Artlink Phoenix
Call for Artists | Inspired Soles Stiletto Shoe Auction
Posted on 3/11/13 by DPJ Staff » No Comments
Mother Destroyer by Eric James from Phoenix Tattoo Company.
DPJ’s Wire series delivers news and information straight from the source without translation.
Second Inspired Soles, A stiletto shoe auction to benefit Artlink Phoenix
Back by popular demand among patrons and local artists – it’s the Second Inspired Soles stiletto art show and auction to benefit Artlink. If you’re one of the artists/designers who participated in this show last year, we hope you’ll do it again. If you’re new to this event, just know this was a blockbuster success that generated widespread news coverage and traffic at our gallery’s official grand opening. Artists loved it because it was a packed house, and they made some great new connections with clients.
It’s easy and fun to participate! Just like last year, we’ll provide the stilettos. You provide the inspiration!
What: Inspired Soles – a stiletto art show and auction to benefit Artlink. Throughout the month of April the gallery will showcase stilettos created by local artists, designers and celebrities!
Who: Custom-decorated stilettos are being procured from local designers, artists and celebrities. The show is being produced and promoted by BJC Public Relations and Torres Marquez Communications, two women-owned public relations agencies that really know how to draw a great First Friday crowd. They also share office space in the two levels located above the 6th Avenue Gallery.
- Desert Flower by Colleen-Steinberg.
When: The stilettos will be unveiled and auctioned on April 5, during First Friday in Downtown Phoenix. The stilettos will remain on display throughout the month of April. A portion of the proceeds will benefit Artlink Phoenix, a nonprofit organization dedicated to linking artists, business and the public to better understand, appreciate and promote the thriving arts community in Central Phoenix.
Where: The 6th Avenue Gallery is located on the southwest corner of Sixth Avenue and McKinley, one block south of Roosevelt. The gallery is in the basement level of the building.
A GUIDE FOR PARTICIPATING ARTISTS
Here is a step-by-step guide for your participation in the stiletto art show:
____ Order your stiletto shoe by calling BJC Public Relations at (602) 277-9530, x232. If your design requires more than one stiletto, please let us know how many, and we’ll do our best to provide what you need.
____ BJC Public Relations will deliver the shoe to you.
____ Design your stiletto. Enough said!
____ Complete the “Art and Artist Information Form” (ask BJC Public Relations to forward one to you)
____ Return your stiletto and the “Art and Artist Information Form” to:
BJC Public Relations
650 N. 6th Avenue
Phoenix, Arizona 85003
(602) 277-9530, x232
____ TIP #1: if you ship via FedEx – select the 3-day option – it’s cheaper and often arrives in a day
____ Email or call BJC Public Relations with the TRACKING number of your shipment. Our email is: info@bjc.com
____ Stiletto submissions are due Friday, March 29.
____ TIP #2 (EARLY BIRDS GET THE WORM). If you would like your stiletto art featured in our publicity efforts, we need to have your submission in our hands by March 15. So do yourself a favor, and create your work of art the minute you get inspiration. And be sure to get some home videos of YOU creating your work of art that we can share on our Facebook page.
Images provided by BJC Public Relations.
The Art of Art Detour
Posted on 2/22/13 by DPJ Staff » No Comments
Photo by Bryan Mok
What goes into designing the promotion materials for an event? How do you decide on an image that conveys the right message?
When it’s the 25th Anniversary of Art Detour, you look to your past and turn for inspiration to the local artists who’ve been the heart of the event for a quarter century.
The Gala and the Gal
During last year’s Detour, photographer Bryan Mok was documenting an event at the Crescent Ballroom hosted by local artist Hugo Medina. “Celebrating Beauty and Artists” featured live models sporting body painting creations by several artists.
As Mok stood with his camera poised, one of the models stopped near him just under a spotlight. She was wearing glitter on her body and her hair and the beautiful floral image by Dianne Nowicki that was painted on her back luminesced under the light.
In that moment, says Mok, “it all came together – the cool composition, the floral body painting on her back, the glowing light from her skin and hair – it was completely evocative of the event, embodying people and art.”
The resulting photo caught the eye of Artlink Phoenix board members as they were planning this weekend’s Silver Gala, a kick off event to celebrate Detour’s silver anniversary. The image embodied the festive, artful spirit of the gala.
Silver Gala Invitation
Graphic designers were asked to use the photo as the inspiration for the gala invitation and poster, and voila! The resulting image pays homage to last year’s Art Detour, to Dianne Nowicki’s floral image, and to the fabulous photo that Mok captured.
Celebrating “The Artist”
For Art Detour’s main image, used for poster and postcards, Artlink put out a call to artists to submit work that would capture the essence of the event.
Fred Tieken’s brilliantly colored submission entitled “The Artist” was chosen. Not only was the image bright, colorful, and fun, the subject matter fit perfectly with the focus of Artlink.
As Nancy Hill, Artlink board member and Art Detour Chair said “Artlink exists to bring attention to local artists in downtown Phoenix and Art Detour is the signature event that brings the public into artist studios. Fred’s piece captures that focus perfectly.”
Tieken, a longtime Phoenix resident who had successful careers in music and graphic design before turning full time to art, talked about how the piece came to be. “I started with the idea of an artist painting a portrait of a lady, and the paint led me on. It was something that just developed before my eyes.”
“The Artist” by Fred Tieken
Tieken is an enthusiastic supporter of the downtown Phoenix art scene who many people will know from his large-scale mural “Buzz” on the side of the Vermillion building on MacDowell, just east of Third Avenue. “I paint a lot from images I get from watching people on First Friday,” says Tieken. “I love the downtown art scene, I love the energy on the streets on First Friday, and I always come back excited and inspired.” He puts ideas for paintings up on a wall and says he has enough ideas on the wall currently to paint through next year.
So, the next time you happen past the poster or postcard for Detour or the Silver Gala, take a minute to reflect on the inspiration behind the images. And while you’re at it, put on your best finery to attend the Gala and make plans to spend the following weekend exploring everything the downtown Phoenix arts scene has to offer at Art Detour.
If You Go:
Event: Artlink Silver Gala
Date/Time: Saturday, February 23, 7 to 11 p.m.
Location: A.E. England Building, Civic Space Park.
Tickets: Buy tickets here
Event: Art Detour 25,
Dates/Times: Saturday and Sunday, March 2 and 3, 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Locations: Over 90 locations throughout downtown Phoenix and beyond.
Call for Artists | Art Detour 25
Posted on 11/30/12 by DPJ Staff » No Comments
DPJ’s Wire series delivers news and information straight from the source without translation.
Artlink Phoenix seeks an original artwork or artworks for Art Detour 25. The work will be used in a designed format as the basis for the Art Detour 25 poster, postcard and other marketing materials.
This artwork should:
- Create excitement and interest for the community
- Potentially (but not necessarily) honor and commemorate the history of Art Detour.
- Celebrate the artistic community in the downtown Phoenix area.
- Inspire people to remember the past, and to appreciate the cultural legacy that belongs to them and to future generations
The artwork (s) must be a flat work in any medium – but will be represented digitally in all paper and electronic collateral. The original piece will be displayed during Art Detour 25 at the A.E. England gallery. The size of original piece does not matter – it will be represented as a poster, postcard and online in various sizes.
Art Detour 24 art by Jenny Ignaszewski.
The artist may be asked to work with designers to help format the poster, etc. The original artwork will remain the property of the artist.
Eligibility: Any artist currently living and working in Arizona.
Deadline for submissions: December 15, 2012
Digital representations must reach the Artlink board via email or flash drive. The work will be chosen and the announcement made on December 31, 2012.
The Artlink board reserves the right to change the project timeline.
How to Apply
Artists interested in this project must prepare and submit the following:
- A digital representation of the piece. No larger than 1 MB. This should be a JPG, TIFF. PDF or PNG file. Submission files will not be returned.
- A note with current contact info.
- A maximum of three works.
- Titles, dates of completion, materials used in the original work, any other background information deemed necessary.
Please submit all materials to: nancy@artlinkphoenix.com
From the Wire | New Downtown Gallery Debuts with “Inspired Soles” Art Show
Posted on 4/05/12 by DPJ Staff » No Comments
Some news items don’t need translation. That’s why DPJ launched the From the Wire series, so we could serve the destinations here by posting information and announcements – in their own words.
NEW DOWNTOWN GALLERY DEBUTS WITH ”INSPIRED SOLES” ART SHOW AND AUCTION
What would you do with a black stiletto as a canvas? That’s the question that the predominantly female crew behind the 6th Avenue Gallery posed to artists and designers to solicit participation in “Inspired Soles” Art Show and Auction. The response has been nothing short of sensational – but don’t take our word for it. Come see for yourself when the 6th Avenue Gallery debuts its exhibition on First Friday in April.
Featuring dozens of high heel stilettos transformed into works of art, along with a provocative photo collection of women wearing their favorite power stilettos, this show is sure to validate what Marilyn Monroe and women everywhere have long known to be true: “Give a girl the right shoes and she can conquer the world.”
The “Inspired Soles” stiletto art show will be unveiled during a one-night event and auction presented by the 6th Avenue Gallery. The gallery’s grand opening celebration in downtown Phoenix will be done in style, complete with food trucks, music, and just enough twinkle lighting to check out the undoubtedly inspired soles of those who attend this event.
Bring your wallet, because every stiletto featured in the “Inspired Soles” exhibition will be sold to the highest bidders. Proceeds will benefit Artlink Phoenix, a nonprofit organization dedicated to linking artists, business and the public to better understand, appreciate and promote a thriving arts community in central Phoenix.
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- Desert Flower by Colleen Steinberg
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- Mother Destroyer by Eric James
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- Stilettos from “Inspired Soles”
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- Dia De Los Muertos by El Moises
If You Go:
Where: 6th Avenue Gallery, 650 N. 6th Avenue (basement level) in downtown Phoenix, 85003
When: First Friday Debut, April 6, 2012
Public Showing – 6:30 to 10 p.m.
Silent Auction – 6:30 to 8 p.m.
The Inspired Soles stiletto art show continues on the third Friday in April and by appointment.
For more information, visit www.6thAvenueGallery.com
A Fresh Look at the Phoenix Center for the Arts
Posted on 2/08/12 by Jill Bernstein » No Comments
Look closely under the dust and construction of the Phoenix Center for the Arts and you might catch a glimpse of Joseph Benesh, the energizer bunny behind the Center’s growth as an arts and culture hub in Downtown Phoenix. As the new operations manager, he’s a man on a mission to raise awareness city-wide of this amazing Downtown arts resource.
Classes, Classes, Classes!
Located at 3rd Street and Moreland, (on the eastern end of Hance Park, just off of the I-10) the Phoenix Center for the Arts is run by the Phoenix Arts Association, an independent 501(c)3 nonprofit organization, in partnership with the City of Phoenix. Benesh was hired in August of 2011, just after the Phoenix Arts Association took over operation of the programs from the city.
Since 1976, the Phoenix Center for the Arts has been a cultural center in the heart of Downtown Phoenix, providing the citizens of Phoenix with “year-round opportunities to participate in the visual and performing arts through creative and affordable quality programming.” That means classes, lots and lots of classes!
“We have two students who’ve been taking classes at the Center for over 30 years, and recently one man who’d taken his first class 30 years ago has returned to take the same class, in the same classroom,” said Benesh.
Since Benesh was hired, class registrations have grown by 37%. Adults can participate in everything from painting and drawing to metals and jewelry, from ceramics, glass, and music, to printmaking and photography. Youth classes (for kids age 6 and up) cover music, dance, art, and theatre.
Connecting with Hance Park
The 33,000 sq. ft. facility includes a gallery; eight visual art studios; four rehearsal/class rooms; 16 office spaces; a large music/performance studio and a 216-seat theater.
The current renovation will create a brand new entryway for the Center on the north side of the building, making it the only building that opens directly onto Margaret T. Hance Park. The three-story entry, scheduled to be completed by May, will face the parking lot and provide a highly visible and accessible “way in” for people. Benesh is also a member of the Hance Park Conservancy Board and is actively involved in the redevelopment and rejuvenation of Hance Park.
Incubating the Arts
Benesh has been reaching out to small arts organizations to invite them to make the Center their home. He envisions making the Center an arts incubator, and providing the legitimacy and stability of a home for small arts organizations finding their legs.
“We can provide inexpensive office space, quality rehearsal and performance space, and the synergy of a network of other arts organizations to interact with, “ said Benesh.
The Center is now home to the Phoenix Children’s Chorus, Radio Phoenix, the Phoenix Fringe Festival, Rising Youth Theatre and soon, Artlink Phoenix.
What’s Next?
Benesh is excited about the projects that he and his board are working on for the future, including purchasing a portable amphitheater for the eastern end of the park to be shared with local arts and culture organizations, using the $5.5M in bond funds to renovate the Center theater into a 600 to 700-seat house, and the inaugural Phoenix Festival of the Arts planned for next November. He envisions a weekend-long event, showcasing artists and arts organizations from throughout the Valley.
Visit the Center website for class schedules, or drop by on a First Friday, or during Art Detour in March to check out their gallery openings and performances.
Save the Date for Downtown Phoenix’s Premier Art Tour Event!
Art Detour 24 returns March 17 & 18! The free, two-day, self-guided tour of artist studios, art spaces, and other art venues in Downtown Phoenix promoted by Artlink, Inc. in cooperation with participating venues. Experience the creative spirit of the downtown arts community and save the date: March 17 & 18. Visit ArtlinkPhoenix.com.
