandemic. In the Museum’s exhibition catalogue, the artist states that Pandemic Oculus also honors the many unsung heroes around the world: nurses, teachers, essential employees, grandparents caring for children so that parents can work, and so many more. Tate is the co-founder of the Washington Glass Studio in Washington, DC. He is also the co-moderator, along with William Warmus, of the 21st Century Glass group on Facebook, which has shared and discussed over 10,000 images of sculptural glass from around the world.

Erwin Wurm’s wry sense of humor permeates his most famous works and has served him well in creating a poignant cultural commentary throughout his career. Wurm produced this triad in cold hard glass at the Berengo Studio. They are smaller versions of the massive bronze sculpture of a hot water bottle with legs, Big Mutter, that he created for the Venice Biennale in 2020. In the exhibition catalogue, the show’s curator Kathleen Goncharov describes these “mothers” as neither warm nor comforting . . . their stubby little legs imply flight when called upon to be caregivers.

At the Berengo Studio, Jimmie Durham created a series of eight giant cougar heads suspended on metal armatures. Caught in suspension as they gaze at one another, their collective roar remains frozen between them. The cougar is one of the most sacred animals in Cherokee mythology, and the influence of Native-American culture vs. Western rationalism is evident in his work. The artist’s long trajectory includes his work during the civil rights movement and as a political organizer for the American Indian Movement. In 2019, Durham was the recipient of the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement award at the 58th Venice Biennale.

In the Museum’s exhibition catalogue, curator Kathleen Goncharov describes Prune Nourry as no stranger to illness . . . her work always dealing with science and bioethics from a feminist perspective, a focus that has intensified since her breast cancer diagnosis in 2018. At the Berengo Studio, she created River Woman, a transparent skeletal sculpture based on an anatomical drawing of the human vascular system. While its form may be human, the arteries resemble rivers, streams and trees that suffer in their own way too, from human abuse rather than disease.

Ugo Rondinone represented his home country in the Swiss Pavilion at the 52nd Venice Biennale (2007). In this work, the twelve glass horses cast in beautiful shades of blue all face different directions, creating delicate light games with their reflections and shadows in continuous motion. In the context of this installation, the reappearing motif of a horse (which has a long tradition in the history of art), evokes alienation and a subversive twist emblematic of Rondinone’s works.

Purchase our Glasstress issue HERE.

Car Questions: How Are Remote Starters Installed?

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Remote starters are super convenient, so there is no wonder why you would want one in your automobile. No more sitting in a freezing car while you wait for your vehicle to warm up. You can do it from the inside of your home. How cool is that?

But if you don’t currently have a remote starter, you may be wondering, “How are remote starters installed”? Well, luckily for you we have the answers. In this guide, we’ll explain the steps to installing a remote starter.

Continuing reading below.

How Are Remote Car Starters Installed?

Remote starters must have a properly installed control module, wiring, and a bypass module to function correctly. The control module does all of the remote start operations by communicating with the car’s internal systems. The bypass module makes the remote starter work on up-to-date vehicles without needing to disable its factory security system.

Wiring connects the starter to the automobile so that everything functions properly. Lastly, the remote transmitter is what you would use to control all of the operations of the remote start system.

Each component of the remote start system connects and communicates with the control module to provide all of the remote start operations. The process works similar to a computer’s motherboard.

How Are Remore Starters Installed? The Basic Steps

You’ll have to determine where you place the primary module. It should be in a secured, yet hidden location. The most popular place that people put it is in the panel below the steering wheel. Putting it in this area allows it to connect directly to the ignition.

Next, remove the panel underneath the steering wheel to gain access to the wires that connect to the starter. Once you get to the wires, it’s imperative that you connect the wires securely. Any loose wiring could lead to damage to your vehicle or an injury. So make sure the connection is strong.

It helps to use heat shrink tubing and electrical tape. Attach the 12v constant wire to the power wire of your system. The 12v constant wire is the wire that’s connected to your battery and it’s usually located within a group of wires that are attached to the ignition switch.

If you read your car manual, it should tell you where this specific wire is. Next, attached the accessory wire. The accessory wire provides power for the heater and air conditioning control, and it provides energy to the 12v wire. Connect the accessory wire on the starter to the accessory wire on the car. To install this specific wire, attach it to the multimeter while the key is turned to the off position and the voltage is zero.

Find the Ignition Wire

The ignition wire provides power to the ignition system and the fuel pump, and it should connect to the ignition switch that’s located underneath the steering wheel. Again, check your car manual to get the information on where to locate this wire and find out its color. After you find the ignition wire, connect it to the multimeter while it still shows no voltage,and it’s connected to a ground wire.

The next step is to connect the parking light with the brake wires. The brake wire is typically located in the switch harness over the brake pedal. It may also be near the parking lights. Once you locate it, go ahead and connect it.

This is an essential step because connecting a brake wire is what prevents a thief from driving away in your vehicle while it’s running with the remote start function.

Connect the Tachometer Wire

Locate and connect the tachometer output that’s located on the remote sensor. Doing this step is mandatory because it helps to disengages the starter once the vehicle has started. The tachometer wire can be found by following the spark plug wires to where they gather at the distributor.

From there, you should see a tiny wire harness that should be labeled to show where the tachometer wire is. Again, you can look at your owner’s manual to get the exact location.

Once you’ve followed all of the steps listed in the remote starter instruction manual, be sure to secure the wires with wraps to keep them neat and organized. Doing so helps to protect the wires.

How Are Remote Starters Installed? Hire a Professional

Remote starters can be done by reading an instruction manual, but it’s best to get them installed by a professional. As you can see, there are a lot of intricate steps to remote start installation.

However, you can save yourself a lot of time and energy by relying on a professional to put the system together for you. For additional information, check out the highlighted link to learn more about expert remote start installation and all of its perks.

Also, it’s a good idea to use the same remote start system from the auto shop that you use. A lot of times, buying a remote start system and getting it installed elsewhere sometimes causes complications.

How Are Remote Starters Installed: No-Hassle Installation

Now that you’ve read the information above, you no longer have to ask the question of “How are remote starters installed”? The process of installation is a bit tricky, especially if you’re not good with mechanics.

But with that said, your best bet is to get your remote starter installed by a professional. That way, you can ensure that the job is done right and you don’t have to go through the headache and hassle of doing it yourself.

If this information was helpful, feel free to read more of our website. We provide tons of informative articles related to automotive information, beauty and fashion, sports, and more.

Rhys Kelly’s New Installation

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Rhys Kelly Bio

Born and raised in South Florida – Rhys gravitated toward finding beauty in the unexpected — often creating jewelry and art from things she found in nature.

While attending a small art school in Monessen, Pennsylvania, Rhys Kelly took a course on painting eyes and teeth for creatures that the students sculpted. From that class, Rhys noticed how much detail went into painting one eye – and how no two eyes are the same. This was a perfect representation for what Rhys always knew to be true: The eye represents perspective, uniqueness and individualism.

After school, Rhys started gifting the eye jewelry to friends and family, it gained attention from people beyond her inner circle and she started selling pieces in 2017, thus bringing the Rhys Kelly brand to life. Rhys’s collection of handcrafted pendants, rings and bracelets are timeless one of a kind pieces — each designed around the human eye. The eye has, for all of human existence (and probably beyond) been a symbol of power, protection, knowledge, good, evil and much more. What’s remained consistent is the fact that no two eyes are the exact same.

Rhys’s “What’s Your Perspective,” is a body of work comprising pieces of art and jewelry centered around the human eye. The collection is meant to inspire, fascinate and celebrate the unique perspective of every person. For Kelly’s art installation she casts eye forms using acrylic and acrylic paint, first pouring the acrylic into a mold and then painting. Her jewelry is handmade of precious metals including silver, gold and both semi-precious and precious gemstones. She most recently released her “Drippy Eye” installation – which is a large standing installation. Prices for Kelly’s work start at $195 for jewelry and range from $500 to $5,000 for art.

Rhys is now 24 years old and currently resides in Los Angeles where she continues to expand her following and create her artwork.

NEO LUV

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GR gallery is pleased to announce “Neo Luv” a duo exhibition showcasing new works by internationally known artists from Nigeria and Japan: Dennis Osadebe and LY painter. Dubbed after Ly’s main character “Luv” and Dennis own definition of his art as “Neo African,” the show will present 20 fresh paintings on canvas and two individual prints. Their work investigates and advance the discourse around the traditional cultural heritage, by decontextualizing, reinventing and mixing the old customs with new and cutting edge elements, pushing beyond the boundaries the figurative imagery in today’s art scene.

“Neo Luv” aims to exhibit the creative output of these exceptionally gifted artists that, through a shared passion forimaginary characters, specific aspects of nowadays society, a unique color palette and a hint of melancholy, reinterpret thetraditional culture in two singular ways. This exhibition, esthetically characterized by Dennis vibrant, bright and alluring style, and LY’s more somber, contemplative and immersed approach, starts a discussion around contemporary topics such as cultural integration, economic exploitation and psychological conflicts.

For additional information regarding this exhibition go HERE.

Indira Cesarine x The Labyrinth

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THE LABYRINTH
An Installation and Exhibition by Indira Cesarine

ARTIST RECEPTION + PERFORMANCE
Featuring Katherine Crockett
Thursday, March 12, 6pm-9pm

EXHIBITION ON VIEW
March 12 – April 11, 2020
THE UNTITLED SPACE
45 Lispenard Street, NYC 10013

The Untitled Space is pleased to present THE LABYRINTH an installation and exhibition of works by artist Indira Cesarine featuring photography, video, painting, and sculpture, as well as a series of performances inspired by the artwork. The exhibition will open with an artist reception on March 12th, 2020 featuring a special performance by renowned modern dancer Katherine Crockett, and will be on view through April 11th.

For “THE LABYRINTH” Cesarine has created an immersive installation, transforming the gallery into a maze through which viewers can experience her contemporary female gaze on Surrealism, a theme the artist has been exploring through a variety of mediums over the past several decades. “THE LABYRINTH” is a surreal odyssey that reveals through its passages a kaleidoscopic universe of subconscious realities bound by the contrasts of hyperrealism and ethereal symbolism. Cesarine leads the viewer through this maze of discoveries, presenting works that are deeply personal and equally created in response to the influence of Surrealists including Jean Cocteau, Man Ray, and Dora Maar. “THE LABYRINTH” explores the juxtaposition of contrasting opposites, dimension, distortion, and the power of light to engage and reflect on our own stream of subconscious while provoking the tangibility of perceived realities. The result is a journey through our fantasies and expectations, rendered through the lens of dreams and desires.

The juxtaposition of Cesarine’s macro and kaleidoscopic florals created for “THE LABYRINTH” play in sharp contrast to the visual yin yang of her surreal portraits of women that explore female sensuality and identity. Through the lens of fantasy and illusion, she toys with imagery of the subconscious mind, depicting the human form with power and subjectivity. Hands and faces intertwine in a reverie that is part real, part illusion. Sculptural hands project from the walls of the installation as though coming alive, part human, part sculpture, in a manner that is both seductive and haunting. Video art, including a 2020 remix of her film “The Spell” which was featured at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, adds to the visual poetry and experience of the maze. Her use of symbolism and dramatic chiaroscuro conveys emotionally charged imagery that presents both an escape into fantasy and a journey through our unattainable desires. As one walks through “THE LABYRINTH,” there is a sense of being lost in time as kaleidoscopic images come alive off the walls. Mirrors positioned throughout the installation emphasize our own reflections while exploring the surreal landscape of the artworks on display.

“THE LABYRINTH” exhibition and installation features Cesarine’s most recent body of work, as well as select works from her “Goddess”, “Les Fleurs du Mal”, “Pandora’s Box” and “ONLY YOU” series. Cesarine’s “Goddess” series, featuring dancer Katherine Crockett, presents emotive images of the female form juxtaposed with detailed florals, creating surreal portraits that according to the artist, emphasize the graceful strength of Mother Earth as a goddess and the power of nature. “Les Fleurs du Mal” welded steel sculpture series reflects on the emotional impact and symbolism of flowers. The depiction of flowers, whether as a still life, as part of a photographic composition, or in the form of a 3 dimensional sculpture has been an ongoing theme in Cesarine’s artwork dating back to her early photography series shot on medium format film in the 1990s. Also featured in the “THE LABYRINTH” are a selection of photography and video art from her “ONLY YOU” series, which focuses on the eyes as an emotional portal. Works from her “ONLY YOU” series were previously exhibited at Cannes Film Festival, Art Basel Miami, SCOPE Basel, Switzerland, CICA Museum (South Korea), Red Bull Studios (London), and Norwood Arts Club, NY.

ARTIST STATEMENT

“Empowering feminist themes are often a point of departure for my multi-sensory series. My work questions the place of humanity in context with contemporary civilization and is often influenced by autobiographical content and women’s history at large. I connect with thematic subject matter that engages a narrative of social discourse and art activism. As a multi-disciplinarian artist, I often work across several mediums such as photography, video, sculpture, painting and printmaking to convey a rich and diverse narrative. Through my exhibitions and artwork, I challenge the status quo, as well as tackle stereotypes and double standards. I draw from historical narratives in an effort to create empowering artwork that can have an impact on the viewer, be a catalyst for change or provide insight into history, which may have been overlooked. As an artist, I find it is more effective to communicate my ideas through visual and sensory explorations that can uniquely address the world we live in today.

I have been exploring themes of Surrealism in my work since my very first forays into photography back in the late 80’s. Experimental darkroom techniques such as solarization and double exposures have played an important part of my visual narrative, which also often employs nuances of fractured light. While studying for my degree in Art History at Columbia University in Paris I became very interested in the history of Surrealism, and wrote a 30 page paper, “Surréalisme, Sexualité, et La Femme,” on the male gaze and misogyny of many of the original Surrealists. Presenting an empowering female perspective on images of women has always been an important part of my work. Explorations of female identity, sexuality, dreams, and desires have been returning themes in my artwork since I first started creating. In the early 2000s, I expanded from the still frame and works on canvas and paper to moving images, with experimental filmmaking and video art. As my artwork has evolved, I have become inspired to create 3 dimensional works in glass and steel that further propel my visual language. My sculptures explore themes of female identity, symbolism and experience, employing a technical emphasis on light and reflection, often combining figurative sculpture with neon or video display to further engage a multifaceted experience.

In several of my recent works featured in “THE LABYRINTH” I explore surreal techniques of “light painting” that were invented by Man Ray in1937, which I have juxtaposed with dramatic chiaroscurist portraits of women in order to evoke an ethereal universe of light and energy. I also find myself returning to the visual language of flowers – as a representation of women’s sexuality, as well as emotional expression of love, forgiveness, sorrow, and hope. Throughout history, flowers have been ripe with symbolism, with each blossom or arrangement having different meanings. The language of flowers dates back many centuries, and they were often used to send secret messages to lovers. For me the flower can be alluring, mysterious, sensual and full of emotions that are difficult to express with words. There is also something intrinsically female about flower blossoms and their visual reference to a women’s body that resonates with me as an artist. It has been inspiring to bring together multiple aspects of my creative process into one exhibition, with “THE LABYRINTH” featuring many varied artistic mediums that become unified through the installation of the maze. I conceived of the maze concept for an exhibition and installation a few years ago after my father passed away. This exhibition is inspired by the maze of life, the power of human connection, emotion and experience – combined with the surreal nature of the unknown.”

ARTIST BIOGRAPHY

Indira Cesarine is a multidisciplinary artist who works with photography, video, painting, printmaking, and sculpture. A graduate of Columbia University with a triple major in Art History, French and Women’s Studies, she additionally studied at Parson’s School of Design, International Center of Photography, School of Visual Arts, Art Students League and the New York Academy of Art. Cesarine had her first solo show at the age of sixteen at Paul Mellon Arts Center. Her work as an artist has been featured internationally at many art galleries, museums, and art fairs, including The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Hudson Valley MOCA, Mattatuck Museum, Albany Institute of History and Art, CICA Museum, San Luis Obispo Museum of Art, French Embassy Cultural Center, Art Basel Miami, SCOPE Art Basel, SCOPE Miami, SPRING/BREAK Art Show, Getty Images Gallery, Cannes Film Festival and the International Festival Photo Mode to name a few.

In 2014, her public art sculpture “The Egg of Light” was exhibited at Rockefeller Center as part of the Fabergé Big Egg Hunt supporting The Elephant Family. Her work has been auctioned at Sotheby’s New York for the annual Take Home A Nude art benefits in 2017-2019, at ARTWALK NY benefiting the Coalition for the Homeless in 2018 and 2019, as well as at Tabula Rasa, the 26th Annual Watermill Center Benefit and Auction, July 2019. Her work is additionally on view at Norwood Art Club’s “Ingenuity” exhibition until August 2020. Her artwork and exhibitions have been featured internationally in many publications including American Vogue, Vogue Italia, Forbes, Newsweek, W Magazine, Harper’s Bazaar, Dazed and Confused, New York Magazine, i-D Magazine, and The Huffington Post among many others. Cesarine currently lives and works in Tribeca, NY.

“THE LABYRINTH” Opening Performance: Katherine Crockett March 12, 2020

Katherine Crockett is a celebrated modern dancer and choreographer who performs internationally. She was the principal dancer for Martha Graham Dance Company and toured internationally with the company for 21 years. Crockett starred as The Queen in the Off-Broadway immersive theater hit, “Queen of the Night,” for which she created and choreographed her role. She played Cate Blanchett’s dancer double in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” starring Blanchett and Brad Pitt, directed by David Fincher, and starred alongside Mikhail Baryshnikov as Helen in Richard Move’s “Achilles Heels-The Show”. Crockett has additionally performed at the Cannes Film Festival, the VH1/Vogue Fashion Awards, and on the runways of Prada, Alexander McQueen and numerous other global luxury houses. She has collaborated with artist Indira Cesarine on a variety of art series, and recently performed at Cesarine’s “EDEN” exhibition at the UN Plaza.

Website Here

THE UNTITLED SPACE
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African Masquerade Exhibition

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Major photography exhibition (Now on view until May 31). Meet the artist on May 17 at 3:00 p.m. at the Museum for a special appearance (lecture and book signing)

Museum goers will be spellbound by the transformative power of the African masquerade, as the Boca Raton Museum of Art presents Phyllis Galembo:Maske. Her striking photographic series of contemporary mask rituals has drawn national and international critical acclaim. These large-scale images are nearly life-size and explore spiritual realms with brilliant, mesmerizing colors.For more than 30 years, the artist has traveled around the world to photograph participants in contemporary masquerade events that range from traditional, religious ceremonies to secular celebrations.

The exhibition is now on view through May 31. Galembo will visit the museum on May 17 at 3:00 p.m. to share personal stories about her work and her travels, the ritual mask ceremonies, and will sign two of her books at this personal appearance–Maske (published by Aperture), and Mexico, Masks and Rituals (by Radius Books and DAP). Her portraits are celebrated by the world’s leading fine art photography editors for their stunning resonance, setting her work apart from documentary and anthropological studies.

Galembo’s Art Work:

Otoghe-Toghe, by Phyllis Galembo. Aromgba Village, Nigeria, (2005), Ilfochrome

Awo-O-Dudu (A Spirit They Saw), by Phyllis Galembo. Freetown, Sierra Leone, (2008), Ilfochrome.

Akata Dance Masquerade, by Phyllis Galembo. Cross River, Nigeria (2004), Ilfochrome

They will be shown in concert with the Museum’s historical collection of more than 40 African tribal artifacts and indigenous masks in the gallery across from Galembo’s show, for a complementary perspective.

Through her lens, the viewer gains special access to the rarely seen other-worlds, as she captures the raw and sometimes frightening aspects of ceremonial garb. Masking is a complex, mysterious and profound tradition in which the participants transcend the physical world and enter the spiritual realm.

In her vibrant images, Galembo exposes an ornate code of political, artistic, theatrical, social, and religious symbolism and commentary. She has made over twenty trips to sites of ritual masquerades, capturing cultural performances with a subterranean political edge. Her photographs depict the physical character, costumes, and rituals of African religious practices and their diasporic manifestations in the Caribbean and Mexico. Galembo’s images reflect both the modern and ancient worlds.The fifteen portraits by Galembo that were selected for this exhibition reveal the meticulous detail and creative imagination of mask-making.

Affianwan, by Phyllis Galembo. Calibar South, Nigeria, (2005), Ilfochrome

“The tradition of masquerading is universal and timeless, and continues today in most cultures, including western societies,” says Irvin Lippman, the Executive Director of the Boca Raton Museum of Art.

“Bringing together the Galembo photographs and masks from the Museum’s African collection underscores the cross-cultural complexity of meaning and purpose. However, what they have in common is their vitality, power, and boldness of humanity.”

Aye Loja (The World is a Market Place that we Visit), Gelede Masquerade, by Phyllis Galembo. Agonli Village, Benin, (2006)

The costumes in Galembo’s photographs are worn in several types of modern-day rituals. They are created to summon ancestral spirits and deities during a range of events, including agricultural hardships,
land disputes, rites of passage, funerals, harvests, moments of gratitude and celebration. Galembo’s large-scale portraits in this exhibition capture the mask-oriented cultural traditions of Nigeria, Benin, Ghana and Sierra Leone.

Banana Leaf Masquerade, EkongIkon Ukom, by Phyllis Galembo. Calabar, Nigeria (2005), Ilfochrome

While traveling and embedding herself for long periods in these societies, Galembo works with local assistants and translators.They negotiate the terms with elders, so that she may be granted permission
to make photos of these masqueraders.

“The translators often find that gaining permission from community leaders can sometimes be quite helpful during these painstaking negotiations,”says Galembo. “Once an agreement has been struck, I set my own lighting and place the subjects in front of a neutral backdrop that enables the eye to focus on the diversity of materials in each costume.”

Two in a Fancy Dress, Red Cross Masquerade Group, by Phyllis Galembo. Winneba, Ghana, (2010), Ilfochrome

The masks and costumes in these photographs are made from a wide variety of surprising materials ─ leaves, grass, patterned fabrics, burlap sacks, full-bodied crocheted yarns, colored raffia, quills, shells, and even lizard excrement. All of her photographs are shot as portraits rather than during the act of ritual. She is allowed to photograph her subjects at the very moment right before their rituals and festivities commence. Galembo prefers her colors to be brightly saturated, enhancing the spiritual and transformative powers of these garments. “I never see my subjects out of costume, although the masqueraders are always men, often paying homage to women,” adds Galembo.

Ekpeyong Edet Dance Group, by Phyllis Galembo. Etikpe Village, Nigeria, (2005), Ilfochrome

Despite secularization and fading traditions, masquerading in Africa is abundant, robust, and far from disappearing. Most of the photographs in this exhibition reflect sacred rituals, the spiritual aspect of masquerading rather than secular celebrations.By donning garments, the masqueraders gain access to traditional knowledge, enabling them to relay critical messages to the community.

Egungun, by Phyllis Galembo. Adandokpodji Village, Benin, (2006), Ilfochrome

“I like the way viewers can grasp the real stories behind each image. Every mask, costume and fiber of material can represent so much to the people in these portraits. Many of these subjects created these ritual costumes because a spirit inspired them. These are people who make masks and costumes that are very spiritually motivated,” says Galembo. The modern world also finds its way into these costumes and masks with the usage of plastic bags, cardboard, and found objects.

Ringo (Big Deer) Masquerade, by Phyllis Galembo. Kroo Bay, Sierra Leone,(2008)

Awo-O-dudu (A Spirit They Saw) reveals a ghost- like shape summoning ancestral spirits during the dry months or times of crisis, when spirits are called to bless the deceased and entire villages.Ko S’Ogbon L’Ate (You Can’t Buy Wisdom at the Market) is a tribute to mothers, goddesses and ancestors. The wooden headpieces represent an animal and a human, each sings a different song during the ritual. Affianwan (“white cat woman”) represents spirit and transparency. The stunning headdress of this work is crocheted from one long flowing piece of fabric. Two in a Fancy Dress and Rasta illustrates the cross of African and European traditions (fancy dress).

More About the Artist: Phyllis Galembo

Phyllis Galembo’s photographs are included in numerous public and private collections including the Metropolitan Museum of Art and the New York Public Library. She is represented by Axis Gallery. She was born 1952 in New York, where she continues to live and work. Galembo graduated with a Master of Fine Arts from University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1977 and has been a Professor Emeritus at Albany, State University of New York since 1978. Using a direct, unaffected portrait style, she captures her subjects informally posed but often beautifully attired in traditional and ritualistic dress.

Attuned to a moment’s collision of past, present and future, Phyllis Galembo is recognized for her ability to find the timeless elegance and dignity of her subjects.She highlights the creativity of the individuals morphing into a fantastical representation of themselves, having cobbled together materials gathered from the immediate environment to idealize their vision of mythical figures.

While still pronounced in their personal identity, the subject’s intentions are rooted in the larger dynamics of religious, political and cultural affiliation. Establishing these connections is the artist’s hallmark. Her work has appeared in Tar Magazine, Damn Magazine, Photograph and Harpers. She has been profiled on CNN, NPR Radio and NBC Today.

Other collections that feature her work include: Oceania and the Americas, Photography Study Collection (New York); the Philadelphia Museum of Art; the Houston Museum of Art; the International Center for Photography(New York); the British Art Museum, Yale University; Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library; Polaroid Corporation (Boston); and the Rockefeller Foundation, among many others.

MORE ABOUT THE MUSEUM’S AFRICAN COLLECTION

Complementing Galembo’s exhibition are more than 40 African tribal artifacts from the Museum’s collection, including headdresses and masks, each pertaining to masquerades and ceremonies. These are exhibited in an adjacent gallery, across from the Galembo show.

Pictured above are some of the historic African masks from the Museum’s collection that complement Galembo’s contemporary photographs. More than 40 African tribal artifacts will be shown in an adjacent gallery across from Galembo’s exhibition.

The two Kuba masks in the collection (Kuba Bwoom Mask and Kuba Ngaady-A Mwash Mask) are both from the Democratic Republic of Congo, recreating the Kuba dynastic history.

Another work in the museum’s African collection, a Bamana Headdress (Chiwara), represents a mythical character who taught humans to turn wild grasses into grain.

A Mossi Nakomse Headdress (Zazaido), is used in secular and religious rituals by young men. The Zazaido masquerade honors male and female elders at funeral ceremonies, and blesses survivors.

A Yoruba Crown from Nigeria is worn on state occasions, and reflects the spiritual connections of the ruler. The face represents his royal lineage and ultimately the god Oduduwa, who remained on earth and became their first king.

The collection also includes a Dan mask (Deangle), an Ogoni Mask (Nigeria), a Toma Mask (Landai), a Senufo Mask (Kpelie), a Guru Mask (Gu), an Igbo Crest Mask (Nigeria), and a Yoruba Oro Efe Gelede Mask (Nigeria/Republic of Benin).

ABOUT THE BOCA RATON MUSEUM OF ART

Celebrating our 70th anniversary in 2020, the Boca Raton Museum of Art
encompasses a creative campus that includes the Museum in Mizner Park,
Art School, and an Artists Guild. As the “Official Art Museum of the City of
Boca Raton, “the Museum has provided seven decades of cultural and artistic service to the community, and to many visitors from around the world. Open–10:00 a.m.-5:00 p.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Fridays; 10:00 a.m.-8:00 p.m. on Thursdays; and 12:00-5:00 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays.

Visit HERE for more information.

Hunger Games: The Exhibition

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In a partnership between The Hunger Games: The Exhibition and Swarovski crystals, fans of the world-renowned, blockbuster film franchise from Lionsgate, The Hunger Games, can now purchase limited-edition jewelry and accessories. These items are exclusively available at The Hunger Games: The Exhibition at MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas and online at TheHungerGamesExhibition.com.

The jewelry and accessory line is inspired by the illustrative beauty of The Hunger Games characters and includes pins/pendants, necklaces, leather cuffs, bracelets, earrings and other accessories. Adoring fans can fashion themselves in the collection’s brass with rhodium or gold-plated jewelry or add an edgy flare with high-quality leather available on the Mockingjay or Capitol Couture Leather Cuff. The pieces are sure to impress fans whether they are looking for a delicate way to flaunt their rebellion or are ready to make an elegant sparkling statement just as fashionable as a Capitol resident.

“Swarovski is known for making the best crystals and is one of the most recognized fashion brands throughout the world,” said Zoe Tan, head of business development and general manager, Las Vegas for Victory Hill Exhibitions. “We are proud to offer these luxurious pieces, developed from the love and passion we have for the world of The Hunger Games and the glamour and fashion of the Capitol.”

The collection features uniquely designed accessories including a limited-edition Snow’s Rose Water Bottle, embellished with 7,342 hand-placed Swarovski crystals on a stainless-steel bottle. Fans can also write in style with the uniquely designed Capitol Couture and Mockingjay pens, featuring a crystallized clip with an eye-catching crystal on top engraved with the logo in the center of the barrels. All sparkling with Swarovski’s 12 years of intensive research, and Advanced Crystal standard and innovative, lead-free formula.

“We dove into the world of the Capitol and Panem when developing this luxury jewelry line, and we’re thrilled to offer fans more from the world of The Hunger Games,” said Kirsten Taylor-Hall, vice president, Global Live & Location Based Entertainment. “Victory Hill and Swarovski deliver a unique and beautiful line that embodies the essence of Capitol style.”

The highlights of the limited-edition collection are the Fire Burns Brighter Clutch, made with the iconic colors of the Capitol featuring nearly 6,000 hand-placed crystals, and the edgy Girl on Fire Clutch inspired by the Girl on Fire herself, Katniss Everdeen, adorned with more than 4,000 hand-placed crystals. Both clutches are a limited edition with only 10 production pieces.

“We are thrilled to partner with Victory Hill Exhibitions and Lionsgate in delivering exclusive, beautiful products to create a memorable keepsake for fans of The Hunger Games,” said, Andrea Nondorf, managing director, Swarovski Professional North America. “Through our partnership, we aim to surprise and delight consumers with the beauty, quality and craftsmanship of this collection as well as unite our luxury products with the visionary, world-class experience Victory Hill and Lionsgate has created with The Hunger Games: The Exhibition.”

Located at MGM Grand, The Hunger Games: The Exhibition is a top Las Vegas attraction featuring several inspirational galleries including the Hall of Justice, President Snow’s Office, the Tribute Train, District 13, and one of the largest archery training experiences set within a 60-foot wide interactive training center. The Hunger Games: The Exhibition is open daily from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Visitors can view and purchase the jewelry and accessory line on display in the merchandise store. Commemorative ticket for entry into the exhibit can be purchased at http://thehungergamesexhibition.com/ or at The Hunger Games: The Exhibition onsite box office.

Cityneon Holdings Limited

With its global reach and international partnerships, Cityneon has the capability to serve its clients anywhere in the world. Cityneon has been listed on the Mainboard of the Singapore Stock Exchange since 2005, and was privatized in February 2019 by West Knighton Limited, a company wholly owned by Cityneon’s Executive Chairman & Group Chief Executive Officer Ron Tan together with Hong Kong veteran entrepreneur and investor Johnson Ko Chun Shun. Johnson is a capital markets veteran and has held controlling interests and directorships in many listed companies. On May 14, 2019, Cityneon welcomed CITIC Capital as a new shareholder who holds 10.61 percent shares in Cityneon. CITIC Capital is part of CITIC Group, one of China’s largest conglomerates, and has more than $25 billion in assets under its management across 100 funds and investment products globally. For more information, please visit www.cityneon.net.

Victory Hill Exhibitions

Victory Hill Exhibitions is a subsidiary of Cityneon Holdings and is an exhibition production company which strives to create interactive exhibits that attract visitors and have educational value. With 25 years of experience and cooperation with pioneers in technology from around the world, Victory Hill creates astounding interactive experiences, and can adapt based on our clients’ needs to satisfy each and every unique need.

Lionsgate

The first major new studio in decades, Lionsgate (NYSE: LGF.A, LGF.B) is a global content leader whose films, television series, digital products and linear and over-the-top platforms reach next generation audiences around the world. In addition to its filmed entertainment leadership, Lionsgate content drives a growing presence in interactive and location-based entertainment, video games, esports and other new entertainment technologies. Lionsgate’s content initiatives are backed by a nearly 17,000-title film and television library and delivered through a global sales and distribution infrastructure. The Lionsgate brand is synonymous with original, daring and ground-breaking content created with special emphasis on the evolving patterns and diverse composition of the Company’s worldwide consumer base.

Swarovski

Swarovski has been the premium brand for fine crystal embellishments since 1895. It is recognized for its innovative excellence and for its collaborations with world-class designers and brands from the fashion, jewelry, accessories, interiors and lighting industries. Available in myriad colors, effects, shapes and sizes, crystals from Swarovski offer designers an unrivaled palette of inspiration born out of a passion for detail and high-precision cutting. These precious ingredients impart a refined glamour to everything they embellish and are produced according to the groundbreaking lead-free* Advanced Crystal standard. The ‘Crystals from Swarovski’ seal, incorporating a sophisticated tracking system with a unique identification number to reinforce authenticity, enables customers to distinguish products embellished with genuine Swarovski crystals. www.swarovski.com/professional