The End of One-Way Journalism: Reviewing the Reviewer

Sept 30, 2009

(Note: this is kinda long – feel free to skip down to the “Response to the Review “ section. We also encourage you to leave a comment on your thoughts about this or future posts by clicking on the Comments link at the end of the post, in this case, after the words "stay tuned".)

I INTRODUCTION

Art Reviews of shows and venues are important to the life of artists, museums and galleries. They are frequently the only point of contact between an artist, gallery or museum and the non-artist public, which means most everybody but the small group of active art goers.

At the beginning of this exhibit, prior to any other reviews, we initiated a program to have Independent Reviews of our shows because we perceived an urgent need for more reviews (and hence more reviewers) of the visual arts scene in general and of our shows in particular. We hired Bonnie Rosenberg, a graduate student in the Goldring Arts Journalism Program at SU, to write ongoing independent reviews of our shows. The deal is this: We pay her for her time to view shows and write reviews, which we will then publish on our website and blog regardless of what she writes. We will check the review only for factual matters, not evaluative or interpretative content. We posted her first review of Visions on our website and blog (delavanartgallery.blogspot.com) on Friday, September 11. We, of course, reserve the right to comment on her review, as she has the right to comment on our comments.

Up to now the review situation has been characterized by One-Way Journalism. If an art critic decides to do a review of a venue’s show, he or she comes, writes a review and publishes it on a schedule convenient to them. For all practical purposes there is no possibility of a publicly viewable response – certainly not one which is timely or in the same part of the newspaper in which the review first appeared. At best, any response would appear, unedited, the following week, in the same section as the original piece of writing. But that “at best” doesn’t happen. A Letter to the Editor, if it is published at all, will generally be placed in the op-ed section and will generally be cut in overall length or heavily edited. (In one non-art related case I’ve had a “Letter to the Editor” held up for over a month, then edited with changes in paragraphing, sentence structure and tense to the point that the final result made me look incoherent).

Ideally the resolution to the problem of One-Way Journalism would be to have the review done earlier and then made available to the artists and venue being reviewed so that they could make their comments. Then the whole ensemble, the original review and the comments, would be published at the same time in the same space. The newspapers may not have the time, inclination or space (ink), but this would be a valuable asset to the community.

So, we are forced to do it ourselves. However, with the internet, a whole new dimension of communication has opened up. It is possible not only to post writings and responses to them, but also to make public comments regarding those writings. This opens up the process to interactivity – i.e. posting of an original writing, a response(s), then response(s) to the responses etc. So, who can respond? Anybody: gallery staff, artists who have been reviewed, other artists, the general public—even the art critics being themselves reviewed. The next section of this writing is our response to the Katherine Rushworth’s recent review in the Post-Standard.

II RESPONSE TO THE REVIEW

The review of our show Visions by Katherine Rushworth appeared in this past Sunday’s Stars section of the Post-Standard (Sept 27, 2009). For your convenience we’d like to post the entire review here on this blog, but that would probably violate copyright law. As a second option we’d like to provide a convenient link to the review, but so far have been unable to find it posted on the Post-Standard’s website Syracuse.com.

We’re therefore left with the challenge and necessity of commenting on a piece of writing that we are unable to provide here in its entirety. So here goes.

IN GENERAL

In the second paragraph of the review Rushworth, who will be referred to as the “Art Critic” from here on, said “There’s little unifying the works thematically…but that really doesn’t matter. Each artist demonstrates some degree of vision and all three prove to be at least competent in their respective media”. How can the term Visions not be inclusive in a visual arts show? Does not every artist have a vision? Then, her use of the term “at least competent…” displays, in my opinion, the grudging acknowledgment of the quality work shown here, but put in the least appealing terms. I think it indicates an upfront bias against either the artists in question, or, more probably, against the Delavan Art Gallery. For the record, these four artists are very competent and deserve more than a grudging nod to their abilities.

TANYA KIROUAC

Next, the Art Critic states that Toronto artist, Tanya Kirouac, has a solid command of encaustic painting, but (and now comes the negative) she “limits her subject matter to the point of redundancy.” The Art Critic goes on to say: “This may not be entirely Kirouac’s fault, but the consequences of the specific works show organizers chose. But that’s always the risk an artist faces when the gallery assists in the selection of work”. In both a discussion with the Art Critic at the end of her review time at the gallery, and in an e-mail on the subject when she sought clarification, we made it very clear that we, the gallery staff, pick the artists to be exhibited, the timing of an exhibit and the selection of an artist’s art work*. While we certainly encourage input from artists during the selection process, selection is our responsibility. That said, I am quite proud of our selection of work by the four artists, including Tanya Kirouac’s – as well as the selection of over 165 artists and their artwork over the past six+ years. In this case I have re-examined the five pieces the Art Critic listed and found them to be sufficiently different to be shown together – they provide variation within an internal “unity of theme” that in other contexts the Art Critic seems to like.

BILL STORM

She states: “But in other images, in which he ratchets up the color to high-octane levels, he seems to have lost his aesthetic sense and is playing with color (and digital toys) simply for the sake of playing with color. In Primeval #12 and #8, the color seems manipulated and does not enhance the natural landscape he’s using as subject matter. I’d rather Storm went over the top in to the realm of the impossible, as in Primeval #2, #7 and #1, than not be fully committed.”

Most photography today has moved from film to digital, and therefore goes through a computer. The “digital toys” to which the Art Critic refers, are, when more respectfully considered, the photographer’s tools to be used by the photographic artist as a painter uses paint brushes and paint. The skill and judgment with which the photographic artist uses a computer determines whether the output is good or bad art. It is fair to criticize a photographer’s use of the digital tool box, but the Art Critic has here stipulated an interesting criterion which is that changes in color (which she derogatorily refers to as manipulation) must enhance the natural landscape. Further, she has criticized the artist for manipulating images, but then suggests that he should do more of it.

PHIL PARSONS

The Art Critic made a generally favorable comment of this excellent oil painter’s work, but she felt the placement of one of the buildings interfered with the natural composition. OK, so he has twelve marvelous paintings on display, and she takes her limited space to dis one painting she didn’t like.

BARBARA STOUT

An all too brief description of the watercolors and ink pieces by a fine artist.

OVERALL

More space given to Barbara Stout, and less to uninformed speculation/projection about the selection process would have made a much better review. Also, the pejorative reference to the artists as being “at least competent” was unhelpful to a reader wanting to find out about the exhibit.

I invite the reading public to visit the gallery and see for yourselves the show of the four artists’ work, and the accuracy of the Art Critic’s review. One note: Tanya Kirouac’s work is only up for three more days – Friday, October 2 (noon – 6:00 PM0 and Saturday, October 3 (10:00 AM – 4:00 PM).

-Bill Delavan, Director

* Note: Only in some special circumstances such as elementary school shows, retrospectives and some of the group shows, do we not select the artwork.

Final note: Caroline Szozda McGowan, Gallery Manager, will shortly be posting her comments on Katherine Rushworth’s review on the blog and other reviewed artists may also be posting. Stay tuned.

Visions and Discoveries

Feature Exhibition:

Visions

(September 10-October 24)

A collection of works by three artists, including paintings by Phil Parsons, photography by Bill Storm, and ink drawings by Barbara Stout is the featured exhibition heralding the start of the new season at Delavan Art Gallery. Visions opens September 10 with a public reception that night from 5:00-8:00 PM.

Phil Parsons, a graduate of The School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, MA, is a nationally published decorative artist who works with interior designers and clients throughout New York. His current collection of paintings at Delavan, however, points to pride of his families' roots in Syracuse and appreciation for the city's rural surroundings of small towns, farms and countryside fields. Under the title, Roadside, Parsons says, "I wanted to capture those ragged woods, matted fields and old homesteads." The works represent over two years of work, altered in his perception of viewing the subject matter following the passing of a family member. He says, "In death, everything seems fleeting. I needed a record, a reminder for my children and myself. This is where we live." While Parsons' pieces are painted in a realistic style, he explains, "I have felt free to change the landscape, repaint barns, and invent skies to reflect my feelings."

Bill Storm, influenced from his early professional background as musician, recording engineer and producer, says his show titled, Primeval, is the outgrowth of a lifetime fascination for expressing emotions and ideas through artistic media, be it sound or visual, that "makes me want to stop and look or listen." Storm says he discovered his love for fine art photography while at Syracuse University where his musical experience earned him positions both as a Director of the Belfer Audio Laboratory and Archive and as an instructor in the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications. He says that his good fortune of having worked with a host of noted recording artists in his previous career, along with appreciation for works by masters studied in his new endeavor, helped him to 'see in single images the wonderful sensory impact associated with great musicians playing on great recordings.' Thus his fine art approach and straightforward goal of "creating images that trigger imagination."

Gods, Beasts, and Mortals is the title Barbara Stout says best describes her ink drawings included in Visions, citing that only a few are clearly or vaguely human, and the rest, animal or beast-like or in the deity category. The artist, whose strongest influences come from primitive art, signs and symbols from numerous cultures, as well as from psychology and social relationships, says that in her creations she is looking for a resonance with the raw experience of love... "its vulnerability, openness, heightened awareness, abandon and beauty." She feels that these explorations "have their own rules that translate a poetic truth rather than a literal rendering." Thus Stout describes her paintings as becoming like a jazz improvisation, exposing the history and beauty of freedom where in her painted worlds "a beast can buy a car, Jesus can leave the high and mighty, wings can appear in unexpected places, and somewhere a new set of wings are sprouting.'

Wild Card Exhibition:
Discoveries
(September 10-October 3)
Encaustics by Tanya Kirouac

Reaching beyond US borders, Delavan Art Gallery is pleased to present Discoveries, an exhibition that celebrates the engaging talents of an encaustic painter who hails from Toronto, Ontario. The artist describes the term encaustic, derived from the Greek word 'enkaustikos' meaning "to heat" or "to burn," as a technique that uses wax in a process involving heat to apply the medium and secure it. Composed of beeswax or microcrystalline wax, damar resin and pigments, the term is often used to describe both the paint itself and the method for using it.

In her artist statement, Kirouac explains, "I am an encaustic painter, deeply rooted in the visual language of landscapes and the natural world. Similar to the way nature builds up and washes away what it creates, I apply and remove layers of wax. Possibilities, which had yet to be discovered rise and make themselves apparent. This process allows me to develop complex images in relief." She continues, "Encaustic has an inherent opacity. This quality creates transparency, which mirrors the fragility of our world. These transparencies give the completed works an almost dreamlike finish - a reminder of the possibility that the objects of my inspiration can be fleeting and might one day exist only in my memory."

Independent Critic Review Program

September 11, 2009

Dear Patrons and Artists,

Delavan Art Gallery takes pride in celebrating the creativity of artists shown here. To further that end, we also strongly believe that a review of each exhibition is important, not only in response to artists' efforts to avail their works for public view, but also to give viewers another dimension through which to enhance their appreciation and enjoyment of what they see. However, there are too few media reviewers and/or reviews to cover the large number of visual art exhibits that take place in this area.

To address this situation, we are beginning a new program of having independent critiques of our shows, beginning with our current exhibitions. Here's how it will work:
--We will pay the independent critic for her/his time for coming to the gallery and writing a critique. We will review the critique for factual matter only prior to posting to our e-mail list and blog. We will not change interpretative, evaluative, or other matters of content. The independent critic is free to write what she/he wishes without fear of editing. On the e-mail posting, following the critique, we may choose to post our comments regarding the critique, and on the blog we may likewise post comments along with other readers, which may include the artists being reviewed. Thus this new program, through the blog, allows interactivity between critic, gallery, artist and viewer which only the internet enables.

To begin the program we are proud to announce that Bonnie Rosenberg has been selected as Delavan Art Gallery's first independent critic. Bonnie is currently a graduate student at Syracuse University's S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications where she is receiving her masters in Arts Journalism as part of the school's Goldring Program. Prior to coming to Syracuse, Bonnie graduated from Saint Louis University where she earned a dual Bachelor's degree in Art History and English Literature and also held two competitive internships, one as the Family Program intern at St. Louise Art Museum and the other as curator of her own exhibit in the Historic Samuel Cupples House on campus.

This reviewer's interest in the visual arts was ignited by her hometown Chicago, and as she says, "persists in Central New York where I will be an imbedded critic for Delavan Art Gallery and connoisseur of the Syracuse art scene at large." Bonnie adds, "In my efforts, I hope to create an on-going dialogue among artists and the public."

What follows are Bonnie Rosenberg's comments on Delavan Art Gallery's 50th Show opening our new season: our main exhibition titled Visions and the gallery's Wild Card Show, Discoveries.

Our thanks and congratulations to artists participating in these exhibitions and to Bonnie for coming to the opening to view them. We also wish to extend an invitation to the public to visit here during the shows runs and join with us in applauding the creativity that permeates throughout Central New York and beyond.

Sincerely,

Bill Delavan
Gallery Director

Visions Exhibit Opens New Season at the Delavan

Bonnie Rosenberg
September 7, 2009

Artists have the ability to create their own version of reality. They can purge a bad memory with the sweep of a brush or create an alternate one with the click of a camera.

In the Delavan Art Gallery's September exhibit, Visions, four artists - Phil Parsons, Bill Storm, Barbara Stout and Tanya Kirouac - present their art as it derives and deviates from reality. This show highlights the power of artistic license and its ability to manifest differently in artists.

This exhibit provides more than aesthetic appeal. It provokes thought and calls into question the notion of truth in art. If Keats was right, and beauty really is synonymous with truth, then the Delavan has found the key to artistic veracity.

Bill Storm's show Primeval presents nature through lenses both abstract and straight. His black and white photographs depict beautiful natural scenes that glorify what remains of the great American landscape. Storm's color photos are less representational and transform nature into amorphous studies in color, texture and composition. In Primeval #3, streams of brilliant blood red weave around chunks of earth. Detached from its original context, this photo takes on a sinister feeling - adopting overtones of violence and rage.

By cropping nature and applying color, Storm distorts reality and constructs his own landscape. His view of nature evokes an immediate visceral response from its audience, a reaction that is aligned with the prehistoric title of the collection.

The adjacent exhibit, Roadside, by Phil Parsons explores the landscapes of the greater Syracuse area. Parson's scenes are inspired by Central New York's rural vistas, but were composed in his imagination. Farms, winding roads and emotive skies mark these serene paintings.

The muddy color palette that characterizes these works is sporadically disrupted by leavening strokes of yellow and white. These small dots of color are welcome in a painted world where browns and tans prevail. In Howlett Hill Moon a single smudge of pale orange illuminates a path to the painting's apex.

The rurality of these paintings appropriately follows in the tradition of Hudson River School artists. Parsons artworks serve as records of his life's events in New York. Each canvas represents a memory, albeit a manufactured one.

In her ink and watercolor drawings, fellow exhibitor Barbara Stout reveals a personal iconography that is influenced by primitive art and mythic figures, but ultimately stems from her imagination. The images in her Gods, Beasts, and Mortals show are whimsical, cartoonish and rooted in the mystical.Tendrils of black ink race across all of the pieces in a modern Art Nouveau style. At times they loosely resemble humans, but most often they outline invented figures. In the same vein as Paul Klee, these works seem to point to a deeper meaning with their imbedded symbols, but the significance is unknown to the viewer.

Because of their indecipherable subject matter, these works largely fall into the realm of quaint decorative pieces. Ooh La La, a red, white and black drawing, leans so far toward farce that it is divorced from its purported historical foundations. Any spiritual bridge is broken by Stout's recurrent use of handlebar mustache motifs and her frivolous approach to substantial subjects like love.

The gallery's Wild Card Show is comprised of works by encaustic painter, Tanya Kirouac. In Discoveries plant life images are shaped from many layers of wax and pigment. The artworks seem to radiate warmth as rich shades of hazel green, violet and maroon coalesce on the panels.

Bold vermilion flowers abound in big red, one of her larger paintings. Reminiscent of Cy Twombly's floral paintings, the work features loosely formed, free-floating flowers. In the background, shades of yellow melt into pools of orange and cream.

Like the other paintings in the collection, this work draws in the viewer with its accessibility. With surface textures that look like malleable wood, autumnal colors and inviting titles like serenity and passing day, this collection practically demands enjoyment of the viewer and is all too willing to supply the fodder for easy artistic consumption.

Visions runs from Sept. 10 - Oct. 24, and Discoveries runs from Sept. 10 - Oct. 3. These exhibitions are harbingers of good things to come from the Delavan this fall.