It's The Little Things...(Small Wonders Opening, 6/8 @ ODAS!)

It's time we all acknowledged the truth: Things that are awesome, are made awesom-er when they are small.
To convince you of this Scientific Fact*, I present to you exhibits A through E:

Exhibit A: Candy

Good.**

BETTER. (Look- fun is in it's name)

Exhibit B: Octopi

Beautiful, and slightly terrifying 

Beautiful and SO WEE.
BETTER.

Exhibit C: Antipasto plates

Normal size: A delicious and savory way to begin a meal

Tiny Size: inedible, but completely adorable.
BETTER.

Exhibit C: Even things that are already small are better when they're smaller

You can hold it in your hands!

YOU CAN HOLD 30 OF THEM IN YOUR IN YOUR HANDS
WAY BETTER.

Exhibit D: Art

What a big and impressive piece of art!

Smaller, but SO MUCH BETTER!

The really great news is that if you are a fan of small art (and with all the above evidence you'd be foolish not to be) you'll have a chance to check out over 100 miniature (no larger than 12"x 12"x 12")  paintings, drawings, sculptures, even fiber art at Open Door's Small Wonders, opening this Saturday, June 8th, from 5p to 7p.

But wait! There's more!

Small Wonders is a collaborative exhibition featuring artists from Open Door Art Studio and Cincinnati’s Visionaries and Voices. The show will be up through July, but with Father's Day, Graduation gifts and Happy 'It's No Longer Ohio Winter!' celebrations coming up, these wonderful and affordable works of are will be flying off the walls. Plus our openings have great snacks. 

Please join us for this big night of small works!  

*disclaimer: not real science
**All pictures, except for the last one, belong to someone else and have been linked to where I found them.
They are used purely for fun and hilarity, not for profit.

Are You Afraid of the Art - Opening This Weekend!

That's right Boos and Ghouls, you have less than seven days (seven days!) until the Halloween event that will put the 'Art' back in "Heart-stopping,' the 'Ooo' in 'Spooky,' and the 'Wee!' back in 'Halloween'! Are You Afraid of the Art, opens this Saturday, Oct. 13th (eek!) from 5pm to 7pm, giving you plenty of time for tricks and/or treats after.

Are you Afraid of the Art will feature art work from Open Door artists, as well as artists from the Columbus arts community. The work ranges from scary to adorable and, in some cases, a most puzzling combination of the two. The opening will feature enough treats to make a dentist weep and costumes are highly encouraged. (For real. We will all be in costume and may deem you less than fun should you come in your regular clothes. Unless your regular clothes are some form of costume, in which case, rock on).

Of corpse, I don't want you to come ill prepared, so I thought I'd share a few of my frightful favorite pieces of art that feature the strange and spooky.

1. Caravaggio's Medusa

Yikes! Here's a lady I would not want to mess with (although I feel she and I could exchange hair-care tips) Carravaggio, the Italian Baroque painter, painted this image of the Gorgon queen in 1596 while living in Rome. Carravaggio, who is famous for being a bit of a hot head himself, had recently left Milan due to "certain quarrels". (Definitely more Tricks than Treats with this guy) Snakes to his awesome use of dark and light, Carravaggio had a large influence on the painters of his time, as well as today.

2. The Nightmare by Henry Fuseli

Don't you just hate it when you're trying to get to sleep and that big demon won't stop sitting on your chest? I know I do. Henry Fuseli, on the other hand, found it so inspiring he painted this image not once, but three different times. For a complete and truly bizarre interpretation, check out the image's wikipedia page. What can we learn from this piece- don't look a creepy-gift-horse in it's blank and bottomless eyes? Don't mess with Swiss Artists?  

 3. The Sleep of Reason Produces Monsters  by Francisco Goya

This print is arguably the most famous of Goya's Los Caprichos series. Los Caprichos was a set of 80 prints in which Goya, a hard-core Enlightenment Fan, critiqued everything about the society in which he lived (sort of like an 18th century Steven Colbert). Goya's monsters are some of my favorites, as some of the scariest monsters to me exist in real life (example: clowns) 

 4. from The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch

Hieronymus Bosch's paintings are like a 'where's Waldo' of creepy little buggers. I don't even know where to start- the owls? The little gremlins? Awesome! I could look at this painting all day. Little is known about Bosch's life because he left no diaries or letters. Probably because he was too busy coming up with amazing beasties.

5. James Ensor's skeletons

Aw, look at these two guys- so happy! And that one has a hat! Everything's better with a hat (Don't believe me? Ask the internet). Although a 19th century painter, Ensor's bizarre paintings of skulls, carnival masks and puppets had a large influence on many of the 20th century surrealists.


Do you have a favorite piece of monster art? Perhaps you'll have a new one after this Saturday!

Are You Afraid of the Art
Saturday, October 10th

5pm to 7pm

See you there!

sources
wikipedia.com
my brain

my smart coworkers

Holy Cow! Wallace Peck at the Columbus Arts Festival

Ah summer!
The trees are starting to fill out, flowers are blooming, the sun is shining, popsicles are in abundance-
Doesn't it just feel like there should be some awesome, three day long event where one could enjoy the arts scene in Columbus outside in the fresh air, perhaps take in the beauty of the Riverfront?

Good news!

You can do JUST THAT at the 2012 Columbus Arts Festival, June 1, 2 and 3!
(Huzzah!)

Does it get any better than this?

It totally does. This year, Open Door Artist, Wallace Peck was chosen by the festival to be featured as one of their emerging artists! We at Open Door are so proud of Wallace and can't wait for the rest of Columbus to get to know this amazing artist. Stop by booth M106 and say 'Hi!'

In the meantime, check out the wonderful episode of ArtZine made by WOSU's Cindy Gaillard highlighting Wallace.

Figurative Language!

Figurative Language is an exhibition of works created by three exemplary artists. Porter, Emanuele, and Peck each approach depicting the figure with a fresh perspective. Peck's concentric lines, Emanuele's bold colors and Porter's ethereal washes distinguish their work from one another. When displayed together the figures truly come to life.  

What:

Exhibition of figurative works made by Charles Porter, John Emanuele and Wallace Peck 

Where:

Open Door Art Studio

1050 Goodale Boulevard

Grandview, OH 43212

When:

Exhibit runs from June 9th until August 4th 

OPENING RECEPTION

Saturday, June 9th from 5pm until 7pm

Light hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served in this unique and inspiring art setting.  

Why:

To celebrate and showcase an exciting show of three of Open Door's most prolific and accomplished artists working in a figurative style.  

Want to see a sneak peek?

Charles Porter, Birds and the Bees

John Emanuele, A New Breed

Wallace Peck, My Little Boy Green

2012 Exhibition Calendar!

This Inspired That

A collaborative exhibit featuring artists from Open Door Art Studio and Mother Artists at Work (MAW).
For this exhibit each MAW artist selected work made by artists from Open Door ArtStudio that inspired them, then used that spark to create a companion piece. Both works are displayed side-by-side in this unique exhibition.

Exhibition Dates: 4/14 – 5/25
Opening Reception: 4/14, 5 pm to 7 pm

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Figurative Language: The Visual Vocabulary of Charles Porter, Wallace Peck,
and John Emanuele

This exhibit features the work of three Open Door Artists, working in a figurative style:Charles Porter, Wallace Peck, and John Emanuele. These artists were selected due to their artistic dedication and cohesive bodies of work.

Exhibition Dates: 6/9 – 7/28
Opening Reception: 6/9, 5 pm to 7 pm

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Outside/In: An Exploration of Accessible Art Studios in Ohio

This exhibit will feature 5 to 7 pieces from Accessible Art studios around Ohio. Our goal with this show is to build partnerships, educate the community and most of all, to celebrate all the awesome things happening with Outsider Art around Ohio.

Exhibition Dates: 8/11 – 9/21
Opening Reception: 8/11, 5pm to 7pm

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Are You Afraid of the Art?

A collection of creepy, crawly artwork created by the artists of Open Door. The opening for this show, will coincide with SUGAR HIGH, an annual Halloween masquerade event that has hocus pocus, make-believe, and , of course, candy.

Exhibition Dates: 9/29 – 10/26
Opening Reception: 10/13, 5pm to 7pm (SUGAR HIGH)

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2nd Annual Open House: Pieces of Me

Open Door’s annual open house featuring work from over 50 Open Door artists, centered around the theme of ‘Self Portraits.’

Exhibition Dates: 10/2 through the end of the year

Opening Reception: 11/10, 5pm to 7pm