Asheville at SECCA

A recent movement in art-making is fusing seemingly disparate elements of history painting and collage with graffiti, video gaming, folk, anime, advertising and film. ~Steven Matijcio

The Southeastern Center for Contemporary Art presents
North Carolina New Contemporary

A vivid cross-section of cultural expression from across the state.

Curator Steven Matijcio has selected four Asheville artists to be included in this show:
Sean Jinx Pace
Taiyo La Paix
Gabriel Shaffer
Brian Mashburn

Opening Friday, Oct. 8, 2010, 7 pm - 10 pm

The show will run 22 weeks until March 13th

The South East Center for Contemporary Arts is located at
750 Marguerite Drive, Winston-Salem, NC 27106

www.secca.org for more information

DRAW: Sean Pace at Satellite Gallery

Sean "Jinx" Pace's point of view as an artist couldn't be clearer in his latest solo exhibition, DRAW, on view until September 26 at Satellite Gallery. Through his work Pace exhibits humor, social commentary, and creative zeal.

Combining mechanics and found objects Pace "repurposes" items into new things with very specific functions. Figurative elements, like arms or legs, are often added to the sculptures and there is an unrefined quality to the work that I find appealing. I like that they aren't glossy, perfected specimens -- sometimes they can be faulty in their operation, reflecting the imperfect quality of being human.

Below are some images from the show but they hardly represent the lively imagination that Pace displays. I recommend seeing and experiencing the kinetic aspects of this exhibit in person.

Write Makes Right

D-Raw Power

Develop This Mother Fucker

Scribbler ( I love that bucket of interchangeable colored pencils)

Spitball Painting Machine (Complete with a dispenser for napkins and straws.)

Wikipedia fails to mention visual arts of Asheville

Dustin Spagnola as photographed by Zen Sutherland.

Everyone always talks about what an arts Mecca Asheville is, but today when I consulted the Wikipedia on Asheville there was not one single mention of a visual art scene or even a craft scene going on here. According to Wiki, Asheville has no galleries or art museums though it does have a hot busking scene, weekly drum circle and The Smashing Pumpkins played at the Orange Peel in 2007. Even the performing arts were given a nod, (but just barely.)

The commercial tourist sites tell a different story, and rightfully so since the arts attract so many visitors to the area: Exploreasheville.com gives links to all the hot and happening art spots downtown, the monthly gallery walks, the festivals and The River Arts District. The homepage of the Asheville Chamber of Commerce reads: "Come for the abundant natural beauty, friendly atmosphere, wealth of year-round outdoor activities, rich history, and lively local arts and music scene etc.."

The visual arts are commonly overlooked for music events, but I'm still really surprised that whoever wrote the Wiki entry failed to mention any visual art or craft scene in Asheville. Perhaps there weren’t any city records of grants or awards or state funded studios or contributions to non-profit visual art organizations to draw statistics from...? One can only guess.

In any case, yesterday visual artists made their presence known by setting up their easels around downtown for a day of painting and networking. As artists we tend to hole up in our caves to produce our work and there can be a sense of isolation. Yesterday's event affirmed our shared experience and really was a celebration of the visual arts.

The City of 1,000 Easels is the first public project from Graham Hackett, newly appointed program director at The Asheville Area Arts Council. I’m hoping this is an indication of better things to come from the AAAC and a louder voice for the visual arts community of Asheville.

Here's some great photos by Zen Sutherland of the event: http://www.flickr.com/photos/zen/sets/72157624945187142/show/

Ashvegas: Asheville transformed into city of 1,000 easels

ursulagullow.blogspot.com to see the painting I made during the event