It's art, duh

ArtDuh.Com celebrates first anniversary with merger of local and intergalactically famous artwork, in an effort to make the SLC art scene less insular

Jesse Reno

Artist, Todd Powelson, and writer, Anna West, are celebrating the one year anniversary of their blog ArtDuh.com, with a huge art show at the Hive Gallery in Salt Lake City. The couple has invited all of the artists featured on their blog this year to bring a work of art or two or three and join them in a show designed to make the SLC art scene a little less insular.

“We’ve met artists all over the country simply by looking them up and writing about them,” said Anna West, The Duchess of Duh (a.k.a. Art Duh’s editor-in-chief). “That’s why we’re inviting local and non local talent to converge at our show. We are hoping they will mate and have a love child – a less insular Salt Lake City art scene.”

Veronica De Jesus

The show is headlined by Powelson’s cubist oil paintings and marker drawings, along with intergalactically famous artists Jesse Reno, Veronica DeJesus and Zach Medler. Reno, who paints symbols like shamans, totem animals and Native American figures, using a manic method that resembles performance art, might be the most well-known of the group. The self-taught artist teaches workshops and has held art exhibits in Mexico as well as all over the U.S. The Duh pair was touched by the child-like art of Veronica DeJesus while visiting San Francisco in 2009. Her drawings of Big Gulps and cheeseburgers will be plentiful and affordable at the show. Her books containing memorial drawings of the dead, including the likes of Gary Coleman and Bea Arthur, will also be offered for sale. Zach Medler is a ceramics artist in Indiana. He is shipping functional pottery that has been lino- printed with the SLC skyline to the Art Duh show as well.

Zach Medler

Local artists including Teresa Flowers, Colt Bowden, Angela Brown, Dave Borba, Justin Wheatley, Dallas Russell, Matt Monson, Giuliana Serena, Heidi Gress, Melanie McGee Evans, Portia Early, Peter Moosman, Rachel Hayes, Shawna Powelson, Jonathon Baker and Tonya Vistaunet will also be highlighted. Crafts from the Craft Sabbath Co-op will also be for sale.

The show runs April 23 through May 31 at the Hive Gallery on the second floor of Trolley Square. Youth City’s Ottinger Hall, a program West has volunteered with for years, is getting in on the act. The nine to fourteen year old students will put up an art wall.

Todd Powelson

The show kicks off with a “duhliteful” opening party from 6 to 10 p.m. on April 23. Transfusion Hype, accompanied by musician Kiliona, and Blue Lotus Dance companies will perform. Folk singer Kelly Greenwood will croon. And Ottinger Hall students will also serve as docents, showing guests around the show and passing out sponsor information.

“It’s really important to me to involve youth in our art scene,” said West. “I want them to learn more about the artists in our show and share that information with others. I think it will be a great, self-esteem building experience for them to work at the show as teachers instead of sitting back as students.”

Teresa Flowers

On May 20, the masses are once again invited to party at The Hive, because “It’s Gallery Stroll, Duh.” Transfusion Hype’s break dancers will bust moves in the hallways and mannequins will be dressed to impress with fashions by Cory Bushman and Jordan Halversen. Strollers are invited between 6 and 10 p.m., and vintage 1950s wardrobe is recommended, though not required.

The public is invited to raid their stashes for unneeded art supplies donate them at The Hive for the duration of the show. The supplies will go to replenish the art cupboards at Ottinger Hall. Items like duct tape, markers, fabric and paint are the most needed.

Colt Bowden

ArtDuh.Com publishes three times per week with stories on art, craft, fashion, dance, food and architecture. The blog has been visited about 12,500 times. The Art Duh Anniversary show is sponsored by SLUG, Local First, UtahFM.org, inQuo, In Magazine and City Weekly.

For regular updates, “like” the blog on Facebook at www.facebook.com | artduh.

Justin Wheatley	Dave Borba
Melanie McGee Evans	Dallas Russel

Now through May 27th, Craft Lake City is calling for artisans and crafters to apply at www.craftlakecity.com.

The fee to apply is just $5.00, well worth it considering that the big spenders go out to this event. A jury of local artists evaluate the applications, and over 200 artists will be accepted this year.

The third annual Craft Lake City will be held on Saturday, August 13. 2011 from 2 p.m. to 9 p..m. at the Gallivan Center in downtown Salt Lake City. The event is free and open to the public.

“Salt Lake continues to welcome Craft Lake City with open arms and wallets,” said Angela Brown, SLUG Magazine editor and Craft Lake City director. “With Gallivan Center construction complete, we expect the size of the event to double. Last year we worked with 131 artists and about 8,000 shoppers enjoyed the show.”

Craft Lake City is an outdoor arts festival that will showcase hundreds of local artists, specializing in handmade goods. Affordably priced items like silk-screened posters, reconstructed clothing, knitted items and jewelry will be available. Entertainment will be provided throughout the day and will include craft demonstrations, street performers, dancers and musical acts. Craft Lake City is modeled after alternative national craft festivals like the Renegade Craft Fair and the Bazaar Bizarre. The event is sponsored by the Gallivan Center and hosted by SLUG Magazine. The event is sponsored by Artduh.com.

To stay abreast of the event, follow it on Facebook and twitter.

I was taught by a New York Times freelancer that anything can be considered a trend as long as you can find 3 examples of it. Well, there is a trend busting out north and south on my street that I’d like to call “why don’t we do it in the road.” My neighbors up and down 200 W have taken to dragging old furniture into our wide, grassy median and, I guess, are just chillin’ and thrillin’ out there.

I’ve never actually seen anyone sitting, much less “doin it” on the furniture out in (literally) the middle of our road. Weather doesn’t seem to factor into the decision to haul the Laz-E-Boy outside. It didn’t look that fun to lounge on the hide-away-bed by the E-Z Mart during this last snow storm. In fact, sofa plus snow plus no roof usually equals a soggy sofa. Even our bountiful homeless population is snubbing the upholstery this time of year. When the weather warms up, I’m expecting an entrepreneurial kid to start charging a quarter for a nap on his block.

No one will be watching us so why don't we. . .

Every time I walk outside and see a new piece of furniture I think is this trend “Hot or Not?” The pros, enjoying nature, making good use of the lovely median and comfortable place to drink beer seem to weigh about equally with the cons, trashy, germy and moist.

What do you think? Would you like to do it in my road?

I love New Year’s Resolutions. Those of you who already know that under the fun-loving exterior of Anna lies a driven and goal-oriented animal won’t be surprised that I always spend New Year’s Eve setting goals. In the spirit of making and achieving my favorite holiday tradition, I’ve asked some of Utah’s best, brightest and most talented artists, personalities and writers to share their resolutions.

Coming in first, my co-editor Todd had the most creative, funny and art-related New Year’s resolution. Forget resolving to lose weight or floss your teeth (both resolutions from my past), Todd has resolved to draw more naked ladies. One naked lady per week for the next 52 weeks using one of his favorite Christmas gifts, his new IPad with a drawing app and wand (ha ha you said wand). Todd calls it figure drawing, I call it the world’s greatest resolution.

Chip Haskell, Creative Director at Crowell Advertising claims “I’ve resolved to use more profanity, but do less drinking. Wait. Maybe it was less profanity and more drinking. Shit.” He says he may dump that one and instead “Resolve to find and kill Osama Bin Laden.”

Daisy Blake

Daisy Blake, Theater and Arts Reporter for In Magazine has committed to 5 resolutions: “1) Start a journal, 2) Plan my wedding, 3) Get better at roller derby, 4) See more plays – My aim this year is to break my predecessor Kelly Baker’s record and see 67 of them. 5) Breathe - I’ve noticed recently that I start to hold my breath when I am stressed. I don’t think this is a particularly good idea.”

Tamara Fox

Tamara Fox, co-owner of Gray Wall Gallery has made 3 resolutions: “1) Take more time for myself this year. 2) Work smarter not more. 3) Make Gray Wall Gallery even more of a success than 2010!”

Portia Early

Portia Early, a UtahFM DJ is my heroine when it comes to setting goals and achieving them. This past year she got “smober,” quit drinking, smoking and lost weight. Here are her goals for 2011: “1) Take a Facebook break for the month of January, 2) Switch from coffee to tea, 3) Give up white bread, pasta and rice, 4) Say “hi” to every stranger I see, 5) Give up meat except for fish, 6) Do some form of yoga every day, 7) Walk 20 minutes a day.”

But here’s my favorite of Portia’s goals. I think I need to commit to do this myself. “I will not buy any clothes or beauty products, and ‘shop’ in my own house; meaning I will have to use and learn to appreciate what I do have.“

Matt Monson, Local First’s Grassroots Coordinator and Salt Lake City Fashion Stroll boss has three resolutions: “1) I’m going to double down on my efforts to think, buy, act and support ‘Local’ in my community. This means more than just shopping at my favorite local shops – it means knowing my neighbors, getting out for gallery strolls & arts events, hiking / road trips across Utah’s backcountry, trying to eat locally-grown fruits and veggies, and just generally putting in a little love for the city and state that I call home, 2) For 2011, much of the year will be spent in heavy defragmentation of the hard drive in my head – trying to clear up all those bogus thoughts & responses we all get conditioned with growing up, and rewriting the code with positive thoughts, better approaches, and having a lot more fun, and 3) I’m working on my personal time management. As much as I’d like to argue that time is some silly human concoction – it seems I can’t get enough hours in a day, and always running 10 minutes late. I’m going to work on that… or find the wormhole of time/space continuum somewhere just outside Goblin Valley and put that issue to bed.”

Gavin Sheehan is our only friend to vow revenge: “Lose weight, write more, finish two big projects, find a job, raise more hell than last year, get revenge on two, and perhaps rewatch the entire original Twilight Zone in order again.”

And last and least important, here are my own resolutions: 1) Stay sober. Stay sober. Stay sober. 2) Write a monthly architecture feature for the blog. This is a great chance for me to learn more about one of my passions. 3) Write a monthly food feature for the blog – with a focus on healthy, vegetarian food that is made by a local restaurant or can be made at home. I’d love to help my friends who can’t cook to improve their skills in this area; and 4) Go back to teaching the 9 to 14 year old kids at Ottinger Hall. Being around these great kids is good for my soul.

Wishing you the best in 2011, Love, artduh.com