Oakland University Gallery
www.telegraphart.com

Hartmut Austen, Haley Renee Bates, Fabio J. Fernandez, Shannon Goff, Tom Lauerman, Brent Sommerhauser, Christian Tedeschi

Through February 25, 2007

While artists tend to work in relative isolation, there is a definite benefit and great strength to be found in coming together as is demonstrated by the seven members of the Telegraph collective. Much is made of the lore surrounding the origin of their name, as might befit a rock band, but one sense of the word “telegraph” that definitely does not describe the group, is as in basketball – that is to make obvious, to be able to anticipate one’s next course of actions. There’s a definite sense of unpredictability to their works as a whole. In terms of process of investigation, the artists take a second look at their subject, meaning that the viewer too is asked to look again and discover something not seen at first.

In describing Sommerhauser’s work to a friend, I wrote, “It’s always close enough so as to look completely ordinary, causing you to do a double-take when you realize it’s really something else altogether.” One example of this is “Section” in which Sommerhauser displays slotted wood slices, appearing as if capable of interlocking as part of a drawer or tile, discordant and piled upon one another. Closer inspection reveals that they are constructed from a hexagonal honeycomb of pencil cross sections – lots of pencils – all glued together to make this matrix. This demand for multiple looks is inherent in each of the artists’ works – nothing is telegraphed. This second look does not quit at the “Aha!” moment of realization, but in discovering that second aspect of the work, the first still remains – providing dual points of perspective. Think of this like two eyes allowing for three-dimensional vision – the possibilities of seeing into the world, and this work, open wide.

Tedeschi presents an Eames chair knockoff placed quite naturally in front of a television playing all static, complete with a set of headphones resting in the seat. Huhn? Wait for it… The chair is wrapped in who knows how many hundreds of feet of speaker wire, so meticulously applied as to appear as if incorporated into the design of the chair. The wire stretches off the chair and terminates at the headphones – which play the repetitive sounds of static displayed on the TV screen. It’s amazingly simple in materials – though certainly not in labor, and functions on numerous conceptual and aesthetic levels.

Bates crafts beautiful, austere objects, that are themselves second looks at practical, functional, everyday household things. By simplifying the forms, condensing them to their core, and removing the openings and other functional aspects, Bates makes us look again at something as taken for granted as a tea kettle and see the beauty in its form with new eyes.

To be sure, another thread that knits Telegraph together is each member’s attention to craft. Like Bates, they all take great care and work with intense precision in creating the finished objects, and in speaking about craft, one must surely speak of Fernandez. Working with the wood corner supports from Clementine crates – essentially “junk” wood – he builds quite beautiful, miniature three-dimensional silhouettes of buildings. In paying attention to the new form, the internal grain of the wood, all with delicate precision, these have the elegance of jewel cases – yet he never obscures the origin of the materials.

Goff brings another packing material to much more respected use – in cardboard she brings to life with great accuracy such things as a full-sized helicopter, and on display here an old time phone booth, complete with functioning door and phone cord, all out of cardboard. This shift in materials allows the viewer to really pay attention to the original form, much as Bates does, in a way we rarely slow down enough to take notice. Along these lines, though in plywood rather than cardboard, Goff created a giant-sized functioning eggbeater. In exploring the toothed gears and rotating mixers at this scale and material, cut loosely as if her hand drawn sketches given dimensionality, the beauty and engineering of the object it’s based upon is brought to light.

The delight in a Goff creation, speaks to a sense of play, of seeing as a child – that perspective that allows us to look at things fresh, out of renewed curiosity, a second look becomes a first look of sorts. This brings us to Lauerman’s work in progress, he’s designed and built miniature scaffolding and then erected them around the phantom form of what appears to be a grandiose cathedral. It’s quite a reversal, as the scaffolding – the supports intended only for the purposes of constructing something magnificent, become beautiful in their own right, much like Fernandez’ crate pieces, as does the negative form that they create. This is an obsessive work to say the least, which brings us back to Tedeschi’s other piece in the show – a child’s bike, wrapped in two miles of plastic wrap. It seems conceivable that he could have stopped after the first mile, but as with each artist, it’s this extra mile (groan) of care and meticulous attention that elevates the work beyond a clever idea to this deep concept and truly engaging object. The bike’s presence is completely subsumed by the plastic – covered in layers of modern living in much the same way say limestone accretions might build up over something over time. Sommerhauser’s furniture/sculptural works echo this surreal transformation. Here, a set of drawers, backsides narrowed to wedges, are refit together to become something that looks like drawers seen through a fisheye lens – a graceful new object, and a new way of looking at the drawers we see everyday. Similarly, a small round coffee table with its legs brought together at a point, becomes a compass, a way of inscribing a circle, or as he puts it, “Table describing itself.” It’s a table that’s lost its function, and can only go in circles, searching in vain.

And what of the painter Austen? Is he the odd man out, or necessary two-dimensional glue in this collection of object makers? These are perhaps more difficult to frame in the terms we’ve been using, as they are more directly laden with commentary. But they too demand this second look, and are themselves second looks at landscape – a pile of cars, a broken grid of an apartment building. While they never entirely abandon their source material, through his process, they become color and composition. At once representation and layered abstraction, they appear as if rendered fast and loose, but as with his fellow artists, Austen creates this effect through meticulous efforts.

It’s a full but never crowded exhibition, accented with nice touches like a wall adorned with wood from Clementine crates by Fernandez and a less functionally based, elegant object by Bates installed where the ceiling meets the wall. Viewers are given an additional treat with a wall of drawings offering a behind the scenes look at sketches by all of the artists ranging from the conceptual to the diagrammatic – a nice means of gaining greater insight into their process and the influences of one member upon another.

While there’s a great deal more that could be said about each of them individually, there’s much to be said for the operation of the collective itself, which was the subject of the panel discussion preceding the opening. Listeners got an inside look at how they work, what brought them together and what keeps them at it, despite the fact that they are spread across the country these days. The success of Telegraph truly points out the importance of a peer, professional group – outside of school this is a great source of feedback, a support network, a source of inspiration, continually providing the means to challenge oneself. Each artist is working all the time on his/her own, but there is something they can achieve together something bigger, a reason to band together, ultimately based on respect for one another. As Sommerhauser puts it in the excellent catalogue (put together by Dick Goody, who continues to put out the best literature on locally produced shows, and featuring the design work of the unofficial 8th member of Telegraph, Andy Detskas), “We aren’t doing this because we have nothing better to do. We continue this because it’s one of the better things we can be doing.”

They are stronger for their interactions and that strength, that bond of support is an inspiration. It’s with great anticipation that I for one, look forward to their continuing together in whatever shape or form that occurs. No doubt, we won’t see it coming. – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com

Motor City Brewing Works
4701 W. Canfield, Detroit
(Between Cass and 2nd)
313-832-2700
Every Wednesday Night, 7-11 pm
(January 24, 2007)

This week, check out Greg Fredericks in the one night weekly spotlight.

Last week we saw Carl Oxley III and details about that can be found in the previous entry here.

Week in and week out, Wednesday nights have proven to be educational and a valuable experience. For artists this has meant a chance to try out work in mini-shows and given up and comers a shot to be seen. Perhaps just as importantly the atmosphere has been such as to provoke conversations on art and more that have gone on long past closing time. So come check it out, sample (in moderation!) what the owner John Linardos and the good folks at Motor City brew up each day (an undeniable artistry in its own right) and enjoy yourselves. We’ll see you there. – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com

January 31 John Azoni

©POP Announces A Revolutionary Concept.
The First Annual "©POPportunity" Juried Exhibition
Open to all artists- except those who have already shown or are already scheduled to show at ©POP.
Registration and Submission by email to svengali@chartermi.net or in person, January 18th to February 18th.
Gala Opening Reception Saturday, March 10th at 7pm.
Closing and Award Winners Soiree Saturday March 31st at 7pm.
Exhibition Closes April 9th.

Do You Have What It Takes To Hang at ©POP?

Sure you do... Because it's the first Annual, "©POPportunity" Exhibition, and if you ever thought your work deserved a chance to be seen... and sold in Detroit's most famous gallery, you will now have the opportunity to showcase up to 2 pieces in the month-long show, commencing with a Gala Artists Reception on Saturday, March 10th.
Also, by participating in "©POPportunity" you will also have a chance to be awarded one of four slots for your own ©POP 4-Person Exhibition in July 2007.
A panel of 6 ©POP artists and staff will choose three of the participants. One will be chosen by the vote of people attending the gallery from March 10th until March 30th.
The juried and elected winners will be announced at the "©POPporunity" Closing Reception on Saturday, March 31st and will determine the 4 participants in the yet unnamed 4-Person show in July.
The 4 winners will also win a cash prize and award.

©POP Gallery, arguably Detroit's most storied and influential art showcase, and for over a decade the launch-pad for the careers of many of this town's most recognized national artists, with newsworthy exhibits and legendary opening parties, has now concocted a unique and unbiased all-media, pan-aesthetic exhibition exclusively for any artists who have never before shown at ©POP.
Combining a juried exhibition with elements of an art fair and even a dash of American Idol, make for a very compelling and unpredictable art experience.
"©POPportunity" is an all-media exhibit, open to ANYONE 18 years or older.
For this event, we are re-opening our 2nd floor to accommodate more work.
BUT THERE ARE ONLY A LIMITED NUMBER OF SPOTS AVAILABLE - basically on a first come-first served basis, so please submit ASAP, either by email or in person (to get your name on the postcards (each artist will also receive 200 postcard invites to distribute themselves), invitions, email announcements and follow-up press-releases. Artists may submit existing work or feel free to do something new as well.

All mediums will be represented - Painting, sculpture, photography, digital, installation and conceptual art are all welcomed.
Each artist is allowed up to 2 pieces. There is an Inclusion fee, based upon size and price for each item placed in the exhibit. (There is also a discount for the 2nd piece of equal size and price.) For the fee, the artist will receive placement and full gallery support for the duration of show.
But here's the best part - If or when the artist's work sells, the artist will receive 90% of the proceeds from the sale - an unheard of, artist-friendly split in the industry. The gallery's nominal 10% cut is neccessary to cover credit card charges and handling fees.

©POP offers the prospective artist unparalleled coverage and a nice side bar to his or her resume. And of course, as an art forum, ©POP is second to none in promoting, marketing and selling edgy, contemporary art globally.
We may never offer this "©POPportunity" again, so don't pass it up!
Call 313 833-9901 for Information.
- or -
OFFICIAL DETAILS AND RULES ON http://www.myspace.com/cpopgallery exclusively.
©POP Gallery * 4160 Woodward * Detroit * MI * 48201 * 313 833-9901
Myspace.com/cpopgallery

Motor City Brewing Works
4701 W. Canfield, Detroit
(Between Cass and 2nd)
313-832-2700
Every Wednesday Night, 7-11 pm
(January 17, 2007)

This week saw Carl Oxley III in the one night weekly spotlight. Oxley shared his paintings both medium and tiny in scale of his quite identifiable expanding cast of characters. From his trademark pop art monkey to his giraffe and other animals to his slightly more human all the way to anthropomorphized cigarettes, Oxley has established a world with its own style and imagery – a mix of light humor with more sophisticated and often adult themes, all with presented with a wide smile on the characters’ faces. This definitely shares some kinship with Matt Groening’s (the Simpsons) “Life in Hell,” though Oxley’s terrain tends to remain on the surface at least, more upbeat. All in all, it’s fun work, with good humor, catchy characters, a distinctive style, and growing possibilities as a brand for Oxley. Check out more at www.popartmonkey.com.

Last week, say Mike Richison bring his own unique mash-up of drawing and performance to the Wednesday night stage. Richison had on hand a pile of plastic pieces from an assortment of kids’ toys. He’s been using such things to create assemblage sculptures with accompanying design drawings, most recently on display as part of Automation. Richison stretched a few long scrolls of paper around the makeshift gallery walls, and proceeded to make drawings of the individual parts throughout the night, often on demand from a patron. Executed quite quickly, he rendered part after part, from various angles, with pretty satisfying use of color and expression of dimensionality. It made for a nice treat for the large crowd in attendance to observe his process of observation and drawing live. In addition, each drawing was accompanied by running written commentary, stream of consciousness in nature, the sort found in his wonderful mapmaking project for the Northville n-turprt show. All in all, fun both to see him in action and the words he put together.

Throughout the night Richison sold off the individual drawings cutting out squares around them using a CD case as his template. As the evening unfolded, more and more squares disappeared (meaning he had to keep up his feverish drawing pace), leaving a new composition – a white canvas with squares of wood revealed beneath. This then played into the assemblages of parts that he’s been constructed, and the negative space created an interesting visual in its own right. Drawings on demand with a touch of humor – again, a different sort of night for the Motor City Brewery showcase, raising the bar once again for what’s to come in the future.

Week in and week out, Wednesday nights have proven to be educational and a valuable experience. For artists this has meant a chance to try out work in mini-shows and given up and comers a shot to be seen. Perhaps just as importantly the atmosphere has been such as to provoke conversations on art and more that have gone on long past closing time. So come check it out, sample (in moderation!) what the owner John Linardos and the good folks at Motor City brew up each day (an undeniable artistry in its own right) and enjoy yourselves. We’ll see you there. – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com

January 24 Greg Fredericks
January 31 John Azoni

Motor City Brewing Works
4701 W. Canfield, Detroit
(Between Cass and 2nd)
313-832-2700
Every Wednesday Night, 7-11 pm
(January 10, 2007)

Last week saw an overflowing house at the Motor City Brewery’s makeshift, one night stand exhibition, as This Week In Art celebrated its two year anniversary with a mammoth group show of very small work. A lot of fun, a lot of interesting works, and a chance to catch up and meet plenty of new faces.

This week, things return back to normal a bit, at least as normal as they ever are, and Mike Richison gets the solo spotlight. Richison’s been on a bit of tear this past year – he’s currently showing as part of Automation at CAID, a show opening at MaryGrove this Thursday, and we thinks, at least one more somewhere on the scene. Wednesday, you get to check out what he’s up to all by himself, it should be fun.

Week in and week out, Wednesday nights have proven to be educational and a valuable experience. For artists this has meant a chance to try out work in mini-shows and given up and comers a shot to be seen. Perhaps just as importantly the atmosphere has been such as to provoke conversations on art and more that have gone on long past closing time. So come check it out, sample (in moderation!) what the owner John Linardos and the good folks at Motor City brew up each day (an undeniable artistry in its own right) and enjoy yourselves. We’ll see you there. – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com

January 17 Carl Oxley III
January 24 Greg Fredericks
January 31 John Azoni

This series is devoted to an ongoing dialogue wrestling with the questions of why folks make art and its significance to the individual and our culture. We welcome feedback, discussion, and outside contributions – email comments to ws@thedetroiter.com

Part One: The Big Yellow Taxi Theory or Mr. Cope Goes to Turkmenistan
Part Two: New Eyes or How many times must a man look up Before he can see the sky?
Part Three: Paint the Town Orange
Part Four: Dances with Dirt
Part Five: Walk a mile in someone's shoes - or Gimme Shelter

We create. It’s a defining trait of our species. We formulate new ideas and we make things. In fact we make things to help us make things, we even make things that make things for us and a leave the human hand out of the equation altogether. With the rise of industrialization, this automation has kept us further out of the loop, more hands off. As our machines become more autonomous, or independent of their makers, conversely, we end up becoming more dependent on them.

While it’s hard to deny that there haven’t been many benefits of automated processes – products and tools that would not exist otherwise, the predicted leisurely future brought about by automation seems rather the opposite. Automation creates work for people, and not the sort of creative work that makes us who we are, but the sort of work we made machines for in the first place. Simply put, automation as a means of production touches every aspect of human life. That term alone, “production,” over “creation,” signifies the change, and the transformation of humans from creators to consumers. This is not to imply something so sinister as the rise of the machines that is The Matrix, but not something we should trivialize either as just, “that’s the way things are.”

Of course, to say such things often elicits the label of a Luddite, and doing so using a computer over the Internet, both only made possible by automation, seems obviously hypocritical. But we must ever question, that is at the core of being creative, and to deny that is to lose a significant part of ourselves. And in asking such questions, approach the actual goals of Luddism, that is not simply a rejection of all technology, but the encouragement of the development of technology that allows us to be more fully human and a rejection of that which makes us less. Easy to say, but perhaps not so easy to distinguish. For ensconced within a system, it’s hard to see outside of it, hard to question its hold on ourselves.

And that’s where art comes in. The artist’s role is to help us see, to enable new approaches and perspectives. Art can question the prevailing paradigm and provide the means to jump the system. Sure, even the making of “art objects” can be automated, there are painting machines and sculpture making machines. But it’s the raising of ideas, the challenging of existing beliefs, that’s art today, and that’s what it is to be human. Exactly the traits we all need. Creative thought is not limited to artists and a select few others, it’s in all of us, and the work of those whose field is creativity can serve to remind us all of our potential.

So take a different look at what it means to live in this automated world and our role in it. The world we’ve created is to say the least complex, and examinations of it should be no less complex in nature. Check out such diverse responses that make up Automation ‘07. (Catch the Automation mini-site at CAID’s site here.) – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com

Automation ‘07 opens Saturday, January 6, 2007, with an opening reception and chance to meet the artists from 6 to 10pm. More details on our arts calendar here.

Artworks in article (from top to bottom):
Andy Malone, Ryan Buyssens, Brandon Vickerd, Kathy Liesen, Moshe Quinn

Motor City Brewing Works
4701 W. Canfield, Detroit
(Between Cass and 2nd)
313-832-2700
Every Wednesday Night, 7-11 pm
(January 3, 2007)

Tonight marks the two year anniversary of Motor City Brewery’s “whatchamacallit-ly” named “this week in art,” which has become an almost self-perpetuating phenomenon over that time. Last week’s “this week…” featuring Christina Gibbs was exemplary of why this is such an enjoyable experience week in and week out. Gibbs transformed the makeshift gallery space into an area of tranquility, a rather impressive feat on what was a particularly crowded Wednesday night! The centerpiece of her installation was a recirculating rain wall, essentially a linear sprinkler shaft up high “raining” down to a catch on the floor. Viewing the bar through this boundary of rain was a visual treat, but the sound it created was another thing altogether, making the experience quite whole. The outer edge of the space was marked off by another rain fall of sorts, lines of twine hung from the ceiling wrapped with bits of wildflowers and other plant life, visually echoing the moving water, and establishing a nice resonance between the two pieces. Together these quite tertiary walls produced an interior space that was quite contemplative, almost separate from the bar, one could be lost a bit with only the sound of the rain as company. To round out the experience, Gibbs presented two drawings and a plaster casting on the interior wall, all titled “bone studies,” all accompanying the organic atmosphere she created nicely.

As Gibbs’ show points out quite strongly, out one never knows what to expect when walking into the space on a Wednesday night. Sometimes, it’s art on the walls and sometimes the work takes over the space. Looking over the past year, we’ve seen the debut of a new clothing line, art created over the Internet, a “Sex machine” (which I missed, though not the night featuring sheep sex…). We’ve seen seven year old Izzy’s gallery debut and slightly more established artists try on new hats. There’ve been installations that changed the look of the space and installations like the Taormina brothers’ cartoonesque giant diorama. Artists have debuted brand new means of working from Clint Snider’s “dipped” relics to Ann Gordon’s animal parts. Some nights have featured conceptual works and other nights have been quite literal. If something wasn’t your cup of tea one week, no doubt the next week it was.

Curator and bartender Graem Whyte offered a few words on this milestone. “As it goes on it’s getting more and more diverse. It’s always interesting to see what’s coming next. People are taking difficult risks with the space. After two years and seeing what other artists have done, it’s becoming a challenge to keep raising the bar. All in all, the quality of art is coming through nicely.”

We definitely agree with his enthusiasm and look forward to the season to come. In the meantime, this Wednesday will feature perhaps a hundred or more artists who’ve either shown at the brewery before or are slated to appear sometime on its makeshift walls, and tonight is a chance to check them all out. It should be a good time. Look forward to seeing you there. – Nick Sousanis
ws@thedetroiter.com