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A Trip to Columbia, SC, for the 20th Anniversary Artista Vista – April 28, 2011

Monday, May 2nd, 2011

OK, right off I want to make it clear that I take the power of Mother Nature seriously. Although, it may sound at times like I scoff at the predictions of weather experts – I spend a lot of time watching and listening to the folks at the Weather Channel, and on Thursday, April 28, 2011, that process lasted from 7:30am to 2pm. And by noon, they seemed to stop talking about South Carolina which gave me the sign that Linda and I were not taking that much of a risk traveling to Columbia, SC, for the 20th Anniversary of Artists Vista – the annual celebration of the visual arts in Columbia’s Vista area. The storm which had killed over 300 people had lost a lot of its punch by the time it got to the eastern coast. Believe me, after watching coverage of what the storm had done in Alabama, I wasn’t taking the weather lightly, but in the same breath – the weather can change in the blink of an eye.

On our two hour drive to Columbia, twice we were sprinkled on for a minute or two, but by the time we crossed the intersection of I-26 and I-95, it seems that we were on the other side of this fast moving storm, which was headed east and when we got to Columbia, the sun was shining, the winds were calm and there were few clouds in the sky. It was a perfect Spring evening in Columbia. A few hours this way or that way and things could have been a lot more challenging. We all lucked out.

So why were we going to Artista Vista anyway? First, it’s part of our job to get out and see some of the events we cover in the paper. Second, it was the 20th Anniversary and third, we like Columbia’s visual art community. We have a lot of good supporters there and we always enjoy the different kind of art scene Columbia presents – compared to Charleston, our own back yard.

Now what do I mean by that? Simply put, Charleston is a tourist destination and the art community is influenced by that, and Columbia is – not so much. Being the capital city, it is the business and political hub of South Carolina and the visual artists there hold on to their ties to university and college longer than if tourist were demanding images of the local scenes. Don’t get me wrong, you can find just as much tourist oriented art in Columbia and just as much non-tourist art in Charleston – if you look hard enough, but each city has a distinctively different approach to art making.

It’s not that unusual, all art communities are creatures of their environments. If you go to the mountains – you’ll find less images of beaches and more of mountains, waterfalls, and stands of forest. In the desert it’s coyotes and desert landscapes. Out west it’s cowboys and native Americans. The point is, Columbia’s art community is different than Charleston’s. A few more observations I can make in comparing the two cities is, Charleston has many more art galleries in a more compacted area and although over the years I have seen many folks from Columbia at art walks in Charleston, I have never seen anyone from Charleston in Columbia during one of their art walks, except for a few artists being featured in shows in Columbia, which is a shame.

Before we get into my observations on the 20th Anniversary of Artista Vista, I want to explain that most of my opinions are based from an insiders perspective. After all, I’m in the biz, and we’re part of the delivery system telling people about the different opportunities being presented to them and I have to say I didn’t get the feeling that this was a 20th Anniversary celebration at all. It was more the feeling of “We can’t believe we’ve made it to 20 years celebration”. Which is a sign of the times. The art community as a whole – both non-profit and commercial have been under siege during the last decade by a failing economy and social politics. In the words of former President Jimmy Carter – they’ve been suffering from a malaise. How else can you feel when your Governor says there is no value to the public in supporting the arts.

I’ve been to about a half dozen Artista Vista and Vista Lights events and I wouldn’t have been able to tell you the difference between the 10th, 13th, 15th or 20th. There were no signs that this Artista Vista was more special than the last. Funding, or lack of funding, could be the answer here but I wasn’t getting the impression that anything was different. The people promoting the event had little info to offer and it’s not my job to make up or fill in the blanks on what’s being offered. And, while covering events in two states I don’t have time to investigate it either. People are being paid to provide this information. And on the other hand, they can only pass on the info they are provide by presenters. And, Artista Vista has had a long history of being short and at the last minute on information. I am amazed these days at how little effort people are making to get people to attend their offerings – as if people don’t have any choices. There were a few exceptions I’ll mention later.

Linda had taken the afternoon off from her other job to go on this trip, so we were able to arrive a little early and we found a good central parking space on Lincoln Street in the heart of where most of the art galleries are located. The less walking we have to do for both of us the better. We were both taking a little time off from finishing the May 2011 issue of Carolina Arts – check it out at (www.carolinaarts.com).

Our first stop was Vista Studios, which had recently celebrated its own 20th anniversary last year during Vista Lights – the fall event in the Vista. The exhibit here was, Prima Vista: Fresh Art at Vista Studios, featuring works by all 13 studio artists, on view through May 10, 2011. There was a time during my delivery days when Columbia was one of the few cities where I arrived during the daylight, although very early in the morning – but not too early to catch a few artists already at work at Vista Studios. Laura Spong was one of those early birds. We used to have some good discussions about the Columbia visual art scene.


From L to R, work by Pat Gilmartin, Ethel Brody, 2 by Laurie McIntosh and 2 by David Yaghjian

About half of the artists who called Vista Studios home in those days have moved on to other studios, but the quality of artists has always stayed high and diverse. Their shows are always interesting. And, on this day, all the studios seemed to be open – not always the case over the years.

We actually arrived slightly before 5pm, the official starting time, but there were also a few other early birds there with us and soon the place was filling up. We made some of the usual stops. I’m always amazed at the bargains Ethel Brody presents for these occasions. I looked at a nice print which was priced at $10. We have a number of these bargains in our collection. We talked with Laura Spong about how long it’s been since those old days of my early morning visits. We had been at Artista Vista two years ago, but a lot of stuff has happened in those two years. Spong was apologizing for not being so computer savvy and that she hadn’t seen our new version of the paper. Linda showed it to her on her iPhone. Spong will be in Charleston on May 6, for a reception at Smith Killian Fine Arts, during one of Charleston’s major art walks. She’s included in a group exhibit of some of SC’s leading contemporary artists. That will be another posting.

I’m always interested in seeing Pat Gilmartin’s new sculptural creations – which didn’t disappoint me. I’m still remembering a piece she had two years ago titled, Blooming Arms.


Blooming Arms, by Pat Gilmartin

We checked out a few of the new studio residents since last time, Michel McNinch and Kirkland Smith. McNinch is ready for her 17-day marathon during the annual Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibit in Marion Square in downtown Charleston, SC, starting May 27, 2011. The artists who do that show are made of steel – in my opinion.


Work by Kirkland Smith


Detail of Kirkland Smith’s work. Objects make the color.

We had hoped to meet Kirkland Smith, who is now our publicity contact with Vista Studios, but she was outside her studio while we checked it out – her work is amazing and I hope my photos do it justice. I also liked the drawings I saw in her studio.


Wall of Keys, by Susan Lenz

We would have also talked with Susan Lenz, but she was doing duty at her installation, I DO / I DON’T, over at 927-929 Gervais Street. This was a busy week for her. She was involved in art events all over Columbia, Charleston, and North Charleston.


Weight Lifter, 3-D art by David Yaghjian

The crowd was picking up here so we moved on up the hill to City Art, which was presenting the exhibit, Layers and Passages: A  Tribute to Seven Women of Courage and Compassion, featuring works by Stephen Nevitt, head of the art department at Columbia College.

As we walked in the door we saw Randy Hanna of City Art and Mary Gilkerson, who we ran into at City Art two years ago. That was a little strange. Gilkerson teaches art at Columbia College and writes reviews for the FreeTimes newspaper in Columbia. She also once wrote reviews for Carolina Arts – which now seems like a long, long time ago.


People viewing Stephen Nevitt’s exhibit.


Randy Hanna – making a sale! Yes, it happens even in the middle of such events.

Nevitt’s exhibit was a great look at a family tree in photos as well as a great example of how a creative artist can turn family photos into works of art. While looking at them I overheard someone say how brave Wendy Wells, the owner of City Art, was to present such an exhibit during an important event. I guess this was a reference to sales – like who would buy artworks of Nevitt’s family? I disagree.

Wells has never been one to shy away from doing the brave thing, but since when is it brave to exhibit good art? And, have you ever noticed all the artwork which includes people as the subject matter. And, for all the people who buy those works of people they do not know – it doesn’t seem to bother them – people are interesting and they make interesting subjects for artists. I’m sure Wells would tell you as a gallery owner, she’s taking a risk with every art exhibit she presents no matter what the subject or medium is. There are no sure things.

When I first saw Wells she was mopping up a spill on the floor. I missed that photo by seconds. When we actually got to talk with her she was filling punch glasses. It’s such a glamorous life owning and running an art gallery. Her first question was if we knew how other locations were doing?

There was a good crowd at City Art, more than you would think as it is a big space, and we were happy to report they had a good crowd at Vista Studios. Little did we know that might have been the peak of the evening. Of course in my opinion these two venues were two of the most popular stops in the Vista.

Sidebar: There were a lot of people on the streets, but they didn’t seem to be flowing in and out of the galleries. The Vista is not the same Vista of a few years ago. There was a time when there was an art walk down there – most of the people were there for the galleries – there wasn’t that much else to do down there, but today it has a lively nightlife scene.


A work by Jo Dean Bauknight that I liked – a paint makers dream kind of artist.

While at City Art we also ran into an old friend, Claire (Suzie) Farrell, who used to be part of the Waterfront Gallery in Charleston, which has now closed. She was one of the Columbia artists who had moved into the Charleston art market. We had seen her at many a Charleston art walk. We shared more talk about the good old days, which may be old, but we’re still enjoying good days, but it’s hard to not think of the 1990′s as the golden days for the art community in South Carolina.

So it was time to move on to see the installation art. I’ll admit up front, I’m not big on installation art. Many times it falls short of the written or verbal hype it is given and I have to say I’ve been spoiled by some people who do it very well. I’ve seen the site-specific exhibits that the Spoleto Festival USA presented in its heyday when it presented visual arts. I’ve seen some great installations during Piccolo Spoleto Festivals including works by Herb Parker, Patrick Dougherty and Jonathan Brilliant. So, I’ve seen some really good installation pieces and I’ve seen some bad ones. It’s like all art – some good – some bad and what I don’t like probably thrills others. I was mainly drawn to this show to see what Susan Lenz had come up with. She is slowly but surely building up to one day being an A level installation artist. She’s not bad now, but one day someone is going to give her the money to really do something spectacular.

Now here is where a lack of information hurt this event. This might cost me some advertising, but so be it. The first press release we received offered very little details. I could write one just like it right now for next year. The next one, came after our deadline for our April issue, but it had more details about an installation art component for this year’s Artista Vista. I posted it on our blog, but it still didn’t have some vital info – like there was an active blog (http://artistavistainstallit.blogspot.com/), which was started on Mar. 31, covering the progress of the installation project headed up by Jeffrey Day, former arts writer and art critic for The State newspaper in Columbia.

Day didn’t send us any info about this project, which is understandable since we have been at odds and he doesn’t think much of our publication. I did hear him at least twice on ETV radio programs plugging the event the week of the event, but I also know he didn’t approach other media venues to get the word out either. It’s what happens when you have strong opinions – you burn some bridges, but I got the impression he was trying. The problem may have been with the people being paid to promote this event – I don’t know. Knowing about the blog would have helped spread the word ahead of time – on the installation project.

Anyway, I liked Susan Lenz’s piece, but didn’t care for much of the others that I saw at the location on Gervais Street. She was there taking an active part in getting people to participate in her piece – it was almost like a performance piece. She was so busy that when we went to say hi, she gave Linda one of the markers to post a statement about marriage on a board that would later be added to one of the veils. This gal was working. Nice leggings, Susan. (Anyone who was there knows what I’m talking about.) She wouldn’t stay still long enough to get a photo. She was busy so we moved on.


I DO / I DON’T by Susan Lenz


People giving their input on marriage and divorce.

Anyway, maybe I’m just too simple to grasp the magnitude of the other installations, but in paraphrasing a Supreme Court judge’s attempts to explain what’s pornographic – I don’t know how to explain what is good installation art, but I know it when I see it.


Sticks and Stones by Bill Guess


You Are Here, by Kara Gunter


We received this photo, after our posting, of Eileen Blyth’s installation on Park Street.
Again, I wish we could have seen everything, but there is never time and energy to do it all.

It’s just my opinion, Day will be able to tell these artists it doesn’t mean much and it doesn’t. I don’t expect everyone to like what I’m doing or saying either – nor should they.

I do have to wonder how Day feels these days standing on the other side of the fence. He spent years nit-picking other people’s efforts in presenting art and now he’s on the front lines. I heard a lot of praise for the Vista art galleries during those public radio programs. I hope he really feels that way now. It wasn’t too long ago that he helped several artists question if Columbia really had any “real” art galleries in an article in The State. In fact, he is now getting a lot of support – for this project and a publication he is involved with these days from these same galleries.

Frankly, I’m glad Day is part of the art community now. He’s articulate, experienced, and I guess passionate about the art community. Now he’s learning what it’s like to try and present things with limited resources. No one expects anyone to hit a home run their first time at bat.

We wanted to make sure we hit One Eared Cow Glass before we ran out of gas, so our next stop was headed in the direction of the car to The Gallery at DuPRE, a gallery I have never been in before. Linda had already worked a six hour day, spent two hours in the car and we were in the middle of putting the May issue of Carolina Arts together.  We were running on borrowed time. I wish we could have gotten to the Gallery at Nonnah’s, but on this day – it was a bridge too far for us, although just across the street (four lanes of traffic). We’ll start there next time.

The Gallery at DuPRE had some nice works in it, but not many people looking. Their entrance is down an alley or you could come through the store it’s in back of, but there were not many people coming in from there either. At least while we were there. We don’t get many notices from this gallery about exhibits and if you’re not as active as other galleries, it many be hard to compete during events like this – people make choices, hardly anyone tries to visit all the stops in an art walk. There were a few other locations listed as part of Artista Vista which only seem to be mentioned during these events which would tell regulars in the visual art community that they might be a risk in visiting. People like to go places they know – not everyone wants an adventure.

When we got to One Eared Cow Glass, usually my first stop to any art walk in Columbia, we could see the fall off of the crowd on the fringes. And the cowboys, Tommy Lockart and Mark Woodham, confirmed that they were not seeing many people. They just had a wine tasting event which was part of their 20th anniversary on Apr. 21, which was wall to wall with people, so they were scratching their heads as to why so few people were coming their way this evening. They also confirmed that there were also a lot of competing art events going on in Columbia that same evening. Oh the wish for master calendars in the arts, but that’s another blog – I won’t be making.


Tommy Lockart and Mark Woodham

We looked around at all the new glass goodies and some old ones I’d love to have. We watched the demonstrations for a while – they’re always amazing. There’s a wall of history about One Eared Cow Glass in the studio which shows a lot of newspaper and magazine coverage from over the last 20 years which I found very interesting. Oh how we’ve all grown older. There’s nothing like old pictures to show that. There are some vintage issues of Carolina Arts there too. Check it out.

It was 8:30pm and we were about to head home when I remembered there was supposed to be a photography exhibit around the back at Lewis + Clark’s space at the rear of the building One Eared Cow Glass is in. So we went back to check it out.

This exhibit was, Instant Vista, featuring Polaroid images by Barry Wheeler and Heather Bauer recently taken in the Vista – of disappearing places. There’s nothing like looking at 3″ x 3″ images on outdated Polaroid film of areas of the Vista that very few will or would miss – beyond a few winos. Smart phone links or not, this wasn’t much of an art offering. Here’s the description of this event in the last press release we received: “Barry Wheeler and Heather Bauer will present a photography piece at Lewis + Clark, which will share the history of the Vista through photos.”

You can’t show the history of the Vista when you just spent two weeks taking the photos. Why would you promote such hype during a 20 year anniversary event? Again, the fault of having people write press release about events they knew little about.

At that point I was glad home was just two hours away.

Now we just saw about a four hour slice of a three-day event. For locals who maybe had the time to spend three days taking this all in – it may have been a whole other experience – if they knew about it to begin with.

I had a good time. I think Linda did too, and I can’t wait for the 21st anniversary and to see how it is promoted. Perhaps one day we’ll make it a weekend and party all night long in the Vista.

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Columbia, SC’s Spring Arts Festival – Artista Vista – Celebrates 20 Years – Apr. 28-30, 2011

Saturday, April 9th, 2011

Artista Vista, the Columbia, SC’s, Congaree Vista’s annual gallery crawl, will once again usher in spring in the Midlands from Thursday, Apr. 28 through Saturday, Apr. 30, 2011. The event features special exhibits at each of the participating galleries from 5-9pm on Thursday night and from 11am-5pm on Friday and Saturday.

In celebration of Artista Vista’s 20th anniversary this year, well-known arts writer and critic Jeffrey Day will curate a variety of installation art exhibits, original poetry readings, music performances and more in the streets of the Congaree Vista Thursday evening.

“Artista Vista’s founding grew out of the rise of installation art in the 1990s, so we wanted to embrace art outside the gallery to honor the 20th anniversary while recognizing that many of Artista Vista’s founding galleries are still thriving twenty years later,” said Day.

The three-day event will encompass all forms of art from visual to performing arts.

Thursday, Apr. 28, (5-9pm): Installation pieces by an assortment of artists will be on display at 927 to 929 Gervais Street and the fire-training tower on Park Street.

Fiber artist, Susan Lenz will unveil her public art project, Looking for a Mate. Lenz collected mate-less socks from the public during Vista Lights, last Fall, and used them to create an art quilt.

Barry Wheeler and Heather Bauer will present a photography piece at Lewis + Clark, which will share the history of the Vista through photos. Dr. Sketchy’s anti-art group will perform at Ellen Taylor Interiors and Design’s storefront window from 7:15-8:30pm.

Friday, Apr. 29 (11am-7pm): Installations will be on display at 927-929 Gervais Street.

Saturday, Apr. 30 (11am-7pm): Installations will be on display at 927-929 Gervais Street.

There will be a special performance by the USC percussion ensemble at 1pm at City Art Gallery.

From noon to 1:30pm, One-Eared Cow Glass artists will be collaborating with artists from the About Face art group at One-Eared Cow (1001 Huger Street).

USC’s art department painting studios (located in the Vista at the corner of Devine Street and Gadsden Street) will have an open house and the department’s new wood-fired kiln will be up and running from 11am to 4pm. Participants include: Kara Gunter, Susan Lenz, Amanda Ladymon, George Fenter, Billy Guess, Marius Valdes, Eileen Blyth, Barry Wheeler, and Heather Bauer.

As a special part of its 20th anniversary, Artista Vista is offering a social media contest at this year’s event with the chance to win a limited-edition, silk screened, signed 2011 Artista Vista poster and a $50 gift certificate to Motor Supply Company Bistro. All you have to do is search “Artista Vista” as the venue on Foursquare and check in as you come to each gallery during the event. Whoever becomes the mayor of Artista Vista by checking in at the most galleries the most often over the course of the three-day event wins the poster and gift certificate.

Artista Vista 2011 participating galleries include: Carol Saunders Gallery, 300 Senate, Vista Studios/Gallery 80808, The Gallery at Nonnah’s, Paul D. Sloan Interiors, if ART Gallery, Lewis + Clark, Gallery at DuPre, SC State Museum, SC Contemporary Dance Company, City Art Gallery, and One Eared Cow Glass.

Free parking will be available in the Vista’s parking decks located on Lincoln Street near Lady, Park Street near Pendleton, and Lady Street near Wayne Street. Many galleries will offer complimentary hors d’oeuvres and wine.

To learn more about the Congaree Vista, Columbia’s arts and entertainment district, visit (www.vistacolumbia.com) or follow the Vista on Twitter: (@vistaguild).

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A Trip to Columbia, SC’s First Thursday on Main – Feb. 3, 2011

Saturday, February 5th, 2011

On a cold Thursday afternoon when the weather people were calling for 80% rain, Linda and I headed to Columbia, SC, to visit One Eared Cow Glass and the First Thursday on Main event.

One Eared Cow Glass was having one of their 20th Anniversary celebration events introducing a new line of glass jewelry – just in time for Valentines’ day. That’s when Linda signed on for the trip to Columbia. I can’t say too much more about the One Eared Cow Glass anniversary events – all I can say is you need to go there and sign up to be on their e-mail list.

I’ve been wanting to go to one of the First Thursday on Main events for some time as it seemed like it was becoming quite an art event. I also wanted to see the inside of the Tapp’s Center for the Arts project and hopefully meet up with Susan Lenz, who had another window display there.

Activities on Main Street in downtown Columbia started a few years ago when Mark Plessinger of Frame of Mind started displaying area artists’ work in his shop on Main Street across from the Columbia Museum of Art. Info about those events kind of came and then fizzled. During that time other art related groups moved to Main Street and then by last fall we began to receive info about the First Thursday on Main events which seemed to be organized by the City Center Partnership, Inc., but we’re not hearing from them on a regular basis either. The only person I’m hearing from on a regular basis is Brenda Schwarz Miller who is spearheading up the effort to turn the old Tapp’s on Main department store at 1644 Main Street, at the corner of Main and Blanding, into the Tapp’s Center for the Arts.

I guess the City Center Partnership is interested more in having all parties on Main participate in trying to get folks in the Columbia area to come back to Main Street during the evening hours with the First Thursday events, but I’m more interested in the visual art groups there which now include Frame of Mind, S&S Art Supply, FreeTimes, Anastasia & Friends, Columbia Museum of Art, the Arcade Artists, and Tapp’s Center for the Arts.

From our front door at the headquarters of Shoestring Publishing in Bonneau, SC, we can be in downtown Columbia in two hours. It takes an hour to drive to Charleston, SC, so it’s not much of an effort to go to Columbia, but the two hour return trip does determine how long you can stay.

We spent almost two hours at One Eared Cow Glass, and again, all I’ll say besides I love watching the cowboys work, is that Linda and I got our 20th Anniversary T-Shirts while there, which will pay off throughout the year’s celebrations. My lips are sealed.

Once we weaved our way over to Main Street during Columbia’s rush hour traffic, we arrived at the Tapp’s building just about 5pm. We looked at a few of the outside window displays, but it didn’t take long for the damp 40 degree temps to rush us inside. No real rain yet.

As we entered a side door on Blanding, right off we see a little window display of jewelry by Susan Shrader, which stops Linda in her tracks. We’ve dealt with Shrader throughout the years as she was helping to promote a Columbia gem show. She’s one of the hundreds of people we have talked to over the years but never met.


Jewelry and fused glass works by Susan Shrader

We got to scratch her off our never met list once we set foot inside the massive Tapp’s building. Right away I was reminded of my recent visit to the Art Trail Gallery in Florence, SC, which was another massive building in a city which is now used to show off art – helping to revise a once thriving downtown shopping district.

Linda said she used to come to Tapp’s when she was visiting her older sister who attended USC – a long time ago, back when her family would travel from small Myrtle Beach to SC’s capital city.

While Linda talked with Shrader and looked at jewelry, I looked around the building’s maze of rooms on two levels. Downstairs I saw John Sharpe giving a demonstration on a pottery wheel. The building has a lot of potential for many things.

Once upstairs again, Linda and I enjoyed a bit of food and drink, I took a few photos and then we asked someone to point out Brenda Schwarz Miller. She is another person we have talked on the phone with and exchanged many e-mails with over activities and events of the Artist Round Table group in Columbia and now Tapp’s.


Listening by Sandra Carr


Inside Out by Sandra Carr


Detail of Inside Out by Sandra Carr

It is my experience that projects like this are usually the dream of one dynamic individual with the help of a few others. Tapp’s is definitely Miller’s baby. Again, I was reminded of the Art Trail Gallery in Florence where Jane Madden has made the project happen by sheer will and persistence in dealing with red tape – in both cases, business and city leaders.

Columbia has already had some experience with similar projects like Vista Studios and 701 Center for the Arts, but it has also had experience with fellows like Jack Gerstner – who first had a strangle hold on the 701 building and used it for personal gain. Miller is 180 degrees on the opposite end of Gerstner. So, I hope city leaders in Columbia soon help her make her dream and that of many artists in Columbia – come true. It will be good for Main Street in the long run.

Miller told us she has received lots of help from the building’s owner who also hopes for success of the Tapp’s project as he owns other buildings in downtown Columbia. There’s no problem in working in your own self interest while benefiting others. Too bad the SC Arts Commission doesn’t see that – unless they are dealing with folks shopping for Verner Awards through donations to the SC Arts Foundation. Otherwise we’re all greedy commercial enterprises – unworthy of a seat at the big arts table. They prefer creating a system of art welfare where arts groups become dependent on them for continued existence. How’s that working?


Burnt Offerings by Kara M. Gunter


Detail of Burnt Offerings by Kara M. Gunter


A real close detail of Burnt Offerings by Kara M. Gunter

I was hoping to run into Susan Lenz at Tapp’s but she never showed while we were there so we decided to go explore some of the other locations.

Outside we got a look at the window displays at the front of the building – which are very interesting, but hard to photograph as there was still some daylight lingering causing reflections.

One complaint or suggestion I have for First Thursday on Main organizers – whoever they are or will be is – they need a map of participating locations on Main Street available at all locations. If you’re hoping to attract people back to a downtown area they haven’t been to in years – don’t expect them to know where everything is – especially if they’re coming from out of town. I know the area pretty well, but not everything.

We went up Main toward the Capital building looking for a parking space – apparently the event was working. We saw where a few of the participating places were (except the Arcade), but no parking spaces were opening up – so we did the Charleston shuffle – driving around and around hoping someone would leave their space. On one of the rounds I spotted Susan Lenz in the window talking with folks at FreeTimes. And as luck would have it after a few trips around the block a space opened up.

Once we squeezed into the building and got close to Lenz we had managed to scratch another person off our never-met list. The place was packed with the who’s who of Columbia’s art community, very noisy, but there wasn’t really that many people there compared to the folks at the Tapp’s building. The illusion of a small packed room can throw you off, but it was a case of who was there. And as in many situations like this I saw folks I would have liked to say hey to, but never got the chance. Toni Elkins was working the room like a humming bird, and Jeffrey Day was there – not sure what that conversation would have been like. But, I did have a few friendly words with Ken May – head of the SC Arts Commission.

May called me his nemesis – which I thought was a little over-blown. He might have meant it as a compliment, but I later thought it didn’t really fit. It would be like calling Cuba America’s nemesis. A nemesis is usually an unbeatable rival or a source of harm or destruction. I don’t think I’m having that effect and his label gives me too much credit. I fit the description of a gadfly – which I was called once by an Arts Commission supporter. As May asked – “what would I write about without the Arts Commission?” I flashed back to a scene from Richard Nixon stating that we (the media) wouldn’t have him to kick around anymore. But then there was George W. Bush, Sarah Palin and Fox News. There’s always someone being unfair or doing and saying silly things. So I’m not worried about losing the Arts Commission – one way or another. It may be a case of the last man standing in both our cases.


Ding on a Dong by Diane Gilbert – shot from the hip at FreeTimes

But, all in all, I was happy to talk with Susan Lenz, a human dynamo of the art world about a few of her current projects and past issues. But before long she needed to move on to Tapp’s  and said she still had work to do that night. We made a slow circle of the room – not able to see much of the art and headed for the door. It was now raining. (It hasn’t stopped raining since.)

Back at Tapp’s Linda had heard a few folks talking about sleet and not knowing what the temps were going down to we decided to get out of Columbia while the getting was good. Besides, this is an event which is taking place every month and is just picking up steam. We can always come back.

I highly recommend the trip, especially for folks from the Lowcountry. Columbia’s visual art community is much different from that of Charleston’s. I’ve always enjoyed going to Columbia to visit Artista Vista or Vista Lights to get a different view of what artists are creating in South Carolina.

But, I think Columbia planners have a basic problem in attracting out of town visitors to come on Thursday evenings. It asks travelers to take a day off of work or make extended return travel plans. A four hour round trip is nothing for me, but others don’t see that as attractive. If these events were moved to a Friday or even a Saturday – they might attract more out of town visitors even though it would compete with other cities which present first Friday art walks, but what’s wrong with a little competition?

But, if the plan is to just attract locals to the downtown on a weekday – this just might work and before long it could include the Vista and Five Points area too. Why not have all of the city’s artists putting on a show. That’s what happened in Charleston.

As far as the Tapp’s Center for the Arts goes – here’s some of the plans. The space could supply 16 juried studios on the main level and 20 non-juried single and shared studios in the lower level. There are plans for three galleries, including a Cafe Gallery in the lower level. The facility would also include a frame shop, photography studio, print shop, wood workshop and clay studio. And, the good  part of the plan is that it is planned to be self-supporting. All they need is some start-up support to get the project going. If you would like more info about this project contact Brenda Schwarz Miller at 803/609-3479 or e-mail her at (brenda@realworldartisans.com).

After looking at the photos I took – at least those usable – I seemed to be interested in sculptural works at the First Thursday event.

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SC Arts Commission May have Dodged a Bullet – But More Cuts Are Coming for SC’s Non-Profit Arts Groups

Monday, June 28th, 2010

Yes, the SC State Legislature may have stopped Governor Mark Sanford’s veto of the SC Arts Commission’s budget cut, but more cuts will come to the SC Arts Commission’s budget as our state adjust to shortfalls in revenue that legislators just ignored (after Tue. June 29,2010, that is). It’s easy to override a veto, it makes you look like you’re a friend of the arts to some folks back home, but those legislators know the State will be doing their dirty work for them when adjustments have to be made throughout next year’s budget cycle as projected revenues fall short. It’s SC’s official dance – pass the buck and pass the responsibility.

So, what will we see from our saved Arts Commission under the leadership of Ken May – its newly named director?

Our old friend Jeffrey Day continues in his position as the unofficial press agent for the SC Arts Commission by offering heaps of praise on Ken May in an issue of Columbia, SC’s Freetimes.

According to Day, one of May’s positive attributes is that he can be seen at art events all around Columbia. I bet he can also be seen at Columbia grocery stores, movie theatres, and book stores, but what good does that do the rest of SC’s art community? Yes, the Charleston, SC, community might see him there during the Spoleto Festival, but that’s one of the things wrong with the Arts Commission – it is the poorest form of centralized government. The entire staff sits in Columbia most of the time. And, with more budget cuts – they won’t be going anywhere too soon.

As far as I know – until proven differently – May represents the same old, same old, from the Arts Commission – which is great for the sector of SC’s art community that has been living off the Arts Commission’s funding for decades. Not so good for those who have gotten nothing and not so good for new groups pulling up to the Arts Commission’s trough – only to find no room.

So what’s the future look like? Well with the prospects of a new governor on the way – one who looks like they could prove to be a Sanford style governor on steroids – not too secure.

Non-profit arts groups are going to have to deal with less public funding, the SC Arts Commission will have to deal with less funding and the list of groups who get it will get smaller and smaller. It actually could get very ugly – during the fight over who is more deserving or more connected to get that funding. In fact, I’d be concerned if I was an arts group outside of Columbia. It’s easier to cut funding of groups you don’t attend on a regular basis. Of course May doesn’t determine who gets funding and how much – the Arts Commission Board does that – at least they would if they were really leading the Arts Commission. But, we all know the staff really does.

Again, I haven’t noticed that this current crop of Board Members are less rubbery than former Board groups. It’s so easy to just go along with the staff recommendations – they know what’s best. They know the right people, the deserving – those who will praise them – they’re buddies.

The Who said we won’t get fooled again, but I think we just did.

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First Event of SC Arts Commission’s 2010 Canvas of the People Draws 20 People in Columbia, SC

Sunday, February 28th, 2010

I couldn’t be in Columbia, SC, for the first event of the SC Art Commission’s 2010 Canvas of the People on Feb. 22, at 6:45-8pm. It seems many others couldn’t either with only 12 days notice – even those living right there in Columbia. In Jeffrey Day’s blog, Carolina Culture, he reports that only 30 people showed up for this important meeting and 10 of those were with the SC Arts Commission.

I posted notice of this call for public input within hours of receiving the e-mail from the Arts Commission. In fact, I did a follow-up blog entry on Feb. 18, 2010, encouraging folks to go to these Canvas of the People events. Day posted info about the event in his blog and The State newspaper serving the greater Columbia area offered an article about the gathering on Sunday, Feb. 21, 2010 – the day before the meeting.

The fact that it took The State newspaper eleven days to offer its readers notice of this event is a whole different issue – assuming they got the same notice the rest of us got. But, then Jeffrey Day could address that issue better, since he was The State’s former arts reporter – let go last year in a staff reduction move by McClatchy Newspapers – owner of The State.

So, 20 people will have made their voices heard in the Columbia area – our state capital – for this ten-year planning process.

What are we to make of this?

Should we think that folks in the Columbia area don’t care what the Arts Commission plans – that it has no effect on them? Should we think that the art community and community in general in Columbia is happy with the way things are going in the arts? Should we think that sending an e-mail out to media outlets 12 days before an event is all you have to do to notify the public – regardless of when they will post that info – if they even do? Should we think that 20 people is enough to represent the Columbia area?

There are 16 days before the next meeting in Bluffton, SC – more days in between the 1st and 2nd meetings than the initial notice to the folks in Columbia. The folks in Spartanburg, SC, the location of the last meeting will get 51 days notice and the benefit of all the hub bub (they’ll like that reference) about the previous meetings.

Was this process fair to the folks in Columbia? I don’t think so.

When you look at the schedule of the meetings you see that most are less than a week apart – except for the first meeting – 16 days apart from the second. Was the Arts Commission in a rush to get the Columbia meeting over for some reason?

Here’s the schedule again:
Monday, Feb. 22 – Columbia Museum of Art, Columbia
Thursday, March 11 – Technical College of the Lowcountry, Beaufort area (Bluffton, SC)
Tuesday, March 16 – Governor’s School for the Arts, Greenville
Monday, March 22 – Black Creek Arts Center, Hartsville
Thursday, March 25 – Aiken Center for the Arts, Aiken
Monday, March 29 – North Charleston City Hall, North Charleston
Thursday, April 8 – Chapman Cultural Center, Spartanburg
For more information about exact locations visit this link (www.SouthCarolinaArts.com/canvas2010).

What’s the hurry? This is a plan for the next ten years. Let’s don’t rush through this process – leaving most of the people behind – only to hear about the process – after the fact.

I don’t know about the folks in Columbia, but I would be asking for a do-over if I was from there. Sure, they can go to any of the other meetings – all are welcome, but that puts the burden back on the public.

OK – let’s look at the darker side of things. Maybe 20 people is all that would show up anyway – even after a do-over. Maybe even less would show up a second time. Maybe less people are going to show up at the other meetings. Perhaps at the end of the process a total of 150 people show up for these meetings. What then?

The reality is, the SC Arts Commission will say that the people have spoken and they will write up their plan – based on what they heard? based on what they thought they heard? based on what they wanted to hear? based on what they wanted to do all along. What’s the difference?

What I hoped and hope people will do is show up to these events and tell them they have the whole process wrong. This is no way to plan for the future – not this fast and not without proper notice to the public.

Think about how much publicity – over a billion dollars worth – is being spent to let people know the US Census is coming. We’ll be so sick of hearing about it before it’s over – but it is so important to each state, yet a lot of people ignore it and many hide from it. In some ways you just can’t win when it comes to the public’s input, but you can make a better effort for people to know about it and see why it counts.

This is what Ken May, the acting executive director of the SC Arts Commission had to say in that article offered in The State the day before the meeting in Columbia. “While the economy has certainly presented challenges, the arts in South Carolina are still strong, and they still have a lot of community support,” May said. “The need for creative expression and aesthetic experience is a basic part of human behavior.”

In the article it also offered, “He pointed to a 2009 poll by the USC Institute for Public Service and Policy Research showing that 67 percent of S.C. adults participated in the arts in some way during the past year. The poll revealed that, on average, South Carolina residents participate in the arts 14 times a year.”

So, if participation is so high in South Carolina – why did only 20 people show up for the Arts Commission’s important planning meeting? Just twice as many people as staff members there.

I don’t believe or put much stock in such polls about the arts, but every time they have to stand next to reality – they look more fantasy and fiction – than research. They always say what the arts groups asking for the poll want. I hope the folks at USC were not counting football games as an art event.

So what percentage do you think 20 people is to the greater Columbia area art community? Not much.

Of course the explanation for such a low turnout might be that this is not the first Canvas of the People the art community in SC has been through and showing up didn’t seem to matter much to those who have participated before. The results of the process just didn’t justify a second or third trip to participate. It could be the old fool me once – fool me twice effect. And, it’s the same people doing the fooling too.

We need better ideas, better leadership, and a different group of folks calling the shots in South Carolina. But there doesn’t seem to be much chance of getting them any time soon.

P.S. – If you want to read what Jeffrey Day had to say about the Canvas event in Columbia, you better do it fast. He has announced his last posting on Carolina Culture as of Feb. 28. His comments about the Canvas process can be found in his Feb. 23 posting. His dealings with Carolina Culture may be finished, but I’m sure it’s not the last we’ve heard from Day.

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McClatchy Newspapers Can’t Silence Jeffrey Day

Wednesday, April 15th, 2009

A few weeks ago I told you about the loss of arts coverage in SC when The State newspaper in Columbia, SC, a McClatchy newspaper, eliminated Jeffrey Day’s job, long time art critic and arts writer for The State. We’ve already seen the results of that move when Susie Surkamer, head of the SC Arts Commission announced her retirement, effective on May 2, 2009, and The State offered a lackluster article about that announcement – with no comment – because they don’t know what to say.

Well, Day has started his own blog today about the Columbia arts scene and beyond at Carolina Culture. We’ll have to wait and see how this blog develops, but I hope Day takes advantage of the freedom of writing without the constraints of newspaper editors.

Now for all you out there that have been missing your Jeffrey Day fix – you have a new home to get it, and for all you who didn’t exactly agree with Day’s views – you too have a place to get your fix. Check it out.

I wish Day good luck in this new adventure and am glad to see more coverage of the arts in SC – even if it is only in cyberspace.

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Another Blow to the Coverage of the Visual Arts in the Carolinas

Tuesday, March 17th, 2009

Long before McClatchy newspapers bought out Knight Ridder’s newspapers in the Carolinas they operated the News & Observer in Raleigh, NC. Folks in the visual art community there were not happy with the coverage they were getting. That should have been our first warning of what was to come from McClatchy – and I said as much when it happened.

Top management at McClatchy must think now that top management at Knight Ridder – knew something they didn’t. Newspapers all over the country are in financial trouble, but McClatchy seems to be in free-fall. It seems arts coverage is falling off faster than most other sections of their newspapers. First, they did away with the Arts Sections. The arts are now included in either Life Styles or Entertainment Sections.

Within the last year, at the Charlotte Observer, (Charlotte, NC) Richard Maschal, long-time visual arts writer/critic was said to have retired, but I’m not sure that was the real story. But, the arts coverage there seems to have also retired. The non-profits might still get coverage, but what about the quality of that coverage and rest of the visual art community? A recent article about an exhibit at the Mint Museum in Charlotte in the Observer was an AP story – short, with no texture. That’s a growing trend. That was the first blow.

Not too long ago, the Post & Courier in Charleston, SC, (not a McClatchy paper) laid off some staff members including Dottie Ashley, long-time arts writer, who once worked at The State in Columbia, SC. But, two weeks later she was back writing her column as a freelance writer. That was the second blow. Not that she was let go, but that they brought her back.

Last week, during another round of cuts of over 100 staff members around the McClatchy chain, The State’s arts writer Jeffrey Day was laid off. That’s the third blow.

Now, loyal readers of my commentary in Carolina Arts and on this blog know that Jeffrey Day and I didn’t see eye to eye on a lot of things in the visual arts community, but I don’t like to see anyone lose their job and I don’t like the loss of arts coverage. (Well, maybe I’d like to see some people lose their jobs – you know who and at what State agency.) Plus, I’m more able to say what I want and Day wasn’t as free to express his opinions as often as some might think – so we may have agreed on more things than it would seem. Maybe – maybe not, but there just isn’t enough people in print, or any media, offering arts criticism – something the art community needs more of – not less.

Before the McClatchy takeover of The State, Day used to write articles about exhibits taking place in all over South Carolina and even in Charlotte, NC, and Augusta, GA. But, as McClatchy tightened the reins – Day’s ability to reach out of the Columbia shrunk – as did overall arts coverage in South Carolina.

And, this brings me around to my favorite punchin’ bag – the SC Arts Commission. They say it’s one of their long-term goals – to build up arts coverage and art criticism in South Carolina, but they haven’t done one thing about it. They stopped producing their own publication years ago.

Do they have a program which pays qualified writers and art critics to review exhibits in this state that could be sent to various media for publication? No! Do they even have a resource list of such people? No! Making it a goal – as the cable guy says – don’t, get ‘er done. But, then again, they don’t do a lot about their stated goals – they just like making them. They’re good at that.

Hey, if anything, the SC Arts Commission just lost one of their friends – one of their protectors. I’m sure they’re thinking hard about the loss of Jeffrey Day and wondering what they can do about it. He’s done so much work for them in the past – perhaps now they can give him a real job there.

Eye to eye or not – I hope Day finds another opportunity, but losing a job is something a lot of us are faced with during these times. I could lose mine. But, I’m the kind of guy who if I lose one job, I just make another one. I’ve done it three times now. But, I’m happy with what I’m doing now.

In my upcoming editorial in the April ’09 issue of Carolina Arts I suggest that people in the Carolinas who subscribe to McClatchy newspapers, and there are a lot of them here, send a message by dropping their subscriptions – give them blow for blow, but we need to do more. We need to let them know that arts coverage is more important to them than they think it is now.

I’m not exactly sure how we do that, since I don’t think these are the smartest people to begin with. Their business model over the last couple of decades is to turn their newspapers into something the under 30 would flock to – because that’s what they say their advertisers want. What a load. People under 30 don’t read newspapers. They read text messages on their phones, they read headlines and pop up ads on the internet. The majority of the population that reads newspaper on a regular basis is way over 30 and they don’t feel served by newspapers. I know I don’t. Of course some would say a lot of the problem is the tanking economy, but the problem newspapers are having started long before last September when the market and banks crashed.

And, as I mentioned above, with less writing and reporting staff, newspapers are grabbing articles from AP and other newspapers to fill space. I just love the way my Post & Courier now carries articles about art events taking place in other cities and even other states – to fill space that could of been about the local art community. Why not fill the spaces in our local paper with local stories?

Hey Tom – are you forgetting that these people are your competition? Why are you being a cheerleader for these other papers? Isn’t this good for you?

Well, yes and no. I never claimed to be able to do it all, nor could Linda and I do it all or want to. We have our niche and the arts community is too big – even if all the media gave it coverage all the time. Yes we are in competition for advertising – which in most cases we get more than they do from the visual art community, but they don’t do what we do and we don’t do what they can, beside we’re talking about daily newspapers. Get real!

I wish arts coverage was more than just a weekend section thing or Sunday thing. It should be an everyday thing. There is a lot going on out there that never gets any press. At The State alone – there could be a lot less coverage of USC’s football team and coach. And, I love football, but come on – it’s not like this team is ever a contender – even in its own conference. But I bet you no one is thinking of cutting any sports writers at The State.

What kind of coverage will the future bring? As things are going – a lot less. And, the internet is still a ways from being a complete substitute for most other media. Not really far off, but not totally there yet.

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SC Arts Commission Budget Cuts – Have You Heard?

Wednesday, November 19th, 2008

On Oct. 14, 2008, I posted comments wondering how the SC Arts Commission would make cuts to its budget as the State of SC was facing an almost half a billion dollar shortfall. At that time people were thinking 10% cuts were in line. In my comments, I doubted that the Commission would take much of the brunt of the cuts on themselves and made suggestions where some cuts could be made. But, I expected the real cuts to come in services to the arts and the public.

By Oct. 22, 2008, Jeffrey Day in The State newspaper in Columbia, SC, our capital city, offered an article where he used the 10% figure and offered quotes from a commission staff member that this figure might just represent the start of cuts. There wasn’t much offered in the article about any cuts the Arts Commission would make on itself.

Day often runs blocking plays for the Arts Commission so I expected as much from his article. Let’s see if he has a follow-up story on the real cuts.

Well, now I’ve heard from a source that those individuals and groups who received grants from the Arts Commission had their funds cut by 25% – 14.2% is an immediate cut and the other half will be held by the Commission – in case of further cuts down the road. If you don’t know – grantees never get all the money up front when they receive funding from the Arts Commission – so the Arts Commission always has control of the money.

This is kind of like a temporary tax issued to raise funds for a project and once the project is finished the tax is dropped, but the tax never seems to get dropped. The house never loses – they’re holding all the cards.

This same source said that the Commission for its part would be cutting its administrative budget 14.2% through a number of measures, including 4-day furloughs by all of their employees, reduction in leased vehicles, and staff reduction through attrition. They’re also going to suspend the Verner Awards for this year – one of my recommendations. More about that later.

I don’t like making comments on third party info – although I appreciate the heads up. I like to comment on public record – directly offered or in newspaper reports. So I had to wait to see if this info would become public – which isn’t always the case when it comes to the SC Arts Commission. Finally the information about the cuts was posted on the Arts Commission’s website. You can read the full details here (http://www.southcarolinaarts.com/about/fy09budgetcuts.shtml).

So let’s take a look at the cuts the Commission is making to itself.

Do you feel their pain? Four days off work without pay, but you still have your job and all the benefits that come with it. Let’s see that’s less than one week out of 52. That’s a 2% cut in salary – what a sacrifice. The length of the furloughs is not mentioned in the Arts Commission’s press release – probably for the calculation I just made, but I’ll go with my source on this one.

The Commission will reduce its leased vehicles from three to one. This means the staff will be sitting in Columbia most of the time – a plus for Columbia’s art community – not so good for the rest of the art community in SC. Of course they could drive their own cars to meet with people in the hinterlands, but we’ll see about that one. They say they are reducing most travel plans and will hold all commission meetings in Columbia. Oh no – no Commission board meeting in Charleston during the Spoleto Festival. Now there’s some real pain. So, the results here are further costs for others who have to deal with the Commission by traveling to Columbia.

They will outright cancel planned publications, other printing and mailings – meaning even less communications with the art community and public. This has to be seen as a benefit of the call for budget cuts by the Arts Commission, but didn’t their leader just win a national award from her peers for her communicating skills? Timing is everything.

And, if someone leaves their job – they won’t rehire to fill the position, but if no one leaves, they don’t do anything. Some temporary staff positions will be reduced. Who knows who they are – most people don’t know who all works for the Arts Commission to begin with. What do they all do? Remember, SC has one of the largest arts agency staffs in the region and nation.

The Commission will suspend State Art Collection purchases. That’s a big cut – I haven’t heard of any additions to the collection in years. And no Verner Awards this year! Another big sacrifice for the Commission board members.

Wait a minute – isn’t the funding for the Art Collection and the Verner Awards functions of the SC Arts Foundation – a totally separate group from the Arts Commission? What would cuts to the State agency have to do with those programs? Or are they really one in the same? What gives here? Did they fall for my little trap – trying to make people mad at me for recommending this cut, and by making it so – expose that there is no difference between the two. Why would they have to make this cut? Is the cost of the award statues and a press release posted on their website that much? Or is this a way to make the artists feel the Arts Commission’s pain. Announce the awards and give them the statue – without your party. Is the award just a product of the party?

In other words – the Arts Commission won’t be making much of a sacrifice itself, while all the people they serve will take a 25% cut – 14.2 right away and more to come if needed. I’m betting it will be needed to protect the Arts Commission from further sacrifices.

What they are doing is settling into their offices in Columbia and waiting for retirement – services be dammed.

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What is it About 701 Whaley Street in Columbia, SC

Saturday, August 2nd, 2008

Take the same location, some of the same supporters, the shield of being a non-profit, and what do you get? Another close-knit group of well connected people doing something that doesn’t seem to be available to others – mixing and matching the commercial sector and the non-profit sectors together.

Let’s take the old group:
701 Whaley Street (non-profit project)
Jack Gerstner – charlatan
BlueCross BlueShield – fat cats with money to give
SC Arts Commission – state arts agency
Jeffrey Day – arts writer for The State
City of Columbia (Mayor)

Here’s the new group:
701 Whaley Street (commercial project)
Wim Roefs – commercial gallery owner & freelance curator
BlueCross BlueShield – fat cats with money to give
SC Arts Commission – state arts agency
Jeffrey Day – arts writer for The State
plus people formerly connected with Columbia’s City Council and board of the Columbia Museum of Art

The building at 701 Whaley Street has vastly improved now in the hands of commercial developers.

Jack Gerstner is out of the picture I hope – still dealing with the IRS, I hope when he’s not being described as an arts angel by a local Columbia magazine.

Wim Roefs replaces Gerstner as the third of the mighty art triangle in Columbia. Roefs as the organizer, Jeffrey Day as the promotional agent, and the SC Arts Commission for official sanction and funding.

BlueCross BlueShield seems to be always waiting in the wings with funding. Have your rates gone up lately?

Gerstner seemed to have had the ear of Columbia’s Mayor until things got out of hand and the new group has the support of those well connected to Columbia’s City Council and the Columbia Museum of Art.

What more do you need to be successful? Maybe they could get the Pope’s blessings.

What burns me is that the SC Arts Commission is always telling most of the people in the commercial side of the arts that there is no room at the inn for them when it comes to funding and assistance – but this project – this new Arts Center – this new non-profit – will do nothing but benefit commercial developers and a commercial gallery owner – even with a one-year promise to not promote the artists he represents.

And, when you’ve got the support and blessings of The State newspaper – who is going to cry foul? People in Columbia have read negative things about themselves in print when they oppose the dealings of the powerful and well connected – under the protection of the local newspaper.

This is another example of a project that gets overwhelming support – because of who is behind it – while others are rebuffed on technicalities. And the current track record is mixed at best. Just take the Columbia Festival of the Arts – under the leadership of Marvin Chernoff and many of the same players; or a collaboration between the Columbia City Ballet and Jonathan Green (another Chernoff project) or the first Gallery 701 project – all highly praised and supported projects – all financial disasters.

Don’t get me wrong. This new 701 Center for Contemporary Art will probably be a good thing for the overall visual art community in Columbia and for South Carolina – at least let’s hope it will, but wouldn’t it be nice if the playing field was equal so that anyone could come with such a proposal and get the same support – or even half the support – this project is getting.

But isn’t it amazing how this new project has already received $45,000 from city accommodations and hospitality taxes, from a group that just formed – with no record of accomplishments as a group – except who they can get behind them.

That’s what’s wrong with the way the arts are supported and funded in South Carolina. It’s not what you can do – it’s who you know.

And, those people – when things fall apart – they seem to disappear into the gray areas of responsibility where they didn’t know what was going on or better yet – they didn’t know they were still being listed as a supporter. It’s one of the wonderful things about being involved with a non-profit in South Carolina – you can take all the credit for the good and have no responsibility for the bad.

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SC State Museum Exhibit Revisited

Friday, June 6th, 2008

There were some other issues I wanted to touch on about the 20th Anniversary Juried Art Exhibition taking place at the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia, SC. The Triennial vs. Juried Show installment was long enough without going into some other subjects. This piece will be much shorter, and I hope to write a review soon. Yes, my own personal review. I also hope others will offer their reviews of this show which can be included here. (Send them by e-mail to info@carolinaarts.com – mention blog in the subject line.)

The exhibition will be on view through Sept. 7, 2008 – so there is still time for those who are interested in making an effort to go see a group of diverse works by 116 SC artists. Now, you must remember that this was a juried show – so in no way should it be compared to or thought of as the “best of the best” or a major survey of SC visual art. Although 500 artists submitted 1000 works for two jurors to look at – this show is in no way a result of a major effort to show works spanning the diverse creative product of SC’s artists or the best examples of the variety of media being used by SC’s artists. It’s a selection from a pool of 1000 works by 500 artists – chosen by two jurors. Which brings up one of the first problems with this show – notice of opportunity.

The opportunity to enter this show was not widely known by a lot of SC’s visual artists – until it was too late to enter. Yet almost twice as many artists responded to this opportunity than any of the previous five Triennial exhibitions sponsored by the SC Arts Commission. It’s really hard to blame the organizers at the State Museum for this – it’s a statewide problem in the arts and a problem all over. I saw the call for entry in a publication the State Museum puts out for membership. I did not receive a press release from the Museum directly to place in our resource database on our website. And, as the person at Carolina Arts who receives these call for entry notices or info about other opportunities for visual artists in the Carolinas I can tell you that this is a big problem – all over the board.

I have received call for entry notices within ten days of the deadline to enter a juried show. Many more give less than a month’s notice and it’s a rare moment when artists are given 90 days notice. This just isn’t enough time for artists to respond. Now at the same time I think that artists could also do a better job of being prepared for “annual” juried shows or opportunities which take place in the same exhibit space, during the same time of year – every year. But getting the word out to the artists is a big challenge for the people presenting these opportunities.

For one thing there is no statewide database resource of contacts (e-mail or mailing address) for visual artists, at least in SC and I doubt there is one in NC either. Young artists are constantly on the move. Older artists retire or in some cases pass away. The SC State Museum used the SC Art Commission’s list for visual artists – which is a list, but not an accurate or updated list. For one thing, they never mail anything first class so they can purge names of addresses the Post Office returns because they could not be delivered. So the list is full of old address and has people on it that have left the state or left this world as we know it.

There also doesn’t seem to be a list of visual art organizations that could be sent these notices of opportunity to spread to their membership. If there is, it’s not being used as some also never heard of this juried show – until it was too late.

Since we didn’t receive a press release, I can only assume that other publications were not sent a notice. After all, we are the only monthly visual arts publication in North and South Carolina. And, I’m not sure this is info many other weekly or daily publications would find necessary to publish.

And, I’ll rule out the question that some people wondered, “Did the organizers really want all artists to enter?” I’d say by looking at the work included in the final exhibition – there was no effort to exclude any kind of art from being entered in this show – as is the case with some organizations. Some of these messages are sent subliminally by past experiences, while others are down right offensive like (no photography) (sculptures must be under 50 pounds and the artist must supply their own stand) or (no student work). I have seen some people make a Herculean effort to tap into all resources, but many times a full blown effort is not made.

Is this the problem of the organizers or the lack of a useful network? It’s hard to say, but from the word on the street – a lot of people just didn’t hear about this opportunity until it was too late.

So what if more people had entered? Well according to one SC art critic – it might have driven the jurors blind or stark raving mad. But then again how do some organizations handle national juried exhibitions or exhibit opportunities? They must get thousands of entries.

The second major problem was that artists entering the show had to deliver their entries to the SC State Museum in Columbia. Although Columbia is centrally located in the state – it’s hard to believe that in the year 2008 – this show couldn’t have been juried by slide or digital images. I hate shows that require artists to take their work to the exhibit location, wait for the show to be selected, and then – if you don’t make the cut – go back and pick your work up and take it back home. Some don’t even jury works on the same day it has to be delivered – causing two trips. It’s as if the organizers of these shows don’t want other artists (from far away) to enter – just the ones close by or willing to make the trek.

Some say you really can’t judge artwork by looking at slides or digital images – especially 3-D works. Fine – jury by slides or digital images – ask those people selected to bring their works in, and if they don’t meet the juror’s standards or match what was seen in the first selection process – tell them to take it home. And, tell them to make better images next time. But don’t make everyone deliver their works in person. There are several works in this show that required a truck for delivery. One work which made the show was 7 ft. x 9 ft. That’s stupid to have to make arrangements to deliver that kind of work – just to be juried.

Some say many wouldn’t be able to deliver decent slides or digital images of their works. I say – that’s part of being an artist today – it’s 2008. If this is a major problem – and I know it is – like I’ve said several times before. This is exactly a problem the SC Arts Commission should be solving for these poor artists. They should be providing a service, directly, or through their partner arts organizations, to copy artworks at least twice a year for our state’s media challenged artists.

Imagine how much gas was burned up by 500 artists delivering their work for this show – just to be juried. This is the age of technology – we have to start using it and be more concerned about the impact this practice has on the environment. That gas needs to be conserved so people can go view the exhibit.

These two issues were an obstacle for many of SC’s visual artists – first not knowing about the opportunity and second, not making the effort or being able to deliver their works to the museum to be juried, but what’s amazing is that with these two hurdles – 500 artists did. That says something – something that seems to be shooting over many people’s heads in this state. South Carolina’s visual artists want more opportunities to exhibit in the state’s better exhibitions spaces – even if it’s a juried exhibit – with “no depth, no context, no concept…” as Jeffrey Day of The State newspaper said of this exhibition.

More on this subject zooming over people heads in another installment. And, hopefully a review and some images from this show.

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