During my volunteer hours and other visits to Artomatic over the past few weeks I've tried to see as much of the show as possible. With 9 floors filled with art, it's impossible to absorb it all in one visit. Here are a few of my favorite photographers (and other artists) i'd recommend checking out before the exhibit closes this Sunday June 15:

Erin Antognoli
Using a Holga camera, Antognoli captures intriguing multiple exposure black and white images. Ghostly human figures juxtaposed with city scenes and architectural details. The prints are small, the size of the actual negative, but this serves well to invite the viewer to study the images closely.

Brian Lusher, 'Adoration of the Jesi '
Lusher's installation involves dozens of plastic Jesus busts colorfully painted to look like they are in drag. This display is accompanied by a couple of large soft-focus photographic prints of these faces. They are beautifully printed and look surprisingly lifelike.

Graeme King, '24 on 14th'
I happened to be walking up 14th Street during Graeme's 24 hour stakeout. It's one thing to have the concept of spending 24 hours in one spot taking photographs of willing passersby, but to actually carry it out (even after the pizza shop closes at 4am) and end up with a visually engaging product at the end is admirable. King's wall of portraits is fun to browse, and you might even recognize someone. My mug is there somewhere in the middle.

Erica Riccardelli
If there's an award for photographic location scouting, this photographer should get it. The staged murder scenes are interesting, but it's the great settings, gothic ruins somewhere, that really caught my attention.

Stirling Elmendorf
Just around the corner from my space on the 12th floor, Stirling is a friend and collaborator. Look out for his dramatic 4-foot-high image of pink spheres, each one reflecting the photographer in miniature. It's hard to miss.

Joanna Knox
Outstanding images of the interiors of decaying abandoned farmhouses. The photographs, taken with a 4x5 camera, are meticulously compsed, which makes the disorder of their contents appear even more stark. I saw her exhibit at the previous Artomatic and immediately recognized her work here.

Scott Davis
Another Mid City Artist photographer, uses a traditional platinum-palladium printing process. His Artomatic display includes recent photos from Washington DC. I especially like his wide-frame image of the P Street Whole Foods at night. The sweeping curved roof of a car along the bottom of the frame reflects the lights above, making what would be a mundane scene into an intriguing composition.

Tracy Lee, 'Return to Sender'
A collection of old family snapshots and color slides that, according to the accompanying text, record memories of a childhood with two alcoholic parents. It is a compelling piece and uses photography to make this sad story very real and immediate to the viewer.

Jackie Hoysted, 'Ashes to Ashes'
This isn't photography, but I thought it was an intriguing concept to make art of of peoples' last cigarettes as a way  to memorialize their quitting date. I was surprised with the range of artistic constructions that could be made from a cigarette and its effects.  

The landscape of Cabo de Gata, along the coast of Almeria, is dotted with architectural remains -- eighteenth century fortifications, abandoned mining operations, and empty cortijos. These vacant structures, fixed in the arid desert landscape for decades or centuries, seem timeless. They could have been abandoned fifteen years ago, or 150 years ago. It's often hard to tell, as the stillness of the desert masks any signs of life. However, these architectural relics are, in fact, products of human history and have some intriguing stories to tell. The Cortijo del Fraile (which I blogged about previously) was the site of a deadly love triangle that became the inspiration for Federico Garcia Lorca's Blood Wedding. Not far away along the coast, I encountered an abandoned house at the edge of an enormous cliff that dropped the ocean below. I've been unable to find any information about it, though a detailed topographical map of Cabo de Gata identifies the spot as "Casa del Tomate". Inside, there is also evidence -- graffiti, a few empty bottles, a pair of discarded boots -- of more recent visitors.

Inside the Cortijo del Fraile | Google Maps

Inside the Casa del Tomate | Google Maps
 

On Friday March 14, over 300 people filled the marble-lined foyer of the Museo de Almería for the opening of the exhibit "Federico Castellón: de Almería a Nueva York." Along with dozens of original prints and drawings and several paintings, the exhibit includes illustrated books, personal letters and family photos, and a recorded interview with the artist. The setting is outstanding, a well-designed exhibit space within a light-filled modern building. In fact, the museum was recently nominated for the European Museum of the Year award, which has previously been awarded to the Victoria and Albert Museum in London and the Guggenheim Museum in Bilbao.

The opening received press coverage in several regional papers, including Ideal Almeria. More photos of the exhibit can be found on my Flickr page here. 

Even for an art museum, location is key. The industrial city of Bilbao was an unlikely place to locate an international art museum and architestural landmark, but in retrospect it was a very forward-looking decision. What makes the Guggenheim in Bilbao so inviting is not so much what is inside as the building itself and the grounds that surround it. It was given a prominent place alongside the river at one end of the city center, where one of the main entrypoints to the city passes right over a portion of the building and a popular walking and jogging path runs alongside. People stop and look, even those who pass by every day. Then suddenly, standing on the pedestrian bridge over the reflecting pool in back of the building, a steamy fog spills out from under the bridge, creating an ethereal covering over the pool. It's either an art installation of some kind or a building maintenance procedure. I had to go inside and ask at the information desk to get an answer.

My great-uncle, Federico Castellon, was a respected surrealist painter and graphic artist. Throughout the time I was growing up, we always had a few of his dream-like lithographs on display in our house. While Federico spent most of his career based in New York, he was born in Almeria, Spain. The stark desert landscapes of southern Spain can be seen in the background of some of his works.

The exhibition "Federico Castellón, de Almería a Nueva York" opens later this month at the Museo de Almería. I plan to be there for the opening and to do some more photography around Almeria, which is always inspiring.

Face of the World
VisArts -- Metropolitan Center for the Visual
155 Gibbs Street | Rockville, MD
February 10 -- March 31, 2008
Opening Reception: Sunday, February 10, 2008, from 12-3pm

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Thanks for visiting!