August, 2012 - Art World News

Transcription

August, 2012 - Art World News
JUL12-cover/s_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:14 AM Page 1
Art World News
A UGUST 20 12
THE INDEPENDENT NEWS SOURCE
PROTECTING THE LOOK
AND FEEL OF
ARTWORKS — MAYBE
Joshua Kaufman, a leading attorney in art, copyright and licensing law
addresses the perennial
issue: Can you protect the
“look and feel” of an artwork or series of artworks?
His in-depth article on this
very complicated area of
law begins on page 44.
BURNES MERGES WITH
NIELSEN BAINBRIDGE
Burnes, designer and
marketer of photo frames
and home décor (formerly
Burnes of Boston), has
merged with Nielsen
Bainbridge, producer of
custom and archival picture
framing products. This follows Nielsen Bainbridge’s
acquisition in 2011 of Pinnacle Frames & Accents,
supplier of photo frames
and albums. Page 20.
LEROY NEIMAN:
TRIBUTE TO THE LEGEND
LeRoy Neiman, the
Chronicler of the American
Good Life, passed away on
June 20. A tribute to the
legend, his impact on the
limited edition print market,
and details of his new
autobiography All Told
begins on page 16.
JENNIFER VRANES
ARTIST VITAE
Jennifer Vranes, who paints
vibrant canvases of Aspen
forests and European landscapes using her trademarked technique Textures
of LifeTM, talks about her life
and work. Turn to page 36.
Jack Rutberg Fine Arts, Los Angeles–Claire Falkenstein sculpture.
IS YOUR GLASS HALF
FULL FOR FALL SEASON?
Activity, positivity, and hard work is the name of the game for
fall. Already galleries are deep into the planning stages of
shows, special events, and sales initiatives during what is traditionally a strong selling season. No doubt the lead up to the
Presidential Election is causing uncertainty among consumers,
as it usually does. But never- vidual, tailored to the specific
theless, from interviews with gallery, its clientele, and pogallery owners across the tential customers. “There is
country, it is clear that trem- no given as far as I am conendous energy is being in- cerned or my gallery,” says
fused into plans going into the Philip Janes, founder of Arts
fall and Holiday season. And Exclusive, Simsbury, CT, in
continued on page 20
yet the approach is very indi-
QUOTE OF THE MONTH:
“Every time we hear Millennials,
Gen Y, or Echo Boomers, we
should perk up. Listen. Take
notes. It’s not just a matter of
demographics. That’s salvation
talking.” George Leeson, page 40.
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE
DEPARTMENTS
ARTISTS & PUBLISHERS
Page 10
OBITUARY
Page 16
FRAMING
Page 30
CALENDAR
Page 35
ARTIST VITAE
Page 36
BUSINESS INSIDER
Page 40
WHAT’S HOT IN
OPEN EDITIONS
Page 42
LEGAL
Page 44
VOLUME XVII
ISSUE 7
Obituary:
Leroy Neiman
Art Greenwich
Nets VIP Audience
Chelsea Frames
Expands
Courtney Hood of American
Fine Art Editions Inc. pays
tribute to the decades-long
career of the late LeRoy
Neiman who passed away at
the age of 91 in June.
A packed crowd of 1,100 VIP
collectors and guests attended the opening of Art
Greenwich with 25 contemporary galleries aboard the
228-foot mega yacht SeaFair.
Jaclyn Acker, president of
Chelsea Frames, New York
City, in business 29 years,
discusses the many facets of
the business thats contribute
to its continued growth.
Page 16
Page 24
Page 30
Brighter Days
May Be Just Ahead
What’s Hot in
Open Editions
Protecting the Look
And Feel of Artworks
Business Insider George Leeson discusses the importance
of staying up-to-date on future
generations of collectors and
knowing their demographics
and spending propensities.
In this month’s What’s Hot in
Open Editions, we feature a
variety of the best selling
open edition images, as well
as the contact information
from leading publishers.
Legal art expert Joshua Kaufman talks about the intricacies of copyright infringement, and how to protect
the artwork and creativity
behind it.
Page 40
Page 42
Page 44
OPEN EDITIONS
Page 49
NEW ART
Page 51
GALLERY LIGHTS
Page 52
CLASSIFIEDS
Page 53
ADVERTISER INDEX
Page 54
Artwork featured
is “ Ben and the
Fat Cat Banksters”
by Billy Walsh, available
from Heckle Sketch.
Go to page 10.
ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 7
AUG12-Opinion page_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:11 AM Page 1
IN OUR OPINION
LIVING IN THE
FIRST PERSON
he summer pace of the
art and frame industry
often reveals the weak
from the strong. Each year it
amazes me how the sales gap
between retailers becomes so
pronounced. Businesses
seem to be faring rather well
or not at all. No middle ground,
either you’re selling or not.
T
When art and framing business owners detail the reasons for their success, or
lack thereof, an interesting
pattern becomes visible as
they recollect the factors that
attributed to their results.
Those on the profitable side
of the ledger relate their stories with beginnings such as
“ I did this...” or “we decided
to...” and “I saw an opportunity to...” Those on the other
end of the spectrum seemingly choose not to implicate
themselves into their struggles citing “the tough economy,” “hot weather” “the
election” as the undermining
reason for their lack of sales.
The reality is that failure,
like success, happens in the
first person and each occasion is a specific, personal experience that is attributable.
Struggling gallery and frameshop owners are not mere
victims of circumstance but
rather have a determining role
in their fortunes. Successful,
fast moving business people
hold their successes and failures in equal regard. Certainly they are motivated by
what goes according to plan
but similarly they personalize
their challenges. They discern
from what doesn’t go well,
the elements that will spawn
their next success.
Perhaps the moral of the
story to ponder as summer
wanes is the degree of personal conviction one should
place into one’s business. As
retailing has always been an
“all or nothing” contest, it
seems that business owners
should meet their challenges
on a similar basis.
John Haffey
Publisher
A RT W ORLD N EWS
Editor in Chief
Managing Editor
Production Manager
Editor at Large
Columnists
Sarah Seamark
sseamark@optonline.net
Koleen Kaffan
kkaffan@optonline.net
Sue Bonaventura
awnimage@optonline.net
Jo Yanow-Schwartz
Todd Bingham
mo@tbfa.com
Barney Davey
barney@barneydavey.com
Joshua Kaufman
JJKaufman@Venable.com
Co ntributing Writers
Publisher
Associate Publisher
Information Technologist
Greg Perkins
Cristi Smith
John Haffey
jwhaffey@aol.com
Brooks Male
jbmale@aol.com
Joe Gardella
Editorial Advisory Board
Phillip Gevik, Gallery Phillip, Don Mills, Ontario, Canada
Steven Hartman, The Contessa Gallery, Cleveland, OH
Philip M. Janes, Arts Exclusive Inc., Simsbury, CT
Heidi Leigh, Animazing Gallery, SoHo, NY
Ruth-Ann Thorn, Exclusive Collections Gallery, San Diego, CA
ADVERTISING SALES INFORMATION
Eastern U.S. & International
Midwest & West Coast
John Haffey, Publisher
Phone (203) 854-8566
Fax (203) 854-8569
jwhaffey@aol.com
Brooks Male, Associate Publisher
Phone (847) 877-4568
Fax (203) 854-8569
jbmale@aol.com
Art World News (Volume XVII, Number 7) ISSN 1525 1772 is published 10 times a year by
Wellspring Communications, Inc.: 143 Rowayton Avenue, Rowayton, CT 06853.
Phone (203) 854-8566 • Fax (203) 854-8569; To order additional copies or back issues
e-mail: jbmale@aol.com or fax to (847) 776-8542. Please indicate which month and year you
are requesting. Single copy price is $10.00.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or
by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photography, recording, or any information
storage and retrieval system, without permission, in writing, from the publisher.
PAGE 8
ART WORLD NEWS
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AUG12-A&P-pg1_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:08 AM Page 1
ARTISTS & PUBLISHERS
Kudos for DE Fine Art’s Javier Mulio
Four New America’s Cup Images
A milestone
of 15 years
in the American market
for Spanish
artist Javier
Mulio, represented by
DE Fine Art
of Atlanta,
was celebrated from Javier Mulio’s ”It’s a Celebration of the
May to July Earth,” oil on board, 11.8 by 7.9 inches.
in galleries
carrying his realistic still life work. “The Javier Celebration
Days were our way of congratulating the artist for his career and presenting his works to new and old collectors,”
says DE Fine Art President, Robert Harris. For more
information on the artist’s oil on board paintings, retailing
for $5,500–$7,500, visit the company’s website located
at: www.de-fineart.com, or telephone (770) 300-9733.
Editions Limited in
Emeryville, CA, has released four new images as part of the
34th America’s Cup
World Series collection
of which the company
was recently awarded
the official license as
the
exclusive
art
provider. Three of the
four new images are
by the official America’s Cup photographer
Gilles Martin-Raget.
The fourth image is
from
photographer
Cory Silken. The four
images are from a se- “AC America SF” by Gilles Martinries of races from Raget measures 25 by 36 inches.
2011-2012 using the
vintage boats and representing the first race in 1851, and
the race of 1937. Giclées on stretched gallery wrap canvas
retail for $160 to $189 and fine art posters retail for
$45. Call (800) 228-0928 or visit: www.editionslimited.com.
Walsh’s Political Art at Atlas Summit
The political
and
economic artwork of self
publishing
artist Billy
Walsh that
is filled with
symbolism
and
messaging, was
displayed at
the Washington, DC, “Ben and the Fat Cat Banksters” by Billy
Atlas Sum- Walsh, available as a poster, print, or canvas
mit.
The wrap in several sizes.
mission of
the Atlas Society is to present the empowering principles
of Objectivism, celebrating the power of the individual, to a
global audience. Published by Heckle Sketch, Boston,
Walsh’s “Ben and the Fat Cat Banksters” is available in various media and sizes retailing from $20 to $120. Visit the
Heckle Sketch website located at: www.hecklesketch.com
for further information, or telephone (949) 294-9122.
PAGE 10
Estivalet Grows Gallery Network
Elisabeth
Estivalet, who
represents
her own work
through Estivalet Art based
in the region
of Provence in
the South of
France, is building her dealer
network in the
U.S. She is “Rouge Orangé et le Vert” by Elisabeth
looking at par- Estivalet, an oil on canvas, 11 by 8 inches.
ticular cities including Miami, Atlanta, New Orleans, Las Vegas, Aspen, CO;
and Santa Fe, NM. The inspiration for her paintings comes
from the rolling farmlands, sun-drenched coasts, and looming
valleys of Provence. They sell for $2,000–$18,000. E-mail:
sales@estivaletart.com or go to: www.estivaletart.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
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A&P
DC Moore Gallery’s De Niro Exhibit
AFA Presents Steampunkinetics
An exhibition of work
by the late
p a i n t e r
Robert De
Niro
Sr.,
c a l l e d
“Paintings
and Drawings 19601 9 9 3 , ” Pictured at DC Moore Gallery are, from left,
attracted a sculptor Don Gummer, actress Meryl Streep,
c e l e b r i t y and actor Robert De Niro.
crowd to the
DC Moore Gallery in New York City. The artist’s son, actor
Robert De Niro, attended, as did actress Meryl Streep and
her husband, sculptor Don Gummer. DC Moore Gallery was
recently named the exclusive representative of the Estate
of Robert De Niro Sr. On exhibit are the artist’s figurative
paintings, landscapes, still-lifes, and charcoal drawings from
1960 to the year of the artist’s death, 1993. For more details, call (212) 247-2111 or go to: www.dcmooregallery.com.
AFA, New
York, presented an
exhibition
c a l l e d
“Steampunkinetics,”
featuring
more than
40 kinetic
s c ul p t ures
by 18 artists Gallery co-owners Heidi Leigh, far right, and
inspired by Nick Leone, center, celebrate the opening of
the Steam- Steampunkinetics with artist and Steampuffin
punk aes- curator Bruce Rosenbaum.
thetic. The
exhibit was inspired by the emerging art movement of
steampunk, described as part philosophy and part Victorian
Industrial aesthetic producing inventions, art and interesting
gagdets. The gallery garnered media coverage from NYC
arts and tourism blogs and calendars, but was also picked
up and shared by fans of the Steampunk art movement,
introducing AFA to a vast new group of people. Telephone
(212) 226-7374 for more details, or visit: www.afa.com.
Ocean Galleries Debuts Nash Art
The Stone
Harbor, NJ,
location
of
Ocean
Galleries
recently
hosted the
world premiere
of Co-owners Josh Miller, far left, and Kim
G r a h a m Miller, far right, flank, from left, artist and
Nash’s new music legend Graham Nash during his exartwork in hibit along with his friend and fellow Crosby,
an exhibition Stills & Nash bandmate David Crosby.
titled, “The
Art of Graham Nash.” On display through September, the
exhibit features 91 never before seen paintings, pastels, and
artistically enhanced photographs by the artist, photographer, and music legend, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall
of Fame twice. The private reception and opening night
attracted large crowds of admirers and art collectors—
who also attended. Bandmate and long-time friend David
Crosby also stopped by. Telephone the gallery at (609) 3687777, or go to the website at: www.oceangalleries.com.
PAGE 12
Butirskiy Raises Funds for Charity
Thomas
Charles Editions LLC’s
artist Alexei
Butirskiy recently participated in a
fundraiser
for
Alice
C o o p e r ’s
Solid Rock
Foundation. Artist Alexei Butirskiy, far right, is pictured
Butirskiy’s oil with, from left, musician Mick Fleetwood of
on canvas, Fleetwood Mac, and singer Alice Cooper.
“Through
the Eyes of a Child,” was sold for $50,000 at the charity
event’s auction, with all proceeds going to the Foundation, created to meet the spiritual, economical, physical, and social
needs of teenagers and children in Arizona. Telephone Thomas
Charles Editions LLC, Phoenix, AZ, at (623) 582-4500
or go to the website: www.thomascharleseditions.net.
ART WORLD NEWS
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ALEXEI BUTIRSKIY
Alexei’s
Newest Releases
“THROUGH THE
EYES OF A CHILD”
Limited Edition 295
Artist-embellished
Giclée on Canvas
Image size
33 1/2” x 26”
* Original Paintings
* Limited Edition Giclée Canvas Prints
* Appraisals, Expert Witness Services
“THE CROWN”
Limited Edition 295
Artist-embellished
Giclée on Canvas
Image size
20” x 29”
Published exclusively by:
Thomas Charles Editions, LLC.
42302 N. Vision Way, Suite 105 & 106
Phoenix, Arizona 85086
Phone: 623-582-4500
Fax: 623-582-4505
info@thomascharleseditions.net
www.ThomasCharlesEditions.com
www.TCEditions.com
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A&P
Pamela Sukhum Painting Performance U.S. Women’s Open Artwork by Tully
Pamela Sukhum,
whose work is
published by Infinite Vision Art in
Minneapolis, was
recently invited to
stage a Painting
Performance
in
celebration of the
100th anniversary
of the Governor’s
Mansion in St.
Paul, MN. Close to
200 guests attended, purchasing
tickets that benefited a number of Artist Pamela Sukhum’s “Painting
charities supported Performance” at the Governor’s
by the mansion. Mansion in St. Paul, MN.
The painting Sukhum
created titled, “Prosperity,” is a mixed media also available as
a print. (See page 51.) Telephone (612) 207-8148 for more
information, or visit the website at: www.infinitevisionart.com.
PAGE 14
The official artwork
for the 2012 U.S.
Women’s Open, that
took place in early July
at Kohler, Wisconsin’s
Blackwolf Run, was
created by local artist
Cassy Tully, known for
her golf-inspired artwork. “Cassy has a
creative and expressive way of capturing
the courses and sharing her passion with
the public,” says Jim
Richerson,
general
© Cassy Tully
chairman for the 2012
Cassy
Tully’s
official
artwork
for
U.S. Women’s Open.
the
2012
U.S.
Women’s
Open.
“It’s the perfect time
to share her passion
and artistry with the rest of the world.” Telephone
Cassy Tully Fine Art, Plymouth, WI, for further information
at (920) 698-6201 or go to: www.cassytully.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
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OBITUARY
LEROY NEIMAN: A TRIBUTE TO THE LEGEND
by Courtney Hood
On behalf of American Fine
Art Editions Inc., Scottsdale, AZ.
LeRoy Neiman, the Chronicler of the American Good
Life and a great friend to
us, passed away on June
20, 2012, at the age of 91.
Neiman has brightened our
lives for several decades
with his one-of-a-kind style
and technique, and brought
such joy to all of us through
his artwork. He will be
dearly missed.
Neiman had just finished
his memoirs: All Told: My
Art and Life Among Athletes, Playboys, Bunnies
and Provocateurs (details
of book, following page).
Neiman’s memoirs detail
his encounters over his
eventful long-spanning career as the Chronicler of
the Good Life; being on the
sidelines of every major
sporting event; Neiman’s
Playboy life; his time spent
on safari in Africa; and
globe-trotting from Monte
Carlo to St. Petersburg.
Throughout his career as
a professional artist, LeRoy
Neiman has earned highly
regarded awards, accolades, and commissions.
He also had a huge impact
on the limited edition print
market. In the words of Phil
Koss of American Fine Art
PAGE 16
images through a myriad of
printmaking
techniques
which include intaglio,
lithography, silkscreen, relief, photography, and digital imaging—leaving a
lasting legacy for the art
market.
LeRoy Neiman self portrait
“The Artist – LeRoy
Neiman,” 2004, serigraph
in an edition of 235,
11 1/2 by 12 1/2 inches.
Editions, from the perspective of the art world, LeRoy
Neiman was to limited edition prints what De Beers is
to cut diamonds. The nouveau art crowd of the
1970s was eager to spend
their hard-earned money on
accessible art in the form
of limited edition prints, and
LeRoy’s serigraphs were
at the forefront of the new
wave. To perpetuate, as
well as promote, printmaking through education, production, and exhibition of
prints, The LeRoy Neiman
Center for Print Studies
was founded by a generous
endowment from LeRoy
and Janet Neiman in 1996.
The center provides students, and also established
artists, a rich environment
to investigate and produce
Earlier in his career,
Neiman created the Playboy
character Femlin who has
graced the pages of Playboy
magazine since the 1950s.
Neiman was invited to be
the official artist at five
Olympiads and was featured
on ABC’s television coverage of the Olympics. He was
What truly launched his
career was the way in
which he carved out his
own niche in the art world
with his sports art, capturing moments in sports history and portraits of star
athletes full of energy and
movement. Perhaps LeRoy
said it best when he said, “I
have painted and sketched
in casinos, hotels, bars,
massage parlors, steam
baths, in the salons of elegant restaurants, on battlefields and football fields, in
law courts and on tennis
courts, in pool rooms and
swimming pools, from the
LeRoy Neiman wall of original Femlin works for “Playboy” magazine at American Fine Art Editions. Top Center
is an original mixed media “Green Table” study.
the CBS Super Bowl computer artist, and made his
film debut in Rocky movies
as the ring announcer.
decks of luxury liners and
yachts, and the doorways
continued on page 18
ART WORLD NEWS
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OBITUARY
LEROY NEIMAN
continued from page 16
of skid-row missions. To me
its all Neimanland.” Neiman
created his own world with
his art that was a brilliantly
colored reflection of the
amazing life that he led. His
incredible ability to capture
the intensity and excitement of a moment with his
bold painterly brushstroke
was absolutely inspiring.
He explained it by saying,
“The artist paints his own
range of feelings about a
situation not a facsimile
but the moving spirit of a
scene, creating his own environment.” Whether he
was depicting the unforgettable 43-yard run by John
Riggins in Super Bowl XVII,
the thunderous power of an
elephant stampede, or the
intensity and suspense of
an international art auction,
Neiman truly brought the
feelings, mood, and character of his subjects to life on
his canvas.
Neiman became a fixture
at major sporting events, always sitting in the front
row, making him as familiar
a sight as his paintings
that were exhibited around
the globe. LeRoy was renowned for his Dali-esque
handlebar mustache, colorful style, and his trademark
cigar in hand. He always
had his sketchbook with
him for an impromptu drawing. As a result of a vascular problem LeRoy Neiman
PAGE 18
was forced to have his right
leg amputated in April of
2010, months after he
made the decision to
retire from his life-long
publisher Knoedler.
American Fine Art
Editions Inc. purchased the remaining inventory from
his publisher, becoming the definitive
source for his works.
dent of the United States.
In 2011, Neiman and his
wife Janet, both alumni of
the Art Institute of Chicago,
donated $5 million to the in-
When LeRoy and Janet
made the donation Neiman
remarked, “Now I have the
opportunity to give back to
the institution that helped
me become who I am
today.” In December,
2011, Neiman released a
small private edition of
a London pub entitled
“The Grenadier.”
We salute you LeRoy
Neiman, the man, the
myth, the legend, we will
never forget you, you will
live on through your artwork that has touched
the lives of millions.
During that same
time, Neiman donated $1 million to
the Ox-Bow, School An earlier photo of Phil Koss, left, and
of Art Institute of LeRoy Neiman with Neiman’s painting,
Chicago to be given “New York Skyline,” at a one-man exhiin the form of schol- bition at American Fine Art Editions.
Courtney Hood is VP
arships to artists. In
2010, the last edition to be stitution to fund the con- of Gallery Development at
published by Knoedler was struction of the new LeRoy American Fine Art Editions
his “Homage to Lincoln,” a Neiman Student Center that Inc. Visit: www.american
portrait of the 16th Presi- opened in May of this year. fineartgallery.com.
ALL TOLD: LEROY NEIMAN AUTOBIOGRAPHY
L e R o y
print of Globe PeNeiman’s
quot Press, the
autobiogra344-page hardcover
phy,
“All
book celebrating
Told: My Art
the artist who deand
Life
fined a century, conAmong Athtains hundreds of
letes, Playphotos and color ilb o y s ,
lustrations. It is a
Bunnies,
memoir filled with
and Provoc“the biggest celebriateurs” was
ties in 20th century
released in
sport, art, sexy
dames,
theater,
conjunction
with
the “Opening Ceremonies 1984” by LeRoy Neiman.
film, music, and beartist’s 91st
yond.” Retailing for
birthday on June 8, shortly be- 2012. Published by Lyons $29.95, “All Told” is available
fore his passing on June 20, Press of Guilford, CT, an im- in bookstores nationwide.
ART WORLD NEWS
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ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 19
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BURNES MERGES WITH
NIELSEN BAINBRIDGE
IS YOUR GLASS HALF FULL FOR FALL?
PARAMUS, NJ—Burnes,
designer and marketer of
photo frames and home décor
(formerly Burnes of Boston),
has merged with Nielsen
Bainbridge, producer of custom and archival picture framing products.
continued from page 1
business 38 years. “You
can’t compare galleries. It is
like comparing your children,
they are very different, although they have the same
parents.”
In 2011 Nielsen Bainbridge
acquired Pinnacle Frames &
Accents of Austin, TX, a supplier of photo frames and albums to the mass market.
Distribution of Burnes products will be relocated to the
Nielsen Bainbridge/Pinnacle
distribution center in Pocahontas, AR. Day-to-day operations will be unaffected.
“Burnes is a strong, prestigious brand—an excellent
complement to our custom
framing business,” says Bob
Kroll, Nielsen Bainbridge
CEO. “The strategic benefits
of joining established brands
like Nielsen Bainbridge,
Burnes, and Pinnacle will not
only enable us to share intelligence and core competencies, but also support our
mutual growth in a radically
changed marketplace that
has become increasingly
competitive.” Mr. Kroll adds,
“We see this merger as an
opportunity to provide leadership in a category that desperately needs innovation
and growth.”
Based in Atlanta, products
sold under the Burnes and
Terragrafics brand serve
department store, “big box,”
and independent specialty
retailers. Among Nielsen
Bainbridge’s innovations
is Alphamat, museum-quality
board with colored surfaces,
and patented Artcare
technology. To reach the
company, go to the website:
www.nbframing.com or
call (201) 845-6100.
PAGE 20
In general, Mr. LaMantia
says business has been picking up. “We are seeing a lot
more sales—not off the
charts, but very promising.
The first half of this year was
up about 10% on last year,
and that year was our highest
grossing year in 23 years.”
Investment sales accounted
for much of the revenue in
2011 from people looking to
put their money in the art
market rather than the stock
market—something that Mr.
Inessa Garmash, as well as
Dmitri Danish who will be
flown in for the occasion by
the gallery from Russia and
Los Angeles, respectively.
“We are already getting the
originals from the artists who
are painting for our show
LaMantia Gallery in Northwhich will probably be in
port, NY, is doing more
early November. That’s a
shows. It has four planned
great time (to hold a show)
for the fall including a twoas people tend to spend
man event for Richard Johnmore toward the Holidays.
son and Robert Finale in
“He prefers it when the two
early October, followed by a
artists have something in
solo show for Hescommon, such
sam Abrishami in
as an earlier Gerearly
November.
hard Nesvadba
Also slated in late
and Erich Paulsen
October is Northshow, both of
port’s sixth annual
whom are reprePlein Air Painting
sented by Arnot
Event. Hosted by
Galleries, but had
LaMantia Gallery in
never previously
conjunction
with
met. At that
Northport Arts Coalishow, Paulsen
tion, this town-wide
created an origievent draws some of
nal of downtown
the region’s most acGreensboro that
complished plein air
sold.
Another
painters. On the Fri- Brooke Schnabel’s “Beach Series #33,” an acrylic show success
day and Saturday on canvas, 28 by 22 inches ($2,200) from Arts Ex- was for Vidan in
they set up in loca- clusive, Simsbury, CT. www.arts-exclusive.com.
early May when
tions throughout the
The Art Shop
village painting the fall colors LaMantia promoted in the welcomed a crowd of 80
of Northport. On both days gallery’s e-newsletter. A num- to 100 to his introductory
spectators can observe the ber of these “investments” show and sold four originals.
creative process from start were in paintings that the late Vidan is a nephew of the late
to finish and talk with the Pino created for book cov- Pino, represented by Classic
artists as they work. On the ers, now selling for $85,000. Publications.
Sunday an exhibition and “That made for an incredible
silent auction for the “wet” year,” Mr. LaMantia acknowlBut the Art Shop does
paintings is held at LaMantia edges. “So this year being much more than market and
Gallery. “It is a total ‘feel up a little feels really good.”
produce shows to keep the
good’ event for us,” says
gallery firing on all cylinders.
James LaMantia, co-owner
Andy McAfee, director of Earlier this year Mr. McAfee
with Robert Bluver of the gall- The Art Shop in Greensboro, was a guest on Rock 92
ery that has been in business NC, for the past 15 years, is Radio’s morning show talking
23 years. “All the money planning a busy schedule for about art prior to the gallery’s
goes to the coalition and the fall in terms of gallery shows. big Restoration Saturday
artists, although it does draw Since the economy tanked in when The Art Shop invited
people into the gallery and ’08, the gallery often hosts people to bring in their art for
we get a little bump from two-man shows for artists appraisal. Show reviews said,
that. But promoting the arts with different styles to ap- “He was terrific in the interis still important.” It is also peal to a wider audience. In view—funny and knowledgegood not always to be reach- late fall it will be the husbandcontinued on page 22
ing out to clients for a sale.
and-wife artists Michael and
ART WORLD NEWS
AUG12-Finale/Pease ads_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:37 PM Page 1
ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 21
JULY12-Cover article page 2_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:03 PM Page 1
GALLERY GICLEES
DEBUTS CANVAS ART
BY UTZ AND DUMAS
MENTOR, OH—Gallery
Giclées, sister company of
Gallery One, has announced
the publication and distribution of hand-signed giclée
canvases by David Utz and
Michael Dumas. The two
artists join Carl Brenders,
Alan Brown, Anthony Cook,
Jim Daly, and Dean
Morrissey whose select
works Gallery Giclées also
publishes.
Dumas, a Canadian artist,
illuminates quiet moments,
such as with “Silence in the
Shadows,” shown at top of
page. His six editions, 11 by
8 to 17 by 12 inches retail for
$155 to $235. Utz, painter of
vibrant tropical fantasies
whose “Bellaquest” is shown,
has four new editions measuring 15 by 20 to 38 by 57
inches, retailing for $295 to
$995. For information, call
(800) 621-1141 or visit:
www.gallerygiclees.com.
PAGE 22
STAYING POSITIVE
continued from page 20
able and entertaining,” thus
garnering lots of publicity and
name recognition for The Art
Shop. Artwork is not as collected as it used to be, but
people want to know what
they have and how to best
keep it. More than 100 paintings were brought in for appraisal, and the gallery
offered to restore artwork or
frames where needed. “I
have a little circuit of places I
go to talk about appraisal
and restoration,“ says Mr.
McAfee. In the last three to
four years, the gallery’s
restoration business has
tripled. The gallery also has
increased its corporate business, particularly for local retirement homes. “Our business plan is a lot different
now,” he notes. “People are
not building homes like they
used to or moving as much,
but they are cleaning, restoring, and evaluating. Some
galleries have not changed
their business plan, and they
have really suffered because
they are still waiting for people to come in and buy.”
Tal Milan of Milan Gallery,
Fort Worth, TX, says, “You
have to be proactive if you
want to survive.” He thinks
the health care reform issue
will take a long time to resolve, and the politics will
slow things down. His reaction: “So let’s work hard.”
His business for the first
six months of this year was
double that of the same
period last year. He attributes that in part to new
artists he introduced at the
gallery and the shows he
hosted. In some instances,
the artists created smaller
pieces of art, allowing more
people to buy, which helped.
As for his plans, he says, “It
is going to be an actionpacked fall. I’m looking at
some six shows in less than
four months.” The shows
are with bigger name artists
that will attract media attention—TV, newspapers, and
social media—to create excitement and draw in the
crowds. The roster includes
11-year-old child prodigy Autumn de Forest, who already
has an international following; artist and actress Jane
Seymour, and Pop artist
Peter Max, as well as The
areas for such artists as
Peter Max and Pierre Henri
Matisse. Earlier this year,
Milan Gallery hosted a very
successful show for Thomas
Arvid, “and we are still selling a ton of his work. I’m
also bringing in more artists
than normal.”
Recently he went on the
road and did three shows
with Arvid in Scottsdale, AZ,
restaurants, selling 11 pieces
each evening.
“That
was
just me, taking my inventory to chefs’
dinners attended by a
high-end
clientele, and
the
artist
speaking.”
As far as limited edition
Milan Gallery arranged for “Gypsy Violinist” prints were
concerned,
by Pierre Henri Matisse to grace the cover
“Whatever
of the Texas Christian University’s string
we sold out
quartet summer program, coinciding with
of, we sold off
a show at the gallery of the artist’s work.
(the image)
For Milan Gallery: www.milangallery.com.
and then filled
Art of Dr. Seuss. He admits the orders.” Mr. Milan is
the fall season will be a little going to continue taking his
scary with the politics. But inventory of various artists to
he says there are those who restaurants and country
will want to do something clubs around the country in
other than politicking, “and areas where they are not repwe will entertain them.”
resented by another gallery.
Restaurants, he observes,
Mr. Milan is ever on the have a built-in customer base
look out for new clients. He compatible with that of the
has purchased a list of new art buyer. Mr. Milan will also
home owners in the area, take any free publicity that
but admits that sometimes it has an appropriate audience.
takes a couple of years to This summer he provided an
get people into the gallery image by Henri Matisse to
because they don’t always the Texas Christian Univerrealize they need new art sity for its string quartet
until a period of time has summer program—coincidpassed. For some of his ing with a show for the artist
shows, Mr. Milan works with at Milan Gallery.
Nim Vaswani, owner of The
Road Show Company, who
Woody Slaymaker who,
also owns the Dallas gallery with his wife Fangji, operates
Wisby Smith Fine Art. This Slaymaker Fine Art, specialenables Mr. Milan to hold
shows in two metropolitan
continued on page 48
ART WORLD NEWS
AUG12-PWG-banovich ads_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:28 PM Page 1
ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 23
MAY12-Art Greenwich page_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:10 PM Page 1
J.R. MOONEY GALLERIES
OF FINE ART CELEBRATE
65 YEARS OF BUSINESS
SAN ANTONIO, TX—J.R.
Mooney Galleries of Fine
Art, with locations in Boerne,
TX, as well as San Antonio,
headed by original family heir,
Bob Mooney, is celebrating 65
years in business. Representing the work of some 200
artists including Thomas
Arvid, Charles Pabst, sculptor Mark Hopkins, and nationally recognized painter
Jose Vives-Atsara, J.R.
Mooney, whose parent company is Artistica Galleries, was
founded in 1947 by Joe and
Adelle Mooney. Bob Mooney
says several things account
for the longevity in business,
such as clients that have
shopped at the galleries for
generations. “The fact that we
are not only a fine art gallery
offering custom framing; the
blend of the two together has
allowed us to maintain a volume of business that keeps
our company going.” The San
Antonio location is 10,000
square feet, including a 4,000square-foot showroom and a
6,000-square-foot warehouse
and frameshop; the Boerne
location is 1,400 square feet.
Retail prices at the galleries
range from $100 to $60,000.
Shown is “Wildflowers” by
Vives-Atsara, an oil painting,
32 by 39 inches retailing for
$26,000. For more, visit:
www.jrmooneygalleries.com.
PAGE 24
ART GREENWICH NETS VIP AUDIENCE
A packed crowd of 1,100 a David Datuna flag for the commented, “We have a
VIP collectors and guests at- asking price of $120,000. His lot of clients in Westchester
tended the opening of Art collection of Diego Jacobson County and New York City.
Greenwich in late May works also attracted corpo- This is a good time of year
aboard the 228-foot mega rate attention. Anthony to connect with them, and we
yacht SeaFair. A distin- Brunelli Fine Arts of Bingham- invited them here. Art fairs
guished crowd conare very importinued through the
tant—they are
holiday weekend dean excellent way
spite the sometimes
to be communiless
than
ideal
cating with muweather. Presented
seum curators
by David and Lee
and serious colAnn Lester, owners
lectors.” Among
of International Fine
the shows ConArt
Expositions
tessa Gallery par(IFAE), the spring
ticipates in are
edition of Art GreenArt Miami and
wich featured 25
The
Armory
contemporary gal- Steve Hartman, right, owner of Contessa Gallery, Show in New
leries and special in- and attendee Don Lehman with Chuck Close’s
York. Art fairs, he
stallations. The work jacquard tapestry portrait of artist Lucas Samaras notes,
enable
of such international in the background and Samaras’ work to the left. people to see a
artists, Pop art, and
lot of great work
post war icons as Andy ton, NY, sold 12 works at the in a time efficient manner.
Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, fair including six major pieces Among the work he featured
Adolph Gottlieb, Louise by photorealist Gordon Lee, were portraits by Chuck
Nevelson, and Robert Moth- a painting by Bruce Evans, a Close, paintings by Lucas
erwell were displayed on double work by Robert Fun- Samaras, sculpture by
three decks. VIP collectors dis, and a large C-print by Tice Louise Nevelson, and photoand guests included
graphs by David
Barry
Sternlicht,
Drebin.
CEO of Starwood
Capital Group; Chris
Brenda Taylor
Vroom, founder of
of the gallery of
Artspace.com, an
the same name
online marketplace
located in the
offering accessiblyChelsea district
priced contemporary
of New York City,
art; and business
said at the openmagnates Sunil and
ing
reception,
Blanca Hirani.
“We would do
this again, and
Vincent Harrison In the booth of Brenda Taylor Gallery, Chelsea,
we have only
of Miami’s NAC artist Jamy Kahn, left, is joined by attendee Rebeen here for
Gallery said, “Sea- becca Wayland. Kahn’s “Exoterra,” shown, is cre- one-and-a-half
Fair presents an un- ated with high pressure metal laminates on wood. hours!” She also
paralleled platform
plans to do Art
for fostering new relation- Lerner. New to the fair scene, Palm Beach in January 2013,
ships with collectors. Green- Jon Brunelli, gallery director also produced by IFAE. “We
wich has always proved a and curator, reported meeting love the concept of SeaFair,
competitive market to meet serious collectors and having and it is a nice way to requalified collectors and we an overall profitable and introduce ourselves to clients
were able to do that at this pleasant experience.
who have not gone down to
fair, which is sometimes
the City recently.”
more important than immediSteve Hartman of Concontinued on page 26
ate sales.” Mr. Harrison sold tessa Gallery, Cleveland,
ART WORLD NEWS
*Ad Template-revised_Layout 1 7/25/12 12:43 PM Page 1
JULY12-Arnot page_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:50 AM Page 1
P. BUCKLEY MOSS
GALLERIES LAUNCHES
MOBILE-OPTIMIZED
WEBSITES
MATHEWS, VA—P. Buckley
Moss Galleries Ltd. has
created mobile-optimized
versions of the website:
www.pbuckleymoss.com, as
well as the P. Buckley Moss
Museum’s www.pbuckley
mossmuseum.com. Both
websites are now mobile device friendly allowing for
quicker downloads and featuring intuitive navigation. The
P. Buckley Moss Galleries’
website also enables customers to make purchases
from their cellphone that are
credited to a local gallery,
along with information about
dealers, and one-touch dialing to their local gallery. The
mobile Museum website features an audio tour of the permanent exhibition allowing
visitors to the actual museum,
located in Waynesboro, VA, to
take a self-guided tour of the
approximately 100 pieces in
the collection using either
their own cellphones or iPods
provided at the front desk.
“The new audio version of the
tour has a huge benefit over
previous versions in that people will be able to scan their
device visually for an image in
the collection and click to
hear the commentary,” says
Jake Henderson, president of
P. Buckley Moss Galleries.
“This frees visitors up to take
the tour in whatever order
they choose.” Taking the new
technology for a test spin, Mr.
Henderson says that at the P.
Buckley Moss Convention in
Iowa at the end of the month,
collectors will be able to make
purchases by using scan
codes for all the 250 or so
print editions on display.
For further information, call
(800) 430-1320 or
visit: www.pbuckleymoss.com
and www.pbuckleymoss
museum.com.
PAGE 26
DISSING ELECTION-YEAR DOLDRUMS
Historically, election years
tend to be difficult for business, in most part because
of the uncertainty. And as
the November 6 Presidential Election date ap-
properly prepared for the
fall, and have the right paintings in your gallery, you will
sell them. It is time for galleries to start stocking. If
you don’t hang them, you
can’t sell them.”
Mrs. Arnot says that
even though it’s the
height of summer
and 90 degrees,
think cool, crisp fall
weather and start
planning
gallery “Tasting Pleasures” by
themes. For in- Raymond Campbell, oil on
stance, when Arnot panel, 16 by 20 inches.
Galleries holds its
opening exhibition in of the season, she says. “It
September after the is so beautiful that it stimusummer hiatus, the lates the artistic nature of
one’s mind and that can
theme will be fall.
bring people into galleries.
“Rolling Fields of Fall” by Malva is an
“My focus will be When they see something
oil painting, 40 by 40 inches.
on the beautiful col- that makes them happy, why
proaches, this one looks no ors of the chandifferent. However, galleries ging leaves, as
that take proactive steps to seen in Guy
generate business between Dessapt’s paintnow and then, will have a ing of the fall
distinct advantage. “There colors in Cenare things you can do to be tral Park or
sure you don’t fall into the Paris, and in
‘election doldrums,’” says Claudio SimonVicki Arnot, co-owner with etti’s scenes
her husband Peter of Arnot of Venice and
MediterGalleries in Manhattan. She the
recommends getting organ- ranean coast in
ized early for the fall selling fall hues.” Peoseason. “If you go forward ple are ready Guy Dessapt’s “New York Central Park
with enthusiasm and are for the change en Automne, les Enfants,” oil, 24 by 20.
ART GREENWICH
continued from page 24
There were clients who
came to Brenda Taylor’s
booth, liked a particular work,
and will go to the gallery to
make a decision. Shows are
important to her business.
“We will meet over 150 potential customers here in the
next five days.” Fernando
Luis Alvarez of the Stamford,
CT, gallery of the same name,
had several artists on hand
who drew a large crowd to
his booth. “It’s almost overwhelming,” he said, adding
that he sold several works on
opening night, and had good
meetings set up with collectors for the following week
“to bring it to the next level.”
SeaFair returns to Greenwich, CT, for a fall sister fair,
September 20–23. For information, visit the websites:
www.expoships.com or go
to: www.ifae.com.
not take it home with them in
the form of a piece of art?”
Arnot Galleries offers programs for its regular customers whereby the company arranges seasonal
shows for select galleries.
For further information,
telephone Arnot Galleries
at (212) 245-8287; after
hours (917) 570-7910; or
e-mail: arnotart@aol.com or
visit the website located at:
www.arnotart.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
ToddGoldmanAd-1pg-REVISED-AUG12_Layout 1 8/2/12 3:19 PM Page 1
David & Goliath
(203)854-8566
todd@davidandgoliathtees.com
www.toddisstupid.com
AFAE-AUG12ad--pg1_Layout 1 8/7/12 9:52 AM Page 1
AFAE-AUG12ad--pg1_Layout 1 8/7/12 9:50 AM Page 1
JUL12-news-framing-pg1_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:22 AM Page 1
LARSON-JUHL DEBUTS
THE HUDSON COLLECTION
NORCROSS, GA—Inspired
by the iconic Hudson River
School of classic American
painters, Larson-Juhl’s new
Hudson Collection offers
silver and gold finishes, subtly
distressed to reflect time-worn
elegance. Hudson’s 11 profiles offer a wide selection of
19th century frames, including
two Whistler inspired profiles
and a traditional plein air
Cassetta profile. Visit:
www.larsonjuhl.com.
FRAMERICA WELCOMES
MICHAEL FILAN
YAPHANK, NY—Mike Filan
has joined Framerica as its
controller, bringing extensive
experience in accounting and
finance. Mr. Filan, a MENSA
member, is a Long Island, NY,
native and father of one.
Framerica’s Josh Eichner
notes, “Mike has already
made an impact in terms of
how we can analyze our business to make it more efficient
and value-added for our customers.” To reach Framerica:
www.framerica.com.
FRAMING CLASSES SET
FOR NEW YORK CITY
NEW YORK—The American
Picture Framing Academy is
hosting basic, advanced, and
boot camp classes in New
York City, September 10–14.
For further information, telephone (888) 840-9605 or go
to the company’s website
located at: www.pictureframing
school.com.
PAGE 30
CHELSEA FRAMES EXPANDS
Chelsea Frames, a conservation framing studio in business for 29 years, has
specialized in custom framing for many leading New
York art galleries, movie
production
companies,
architects
and interior
designers,
while
also
building
a
loyal
local
clientele.
Less than a
year ago, the
business expanded to include Galerie
Protégé located on the
lower level of Jaclyn Acker.
the frameshop, created as a platform
for emerging and non-represented contemporary work
in a wide range of media including original paintings,
drawings, photography, and
performance-based work.
in 1983, having provided art
and framing for TV shows
and films, as well as having
been photographed in many
consumer magazines. As the
frameshop
grew under
Ms. Acker
and
Mr.
Fligel’s tutelage,
the
business expanded.
“After having worked
with Daniel,
he encouraged me to
make
my
mark on the
business—
essentially
‘make
it
mine’—then
Galerie Protégé was born. Our first exhibition was in September 2011.”
the owners take advantage
of cross promotion using signage. “In the frameshop we
will have one or more pieces
of art displayed on the showroom floor and tell people
that it is from the gallery
downstairs. We also have
pamphlets for customers
to take and all kinds of
advertising.”
Ms. Acker notes that easing people into Galerie Protégé that may be somewhat
intimidated by entering a
gallery, has made a huge
difference. “Having the
frameshop on the street
level is a great way for people to get gently introduced
to the gallery. It draws all
sorts of clientele into the
space that may not normally
frequent a gallery. I think that
sets us apart from other galleries in the neighborhood
and gives us an advantage.
Today they have a full-time
staff of 15 employees in
the frameshop located on
the ground level, with the
“We tend to get a higher
volume of foot traffic because many more people
visit
the
Jaclyn
frameshop.
Acker, PresiOnce clients
dent
of
are in the
Chelsea
frameshop,
Frames, has
they see one
been at the
or
more
helm with her
pieces of art
partner Andy
on display
Fligel, Vice
from
the
President,
gallery, as
since they
well as martook
the
keting matebusiness
rial
and
over in the
advertising in
fall of 2009.
the shop for
Ms. Acker Chelsea Frames, located in the Chelsea District of New York. the gallery.
had worked
The intimidawith the former owner, gallery on the lower level, tion factor is diminished and
Daniel Beauchemin, for five accessed through the frame- they become intrigued by the
years. Located in New York’s shop via a spiral staircase in artwork and the spiral stairChelsea neighborhood at the middle of the showroom. case. Plus, they already
197 Ninth Avenue, Chelsea
know the staff and feel comFrames has garnered much
Galerie Protégé is an encontinued on page 32
attention since its inception tity of Chelsea Frames, and
ART WORLD NEWS
*Ad Template-revised_Layout 1 7/23/12 10:32 AM Page 1
JUL12-news-framing-pg2_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:23 AM Page 1
FRAMERICA PRESENTS
BLACK SMOKE
FRAMING
continued from page 30
fortable in the setting.”
YAPHANK, NY—Black
Smoke is the first in a series
of gloss wood furniture finishes being offered by
Framerica. With its silver
“smoked” cherry grain adding
new flavor to traditional gloss
mouldings, Black Smoke is
available in the BW220,
BW221, and BW222 profiles.
Call (800) 372-6422 or visit:
www.framerica.com.
LEGION PAPER DEBUTS
PORTFOLIO-SIZE
METALLIC PEARL PAPER
NEW YORK—Moab, a division of Legion Paper, introduces an 11- by 14-inch sheet
size for its Slickrock Metallic
Pearl 260 paper for those
seeking to print portfolios.
Available in 25-sheet boxes,
Metallic Pearl is designed to
enhance photographic images, giving an almost 3-D
quality. Visit the website at:
www.moabpaper.com.
DRYTAC’S PRINTABLE
SILVER BASE FILM
RICHMOND, VA—Drytac has
added a silver base film that
is printable by most UV
flatbed printers. MHL High
Gloss Silver is a thermal,
metallic base film that can
mimic the look of metallic inks
or foil stamping when white
inks are partially or totally
knocked out. It can be applied
using a heated roller laminator. Visit: www.drytac.com.
PAGE 32
While real estate in Manhattan is some of the most
expensive in the world, running a business in such a location also opens the door
for innumerable possibilities.
“There are just so many
opportunities to sell framing
in this city and we’re fortunate to have the broad range
of clientele that
we have,” says Ms.
Acker.
proach us easily. This kind of
visibility is far more valuable
than any ad you could take
out. In fact, we’ve expanded
three times since we moved
into this space. It was necessary to keep up with the
growing demand for framing,
literally. Before our last expansion, we built a 19-foot
frame in the empty space
before we settled into it.
There aren’t many places in
Manhattan where you can
do that!”
“Our
frames
aren’t just going on
walls in people’s
homes—they’re in
restaurants, retail
stores, universities,
hospitals, and office
spaces. They’re on
the sets of movies
and television shows.
I think it’s important
to have lots of different choices and
options to meet
their tastes and
needs. We’re constantly looking for
new opportunities
and new ways to The entrance to Galerie Protégé
improve the product located below Chelsea Frames.
and services we
offer. Our motto has always
While Ms. Acker knows
been, ‘We just want to make the power of national expopeople happy.’ I think having sure, keeping her finger on
this attitude is important the pulse of the community
when you are offering a serv- helps to keep the frameshop
ice to someone.”
busy. “We’ve been working
on some really great largeRetail prices for custom scale family photo projects.
framing at Chelsea Frames Too often photos get left on
has ranged from $100 on the hard drive with digital
up to $10,000 for one job technology. It’s nice to see
recently that featured all cus- people printing these photos
tom-made pieces and Plexi- and putting a large group of
glas standing 19-feet tall. them on display for all to
This sale came from a local see. It was really cool to look
collector. “A storefront like through hundreds of photos
ours is ultimately the best and see their kids grow up.
form of advertising you can They become really great
get. We’re accessible and conversation pieces. I also
people feel that they can ap- really enjoy framing the ‘off-
the-beaten-path’ kinds of
things—a child’s toy, a wine
cork or label. We’re currently
working on framing a stethoscope. They usually have a
pretty good story behind
them, but I also think it’s
great that clients are able to
see art in everyday things.”
Chelsea Frames is a Larson-Juhl partner. “We have
always had a great relationship with Larson-Juhl and really respect what they do
as a company,” she says.
“They’re always looking for
ways to help their customers
grow their businesses and
be successful, rather than
just trying to sell them a
product. They offer programs to help frameshops
market themselves, operate
more efficiently, and stand
out from the rest. I think that
shows how much they value
their customers.” Chelsea
Frames also carries lines
by Roma, Nurre Caxton,
Nielsen Metal, and Tru Vue
glass, as well as collaborations with local, national,
and international artisans for
hand-crafted frames.
Another benefit to being
the local frameshop with
some renown, is that area
galleries look to you for custom framing of work in their
gallery and for their collectors. “I think it helps that
we’re in the neighborhood,
especially when a framing
emergency arises. We never
turn away simple requests
like presentation mats or
glass repairs. Some of those
quick fixes have turned into
really great relationships. We
try to be flexible and able to
turn things around quickly
which is key when working
with galleries since their exhibits are constantly rotating.
Many people on our staff are
interested in art and are alcontinued on page 34
ART WORLD NEWS
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FRAMING
FRAMING
continued from page 32
ways attending different
kinds of events that put us in
touch with others in the industry. It never hurts to ask
them to keep us in mind for
their next project.” For the
past few years, Ms. Acker
and Mr. Fligel have served
as consultants for SACA,
the European framing fair
held in Bologna, Italy, to report on U.S. market trends.
The frameshop’s previous
owner had established many
connections in the entertainment industry—a facet of
the business that is still
going strong today. Television shows such as The
Rachael Ray Show, The Sopranos, The Good Wife, and
Fringe have featured their
work, as well as films like
The Devil Wears Prada,
Vanilla Sky, Sex in the City,
and The Royal Tannenbaums. While the exposure
is a big boost to Chelsea
Frames in terms of getting
the word out, it does also
come with its own challenges. “It’s important for us
to keep these relationships
happy. They need things fast
and it’s crucial for us to be
sensitive to that need. They
have a strict schedule they
need to stick to—the show
must go on—and there
needs to be something on
the walls.”
Working closely with interior designers has helped
the business gain exposure
in consumer magazines,
PAGE 34
such as House & Garden,
Martha Stewart Living,
House Beautiful, Elle Decor,
New York Home, Southern
Accents, and New York
Magazine. “We have always
been proud of the work we
do for interior designers, as
well as the relationships we
have built with them,” Ms.
Acker says. “In return, they
have helped us grow creatively. They’ll come to us
two. “When we first opened
the gallery, we tried to keep
the two separate because
we weren’t sure if people
would take the gallery less
seriously. What we discovered is that it is more
beneficial to treat both businesses as one because we
found that people were coming to see one of the two
places, and then would become confused. The spiral
Chelsea Frames, with its highly visible storefront, is a
fixture in the Chelsea arts district neighborhood.
with an idea, and it’s our job
to help them realize it. When
a client asks to see framing
examples, it’s nice to be able
to refer them to that page on
our website. It really gives
the work we do some
context.”
Ms. Acker has learned
that both the frameshop and
the gallery, while still separate entities, mesh together
nicely and allow customers a
comfortable atmosphere to
move freely between the
staircase is also very enticing and we get asked by
customers all the time
where it leads to.”
Ms. Acker feels that using
the space now housing the
gallery was a natural progression. “The year I took
over, the gallery space was
not being used for anything.
We had some antique prints
on display, but they weren’t
selling because we weren’t
marketing them the way
they needed to be. I was
frustrated with it and ignored
it for awhile—the economy
was bad and I couldn’t justify
putting effort into the gallery
when I needed to focus on
the framing end of things.
Then a friend gave me some
perspective—she reminded
me that I was paying rent
for such a beautiful and
highly sought after space in
the heart of the gallery district. Why waste it? Around
that same time one of
our staff members, Debra
Kowalski, was finishing her
Masters degree in Art Market. It was really great timing
and we offered her the opportunity to help us launch
the gallery.” Today, Ms.
Kowalski is gallery director
and also works as senior
sales associate for Chelsea
Frames.
Ms. Acker sees social
media, such as FaceBook as
a very useful tool in staying
in contact with valuable
clients. “It helps us update
and provide information to
our clients quickly without
having to constantly update
the website. Websites sometimes tend to be a destination—people usually visit
them with a purpose, not
just to check in and see
what is going on. By appearing a general feed, it allows
us to get the message out
more often and faster.”
Phone Chelsea Frames
at (212) 807-8957 or visit:
www.chelseaframes.com.
To contact Galerie Protégé
call (212) 807-8726 or go to:
www.galerieprotege.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
AUG12-Calendar-Vertical-db_Layout 1 8/2/12 1:56 PM Page 1
CALENDAR
August 2–5: ArtAspen,
Aspen Ice Garden, Aspen,
CO. Produced by Hamptons Expo Group. For further details, visit: www.
arthamptons.com or telephone (631) 283-5505.
August 10–12: 21st annual Loveland Sculpture
Invitational, under tents beside Lake Loveland, CO.
Loveland Sculpture Group.
Call (970) 663-7467 or visit
the website: www.loveland
sculpturegroup.org.
August 11–12: Sculpture
in the Park, Benson Sculpture Garden, Loveland, CO.
Loveland High Plains Arts
Council. For details, call
(970) 663-2940 or go to:
www.sculptureinthepark.org.
August 18–22: New York
International Gift Fair, Jacob
Javits Center & Piers
92 –94, New York. George
Little Management. Telephone (800) 272-7469 for
more information or visit the
website: www.nyigf.com.
September 6–9: Art San
Diego, Balboa Park, San
Diego. Produced by BTBArt Inc. For more information, go to the website:
www.artsandiego-fair.com.
September 20–23: Expo
Chicago at the Navy Pier,
Chicago. Produced by Art
Expositions LLC. For details, call (312) 867-9220,
www.expochicago.com.
September 20–23: Art
Greenwich aboard SeaFair
ART WORLD NEWS
at the Delamar Greenwich
Harbor, Greenwich, CT. Produced by International Fine
Art Expositions. Visit:
www.expoship.com for details, or call (239) 949-5411.
September 28–30: Art
Platform–Los Angeles at
Barker Hangar, Santa Monica Airport, CA. Produced
by Merchandise Mart Properties Inc. For further information, visit the website
located at: www.artplatformlosangeles.com.
October 5–7: Affordable
Art Fair, The Tunnel at 28th
St. and 11th Ave., New
York. For more information,
visit: www.affordableartfair
.us or call (212) 255-2003.
October 13–18: International Home Furnishings
Market, High Point, NC.
Visit the website located at:
www.highpointmarket.org
for more information, or
phone (800) 874-6492.
October 26–29: Toronto
International Art Fair, The
Metro Toronto Convention
Centre. Produced by MMPI
Canada. Phone (604) 7302065 for information, or go
to the website located at:
www.TIAFAIR.com.
November 15–18: The
16th annual Boston International Fine Art Show at the
Cyclorama, Boston. Produced by Fusco & Four/
Ventures LLC. Visit the
website at: www.fineart
boston.com or telephone
(617) 363-0405.
PAGE 35
JUL12-vitae-pg1_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:42 AM Page 1
ARTIST VITAE
JENNIFER VRANES’ TEXTURES OF LIFE
by Koleen Kaffan
Artist Jennifer Vranes is
part painter, part sculptor,
creating large, vibrant canvases of Aspen forests and
European landscapes using
her own trademarked technique called Textures of
Life™. Vranes’ palette knife
brings her paintings to life
by building a three-dimensional image, rich in texture,
finish, and depth. “I like to
think of my work as ‘Impressionism with a twist,’ though
I paint with a lot more color,
and with a bit more attention
to detail,” Vranes says.
“My extreme texture is
what makes my paintings
unique. I sculpt it on with a
palette knife—but only in
certain places on the canvas. The sky and water, for
example, remain smooth,
while the trunks of trees or
fields of flowers are highly
textured. My paintings are
truly three-dimensional.”
Vranes’ work is represented in more than 30 galleries across the United
States, and in collectors’
homes worldwide. Her husband, Matt, keeps busy
managing her career fulltime. Family is an important
component to Jennifer’s
success as she juggles a
full-time career as an artist
and a mother of three sons
and one daughter.
Born in 1974, Jennifer
grew up in Southern Oregon, the oldest of eight girls.
PAGE 36
“We lived out in in the country on two acres and a
Jennifer Vranes.
mother’s side. I have two
uncles and one aunt that are
artists. Thus, it
really didn’t come
as much of a
surprise to my
parents when I
began to show
early signs of
carrying the artistic gene.”
Drawing and
painting at every
opportunity, Jennifer lead the way
for her seven younger siblings, hosting daily art competitions. “I was drawing
long before I could write. I
remember thinking I was a
real artist when I won first
place for best drawing on a
lake,” she says. “It was a
beautiful, idyllic setting.”
The location of her upbringing has been a strong influence throughout her life and
a constant passion for paying respect to nature. “Perhaps that
is why I’m
so drawn
to lands c a p e
painting
today.
I
love being
in nature,
and painting it is as
natural as
breathing.” As
a
child,
she was “Aspen Candy” is a thick acrylic on canvas
a l w a y s measuring 48 by 60 inches.
drawn to
creative endeavours and bookmark in the first grade.
with the determination of a Even then I had drawn a picyoung girl, always knew that ture of a colorful flower
her life would be lived as under a bright blue sky with
an artist. “I come from a white clouds, and a happy
family of artists—all on my sun!” In high school, an art
teacher, Mr. Coelho, inspired her to take her
talent to the next level.
While her family’s positive
reinforcement was invaluable growing up, Mr.
Coelho’s encouragement
made an impression. “It’s
one thing for your family to
think you have a gift…but
for a teacher to realize your
talent and to help foster it is
life changing. I often wonder
if Mr. Coelho hadn’t taken
an interest in me, would I
have gone on to major in
art in college? It’s amazing
how much impact a good
teacher can have on an impressionable student. Mr.
Coelho forever changed
my life, gearing me for a
career in art.”
After graduating from
Brigham Young University
with a Bachelor of Arts degree, Jennifer took a month
off to backpack through Europe. One stop was in Paris
to visit art galleries and museums where she was able
to see many of the pieces of
art that she had just studied,
live—appreciating all of the
brushstrokes, textures, nuances—of the piece. “It
was the Musée d’Orsay that
really ignited a spark in
me. Seeing the original artworks of Gauguin, Degas,
van Gogh, Monet…was
truly awe inspiring—especially since I had spent
the last few years studying
continued on page 38
ART WORLD NEWS
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ARTIST VITAE
continued from page 36
them from textbooks. Seeing their use of vibrant color
and thick texture in real life
lit me up! I couldn’t wait to
get back to my studio to
start experimenting with
thicker paint and palette
knives.”
Early in her career, Jennifer was a portrait painter.
Part of her wanted to move
away from the realist aspect
of her portraits and experiment with subject matter,
technique, and color palette.
It was her first landscape, a
large poppy field packed
end to end with vibrant reds
and greens, that really
awakened the inner artist.
“Surprisingly enough, all
through college I painted
only highly realistic portraits.
In fact, my BFA final project
consisted of 15 large oil
paintings of the human figure. It was only after I graduated that I decided to try a
landscape. There was no
turning back after that. I felt
so liberated with my big
brushes and palette knives.
I knew that I had found my
subject matter.”
This artistic awakening
brought about Jennifer’s
Textures of Life™ technique
in which paint is sculpted on
the canvas, in thick forms
bringing life to trees and
flower petals, some soft,
some rough. Behind the
three-dimensional subjects
is a softer background giving the viewer a deeper perPAGE 38
spective. As her technique
evolved, so did her choice
of paint. “Over the years,
my style became thicker
(especially after seeing the
works
of
van Gogh!)
and I started
experimenting with layering on the
paint with
palette
knives,” she
says. “As
my
paint
got thicker,
the dry time
became
longer. And
who has two
years
to
wait for a
painting to
dry? That is
when I decided
to
paint with
acrylics.
What used
to
take
years, could
now dry in a
matter
of
days. I was
hooked!”
of the canvas are painted on
as they become an extension of the painting.
Inspiration is everywhere
for Vranes.
“I have files
of photos
that I draw
upon when
making
a
composition;
files
of
clouds,
mountains,
fields, trees,
and rivers.
I love to
travel, and
many of my
paintings for
my Romantic Series
come from
Italy
and
France. I especially love
the poppy
fields of Italy
in
spring,
and the lavender fields
of France in
late
summer. For my
Aspen Series, I love
With each
painting the
new layer of “Majestic Fall II” is a thick
rugged terpaint, her acrylic on canvas measuring
rain of Colpalette knives 84 by 30 inches.
orado, Utah,
become
and Canada
smaller, and her strokes during the colorful seasons
more precise. When the en- of spring and autumn.”
tire painting is complete,
she covers the paint with a
Today, Vranes lives with
translucent
glaze
that her husband Matt and their
makes the colors more rich four children in Southern
and adds a shine to the Oregon, having previously
piece. Also, the four sides lived in San Francisco. Her
studio is in her home. “I’ve
always painted where I
lived—it just seemed like
the best solution for being a
full-time mom and full-time
artist. When the kiddos
were little, I would take full
advantage of naptimes and
bedtimes to work, when the
house was quiet. Now that
my youngest is six, life has
gotten easier. I work between eight to 10 hours a
day but my schedule is flexible. Often, my husband
Matt, will take all four children away on a trip for a few
days if I have something especially pressing to finish
up. It’s amazing how much
work I can get done without
any distractions. But I love
family life, and wouldn’t
have it any other way.”
On an international level,
Vranes has been awarded a
spot in “ART in Embassies”
collection in Bamako, Mali,
chosen by the U.S. State
Department. This exclusive
program is a form of cultural
diplomacy for United States
Embassies, and State Department curators.
Her work is published by
JensArt, Central Point, OR,
as giclées on canvas in editions of 50, signed and numbered, and are heavily
enhanced by the artist with
a palette knife. Retail prices
range from $1,450 to
$16,500 for acrylic on canvas work, and $610 to
$2,850 for limited edition giclées. Telephone (866) 4536727 or go to the website
at: www.JensArt.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
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ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 39
JULY12-Business Insider_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:52 AM Page 1
BUSINESS INSIDER
BRIGHTER DAYS MAY BE JUST AHEAD
by George Leeson
The customer at the other
end of the phone line was
discouraged, his voice smaller than I ever remembered.
“It’s been seven
years,” he lamented. “We’ve cut to
the bone, tried
more new things
than ever before.
We’re up a bit this year, yes.
But over what? I just don’t
know what else to do.” A
once-thriving business has
lost its swagger. And that
customer is not alone. Time
to pack it in? Or as we say in
business, cut your loss? I
say: Hang in there, baby!
Brighter days may be just
ahead. O.K., we’ve all
learned the hard way. Our industry is levered to the
housing industry, and the
housing recovery has been
agonizingly slow, confounding the many experts who
have been wrong in their
predictions of a rebound.
You might cynically say that
what we’ve been doing
these past seven years is
building pent-up demand.
But the real cavalry is on the
way: The millennials.
Now, I’m no demographics expert, and I’m not here
to bore you with numbers,
charts, stats. But I remember
well the intonations of one of
my business school profs
echoing the late great business guru, Peter Drucker: In
business, it’s all about the
demographics. DemographPAGE 40
ics predict demand. And demand is the mother’s milk of
business. But first we have
to get the names straight.
The Baby Boomers are
cyon days of the art industry depended on the
Boomers, the following
Gen Xers were fewer in
numbers by roughly 10%.
Could this be a hidden
demographic dagger in
the drop we’ve seen in
business these past
seven years?
• Second, there are a lot of
millennials out there!
Numbers to rival or maybe
even exceed those of the
legendary Boomers.
• Finally, the front edge of
the millennials, the ones
pretty much the Baby
Boomers, and we know all
about them—the post World
War II generation that
swelled school enrollments,
then fueled perhaps the
greatest economic boom in
As business owners, every
the history of
time we hear Millennials,
mankind. Following them
Gen Y or Echo Boomer,
came Gen X,
we should perk up.
also—unflatThat’s salvation talking!
teringly—the
“Me” Generation. The latest
generation has generated
born in the early ’80s, are
the most names: Gen Y
just now approaching
(makes sense, follows X),
30—typically an age when
millennials,
and
Echo
prolonged adolescence
Boomers. For this column,
ends in America and
let’s call them millennials.
young men and women
Here are the numbers:
settle down, buy a house,
• Baby Boomers
raise a family.
(1946-1964): 76 million.
• Gen X (1965-1982):
I know what you’re
66 million.
yelling: So what! These kids
• Millennials (1983-2000): are living with their parents!
80 million.
Assuming the numbers
and time spans are broadly
accurate, several points leap
off the page:
• First, while it’s generally
conceded that the hal-
Why Millennials
Are So Important
To Our Industry
Almost everything under
the sun is cyclical; that in-
cludes economies. As dispirited as we’ve all become,
this recession will end. And
when it does, the millennials
should give a huge boost to
the housing and the wall
décor industries.
Will these buyers have
the same tastes as the
Boomers? Of course not.
Here, Gertrude Stein’s wisdom prevails: People don’t
change, but each generation
sees differently. We already
know the millennials are
more ethnically and racially
diverse than previous generations, better-travelled, more
computer savvy, perhaps
even more social and less individually competitive than
their elders. If the Baby
Boom generation is a reliable precedent, books and
magazine articles will be
written and television reports will go on ad nauseum
about the preferences, profiles, and spending propensities of the millennials.
As business owners, we
need to be keenly conscious
of this new generation. Every
time we hear millennials,
Gen Y, or Echo Boomers, we
should perk up. Listen. Take
notes. It’s not just a matter of
demographics. That’s salvation talking.
George Leeson is owner of
Image Conscious, San Francisco: www.imageconscious.
com or (800) 532-2333.
ART WORLD NEWS
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JUL12-NOE_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:28 AM Page 1
WHAT’S HOT IN OPEN EDITIONS
Coastal
California
“Coastal California” by
Anderson Design Group–
Digital measures 24 by
18 inches ($43). Phone
Bentley Global Arts
Group, Austin, TX, at
(512) 493-9860, or: www.
bentleyglobalarts.com.
Here are the
best selling prints
from the month of
JUNE
Maribel I
Pups
With a
View
“Pups With
a View” by
Carol Saxe
measures
20 by 8
inches and retails for $12. Telephone Fairfield Art Publishing, Brooklyn,
NY, for further information at (800) 835-3539 or go to the company’s
website located at: www.teleky.com.
Pink and Purple
Flowers
“Pink and Purple Flowers” by Silvia
Vassileva measures 36 by 24 inches
and retails for $27. Call Wild Apple,
Woodstock, VT, at (800) 756-8359 or
visit: www.wildapple.com.
New York, New York
“New York, New York” by Christopher Gjevre measures 40 by
13 ½ inches and retails for $30. Telephone Blakeway Worldwide
Panoramas Inc., Minneapolis, MN, at (800) 334-7266 or go to the
company’s website located at: www.panoramas.com.
PAGE 42
“Maribel I” by Suzanne Nicoll
measures 16 by 16 inches and retails
for $20. Phone New York Graphic
Society, Norwalk, CT, for more details
at (800) 677-6947 or go to the
website at: www.nygs.com.
Red Rain
“Red Rain” by
Stefano Corso
measures 24
by 36 inches
and retails
for $32. For
further information, telephone Image
Conscious,
San Francisco,
at (800) 5322333, or visit
the company’s
website
located at: www.imageconscious.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
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LEGAL ISSUES
PROTECTING THE LOOK & FEEL OF ARTWORKS, MAYBE
by Joshua Kaufman
spired” by the work of an- with his perspective of wine
Warning: Let me apologize other. (This is different from bottles and wine glasses.
at the outset for this article. appropriation art which has He presented the art world
It is going to be
gotten a great with a new idea. By the next
a very typical
deal of press of Artexpo, there were dozens
lawyerly
article
late. Appropria- of imitators. Most of them
which comes to
tion art tends to simply took Arvid’s interprea… “well it deliterally copy the tation of a wine bottle or
pends on the
whole or part of a close-up of a filled wine
facts” conclusion.
another artwork glass, created their own imBut do not blame
and transform the agery and were not violating
me, it’s the state
medium, or take Arvid’s rights. Not all were
of the law. Our
an existing art- diligent and some preissue is: Can you
work and add sented works which were
protect the “look
something to it, similar to Arvid’s works and
and feel” of an Joshua Kaufman.
but the original thus were subject to an inartwork or series
artwork appears fringement claim by Arvid.
of works? The situation in whole or in part in the new We need to ask, “Where is
comes about where some- appropriated artwork.)
the line?”
one sees another work, decides that they would like to
license the work or market a
Courts have in certain circumstances
work that is similar to the
found that the copying of the ‘total
previous incarnation, but
concept and feel’ of a work, or series
they know they cannot get
permission, or choose not to
of works, does violate the substantial
get permission for whatever
similarity rule and results in
reason, and then attempt to
an infringement.
“change it enough” so it is
not infringing.
There are many old
wives’ tales about how different a secondary work has
to be in order for it not to be
infringing. We have all heard
about changing five percent,
ten percent, six colors, eight
measures of music, 250
words; they are all old wives’
tales and meaningless.
There are no specific guidelines in copyright law for
what amount of changes are
made to an underlying work
that will provide a safe harbor to someone who is “inPAGE 44
Fundamentally, copyright
law states that an idea cannot be protected; just the
expression of the idea. So
if one looked at someone
else’s artwork and simply
took the underlying idea behind it, but not any expression, that would not be an
infringement and in most instances gives no basis for a
claim. For example, a number of years ago, Thomas
Arvid first came on the
scene and stunned everyone at Artexpo New York
The fundamental test in
copyright is “substantial
similarity.” There are no
hard and fast rules or guidelines as to what that means.
Often at the end of the day,
two works are held up for a
jury of lay people (not people from the art world, art
collectors, or aficionados),
12 ordinary people and they
are told by a judge that if
they find that the works are
“substantially similar,” there
is an infringement and, if
only the idea is copied, then
there is no infringement.
But the protection afforded
an artist under the law does
not stop there. While there
are statements found in
cases that state that a
“style” cannot be protected, there are cases
which state that the “total
concept and feel of a work”
can be protected. This is
sometimes called the “look
and feel” test. The legal
tenet of no protection for
style certainly applies to the
broad category of a general
artistic style, such as one
cannot be stopped from
painting in the cubist style,
the impressionist style, or
the Pop Art style, or anything that broad. However,
when one gets to a particular work or series of works
which do convey a unique
and original “look and feel”
or “total concept and feel,”
courts have in certain circumstances, although it is
not universal, found that the
copying of the “total concept and feel” of a work, or
series of works, does violate the substantial similarity
rule and results in an infringement. That was the situation in cases even when
no specific elements are the
same.
This legal theory came
out of the 9th Circuit, which
is the Federal Courts which
covers the West Coast, in
the early 1970s, and it has
continued on page 46
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LEGAL ISSUES
LEGAL ISSUES
continued from page 44
been adopted by a number
of other courts. It started
with a case dealing with the
artist, Susan Branch, in
which she was asked by an
ad agency to prepare drawings for an advertising campaign for Pepperidge Farm.
Branch
submitted
her
comps to the ad agency and
they were shown and approved by Pepperidge Farm,
however, ultimately they
hired another artist, not Ms.
Branch, to illustrate the ads.
The final ads were very similar in “look and feel” to Ms.
Branch’s comps that had
been submitted. Branch
sued and was successful.
The ad agency and Pepperidge Farm moved to dismiss the suit saying all they
did was take Branch’s ideas,
but not any actual expression that was subject to
copyright protection. The
court found in this case, on
these facts, that “although
plaintiff cannot protect neither her ideas nor her use or
procedures and techniques
to express these ideas, she
can protect creative arrangement and interaction of the
techniques composing the
expression… it is the combination of many different elements which makes it of
copyright protection because of its particular subjective quality.” However,
courts in other cases have
found that there was no protection; that only ideas were
copied. Therefore, one must
look at the specific facts of
PAGE 46
a case to see what was
copied. Was a protectable
expression copied? Was it a
public domain work copied?
Was it based on items
found in nature that were independently created?
An analysis has to be undertaken as to the materials
copied in addition to their
overall “look and feel” and
their arrangements. One
commentator, William Patry,
ignoring a party’s creativity
in the whole.”
One famous judge, Learned Hand, said “The ordinary
observer, unless he sets out
to detect the dissimilarities,
would be disposed to overlook them, and regard their
aesthetic appeal as the
same” and in such circumstances, you would have a
copyright infringement. Another court stated the defen-
The law is hardly clear in the area of
copyright infringement for one who
does not copy specific and exact
elements but does attempt to copy the
overall ‘look and feel.’ Therefore, when
someone does copy the overall look
and feel of another’s work they do so
with the possibility that a court could
find a copyright violation.
summed up the inherent
contradictions in the law as
follows: “The Total Concept
and Feel approach, i.e. comparing the overall appearance of the parties’ works,
may sweep into that consideration of the unprotectable
elements, thereby skewing
the analysis against the defendant and, in the process,
impermissibly expanding the
scope of plaintiff’s copyright. Yet the dissection of a
work into constituent elements, which are then either
separately compared or left
entirely out of the consideration of the works’ overall
similarities, runs the risk of
dant may legitimately avoid
infringement by intentionally
making sufficient changes in
a work which would otherwise be regarded as substantially similar to that of the
plaintiffs. Yet, another court
stated, “…where substantial
similarities are found, small
changes here and there
made by the copier are unavailing. It is only where the
points of dissimilarity exceed
those that are similar and
those similarities are, when
compared to the original
work, of small import, quantitatively or qualitatively that a
finding of no infringement is
appropriate.”
As the reader can see,
the law is hardly clear in the
area of copyright infringement for one who does not
copy specific and exact elements, but does attempt to
copy the overall “look and
feel.” Therefore, when someone does copy the overall
look and feel of another’s
work, they do so with the
possibility that a court could
in fact find a copyright
violation even though no
specific elements were in
fact copied.
Another area where this
same issue comes onto the
legal stage is in trademark
law under the concept of
“trade dress.” Trade dress
is a broad concept where a
consumer is likely to believe
that the source of goods
is based on a certain set
of characteristics. For instance, when you look at
the shape of a Coke bottle
you would know it is from
Coca-Cola without even
looking at the actual name
on the bottle. Trade dress
has expanded into all sorts
of areas from product configuration, packaging, color,
and even to the design and
layout of restaurants. There
have been a number of
trade dress cases which
overlap into this art arena.
They have dealt generally
with greeting card companies where one greeting
card company attempted to
copy the overall appearance
and look of a different company’s cards. Under tradecontinued on page 47
ART WORLD NEWS
APR12-Legal Issues page 3_Layout 1 8/2/12 10:46 AM Page 1
LEGAL ISSUES
continued from page 46
mark law, functional elements cannot be protected,
but in these cases the
courts found that these elements were not functional
and were protected under
the trademark law, specifically the Lanham Act section of the law, as protectable trade dress.
There was also a case
with Harlequin Books in
which the court found that
the overall features of a
book’s cover design were
likely to cause confusion
with the cover of a competitor, found in favor of Harlequin Press. There was even
a specific art law case many
years ago in which the artist
Tarkay sued another artist,
Patricia Govezensky, for
copying his trade dress in
his art works. At the time,
Tarkay was fairly unique in
ART WORLD NEWS
the way he portrayed his
“café women” and Patricia
came out with her own very
similar version of them, but
different enough to not infringe Tarkay’s copyright in
any specific print. They did
have a very similar effect on
the viewer and the court in
that case found that Miss
Govezensky violated Tarkay’s
trade dress. That case
never came to an ultimate
conclusion and there was
not an appellate decision.
Whether it is still good law
is a question, particularly in
light of the supreme court
case called Dastar, in which
the court ruled that the Lanham Act does not cover the
mis-designation of authorship of the work; just the
source of the actual goods
(i.e., the publisher). This all
makes for a very confusing
area of law.
However, a week does
not go by when one of my
artist or publisher clients
does not call with righteous
indignation on how another
artist, or publisher, or licensee imitated their “highly
original” line of prints or
products—all wanting to
know if we could stop
the other party from going
forward.
As you can see, based on
the above, sometimes you
can and sometimes you
cannot as it is a very complicated area of law. Any attorney who would tell you up
front that a “look and feel”
type of case is a slam dunk,
does not understand the nuances of the law. However,
the closer someone copies
the overall “concept and
feel” of a work, where the
ordinary observer is likely to
be deceived as to the origin
of the goods or come away
with a very similar aesthetic
feel, the more likely they are
to be found infringing.
In today’s world where
buyers are demanding the
style and color concept of
the week, every publisher,
agent, and artist is highly
tempted to imitate the success of their competitors, but
they do so with some risk.
Joshua J. Kaufman, Esq. is
a partner in the law firm of
Venable, LLP, and Chair of
their Copyright & Licensing
Group. He is one of the
country’s foremost attorneys
in art, copyright, and licensing law. He has published
more than 200 articles, coauthored several books, and
is a regular lecturer on various topics in the Art Law and
Licensing fields. Mr. Kaufman is also an adjunct law
professor at American University Law School where he
teaches Art Law, and is
counsel to the Art Copyright
Coalition. E-mail Mr. Kaufman at: jjkaufman@venable.
com or call (202) 344-8538.
PAGE 47
JULY12-Cover article page 3_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:05 PM Page 1
OUTLOOK FOR FALL
STAYING POSITIVE
continued from page 22
izing in selling original works
of fine art wholesale to the
trade, also runs an art
gallery in Chicago. He believes discretionary spending will be down this fall.
Educated buyers are concerned about Europe and
especially
Spain
and
Greece, and how these
things are going to affect
them and their dollars, because it is a global economy. He has noticed that
some people are spending
money quickly. “I think they
have had it, and want to
stimulate the economy and
have decided to spend
money on art. But most
people are holding on to
their money. When I am selling tons of art and things are
moving well, they are not
just buying art and framing,
but condos and single family
homes.” But when the
economy tanked, he notes,
commercial property became less valuable and the
funds were not there to
build new condos. Rents, he
adds, are through the roof.
What he is finding at present is that customers are
framing specialty items—
things that mean a lot to
them. He has also found
success in reaching out to
the Jewish community, especially the Jewish United
Fund. They account for
many of his customers at
the gallery. One of the
places he advertises is the
PAGE 48
Jewish newspaper, where
he has seen a return on investment. “They pay you
back as a retailer, but I have
not found any other group.
What you are always looking
for is if you are
spending money,
are you getting it
back?”
over backwards to help our
clients. We visit their homes
and make suggestions (for
hanging their collection).” In
fact, Mr. Chasen hopes to
be invited to visit more
On the wholesale
side of his business,
Mr. Slaymaker believes in going out
on the road. In the
fall, he will send out
his trucks, and he
and two representatives will cover the
entire U.S., visiting
art galleries and
corporate accounts,
beginning at the
Canadian
border
and moving south to
Miami as winter sets
in. “Personally, I will
have a good fall,” he “Waiting” by Daniel Del Orfano,
says, adding that hand-embellished canvas available
nothing beats show- in two sizes: an edition of 75, 32 by
ing the art in person. 48 inches ($2,150) and an edition
“I can’t see the tex- of 50, 20 by 30 inches ($995). Visit:
ture or quality of the www.lamantiagallery.com/fineart.
art from a J-peg. I
need to see the art itself.” It homes, as that can segue
is the same for galleries, and into additional sales. But
that is why he takes the art with the economy as it is,
to them to look at before some collectors are looking
purchasing.
to sell their artwork rather
than acquire new paintings.
At Chasen Galleries of Occasionally, Chasen GalFine Art in Richmond, VA, leries will offer to sell a
“service” is the mantra. piece. Mr. Chasen did take
Says gallery owner Andrew an original Pino from someChasen, “We have always one to sell. But he is not
had exceptional customer going to take a painting from
service.” But now that is 25 years ago with outdated
doubly so. “There is more colors and by a relatively unfollow up—and we bend known artist, “Of course,
not.” Instead he will suggest a consignment gallery
or a local auction.
A relatively new service
that has been added by
Chasen Galleries is to offer
professional staging for
homes and offices to effectively prepare the property
for sale, lease, or a special
event. Also, nowadays, he is
doing much more Internet
marketing and taking out
paid ads on Facebook. This
fall, he is holding a special
event, “DIFF4ENT,” on Saturday, September 29, when
four local artists will be painting the same still life in the
gallery during the afternoon.
That evening there will be a
reception, with the artists
present, when their still lifes
and other of their works will
be available for sale. “That is
something we have not
done before to get people
interested, and bring new
customers into the gallery.
People like to see artists at
work.” The artists are Trisha
Adams, Elaine Elinsky, Christine Lashley, and Libby
Stevens, all from northern
Virginia.
At Arts Exclusive, what
Philip Janes is marketing is
not so much the art, but the
creative process symbolized
by what is produced by the
30 artists he represents, and
their understanding of the
philosophy of the gallery,
“The promotion of creative
development.” His marketing
is through e-mail, brochures,
continued on page 50
ART WORLD NEWS
JUL12-OE_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:40 AM Page 1
OPEN EDITION PRINTS
SunDance
Graphics
"Tall Leaves
Square I"
by
Patricia Pinto
Image Size:
24 “ x 24”
Item #: 8862A
www.sdgraphics.com
407.240.1091
www.sundancegraphics.com
E-MAIL: sarah@
sundancegraphics.com
9580 Delegates Dr.
Orlando, FL 32837
Editions
Limited
“No Place to Fall”
by William Vanscoy
Image size:
18” x 18”
Retail price:
$20
800.228.0928
www.editionslimited.com
E-MAIL: customerservice@editionslimited.com
4090 Halleck Street, Emeryville, CA 94608
New York
Graphic
Society
“Patchwork I”
by Judi Bagnato
Image Size:
26" x 26"
Retail Price:
$36
800.677.6947
www.nygs.com
E-MAIL: richard@nygs.com
129 Glover Avenue, Norwalk, CT 06850
ART WORLD NEWS
Image
Conscious
“Red Rain”
by
Stefano Corso
Image Size:
24" x 36"
800.532.2333
www.imageconscious.com
Zhee Singer
Studio
10451
“Royal Carnation Flower
– Ashlin Red”
413.664.0740
www.ZheeSingerStudio.com
Haddad’s
Fine Arts Inc.
“Possibilities”
by E. Jarvis
Image Size:
24” x 24”
Retail Price:
$30
800.942.3323
Fax: 714.996.4153
www.haddadsfinearts.com
E-MAIL: cfskeen@haddadsfinearts.com
3855 E. Mira Loma Ave., Anaheim, CA 92806
PAGE 49
JULY12-Cover article page 4_Layout 1 8/2/12 12:08 PM Page 1
OUTLOOK FOR FALL
STAYING POSITIVE
continued from page 48
word-of-mouth, and importantly, through the various organizations that the gallery
has partnered with and of
which he is a member or on
the board. “Serendipity and
fortuitousness are what I believe in,” says Mr. Janes. “I
reach out with love in what I
believe in.” He believes that
the more one reaches out,
the more one will get back. “I
see that all the time in this
gallery. Does it translate into
money? ‘No.’ Does one have
to fight to keep the doors
open? ‘Yes.’ It is exhausting.
I work on Mondays when we
are supposed to be closed
because you have to be
there when opportunity
knocks. Whenever I have
gone on trips or a vacation,
it is all about connecting. And
will that come back? Yes, it
will. Sales—eventually—and
a lifestyle that people can
get involved in and that does
translate into acquisitions.”
Mr. Janes, asks, “How
many stores are closed because they (those who ran
them) thought they deserved something? They
didn’t. We have to fight for
what we believe in and that
is what we have to do to
survive.”
In total, Mr. Janes has
forged partnerships (mutually beneficial relationships)
with seven entities, local, regional, and international.
They are: Charter Oak Cultural Center, Prevent Blindness Tri-State, Farmington
PAGE 50
Valley Symphony Orchestra,
McLean, Faith Health Care
Center, Masoola, Uganda;
Simsbury Light Opera Company, and Steeno Sports
Memorabilia. If anyone connected to these organizations comes to Arts
Exclusive, they receive 10%
off their purchase, and an
Another form of outreach
that Mr. Janes participates
in, is to invite a group of
children, accompanied by
a teacher, from the local
children’s center to come
to the gallery for a talk. “I
have 20–25 of the little
munchkins come to the
gallery where I give them a
“Train of
Thought B” by
Robert
Hoglund,
monotype
collage,
36 by 24
inches,
retails for
$1,800 from
Slaymaker
Gallery, Chicago. Woody Slaymaker chose this work to express his and his wife Fangji’s affinity for the Chicago El
Train. “Our building, which sits just under the tracks, has
been featured in the movies “The Untouchables,” “Public
Enemies,” “Only the Lonely,” and “Wanted.” It was built
at the turn of the century and is filled with unique architectural features, as well as a brick façade that created the
perfect set for these films. Slaymaker gallery is proud to
feature and preserve the historical presence of this building.” To reach the company: www.slaymakerfineartltd.com.
additional 10% goes to one
of the partnership organizations. “One of the things that
is fantastic is it gets people
involved in the cause, and
once they purchase from us
they are on our mailing list,
and that is a reminder not
just of the gallery, but the
cause. So when they look at
their painting, they know it
has something to do with
the Congo or the Farmington Valley Symphony Orchestra, or which ever they
supported of our partners.”
talk about what you see with
your eyes, and I bring them
through the process of
painting, and it is extremely
exciting. They sat for 35–40
minutes, mesmerized.” This
is promoted in the school’s
newsletter, and parents are
given a coupon allowing
10% of their purchase to
go towards enhancing the
children’s center. Says Mr.
Janes, “I would like to be
more financially successful,
as I was at the end of the
’80s. Those were different
times, but who says we can’t
get a new generation of people excited about art?”
Phil Koss of American
Fine Art Editions Inc., Scottsdale, AZ, also is optimistic.
“I continue to see Léger,
Picasso, LeRoy Neiman,
Miró, Warhol, and others set
records and keep people
interested because they
want to buy quality. They
don’t want to take a risk.
Something I have always
espoused is to buy the best
of what you can afford
and love.”
His first half of this year
was steady as was the same
period last year. Yet, as he
says, a major event can
change the graph completely, such as the passing
of a well known artist. Sadly,
there have been several in
our part of the market, LeRoy
Neiman in June, 2012; Thomas Kinkade in April, 2012;
and Pino in May, of 2010.
Politics, also will play a
large part through to the
November presidential election. As those we have interviewed for this article attest,
it won’t be easy. But each
is taking a proactive stance.
“We are shooting for the
stars, and if we land on the
moon, that is O.K.,“ says
Mr. Koss. “We are planning
that everything will be terrific, then we take it one
day at a time. That is how
we do best.”
Sarah Seamark is Editor in
Chief of Art World News.
ART WORLD NEWS
JUL12-NewArt-pg1_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:19 AM Page 1
NEW ART
Lumiere du Matin
(Morning Light)
Ballet Dreams
Global Fine Art, South Bend, IN, presents “Lumiere du
Matin (Morning Light)” by JalinePol as a giclée on canvas
in an edition of 50. The image size is 36 by 12 inches and
the retail price is $950. For further information, telephone
Global Fine Art at (574) 288-2738 or visit the company’s
website located at: www.gfafineart.com.
Addison Art Group, Boca Raton, FL, presents Richard Johnson’s “Ballet Dreams” as a giclée on canvas in an edition
of 195, measuring 24 by 18 inches. The retail price is
$1,200. For further information, call (561) 338-9007 or visit:
www.addisonartgroup.com.
Black & White:
Various Shades of Truth
Atelier Arica
H i l t o n ,
Chicago,
d e b u t s
“Black
&
White: Various Shades
of Truth” by
Arica Hilton
as a giclée
on canvas in
an edition of
15 ($950)
and on paper
in an edition
of 25 ($750).
The image
size is 24
by 30 inches.
Te l e p h o n e
(312) 4751788 for further information, or go to the artist’s
website located at: www.aricahilton.com.
ART WORLD NEWS
Prosperity
Infinite Vision Art, Minneapolis, presents “Prosperity” by
Pamela Sukhum as a mixed media with each panel measuring 36 by 36 inches. The retail price is $8,400. For further
information, telephone (612) 207-8148 or go to the artist’s
website located at: www.infinitevisionart.com.
PAGE 51
JUL12-GalLights_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:16 AM Page 1
GALLERY LIGHTS
At Addison Art Gallery, located in Orleans, MA, encaustic
artist Marc Kundmann, left, celebrates the opening reception
of artist Elizabeth Pratt’s show along with collectors Remy
and Paul Catherall.
Mosshouse SF gallery director Brian Perrin, left, and curator
Scott Jennings are pictured at the an Francisco-based
gallery during the “Good Counsel” exhibit featuring the work
of six artists creating a visual narrative of storytelling.
Signature Gallery, located in Laguna Beach, CA, was the
setting of a show for artist Bob Pejman, second from the
right, shown here with, from left, gallery art consultants Alina
Calva and Brooke Terry, and gallery director Jessica Fry.
At Marlborough Chelsea, New York, are, from left, director
Pascal Spengemann and art critic Jerry Saltz pictured during
a group show featuring the artwork of eleven artists. On the
gallery’s lower level was a solo exhibit by Joe Deutch.
Artist Pamela Sukhum, third from left, is shown at her
opening reception held at Vinings Gallery, Smyrna, GA,
with, from left, gallery owner Gary Handler, and collectors
David Crane and Maria Crane.
Eli Klein Fine Art owner Eli Klein, far right, is pictured at the
New York Gallery with artists, from left, Wang Lei and Gao
Rong, co-artistic director of Sydney Biennale Catherine de
Zegher, and artist Li Hongbo during “Material → Object.”
PAGE 52
ART WORLD NEWS
JUL12-Classifieds_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:12 AM Page 1
CLASSIFIEDS
SERVICES
PROFIT WITH BOOKS
Sales of custom published art books nurture relationships with new clients,
or given as a gift, deepen collectors’ passion for your artists.
Art Books Sell Art!
Phone 203.854.8566 or send an e-mail to: jwhaffey@aol.com
to learn more about Art World News’ custom book publishing programs.
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ART WORLD NEWS
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ART WORLD NEWS
PAGE 53
JUL12-Index_Layout 1 8/2/12 11:17 AM Page 1
ADVERTISERS
COMPANY LISTING
PHONE
PAGE
American Fine Art Editions Inc. ......................................28, 29
COMPANY LISTING
PHONE
PAGE
The Moss Portfolio............................................................4, 5
www.americanfineartgallery.com
www.pbuckleymoss.com
800.466.8276
Arnot Galleries ..................................................................56
www.arnotart.com
212.245.8287
Artisan Direct Ltd. ..............................................................25
www.artisandirectltd.net
585.586.3535
Banovich Studios ..............................................................23
www.johnbanovich.com
888.486.3160
Barney Davey....................................................................47
www.barneydavey.com/AWN
www.bartonstudios.com
760.439.6212
Canadian Art Prints & Winn Devon Art Group Inc. ................45
www.canadianartprints.com
800.663.1166
Classic Publications ..............................................................6
www.pinoart.com
201.541.9112
Editions Limited..................................................................43
www.editionslimited.com
800.228.0928
Fattahi’s Fine Arts ..............................................................33
www.marcfattahi.com
203.329.0000
Framerica ....................................................................1, 31
www.framerica.com
800.372.6422
GE Capital........................................................................14
www.gogecapital.com/luxury
866.209.4457
Haddad’s Fine Arts Inc. ......................................................49
www.haddadsfinearts.com
800.532.2333
Infinite Vision Art ..............................................................19
www.infinitevisionart.com
612.207.8148
JensArt ............................................................................37
www.jensart.com
541.291.9781
LaMantia Fine Art Inc. ........................................................35
www.lamantiagallery.com/fineart
866.638.1800
Larson-Juhl ......................................................................2, 3
www.larsonjuhl.com
www.fazzino.com
914.654.9370
New York Graphic Society ..................................................49
www.nygs.com
800.677.6947
Park West Gallery ..............................................................23
www.parkwestgallery.com
800.521.9654
Parrot Digigraphic Ltd. ..................................................8, 53
877.727.7682
PB&H Moulding Corporation ..............................................53
www.pbhmoulding.com
800.746.9724
Pease Pedestals ................................................................21
www.peasepedestals.com
847.901.4440
Penny Lane Fine Art & Licensing ..........................................39
www.pennylanepublishing.com
800.273.5263
Robert Finale Editions ........................................................21
www.robertfinaleeditions.com
770.345.8691
Rosenstiel’s........................................................................39
www.felixr.com
480.305.0714
Sagebrush Fine Art ............................................................15
www.sagebrushfineart.com
800.643.7243
Scott Jacobs Studio ............................................................17
www.scottjacobsstudio.com
858.756.6725
800.942.3323
Image Conscious ..............................................................49
www.imageconscious.com
Museum Editions Ltd. ............................................................9
www.parrotcolor.com
Barton Studios ..................................................................11
800.430.1320
800.438.5031
Sun Dance Graphics ..........................................................49
www.sundancegraphics.com
407.240.1091
The Art of Todd Goldman....................................................27
www.toddisstupid.com
727.462.6205
Thomas Charles Editions LLC ..............................................13
www.thomascharleseditions.com
623.582.4500
Wellspring Communications ................................................55
e-mail: jwhaffey@aol.com
203.854.8566
Wild Apple ......................................................................41
www.wildapple.com
802.457.3003
Jenna Lash ........................................................................19
Zhee Singer Studio ............................................................49
www.jennalash.com
www.zheesingerstudio.com
914.941.0201
413.664.0740
Art World News, (ISSN 1525 1772) Volume XVII, Number 7, is published 10 times a year by Wellspring Communications, Inc.,
143 Rowayton Ave., Rowayton, CT 06853. (Phone 203.854.8566) (Fax 203.854.8569). Single copy price $10.
Send address changes to: Art World News, P.O. Box 129, Rowayton, CT 06853.
PAGE 54
ART WORLD NEWS
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