Last night we ventured out to Festifools, a “non-profit production of the STARTProject, a University of Michigan Lloyd Hall Scholars Program initiative”. From papier maché costumes to handheld luminaries and projection art, we were having a darn good time. (Please excuse the shaky camera movement and underexposed shots – we only had our point and shoot).
Fantastic shadow puppetry
A neon projector
There was a lot of costumery
We made a new friend.
Early Spring has kept me in a shooting frenzy. Any time I can sneak a few minutes of photographing, I’m outside, day or night.
We met with Sava’s Restaurant in Ann Arbor last week and we’re happy to announce that we’ll be taking over the upstairs lounge area with our art. We’ve never curated a non-gallery setting like this and we’re really excited to collaborate and match the ultra contemporary and comfy look. We got on it immediately. After a quick brainstorming session, the series Objet D’art was born. This also gave us a chance to print and frame our new series of school desk prints.
Each item is a print illustrated or photo taken by us and carefully hand matted with coordinating accessories. Whether you see one or in a grouping, we’re making an experience that we, and hopefully you, have never seen before.
We’ll be hanging things salon-style but adapted to the space to get the most beautiful effect. Since we have long spaces to cover, our groupings will be spaced out with most pieces centered at 60 inches from the ground, the professional standard for installing art.
What do you think of these? We’re looking for some feedback before the big installation takes place. Right now we’re just enjoying having “piles” of art around the studio. Soon we’ll have them in our store too. Have a great weekend!
-Y-
OBJECT D’ART – (dimensions denote frame size, shipping is extra) 5 x 7 inch : $25 and up | 8 x 10 inch: $45 and up | Pairs of 8 x 10 inch: $80 and up
In the mood for a sweet potato quinoa burger, with roasted garlic and fresh red onions on a hearty, multigrain bun? Look no further than Ann Arbor’s own Jazzy Veggie, on the north end of Main Street.
Owner and vegetarian, Ananth Pullela (Andy), was less than satisfied with the vegetarian options he encountered while dining out. So, he collaborated with Chef Kevin and together they created a menu that will satisfy all that prefer not to eat meat and even many that do.
We were more than happy to work with Anne-Marie Kim, the head designer of Genui Forma, and Andy, to capture images that best represent his amazing products. Below are some of the mouth watering results.
(Sweet Potato Quinoa Burger)
(Spaghetti and Veggie Balls, foreground; Mushroom Spinach Alfredo, background)
(Carrot Cake)
(The Wolverine Burger – Marinated and grilled veggie patty, sautéed onions, roasted peppers, guacamole and tomato basil aioli)
(Bello – Marinated and grilled portabella mushrooms, sautéed onions, tomatoes, fresh basil, Italian cheese and chipotle aioli on grilled artisan bread)
Talented singer and model extraordinaire Forrest hung out with us Friday night. As one of the lucky winners of our Photo Narrative photo shoot giveaway, he brought a number of outfit changes, we switched up the backdrops and the results were pure magic. We love when people aren’t afraid to tell a story.
Thank you, Forrest, for being such a fantastic sitter, actor and personality. Now it’s your turn.
In 2007 I had the pleasure of publicizing a great series of works by Robert Rauschenberg called Currents. Created during the winter of 1970, he clipped disturbing and attention grabbing headlines from various national newspapers, arranging them in aesthetically pleasing and titillating fashion and translated them into photographic prints. Based on the social, political and financial turmoil of the times, he covered events through his clippings in a way that fed that the news in a palatable way, urging viewers to come in for a closer look.
The Grand Rapids Art Museum is currently showing and hosting a myriad of events surrounding the works of one of the most influential artists of the 20th century. From now until May 20th, 2012, you can join in the conversation and see the pieces from his time at Gemini, a major print studio and collective in Los Angeles.
While he’s known for his prints and multiples, his most sought-after and profound works were his combines, objects joined and manipulated to be read in a totally new context altogether. Rauschenberg passed away a year after I installed his show at the gallery where I was. With his passing he leaves behind a legacy of process and collaboration that brought together great thinkers such as John Cage, Merce Cunningham, Cy Twombly and most notably Jasper Johns. I’m looking forward to seeing the exhibit. I hope you will too.
We all know what a painting is. It’s an original work, one-of-a-kind piece in watercolor, oil, acrylic or a number of combinations.
But I still hear questions about what the differences are between a print and reproduction. You wouldn’t believe the number of times that someone has asked me to look at something in a frame that turned out to be a poster. First and foremost, take your piece out of the frame. If you see a © or ™ anywhere on the paper, it’s a reproduction, a licensed copy that a museum or company has paid to produce by machine. If you see name of a museum on the image itself, there’s no need to take it out. An artist wouldn’t have included it on an original piece of work. Meaning, this isn’t worth anything except the value of enjoyment you get out of it.
A poster of Adolph Dehn’s Central Park from the collection of The Metropolitan Museum of Art
When an artist or curator speaks of a “print,” they’re talking about a laborious process that includes many steps. There are many types of prints but the most common are lithographs made by drawing on a limestone plate or an intaglio print or etching made by marks on a metal/copper plate that go through multiple steps in acid baths and/or other methods. These types of prints are conceived, produced and managed by an artist that may later pass on the actual execution to an apprentice or assistant. But this type of work is highly controlled and involves extreme workmanship, similar to the way a painting is produced.
An artist wiping her plates after inking them in the intaglio print process. Philagraphika
The results of a lithograph, etching, monoprint, woodcut differ greatly, but each are usually editioned, meaning numbered and signed by the artist. The smaller number of prints, the more valuable a print is. The number that you acquire will be written over the number of prints circulating. For example, if you buy the fifth out of 100, a mark of “5/100” will be written generally in a bottom corner.
An intaglio etching, Johann Wilhelm Schirmer's Aus dem Park Chigi, 19th century
Because digital technology has made a huge impact on art today, there are mediums such as giclées, inkject printed canvases of original paintings or prints flooding the marketplace. They generally will not make a financial return in investment terms. There are rare instances when a popular contemporary artist may offer a limited run of giclées which may garner a financial return. But I wouldn’t count on it.
We sell archival inkjet prints and photographs in our store. All our products are printed on acid-free paper and will last for decades to come. We painstakingly sketch, illustrate and shoot each of our items that are numbered and hand-signed. And because we’re full service, we consult, install and maintain your pieces over time. Enjoy.
Nicholas Azzaro, Winter 013
Needless to say, we’ve been busy. I have, however, found time to enjoy the warmer weather.
People get advertising. People get interior design. But when we tell people we own an “art and design firm,” people don’t get that. At least not exactly.
So we’re taking this opportunity to tell you what it is that Chin-Azzaro is about and exactly what “art and design” entails. Since I’m trained in art history and studio art and have years of experience in curating, dealing and installing art, my forté is just that: art. N has incredible knowledge in modern photo history, dark room techniques, digital photography and retouching as well as large scale art installation. He’s shot everything from food to fashion to tabletop catalog. And believe me, each is incredibly different and requires a specific set of tools and knowledge. In the last four months we’ve painted murals, custom commissions, framed art, created print and illustration series, photographed families and children, illustrated the floor plans and concept for a new business, shot art works for artists, installed paintings and given referrals for conservation and framing.
Basically, we’re trained and experienced in all areas of fine art and photography. We can design a work space for you in the home and then find you the furniture to fill it with. Then we’ll shoot the photo, retouch it and send it to all your clients for you. Or, if you’re building an art collection, we’ll purchase, install and archive all your works. We handle anything and everything that has to do with aesthetics, style and living with it.
Here are the services we offer:
Art appraisal (American art) | Art consulting | Art bidding + selling at auction | Art installation | Art packing + shipping
Commercial art + furniture acquisition
Commissions: murals, paintings, photography
Conservation + Restoration referrals
Curatorial + Research services
Framing expertise
Photography: Art, Portrait, Landscape, Editorial, Food, Fashion
Even if you just have a quick question or want to chat about art, we’re here to help!
“If you haven’t any experience in photography, as far as I’m concerned, what is important is that it happens out of your own experiences. And, unless you’re some kind of a bloody genius, you know, you wouldn’t be here [as a student]. You know what I mean (laughter). So it just takes a lot of living before you have something to do with your photographs, other than photographing water with petals and things like that. There’s a great deal to be said for getting older (laughter). So don’t worry about anything, just let everything happen to you; I mean, all the good and bad things. But use everything that happens to you—every single thing, even if you don’t know today what you’re going to do with it. It may come out five years from now. So nothing is lost, and just be very patient, but let everything happen to you.”
-Duane Michals
(The above transcript is from a tape recording made by Professor Arnold Gassan of Ohio University at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City in October, 1969. The dialogue took place between Professor Gassan, his students and the photographer Duane Michals.)
Below are my latest photos.
-N-
chinazzaro 