Saturday, November 12, 2011

SDFF34 - DOCS AND OTHER GOOD FILMS


The 34th edition of the Starz Denver Film Festival is now in full swing, with screenings taking place at the Tivoli Center, the Colfax Film Center and select other locations such as the King Center and Ellie Caulkins Opera House. Opening night offered up an enticing film in "Like Crazy," an indie hit from this year's Sundance Film Festival directed by super young bad-ass filmmaker Drake Doremus (of "Douchebag" fame).  It was a surprisingly good film for opening night and not-so-surprisingly received a fairly tame reception, in fact the auditorium wasn't nearly as packed as in recent years, a true sign of what the opening night wanna-be crowd generally expects.  We felt that it had a lot to offer in it's absorbing execution and magnetic performers including newcomer Felicity Jones.  The screening suffered from digital projection issues that apparently rendered all of the coloring in the film improperly, but if you hadn't seen it yet you'd never know that it wasn't anything more than an "artistic" choice.  Guess we'll have to see what it really looks like if and when it resurfaces later in the year.
With all of the major opening presentations behind us, the community can now fall in line and get into the groove of what the festival is really about:  serious, extremely heralded (in the real world of film) and often unheard of films that are labors of love or efforts to be put on the map of independent cinema.  Bela Tarr's latest "The Turin Horse" falls into the category of the former, quite serious and applauded by most everyone with a deeper understanding of film as art.  Reportedly the director's final film, the two and a  half hour epic was an unrelenting, often mesmerizing fable that carried the director's stamp in spades (extremely long and very repetitive).  Tarr's films are always dark and full of existential grist, but quite beautiful to watch and ponder, his cinematic style is not only singular but highly influential upon other directors works, most notably Gus Van Sant's better films.  Though his latest and possibly last is about as depressing as can be, it's not without small, ripe doses of humor and good will.  It was a challenge for sure, but those who made it through will most likely never look at a potato in the same way ever again. 

On the documentary front, "A People Uncounted" stands as the yearly tribute to the holocaust and it's survivors, something that crops up not only yearly at SDFF but throughout world festivals, a topic that never seems to diminish because of the historic magnitude of the period.  This particular film stands as one of the most well-crafted, something that no doubt stems from the filmmakers concept that the Gypsy People of whom the film focuses on are said to not have any relevant or known artists who have risen to major status.  It puts forth many strong impressions about this largely derided group of nomads whom Hitler and others across the European continent reviled.  Strong subtexts, such as pop-culture hits like Sonny and Cher's "Gypsy's, Tramps and Thieves" amongst others distill the concept in terms closer to present day, validating that the return to suppression of the Gypsies may not be as far off as one might think.   There are some awefully strong, bone chilling moments, such as the  recounting of Joseph Mengeles experiments with children, from a survivor who was actually on his operating table. Overall it's a very thorough and engaging experience, a well composed film with generous doses of creativity that will hopefully go far in rectifying some of the issues it purports.

MAJOR HONORS FOR DENVER'S PLATTEFORUM LAST WEEK


Denver's PlatteForum received the most prestigious honor available to a national arts organization, one that took founder Judy Anderson and two of her cohorts to Washington DC for a ceremony with Michelle Obama.  PlatteForum's ArtLab program received the 2011 National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award from the Presidents Council on Arts and Humanities! We congratulate the group and all who have helped the organization become not just one of the most inspirational arts programs in the State of Colorado but now in the country.  Read more about it at
And check out the video created for the special celebration that aired last week for members and friends of the group the day of the award.


PUBLIC INVITED TO HISTORIC RECEPTION FOR JOHN BONATH'S DMNS EXHIBITION NOVEMBER 22nd


We've heard from a lot of good people who've ventured out to see John Bonath's current, massive new body of work that's on exhibit at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science, the first time ever that artwork has been displayed in their space. DMNS will host a reception for John on November 22nd, an event that will not be publicly announced but is open by invitation from credible sources (such as Plus Gallery!). If you plan to attend, please RSVP with your name and number in your party by Monday, November 14th to carla.bradmon@dmns.org or 303.370.6367.
Bonath's effort, which includes a stunning rendition of Udo Zeile with an ancient Rhino Skull, has received a lot of press coverage since opening including the following:
From Colorado Public Radio - Colorado Matters, aired 10/25
Second Westword blog article on the show by Susan Froyd, 10/25
From Open Letters
And from an independent artist who was inspired to write about the show

SAVE THE DATE:  FRANK T. MARTINEZ OPENING RECEPTION AND PLUS GALLERY HOLIDAY CELEBRATION THURSDAY DECEMBER 8TH 6-9PM


Frank T. Martinez is going to create a major stir in Denver next December as he unveils an impressive new body of work that we've been take shape this year.  This will be Frank's fourth solo exhibition with the gallery and the first in our current location.  The opening reception will also serve as the Plus Gallery holiday celebration, so expect lots of merriment in addition to Frank's terrific new paintings.

JENNY MORGAN IN PROMINENT GROUP EXHIBITION IN LA, OPENING THIS FRIDAY NOVEMBER 11TH


Plus Gallery artist Jenny Morgan recently completed a stellar new painting for the group exhibition "Dark Water" hosted by the Copro Gallery in Los Angeles.  The exhibition, which opens this Friday night, features 29 renowned artists curated by renowned painter Martin Wittfooth.  Here's the text from the press release:
"The dullest soul cannot go upon such an expedition without some of the spirit of adventure; as if he had stolen the boat of Charon and gone down the Styx on a midnight expedition in the realms of Pluto.... The silent navigator shoves his craft gently over the water, with a smothered pride and sense of benefaction, as if he
were phosphor, or light-bringer, to these dusky realms, or some sister moon, blessing the spaces with her light."
-Henry David Thoreau (1817-1862)
Bringing together 29 internationally renowned contemporary painters, Dark Water is a collaborative exploration of a theme that yields both personal as well as universal interpretations. Historically in art and literature, the imagery of dark water has made a symbolic allusion to various states of the inner self, such as the murky depths of the subconscious or the raging seas of our more turbulent moods. Alternatively, in our modern age the imagery of dark water can also provoke a reflection on such topics as environmental imbalance and a global dependency on - and uneasy relationship with - the dark waters of industry.
Ferrying us across this stygian visual landscape are some of the most celebrated painters of our era. Artists in this group have their work included in such public collections as The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, the Brooklyn Museum, The Smithsonian Institute, and London's National Portrait Gallery, and in the private collections of such notable collectors as Leonardo diCaprio, Eric Fischl, Nike CEO Mark Parker, Robert Schiell, Howard Tullman, and Kanye West.


DOUGLAS WALKER WRAPS FIRST LEG OF PRESTIGIOUS CANADIAN MUSEUM TOUR


Plus Gallery artist Douglas Walker wowed the Denver community in 2010 when he unveiled the first of his large-format paintings on paper that looked like cosmically derived, unearthed ceramics.  One of the most impressively executed works ever, it was the launch into a new realm for the artist that he's been unveiling in Canada recently supported by no less than 3 Canadian Artist Grants (yes, canada actually funds spectacular artists!!).  His most recent exhibition "Other Worlds" just concluded last weekend at the Robert McLaughlin Gallery in Oshawa, Ontario, culminating in an impressive report from Richard Rhodes in the publication Canadian Art.  Read about it here and see more of the spectacular photos online as well.



XI ZHANG BOOKS NOW IN STOCK!


We just received fresh copies of Xi Zhang's new book "Dream Dusts" here at Plus Gallery, come by to take a look and purchase your copy for $100.  Everyone has been very excited about this collector's item, a great takeaway from one of Denver's most loved and collected young talents.
And while we are on the topic of Xi, check out the feature on him in last week's UCD Advocate newspaper:

BILL RETURNS IN JANUARY FOR THE ART STUDENTS LEAGUE VISITING ARTIST SERIES MASTER CLASS


Finally, Bill will be returning to Denver early next year to participate in two amazing opportunities for the Denver Arts community.  Save the following dates and contact the ASLD to make your reservations or find out more info:
February 16 - Lecture and demonstration: How I Draw What I Draw
February 18-19 - Master Class: Blurred Vision, Seeing the World Your Way

AMUNDSON WORKS ALSO ON VIEW AT GREAT DIVIDE


Two of our Nation's best assets are now combined under one roof:  The Tap room at Great Divide is now featuring an adjunct exhibition of several of Bill Amundson's recent works that have never been properly exhibited including two of his "American Dickheads," two drawings that reference cultural highlights in Denver, and a handful of others.  There is nothing better than the beer at GD, and nothing better than looking at Bill's work while drunk.  Go check it out for our month long celebration of all things Amundson.

WOW, WHAT A NIGHT!!!


Overwhelming and profound are the only words to describe last Friday evening's artist talk with Bill Amundson.  Thanks to the hundreds who came by to hear Bill deliver one of the most rousing and entertaining discussions on art ever in Denver, we were mesmerized!  Our apologies to those who came and couldn't get in the door, we thought the house would be full but nowhere near the numbers who came by.  For those who couldn't squeeze in or had other plans, we give you youtube:  the entire talk was filmed up-close with good audio and picture quality, and we've posted it in three segments to our youtube page for you to enjoy at your leisure.  It's particularly good for those with Apple TV to watch full screen from the couch; regardless, we think you will find it to be highly enjoyable.
The last week was a great homecoming for Bill and the immediate response to the show has surpasses anything else in the last five years.  The exhibition is a terrific mixture of Bill's quintessential multi-leveled approach and button-pushing style.  It will be on view through December 3rd.  Bill is back in Wisconsin now but will resurface again in Denver next February for some very special events in conjunction with the Art Students League, more information on that is below.









Believe it or not, 100's of people came by to see this man speak

PATTI HALLOCK PHOTOGRAPHS ON VIEW IN ROBERT ADAMS TRIBUTE AT COLORADO PHOTOGRAPHIC ART CENTER, OPENING NOVEMBER 4TH


Robert Adams, one of the most celebrated chroniclers of Denver and the American West,  influenced a generation of landscape photographers following his 1975 "New Topographics" exhibition in Rochester, NY. "Situating Robert Adams," opening at the Colorado Photographic Arts Center November 4, 2011, uses the occasion of his current retrospective at the Denver Art Museum to learn about his influence on photographers imaging the western landscape today.

The exhibition features select works by Plus Gallery artist Patti Hallock from her initial "Nocturnal
Suburbia" series, along with Peter Brown, Danae Falliers, Greg McGregor, Roddy MacInnes, Jessie Paige, Richard van Pelt and Willy Sutton.

Exhibition Dates: November 4 - December 17, 2011
Public Reception: Friday, November 4, 6-9 pm. Free

Related Events:

Wed, October 26, 6 pm: "Reading Robert Adams:  Beauty in Photography" with Eric Paddock.
Location: Denver Art Museum. $15/$13 CPAC/WWA/DAM members. (Note ? space is limited. RSVP to dmitri@cpacphoto.org or call 303-837-1341

Wed, November 9, 7 pm: "Reading Robert Adams:  Why People Photograph" with Roddy MacInnes & Jessie Paige. Location: CPAC.  $5/$3 CPAC/WWA/DAM members.

Wed, November 30, 7 pm: "Reading Robert Adams:  Along Some Rivers" with Patti Hallock.
Location: CPAC.  $5/$3 CPAC/WWA/DAM members.

Gallery Tour and panel discussion:
Sat, November 19, 3 pm: with Danae Falliers, Richard van Pelt, and Willy Sutton. Free

For "Situating Robert Adams," curator Rupert Jenkins chose eight regional photographers whose works are diverse yet complimentary in approach, and which span a period of almost four decades, 1977-2011. The visual relationships between traditional and non-traditional landscape photography, and the progression of strategies used by each photographer during their careers, are informed by a series of questions and answers that lend insight into the exact nature of Adams' influence on each artist and their work.

Collectively, Peter Brown, Danae Falliers, Patti Hallock, Greg McGregor, Roddy MacInnes, Jessie Paige, Willy Sutton, and Richard van Pelt convey images of concern and admiration for the landscape that mirror those of Adams, a self-styled "democratic socialist" for whom content and aesthetics are essential elements of every meaningful image. To what degree Adams inspired each of them individually lies at the heart of this exhibition.

Rupert Jenkins (curator) is Exhibitions Director and Board Chair of the Colorado Photographic Arts Center. His most recent curatorial projects are Warhol in Colorado (co-curator with Dan Jacobs/catalog editor, Myhren Gallery, January 2011), and Double Diptych (Vertigo Art Space, March 2011).
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SDFF34 - CHALLENGE YOURSELF IF YOU DARE!


The Starz Denver Film Festival begins tonight, in traditional fashion with an opening night film and celebration at the magnificent Caulkins Opera House.  You have to either be socially connected or a populist film fan to actually want to attend opening night, it's largely a sold out affair with a crowd-pleasing piece of cinema that won't and couldn't possibly set the audience up for the mostly respectable and occasionally sublime offerings ahead during the next ten days. Most of the films that are celebrated with fanfare to kick off the fest are already slated for major release, some as soon as this weekend; others like von Trier's "Melancholia" have been available on-demand for a while now.  That's okay though, most everyone knows that the primary reason to attend is for the big-screen experience, something that "Melancholia" offers up in a major way for the Denver Filmcenter/Colfax opening night on Thursday and serves dual purpose as a major programming statement.  Saturday's Big Night back at Caulkins rolls out the mostly excellent and highly admirable "The Descendents," the final prospective blockbuster before retiring into a week of substantial cinema covering all levels of the field.  The festival always brings a great balance with their programming, and so far this year seems to wield wildly successful results in many areas, particularly world cinema.


As a prospective client recently related to me via email last week, "Big Night films end up at Landmark a few days after so we stick with the indies. I love them." My sentiments exactly.......and of course not everyone has the same taste in films, that's what makes the festival and reporting on it so much fun.  After having screened a number of films in advance, I offer up the following for those who want to successfully navigate a few screenings without wasting much time, at least if you trust my judgement, have an open mind and a highly adventurous taste for film.

The best of the fest so far:



"Attenberg" is easily one of the festival standouts, it's almost absurd how perfectly it marries a compelling, humane narrative with some of the most distinct and elegant visuals in contemporary cinema today. Athina Rachel Tsangari delivers a thoughtful meditation on love, death, and friendship through a truly endearing father/daughter relationship that's akin to Big Night's "The Descendents" only more gratifying for those looking for a sublime visual purpose with their prose.  Her graceful sensibilities for the off-kilter abound whether in tracking shots across rain-soaked tennis courts, solitary foosball games, or synchronized walking.  Everything is sexualized here but in the most uncommon ways, the entire narrative leading to a climax in which the young protagonist asks her best friend to sleep with her dying father, an unusual request but one that the viewer can firmly connect with after watching the proceedings unfold.  Greek society may currently be on the rocks, but lets hope filmmakers like Tsangari remain unscathed, she stands to become a world force if given the latitude and backing to press forward. 




The recent Canadian feature narrative "Curling" has been getting as much respect across the globe in the last year as "Attenberg," both films having screened previously at many international festivals.  It's an equal to Tsangari's film in terms of elevating a major talent, something the festival programmers want to enforce by offering director Dennis Cote's debut feature "Drifting States" during the festival as well. Death seems to lurk in every corner of "Curling," with no easy answers and certainly no overbearing directives.  Also centered around a father/daughter relationship, the narrative covers a lot of territory but is supremely simple at its core, constantly extending in diffuse and subtle directions.  It's a mystery that keeps unraveling slowly but never concedes to any sort of conclusion or perhaps deeper perception of the characters, other than that they are human. Strange in all the right ways and places, Cote delivers an incredibly well executed film that has everything and nothing at all to do with the unusual sport it is named after.




U.S. Independent film is usually in a tough spot when it comes to SDFF, almost every director working in the field today wants to have their screening at Sundance, which follows just three months after the Denver Fest.  Many of the entries are either post-sundance big-buzz-films like "Marth Marcy May Marlene" (which gets an exclusive reel-members only screening Thursday night, just one day before the film opens in wide release)  or castoffs from that net that can show up in any number of other festivals without ever really seeing a wider stage.  But every year SDFF delivers a few gems and this year "The Color Wheel" seems to be one of them.  It's a very refreshing film, one that many people might initially (and arguably) find aweful and pretentious but quickly catches a groove all its own that is refreshing and absolutely hilarious.  The director and screenwriter are the actors at the core of the drama, exerting an off-kilter brother/sister bond. Both are equally strange and the success of the film is derived from their tight-knit relationship both on-screen and off.  Shot old-school in 16mm and B&W, "The Color Wheel" is as unusual as it gets and indie to the core!




Even more unusual and frankly shocking, is "Gandu." Anyone seeking an absolutely new manifesto in contemporary filmmaking should take in this brash film, another captivating and singular work in black and white (with the most raucous, crazy-cool hardcore interlude of color ever seen) by the mysteriously named Indian director "Q overdose."  The title translates to "Asshole" and even though it's been compared to the formidable work of french director "Gaspar Noe, you have definitely never seen anything like it, ever.  This is what contemporary cinema should be, it pushes in many new directions that build upon its new-wave predecessors in ways that can only be accomplished today, though with extremely refined and timeless visual sensibilities. It might be easy for some to dismiss because it's overly hip and daringly non-linear in so many ways, but it has the chops to pull it off visually, sonically and as a major artistic statement.  "Gandu" succeeds in ways that will leave it seared in your brain for a long, long time and leave you waiting to see what the director will do next,  it's an absolute big-sreen trip. And though it is stunningly realized, it is definitively not for everyone, particularly conservative christians and maybe most of our nation's underage youth.




Finnish director Aki Kaurismaki's  universe changes little over time,  and it's a lovely, singular one that you wouldn't be able to mistake for anything else.  His latest is distinctly brighter in color palate than normal, which would almost seem jarring if it weren't for the director's trademark combination of clear composition and the duration that it holds. "Le Havre" reprises Kaurismaki character's from his masterpiece "Scenes from the Bohemian Life' of almost 20 years ago, with delightful results that are more uplifting than his usual fare, almost oddly so because it's such a subtle yet impactful tone he's honed over the years. Fans of the Finn will enjoy for sure and newcomers will likely grasp the warmth and oddity of the characters and action throughout.


Alexander Payne's latest "The Descendents" isn't likely to be as big a box-office smash as some of his previous films, though I wouldn't bet against it, it has George Clooney after all, cast (or at least clothed) a bit against type.  But it is as thoroughly enjoyable and has as much of a slightly off-centre conscious as everything else Payne's accomplished to date. Clooney is complemented by a great cast that also goes a bit against type, the Hawaiin setting dictating much of that. Most everyone will be talking about magnetic newcomer Amara Miller as Clooney's daughter, she almost steals the show, along with her neandrethal boyfriend who has one of the most potent scenes in the film.  Another mostly father/daughter psychological study, Payne methodically builds the narrative to a calmly riveting climax that doesn't overstep itself.  It's likely to induce much crying and will stir genuine emotional feelings from all who take it in.
Press the eject, now:

That's what I did, or should have done in the case of three of the festival films I screened in advance.  Though I wasn't surprised that "The FP" couldn't muster up the goods to become a "cult-classic" except for the inept or blind, I was completely shocked at how little I could stand actor Paddie Considine's directorial debut "Tyrannosaur," which has been singled out as a programmers pic.  One might say this is an acting tour-de-force, to be expected from such a lauded and gifted actor as Considine, and it's certainly well shot.  But I was thrown completely by how utterly and absolutely the piece is over-dramatized. Those who like this kind of film will probably hate all of the above (except maybe for "Le Havre" and "The Descendents"), preferring something that spoon-feeds the grool till it starts flowing from all orifices.  Part-way through, one of the lead characters throws something at a framed picture of Jesus on the wall, followed immediately by a closeup of the Jesus teetering in frame.......at that point in the film I thought all hope was lost.  A few moments later the rape scene indeed proved that all hope was gone, I still rode the train-wreck out but the whole thing just left a very, very bad taste in my mouth.  The same could be said for the no-budget indie drama "Bad Fever," it's hard to imagine anyway walking out of this film raving about it or even giving it any regard if they make it all the way through.  I did not, so I can't ultimately say it's valueless but I'm pretty certain any payoff is going to be too long in coming and removed for any discerning audience.  "Attenberg" is the perfect example of how this type of narrative can and should be done, and it's certainly enough for one festival.





CELEBRATE THE LAUNCH OF DENVER ARTS WEEK THIS FRIDAY NIGHT WITH PLUS GALLERY!!! AND, BILL AMUNDSON ARTIST TALK COMMENCES AT 7PM....NOT TO BE MISSED!!


Denver Arts Week begins this Friday, November 4th, launching another week-long focus on the many wonderful facets of art in our city.  While most every gallery in town will be opening their doors for First Friday, Plus Gallery is certainly going to be the place to be with an event that we've been greatly anticipating all year long, an artist talk so special we decided to give it a name:
"Bill Amundson's Blurred Vision: An enhanced gallery talk with  props, interruptions & souvenirs" will take place this friday evening at 7pm.  One might pay good money for such an experience, there is no more dynamic, entertaining speaker on art and life than Bill. But we like to give, so this event is free and even includes a cider-tasting by the Colorado Cider Company http://www.coloradocider.com that evening, feel free to come by early to participate.  Bill is also going to be giving away a few items during his talk to select, randomly drawn folks.

A full set of images from Bill's exhibition are now online at the Plus Website, and there are all kinds of references to the show online through other sources as well.








BILL AMUNDSON'S BLURRED VISION: FROM THE PRESS RELEASE


One of the highlights of the Plus Gallery 2011 calendar is the solo exhibition "Blurred Vision" featuring all new drawings by Bill Amundson, one of our nation's great satirists and the state of Colorado's most genuine artistic treasure.  In what can truly be considered the darkest of political times in our country's recent history, Bill Amundson pulls no punches in his depiction of society gone mad.  Utilizing pencil on paper as a pure coping mechanism, along with copious doses of humor, Amundson depicts how the world looks to your average "middle-aged white dude."  "Blurred Vision" demonstrates an artist working at the peak of his talent amidst a wellspring of the very absurdity that nourishes him.

Amundson has been honing a singular, remarkable career for over 30 years, a feat that is unusual considering that it's been largely outside the commercial contemporary gallery realm.  "Blurred Vision" is Amundson's inaugural solo exhibition with Plus Gallery and also the first major viewing of new works by the artist since he begrudgingly left Denver in the fall of 2010 for his home state of Wisconsin.  Amundson left the state seemingly at the height of his career, a year in which he had major works on view in prestigious venues like the Denver Art Museum as well as the Kohler Art Center in Wisconsin.  That same year two of Amundson's recent, hard-hitting drawings were acquired by the Denver Art Museum and the CU Bolder Art Museum respectively, making him one of the only Colorado artists of active interest to those institutions.  Hardly one to bask in the limelight, Bill Amundson is a pure talent compelled to draw, following a most unlikely selection of muse' that few, if any living artists would dare hold close.

Bill Amundson's debut with Plus Gallery in the 2009 group exhibition "Brave New World" marked the arrival of two distinct new directions in the artist's work. "Amundson's New Tower of Babel" was a virtuoso masterpiece, a densely packed visual update of the biblical myth for our contemporary times, chock full of universal as well as local strata and many references to the arts and culture. In it layers upon layers in perfect perspective unfold as the eyes sweep across a mountain of cultural detritus, the technical dexterity alone worth the highest of praise. Amundson further progressed the tower direction in "Teen Excavation," a work that depicts a Frankenstein figure built upon the wasteland of today's youth in equally riveting fashion, later acquired by the Denver Art Museum for their permanent collection.

The second direction that Amundson began to expand on was "Hard Times," a series that uniquely captures the economic meltdown of this century and its effects upon the common man, more specifically the landscape in which much of our population operates. This gradually morphed into another brazen, timely, and socially relevant offshoot, Amundson's "American Dickheads" series which scrutinizes an odd assortment of public figures that led to the downward spiral that so shockingly took our country by surprise.  Lehman Brothers leader Richard Fuld, Goldman Sachs' CEO Lloyd Blankfein  and Denver's very own Joe Nacchio are given the Amundson portrait treatment, ranging from the strangely subtle to the perfectly outrageous.

Amundson continues to plumb the rich, seemingly endless veins of the collective psyche with the new works in "Blurred Vision." Political sensation Sarah Palin gets the full-babel treatment in "Tower of Sarah," an oil-seeking abomination complete with woodworker's drills aimed towards the ocean, lipstick exhaust pipes and the catch phrase "You Betcha" amplifying the proceedings. Amundson cross pollinates current Republican House Majority Leader Eric Cantor with the stylistic flair of sculptor Alberto Giacometti in the more modest "Eric Cantormetti," a work the artist personally claims to be "so gross I have trouble looking at it."

Though Amundson is unabashed in his treatment of others, his career-staple self portraits of the last decade aren't exactly flattering, and are often his most searing statements. In "Tech Savvy and Solar," Amundson dons a befuddled expression resulting from the space-age head-gear he's wearing that's only remotely removed from today's reality.  "Got To Get It Out of My Head" finds the artist grappling with age/doubt/madness or any combination of issues, the Amundson visage grafting one on top of the other in its own towering effect. Further showing his age, "1975" depicts another dense, surreal landscape that could be the artist shamelessly wondering what his current talent and treatise might have looked like if applied at the very start of his career, in full color no less.  You've come a long way Bill, indeed!

Bill Amundson was born in 1953 in Stoughton, Wisconsin. He attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison from 1971-1975, at which time he was awarded a B.S. degree in Art. Amundson has exhibited extensively throughout Colorado and the United States, including solo shows in New York City, Philadelphia, Toronto, Los Angeles, Austin, San Antonio, Phoenix, Colorado Springs and Denver in the past five years. His work is in the permanent collection of the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center, the CU Art Museum and the Denver Art Museum, where he has been included in six exhibitions since 1996, most recently the prestigious 2010 show "Face to Face" alongside some of the world's most significant contemporary artists.

See Bill Amundson on Youtube:

Bill Amundson discusses his masterpiece "New Babel"

Bill Amundson receives DAMC Afkey Award 2010 Pt.1

Bill Amundson receives DAMC Afkey Award 2010 Pt.2

Bill Amundson Farewell at Plus Gallery


ANOTHER REASON TO VISIT PLUS GALLERY THIS SATURDAY: DENVER PUBLIC ART INVITES YOU TO WITNESS "PLAYING APART"


LIVE PERFORMAMCE ART PROJECT WITH A 90-PIECE MARCHING BAND DOWNTOWN AND BALLPARK NEIGHBORHOOD

On Saturday, Oct. 29 from 1:30 - 4:30 pm, downtown Denver will be turned into a one-of-a-kind musical  event that will transform LODO and the Ball Park district into a playing field for a performance-art happening.

 Typically a marching band marches together. But to create "Playing Apart," performance-based artists Jon Rubin and Lee Walton will dismantle and spread an entire 90-piece marching band from Bear Creek High School in different locations throughout downtown Denver.  The performers will begin playing their instrument on isolated corners of the downtown Denver area,  then taking specific walking routes, collectively covering one-square mile of the city. Mimicking the experience of city life, band members will intersect randomly in an unpredictable mash-up of instruments and sounds. This event will occur twice, in two different quadrants of downtown from 1:30-2:00 p.m. and 4:00-4:30 p.m.

Viewers throughout the city--sitting in cafes, walking the sidewalks and working in the buildings--will see one band member after another passing by, like solitary pieces of a larger puzzle. The performance is both subtle and obvious, small and large. Disrupting and re-imagining the normal flow of the city, this project invites viewers to contemplate social and auditory patterns within the chaos of the city.


About the Artists

Jon Rubin is a multi-disciplinary artist whose work explores the social dynamics of public places and the idiosyncrasies of individual and group behavior. His projects include starting a radio station that only plays the sound of an extinct bird and training a hypnotized human robot army. Rubin's project "Thinking About Flying," is currently at the MCA Denver.

Lee Walton is an artist who playfully questions the world we live in.  His work takes many forms and often involves collaboration with numerous participants from artists and non-artists alike. Walton once played an entire round of golf by taking only one shot a day, competed in a season-long free throw competition with Shaquille O'Neal and started a competitive residency program inside an international supermarket.

To experience this public performance, simply be downtown on October 29, 2001 between 1:30-4:30 p.m. Keep your eyes and ears open. More information and detailed locations can be found at http://www.playing-apart.com/index.html


XI ZHANG LOGAN LECTURE TONIGHT @ 7PM AT THE DAM!


Rain, snow or sunshine, Xi Zhang will deliver his Logan Lecture tonight, October 26th at the Denver Art Museum starting at 7pm.  We look forward to seeing you there.  The release of Zhang's Plus Gallery book "Dream Dust" will be postponed to a further date, we'll have select copies on hand for viewing but there was a major flaw in our initial order by the printer and we won't have the final copies to us till after the lecture.  You can still see the completed package that night and still place an advance order for the discounted rate of $80 at the Logan Lecture. This will be the last opportunity to get the discounted price.


Xi Zhang takes a shower


CATCH BILL AMUNDSON ON UNTITLED ART SHOW TONIGHT, OCTOBER 26th!


In advance of his exhibition "Blurred Vision" Bill Amundson has been asked to return to the UntitledArtShow.com for a live interview next wednesday evening, October 26th.  Bill will go live on the air at 8pm that night, you can tune in for the live broadcast or listen at your leisure anytime thereafter by visiting http://untitledartshow.com

The Return of Bill Amundson!



Join Plus Gallery this Friday evening, October 28th for one of the most anticipated exhibitions of the year:  Bill Amundson's "Blurred Vision."   The reception will be held from 6-9pm, we'll have a keg of Great Divide "Hades" on hand to welcome Bill back to Denver and help everyone contend with Bill's new works.  Amundson is known for his highly detailed pencil drawings that take on all manner of subjects from our daily and not-so daily lives: in the case of this exhibition that constitutes figures such as Sarah Palin, Eric Cantor, and Chase's own Jamie Diamond (the 4th in Bill's American Dickheads series), topics such as cell-phones and monster-truck rallies, a succinct tour of Wisconsin, all manner of discount stores, the year 1975 and plenty more.   It's an amazing array that one can get lost in and enjoy for hours.

Susan Froyd gives Bill big props for the opening and his artist talk in this week's westword, her opening paragraph shows deep respect and knowledge of this legendary figure:


David Huntress also provides an early report in his downtown "By the Slice"


And if you want more insite, you can visit the website or read the press release at the end of our enews.  Not all of Bill's images are online yet, but there's enough to tantalize for sure!



Bill is back!  Blurred Vision takes shape on the Plus Gallery walls