Silent Auction Recap

Last Saturday night I went to Transformer Gallery's 5th Annual Silent Auction and had a good time catching up with friends, checking out art and meeting collectors. The night went well for me (there was a little bidding war for my pieces from the Making Face series I did a few years ago - here and here) but it felt different from past years: there seemed to be less people (though it was still crowded), less artwork on the walls and more restrained bidding. From what I heard, Transformer had a good night in the end (though I'll be interested to hear what the final earnings were for the night), but it definitely felt like the down turn in the economy might have been having an effect on the night...But who knows, I'm definitely not an economist!

me with artists Anna U Davis, Dana Ellyn, and Matt Sesow

Making Space!

If you haven’t heard already, my wife and I are expecting our first baby early next year! I’m not sure how the birth of our baby will influence the content of my paintings, but I do know that it will influence where I work. There’s not much room at home, so the baby gets what is now the studio and I get to look for a new one!

In the meantime I need to start making space and need to get rid of things!

For the first time I've created a section on my website that has all of the work that is available for sale in one place. And there are some new things I'm offering, including affordable and framed one-of-a-kind drawing studies that I make as I work out the composition of each new painting. To check out what I have hanging around the studio, please go here.

The 5th Annual Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party

This is the third year in a row that I've been asked to participate in this. It's a fun night!

Transformer proudly presents The 5th Annual Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party taking place Saturday, November 15, 2008, 7-10pm in John Dreyfuss' Sculpture Studio at Halcyon House, 34th and Prospect Streets NW.

This very special, one-night only event features an exciting array of over 125 artworks in a variety of mediums, dimensions and prices by more than 100 of DC's leading emerging and established artists.

Expanding Transformer's mission of artist-centered programming, we are thrilled to have this year's Auction at Halcyon House in the gorgeous studio of Washington's leading sculptor, John Dreyfuss. In addition to viewing and bidding on an eclectically curated mix of salon-style hung artworks, patrons are encouraged to groove to the beats of Djs Yellow Fever and enjoy delicious complimentary hors d'oeuvres, wine and beer throughout the evening provided by some of DC's finest restaurants, including: Bar Pilar, Bistrot Lepic & Wine Bar, Bombay Club, Buck’s Fishing & Camping, Café Saint-Ex, Comet Ping Pong, Jaleo, Leopold’s Kafe + Konditorei, Local 16, Mandu, Marvin, Melt Catering, Old Ebbitt Grill, On the Fly, Oyamel, Paisley Fig, Posto, Sea Catch, sweetgreen, and Whole Foods.

With a growing reputation as an awesome party and fantastic opportunity for both beginning and seasoned collectors to purchase some of the best visual art DC has to offer, attendance to the auction is sure to sell out, so buy your tickets early! Attendance is $150 if received by 10.27.08; $175 after this date. Attendance is on a first paid, first secured basis.

-Providing essential support for this dynamic organization's year-round programming, exhibitions, and services, The 5th Annual Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party is an ideal place to experience and purchase an informed sampling of work by Washington's top contemporary artists while connecting with a fun, sophisticated and smart audience. The Annual Auction & Benefit Party celebrates and supports Transformer's programming and raises the visibility of a diverse range of contemporary art and artists in the Washington, DC area.

-Proceeds from The 5th Annual Transformer Silent Auction & Benefit Party will match recent grant awards, directly supporting artists through artist honoraria, exhibition material coasts, and related programming support. In addition to supporting exhibitions, proceeds will support artists through the funding of Transformer programs such as

The Exercises - a peer-mentorship program for emerging artists, as well as The Framework Panel Series, and our ongoing professional development work to help artists help themselves.

-Contact Transformer about purchasing your auction tickets today!
-Contact Transformer about purchasing your auction tickets today!

2008 Auction artists
Seth Adelsberger, Geoffrey Aldridge, Ken Ashton, Clarke Bedford, April Behnke, Elizzabeth Beil, Lisa Bertnick-Noble, Nancy Blum, Reuben Breslar, Mickael Broth, Miles Bumbray, Renee Butler, Zoë Charlton, Natalie W. Cheung, Graham Childs, Bradley Chriss, Billy Colbert, Cynthia Connolly, Kathryn Cornelius, Steven Cushner, Anna U. Davis, Frank Hallam Day, Decoy, Lily deSaussure, Melissa Dickenson, Mary Early, Dana Ellyn, Cheraya Esters, Jason Falchook, Edward Max Fendley, Gregory Ferrand, Thom Flynn, Steve Frost, Christine Gray, Kate Hardy, Linda Hesh, Carlotta Hester, Ryan Hill, Max Hirshfeld, Jason Horowitz, James Huckenpahler, Jason Hughes, Lawrence Hyman, Erick Jackson, Susan Jamison, Judy Jashinsky, Paul Jeffreys, Ian Jehle, Sue Johnson, Benjamin Jurgensen, Kevin Kepple, Dean Kessmann, Jae Ko, Michele Kong, Andrew Kozlowski, Bridget Sue Lambert, Nilay Lawson, Pepa Leon, Brian Liu, Rich MacDonald, Kate MacDonnell, Akemi Maegawa, Dana Maier, Nathan Manuel, Anne Marchand, Lisa McCarty, Patrick McDonough, Linn Meyers, Maggie Michael, A. B. Miner, Amy Misurelli Sorensen, Jiha Moon, Phil Nesmith, William A. Newman, Cory Orbendorfer, Nikki Painter,
Lucian Perkins, W. C. Richardson, Marc Roman, Robin Rose, Hannah Rose, James Sanborn, Matt Sesow, Jeff Spaulding, Dan Steinhilber, Zach Storm, Renee Stout, Jason Talley, Noelle Tan
Tang, Lisa Marie Thalhammer, Kelly Towles, Paul Vinet, Rachel Waldron, Bill Warrell, Ian Whitmore, Andy Moon Wilson, Andrew Wodzianski, Yuriko Yamaguchi, Chad Yencer, Trevor Young, Jason Zimmerman

And So It Begins!

Here's a brief recap of my election day experience:

Yesterday morning my wife and I headed out early to our voting site and we were stopped in our tracks when we saw this:

We got in line and began our two hour wait to place our vote. While in line we chatted with neighbors and marveled at the huge turn out. After about an hour, my wife gave in to the cold and her tired feet and was allowed inside to find a seat to rest (one of the perks of being pregnant!!) while I kept our place in line. Another hour later we were reunited inside and participated in the historic day!

Still excited, she headed off to work and I headed back to the studio to paint.

A couple of hours later, I got a call from my sister (who I had loaned our car to so she could be a legal observer at polling stations in Virginia). Bad news.... An ambulance had hit her. She wasn't hurt and the car wasn't badly damaged, but it definitely put a damper on both of our days as she spent two hours waiting for and then dealing with the police investigator, and I dealt with the insurance side of things.

At about 5pm I ran over to the gym for a quick work out and was surprised to find so many people there all tuned in to CNN.

By 7pm friends started coming over to watch the results. We even made our own electoral map that we colored in as the result for each state was declared.

When Pennsylvania was declared blue and then Ohio, we began celebrating. But for me, the biggest win of the night was Virginia.... Growing up and going to school in the diverse city of Alexandria, Virginia and then going to college in Richmond, VA, I have known for a long time that the state was split, but I have only dared to dream that it could go blue.... The state that is home to the capitol of the Confederacy going blue? A blue Virginia says it all!

And then the 44th President was declared!

As I listened to Obama speak, I couldn't shake the feeling that we were finally stepping out of an 8 year episode of the Twilight Zone... The contrast between then and what will be was and is almost unbelievable!

Immediately after the speech, we jumped in the car thinking that we would go to U Street to join the celebrations there. As soon as we started driving, we were honking the horn and blowing the whistle my wife had brought along and within minutes we were driving alongside others doing the same... The honking in the city and the amount of people on the streets cheering and chanting "Obama" and "Yes we did!" was incredibly moving... The city was alive! It was overwhelming....

When we got to 16th and U we saw that the police had blocked the street so we looked at each other and yelled "The White House!"

Somehow we got there, despite the traffic and lack of parking, and found ourselves among thousands in Lafayette Park and on Pennsylvania Ave.....

We spent roughly 4 hours down there singing, chanting, yelling, celebrating, jumping, giving hi fives, and embracing complete strangers..... The joy was palpable... It was an absolutely amazing and emotional night.

My lovely (and pregnant wife) Exhausted but jubliant after a long day. As a new US citizen, this was her first opportunity to vote in a Presidential Election

"I've never seen anything like this!" someone exclaimed.

"I have!" my wife yelled back, "When Argentina won the World Cup!"

Video of the celebrations in Washington DC at the corner of 16th and K st one block from the White House (the whistler is me!)

Me, the artist, with a whistle and making noise on top of a electrical box at the corner of 16th and K st one block from the White House