The Washington Post has announced the winners of [tag]Peeps Show 2[/tag]. You don’t have to settle for looking at them online, you’ll be able to see the finalists (and winners) up close and personal at [tag]Artomatic[/tag], starting May 9th. Who doesn’t love [tag]peep[/tag] [tag]art[/tag]?
I need to go have some pho now, maybe it will cure me of this cursed laryngitis.
Now, it can be told: [tag]Artomatic[/tag] 2008 has moved from rumor to reality.
Up to 800 artists and 50,000 visitors expected in D.C.’s most exciting new neighborhood
The [tag]NoMa[/tag] (north of Massachusetts Avenue) Business Improvement District (BID) will host this year’s Artomatic, the Washington, D.C. area’s homegrown art extravaganza. From May 9 through June 15, 2008, up to 800 local and regional artists will exhibit their works on eight floors of the Capitol Plaza 1 building, located at 1st and M Streets, N.E., just one block from the New York Avenue Metro station.
Held regularly since 1999, Artomatic transforms an unfinished indoor space into an exciting and incredibly diverse arts event that is free and open to the public. In addition to displays and sales by hundreds of artists, the event features free musical, dance, and theater performances; holiday celebrations; films; educational presentations; and much more.
This year’s Artomatic, occupying 200,000 square feet at Capitol Plaza 1, will be the largest to date. Designed by renowned architect Shalom Baranes and owned by an affiliate of The Polinger Company, Capitol Plaza 1 offers 293,000 rentable square feet of Class A office space, with dramatic Capitol and city views from the upper floors.
[read the whole press release]
The redesigned and updated website will be launched any day now and registration will be opening in the near future, so watch your inbox for artomatic newsletters with all the details. If you aren’t on the mailing list, you need to go to artomatic.org and sign up!
In last year’s Artomatic, there was an installation that featured a taxidermied coyote. There were pictures of the coyote around town, along with lots of imagery that had no rhyme or reason (to my eyes, anyway). I found it highly amusing.
The artist was known only as “Xavier Beltran” and, contrary to popular opinion, Xavier’s identity was a mystery to all of us.
One day, Sean posted on the artdc forum, asking if anyone knew a few of the artists who he hadn’t met, including Xavier Beltran. I had a few minutes to kill so I took the bait:
I’m glad you asked, Sean. I’ve known Xavier since the late 60s, when we met in college. We both dropped out to devote our time to protesting the United State’s repressive foreign policy. Our protests caught the attention of The Man and eventually, we did a nickle in Folsom Prison (for Vietnam War protesting). That was in 1971. After we got out of the Big House we hitchhiked to Kansas City to try to make a clean start.
Airplane glue and cough syrup were plentiful in KC and we found it hard to stay on the straight and narrow. I became a woman and moved to Maine, eventually owning and operating a string of highly profitable lobster boats.
After a few stints in rehab, Xavier got clean and moved to Quebec to start a mission for displaced and homeless goatherders. We tried to keep in touch but eventually drifted apart. You know how that is.
From time to time, I would wonder where Xavier is and occassionally thought of googling his name. I was always stopped by the purity of my memories of our time spent speaking truth to power. I was afraid that time (and my inevitable submission to the Capitalist Machine) would, if we were ever to reconnect, cheapen those memories for the both of us.
Late last year I was in the Social Safeway in Georgetown in the express lane behind Trent Lott, who was buying 11 cartons of eggs. He was arguing with the gentleman in front of him over whether this could feasibly count as 10 items or less. Eventually, Lott was chastened by the power and quiet dignity of the man’s argument on behalf of supermarket shopper equality and moved over into a regular aisle.
I was relieved to be able to empy my basket on the counter. I only had 9 items but they were heavy. 8 large cans and a 23 pound turkey. As I unloaded my basket I thanked the gentleman and as we made eyecontact I realized it was Xavier.
We went to Au Pied and caught up over 7 pots of coffee and a plate of crullers. Eventually, our talk turned to art. Xavier is now an art therapist and works for the US Fish and Wildlife Service, teaching young coyotes who’ve been orphaned how to express their rage on canvas.
“The pups have made tremendous progress and their work with squirrel entrails…” Xavier choked up, tears of pride swelling in his eyes. He couldn’t go on. He pulled out a small portfolio and spread it on the table.
He was right. Their work was more advanced than any cannid art I’d ever seen.
Well, I couldn’t let him slip back out of my life so easily, so I invited him to join us at Artomatic. He and the pups have got an installation piece on the 8th floor and he couldn’t be prouder.
If he doesn’t take a transfer to Yosemite to work with Bison struggling with PTSD at the end of the year, he has agreed to take on the role of Co-Chair of the Steering Committee, but only if Arthur Monday is willing to accept the other chair.
Xavier’s a good guy. I’m pleased you want to know him better.
It was all completely untrue, of course. Nevertheless, I still get the occasional message asking if I’d like to give a talk about shrimping. So far, I’ve declined.
I’m not really posting this for any particular reason, other than that it popped into my head in the middle of a Board meeting for no good reason and I almost started laughing. (I do know the true identity of Arthur Monday, but if I told you that I think I’d have to kill you or something).
Do you know what tonight is? Tonight’s my debut as a contestant on the 9th season of America’s Next Top Model!
Wait, no it’s not.
Tonight’s an Artomatic Steering Committee meeting, which I have foolishly scheduled on Talk Like a Pirate Day. What was I thinking?
The Washington Post’s Sunday Source section held a Peeps diorama contest.
They have the winners in today’s paper and you can see the top 22 finalists in their photo gallery. They had over 350 entries and somehow winnowed them down to 22 finalists. They’re all amazing but the winner, the winner just takes peeps to a whole new level:
I’m looking at the winner live and in-person right now here in the nerve-center of artomatic and I have to tell you, it’s really all that. And more.
All of the finalists are quite “wow” but “Peeps are a Girl’s Best Friend” just blows your mind. The finalists will be out on public display when we open to the public April 13th, you’ll just have to come see them for yourself.
Wow. Really. Wow.