Collectors Circle

Starting on Saturday, January 31^st from 3 to 6pm

Heineman Myers Contemporary Art presents the “Collectors Circle”

A series of monthly, free events open to EVERYONE who is building a collection, or who aspires to build a collection. Upcoming topics will address local collections of Photography, Street Art, Local DC Area Artists, Sculpture, and Latin American Art.

The Inaugural Collectors Circle features Shannon Moore, Artist and Collector of Obama Inspired Art Prints.

Shannon received the “Green Economy” award in the national Manifest Hope exhibition held in Washington, DC. January 16-19, 2009 for her silk screen print, “Retool America” (2009) Green ink and glitter on Arches cover paper, edition of 10.

Shannon will speak briefly about how she became interested in collecting, how her collection has evolved and what she hopes to add to the collection. She will take questions, and we will have time for mingling and refreshments. Most of her collection is presently on display in the main exhibition area and will be through this Saturday, January 31, 2009, Tuesday-Saturday 1-6pm. Please join us – drop by or stay the whole time. No rsvp.

Shannon’s silk screens are for sale. See the attachments. Prices start at $50. Her “Personal Tagz” necklaces for men and women feature images of tiny works of art, and images of President Obama. These are available for $20.

Mark your calendar for Saturday, February 7^th the Opening Reception for Alison Hiltner, “Manifest Destiny” 6-9pm.

Front page story in Frederick News-Post

I did an interview and a photo (and some video) with the Frederick News-Post and it is on today's front page. I gave props to my mom and Michael Murphy, and to Zoe Heineman Myers, which makes me happy. I would also like to add a thanks to Grimes Graphics, who helped me do things at the last minute like burn transparencies and clean screens. They even lent me a screen when one of mine tore. Things like this make me so glad I have good friends!

Image is by Graham Cullen, Frederick News-Post.

44 in Washington Post Style Section

Check out the link to this past week's Washington Post Style Section that talks about 44: Obama art. It features Jonathan Stein's "Everybody wants a piece of Obama."

Jonathan also had a show at Art Basel recently with his many cakes in a big cake display. I wish I could have been there.

Stein's piece is also in Manifest Hope!

Information about me, show at Heineman Myers

Zoe from Heineman Myers Contemporary Art has updated her site with information about the show 44: Obama Art. She has also posted a few of my works. It's a pretty exciting time to be me. I will have my stuff in three shows in the DC area at one time this week. Considering I just pulled my first silkscreen ever a week ago, that's pretty insane. Perhaps that is why I feel so incredibly humbled.

44: Obama Art Channel 4 video

This is the video from DC Channel 4 that came out right before 44: Obama Art. The show will be open until January 31. Stop by and see some very fresh Obama Art posters.

Tagz

Tagz.

Necklaces made with a scrabble tile and some stainless steel hardware. See, I don't think these are such a big deal so I don't talk about them much. But every time I wear one, especially the Obama themed ones, I get asked by someone where I got it. This summer I started selling them as a fundraiser for the Obama campaign in addition to the other tagz that I make.

I sell them in two places- a local shop called The Muse in Frederick that specializes in local/handmade/practical and at Heineman Myers. I really love both places and so I am excited to have my work there. Not pictured are the lids, which I copy and then detail by hand in different styles-some have graffiti and boomboxes and others have more of a contemporary New York Design... Anyway, they are fun to make. I make related ones using bamboo tiles, silver bead chain and old postage stamps (the Soviet Propaganda ones are my favorite, of course.)

I gave Ken Hashimoto one of my Tagz today- He loved them and told me I could sell thousands. But there aren't enough hours in the day to deal with something like Etsy right now so I am happy to sell them in a few stores and give them to friends.

2044: Hope

This is the piece that I created for the show, "44: Obama Art". The show was only supposed to last for one day but Zoe from Heineman Myers liked it so much she is keeping it up until after the Inauguration.

The story behind this piece is this: I ran into my friend Keri-Ann at the farmer's market this summer. Keri-Ann is a sweet person and she was unusually vociferous about the Palin pick for VP, saying she did not want her daughter to grow up thinking that Palin, a beauty queen who represented the antithesis of Hillary Clinton, would be someone to aspire to be. It got me thinking about tokenism in the Republican party, how a woman like Palin could never rise through the ranks but would have to be hand-picked at the top. It was evident to me from looking at the diversity of the Democratic Convention and the lack thereof at the Republican Convention just whose interests each really represented. I became a Democrat this year after spending most of my adult life as an independent, because I saw a vision of the future in the party. For me, the silkscreen that I put together for 44 represents hope for the future in the faces of two playful but extremely dignified young women. My goal for the silkscreen was to capture their far-reaching gazes. Because I want Keri-Ann's little girl to have her aspirations.

People ask me why I did not do an Obama Clinton ticket instead and I guess I put Clinton on top billing for my mom, who really wanted Clinton to be President.

The piece is a run of 200 2-color silkscreens on Arches cover, 14x18. They are available from me for $50 with 25% of proceeds going to Cakes for Cause.