Participating in CurateNYC at Rush Arts Gallery in Chelsea

Hello there,

I'm pleased to share with you my experience with CurateNYC. My brain painting "Don't You Remember" was among the 150 winning artworks out of over 1,500+ submissions. The postcard of the painting is on display at Rush Arts Gallery (526 W. 26th street Suite 311) in Chelsea. View my submission profile here on the CurateNYC website.

Haven't heard of CurateNYC? Well it's a program supported by New York City Economic Development Corporation (NYCEDC) and Full Spectrum Experience, Inc. run by Brian Tate and Danny Simmons. 


Submissions were for NYC residents only and we were only allow to submit one piece of artwork. It was thanks to twitter that I learned about the opportunity...and impending deadline. So the on the last day of submissions, I completed by application and chose to include my painting on the brain and memory "Don't You Remember". About two weeks later, I received an email saying my piece was chosen for the group show.


The juried show was judged by:
Rashida Bumbray
Assistant Curator
The Kitchen, 

Denise Carvalho
Art Critic, Independent Curator & Scholar
DeniseCarvalho.com, 

Heng-Gil Han
Visual Arts Director & Curator
Jamaica Center for Arts & Learning, New York
jcal.org


Shantrelle P. Lewis
Independent Curator & Educator
Director of Exhibitions & Public Programming
Caribbean Cultural Center African Diaspora Institute
facebook.com/pages/Shantology


amani olu
Independent Curator & Writer
Co-Founder & Executive Director
Humble Arts Foundation
mrandmrsolu.com


Ed Patuto
Executive Director
Issue Project Room
issueprojectroom.org


Jose Ruiz
Artist & Independent Curator /
Founder
Furthermore
joseruizart.com


Sarah Schmerler
Critic, Educator & Curator
sarahschmerler.com


Adriana Teresa
Publisher & Editor
Visura Magazine
Co-Founder
FotoVisura & Visura Media
visuramagazine.com


Read the write up on HuffingtonPost "Curate NYC Unveils 150 Winning Works of Art"

Michelle Hunter showing her piece to Full Spectrun Experience, Inc and Rush Arts Gallery Director Brian Tate

Photos by Noah Xifr (www.facebook.com/noahxarts)

Participation in Mobrit Society's Season One Finale [Video]

Hello all,

In a prior post from April, I wrote about my "Brain Painting Wins Top Prize at Social Tapestry hosted by Mobrit".

Their monthly winners were then invited to show one piece of artwork for their Season One finale which took place Friday November 4th at Hype Lounge in NYC.

Instead of showing "Don't You Remember?" I chose to show "First Aid". Hosted by Drago, the event begun with artist introductions with each of us entering the spot light and talking for a couple of minutes about the work we chose to show. After all artists were introduced, we all went back in front of the crowd to answer any questions the audience may have had.

 

 
 

There was the voting component too! Nearing the end, guests were asked to text their favorite artist of the evening to a SMS number. Results were announced within the next day or two. I was tied for 2nd. Not bad and hey, it was a fun filled experience.

If you didn't make it, you should watch this 4minute art episode by fellow exhibiting artist and friend Marthalicia Matarrita .  There's no audio (you had to be there) but a beautiful soundtrack. At the 2 minute mark, you can see clips of each of the artists taking our turn speaking in front of the crowd. Watch the video, it's well done in my opinion with a nice soundtrack.




Stay tuned for an in progress post on the 7th painting in my brain series addressing depression.

Regards (and keep in touch!),
Michelle
info@hunterart.com
http://www.facebook.com/hunterart
http://www.twitter.com/artcoholic

New Brain Painting: Brain Rhythm | 24"x24" | Acrylic on Stretched Canvas

It's DONE!!! Finally!!!!

I'm very happy to introduce you to the 6th painting in my Brain Series.

(c) Michelle Hunter 2011

Brain Rhythm

24"x24"

Acrylic on Stretched Canvas

This painting came a long way. Things were smooth sailing until I hit the part with the grill. Did not anticipate having to make soooooooo many circles and how long that process was going to take. Let me first take a couple of steps back.

In the Beginning....

The concept, in general, was to paint what parts of the brain are most active when it comes to music. While doing further research, I learned that different parts of the brain become active when doing different musical activities: listening, playing (instrument) and reading.

An object that brought those components together for me was the speaker. What's music without being able to hear it? Also sheet music is the way to capture the details of a piece so it's able to be recreated. A speaker and sheet music, along with the brain, were the pieces I wanted to put together in a way that felt right. Given how a speaker is made of layers, having the brain at the center surrounded by wavy sheet music underneath a grill/mesh became the composition.

(c) Michelle Hunter 2011

Brain Rhythm [Detail]

The Brain and Music

The concept in general was to paint what parts of the brain are most active when it comes to music.There are areas both in the outer cortex and inner brain that are connected to our experience of music. For this painting, I focused on the outer area:

Prefrontal Cortex (yellow): When you are listening to music, ever have an experience where something didn't "sound right"? Perhaps you feel that a beat was missed.

After a few bars of music, you begin expecting a certain pattern to repeat correct?  Thank your prefrontal cortex's ability to sense when something is off.


Motor Cortex (green): Here controls when you are tapping your foot and bopping your head. It's an especially important area of the brain if you are a musician as you need the ability to control time movements.


Sensory Cortex (purple): Which string to strum on a guitar, keys on a piano, maneuvering a violin etc requires an acute sense of touch.


Auditory Cortex (blue): This area of the brain becomes alive when we hear music. It holds information pertaining to pitch and tones.

Visual Cortex (pink): Involving sight when reading music and watching performers. If you are like me and are not a musician but catch yourself imagining yourself on stage, the visual cortex helps get your imagination flowing.

Tell me what you think...don't be shy :)

Michelle Hunter
info@hunterart.com
http://www.facebook.com/hunterart
Hunterart Line: 646-504-5034
Twitter: Artcoholic

Brain series (so far):
Painting 1: Past, Present, Future or Dreaming
http://hunterart.blogspot.com/2010/08/new-painting-which-image-matches-your.html

Painting 2: Caffeine Headache
http://hunterart.blogspot.com/2010/10/caffeine-headache.html 

 
Painting 3: Don't You Remember?

http://hunterart.blogspot.com/2010/12/new-painting-dont-you-remember.html

Painting 4: First Aid

http://hunterart.blogspot.com/2011/03/new-painting-first-aid.html

Painting 5: Zzzzzzz (Sleep)

http://hunterart.blogspot.com/2011/05/new-painting-nap-time.html