This past weekend for Third Friday was the last public viewing of “The Joe and Jan Show” at 335 Commons, curated by Robrt Pela and hosted at the pop-up gallery by Ashley Harder of Harder Development. The exhibition has been the focus of a considerable amount of media attention after it was unexpectedly cancelled in January by Kristin Shears, owner of Willo North Gallery, where it was originally to be held. The cancellation prompted accusations of censorship, largely perpetuated by a Huffington Post article.

Barry Graham, an author based out of Portland, OR, documented the strange sequence of events that resulted after the cancellation on his website. Shears’ reasons for canceling the show only days before the opening was that Pela, whose resignation was due to go into affect after the opening, left her  unprepared and unable to continue as scheduled. However, as Graham shows on his website, Pela had given notice of his leaving weeks before and eventually released his resignation letter, which revealed Shears’ mismanagement of Willo North to be the cause.

In his letter, Pela writes,

“Perhaps some of the interns will stay, and the work I’ve done to create an audience for Willo North is one you can continue to build on, for sure. But I’m tired of showing up to find my work undone, or re-done, and I’m embarrassed to have to keep asking that you communicate with me about what’s going on, when clearly you don’t wish to.”

Despite the controversy that proceeded it, 335 Commons provided a wonderful space for the humorous depictions Arizona’s two most recognized politicians of modern day. A complete list of artists involved include: Kristin Bauer, Peter Bugg, Chary Castro-Maria, Eric Cox, Jeff Falk, Todd Daniel Grossman, Vincent LaRue, Annie Lopez, Melissa McGurgen, Annette Sexton Ruiz, Irma Sanchez, Chris Swanberg and Paul Wilson.

At the risk of revealing too much, I have a soft spot for the natural environment. This is what immediately drew me to Clements’ work and the interactions she captures between the subjects and settings of her photographs. Having recently received her B.S. from NAU in Flagstaff, a place filled with the beauty of Arizona’s Ponderosa Pines, Clements’ eyes have grown attuned to the humbling effect that vast natural landscapes have when placed next to simple human affairs. There is an element of curiosity and light-heartedness that comes out, which I consider refreshing when juxtaposed with the inauspicious and foreboding traits commonly ascribed to nature by popular culture. Our films and books are filled with stories of characters who meet unfavorable ends due to the mistake of equating nature’s beauty with benevolence, yet Clement’s photographs show us that this is no mistake to make. The playfulness and curiosity invoked by natural settings is matched by the world around us.

I am a very dynamic person. I get bored easily and constantly crave change, but photography has always been a constant part of my life. As a kid, when my dad bought my family our first camera, I remember it was magical to me. I had always made art, but taking pictures was instantaneous. I could make something in a split second. Gradually, it changed the way I looked at everything, it was transformational. I’ve always been bad at explaining myself and talking is often very awkward to me, but photography is a way of communication that is effortless and natural. I graduated with my degree in photography this past May. I’ve been assisting for established photographers since then, and working on getting some exhibitions here in the valley before I make my next move.

I love that photography gives me the ability to change the way realities are perceived. It makes me feel like my camera gives me a supernatural power in a way, and so my work often has a dreamy, ethereal quality. I am also very inspired by people. I am very interested in emotions, reactions, and relationships between people– they fascinate me. Portraiture is definitely my favorite area of photography. Most of the photos I take involve people in natural settings, and my style often tends to be photojournalistic. I like the honesty and authenticity that spontaneous portraiture provides. I am always aware of a scene’s photographic possibility, always looking for the next shot. My camera is my third eye.

This quote from Ryan McGinley sums it up: “You have to be able to observe life as if you were a camera all the time, constantly looking at light and the way that things are placed and the way people hold themselves. You need the ability to see something in someone or something that no one else really sees and be able to bring that to light.

Rose Clements

View more from Rose at her website here

Photos from “Urban Hieroglyphics”, First Studio‘s show hosted during Art Detour weekend in March featuring solo and collaborative works by Lalo Cota, La Muneca, Angel Diaz, Nomas, Niba, and Rosie T.

On March, 30th, the last Saturday of the month, Phoenix Taco & NativeThinking will be hosting “House of Wong”– a unique night of electronic music by up and coming DJs at Tempe’s Long Wong’s Fire House. Long Wong’s has become recognized as a staple in the Tempe music scene, hosting live acts with no cover nearly every night of the week. However, in the spirit of innovation and the desire to bring you the best that our creative scene has to offer, I’ve teamed up with NativeThinking (Eric Estrada of Walkingstick Presents) to fill a gap, long gone unfulfilled, in Tempe’s nightlife.

We’ve recognized that many people, both artists and audience, have become discouraged by the lack of  electronic house acts in Tempe that aren’t suited for the frat-infested crowds of Mill Avenue or Scottsdale’s clubs. So, we’re excited to give the opportunity for people to enjoy the more mellow sounds House of Wong’s DJs have to offer. In addition, we’ve also invited Phoenix-based Sunorus to start the night off with their jazz-infused, Latin-based ensemble, so make sure to show up early to witness the range of acts featured throughout the night, the likes of which are rarely seen in Tempe.

View more info, including links to artist’ pages, at House of Wong’s Facebook event page

Photos by Chancey Teholatanek and Phoenix Taco

For March’s First Friday event during Artlink’s Art Detour weekend, The Sagrado hosted “What Tribe?”, curated by Douglas Miles of Apache Skateboards. What Tribe? exposes and comments on the plethora of racial Native American stereotypes widely embraced by popular culture. Images appearing in the show are often found in Victoria Secret advertisements, popular social media sites like Tumblr, or in the portfolio of any established tattoo artist. Headdresses, dream catchers, and teepee’s were in abundance, as well as historical figures like Geronimo, who have become popularized as universal archetypes of Native culture.

In most contexts, these symbols are irrelevant to Native art, applying only to specific tribes that popular culture has homogenized into stereotypes and generalizations. For the artists in What Tribe?, these references of Native culture are presented with a hint of mockery, as if to reclaim their meaning, like in Thomas Breeze Marcus’s installation of teepees grouped together with the words “Slum Village” written above. This work and others like it are a powerful testimony to the fact that Native American resistance to outside influence continues into the 21st century. To visit a reservation in the United States is  to visit what would be considered a third world country by other standards– rates of unemployment, sexual violence, and disease soar astronomically above the national average. When considering the reality of today’s Native American communities, it’s understandable that Native artists like those in “What Tribe?” would fight against stereotypical representations of their culture that reflect nothing of the true circumstances.

Still, other artists showed work that contained little, if any overt traces of their “tribal” background, like in Sam Gomez’s photographs featured above. When asked, he explained  that one of the photographs featured was taken on the San Carlos Apache Reservation during a community event, but there is no obvious indication of this. The photograph is of a young man in a group as his eyes unexpectedly meet the camera– a quick look into a sincere moment of daily life as captured by Gomez. More than ridicule stereotypes, What Tribe? presents the works of talented artists like Gomez who strive to perfect their medium, irrelevant of any designation as “Native”, proving that these artists will have the last say in who they are.

A list of artists featured in the show:

Eriberto Oriol / Photographer – Los Angeles, CA
Mike Miller / Photographer – Los Angeles, CA
Lyncia Begay / Painter – Flagstaff, AZ
Rye Purvis / Painter – San Francisco, CA
Sam Gomez / Photographer – Phoenix, AZ
Thomas Breeze Marcus / Painter – Phoenix, AZ
Werewulf Micah Wesley / Painter – Norman, OK
Jasmin Rosales / Photographer – Norman, OK
Brandan Odums / Painter – New Orleans, LA
Jonathan Nelson / Artist – Santa Fe, NM
Luke Dorsett / Photographer – Phoenix, AZ via Japan
Douglas Miles / Mixed Media Artist – San Carlos, AZ

For more, visit the What Tribe Project facebook page and Apache Skateboard’s website

Photos courtesy of One Speed: Go!

Through the months of January and February, the City of Scottsdale hosted Canal Convergence, a series of events centered around a routine draining and cleaning of SRP canals at the Scottsdale Waterfront, the likes of which are not scheduled to occur again for another seven years. Artists were invited to participate with public arts projects, including water-like creatures painted on the side of the canals from artists Isaac Caruso and Ashley Macias. The above photos feature Casey Cooper‘s contribution to the project, where he constructed buoyant triangle structures made of inflated steel.

To view more of Casey Cooper’s work, visit his website here.

 
Bucky Miller, Photographic Artist, 2013

JB Snyder, Muralist, 2013

 Dayvid LeMmon, Photographic Artist, 2013

 
Betsy Schneider, Photographic Artist / Educator, 2013

 
Such, Muralist, 2013

 
Morgan Parsons, Gardener, 2013

Alex "Djentrification", DJ, 2013

William Jenkins, Photographic Artist / Educator, 2013

Mo Neuharth, Photographic Artist / Musician, 2013

Eric Iwerson, Painter, 2013

Brad B, Musician, 2013

Bee Spiderman, Sculptor / Musician, 2013

Adam "Dumperfoo", Painter, 2013

Christian Michael Filardo, Intermedia Artist, 2013

 Andrew Almendarez, Photographic Artist, 2013 


Dusty "Pickster" Hickman, DJ, 2013

My first introduction to Charles Anthony Darr was hardly an introduction at all, but consisted of spotting him around my neighborhood, walking his dog and aiming a point and shoot at random objects. It wouldn’t be until many months later that I’d come across his work and appreciate his photographs. Until then, I only got the sense that he was doing something– something that amounted to more than just a leisurely walk.

When I spoke to him about his portrait series, he explained it to me in beautifully simple terms. It’s a series of people who do things, much like himself. The subjects are all artists of some medium and confront the perception that people “don’t do anything” or that “nothing happens here” in Tempe/Phoenix. Proving this perception wrong is one of the motivating goals for Phoenix Taco, so I’m glad to share this work from Charles, who like the figures in his series, “just keeps doing it, because that’s what artists do.”

“As an artist, you always have to return to your work. Everything else comes and goes. You can’t fully give yourself to anything else. It may seem selfish, but it’s not.  Your work is bigger than you,” Jesse Rieser explained to me.

There seems to be a notion that the local creative scene only serves as a launchpad for artists. You either take off from here and make it elsewhere, or you crash and burn. As one of few local natives, I have witnessed this atone-less climate melt the wings from more than one Icarus.

“What are you still doing around here, Charles? Aren’t you getting kinda old?” some early-twenties, already-a-burnout asked me a while ago. My initial response was laughter. Where would I want to go? I am getting by financially with enough free time from work to hang out, have drinks with my friends, goof off, and enjoy this city’s surplus of beautiful women. “You wish I’d leave,” I thought, “must suck watching me live your dream.” This interaction crossed my mind a couple days later and struck me in a much less humorous way. What the hell am I doing living a twenty-something burnout’s dream? Have I given up faith that I’m here to do more? Have I fallen so far that I’m now resonating with the flat-liners? What has taken over my dreams?

Embarrassing.

On the other hand, a slight shift in perspective made me realize what a beneficial circumstance I find myself in. Yep. I’m still here. But I’m still doing it, and I’m not the only one. Being born and raised in Maryvale and only making it as far away as Tempe, I have spent my whole life in the Phoenix area, and I’ve made lots of connections. My life has been blessed with genuinely interesting and gifted people. What a great opportunity I have to photograph these individuals who are here in the Valley, amongst the flat-liners, in the hellacious heat that is unforgiving of wax wings, and who don’t care. They just keep doing it, because that’s what artists do.

Charles Anthony Darr

You can view more from Charles at his blog here

Photos by Niba DelCastillo

Isaac Caruso & Lalo Cota‘s recent mural in progress. The wall is the South facing side of a 105 year old building, home of Fastsigns on Central Ave in Phoenix.

For February’s First Friday event, Palabra Art Collective hosted Bask. Art of Josh Brizuela. This was Brizuela’s first show, which featured original artwork, limited edition clothing, and also signed prints.

www.baskclothing.com
www.baskbaskbask.tumblr.com

The City of Tempe currently has two calls for artists, both of which have a deadline of March 14th, 2013. Artists are able to submit to both.

University/Hardy Drive Streescape Project:

Tempe Public Art announces two public art opportunities for University Drive Streetscape and Hardy Drive Streetscape. Artists submitting qualifications will be considered for both project opportunities. An Artist Selection Panel will assign selected artists to the specific project. Possible artwork opportunities include medians, transit shelters, light poles and pavement enhancements. The artwork will help create a memorable and welcoming presence and be appropriate in scale and composition to be viewed by passing pedestrians, bicyclists and motorists.

Bicycle Symbols Project:

Tempe Public Art announces a public art opportunity for an artist to design bicycle lane symbols. The selected artist will design a series of bicycle lane symbols to be installed on Tempe bikeways throughout the city beginning with University Drive and Hardy Drive Streetscape Projects. Tempe has had a long-standing commitment to encourage bicycling through the development of bikeways. The city’s commitment dates back to 1973 when the first Tempe Bicycle Plan was developed. It was the first comprehensive bicycle plan in the state. Since then, there has been a steady expansion of the city’s bikeway network.

For more information, including guidelines and submission instructions for each project, visit the City of Tempe’s website here