Monday, August 24, 2009

No Show for September

With kids going back to school and Labor Day Weekend, there will be no show at Pantone 278 in September. (I know, I know. Whatever will you do?!) Not to worry, I am working on an incredible show for October, so keep your eyes and ears open! In the mean time, check out some pictures below from the hanging of the photography show by Sally Fanjoy and James Labrenz. I had so much fun with Sally and James transforming the Charlotte Trolley Museum into Gallery Pantone 278. Thanks to Sally for all of the great shots. There are some great works still available, so call (704-724-0440) or email (GalleryPantone278@Gmail.com) to schedule an appointment to see the remaining works.

It's been a great summer. Despite the worst economy of our generation, it has been heart-warming to see everyone getting out to support arts in Charlotte. Gallery openings have been buzzing, new friendships have been made, businesses have been launched, and artists have been exposed to an entirely new group of people. As we will all agree, Charlotte is a great place to live and will continue to get better. Supporting the arts and artists, I believe, will make Charlotte a more vibrant, healthy, rounded and exciting city. I appreciate everyone's support and hope you will continue to support the arts in one form or another!

Marc Gustafson
Gallery Pantone 278

Photography By
Sally Fanjoy
and

James Labrenz






Friday, August 7, 2009

As Promised - Pictures from the August 6 Opening

Here are some photos taken on August 6 by Jeff Cooke from the opening at Pantone 278 of Photography by Sally Fanjoy and James Labrenz at the Charlotte Trolley Powerhouse Museum.



































































Thursday, August 6, 2009

Another Great Show

What a great night?! If was so good to see so many good friends, old and new.

I couldn't put on these shows without the help of so many people. I cannot thank Sally Fanjoy and James Labrenz enough for encouraging me to pursue this dream, for creating such amazing work, and for being such good people. Thanks to Robert Bush for introducing me to Sally and James and for continuing to support the Gallery. Thanks to everyone from the ASC for their help with the YDS pre-party. Lauren and Erin, the food was great as always. Thanks to Mom and Dad for thinking I'm crazy but showing up anyway. Thanks to Jeff Lewis for the help on the lettering. Big thanks to everyone at the Charlotte Trolley Museum. And a special thanks to everyone for driving down from Hickory.

Watch for pictures from tonight to be posted after the Gallery Crawl. If you weren't able to make it out, I hope to see you Friday night from 6 to 9 PM as part of the South End Gallery Crawl.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Art as an Investment

Recently, a friend remarked that she wanted to buy art, but wanted art that not only looked good but but that would be a good investment. We've all seen the fine print from our investment advisors, "past performance may not be indicative of future results" or "returns on investments are not guaranteed". The same can be said of art.

The Contemporary Art market is often a very speculative market. I found this article of particular interest. http://artmarketblog.com/2008/11/24/the-price-and-value-of-contemporary-art-artmarketblogcom/ This doesn't mean that art won't increase in value, but that like other investments, it is subject to risk. However, unlike typical investments, art has an additional, aesthetic value.

My advice is and always will be to buy art that appeals to you. If it happens to increase in value, that is great. If not, it will always be something you will enjoy. I suggest buying art that invokes a particular emotion or memory. Buy art that causes you to look at the world differently. Get to know the artist so that you can understand and appreciate the technique or the subject matter.

But how do we know what art we like? There really isn't a replacement for getting out and experiencing art. Visit a local art gallery. Ask questions. Take home a catalogue or a brochure. Get on a mailing list. Good art is not always expensive or come from a know artist or even be intended as art. Some of my favorite works are photographs taken by friends on our trips to the mountains.

Or visit an art museum. If you can't make it to the Whitney or MoMA in New York or the Art Institute in Chicago, check out the McColl Center for Visual Art or the Mint Museums. But also check out some of the private collections throughout Charlotte. The Carillon Building has a great collection that rotates frequently. There is also some really cool art in the Bank of America Plaza (including some really cool pieces by Ashley Lathe) and there are the Ben Long frescoes in the Corporate Center. Or drop by the Foundation for the Carolinas and check out the craftwork exhibited in their lobby. For a day trip, visit Seagrove or Penland.

But like everything else, you can now go online to check out art. Just like we troll websites like Amazon or TripAdvisor or Zagat, there are wonderful online resources. All of the major art galleries have websites. The Whitney, the Tate Modern and the High Museum of Art are some of my favorites. But you can also check out artnet.com to see all kinds of art. For prints, I like PacePrints.com.

And don't be embarrassed if your tastes aren't funky or abstract. The beauty of art is that it impacts us each differently. Ten people can view the same art only to have ten different reactions. Whether you like watercolor or no color, abstraction or realism, painting or print, what matters most is that the art speaks to you on some level.