A New Online Marketplace

Charlie Buckley, The Arts Company, oil on muslin-wrapped panel, 14 x 8.5'', 2010

Business models are a dime a dozen these days. Every time we think we have one cornered, it slips away in mid-thought. It's a swift world out here.

From day one in our art business our idea was to make art commercially viable by locating in the middle of an active marketplace where people transact all kinds of business within close proximity to each other on a daily basis. A hundred years ago that was the town square. Then the center of cities. Then the suburbs. Then shopping malls. Now we're back to the town square, but without the brick and mortar.

Bob Grannis, Capital Construction, photograph, 20 x 30'', 1957

The new town square is online, with a multiplicity of communities you can choose to connect with. You create your own town square online, defined by the people with whom you converse and share confidences and by the sources you count on for shopping and purchasing.

Even though we are in the art business where everything is original, one-of-a-kind, it's hard to know how to find a brick and mortar location in a prime traffic location where people go to transact business and look for tangible goods and services. For us, the center of downtown Nashville continues to be a good bet. For a simple reason. Nashville is magnet for creativity, and downtown is an arts destination. People from around the world come to downtown Nashville to seek out the Nashville experience--that is, the unusual combination of lots of institutional and commercial venues in music, art, museums, libraries, and honky tonks, all within walking distance of each other. Fortunately, that combination attracts consistent foot traffic. Still, that's a kind of activity-based market scenario, not the daily kind of traffic that stems from the daily business of people's lives.

Charles Keiger, The Vault, oil on panel, 20 x 18'', 2009

It is not easy to find a thriving daily physical marketplace. The marketplace of our time is online, and any business wishing to thrive has to reckon with that elusive, seemingly amorphous structure and find new ways to get their goods and ideas noticed. Case in point: we now look online or "onphone" to locate brick and mortar places. In essence, when someone finds us now, it's likely through an online source more than just happening to be in the neighborhood.

This is not to bemoan change. On the contrary, we are looking for that new thriving market where real goods and real people can still get together in an active marketplace environment. That's why we are moving forward quickly to adapt ourselves to the new online marketplace. We are launching a new business partnership with Moontoast, an online social commerce platform. We are matching their online savvy and resources to ours--fresh, original, contemporary artwork, a selection that can be encountered and purchased online 24/7.

We can't wait to see who we meet up with in this sprawling new world of tasteful commerce. Join us if you dare. Try it out. Be a pioneer with us. We promise that over time it will be one heck of an adventure. We'd love to have you with us.

All you have to do is click here: theartscompany.moontoast.com. Join our online community, and together we will help shape this emerging marketplace for artwork.

Beauty in the Mystery: by Robin Venable

*Image of Einstein from: http://wespenre.com/quotes.htm

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed."

This is a quotation by one of the most inventive and creative minds of our time - Albert Einstein. His revolutions in scientific thought - specifically the theory of relativity - are some of the most profound revelations of the human mind.

I am currently reading his biography simply called Einstein by Walter Isaacson. Through the detailed accounts of his personal life and scientific struggles and triumphs, one sees a man whose quest for the unknown mysteries of the universe are unquenchable. These mysteries would keep him deeply thoughtful his entire life.

Some of the most (dare I use the word) beautiful artistic expressions are those that leave us guessing... ones that take us on our own quest for understanding with some guideposts along the way...but not too many so that we can find our way on our own.

Here are a few examples from artists that we represent that give the viewer that air of mystery, which, according to one of the greatest minds of our time, keeps us alive.

Tony Breuer, Virginia Falls, mixed media on canvas, 30 x 40''

Bill Starke, Climber, cast aluminum, 25 x 13 x 9''

Jim Hubbman, Corvus Camerae, watercolor and graphite on paper, 40 x 25.5''

Rod Daniel, Canyon de Chelly #9, archival digital print, 48 x 32''

Aggie Zed, Man with Box, porcelain, 7 x 4 x 5''

Don Dudenbostel, Tonna, platinum print, 5 x 4''

Charles Keiger, Wishing for Blue Skies, oil on panel, 22 x 20''

Modern Day "Window People": by Robin Venable

With the huge success of social media networks like Facebook, we are able to peer into other people's lives. That is, the lives that they want us to see.

In a somewhat-controlled environment I am able to post status updates, pictures, and videos to inform my "friends" of my ever-changing life.

Norman Lerner, "Piano Tuner, 1950's", archival digital print, 13 x 19 inches

When I post something, I know that it will pop up in my friends' news feeds, but I don't know who is actually coming to my page, looking at all of my photos, or analyzing my status updates.

A little creepy? Absolutely.

Norman Lerner, "Elevator Operator, 1950's", archival digital print, 13 x 19 inches

Have you ever felt like someone was looking at you? When viewing Norman Lerner's "Window People" I feel that uncomfortable tingle of watching eyes. The dilapidated windows house all sorts of people - a frowning, bulbous-nosed woman in her seventies sitting instead of standing, an old man who tunes pianos daring you to come in the front door, a bald elevator operator with sunken eyes looking out blankly...

Norman Lerner, "Resigned, 1950's", archival digital print, 13 x 19 inches

Perhaps we should feel that same unpleasant twinge when we log on to Facebook - feeling the clicks of the mouse as people visit our page.

Lerner's "Window People" are timeless. With his camera he has captured moments of connection between the observer and viewer (The original prints are silver gelatin prints that have now been converted to digital prints.) that make us want to know more about the people in the photographs. He has preserved that moment in time in which the gazer is caught looking... and now, just like Facebook, we get to look back...uninterrupted, and with all the time in the world.

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