More to the Story: “A Splendid Century: Cincinnati Art 1820-1920,” at the Taft Museum of Art, October 3, 2020-January 24, 2021
In the 18th and 19th centuries, there was a popular genre of fiction known as “It-Narratives” or “Novels of Circulation,” which told their stories in the voice of some object which passes through many hands. Some of the earliest of these began with money (the story, say, of a bank note): the genre spread to […]
Marjolijn Dijkman’s ‘Earthing Discharge’ at the Contemporary Arts Center
A few weeks ago I made my first visit to the Contemporary Arts Center since the pandemic’s beginning. After holding up my phone so the visitor staff could scan the QR code of my timed entry ticket, I stepped over to the lobby in order to behold the Brussels-based Marjolijn Dijkman’s newly commissioned wallpaper. Earthing […]
Archiving Eden: Dornith Doherty at the Dayton Art Institute
The Svalbard Global Seed Vault on Spitsbergen Island, Norway opened in 2008 as the world’s largest secure seed storage. Located above the Arctic Circle, it is designed to remain above water in the event of melting ice caps to protect its comprehensive catalogue of the world’s seeds. The opening of this facility fascinated photographer Dornith […]
Social Justice and Art: How Do They Interact
Continuing my behind-the-scenes series is a look at smaller arts organizations and how they interact with the social justice movement. Starting off is Wave Pool, a contemporary art fulfillment center where experimental art connects community and creates change. Located in Camp Washington at 2940 Colerain Ave., Wave Pool offers a diverse menu of programs. Cal […]
“Stillness and Receptivity: Modes in Contemporary Photography and Painting” Indian Hill Gallery, September 18th through November 1st, 2020.
“Stillness and Receptivity: Modes in Contemporary Photography and Painting” Indian Hill Gallery, September 18th through November 1st, 2020. Participating Artists: Jonathan Eiten, Jordanne Renner, Sally Schrohenloher, Sarah Sedwick, Ed Shrider, John Sousa, Matthew Zory. Curated by Casey Dressell, Gallery Coordinator with support by FotoFocus The exhibit “Stillness and Receptivity: Modes in Contemporary […]
All Things Being Equal, Hank Willis Thomas at Cincinnati Art Museum
The retrospective exhibition “All Things Being Equal” by Hank Willis Thomas has recently opened at the Cincinnati Art Museum. Planning for this highly anticipated show began three years ago, and the timing of its opening was postponed for several weeks due to the Coronavirus pandemic. During those weeks, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery […]
What Does It Take to be a Curator?
What does it take to be a curator? Aeqai continues its behind-the-scenes stories on how museums work internally. I talked to several curators from the Cincinnati Art Museum as well as the Taft Museum of Art to get their insight and perspective. Dr. Julie Aronson, CAM’s curator of American paintings, sculpture and drawings, was always […]
Pop-Up Prints Just in Time – Clay Street Press, Sunday, September 13th, 2020
On Sunday, September 13th the Clay Street Press in OTR held a Pop-Up Exhibit from 12 – 5pm along with Volatile [redux], a Pop-Up Bookshop featuring artist monographs and art reference books and booklets at the Clay Street Press Gallery. It was a great idea to have this pop-up during a dreary there-is-no-art-to-see-time. Art in the […]
North of Eden: The Art Climb at the Cincinnati Art Museum (and a Trip to Pyramid Hill)
The biggest current project at the Cincinnati Art Museum has nothing to do with the permanent art collections under its roof. Rather, it is a monumental set of steps—164 in all—connecting the north end of the CAM’s main parking lot to the corner of Gilbert Avenue and Eden Park Drive. At nine stories tall, it’s […]
Heeding the Signal: "Beacon" at the Weston
The Weston Art Gallery’s Beacon exhibition elicits a range of meanings from its title. Beacons in the show are by turns literal and symbolic, concrete and conceptual. Gallery notes invite us to watch for “luminary individuals, institutions, and ideologies” while remembering the sense of beacon as “a kind of warning.” Bringing together ten lens-based artists […]