I was pretty much the ONLY<\/strong> photographer . . at the very first Gee’s Bend Quilt survey 16 years ago, ‘The Quilts of Gee’s Bend’<\/strong>, which opened Nov 21, 2002 at the Whitney Museum – when it was uptown. I had just started my photo-based column at artnet, ‘ART LOVERS NEW YORK’, under editor WALTER ROBINSON. <\/p>\n I really ended up at the Gee’s Bend opening, simply because I was very much into repairing and studying old quilts myself \/ and I remember running uptown via subway to the opening, from attending the first day of the notorious ALFREDO MARTINEZ \/ phony Basquiat court trial downtown !! posting these 6 photos, among the cutting-edge rebels, really caused a stir, and did very much start the ball rolling for them.<\/p>\n see:<\/strong> the original post – as it appeared on artnet – NOV 2002 \/ and, check out the context !!<\/a> <\/p>\n THE QUILTS of GEE’S BEND . .<\/strong> are now cultural ‘superstars’, and the interest was so powerful, they opened the way into the serious study \/ acclaim for African American quilting, in general. see: ‘HISTORY REFUSED TO DIE’ – THE MET thru SEPT 23, 2018<\/a><\/p>\n 2. MELISSA BROWN<\/strong><\/p>\n this photo was first<\/strong> published in artnet, under editor WALTER ROBINSON, on my ART LOVERS \/ ARTNET report, in the Spring of 2004, though it’s not my very first photo of Melissa, there were plenty before. MELISSA BROWN . . has a big one-man show, ‘Between States’, (nice play on words, btw) opening tonight, THURS MAY 31, 2018 . . at DEREK ELLER GALLERY<\/a>.<\/p>\n 3. LUKE MURPHY<\/strong><\/p>\n that’s a funny story !! Little did I know – I had stumbled upon the secret<\/strong> life of the grand \/ poobah \/ genius webmaster<\/strong> of MTV – then at it’s peak !! LUKE has a big show, ‘Every Pixel Bright’ opening at CANADA<\/a> tomorrow night, FRI JUNE 1, 2018 see: artlovers studio visit \/ ‘digital starting point’ paintings !! – with LUKE MURPHY \/ SEPT 1, 2014<\/a><\/p>\n 4. RYAN FOERSTER<\/strong><\/p>\n is one of my newest friends. see: RYAN FOERSTER – CASUAL ART FAIR \/ ART LOVERS NEW YORK<\/a><\/p>\n RYAN FOERSTER . . has a big opening tomorrow night FRI JUNE 1, 2018 \/ ‘CHANGE BOTH RIB’, at CLEARING UPTOWN.<\/a><\/p>\n and, last BUT NOT LEAST . . !!!!!<\/strong><\/p>\n 5. JEFFREY TRANCHELL . . !!<\/strong> I first<\/strong> met Jeffrey, many many years ago, sometime between 2002-2004 when I was working at artnet, and he was an intern at the cutting edge DANIEL REICH (RIP) gallery. I did take pix at Jeffrey’s earliest curatorial pop-up efforts, at the Chelsea Hotel (!!) during that time, & some might have even posted on artnet, but I’d have to go through too many shoebox archives to find them, right now.
\nwhat a change of gears . . & for one day.
\nit was such a knock-out<\/strong> show, and at that time, craftspersons, let alone women quiltmakers, let alone African American quiltmakers, had no<\/strong> place in the NYC contemporary art world, let alone in the so-called ‘art world’ – at all. Walter posted 6 of my photos from the opening. on my artnet report: ‘ART LOVERS NEW YORK – PHOTOS BY NANCY SMITH’, which quite ‘colorfully’ focused on the scrappy, up-and-coming rebel \/ hardcore, underground NYC downtown art scene – and the rest is . . . HISTORY !! <\/p>\n![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.artloversnewyork.com\/zine\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/05\/GEES-BEND-QUILTS.gif\")
<\/a>
\n‘THE QUILTS OF GEE’S BEND’, WHITNEY MUSEUM OPENING, NOV 21, 2002.
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH \/ PLEASE RESPECT MY COPYRIGHT
\nTOP ROW:
\nRITA MAE PETTWAY in front of her grandmother ANNIE E. PETTWAY’S quilt, a variation of a Flying Geese pattern ca. 1935 \/ the show’s curator ALVIA WARDLAW with quilter, artist & author FAITH RINGGOLD \/ VELMA MOONEY with Lauren, in front of a family quilt made by JESSIE PATTWAY, ca. 1935
\nBOTTOM ROW:
\nQUILTMAKERS: B. PETTWAY \/ LEOLA PETTWAY \/ ADDIE NICHOLSON<\/p>\n
\nSome of these original, now historic quilts, are the critical, and overwhelmingly popular highlight – of the current ‘HISTORY REFUSED TO DIE’ exhibit – at THE MET, running thru SEPT 23, 2018.<\/p>\n<\/a>
\npainter, curator, and mind-reader \/ tarot card maker & game theory artist !!
\nwatch out !!
\nMELISSA BROWN, after the opening of the crazy wild, group show, ‘ROWDY REMIX’<\/strong> at the original Lower East Side ATM Gallery, run by BILL BRADY<\/strong>, now better known as BIlL BRADY GALLERY, Miami.
\nMAY 29, 2004
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH \/ PLEASE RESPECT MY COPYRIGHT<\/p>\n
\nsee: the original artnet post – SPRING 2004 <\/a><\/p>\n
\nCANADA GALLERY !! had their very<\/strong> first venue, under the JOSH HARRIS \/ Pseudo \/ ‘Quiet’ \/ ‘WE LIVE IN PUBLIC’ . . dining room \/ boxing arena \/ WIP studio building, in a former Civil War era photographer’s studio, downtown on Broadway, at Franklin St. in Tribeca. I used to go collect the rent<\/strong> for Josh, lol. one day, ca. 2002 I stumbled upon an amazing show there, prob one of the first computer-driven exhibits, though it was not CGI, not interactive, YET !!
\nit was super funny \/ super smart . . power point charts \/ in fact posters !! on things like, your emotions, lol. great graphics. the real beginning of the computer era, for sure.
\nI told a lot of my friends about it, and Walter even published a photo of mine, of the ‘new’ computer graphics-driven ‘artwork’ on artnet. <\/p>\n
\nand, of course all he really wanted, was to be known as – an artist !!
\nmission accomplished & we became fast friends ever since. Luke has kept this site, artloversnewyork up & running ever since, all these years, guiding it through many changes . . as the web evolved, and it’s his incredible<\/strong> ‘Resist LED-DELI’ animated banner – which graces the top <\/strong>of this very page.<\/p>\n
\nbtw: note the ‘electrified’ . . . ‘Log Cabin’ quilt – in the top right hand corner of the exhibit ‘flyer’ !!!!!<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nREV LUKE MURPHY, in his Harlem studio, NYC. Sept 1, 2014
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH \/ PLEASE RESPECT MY COPYRIGHT<\/p>\n
\nwe met at last year’s CASUAL ART FAIR, Oct 2017 – when he came over to admire my miniscule DAN ASHER ‘fingerprint’ pencil drawing \/ at our artlovers booth. he was showing with HELPER. I immediately fell for this super rebel, super funny, super smart, multi-talented artist, whose works often comment, on the bad<\/strong> state of the world.
\nI just now found out, he runs RATSTAR PRESS !!<\/p>\n<\/a>
\nRYAN FOERSTER, with his work, at the HELPER booth, CASUAL ART FAIR, Oct 1, 2017.
\nPHOTO: NANCY SMITH \/ PLEASE RESPECT MY COPYRIGHT <\/p>\n
\n
\naka <\/strong>JEFFREY ‘THE SHOW MUST GO ON’ TRANCHELL<\/strong>,
\nhe just<\/strong> broke his right arm falling off a house he is fixing-up in Detroit . . .
\nhe is an amazing ‘conceptual’\/ visual artist, craftsperson & curator, who builds art communities wherever he goes. Based at ESSEX FLOWERS in Chinatown, here in NYC, he is now starting to produce ‘pop-ups’ in Detroit – in houses he is fixing up & in a sense ‘re-purposing’.
\nHe’s not only very hands-on, and super ‘on the edge’ art-wise, but he’s also one of the most visionary and generous artists I know; he revels in bringing new art forms & new artists, who would other-wise certainly be over-looked, to the mainstream art world table. if you want to gauge his ‘energy’ level, he drives back & forth between NYC & Detroit like a madman, almost weekly & it’s a 10 hr. drive !!<\/p>\n
\nit was 35mm film back then.
\nbut – one day !! watch out !!<\/p>\n