MBG Issue #138: Best of 2009

Issue # 138Best of 2009December 25, 2009share with a friend:This word cloud represents the frequency of the most common words printed in …might be good in 2009.from the editor2009 was a hell of a good year for seeing visual art in Austin. The year opened with a series of shows that brought us back to Austin’s DIY roots. At Arthouse, Matt Stokes … Read More

MBG Issue #137: Huh? Wow!

Issue # 137Huh? Wow!December 18, 2009share with a friend:Katri Walker, State of the He/Art (Serenata), 2006, Video still. Courtesy the artist and Women & Their Work.from the editorThis is new for …might be good: we’ve added a donate button to our site.* For the first time, we’re asking you, our readers, to invest in the work we do. Our long-term partners … Read More

MBG Issue #136: Okay Mountain receives 2009 PULSE Prize

Issue # 136Okay Mountain receives 2009 PULSE PrizeDecember 7, 2009share with a friend:Okay Mountain, Corner Store, 2009. Presented by Arthouse at Pulse Miami. Courtesy Arthouse.from the editorFluent~Collaborative congratulates Austin-based collective Okay Mountain, the winner of the 2009 Pulse Prize for best emerging artist at the fair, where they showed Corner Store, an installation presented by Arthouse at the Jones Center. Don’t mistake that sculpture outside … Read More

MBG Issue #135: Punished with Beauty

Issue # 135Punished with BeautyDecember 4, 2009share with a friend:Mel Bochner, Blah, Blah, Blah, 2008, Oil-based printing ink on paper, 30 1/8 x 22 1/2 inches. Courtesy Lawrence Markey, Inc.from the editorJoan Jonas’s recent workshop on drawing and performance, held in Austin just before Thanksgiving, centered on the idea of the list. Artists, Jonas pointed out, use lists all the … Read More

MBG Issue #134: A Breakthrough Moment

Issue # 134A Breakthrough MomentNovember 20, 2009share with a friend:Adrian Esparza, Dream Drought, 2009. Originally commissioned and produced by Artpace San Antonio.from the editorI just got back from San Antonio and I saw a Thanksgiving-worthy cornucopia of great work. Highlights included Adrian Esparza, Adriana Lara, and Mario Ybarra, Jr. at Artpace, the Mel Bochner show at Lawrence Markey and Diamond Life opening tonight at Unit B. … Read More

MBG Issue #133: Let your freak flag fly

Issue # 133Let your freak flag flyNovember 6, 2009share with a friend:Carlos Rosales-Silva, Untitled (Chamberlain Alamo), 2009, Modified Found Objects, 36 x 36 x 19 inches. Courtesy the artist and Art Palace Gallery.from the editorHere’s what rocks about Austin: the turnover. You think I’m joking? I’m not. As Art Palace prepares for a move to Houston, heed its director’s warning. … Read More

MBG Issue #132: Stumbling through the Imaginary Brush

Issue # 132Stumbling through the Imaginary BrushOctober 23, 2009share with a friend:Erin Curtis, Foliage View, 2009, Acrylic on paper, 34 x 25 inches, (framed). Courtesy the artist and Women & Their Work.from the editorAt a moment when contemporary art practices may feel almost paralyzingly diverse, standards about how to look at art, and how to evaluate it, seem equally diffuse. For … Read More

MBG Issue #131: Lingering Woozy Feeling

Issue # 131Lingering Woozy FeelingOctober 9, 2009share with a friend:Pablo Vargas Lugo, WorkSpace 12: Eclipses for Austin (production). Courtesy Blanton Museum of Art. Photo: Douglas Marshall.from the editorAnd I am sunburnt. On Tuesday I spent four long, sticky hours in UT Austin’s football stadium as a volunteer for artist Pablo Vargas Lugo’s Eclipses for Austin, the next WorkSpace project at the … Read More

MBG Issue #130: Angry Me/Calm Me

Issue # 130Angry Me/Calm MeOctober 2, 2009share with a friend:Levi Dugat, Calm Me Waving at Angry Me, 2009, 18 x 24 inches, Graphite on paper. Courtesy the artist and Domy Books.from the editorToday, Fluent~Collaborative is hosting a Satellite Summit for this year’s National Summit on Arts Journalism. This year, the summit is focusing on new models in cultural coverage on the web. What … Read More

MBG Issue #129: Earning Your Keep

Issue # 129Earning Your KeepSeptember 11, 2009share with a friend:Anne Collier, Woman With A Camera (35mm), 2009, 35mm slides, slide projector, slide projector stand, Dimensions variable, Originally commissioned by Artpace San Antonio. Photo: Todd Johnson.from the editorAfter my latest visit to Artpace San Antonio, I’m thinking about artist residencies. Austin has long clamored for a residency program. But if we had … Read More