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Face

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Face Value at Main Line Art CenterHistory and New Technology Join Forces in Face Value at Main Line Art Center

Featuring Nick Cassway, Mark Khaisman & Steven Earl Weber

October 6 – November 5, 2014 

Artist Talk and Reception: Friday, October 10, 5:30-8:30 pm

Curated by Amie Potsic, Executive Director of Main Line Art Center
Presented in partnership with Pentimenti Gallery and DesignPhiladelphia 2014

From man’s first sketches on the cave wall, to the rise of the “selfie,” the portrait has been an ever-present subject matter for artists.  The power of the portrait to tell a story, illuminate social injustices, or capture a moment in time lies in the pictorial representation as well as the media and process by which it was made.  In Face Value, presented at Main Line Art Center October 6 to November 5, artists Nick Cassway, Mark Khaisman, and Steven Earl Weber uniquely approach portraiture and social commentary through the manipulation of packaging tape, computer cut stencils, and printed glass.  Referencing film noir, Khaisman will be exhibiting his signature lightboxes as well as a site specific installation on nine windows in the gallery.  Cassway will be exhibiting a new series based on a civil war drama created with his analog-to-digital-to-analog process that incorporates drawings edited together in Photoshop and output to computer cut stencils with house paint and metal leaf.  Influenced by early photographic processes and his immediate surroundings, Steven Earl Weber’s new work will be seen as shadows reflected on surfaces from mirrors and panes of glass to illicit empathy and identification with his subjects.  All three artists look to the past for inspiration and embrace new technologies in production to create compelling and surprising work that is both timely and timeless.

Face Value is curated by Amie Potsic, Executive Director of Main Line Art Center, and is presented in partnership with Pentimenti Gallery, of Old City Philadelphia, as part of the DesignPhiladelphia Festival.  The Art Center will host an artist talk on Friday, October 10 from 5:30 to 6:30 pm, followed by a public reception from 6:30 to 8:30 pm featuring fare from Cricket Catering and samplings from the center’s wine sponsor, Barefoot Wine & Bubbly.  The artist talk, reception and gallery visits are free and open to the public. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 10 am to 8 pm, and Friday throughSunday from 10 am to 4 pm.  Additional programs for Face Value include a Screenprinting on Non-Traditional Surfaces workshop with Steven Earl Weber on Wednesday, October 8 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm; Analog to Digital to Analog Drawings workshop with Nick Cassway on Wednesday, October 22 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm; and a workshop on Painting with Packing Tape with Mark Khaisman on Wednesday, November 5 from 6:30 to 9:30 pm.  For more information about these programs and registration, visit www.mainlinert.org or call 610.525.0272.

Face Value, Mark Khaisman , Main Line ArtMark Khaisman “Lauren and Marilyn”. Packaging tape on acrylic panels with translucent resin light boxes 47.5” x 27” x 6” © Mark Khaisman 2014

Born in the Ukraine, Mark Khaisman studied art and architecture at the Moscow Architectural Institute and now lives and works in Philadelphia. Khaisman worked for several decades in architecture, animation, and stained glass design. In 2005, Khaisman began exhibiting his signature tape works.  His artwork has been exhibited and published internationally with exhibitions at Pentimenti Gallery in Philadelphia; Volta Art Fair in New York; Ampersand Foundation PF in Barcelona, Spain; Contemporary Istanbul Art Fair; The Science Museum in London, England; and Vitra Design Museum, in Weil am Rhein, Germany.  His works have been acquired by The West Collection, NBC, British Airlines, and The Delaware Art Museum. Additionally, his work has been featured in, Wired Magazine, Flush Magazine, and the Huffington Post.

Nick Cassway, Face Value, Main Line Art CenterNick Cassway, Portrait of the Young General, latex and metal leaf on panel, 17.5″ x 22″,© Nick Cassway 2014

Nick Cassway received a BFA in painting from the Tyler School of Art in 1990. He has exhibited his drawings, prints, and site-specific installations both locally and nationally with recent solo exhibitions at James Oliver Gallery in Philadelphia. His work has been featured in The Philadelphia Inquirer, the ArtBlog, Grid Magazine, and Art News.  Cassway is deeply vested in the Philadelphia arts community and was formerly the executive director of NEXUS/foundation for today’s art. He currently teaches computer graphics, editorial design, and brand identity at Drexel University’s Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design, and is a current Fellow in CFEVA’s Visual Artist Fellowship program.Steven Earl Weber, Face Value, Main Line Art CenterSteven Earl Weber,“Untitled”, screen print on glass, spray paint, black house paint, 18 “x 18”, 2014 © Steven Earl Weber 2014

Steven Earl Weber received his BFA from Kent State University and his MFA from the University of Delaware.  A resident of Philadelphia, his sculptures and installations have been exhibited locally and internationally with exhibitions at Summerhall Arts, Edinburgh, Scotland; Roxy Art House & The Demarco European Art Foundation, Edinburgh, Scotland; Hunter College of Art, New York, NY; and The Painted Bride Art Center, Hidden City, and James Oliver Gallery in Philadelphia. Additionally, his work has been featured in The New York Times, The Scotsman Newspaper, and Art in America.  Weber has been the Gallery Director at the Philadelphia Sculpture Gym Gallery, served as adjunct faculty at the University of Delaware and Drexel University’s Antoinette Westphal College of Media Arts and Design, and is currently the Exhibition Designer at the Delaware Center for Contemporary Art.

Amie Potsic, curator of the exhibition, began her tenure as Executive Director of Main Line Art Center in July of 2012.  Prior to that, she served as Director of Gallery 339 and Director of the Career Development Program at the Center for Emerging Visual Artists (CFEVA) in Philadelphia where she curated exhibitions and planned professional development programming for emerging and professional artists. Potsic has curated over 70 exhibitions at venues including The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Moore College of Art & Design. Potsic is also an established photographic artist who has exhibited her work nationally and internationally.  In addition, she is currently Chair of the Art In City Hall Artistic Advisory Board to the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture & the Creative Economy.

DesignPhiladelphia, a signature event of the Philadelphia Center for Architecture, is the oldest and largest design event of its kind in the country and annually showcases the work of over 400 practicing architects, designers, and creative professionals. Experience design in unexpected ways through more than 120 exhibitions, workshops, demonstrations, tours, talks, and events held in venues across the city. Learn about wide-ranging topics, including architecture, urban planning, landscape, graphic, multi-media, product, furniture design, fashion, and the like. This year’s Festival kicks off on the evening of October 8 and events run from October 9-17. For more information on planning an event, sponsoring, advertising, or attending the 2014 Festival, visit: designphiladelphia.org.

Pentimenti Gallery, located in Old City Philadelphia, features content driven contemporary art which challenges traditional materials and aesthetics by a line of internationally established artists alongside young talent. Over time, the exhibition program has broadened to encompass abstract and figurative aesthetics to innovative works created from unconventional materials. Throughout two decades, Pentimenti Gallery has maintained a commitment to process based work and elaborate craftsmanship.  The gallery is regularly invited to participate at international art fairs such as VOLTA NY, PULSE NY, CONTEXT Art Miami, MIAMI PROJECT, TEXAS CONTEMPORARY.  Pentimenti Gallery is located at 145 N. 2nd Street in Philadelphia.  For more information, visit www.pentimenti.com or call215.625.9990.

Main Line Art Center is a welcoming and inclusive creative home where everyone is encouraged to create, experience, and discover the value of art.  Committed to making art more accessible, the Art Center has over 75 years of experience presenting art programs for individuals of all ages and abilities, including a unique series of Accessible Art programs for children and adults with developmental and physical disabilities, at-risk youth, and low income families now celebrating their 50th anniversary.  Throughout the year, Main Line Art Center presents innovative, contemporary art exhibitions in their award-winning gallery, as well as exhibitions that celebrate community.  Last year over 16,000 people chose Main Line Art Center as their home for creativity.

Main Line Art Center is located at 746 Panmure Road in Haverford, behind the Wilkie Lexus dealership just off of Lancaster Avenue. The Art Center is easily accessible from public transportation and offers abundant free parking. For more about Face Value, visit www.mainlineart.org or call 610.525.0272.

Face Value Artist Workshops:

Screenprinting on Non-Traditional Surfaces with Steven Earl Weber: Wed., Oct. 8, 6:30-9:30 pm

Analog to Digital to Analog Drawings with Nick Cassway: Wed., Oct. 22, 6:30-9:30 pm

Packing Tape Painting with Mark Khaisman: Wed., Nov. 5, 6:30-9:30 pm

Thank you to Amie Potsic for providing DoNArTNeWs with this report. Images used by permission of Main Line Art Center.

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Main Line Art Center

DEADLINE: Monday, September 29th, 2014

We are excited to offer a new opportunity at Main Line Art Center for contemporary artists that includes $1000, a solo show, and the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art.

Presented by Main Line Art Center in conjunction with the Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition, the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art and associated exhibition program is an effort to support the talented contemporary artists in the region, to honor deserving artists in the field, and to encourage excellence and experimentation in artistic practice, presentation, and community involvement.  Adult fine artists, who are not full time students, living in the Mid-Atlantic Region are eligible to apply. All mediums are welcome.  Artists selected to receive this award will be notified in December 2014 and the exhibition will take place in March/April 2015.

Approximately three artists are awarded annually.  The 2014 recipients of the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art were Nic Coviello, Tim Portlock, and Jenny Thwing.

DEADLINE: Monday, September 29, 2014 by 11:59 p.m.
AWARD: $1000 & solo show
PROSPECTUS: mainlineart.org/events.php
APPLICATION: mainlineart.slideroom.com
QUESTIONS: Beth Boardman, Exhibition Coordinatorbboardman@mainlineart.org or 610.525.0272 ext. 116
APPLICATION FEE: Members $30/Non-Members $35
EXHIBITION:March 9 – April 21, 2015

Thank you,

Beth Boardman, Exhibition Coordinator

Main Line Art Center, 746 Panmure Road, Haverford, PA  19041

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Imaginary Reality

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Tim Portlock, Imaginary RealityTim Portlock, Gold, Inkjet Print, 54″ x 72”, © Tim Portlock 2012

Main Line Art Center Unveils Award for 10th Annual
Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition 

Imaginary Reality Features Nic Coviello, Tim Portlock & Jennie Thwing
Curated by: Amie Potsic, Executive Director of Main Line Art Center

April 1 – 30, 2014. Artist Talk and Gallery Tour: Friday, April 4, 5:30-6:30 pm. Opening Reception: Friday, April 4, 6:30-8:30 pm

Associated Programs: 

  • iPainting on the Go Workshop with Nic Coviello: Thurs., April 17, 6-8:30 pm. 
  • Technology in Art: Visionary Influence Lecture with Tim Portlock: Mon., April 21, 6-7:30 pm. 
  • Still Animation Workshop with Jennie Thwing: Thurs., April 24, 6-8:30 pm

Featuring Nic Coviello, Tim Portlock, and Jennie Thwing,  Imaginary Reality, running April 1 to 30, is the 10th annual Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition at Main Line Art Center. Curated by Amie Potsic, Executive Director of Main Line Art Center, Imaginary Reality explores the expansion of artistic dialogue yielded by combining traditional mediums and digital arts, and coincides with the introduction of the Center’s new digital media program.  In honor of the 10th anniversary, the Center is proud to announce the expansion of the exhibition program to include the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art.

Trained in the classic artistic mediums, each artist adopted digital technology as a means of deepening their investigations of invented landscapes, imaginary narratives, and personal identity.  In essence, they have created unique visual languages that combine painting, printmaking, digital photography, stop animation video, 3D gaming technology, performance, and installation. Contextualizing digital imagery in service of storytelling and discovery, their work exists in between and among mediums to create new and unexpected realities that challenge our definitions of self, place, and human experience.

For the past decade, Main Line Art Center has presented an exhibition each spring in memory of Teaching Artist Betsy Meyer featuring the work of forward-thinking artists who are pushing boundaries within their artistic practice.  As an artist, Betsy exemplified what is most exciting about engaging with the artwork of living artists:  watching them experiment with their media and tackling complicated and tough subjects.  As a teacher, she encouraged her students to follow her example and expand their practice into new frontiers.  And finally, as a member of the board and exhibition committee, she assured that the Art Center was there for the artistic community of Philadelphia.

Nic Coviello, Imaginary RealityNic Coviello, Pole Walker, Acrylic and Digital Media on Panel, 24″ x 18″, © Nic Coviello 2012

Imaginary Reality marks an expansion of the program to include the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art, which consists of a solo exhibition and award of $1000 to each selected artist.  The growth of this program is an effort to support the talented contemporary artists in the Mid-Atlantic region, to honor deserving artists in the field, and to encourage excellence and experimentation in artistic practice, presentation, and community involvement.  The application period begins April 1 and runs through September 22, 2014. The Main Line Art Center is thankful to Betsy Meyer’s family for their generous and unyielding support of the Art Center and Betsy’s artistic legacy and looks forward to granting this new award to artists annually.

The Main Line Art Center will host an artist talk and gallery tour on Friday, April 4 from 5:30 to 6:30 pm, followed by a public reception from 6:30 to 8:30 pm featuring samplings from the center’s wine sponsor, Barefoot Wine & Bubbly.  The artist talk, reception and gallery visits are free and open to the public. The gallery is open Monday through Thursday from 10 am to 8 pm, and Friday through Sunday from 10 am to 4 pm.  Additional programs for Imaginary Reality include an iPainting on the Go Workshop with Nic Coviello on Thursday, April 17 from 6 to 8:30 pm; Technology in Art: Visionary Influence, a free lecture with Tim Portlock on Monday, April 21 from 6 to 7:30 pm; and a Still Animation Workshop with Jenny Thwing on Thursday, April 24, from 6 to 8:30 pm.  For more information about these programs, including registration, visit www.mainlinert.org or call 610.525.0272.

Colored with life experiences and the joy of studio practices, Nic Coviello’s goal is to provide the viewer with an alternate narrative on a commonplace subject.  Parklands, botanical forms, and animals provide the context for his work.  Coviello fuses traditional methods of drawing, painting, and printmaking with photographic and digital imaging techniques to get at an “elusive” real and a “concrete” imagined nature.  Appropriating photographic data and explorations in computer graphics complement his field drawing, painting, and collected fragments of nature.  Coviello creates background landscapes with painterly techniques and portrays the foreground figures with high-contrast black and white photographic elements.  Born in Connecticut, Coviello came to Philadelphia to study at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts where he earned coordinated BFA and MFA degrees from the University of Pennsylvania.  He now lives and works in Philadelphia and has exhibited widely at venues including the Philadelphia International Airport, The Painting Center in New York, and the Korean University of the Arts in Seoul, Korea.  Coviello taught Digital Design as a Lecturer at the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Design and was an Artist Member and Board Member of the Nexus Foundation for the Arts from 2004 until 2009.

Tim Portlock’s lifelong interest in the dialogue between place and the formation of identity is the fuel behind his creative endeavors.  Educated primarily as a traditional visual artist, Portlock has worked in the past as a community-based muralist as well as a studio painter.  His current body of work includes large format print images created using 3D gaming technology to simulate real world and imagined spaces based on the Las Vegas strip and surrounding desert. Recent work also includes large, outdoor video projections onto buildings that create temporary public art.   Portlock received a BFA in Painting from the Kansas City Art Institute, an MFA in Art and Design from the University of Chicago, and an MFA in Electronic Visualization from the University of Illinois.  Portlock is currently an Associate Professor in the Film and Media Department at Hunter College (CUNY- New York City), and previously worked at the University of Paris-Sorbonne.  A 2011 recipient of a Pew Fellowship, Portlock has exhibited widely throughout the US and internationally including Ars Electronica in Austria, ISEA in Japan, and the Tate Modern as a member of the Artist Collective Vox Populi.

Jennie Thwing, Imaginary RealityJennie Thwing, My Black Hole:  Cold, Archival Pigment Print, 36” x 48”, © Jennie Thwing 2013

Jennie Thwing is a New York-based artist and film maker.  Using video, installation, and animation she creates imaginary narratives that reference her history, ideology, social context, family mythologies, and dreams.  Her subject matter ranges from miniature animated dioramas to historical reenactments.  All of her work involves the anthropomorphism of nature, refuse, and human environments.  Currently an Assistant Professor of Visual Communication at SUNY Farmingdale College as well as an Associate Professor of Art at Rowan University, Thwing received her BFA in Graphic Design at Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, and went on to receive her MFA in Imaging and Digital Arts at University of Maryland. Her work has been widely exhibited in the US and abroad at venues including the Museum of Contemporary Art in Seattle, the Institute for Contemporary Art in Philadelphia, the Fondazion Mudima per l’Arte Contemporarnea in Milan, The Independent Museum of Contemporary Art (IMCA) in Cyprus and the New York Studio Gallery.  Thwing was also recently chosen as a Center for Emerging Visual Artists Fellow and a 2014 Queens Arts Fund Grant recipient.

Amie Potsic, curator of the exhibition, began her tenure as Executive Director of Main Line Art Center in July of 2012.  Prior to that, she served as Director of Gallery 339 and Director of the Career Development Program at the Center for Emerging Visual Artists (CFEVA) in Philadelphia where she curated exhibitions and planned professional development programming for emerging and professional artists. Potsic has curated over 70 exhibitions at venues including The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Pittsburgh Center for the Arts and Moore College of Art & Design. Potsic is also an established photographic artist who has exhibited her work nationally and internationally.  In addition, she is currently Chair of the Art In City Hall Artistic Advisory Board to the City of Philadelphia’s Office of Arts, Culture & the Creative Economy.

Main Line Art Center is a welcoming and inclusive creative home where everyone is encouraged to create, experience, and discover the value of art.  Committed to making art more accessible, the Art Center has over 75 years of experience presenting art programs for individuals of all ages and abilities, including a unique series of Accessible Art programs for children and adults with developmental and physical disabilities, at-risk youth, and low income families now celebrating their 50th anniversary.  Throughout the year, Main Line Art Center presents innovative, contemporary art exhibitions in their award-winning gallery, as well as exhibitions that celebrate community.  Last year over 16,000 people chose Main Line Art Center as their home for creativity.

Main Line Art Center is located at 746 Panmure Road in Haverford, behind the Wilkie Lexus dealership just off of Lancaster Avenue. The Art Center is easily accessible from public transportation and offers abundant free parking. For more information about Imaginary Reality or the Meyer Family Award for Contemporary Art, please visit www.mainlineart.org or call 610.525.0272.

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Edward Woltemate, Jr.

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Ed Woltemate, Jr., Coalition IngenuEd Woltemate, Jr., Autodidactic Ingenuism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

“Reality is that which, when you stop believing in it, doesn’t go away.”
Philip K. Dick 

“Edward Woltemate, Jr. creates art that takes you to another world.  His brilliant art has bright colors and out-of-this-world design.  Despite being born a deaf mute, his art captures you in his fantasies and takes you on an adventure into the unknown. Born and raised in the Philadelphia area, he enjoyed spending summers at his grandparents’ home at the Jersey shore, along with his two sisters (one is also a deaf mute) and his brother.

Eddie has a keen sense of humor which has carried him through the darker places in his life and can be seen in the serendipity of his art. Eddie went to two primary schools, American School for the Deaf in Hartford, Connecticut, and The Pennsylvania School for the Deaf in Philadelphia. He has had a lifelong interest in the extraterrestrial and his characters and spacescapes are detailed as never before imagined.

Eddie has traveled extensively with his wife, Elaine, taking photographs and blending his inspiration and vision into his art. Although he works on his drawings every day, he finds time for three grandchildren and hobbies such as photography and gardening.  He loves to shop and go to museums and is always thinking about what his next drawing will be.” – Ed Woltemate, Jr. website

Ed Woltemate, Jr., Coalition IngenuEd Woltemate, Jr., Moonspidergee, mixed media and colored pencil on paper, $500.00  Autodidactic Ingenuism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

“Ed Woltemate, Jr. is a very organized man with a logical mind. Most of his work is accompanied by a kind of ‘legend’ on the back that describes the climate, topography, atmosphere and many other intricate details and characters of his imaginary worlds.

Ed Woltemate, Jr. has traveled extensively with his wife, Elaine, taking many photographs and blending his observation and impressions into his art. Although he draws every day, he also finds time for his three grandchildren and enjoys several hobbies including gardening, shopping, museum touring and photography.” –Ed Woltemate, Jr. artist statement at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

Ed Woltemate, Jr., Coalition IngenuEd Woltemate, Jr., Marrs, mixed media and colored pencil on paper, $800.00, Autodidactic Ingenuism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

Ed Woltemate, Jr. creates worlds of wonder using simple materials like pencils and paper that transport the viewer to distant planets inhabited by intelligent beings who have advanced societies. The artist peoples these worlds with beings who are creative, beautiful and friendly and on the back of the finished work he provides a ‘legend’ that describes in great detail where the planet is conjunction to where we are on Earth. He even names each planet and their inhabitants. With the recent cosmological news that there are more than eight billion ‘Goldy Locks’ planets in the Milky Way alone, Woltemate won’t be running out of planets to describe any time soon.

Ed and I have been in several art shows together including Art Ability at Bryn Mawr Rehab, the Philadelphia Foundation and the Delaware Art Museum, I’ve been a long time fan. Science Fiction and alternate realities are an element of my own art with my ‘light being’ photography series but Ed is able to visualize the other-wordly without having to say a word. Whereas I have to explain to people what my art is about.

Each of his drawings is like watching a great Sci-Fi movie that allows the viewer to suspend belief and experience life on another planet for a while. It’s been said that art viewers spend about five seconds looking at art in a museum. But Ed Woltemate, Jr. art requires the viewer to take an astral trip of light years where a second expands into centuries, centuries into eons and eons into a kind of after-life and when you get back all your friends might be gone. Quantum physics works like that and he taps into that energetic time/space continuum vibe like Steven Hawking.

Ed Woltemate, Jr., Coalition IngenuEd Woltemate, Jr., Cogacy, mixed media and colored pencil on paper, $400.00, Autodidactic Ingenuism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens

I had the opportunity to interview his lovely wife, manager and translator, Elaine Woltemate, at the opening of Autodidactic Ingenism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens:

How long have you been working with Coalition Ingenu?

“Gee whiz, we’ve been with Coalition Ingenu for about two and a half years. I have been more or less managing Ed’s art for a while and Robert Bullock has been a great help. But I’ve taken different routes also with Ed’s art and I plan to continue to do that. We’re trying to get into different places than we’ve been before, we’ve been successful in the last couple of years with Bryn Mawr Rehab Art Ability, Moss Rehab, the disabled artists venues. Bryn Mawr Rehab’s Art Ability has three of his pieces this year, the opening is November 2nd. Then on November 9th we’re at Main Line Art Center, we sold a nice piece there about two or three months ago.”

Amie Potsic is a friend of mine.

“She’s very young to have the position she holds, don’t you think? Everybody looked young there! Through a friend of ours we were introduced to an organization called Build a Bridge, it’s a volunteer organization that gets funds for the homeless and different people throughout the city that need assistance, Build a Bridge is having a gala and we offered to donate a piece of art.

My friend told me a little about what was going on, I thought Eddie’s art would fit in with that. They said that if he could create a drawing that depicts ‘Hopeful City‘ they would like to use that. So he made a beautiful drawing, something totally different than what he’s used to of Rittenhouse Square. It’s going to be auctioned off at Build a Bridge, it’s purely because we have been so fortunate in the last few years that it was time to give back, So Edward is going to be involved in that and we’re excited about it!

It doesn’t mean any money for us but I think it will be great exposure and it’s something different for him. As I said, we have been very fortunate, maybe not dollar-wise but just in the people we’ve met, you know? And the venues that we’ve been in, we’ve been very fortunate lately, so, like I said, it’s time to give back.”

But how can people buy your work besides this show?

“We have a website http://www.edwardwoltematejr.com/index.html. We’re on facebook but I’m not very technical. Robert sees me as a good manager of Eddie’s art, I’m going to have to get more technologically savvy. I’m soliciting my son already, he’s at University of Pennsylvania and teaches computer science. So I’m giving him lunch and getting lessons.

Do you sell prints?

“No, we don’t. And do you know why? I really feel like we’ve come to a point where we have to do something different, not just sell the originals all the time, maybe that’s another step we should take because originals only last for so long (in stock).

How would you describe Ed’s work?

“Unique is kind of an over-used phrase but his art doesn’t fit any category. It doesn’t fit outsider, it doesn’t fit visionary – it’s kind of his own vision of different planets, different galaxies. It’s very different than any other art out there. Maybe that’s why we have sold to gallery owners and collectors that have more of an appreciation than the general public. As far as describing his work – it’s in his own category. It’s Edward Woltemate, jr.” – Elaine Woltemate

Read more about Autodidactic Ingenuism, the Coalition Ingenu Collective of Self-Taught Artists at Philadelphia’s Magic Gardens on DoNArTNeWs Philadelphia Art News Blog

Written and photographed by DoN Brewer except where noted.

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Urban Pop, Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition, Main Line Art Center

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Leslie Friedman, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

Leslie Friedman, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

“For its visually dazzling decoration and intellectually for its information overload, the strategies of Pop influence my art making.” – Leslie Friedman artist statement

The Betsy Meyer Memorial Exhibition at the Main Line Art Center features three artists whose work takes ideas, concepts, talent and technique to make art pop, The skate punk influenced room designed by Leslie Friedman is like going in a Clockwork Orange style club with ramps and wheat paste style graphics. The gallery vibrates with kinetic, color and cultural energy. The graphics are about ‘Jewish identity and it’s relationship to mainstream America’. Leslie takes cultural memes and marks them up with street style, graffiti and hip-hop. The Star of David floor tiles are perfect for break dancing.

DISTORT, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

DISTORT, The Passage, acrylic on canvas mounted on aerosol cans, $400.00, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center, photo by Spike Howard.

The exploded spray paint cans up-cycles an artifact from the culture of tagging to reveal the dreams of being an artist. Pop art is about being popular, tagging is anti-social yet highly visible, like the way pop stars do outrageous stunts to capture our attention, taggers exploit the public sphere for attention.  DISTORT blows up that myth by painting emotional, deep and storied artworks that recall the masters of the Renaissance but in a cool contemporary concept.

DISTORT, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

DISTORT, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

DISTORT repurposes old car parts like bumpers and hoods to paint on. And it’s not graffiti, it’s classical painting that tells a story in a beautiful illustrative style with thoughtful narratives. DISTORT brings back the historical context of pop art and it’s reaction of fine art against advertising and manipulated media images and presents a ‘constant barrage of tragic events’.

“As a regular car-driving American, I am aware that my life is cantilevered by war.” – DISTORT artist statement.

Jay Walker, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

Jay Walker, Pyrotokos, tape, Urban Pop, Main Line Art Center

“Bring us the fire and light these rags aflame. Show us yourself with headlamps of your presence.

Prometheus gave a vision of a hero, bound for giving us hope and light.

Pyrotokos moves mysteriously as his gift, I am thankful for what it destroys.

Speak uttterances and grunts known to the fire, I need an advocate with a flaming tongue.

Destroy and build, create and tear down, bring the change.” – Jay Walker artist statement.

Pyrotokos is a drawing made with tape that extends across the walls and ceiling and down the other side onto the floor. The use of low level materials like packing tape and duct tape to create a spiritual message of redemption and resurrection by walking through the fire is really the essence of pop culture. Amie Potsic, the curator of Urban Pop at Main Line Art Center, by bringing together artists who reflect their generation through their art yet break through new cultural barriers the same way Pop artists in the 1950’s rebelled against the attitudes of their time.

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Written and photographed by DoN Brewer except where noted. Thank you to Spike Howard for contributing to DoNArTNeWs.

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