SUMMER SHOWS!

SUMMER SWAMP

Oy vay...can I say that? I am swamped, by my own making...and hoping that these shows will bear fruit. What fruit? I want to be noticed and asked to be in gallery shows. I want people to buy my work, especially the framed art and the scrolls. Why not? Being an artist is so much work! I'd like to explore other cities as art venues, too, but who has that kind of time?

When this summer wraps up I want to go away and not think so much - just let the ideas float in. Going to the Greek Islands in September - seems an ideal venue for refreshing and reinvigorating. Then I'll be ready to dive into prep for Open Studios with fellow members at SFWA (Inner Sunset) and with my drawing group at The Box Factory (Mission). In the meantime there are all these shows and receptions underway!

A larger-than-life chiffon scroll, Leaning In, 2017

MY SEWING JOURNEY

Sewing - okay, this time I sewed all of the scrolls myself and I have had to work out a different hanging system. (Sewing credits shared with my friend Connie Walker-Shaw of SEW in West Portal - who coaches me through my sewing projects).

These new scrolls are made of sheer fabric instead of silk and are scaled to larger than life-size! They are site-specific for the Troll House where I wanted to make art that resonates in this unusual space. In my last show here my work felt too subtle and far way.

Trimming and sewing five new scrolls for the Troll House show. Reception is August 4.

WORKING WITH THE SPACE

My Troll House art show consists primarily of framed prints and drawings featuring female nudes in short gestural poses hung on very high walls. Most of the wall space is filled with giant-sized windows, monitors, and white boards. So I'm eager to add this new series to change the experience for the viewer to be more immersive. 

This is a co-work space whose inhabitants are primarily young, male tech entrepreneurs. With the new scrolls there will be an even BIGGER FEMALE PRESENCE. And with the Troll House's huge windows facing the Embarcadero, people can see right into the main room on their way to and from ballgames, jogging past, and walking to lunch. I want to capture their attention as well as the folks who work at the Troll House.  

Larger-than-life chiffon scroll, Sitting Tight, 2017

From the outside people will see my large sheer figures on fabric scrolls hanging from the ceiling. The palette of carefully selected colors will overlap like light gels for the theatre, creating color combinations depending upon the sunlight - like stained glass - as they float from a transparent hanging system.

Feeling the Heat. Now at the Troll House along with new site-specific works. This piece was just in the art show at PAL, Summer Exposed.

Listening to You. Here's the piece that was accepted to mDac, with an opening reception on August 11 at Pacific Art League.

I'm showing at the charming, funky Bay View Boat Club this month. The reception is on Sunday, August 13 from 4-7pm.

Cherry Blossom Dreams is in two shows now - at the Bay View Boat Club and at PAL's Technology and Art.

Feeling the Surf is one of three works on paper in the juried group show at SFWA.

These juried group shows are a whole other story! So much work and expense to enter. Uch... for me, I often need to produce the prints and frame them for these shows. But - yes- I'm happy to get in!

Not in any shows yet - but a new piece combining beach, landscape, and figure.

RECEPTIONS

At all of my receptions, besides providing fab food and drinks, I have unframed prints and drawings for sale; I give art talks; and there is an assortment of art merchandise (microbatch paper and textile products) for sale. Follow me and keep up to date with my announcements here:

facebook.com/cherrypitsart

instagram.com/srkirshenbaum

Packed East Coast Trip

I recently took a quick trip back East to surprise my sister-in-law for her birthday. We made it into a tri-city marathon, visiting Baltimore, Philadelphia, and NYC.

Step outside Baltimore city and it's horse country. So lush and green.

Sudden thunder, lightening, rain, and sun - fabulous weather! At Fells Point, Baltimore, MD.

We saw how much Baltimore has changed (in certain neighborhoods) where gentrification has taken hold, and what remained the same - in personality and physical structures. I sure do miss the east coast. As a Western Pennsylvanian, I'm not from "the coast", in fact, Pittsburgh is on the border between the midwest and the east. But I know my love of old architecture in Europe is rooted in old American cities. 

This is the Phoenix Shot Tower built in 1828.

Shot Tower is a Baltimore landmark I've enjoyed ever since my husband bought a postcard with this image from me in order to introduce himself. We just celebrated our anniversary in Baltimore over 30 years later.

Candy-colored houses along Federal Hill Park, Baltimore.

First night in NYC at a Cuban restaurant in East Harlem. The mural behind me looks like a stage set or I'm actually IN Cuba. Yes, that's my microbatch textile scarf I'm wearing.

Whitney Biennial - Is she part of the exhibit? If so, I like it, a lot.

A colorful room at the Biennial. Thinking about site- specific art like this faux stained glass.

Love this brickwork in B-More.

Happy pooch in dog park as seen from a footbridge in Philadelphia.

I'd really like to know what other people think of the Biennial this year. I admit, I'm still puzzling over it. Maybe we just did and saw too much and my senses were simply over- and under-whelmed! In a single day I attended three trade shows, including Surtex, the art licensing show, which was really interesting to me as I'm investigating licensing my art for fashion, product and textile designs. All three (furniture and stationery too) were at Jacob Javitz Center. I went with my design/ illustration Parsons friends. THEN we went to the Whitney show with another group of art friends. No wonder I couldn't stand up for another moment at the end of our last full day....

So my interest in digitally printed clothing pulls me toward this complicated story at the Whitney Biennial. 

At the Surtex Trade Show in NYC, for art licensing, an attractive booth.

Artful Weekend

ArtSpan artists dropping off their work for stARTup Art Fair weekend - before the room is transformed into a gallery.

stARTup Art Fair Taking Off

Eighteen artists were selected to be in ArtSpan's room at Hotel Del Sol for stARTup Art Fair. I was one of them, with my soft sculpture. Rhiannon MacFaden has been involved since it started and she thinks this fair is really taking off now. It is San Francisco's contemporary art fair for independent artists, which takes place annually during Art Market SF. http://sf.startupartfair.com

Joen (L) and Allison (R) of ArtSpan as we wait for the crowds to show up.

Art Market SF is a Hit This Year

Speaking of bold strokes at the Art Market, here's a gorgeous ultramarine blue piece that caught my eye.

Along with the bold there is the delicate and beautifully crafted work.

Legion of Honor - Always Inspiring

This sculpture is much larger than life and totally natural. It contains a candle wick that was lit upon installation. Fischer's work is interspersed throughout the museum in surprising ways! 

https://legionofhonor.famsf.org/exhibitions/urs-fischer

Me and my sculpture surrounded by selected ArtSpan artists work. 

Set-up day in the courtyard of Hotel del Sol.

One of the larger works on display at Art Market SF reminds me of my recent trip to Burma! It's a blow-up version of a reclining Buddha.

The gala was packed but fun. Lots of VIP tickets were circulated. I had to go back again to get a better look at the work with less of a crowd.

Here's another piece of meticulous sculpture that caught my eye. Both the dog (above) and the porcelain (left) were at the Duane Reed Gallery, St. Louis.

After two art fairs I went back to see Monet's early work at the Legion. This museum is a fantastic place to go on a beautiful day! The views are spectacular. And this is a show to see again and again. This time we wondered around the upstairs galleries and caught the quirky sculptures of Urs Fischer (left).

What a jam-packed art weekend! It was filled with friends, feasts, art fairs, and art museums. It was bathed in sunshine and fair weather.

Sunday night wrapped up with my book group and a lively discussion of an unusual novel called The Vegetarian. My favorite parts of the book were about the art video that describes the protagonist turning into a plant.