Meet Norman Lerner, master photographer and Nashville resident

Norman Lerner is one of those classic American artists whose photographs have been acknowledged in exhibits, articles, and museum and private collections around the country since the 1960s. His studio was anchored in NYC for a number of years, always near the major art museums he visited regularly during lunch hours, museums that ultimately exhibited and purchased his work. A venerable statesman for photography as an art form, Mr. Lerner and his wife recently selected Nashville for their retirement destination, because of "the civility of the place and the people," he says.

Norman Lerner, Grand Central Station Waiting Room, 1950's

Since his move to Nashville, he has been actively engaged in organizing the various parts of his photography--from the classic fashion photography of the 1950s, to studies of the body, and the documentary-style photography of urban lives in NYC and compelling landscapes to the innovative figurative abstract series, Transfigurations, created and printed beginning in the late 1960s.

Norman Lerner, Lingerie, 1950's

Norman Lerner worked as a fashion and commercial photographer in New York City from the early 50s to the 70s. He maintained an active commercial studio of some 40 employees, their primary work coming from the major magazines in the city. But that was just the beginning for him. He states that, "my photography did not end when the model left the studio. The city and its people were a part of me and I was part of them. Everything about the city fascinated me so it seemed only natural for me as a photographer to record the people and places in which we all lived. When I left the studio the camera was always with me and it because an extension of my being. It was as natural as breathing."

Norman Lerner, A la Klein

His regular forays into the museums, especially one recurring visit to the Jewish Museum on Fifth Avenue when they presented the sculpture of Yves Klein, led to another path for him as an artist. His response was "I can do that," meaning that as a photographer he could make figurative sculpture work, photographs that would have sculptural texture. He secured a grant fro State University of New York Foundation to create his Transfiguration series. Armed with a large format camera, models, and his fully-equipped professional printing studio, he set out to make black and white sculpture through camera, paper, and chemistry. The results, inspired by what he had learned about texture from Edward Weston, are not quite like anything else. Minor White, one of the 20th-century American masters of photography first discovered and showed this series.

Lerner's photography has been shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art (MOMA), and the Santa Barbara Museum of Art. MOMA added selections from his Transfiguration series to their potography collection, as did the Santa Barbara Museum of Art.

His photographs have been published in numerous publications, including Color Magazine, Black and White Magazine, Popular Photography, US Camera, Look, New York Times Magazine, GQ, Glamour, Men's Wear, Photographer's Forum, Boy's Life, 35mm Color, Camera, and Darkroom; it has been highlighted on The Today Show and Casey Allen's WNDT show, "In Focus."

Norman Lerner, Window Washer, 1950's

In the 1960s, he was founder and chair of photography for the first fashion degree program in the United States at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC. In 1986-1994, he was coordinator of the photography studies program at California Polytechnic State University, and remains connected with them as Professor Emeritus.

Mr. Lerner has been able to sustain his creative side while teaching and owning a demanding commercial studio serving high end clients in the magazine world. In all that he has done, his artistic vision has been primary. As he says it, "I have always kept a little seed of creativity alive. I have never permitted it to go dead." That explains in part why at age 83, he maintains that though he is retired from active business, he simply cannot take time off from his work as an artist, because "I haven't reached retirement age. There is this project that I'm working on..." He continues to work on photographic projects and organizing his lifetime of work.

Nashvillians now have a chance to meet Mr. Lerner personally and see his work at The Arts Company. On February 4, there is a Collectors Art Night with Mr. Lerner as one of the guests. Click www.5thavenueofthearts.com to make a reservation. On February 5 during the First Saturday Art Crawl, he will be in the gallery to talk with guests about his work. Click here to preview some of his work-- www.theartscompany.com.

Of Things To Come

Norman Lerner, "Window Washer", Copyright Norman Lerner

Happy New Year to all of us who love to discover, see, and talk about what matters in the world of art that touches our lives.

We have lots of discoveries to unveil and lots to talk about in this New Year. Check in frequently -- in house and online.

Come see us to toast the New Year this Saturday, January 8th. What fun it will be. Mr Lerner's "Window Washer" will be here to greet you.

Anne, Brian, Robin, and friends

14th Annual Holiday Arts Market at The Arts Company

We will be filled to the brim with more art and festivity for the holidays than ever this year at The Arts Company. We have scouted around for the neatest collection of art gifts, artwork large and small, and new platforms and palettes from artists than ever for your holidays.

Brother Mel, Utensil Christmas Tree, 60'' tall

There are specific reasons for our special affinity for this time of year:

1) We established The Arts Company with the opening of the first Annual Holiday Arts Market in December 1996. Ever since, we have been on the lookout for really neat art and books and special events we could muster to match the interests of all folks who continue to come downtown Nashville. Therefore, this year marks our 14th birthday on December 4, and we want to have friends here to help us celebrate what's happened to the evolving Fifth Avenue of the Arts over these last 14 years.

2) So it's our birthday and it's one of our most important annual challenges: how do we select some of the neat things that we know our guests and friends will be interested in including in their holiday celebrations?

We say with some measure of modesty that we think we have nailed it this year. It's a little beyond spunky. It's into overflowing with fresh and original art and art gifts. We have commissioned some special gifts and art, and our focus is on the Nashville traditions that we most love. If you are one of our customers reading this, you know that we enjoy showing images of Nashville and new ways of thinking about what we are all about in Nashville.

Small ceramic pieces by Replanski Ceramics

We know that our customers share an interest in specific artists--Brother Mel for sure. But also April Street, Bill Starke, David Swanagin, Charles Keiger, Ed Rode, Bob Schatz, John Nikolai classics, Ed Clark photographs and those of his legendary colleagues through the LIFE Gallery Collection of Photography, Charles Kieger, Pam Moxley, Jim Hubbman, Ansel Adams' protege Robert Kolbrener...plus many more. So some of all of these will be present in our Upstairs Archives.

But we have also introduced a lot of new artists this year--from Tony Breuer to Judy Nebhut; from Denise Stewart-Sanabria and her donut paintings and plywood people to Chris Beck and Deborah Wait's mosaics. We have shown new photography and techniques, new and unexpected outsider artists working on tarpaper or from piles of scrap metal.

Tres Taylor, "Birds of Night", mixed media on tarpaper

For the holidays, we have commissioned some Nashville paintings from Charlie Buckley and have some new tarpaper paintings by Tres Taylor, and a few pieces of metal sculpture by Chris Beck--not to mention some new Nashville images by Kimiko. We have also added a Spirit of Nashville boutique to showcase Joel Anderson's popular Nashville posters.

Charlie Buckley, Construction Site for Music City Center

But preemo as always, Brother Mel always surprises us with new materials and new ideas. This holiday is no exception. We have his version of Christmas trees--from utensils to stainless and glass sculpture made to hold wine bottles, as well as new paintings and Christmas trees as wall sculpture. You will know when you walk in the door that Brother Mel's statement about his work is part of what our holidays are about: "Bringing beauty to space to lift up spirits."

Brother Mel, "Painted Squares with Rods"

We are waiting with great anticipation to have you come see us during the holidays. We are working with our gallery colleagues and neighbors to add special Champagne Saturdays to the holidays this year. More information on that is coming soon.

Oops! I almost forgot. Of course, we have loads of neat pop-up books for adults and children, and selected art books that are really worth taking a look at.

Meanwhile, join us for First Saturday Art Crawl and our gallery birthday on December 4, 6-9. We'll turn the lights on high for you.

Housewives Behaving Badly: commentary by Robin Venable

Denise Stewart-Sanabria, Gluttony, oil on linen, 40 x 30''

This month at The Arts Company is all about visual archaeology - digging through appearances to find the deeper meanings. Denise Stewart-Sanabria and Chris Beck have each created new bodies of work that are inviting on the surface, but complex in the subject matter. Once you start digging, you will find there are issues that speak into the deepest levels of what it is to be human. When viewed together, each series of work talks to the other one.

Denise Stewart-Sanabria, The Immaculate Confection, oil on linen, 24 x 48''

Denise's sumptuous paintings of personified "donuts behaving badly" allow her to explore the seven deadly sins and other human foibles (such as "Drunks") with more tenacity, humor, and depth than had she painted humans acting out the same indiscretions. Her bold and playful titles such as "The Immaculate Confection" challenge the viewer to see traditional themes in a new light. She entices the viewer with globs of gooey insides and powdery toppings to show how enticing "behaving badly" can be at first, but the crumbs, bitten-off edges, and reflections on the tables they sit on suggest otherwise - like the 17th century Dutch vanitas paintings that were beautifully adorned with pearls and jewels, but also included rotten fruit and hollow skulls to suggest the brevity of life.

Chris Beck, Lorraine, mixed media, 44 x 32 x 8''

Chris's perfectly poised "housewives", some of which are framed, sit quietly among their backdrops from ages past. Using ads from LIFE magazine from the 1950's as inspiration, he, like Denise, invites the viewer into another world where things aren't always what they seem. In the boom of consumerism in post-war America, women who worked during the war to keep the country afloat, returned to the home where pot-roasts and dirty carpets awaited them. Crafting his housewives out of discarded tin and muted colors, the viewer is invited into the nostalgia of a golden age of America. However, his materials that he uses, and his palate of colors suggests an undertone of sadness and tainted dreams that swam underneath the bubbly current of the times.

Chris Beck, June, painted metal, 43 x 18 x 7''

Shown side by side, Denise's maximalist paintings of enticing, naughty doughnuts and Chris's enchanting mixed media portraits of days gone by, interact with each other in an interesting way to create an environment where the consumer is confronted with his own future - and although it is flawed, it is human - which makes it beautiful.

For more information about the show, and to see more images from each artist, please visit our website - www.theartscompany.com

Seeing Through Spaces: Tony Breuer's Universe of Paintings

Head's up, fans of the physical universe--from space-time, quantum physics, and relativity to the way our human brains work; from the physical properties and materials of making art to the world of human imagination that ties it all together. Dr. Anthony Breuer, aka Tony Breuer, has set out to break into the codes of the multi-dimensional universe by making two-dimensional canvases that show us there is more than meets the eye in the physical universe of our everyday lives.

Crack in the Earth, New Openings, mixed media, 48 x 72 inches

Breuer's paintings are made to engage viewers in Seeing Through Spaces in a practical manner--using artistic materials and practices and ordinary images such as horses, planes, magnolias as metaphors. His paintings offer new insight into connecting the world of art into some of the primary scientific discoveries of the 21st century. There is a lot to see and a lot to know in Breuer's paintings. The process of making the paintings is itself laborious and painstaking. These are physical canvases, filled with action and color and lots of swirls and dimensions. Yet, there is considerable lightness of being implied in the resulting paintings. The things of our world seem to stand still while the universe is in constant motion.

But that's just about the paintings. Before Tony ever touched a canvas, he had a life as a distinguished practicing physician. His specialty, neurology with an emphasis on research, led him to related scientific exploration, specifically into the seen and unseen laws of the universe. In the last one hundred years, our knowledge of the physical laws of the universe has grown exponentially. Current research in relativity and quantum physics tells us that the world is even more multi-faceted than ever before imagined.

Space Magnolia #6, oil on canvas, 24 x 30 inches

Remember that the word "imagination" is a word shared by scientists such as Einstein, Feynman, and Hawking, and artists such as Picasso, Dali, and new-to-the-scene Tony Breuer. As he pursued the study of the laws of nature through the prism of how the human brain works, adding the making of art was a natural evolution in his world.

Breuer's study of medicine began at Princeton, followed by research at Oxford, and he received his M.D. from Harvard Medical School. Some years later, he began to study art while maintaining a full schedule as a physician, completing his MFA in art in 2004. In recent years, he has begun a balancing act of reducing his medical schedule and increasing his artistic schedule in the studio. The exhibit, Seeing Through Spaces, is a showcase for his new series of paintings, intended to present the awe and beauty of the infinite physical laws of nature that exist among us in our lives, though unseen.

Virginia Falls, mixed media, 30 x 40 inches

Tony Breuer is a bona fide 21st-century emerging artist. The brain, the laws of nature, and the making of art--that's the world of Tony Breuer.

If you would like to meet Tony personally and get a preview tour of his work, join us at The Arts Company on Saturday, October 2, 4:30-6:00, in advance of the always-jubilant First Saturday Art Crawl Downtown, which follows 6-9 pm.

The Journey to "Inspired"

Commentary by Brian Downey, Associate Director of The Arts Comany and curator of the "Inspired" exhibit:

There is nothing I love more than curating shows. Researching talented artists, seeing the artwork as it's created, planning the layout of the show in the gallery, and watching it all come together for the opening reception is one of the most exciting things I have ever had the pleasure to do in my professional career. I have curated several shows, have worked with some amazing artists, and have had a blast the entire time. "Inspired," however, will always stand out to me and be one the shows I am most proud of.

It all started back in March of 2010 when I was visiting New York City with a friend of mine. We were walking down 5th Avenue in the heart of the city, admiring the stores, wishing I could afford to purchase the beautiful things I was seeing, and staring at all the gorgeous window displays. I was passing Bergdorf Goodman when I looked up and was instantly stopped in my tracks by their window display, not by the clothes, but by the large-scale woodblock prints that provided the backdrop for the fashion. I had no idea who the artist was, but it wasn't something I was not going to forget. When I was finally returned home to Nashville I immediately started researching to find out who this artist was. I learned that his name was John Welles Bartlett and he was living in Brooklyn. I found his website and sent him an email to introduce myself. After a few back and forths, I asked him if he would be part of a show I was curating in late summer. I expected an immediate "No thanks." I assumed that someone, who was getting this kind of exposure and attention in New York, would already be booked solid with other shows. To my surprise, he said "Yes!" Now I actually had a show to start planning!

"TV Donkey with Ant" by John Welles Bartlett

I wanted this exhibit to be a two-person show, and I already had an idea floating in the back of my mind about how to make this more than just an average exhibit of two artist's work. The trouble was finding that other artist who was just the right fit with John. I found a couple artists who I was very interested in, but unfortunately (or fortunately...as it turned out) they were either already booked for shows, or just didn't return my emails. Then I ran across Julianna Swaney, and I was so happy those other artists didn't work out. I found her work on My Love For You and was instantly a fan. I knew her small, intimate works would be a nice contrast, and yet completely complement John's large-scale woodblock prints. I emailed her, and her quick reply couldn't have been nicer. Even though she was already booked for three other shows in September, she still agreed to be a part of mine. I don't know how she found the time to create all the work for these four shows, but she did...and personally, I think I got the best ones!

"Hidden Birds" by Julianna Swaney

Once each artist was confirmed for the show, I ran my idea past them. I wanted to engage each artist and have them create something that would be special for this exhibit and very interesting to all the folks who would make it to the show. I asked each artist (who were total strangers at the time) how they would feel about studying the body of work of the other artist and creating one piece for the show that was inspired by the other. I didn't know what kind of reaction this would get, but I was hopeful. As it turned out, both artists loved the other's work and were very excited to take on this challenge. Personally, I think they were even more excited to see what the other artist would create knowing that they were the inspiration behind it. As the months went on, I would receive images from the artists of all the new pieces they were working on...but I still hadn't seen the inspired piece. I was starting to get worried. I had already sent out the press release, hyped the theme of the show, given interviews to some local publications--all based on the idea that each artist was creating this inspired piece, and the show was even called, "Inspired." What in the world would I do if one or both artists decided they just couldn't manage to do an inspired piece? I was nervous. Luckily, each artist was just saving the best for last and when I finally saw the inspired pieces I knew that the show was going to be amazing!

John's work

Julianna's work

The opening reception was this past Saturday. John was able to fly to Nashville for the show, but Julianna had a show opening in Portland, OR, where she currently lives and wasn't able to make it. Even though she couldn't be here, the evening was a huge success. After some great press, including a very nice spotlight in Nashville Arts Magazine, and a wonderful post by The Jealous Curator, hundreds came through the gallery that night. Some were there for the free wine, but the majority were actually there to see this special exhibit. I talked to so many people, answered so many questions, and loved every minute of it. By the end of the night we had sold a lot of artwork (according to Julianna, the most she has ever sold at an opening reception...EVER), and introduced two fantastic new artists to the gallery and to Nashville. I'll never forget the evening. I want to thank both of these great artists who I now consider great friends, the amazing people I work with at The Arts Company (Anne, Robin, and the whole gang), and my incredibly supportive friends and family who made the night memorable and special.

The show continues through September 25 at The Arts Company. Please stop by and take a look if you can, or see the pieces in the show on the gallery's website.

John, me, and the editorial staff of Nashville Arts Magazine

With two of my best friends, Candace and Beth

Our front window display...just as impressive as Bergdorf Goodman, in my opinion :)

The "Inspired" Pieces are Revealed!

Our current show, "Inspired" features the work of artists John Welles Bartlett (printmaker) and Julianna Swaney (illustrator). Each artist was asked to create one piece for the show that was inspired by the other. Having never met, and living on opposite sides of the United States, it was a fun and unique challenge for each artist to study the body of work of the other and create something, in their own style, inspired by them. Both inspired pieces were wrapped in black paper and were finally unveiled at the opening reception on Saturday, September 4. These pieces were a secret...until now.

Below are John and Julianna's inspired pieces and a brief description, in their own words, on how they were truly inspired by each other:

John's inspired piece, "TV Maiden with Birdhouse"

“When I began looking at Julianna’s work, I felt drawn into a time and place where life is entwined with folklore and spirits, and the secrets of nature. These are themes close to my heart and it was not hard to be inspired by her work. My piece “TV Maiden with Birdhouse” is related to the young girls who appear in a many of Julianna’s works, gingerly interacting with nature and the spirit world.” - John Welles Bartlett

Julianna's inspired piece, "Reception"

“What I initially found interesting in John’s work was the recurring image of the TV set. Especially the pieces where it is strapped to the back of a girl and a donkey, I often draw people or animals with things strapped to their back so I felt like that was a good place for me to start looking for inspiration. I have no idea what his intention for that symbol is but I interpret the TV image as a distraction that is always intruding, always constant, sort of in the background, though...so that you almost don't even realize you are being distracted. That is a familiar feeling I think to anyone around today who has the diversion of phone/email/texting/information with them constantly, you often don't even realize you are not paying attention to what is happening around you because your mind is constantly half on a screen. I incorporated the image of the TV on the back of a wolf, followed by a girl absorbed with it as she walks though the forest to symbolize that sort of distraction.” - Julianna Swaney