Rice Polak Gallery showed work by Ellen Lebow at Scope Miami 2015. This piece is incised ink on clayboard and the photo here does not do it justice. Better photos by the gallery are HERE.

Part of the fun of these pieces are the stories in them--whether intended by the artist or not. There are characters here and there is movement, development. You feel you are looking at something mythological.

Lebow is also coordinator of Art/Matenwa and RARA, a group that works to bring sustainability via art to women in  Matènwa. Haiti. You can, and should, find out more about this HERE. This is the sort of project that really makes art matter.

Art of the Pride is an art project featuring the art of Suzanne Unrein. Unrein is working on pieces based on the work of animal behaviorist Kevin Richardson. The artist went South Africa to paint the day to day work of Richardson with lions. Unrein's studio is now covered in works of lions and hyenas--both with Richardson and on their own.

The aim of the project is to raise awareness of the plight of wild lions--and funds to help saving them. You may have seen the viral videos of Richardson with lions floating around the internet.

These preliminary works are sketches on primed paper---following this Unrein moves into using paint and different color combinations. Following this she decides which works will be used as the basis for larger works. You can see and read more HERE.

Young New Yorkers Second Annual Silent Auction happens Wednesday, October 16, 6- 10 p.m. at Allegra La Viola Gallery, 179 East Broadway, New York. Tickets are $40 at the door.

Sixty visual artists are banding together to help 16 and 17 year olds prosecuted and sentenced as adults in the stat of New York. Young New Yorkers is a restorative justice program designed to help kids of this age group. Criminal courts give eligible defendants an option of participating in Young New Yorkers instead of doing jail time and having a criminal record.

It offers kids another chance to become part of society rather than rushing to make them a burdon on society.

Art of the Pride may be a bizarre combination --it features a collaboration between painter Suzanne Unrein and animal behaviorist "lion whisperer," Kevin Richardson--but it is also a fascinating combination of art and naturalism.

All the proceeds go to saving the lions.

They do need your assistance, however. You can find out details at their KICKSTARTER page.

Unrein plans to travel to South Africa to document—in painting—the work of Richardson with lions. The paintings will then tour around the world to promote  awareness of the plight of the these magnificent creatures.  When describing Richardson to people it is difficult to not lean heavily on "Crocodile Hunter" comparisons. There is a similarity in the sense that Richardson does have a feel for the behavior of large predators--and a sincere compassion for them.

Read more on  Richardson and his work HERE.

Ren Ben 2013 Auction Preview is Live

This year's Ren Ben Auction preview is now live. Bids are being accepted though Friday, September 6, 2013. The actual auction takes place Saturday September 7.

This year the Rennaissance Society welcomes a new executive director and chief curator, Solvieg Øvstebø. The auction features over 70 wors from internationally established artists. You can bid online HERE or by calling 773-702-8670.

The annual Renaissance Society gala and art auction this year also welcomes a new Executive Director, Solvieg Øvstebø. Solveig  was director at Bergen Kunsthall, in Norway for ten years.

The auction features a SLEW of amazing artists and there will be an online preview August 15, 2013. For more information head HERE.

Do bid online! Then you can attend Mapanare’s first art show on the same night!

44 Flood is a fairly new publisher of art books etc based in Chicago. They feature work by artists such as Menton 3, Ben Templesmith, Christopher Ulrich, David Stoupakis and literally dozens of other artists--in every medium from paint to song to food to design etcetera.

Their new project, Tome 2-Melancholia, funded at Kickstarter in less than 24 hours (and has current pledges of over $36,000).

The first Tome book was a magnificent work with an ever expanding group of artists (as the project garnered more financial support). Like that project this one features music, art prints and the Tome 2 book (plus a companion book, Explicitus Ex Liber 2).
Let them explain the details HERE.
At this point the project is funded but as it progresses (there is a month and a half left) you can be sure more will be added to the project. If you purchase via a Kickstarter pledge you will also save money on the price of the book. Many of the prints and extras in the Kickstarter will be available only via Kickstarter pledges.

Another reason why crowdfunding is so great despite the fact that it has become something for angry hipsters to sneer at (go wax your ridiculous mustaches and iron your ironic t-shirts).

John Airo, artist denizen of the great city of Chicago, has generously agreed to be part of Constantly.Consuming.Culture--The Art Show. Please help out by pledging to the art show KICKSTARTER.

Airo hates the whole bio thing. So we’ll just state the obvious; he is an artist. Specifically he is a multi-media artist based in Chicago. He does everything from comics to large scale public art.  Chicago isn’t just Airo’s home but the source of his inspiration (as you will notice from his work below). His work often uses the city as subject both literally and figuratively; the city’s skyline and found objects are both used.b Pieces from Airo’s Chicago Flags series are below.

Airo’s work can be seen at a number of Chicago’s drinking and music establishments. There is a diversity in his work but also common threads that pull disparate pieces together. Airo's work channels Chicago and mixes bright and dark--a dark sensibility with often vibrant colors.

You can find out and see more at www.johnairo.com.

Elyse Martin ‘s art will be part of Constantly.Consuming.Culture—The Art Show.  Martin is from Chicago and has been a teacher in the city since 1973. Her students have won the premiere student cover art competition sponsored by the Chicago Bulls Development Foundation for seven consecutive years. She attended Pratt Institute and Washington University (St. Louis).

The work is personal and inspired by those close to her—using paint, encaustic and photo transfer.

She teaches at the Jordan Community School in Chicago (named after the Jordan family, not Michael specifically). Martin has even done an encaustic piece for Michael’s mother, Deloris.

“Mrs. Jordan was involved in the school since its inception 20 years ago so I have known her that long.  Last year I had a student art show at the Black Cloud Gallery,” says Martin. “All donation names were put in a hat.  The one that got picked received an encaustic painting made from their photo.  Mrs. Jordan wanted one as well. I did a painting for her from an old photo. “

Martin as graciously agreed to do the same for mapanare.us.  As a new reward for our Kickstarter Martin will create a 12"x 12", 9" x 12" or 12"x 16" encaustic painting of a photo provided by YOU (just like she did for Michael’s mom).  Usually this would cost $500.

To see Martin’s encaustic pieces go HERE.

The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago has a limited edition photo porfolio sale to benefit the museum's exhibitions and programming. The pieces, curated by Susanne Ghez, are 30 + 3AP, with all images matted on 24 x 28 inch archival board.

For more information, visit our the society's website,

The portfolio includes images by:

-Darren Almond
-Lothar Baumgarten
-Jean-Marc Bustamante
-Willie Doherty
-Stan Douglas
-Fischli/Weiss
-Rodney Graham
-Arturo Herrera
-Zoe Leonard
-Laura Letinsky
-Thomas Struth
-Jeff Wall