Put up or shut up!
Over
the years and after working with countless artists,
it is easy to forget what an artist really goes
through when they exhibit their art. They open
themselves up for critical review and there is
significant exposure on the part of the artist. They
might be appear to be nonchalant or even
over-confident about exhibiting, but inside their
stomach acids are working overtime. For me, it was
time to put up or shut up.
The 'Foot in the Door' exhibit is different in this
regard. It is completely democratic, because if it
fits in the box, it exhibits. Consequently, it
becomes much less about the art and more about just
being able to exhibit and have fun. I submitted a
photograph I took ten years ago. it is entitled
"Midnight on Mason Street". It was taken in San
Francisco and the image exposure was on the neon leg.
This severely underexposed the rest of the image and
you are left with these two illuminated signs on
opposite sides of the street. It is a gimmick photo,
but I am partial to gimmicks. I was raised on comic
books and my favorite part was always the
Johnson-Smith page on the inside back cover (x-ray
glasses and such). The clearinghouse of gimmicks.
My favorite image from the exhibit has to be the seed
art tribute to wrestler Baron von Raschke. Classic.
