Some of the beautiful collages made during last Sunday's Demo Day — what fun!

It’s taken me a while to update. The week in Grand Rapids for ArtPrize was a blur of activity; splitting time between Peaches events, seeing art and seeing family. Lucky for me — the “seeing art” part went well with the “seeing family” part — many of my siblings were determined to view as much art as they could, during the first week of voting.

Peaches was great! The house itself is a grand old Georgian beauty, and was a fun change from the usual spare gallery style walls. Folks I shared the venue with were a delightful and talented bunch. And the owner of Peaches, Jane Lovett, worked tirelessly to promote her artists and make all the events wonderful.

We had good crowds. I was a little worried about being outside of the downtown loop, but every day, folks were waiting at the doors to get in the place before it opened.  I saw old friends and met a lot of new.

The show is still up, so if you find yourself in Grand Rapids, Mich, stop by!

Peaches installation 1

Peaches installation 2

Peaches installation 3

Peaches installation 4

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No Better Place — at Peaches!

Here are my picks — for artists to see during my visit to Grand Rapids, for ArtPrize.

Click and Print! Here’s a handy PDF version of the Totally Unofficial, Utterly Biased, Guide to ArtPrize.

Peaches Bed & Breakfast

29 Gay Ave SE

Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Susan Viskar

L.Joel Sanderson

Mary Gaynier

Anthony Jackson

Sarah Weber

Nancy Tobin

Kathleen Kalinowski

Bold Strokes For Art

Mary Gaynier at Peaches

Hop Cat

25 Ionia SW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Sophie Canadé at Hop Cat

James Foster

Sophie Canadé

Cathedral Square

Diocese of Grand Rapids
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Charlie Brouwer at Cathedral Square

Charlie Brouwer

JW Marriot

235 Louis St NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Jennifer O'Meara at JW Marriot

Jennifer O’Meara

The TangleFoot Building

314 Straight Ave. SW
Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Ellen Margelis at Tanglefoot

Ellen Margelis

maureen nollette

Riverview Center

678 Front Aveune NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Jorge Enrrique Serrano Sanmiguel

The BOB

20 Monroe Ave Nw
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Jaye Schlesinger at the BOB

Wrenay Gomez-Charlton

elizabeth ivy hawkins
Jaye Schlesinger

Jason Mack
georgia donovan

Don Simon

Michael Flynn
Patrick Thompson

Patrick Thompson at the BOB

Old Federal Building

155 N Division Ave
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Mari-Megan Moore at the Old Federal Building

Jason Ross

Mari-Megan Moore

robin rogers

Kevin Bourgeois

Kevin Bourgeois at the Old Federal Building

Heidi Van Wieren
Sun Kwak
Sonjie Feliciano Solomon

Eric Daigh
Ran Ortner

Michigan State University @ Michigan and College

445 Michigan NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Renee Robbins at MSU

Janel Schultz
Lisa Simon
Mary Brodbeck
Renee Robbins

Michelle Word

Grand River

Grand River between Fulton and Pearl Streets
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

David Lubbers in the Grand River

David Lubbers

Plaza Towers

201 W. Fulton Street
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Rick Beerhorst/Cameron Van Dyke

Rick Beerhorst/Cameron Van Dyke

DeVos Place

303 Monroe Avenue NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

David Greenwood at DeVos Place

David Greenwood

Victoria Fuller

Dejonge Gallery and Studio

187 Monroe Avenue, Suite 250
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

John Kleber at DeJonge Gallery

john kleber

River House Condominiums

335 Bridge St NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Michael Shankman at River House Condominiums

Michael Shankman

Open Concept

50 Louis Street NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Mike Kelley at Open Concept

Matthew Stork

Mike Kelley

UICA

41 Sheldon Boulevard SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Jason Hackenwerth at UICA

Norman Mooney

Jason Hackenwerth

george schmidt

Cyrus Karimipour

Cyrus Karimipour

Kurt Perschke

Shelly Klein

Fountain Street Church

24 Fountain Street NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Eric Standley

Eric Rattan
Eric Standley

Gerald Ford Museum

303 Pearl St. NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49504

Jonathan Hils at the Gerald Ford Museum

Jonathan Hils

The Castle

455 Cherry SE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

John Clement at the Castle

John Clement

Amway Grand Plaza Hotel

187 Monroe Ave. NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Stefano Bolcato at Amway Grand Plaza

Stefano Bolcato

Kendall College of Art and Design

17 Fountain St. NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503l

Jenny Brillhart at Kendall College

Jenny Brillhart

Grand Rapids Art Museum

101 Monroe Center
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Mimi Kato at Grand Rapids Art Museum

Mimi Kato

Grand Rapids Children’s Museum

11 Sheldon Ave. NE
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

Tracy Van Duinen at Grand Rapids Children's Museum

Tracy Van Duinen

LaFontsee Galleries/Underground Studio

820 Monroe Ave NW
Grand Rapids, MI 49503

David Huang at Lafontsee Galleries

David Huang

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Totally Unofficial, Utterly Biased, Guide to ArtPrize.

Click and Print!

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It’s all so new, and I didn’t quite understand it myself. But, I found these very helpful instructions on the ArtPrize web site, and thought I’d share them with you:

Anyone 16 years of age or older who registers in person at the ArtPrize event can vote. You cannot vote without registering at the event. There will be no charge for voter registration.

How to register

Attendees will be required to present a valid government issued ID in person at a registration station
ID can be drivers license, other state ID or passport
Pre-register on artprize.org (coming Sept 14) and save time activating your voter status at the event
There will be voter registration stations throughout the city September 23-October 7

Rules

Week 1 Voting – All Artists
Voting begins 6:00pm, September 23, 2009
You can vote on more than one work
You cannot vote more than once for the same work
Live results can be viewed online
Week 1 voting ends 11:59pm, September 30
Top 10 finalists will be announced evening, October 1
Week 2 Voting – Top 10, ONE vote
Voting begins after announcement of the Top 10, October 1
You have only ONE vote during Week 2
You may only vote among the Top 10
You may change your vote until voting ends
Results are concealed during Week 2
Week 2 voting ends 11:59pm, October 7
Winners will be announced at a gala event October 8

How to vote

Voting is entirely electronic (Instructions coming soon)
Vote online at artprize.org
Vote by text message (SMS) from your mobile phone
Vote by iPhone app
Note: Venues are allowed make Internet access and/or computers available for visitors to vote online
Vote by mobile browser

See you at the Gala!

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Watch Sarah Weber and Jane Lovett talk about ArtPrize

Sarah Weber is one of the artists I’ll be exhibiting with at Peaches, for the ArtPrize event. I was delighted when she sent me this clip from FOX News featuring her and the owner of Peaches, Jane Lovett! You go girls!

Jane Lovett and Peaches!

I planned to highlight a few of the artists who’ll be showing their work at some of the venues; and I thought this was the perfect time to start with one of my picks: Sarah Weber.

Sarah’s work “celebrate(s) femininity and style through abstract and representational characteristics.” I couldn’t find a web site for her, but here’s a great YouTube video, where she talks about her work.

I’m looking forward to meeting Sarah, and seeing her beautiful work in person!

Update: Sarah just sent these images over — of the paintings she’s working on for ArtPrize. Thanks for the peek into your studio, Sarah!

© Sarah Weber

Sarah Weber's work in progress!

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Going to Grand Rapids last week got me even more excited about ArtPrize.

I had a chance to visit with Jane Lovett the owner of Peaches Bed and Breakfast, where I’ll be showing “just as many paintings as I can tastefully fit” into her lovely dining room. It was good to see the space; take some measurements and shoot some photos of the room. Great to meet Jane, too. She’s very enthusiastic about the event and I feel confident she’ll do all she can to help make the event a success. I’ll be sharing “Peaches” with eight other artists (more on this in the next ArtPrize post).

It’s hard to be back in New Jersey — away from where it’s all happening. So I’ve been searching the internet to keep up to date on news and to find out if any events are planned yet. I really want to connect with many of the artists that will be there for the event and to reconnect with the city I use to call home. (Winning the prize would be swell, too.)

I found this little clip on YouTube. I thought it was a great explanation of ArtPrize and it also introduced me to Carol Coletta — she rocks! She’s the president and CEO of CEOs for Cities and host and producer of the nationally syndicated public radio show Smart City. I haven’t heard the show, but the web site describes it as “an in-depth look at urban life, the people, places, ideas and trends shaping cities”.

I like cities. I like urban development. I like Carol Coletta.

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We’ll be camping — my little nuclear family — and a sizable chunk of my six siblings, all their spouses, offspring and grandchildren. This has become a family tradition — camping for a week in the summer — and I’m looking forward to the fun and relaxation!

Another thing I plan to do while I’m in the Grand Rapids area, is scope out the ArtPrize excitement: I hope to get over to Peaches Bed and Breakfast to meet Jane Lovette the owner, and check out the space where I’ll be hanging my work. I’d also like to do a little reporting on the event for my feature in NY Times Local; I’d love to get a chance to ask folks there in the center of the ArtPrize buzz, “how does New Jersey fit into the bigger art world?”

The camper is hooked up, we’re packed up and it’s time to head out the door for the grueling 11 hours on the road.

Bye for now — I’ll keep in touch while on the road.

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Never thought I'd be the same article with Rick DeVos!

After moving from my hometown of Grand Rapids Mich., I’ve finally made it to the front page of the Grand Rapids Press! (OK, OK it’s really the front page of the Entertainment Section — but gosh, still exciting.)

I spoke with Jeffrey Kaczmarczyk — Arts Writer at the Press — last week, about ArtPrize, my experience with securing a venue, and my view from the outside, looking in.

It’s a fun article — Mr. Kaczmarczyk likens the whole affair with securing a date for the prom — which makes me start worrying … what will I wear!

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I’m goin’ home.

Grand Rapids, Michigan. Yep, I’m a MidWest girl — born and bred, and I’m going back to my roots to participate in what looks like the biggest art experiment ever — ArtPrize! Here’s how they explain it on their web site:

“At ArtPrize, any artist—from established to emerging—has the chance to show work. Any visitor can vote. The vote will determine who wins the largest art prize in the world. We also took the unusual step to allow people in the city to open a venue and choose the artists to show in their space. There is not one official curator or jury for the competition.

The number of venues is fluid, so the number of competing artists is fluid. The possibilities are wide open.”

And here’s the scoop:

• Top prize: $250,000
• Dates: September 23 – October 10
• Location: Grand Rapids, MI USA
• Winner is determined by public vote
• All attendees of the event can vote
• Top 10 entries will receive a prize
• Multiple artists can collaborate on an entry
• Artists may only submit one entry
• Property owners/renters in downtown Grand Rapids can become a venue
• Number of artists represented is only limited by number of venues that become available

Yesterday, I secured my venue; Peaches Bed and Breakfast. Should be interesting. So now, along with two other shows I have planned for this fall — I’ll be heading home to hopefully make a big splash at Peaches, see all of my family and participate in what looks like a grand delight!

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