The December issue of Aeqai has just posted. It’s a shorter issue, as less shows opened this month, and many of Aeqai’s writers are unavailable at this time of year. But we’ve still got some superb reviews and profiles for you.
Jonathan Kamholtz has been reviewing paintings by Cole Carothers for Aeqai for awhile now; he reviewed Carothers’ studio interior paintings some months ago, and this month, he examines and analyzes Carothers’ urban/cityscape paintings, which were exhibited at an adjunct space provided by and for Caza Sikes Gallery in Oakley. Megan Bickel reviews the “Picasso to Pollock” exhibition at The J.B. Speed Museum in Louisville with intelligence and high knowledge of Modernism in European art. And Cynthia Kukla gives her analysis and overview of the “Panorama 33” exhibition at Cincinnati Art Galleries; this annual show at that gallery gathers together the finest paintings from Cincinnati artists from Duveneck up to and including some contemporary Cincinnati artists, like Valerie Shesko and Cynthia Overall, Kevin Kelly and Leslie Shiels. One of the finest paintings by Farny and one by Potthast are included in this superb look at Cincinnati painters, and there’s very strong work by Dixie Seldon, John Weis, Stephen Alke, Paul Chidlaw, Charley Harper, and Jack Meanwell, as well.
Since the Greater Cincinnati area will be celebrating the anniversary of Frank Duveneck’s birth in 2019, we start our coverage of that seminal event in Cincinnati painting (Duveneck comes from Covington, Kentucky) with the coverage of the Cincinnati Art Galleries show, and Cynthia Kukla will also review the Cincinnati Art Museum’s show honoring the l50th anniversary of The Art Academy of Cincinnati in Aeqai’s January/February issue. (Members of The Cincinnati Art Club will be painting at the Museum on January 3, honoring Frank Duveneck again). Jane Durrell, in the December Aeqai, also profiles Cincinnati artist and award-winning portraitist Carl Samson, whose educational background traces back to Duveneck, as well. Our readers should compare Bickel’s review of the show at Speed Museum concurrently with these shows built around Duveneck and colleagues as many of these paintings were done at the same time, during the same time frame, yet represent completely different painting styles and approaches.
Annabel Osberg offers a fascinating review of a show in Los Angeles, examining art made by a number of artists once considered marginal to art production by their very identities, and Karen Chambers looks at a show at Manifest Gallery, work by various students and the teachers who influenced them.
Our journalism/features articles include a fascinating feature by Laura Hobson on a collaboration amongst Wave Pool Gallery, ArtsWave, and United Way, offering a series of dinners to new immigrants in this region, offering food as a means of building community. Stewart Maxwell interviews Christopher Myers, the new Director of Historic Preservation in Covington, Kentucky, and Russell Hausfeld profiles artist/educator Karen McGarry.
Annabel Osberg offers her film review, of the not yet released “Sgt. Will Gardner”, which looks fascinating and examines the life of this soldier in the aftermath of war’s lingering horrors/effects on those who return from war wounded psychologically as well as possibly physically. I offer my annual “Best Fiction of 2018” list this month, too.
Aeqai will return at the end of February with our annual combined Janurary/February issue. We welcome your comments, as always, and would like to remind all of you that we’re still trying to meet our challenge grant of $5000 gifted by an Aeqai friend/patron; your tax deductible donations can be sent to Aeqai, Inc., c/o Daniel Brown, Treasurer, 810 Matson Place, Unit 1505, Cincinnati, Ohio 45204: we’d greatly appreciate your help in assisting us to continue and to grow our coverage of the visual arts in 2019.
We hope, too, the you have safe and peaceful holidays. To go directly to the new issue, click onto www.aeqai.org.
Daniel Brown,
Editor, http://www.aeqai.com/