Best of Artomatic

Ann Marie Coolick
Apr 5, 2017
1 min read

Today I checked out Artomatic, a huge non-juried art exhibit taking place on seven floors of an office building in Crystal City, Arlington. The show has over 600 artists exhibiting in mini-galleries throughout the building, including multiple stages, interactive exhibits, and kid-friendly art. I recommend taking a few hours to see everything, but if you're in a time crunch, here's my must-see list:

Below:

Most creative: Jeff Wilson, room 3303

Most creative: Jeff Wilson, room 3303

Best animals: Nathan Drake, room 3114

Best wall display: Becky Borlan, room 3512

Best installation: Kasey O'Boyle, room 4213

Most kid-friendly: Paul Lake and David Jung of Lucky Studios, room 5102 Best superheroes: Joe Granski, room 5609 Best smell: Salvatore Pirrone, 5th floor

Best texture: Lory Ivey Alexander, room 6212

Best drinks: 6th floor bar (seriously, go grab a glass of wine!)

Best landscapes: Sarah Wardell, room 7412

Most colorful: Jenna Jones, room 7405

Best typography: Sage the Artist, room 8206

Best drawings: Ellen Cornett, room 8316

Best abstracts: Andrea Cybyk, room 8602

Best portraits: Linda Lowery, room 8606

Most comical: Dave Peterson, room 9309

Most fun: Jenn Bock, room 9312

Best realism: Susan LaMont, room 9616

Scariest room: Make Artomatic Great Again

Most inspiring: The Single Dads Foundation, 4109

Below:

Most fun: Jenn Bock, room 9312

Below:

Best drawings: Ellen Cornett, room 8316

Artomatic is open through May 6th. Read more here.

#artartblogacreativedcwashingtondcartshow

Lucky 7

Ann Marie Coolick
Mar 2, 2017
1 min read

I'm curating the group show Lucky 7 including my work along with 10 of the DC area's best contemporary artists at Covet from March 16th through April 15th. The exhibit is in celebration of Covet's 7th year. We'll have over 30 original paintings along with cocktails and cupcakes at the opening reception on Thursday March 16th from 7-10pm. RSVP here.

The artists include:

Ann Marie Coolick: texture paintings, Arlington
Jaqui Falkenheim: watercolor florals, Arlington
Jordann Wine: glitter paintings, DC
Kasey O'Boyle: abstract florals, DC
Kristin Try: abstract paintings, Alexandria
Laura McGuigan: abstract paintings, DC
Lory Ivey Alexander: resin paintings, DC
Marc Pekala: geometric paintings, DC
Monica Stroik: geometric paintings, Arlington
Nicole Ida Fossi: abstract oil paintings, DC
Rachel Wishner: abstract paintings, DC

#acreativedcwashingtondcartartshowgallery

Kusama's Galactic Debut

Ann Marie Coolick
Feb 21, 2017
2 min read

Today I lived out a dream. I was invited to the Press Preview for the new Yayoi Kusama: Infinity Mirrors exhibit at the Hirshhorn, which opens to the public February 23rd. The show is the first survey of Kusama's immersive infinity mirror installations, spanning five decades of the acclaimed artist's career. The infinity mirror rooms are closed-door, walk-in installations for one or two people at a time and are merely the size of a large closet, yet unending in appearance. It's as if you are stepping into a time machine and viewing your current self while also having an out-of-body, hallucinatory experience from a galaxy far away. The exhibit also includes paintings, sculptures, peek-hole installations, and photographs with the artist's signature polka dots and colorful, repetitive forms.

Below: inside Kusama's Infinity Mirrored Room-- The Souls of Millions of Light Years Away.

The repetitive nature of Kusama's work is a therapeutic and meditative response to her lifelong battle with mental illness and her desire to fit in with society. In her early career, she hand-sewed all of her soft sculptures, reminiscent of Ursula's evil Garden of Polyps from The Little Mermaid. However, the mental taxation of this intense repetitive process steered her towards using mirrors in the mid 1960's, which led to the eventual creation of her first infinity mirror room. In the early 2000's, Kusama began exploring the inevitability of death and our relationship with the outer universe. In Infinity Mirrored Room-- The Souls of a Million Light Years Away, we are invited to quietly reflect on our existence and our presence as a tiny spec in the infinite universe. Kusama once said "Our earth is only one polka dot among a million stars in the cosmos", and this exhibit will surely make you feel the weight of our existence.

Below: Ennui,1976. Sewn and stuffed fabric with silver paint and shoes.

The final installation of the show, The Obliteration Room, invites viewers to participate in decorating (i.e. "obliterating") the stark-white room with colorful polka-dot stickers. This participatory experience is a way for us all to collectively unite in a task and change a barren landscape into a room of pulsating color. The room has a working piano, children's toys, wine glasses, picture frames, and even painted plants.

Above: The Obliteration Room prior to public opening, February 21, 2017.

While this show is sure to make you question our minion-like presence in the universe, it is also an optimal opportunity to don your polka-dot attire or other flare for an instagram--worthy selfie. Even today in a group of mostly conservative art world professionals, I saw a few bright pink Kusama-esque wigs and polka-dotted t-shirts.

Free timed passes to the exhibit will be released every Monday beginning at 12pm at kusama.si.edu. The exhibit runs February 23 to May 14, after which it will travel to Seattle, Los Angeles, Ontario, Cleveland, and Atlanta.

Above: Infinity Mirror Room: Phalli's Field, 1965.

Above: exterior of Dots Obsession – Love Transformed Into Dots, 2007.

Above: My Eternal Soul paintings and sculptures, 2009 to present.

Above: Kusama's peek-hole installation with a photograph of Kusama reflected off the exterior mirror.

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