What Do You Do?

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.

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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!

When Life Gives You Lemons, Make Pink Lemonade

-N- and I met with local art conservationist Celina Contreras de Berenfeld, owner of Art Conservation Laboratory of Michigan yesterday morning. She was absolutely lovely and you could see how much she cared about the works she was preserving and the process itself. Although the market here is not as large as it was in Mexico City (she was head of conservation at a museum there), she didn’t waver from her view on scholarship and working on fine art objects. Because of this her business has really thrived over the last year and word of mouth has people coming in from all over Michigan. We talked about the direction of collecting and finding other creative-minded people in the area. She’s truly a hidden gem in Ann Arbor.  If you ever need something conserved or cleaned, I highly recommend calling Celina.

Later in the day we attended a talk by textile and fashion designer extraordinaire Zandra Rhodes at Michigan Theater. Part of the Penny W. Stamps Speaker Series, it was a colorful and insightful look into her process and the illustrious career path she took from London to the States over the last forty years. Even if she wasn’t popular with everyone, she was true to her vision and continued to be a prolific presence in the fashion world.  I loved her tenacity and grounded presentation. (And I’d rock a dinosaur coat in a heartbeat). I think part of what makes an artist or designer successful is a view that’s different or more refined than the next person’s. That uniqueness carves a niche in the world that didn’t exist before. Zandra offers an aspect which is unabashed and wildly open-hearted, a combination I believe, gravitates people towards her work. The same is true of Celina.

I mean, really. How can you not love this woman? She’s got electric charisma and the hair to match.

Meeting new people, learning and keeping the dialogue open is so important in the artworld. But we can’t just keep talking about it. We’re really excited about producing work so keep checking back. We’re just getting started.

-Y-