Seth Ruggles Hiler – New England Painting Tour 2010
After my opening for the Monmouth Museum’s “NJ Emerging Artist Series: Seth Ruggles Hiler – Portraits” on July 16th, in Lindcroft, NJ – see video, below – I hit the road, traveling north to Maine. Leaving behind my “20-Something” Portrait Painting Series (I am so over 20-somethings!), I am ready to avert my gaze to the landscape and engage in plein-air painting for the rest of the summer.
My first stop is Stonington, ME on Deer Isle. Stopping in Portland to visit artist Rachel Watson Sunday evening, and getting lost on the last leg up Monday morning, I arrived to meet artist and instructor, Jon Imber, by noon. I first met Jon in March during my residency at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, VT. Jon was a visiting artist who lectured and gave studio crits with the over 35 VSC residents. I was very impressed with the work from his forty years of professional painting – he has focused on themes with which I often grapple: the figure, narrative, landscape, color, the fine line between representation and abstraction… (he was also a student of Philip Guston!)
Seth Ruggles Hiler is an artist and arts educator from Boonton, NJ. He received a BFA from Syracuse University in 2002 and an MFA from the New York Academy of Art in 2005. He is a portrait painter at heart, but landscape is his mistress. Grab your French easel and enjoy the ride!
More aus Deutschland: Print Museum, Berlin and Halle!
 |
| an antique wood engraving |
by Aliene De Souza Howell (MFA 2011)
Leah Flam, the director’s intern, has been the most kind translator and ambassador to Leipzig we could ask for. She brought us to the Museum of Printing Arts in Leipzig. Gutenberg’s Printing Revolution found much enthusiasm here and the museum has preserved presses from the 1500s, the oldest known worldwide which STILL work!
One of the staff gave us demonstrations on multiple machines and even let us print our own.
 |
| an installation from the Berlin Biennale |
After exploring more museums in Leipzig, Berlin seduced me yet again. I voyaged there with Anita DeSoto, a New Zealand painter who is also doing a residence here at LIA. We made it through 3 of the 6 venues housing “What is Waiting Out There,†the title of the 6th Berlin Biennale. The title is indicative of the work, which had a largely political bent, its statement rejecting the notion that art is separate from the global socio-economic climate. In the Alte Nationalgalerie contemporary works were shown adjacent to Menzel, producing a historical dialogue and a surprising aesthetic sparkle given the overwhelming contemporary mediums of choice were video and installation. Also in Berlin, Anita and I were taken with the Martin-Gropius Bau Museum, exhibiting Olafur Eliasson’s Innen Stadt Außen and the Frida Kahlo Retrospective.
We finished the trip with the Holocaust Memorial. It was somber, artistic, provocative and just abstract enough to let one walk away with a unique experience.
 |
| (“protecting the castle”) |
Back in Leipzig long enough to get some solid painting in, we were treated to Leah’s largess once again, and were whisked away to the town of Halle, half an hour outside of Leipzig. Our first stop was the medieval castle Moritzburg which housed a large collection of the Die Brucke painters and a selection of impeccable ancient crafts. The rooms ranged from musty and castle-y to elegantly carved and inlaid wood walls and ceilings. The next stop was the house of Handel! Its highlights included an antique piano as large as a Manhattan bedroom, costumes from opera performances and a white wrought-iron vine tunnel room.
 |
| chocolate SeaHorse made by a local art student (maybe time to switch mediums?) |
And our final destination there was an olfactory extravaganza, Germany’s oldest chocolate factory! And yes, there were free samples. This was a tasty way to see Germany’s industrial history as well as witness the production of some of the world’s favorite treats. The entrance to the museum was designed to assimilate the deck of a ship, sailing the viewer through the voyage of the cacao bean. The final rooms conjured the spirit of Willy Wonka, with one room made entirely of chocolate. There was also an exhibition of chocolate pieces made by local art students including a larger than life sea horse, chess set and bustier!
Meanwhile we are working fast and hard in preparation for our final exhibit, which opens one week from today!
Lightning Rod – Martha Mayer Erlebacher
Martha Mayer Erlebacher was trained originally in Abstract Expressionism, but (along with her husband Walter) broke from this school in the late 60’s and quickly became recognized as one of the leading representational figurative and still-life artists in America. As a faculty member at the New York Academy of Art for several years, she has served as Faculty Chair and directed the anatomy program. She regularly shows her work nationally and internationally and her work has been featured in many books and periodicals. Erlebacher’s work examines the deep metaphorical and social themes of contemporary culture through her painterly and aesthetic images.
In January, New York gallerist Jeffrey Deitch was chosen as Director of the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art. This is the most recent example of the close and interconnected relationship between museums, their boards of directors, collectors, gallerists, auction houses and artists. How or will the further tightening of relationships among these groups impact on the world of representational or figurative painting or of the creation of visual art in general?
Expansion/Renovations: Overview 2
Mike Smith, Operations Manager at the Academy, continues his Overview this week and will be updating us throughout the summer.
Follow our blog and see regular updates on the project! See our Flickr page for more photos.
Please click here to contribute to the project.
Hallo aus Deutschland: Leipzig, Berlin
by Aliene De Souza Howell (MFA 2011)
We have also explored Leipzig’s thriving cultural scene! The Fine Arts Museum of Leipzig currently is displaying half of a massive retrospective of the prolific local master, Neo Rauch, in honor of his 50th birthday, the other half being shown in Munich. I stood in awe of the vibrant colors and seamlessly combined compositions of personal and local political history. The Stasi Museum and History Museum here provided insightful and provocative insight into GDR era Germany. Together we attended a stunning performance of the Leipzig philharmonic performance as part of the Bach festival in honor of his 225th birthday.
 |
| Kylie Manning’s Thesis painting at the NYAA |
We also had the opportunity to support one of the Academy’s own, Kylie Manning, at The Caps Lock Project gallery in Berlin. (http://www.liap.eu/de/) There we also enjoyed the phenomenal museums home to the country’s capital with an incredibly extensive Egyptian Art Collection. The breadth of the trip is difficult to convey and I dare say has been culturally rewarding and has had a strong artistic impact on us.
Get Out of Town!
If you feel like escaping the city this weekend then head out to Bridgehampton. You can checkout ArtHamptons in the morning and then spend the rest of the day at the beach. It’s a few hours on the Long Island Railroad and you can bring your bike on the train for easy transportation upon arrival. You can also rent a Zipcar or take the Jitney bus though bikes are not allowed. There is a surprising amount of figurative work at the fair this year and not from the usual suspects. You can see recent NYAA Fellow Philip Thomas’s painting at the Richard J. Demato Fine Arts booth. Then head down Ocean Road to the beach!
Another option is to head upstate on the Metro North Railroad to Beacon and checkout the DIA:Beacon The museum houses the DIA Art Foundations collection of art from the 1960’s to the present. It is renowned for its site specific installations and is situated on 31 beautiful acres in an old Nabisco factory on the banks of the Hudson River. Definitely worth a visit.
Hallo aus Deutschland!
I am Aliene De Souza Howell, a current Academy student who received one of four residency grants to work in Leipzig, Germany for 2 months this summer. This opportunity was earned through hard work of course, in the form of strong grades, volunteer contributions to the academy and an attitude cognizant of an individual’s responsibility to a community. The other students who are currently here are Ian Yi Cao, Rabecca Signorello, and Tyler Vouros. My posts in this blog will detail the work and experiences being made here in Germany.
The Leipzig school is a vital and indispensable part of the figurative microcosm of the ever-expanding contemporary art world. It is amazing to be here, in the same converted cotton mill studio building as Neo Rauch, the forerunner of this narrative surrealist movement. It has galvanized all of us to experiment with our freshly acquired Academy skills. More photos to come!
Expansion/Renovations: Overview
As you may know, the Academy began upgrading facilities at 111 Franklin Street to better enhance our curriculum. Last summer (2009), the classrooms and hallway on the 5th floor were renovated to be brighter and use space more efficiently. A new track lighting system was installed, too. In between the classrooms, the hallway was widened for a new gallery space. The Dean’s office (formerly on 5th) was relocated to 4th floor. The jogs and jags of the walls in the “Cast Hall” on main floor have been evened out in order to better exhibit artwork.
This summer, the Academy is embarking on the second phase of a major renovation, including an all-new fresh air ventilation system. New studio spaces with permanent walls and enhanced lighting on 2nd floor along with a new classroom will provide better workspaces for students and instructors. The fall semester of 2010 will see the opening of our new space at 105 Franklin which will house our new and improved library, an additional classroom and an expansion of the gallery space in the front entry on Franklin Street.
Mike Smith, Operations Manager at the Academy, will be updating us throughout the summer and has just uploaded three introductory videos on our YouTube channel giving you a sneak peek of the progress.
Follow our blog and see regular updates on the project!
Please click here to contribute to the project.
Career Day 2010
The New York Academy of Art will be holding its inaugural Career Day on Wednesday September 22, 2010 from 12:30pm-2:00pm. The purpose is to encourage students and alumni to think outside the box in terms of opportunities and fields of interest that create options for employment. Career Day will be held in Wilkinson Hall with tables representing possible job, internship, and/or assistantship opportunities. Please complete this SURVEY to let us know how you would like to be involved. Your support is greatly appreciated. Email Elvin Freytes at efreytes@nyaa.edu for any questions. Thank you.
Summer Exhibition 2010
-
- Carrie Adams
-
- Rita Alves
-
- Kiley Amesklein
-
- ShinYoung An
-
- Craig Banholzer
-
- Craig Banholzer
-
- William Bolton
-
- Dina Brodsky
-
- Jessica Brodsky
-
- Maya Brodsky
-
- Maya Brodsky
-
- Maya Brodsky
-
- Harold Brooks
-
- Claudia Butz
-
- Claudia Butz
-
- Yi Cao
-
- Thomas John Carlson
-
- Thomas John Carlson
-
- Jenny Chi
-
- Bonnie Dewitt
-
- Uziel Duarte
-
- Alphonso Dunn
-
- Alphonso Dunn
-
- Tgarrett Eaton
-
- Nicole Etienne
-
- Nicole Etienne
-
- Samuel Evensen
-
- Stephanie Fitzgerald
-
- Steve Forster
-
- Laura Frazure
-
- Debra Goertz
-
- Loretta Hirsch
-
- Catherine Howe
-
- Holly Hudson
-
- Holly Hudson
-
- Caitlin Hurd
-
- Land Hurd
-
- Tat Ito
-
- Laura Karetzky
-
- Laura Karetzky
-
- Karl Koett
-
- Karl Koett
-
- Karl Koett
-
- Will Kurtz
-
- Will Kurtz
-
- Joseph Lauer
-
- Nicole LeBarge
-
- Lisa Lebofsky
-
- Jeremy Leichman
-
- MeyMey Lim
-
- Ayumi Matsuba
-
- Peter Mauehlhaeusser
-
- Michael Meadors
-
- Gary Murphy
-
- Chris Oricchio
-
- David Pettibone
-
- David Pettibone
-
- Laura Peturson
-
- Nicholas Rispoli
-
- Patrick Romine
-
- Michael Smith
-
- Timothy Smith
-
- Timothy Smith
-
- Susan Siegel
-
- Vithya Truong
-
- Vithya Truong
-
- Tunping Wang
-
- Nat Wildgrube
-
- Kenneth Wong
-
- Yang Yuanyuan
-
- Yang Yuanyuan
