Posted by cafpress on: Wed 24th Feb, 2010

Exhibition
 Sanford Biggers: Moon Medicine and Bloom Projects: Melanie Schiff, Stones
 Opening Reception: SAT. MAR. 6, 7-9 PM, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum FREE
 On View: MAR. 6 – MAY 2, 2010, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum FREE

Come and see the latest exhibition at the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Sanford Biggers: Moon Medicine and Bloom Projects: Melanie Schiff, Stones, on view from March 6 - May 2, 2010.

The Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum presents a major West Coast exhibition of new work by internationally acclaimed artist, Sanford Biggers. The 2009 recipient of the prestigious William H. Johnson Prize, Biggers’ affecting and thought provoking work will debut at CAF with a self-titled exhibition Sanford Biggers: Moon Medicine. About the exhibition in Santa Barbara, the artist states, “Moon Medicine encompasses the breadth of my practice, showcasing photography, video, installation, and performance. It is a thematic, multi-disciplinary exploration of past themes and new themes meant to broaden and complicate our read on American history.”

Informed by living in the United States, Europe, and Japan, Biggers’ work references Buddhism, Indo- European Voodoo, African American history, jazz, hip hop culture, and a range of other influences to underscore notions of interconnectedness and hybridity. Accompanying this tour-de-force exhibition is a scholarly exhibition catalog written by CAF Executive Director, Miki Garcia. Garcia states, “We are proud to produce the artist’s first publication entirely dedicated to his practice despite showing internationally and being the recipient of numerous awards, fellowships, and residencies. With this exhibition and catalog, CAF succeeds in its mission to support the most compelling artists of our time and to bring world-class programming to the Tri-Counties.”

A native of Los Angeles, CA, Biggers is a resident of New York, NY, where he teaches at Columbia University, New York, NY. He received a B.A. from Morehouse College, Atlanta, GA, an M.F.A. from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL and studied at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, Skowhegan, ME. The 2009 recipient of the coveted William H. Johnson Prize, Biggers has won several awards (including the Creative Capital Project Grant and Camille Hanks-Cosby Fellowship) and participated in prestigious artist residencies and fellowships.

This exhibition has been made possible in part by the generous support of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts, Susan E. Bower, Cyndee Howard, Barry and Jill Kitnick, Jacquelyn Klein-Brown, Jon and Lillian Lovelace, Mike Healy and Tim Walsh, and Kimberly Hahn and James Van Arsdale of Myopia Design. Special thanks to Wayne McCall and Associates, Santa Barbara, CA.

Bloom Projects:  Melanie Schiff, Stones

CAF is proud to present never-before-shown photographs by contemporary artist Melanie Schiff. A relative newcomer to Los Angeles, Schiff explores the cityscape, employing formal elements of the medium’s most ubiquitous type: the still life. Her stark photographs
expose how empty a city can feel and how the remnants of humans, though cast off and overlooked, can become sentimental, quiet moments wavering on the edge of a
constructed poetic narrative.

Schiff studied at University of London, Goldsmiths College, London, UK, received a B.F.A from New York University, Tisch School of the Arts, New York, NY and an M.F.A. from the University of Illinois, Chicago, Chicago, IL. Her work has been in numerous exhibitions including the 2008 Whitney Biennial, Whitney Museum of American Art, New York, NY and a solo exhibition entitled The Mirror, Kavi Gupta Gallery, Chicago, IL. She teaches at Pitzer College, Claremont, CA.

This exhibition has been made possible in part by the generous support of the Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts. Special thanks to Brush & Associates, Santa Barbara, C; Glenn Miller and Marjorie Gies, Santa Barbara, CA; and Wayne McCall and Associates, Santa Barbara, CA.

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Posted by cafpress on: Wed 24th Feb, 2010

Forum Lounge: Cartune Xprez, CASTL CRNRS
Performance: THUR. MAR. 4, 7 PM
Location: Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Paseo Nuevo Mall Upper Arts Terrace
FREE

Join us at the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum on March 4, 2010 at 7 PM for Forum Lounge: Cartune Xprez, CASTL CRNRS.

Let your imagination run wild at Cartune Xprez’s CASTL CRNRS socialized performance! CASTL CRNRS combines animated videos and performance to unfold a three-part, mythical tale of a violent forest tamed and replaced with geometric systems.

Portland-based artists Peter Burr and Christopher Doulgeris are Cartune Xprez, a multimedia dance duo that use videos, music, and installations that capitalize on the abundance of digital information. By combining mediums, Cartune Xprez’s performances become social events, which are exaggerated by living animation energy. With youthful cartoon spirit, Cartune Xprez chooses material that leaves space for viewers’ imaginations and fuses many styles together.  Hand-drawn, digital, structuralist, comedic, and the dark are served up with a heavy dose of mystery!

About the Forum Lounge Series:  The Forum Lounge is a series of free, performance-based events that reflect CAF’s mission to sustain and encourage the artistic process by presenting art in the form of exceptional music, dance, video, and other multi-media to our community. The series encourages experiences with unique performance pieces ranging from the theatrical to the avant-garde that are normally found
only in large metropolitan venues.
 
Funding and support for the ‘09-‘10 Forum Lounge season generously provided by: Endevermusic Productions, the Franciscan Inn, and the National Endowment for the Arts. Official media sponsors: KCSB and the Santa Barbara Independent. Forum Lounge is presented in association with the Santa Barbara Downtown Organization’s 1st Thursday.

Curator's Note:

I am excited and honored to welcome March's Forum Lounge featuring artist Peter Burr, one half of the collaborative multimedia musical art duo, Hooliganship. Their work first came to my attention when they performed as part of Machine Project's Field Guide to LACMA for an all-day, performance art spectacular in November 2008. Formed with partner Christopher Doulgeris in 2005, Hooliganship is one part art collective and one part experimental band. For this month's Forum Lounge, Burr will present a performance of Cartun Xprez, a traveling roadshow of animated videos featuring live video performance in an “electro-luminescent stage show.” Inspired by Saturday morning cartoons and USA Network’s animation shows, Burr and Doulgeris remix animated imagery using the work of established artists like Martha Colburn and Alison Schulnik and add their unique brand of collaborative performance with an emphasis on social interaction. In the blurring of genres and their boundaries, Cartune Xprez is an excellent example of a trend in contemporary art practices in which artists take advantage of accessible tools (i.e. animation software) and a willingness to share artistic efforts to create new work that defies traditional categorization.  CAF is actually just one stop on Peter's Cartune Xprez presentation; in addition to his performance in Santa Barbara, he is also presenting this roadshow in cities across the US including Minneapolis, LA, Reno, Oakland and Chicago. 

--Heather Jeno Silva

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Tags: sbart, sbarts, hooliganship, LACMA, cartune xprez, Peter Burr, Christopher Doulgeris, Machine Project

Posted by cafpress on: Mon 22nd Feb, 2010

Join CAF at the Kids Expo at La Cumbre Plaza, Saturday, March 6th, 9 AM- 1PM.  Bring your family to join in on the fun: coloring books, information about upcoming events and exhibitions, and more.

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Posted by cafpress on: Tue 2nd Feb, 2010

Looking for something sophisticated, exciting, and different this Saturday night?

Join us this February 6th for a très chic art, fashion, and wine event! Beginning at 8 PM CAF will be transformed into a Parisian inspired, late-night lounge, offering fine art, luxury goods, and wine auctions all in support of the art and artists of our time! A haute couture fashion show by dressed/ready of Montecito; DJ Fab's sexy sounds; and delectable edibles and apéritifs await you! 

Date:  February 6, 2010, 8 PM until Late

Location:  Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, Paseo Nuevo Upper Arts Terrace, 653 Paseo Nuevo, Santa Barbara CA, 93101

For information and tickets: www.sbcaf.org or call 805.966.5373

CAF’s famed and cherished annual event has added a few exciting new twists! Brought to you as a late-night, lounge extravaganza inspired by the romance and sophistication of Paris, this benefit offers an array of live and silent auctions featuring exceptional wines, luxury items, and world-class artwork by internationally renowned artists and Santa Barbara’s own art luminaries including Adrienne Allebe, Amy Bessone, Calico Brown, Alejandro Casazi, Stephanie Dotson, Jayson Eoff, Julia Ford, Tera Galanti, Servando Garcia, Nancy Gifford, Penelope Gottlieb, Carlos A. Grano, Saul Gray-Hildenbrand, Kimberly Hahn, Jean-Pierre Hebert, Mary Heebner, Susan Jorgensen, Anne Luther, Hugh Margerum, Carrie Maseredjian, Bob Mask, Michael Barton Miller, Barbara Parmet, Zacarias Paul, Rafael Perea de la Cabada, Gail Pine, Harry Reese and Sandra Liddell Reese, Joan Rosenberg, Richard Ross, Warren Schultheis, Joe Shea, Dante Sigismondi, Steven Smith, Jason Sober, Kat Trajano, Patrick Turner, James Van Arsdale, Mitchell Wright, Lise Claire Wuebben, Kathleen Yorba, Seyburn Zorthian, and Pamela Zwehl-Burke.

A combined art exhibition and benefit, La Vie en Rose will blossom with a not-to-be-missed fashion show in partnership with Susan Pitcher’s iconic boutiques, dressed & ready! Induge your senses as models strut the runway in très chic creations by Halston, Yigal Azrouël, Thakoon, Mark & James by Badgley Mischka, A . L . C ., Caleen Cordero, Kimberly Ovitz, Lanvin shoes and handbags, Raquel Allegra, The Row, YSL and many more!

All attendees may participate in the silent art, wine, and luxury item auctions. For tickets, call 805.966.5373 or visit our website store http://www.sbcaf.org. Tickets from $75 - $175.

Finding that fashion must-have or Valentine’s gift is a snap with dressed/ready’sLa Vie en Rose 10% discount which will run from Jan 28th through Feb 5th; a portion of the proceeds from sales during this time will benefit CAF. While there, don’t miss the sister exhibition of Doug Wada's delicate perfume bottle watercolors. Wada’s fashionable art works will be on view and for sale from Jan 27 - Feb 4 at dressed/ready and then move to CAF on Feb 5 for La Vie en Rose. dressed/ready is located at 1253 Coast Village Road in Montecito.

Please come and preview the works up for auction at CAF during normal gallery hours from January 29 - February 5, 2010. Viewing the exhibition at CAF and dressed/ready is FREE.

All proceeds from La Vie en Rose benefit the Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum’s highly acclaimed exhibitions and educational programs.

Thank you to our major supporters!

American Laser Centers, Arcadian Winery,  Bella Vista Designs Inc., Casa Magazine, Cheri Bibi, Design Within Reach, dressed/ready, MB Et Compagnie, Omni Fresco, Santa Barbara Independent, Santa Barbara News-Press

Babcock Winery & Vineyards, Grape Wise, Heitz Cellar, RND Vodka, 

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Tags: La Vie en Rose, sbart, sbarts, Auction, Celebrate, Santa Barbara Contemporary Arts Forum, CAF, art, santa barbara, party