November 16, 2010
EFA Project Space, 323 W 39 Street, 2nd Floor
EFA and CUE Art Foundation announce the fourth in a series of conversations focused on pertinent issues related to artistic survival in today's society.
Conversation led by Tova Carlin with Man Bartlett, Rob Hult, Marisa Jahn, Scott Kiernan, Sophia Peer, Summer Pierre,Ted Riederer, Amber Hawk-Swanson
As new crops of artists enter the field, the question of how to support oneself as an artist must be continually readdressed. Historically, countless artists have taken "day jobs" to support their creative pursuits, but until recently this was something to play down. Many artists, in fact, have multiple jobs within the arts and social communities. Has the artist-worker become a more valid and accepted role? Is the paradigm of the artist full-time in the studio no longer a functional model? Can artists benefit from the work they do to financially support themselves? Can this feed back into their art? How can artists effectively negotiate between their multiple roles?
For the Artist of the 21st Century: CUE Art Foundation and the Elizabeth Foundation for the Arts partner to present a series of timely conversations focused on artistic survival. Zeroing in on essential and pervasive topics, the conversations are intended to encourage a dynamic flow of dialog and exchange. A round format provides an intimate experience for panelists and audience members alike and audience participation is encouraged. Panelists consist of a selection of artists and professionals from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences who are significantly invested in the topic at hand, setting the stage for a layered and meaningful exchange. More than providing concrete answers, these conversations aim to bring to light the pressing questions and concerns faced by the creative community, and to encourage new modes for bridging gaps, brainstorming, and problem solving. It is through these conversations that CUE and EFA provide a firm platform for artists to thoroughly develop their own opinions and solutions to the challenges at hand.
Panelist Bios
Tova Carlin Tova Carlin is an artist living and working in Queens. She writes and
curates as part of her practice. She has shown at 179 Canal in New York, The Philadelphia Institute for Advanced Study, The Torrance Art Museum in Los Angeles, The Des Moines Art Center and The Limlip Art Museum in Korea, among other places. She writes for Art Review and has written for artforum.com, artinamerica.com and Paper Monument.
Man Bartlett, a Philadelphia native, is an interdisciplinary artist who currently lives and works in New York. He has performed in a Best Buy, PPOW Gallery, Winkleman Gallery, an abandoned factory in Paterson, and The Whitney Museum, among other venues. His performances, drawings and installations have been written about in The Daily News, artnet, Art Fag City, Hyperallergic, and The Stranger. Bartlett is currently an artist-in-residence at Flux Factory, an arts collective in Long Island City.
Rob Hult is one of three owners and directors of Klaus von Nichtssagend Gallery which opened in Brooklyn in 2004 and is now located in Manhattan. Also a working artist, Rob is represented by CRG gallery in NYC and works as a freelance graphic designer as well. He is a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design BFA 2001 and is a 2010 Pollock-Krasner fellow.
Marisa Jahn is an artist/writer/community organizer, and co-founder of REV- (www.rev-it.org), a nonprofit organization dedicated to furthering art, design, and pedagogy. She is the co-editor of ‘Recipes for an Encounter’, ‘Byproduct: On the Excess of Embedded Art Practices’, and ‘Where We Are Now: Locating Art and Politics in NYC.’ She has been a teaching artist with Center for Urban Pedagogy and artist in resident at CEC Artslink (Tajikistan & Estonia); MIT Media Lab; and Street Vendor Project, a grassroots vendor-led advocacy organization in NYC. She is currently the Deputy Director at People's Production House.
Scott Kiernan is an artist living and working in New York City. He received his MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute in 2007 with a concentration in New Genres. Exhibition venues include Jack the Pelican, Dam Stuhltrager and NurtureArt in Brooklyn, NY; PS 122 in NYC; Southern Exposure, NASA's Ames Research Center and Baer Ridgeway Exhibitions in San Francisco, CA; and the New Life Berlin festival in Berlin, Germany; among many others. In 2008, he was included in the Third Guangzhou Triennial in China and EXHIBITION, a constantly shifting 6-month exhibition in a vacant NYC storefront. He has curated numerous exhibitions and now co-owns and operates the not-for-profit gallery Louis V E.S.P. in Brooklyn, NY.
Sophia Peer is a New York based artist and director. She received her BA from SUNY Purchase in 2002 and her MFA from the School of Visual Arts, New York, NY in 2006. Most recently her work has been shown at Kate Werble Gallery, Horton Gallery, Canada Gallery, and Envoy Gallery. She has been commissioned to create music videos for bands like Yeasayer, Ponytail and Woods as well as promos for Pitchfork and Mtv. Selected exhibitions and screenings include: The Queens Museum Biennial exhibition; Borderline Festival, traveling through Beijing, China; Anthology Film Archives, New York, NY; Visual Arts Gallery, New York, NY.
Summer Pierre is an artist, writer and musician living and working in Brooklyn. She is the author of The Artist in the Office: How to Thrive and Survive Seven Days a Week (February 2010) and the upcoming/new release Great Gals: Inspired Ideas for Living a Kick Ass Life (November 2010). She has toured the east and west coasts as a singer-songwriter and released her debut album Far From Here in 2004.
Ted Riederer is an artist, writer, and musician living and working in New York City. Using photography equipment, painting supplies, electric guitars, amplifiers, old LPs, record players, drum kits, and vinyl lathes, Ted creates art of various media ranging from performance to video installation. Riederer’s work has shown in exhibitions at the Nicole Klagsbrun Gallery, David Zwirner, Goff+Rosenthal Gallery Berlin, PS1, Marianne Boesky Gallery, and most recently the Liverpool Biennial, and Pop-Up Lisbon. In addition to his work as an artist, Ted has been an art handler for the past five years and is currently one of the head preparators at Marianne Boesky Gallery.
Amber Hawk Swanson is a professional development and grant writing consultant. Formerly a Program Officer at New York Foundation for the Arts, Hawk Swanson administered all aspects of Source, the nation's most comprehensive online database of resources for artists and it's corresponding national fundraising seminars. She also administered all aspects of MARK, the competitive program for visual artists seeking focus on the professional side of their creative practice. Prior to her positions at NYFA, Hawk Swanson was a Host/Producer on Chicago Public Radio's Vocalo.org initiative and the Visual Arts Faculty Member for the Chicago Arts Program of the Associated Colleges Midwest. Also a video and performance artist, recent exhibitions include Locust Projects in Miami, Georgia State University, and Maryland Art Place. Hawk Swanson holds an MFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.