« December 2006 | Main | February 2007 »
January 26, 2007
Judith Friedel, Chair, San Diego Jewish Film Festival, 1-26-07
The 17th Annual San Diego Jewish Film Festival, sponsored by the Mizel Family Foundation, and presented by the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center, JACOBS FAMILY CAMPUS, will run February 8-18, 2007.
The San Diego Jewish Film Festival showcases nearly 50 of the best contemporary Jewish themed films from around the world celebrating life, human rights, and freedom of expression. In addition to the carefully selected short-subject, documentary, and feature length films, the Film Festival features an international roster of visiting guest artists, including actors, filmmakers, and scholars, who introduce their work, participate in panel discussions, and meet and greet with the festival patrons.
Judith Friedel has been the Co-Chair and Chair of the San Diego Jewish Film Festival for the past five years. At the Lawrence Family Jewish Community Center she also served as Chair of the Streisand Festival of New Jewish Plays and is currently Vice President of the San Diego Center for Jewish Culture at the JCC. Other previous positions include 14 years as Public and Community Relations Coordinator for KPBS Television and Radio and five years as Editor of Applause Magazine for the Performing Arts. She has served on the boards of the San Diego Performing Arts League, Eveoke Dance Theatre, and the East County Performing Arts Center.
Posted by David Lemberg at 12:18 PM | Comments (0)
Brooke Hodge, Curator of Architecture and Design, The Museum of Contemporary Art in Los Angeles, 1-26-07
Brooke Hodge’s most recent project is Skin + Bones: Parallel Practices in Fashion and Architecture, a major thematic exhibition that examines the intersections and overlaps between fashion and architecture. Skin + Bones is on view at The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, until March 5, 2007. In addition, Ms. Hodge was one of four curators of the National Design Triennial, which is currently on view at the Cooper-Hewitt, National Design Museum, in New York.
Organized by The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles and curated by Brooke Hodge, the museum’s Curator of Architecture and Design, Skin + Bones is the first major museum exhibition devoted to the extensive and telling similarities between contemporary architecture and fashion. Skin + Bones explores the parallels between the “skin”—or exterior surface—and the “bones”—or structural framework—of both clothing and buildings of the past 25 years. Forty-five of today’s most brilliant and creative fashion designers and architects are represented by a wide range of more than 300 objects: from stunning one-of-a-kind haute couture gowns to intricate architectural models and special full-scale installations. This exhibition is the first opportunity for viewers in the United States to see many of the works.
Posted by David Lemberg at 12:15 PM | Comments (0)
Mira Cook, Dancer and Choreographer, 1-26-07
Mira Cook is a dancer and choreographer. She began her training at the age of 3 and was performing regularly by the age of 6 with the Youth Ballet Theatre of Austin (TX). Ms. Cook went on to dance in the corps de ballet as a trainee with Ballet Austin and in leading roles with the Austin Dance Ensemble. She has danced in programs at Boston Ballet, University of Utah, and most recently LINES Contemporary Ballet's professional workshop.
Ms. Cook is in her fifth season as a company dancer with City Ballet of San Diego. She recently performed as Principal in City Ballet’s production of Rubies by George Balanchine.
Choreography by Ms. Cook includes Two Fold, performed by City Ballet of San Diego in 2006, Radial performed by members of City Ballet of San Diego in 2005, and Midnight in a Perfect World, performed by the Austin Dance Ensemble in 2001.
Posted by David Lemberg at 12:13 PM | Comments (0)
January 18, 2007
Kim Martindale, Producer, Los Angeles Art Show, 1-19-07
The acclaimed Los Angeles Art Show, considered one of the most prestigious annual expositions in the United States, is returning for its 12th year, January 24-28, 2007. Presented by FADA (Fine Art Dealers Association), the Los Angeles Art Show is a rare opportunity for both seasoned collectors and the general public to view and purchase works representing “Five Centuries of Fine Art”. More than 80 top domestic and international galleries will display a range of work from Old Masters and Impressionists, to traditional art with a regional flavor (such as Western art, Taos and Hudson River Valley Schools, and California Impressionists), to Abstract Expressionists and contemporary art. Vetting is made possible by sponsorship from FADA.
The LA Art Show began in Pasadena with 16 participating galleries. Fourteen years and 12 shows later the event now holds more than 80 international galleries.
For almost three decades Kim Martindale has been producing some of the country’s most noted historic art shows. In the last ten years, he’s also been involved with contemporary art shows.
Producer of the Marin Indian Art Show which now celebrates 22 years of success, and the Los Angeles Art Show for 11 years on behalf of the Fine Art Dealers Association and in conjunction with Architectural Digest Magazine, Martindale’s credits also include the Native American Art Show, held in association with the Denver Art Museum, the Scottsdale Antiques and Fine Art Show, and ARTscottsdale both in association with the Phoenix Art Museum and Art and Antiques Magazine. He also produces the Santa Monica Indian Art Show, which is sponsored by SouthwestArt Magazine.
Always ready to expand the horizons of American art, Martindale is currently at work on the upcoming Latin American Art Show, 2007, in Los Angeles, which will be held in conjunction with the Museum of Latin American Art.
Posted by David Lemberg at 01:53 PM | Comments (0)
Jori Finkel, Art Critic and Journalist, 1-19-07
Jori Finkel is an art critic and journalist based in L.A., where she regularly covers contemporary art for The New York Times. She also writes reviews for Art in America, news articles for Artnews, and features for Art+Auction magazine. Finkel has been Art+Auction’s West Coast contributing editor since 2004; before that, she was the magazine’s senior editor for six years in New York. Finkel lectures widely on topics in the art market, contemporary art, and the history of photography.
Posted by David Lemberg at 01:50 PM | Comments (0)
January 10, 2007
George Billis, Founder and Owner, George Billis Gallery, New York, NY and Los Angeles, CA, 1-12-07
When George Billis first opened his gallery in March of 1997, he was one of a small sprinkling of galleries on what was then a culturally desolate stretch of West 26th Street. Displaying both determination and financial insight, he seized the opportunity to rent an inexpensive space in Chelsea, a neighborhood whose impending popularity he rightfully predicted. After studying at New York University and working at several Soho galleries, Billis felt confident in his ability to curate and direct his own gallery.
Billis knew exactly whose work he wanted to show in his space. He befriended many artists whose work he admired, but who lacked representation. Billis saw the gallery as a way to expose the public to the artists whose work he respected and help jump-start their careers, all while making a name for himself as a reputable dealer. As only the twelfth gallery to open in Chelsea, a neighborhood that currently is host to over 300 galleries, Billis was successful in establishing himself while the Chelsea art scene continued to grow as he predicted. His gallery grew along with the neighborhood, and in 2002, Billis moved to the current location, a larger ground floor space on West 25th St.
Billis’s success as a dealer allowed him to experiment with showing different styles of art. He prefers not to limit himself to one genre, sometimes mixing hyper-realism and abstract works in adjacent shows. When reviewing new work, he prefers to choose artists based on quality, not subject. On any given day, his permanent collection may contain a large abstract work by Michael Rich, with Pollock-like drips of berry hued paint, next to an oil painting of light reflecting off of a glass door, rendered in photographic precision, by Detroit-based artist Stephen Magsig.
George Billis Gallery is an exhibition space located in the heart of the art district of Chelsea. After curating various exhibitions featuring artist Ross Bleckner, Alexis Rockman, Katherine Bowling and Oliver Herring; and publishing feature articles on artists Cindy Sherman, Richard Phillips and Taro Chiezo, George Billis opened his own commercial gallery on April 1, 1997. The gallery features works by emerging artists. On September 10, 2004, a Los Angeles branch was opened in the Culver City arts district.
Posted by David Lemberg at 02:11 PM | Comments (0)
Kari Nevil, President, JuneBug Films, 1-12-07
A filmmaker with 22 years in the business, Kari Nevil still has the spunk and tenacity of recent film school grad but with the confidence and wisdom that only “time served” can bring.
The Los Angeles native transitioned to the film industry from advertising in the mid-1980s, landing at Walt Disney Studios where she worked in script coverage. For the next five years, she worked in various areas of movie and music video production for Touchstone Pictures, Universal Studios, EMI, Capitol Records and MCA.
In 1990, she opened up her own shop, JuneBug Productions and JuneBug Films Incorporated (named for her beloved Labrador retriever), in San Francisco. Since its formation, JuneBug has created numerous commercials, music videos, PSAs and corporate videos.
But Nevil’s true passion is filmmaking, evidenced by the company’s diverse array of award-winning short films and feature films including The Strange Condition of Professor DeGroot and At Risk, which Nevil produced, and Your Guardian, Planting Melvin, and Car Stories, which she wrote, directed and produced. Nevil is currently writing the screenplay for JuneBug’s upcoming feature film, Jonathan’s Wedding.
Planting Melvin (2005), also written, directed and produced by Nevil, was named as the Audience Award Winner for Second Best Feature at the Hearts & Minds Film Festival (Wilmington, DE) and selected as a finalist at the Moondance International Films Festival . The film, about an unlikely friendship between a beautiful socialite and a dying veteran and the secret lives they are protecting, has won acclaim from advocacy groups and arts organizations including its recent selection by the National Film Review Board of Canada for “representing anti-violence against women and children in an international way.” Planting Melvin has also screened at the ReelHeART International Film Festival (Toronto) and Breckenridge Film Festival.
Car Stories (2006), JuneBug’s first foray into documentary films, made its debut at Cinequest. With an original score by guitar legend Ronnie Montrose, the documentary, which also screened at the Jacksonville Film Festival and California Independent Film Festival (October 2006), explores Americans’ love affair with their cars.
Posted by David Lemberg at 02:09 PM | Comments (0)
Steven J. Vasilion, Principal, Vasilion Architects, 1-12-07
Steve Vasilion is a life-long Chicago area resident. He attended the University of Illinois, Chicago, earning a Bachelor of Architecture in 1978 and graduating with Honors and High Distinction in Design. Vasilion has been a member of the American Institute of Architects since 1986.
He practiced in several Chicago-area architectural firms before founding Vasilion Architects in 1990. Located in Batavia, IL, Vasilion Architects specializes in the design of medical facilities and custom residences.
Vasilion strongly believes in community service. He serves on the City of Batavia’s Historic Preservation Commission and is in his second term as Chairman. His stated goal is “to create standards and procedures which will balance the rights of individual property owners while striving to preserve local heritage”.
Vasilion also mentors high school students interested in a career in architecture. Each year he works with six students (two each from three local high schools) from September through April. He creates a hypothetical project, using a real site and owner to interact with the students. Through their research, instruction, design and presentations, they receive an inside look at an architectural practice. As a result the students are able to make a better informed decision as to whether or not they wish to pursue architecture as a profession.
Posted by David Lemberg at 02:06 PM | Comments (0)