As I write, the first snow of the season is falling at my home in Colorado. It’s a gorgeous day to stay indoors, but it would also be the perfect day to get out and see some art. If only that sheet of ice hadn’t fallen first I would be more tempted. The Museum of Contemporary Art, Denver inaugurates its brand new building this week. Designed by British phenom architect David Adjaye, this unassuming space appears to be everything one would want in a building that showcases art. In addition, it has been built as an environmentally conscious building and could be the first contemporary museum in the country to achieve LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). Amazingly, the budget for this new space was just $11.3 million. This compares with the Daniel Libeskind addition to the Denver Art Museum ($110 million) and the Steven Holl addition to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art ($196 million). I have my preview tickets to see the new MCA-Denver on Tuesday, October 29 and I look forward to sharing the experience with you. Until then, I’m off to a workshop in Iowa. The forecast says sunny and 70 degrees for the day of my departure. Fingers crossed. Go Rockies!

How to Get Your Art Published in Magazines

MP3 Audio Recording

Veteran magazine editor Jennifer King gives you an insider’s look at the process of getting published in this very informative recorded teleseminar from last week. She’ll show you how to think like an editor so you communicate effectively and achieve your goals and cover the five essential steps to getting published. Just $14.95 includes a 7-page handout.
http://www.artbizcoach.com/classes/magazines.html

The Relatively Pain-Free Artist Statement

e-book

If you’ve been reading these newsletters and are ready to tackle your statement, take a look at the e-book I put together to help you do just that. I ask you the questions to help you find the words. http://www.artbizcoach.com/resources/statement.html

See You in Iowa

Live Workshop, Saturday, October 27 (date correction)

I take my show to Spencer, Iowa this time for the “I’d Rather Be in the Studio! (But I have to Eat)” workshop. Get an introduction to self-promotion basics and some hands-on practical experience you can put to use right away. If you can’t attend be sure to share this information with any contacts you may have in the area.
http://www.artbizcoach.com/workshops 

► View all upcoming classes and events.
 

FEATURE ARTICLE

Pick Apart an Art Installation

Nothing in the world of professional art exhibitions is random. It’s all well planned and executed. As a former museum curator and educator, I cannot go into an exhibition and look only at the artwork. I was trained to inspect every aspect of exhibition planning and design.

Analyzing other art installations can help you train your eye and make your own exhibitions much stronger. Here’s how to do it.

Before you even travel to a new exhibition, read up on the art and the venue. Go to the newspaper’s review or the gallery or museum Web site and read about the art that you’ll see. You might even be able to find a podcast that you can listen to on the way to the exhibit. I was happy to find podcast interviews with resident artists before my recent trip to the Bemis Center in Omaha.

Upon arriving at the exhibition, scan the gallery before proceeding to an individual work. What is the overall feeling you get? What stands out as good? What is getting in the way? Take a moment to consider the space itself. Where are the doors, windows? What do the floor, ceiling, and walls look like? Do they allow the artwork to shine or do the physical aspects of the room detract from looking at the art?

How is the lighting? Are the works well lighted or are some forgotten? Are there any shadows on the works? Or “hot spots”--places where the spotlights are strong instead of diffused across the surface on the art?

How is the exhibit installed? Chronologically? Thematically (subject matter)? Grouped by artist? Style? Color?

How are labels used? What information is on them and in what order? What do you find most interesting and useful on the labels? Read more about labels on the Art Biz Blog: http://www.artbizblog.com 

What do you like most? What is absent that you wish you could have seen or read?

Finally, what did you learn?