Bailis & Solomon: The Assemblagist’s Perspective

Patty Villanova March 4, 2011 at 01:22 pm

It is understandable that the only buzz about this show emanates from the "assemblagists" themselves as there is very little to recommend the body of work that is displayed. Not every hodge podge put together of various pieces of junque rises to the level of collage that was done by Man Ray or the salon of Salvador Dali for example. Today anyone can call themselves an artist and in Peekskill it seems that the term is given great credibility by those who use it to define their foray into labyrinth of local politics and self-promotion. There is a lot of great art to be found within the City of Peekskill, in places such as the Flat Iron Gallery which has some of the most exquisite examples of contemporary art that can be found anywhere in Westchester. Such is not the case with Innovative Arts which one hopes can do much better.

Leslie Lawler March 4, 2011 at 03:22 pm

Patty, you make an excellent point about the labyrinth of local politics and self-promotion in Peekskill. Innovative Arts was awarded the contract to be the much-needed-in-this-economy art curator for City Hall. See the resolution dated December 2010 on the City's website awarding them the contract. According to the resolution, three bids were offered, however, for whatever reason and logic, the City only interviewed two of the three, ultimately awarding the contract to Innovative. I think more than what one knows in terms of "art," (hey, I just painted my living room, can I be an artist too???) it's who one knows in this administration.
For future monitoring Patch: please keep an eye on the revisited James Street Parking Garage Art Park project. Please watch who bids and who gets awarded the contract for this additional, much-needed-in-this-economy project.

Juan Escobar March 4, 2011 at 10:44 pm

Arte malo es mucho peor que no hay arte en todos los.

Deborah Yaffe March 13, 2011 at 01:18 am

Deborah Yaffe
I'm surprised at the comments about this show. As an artist living in New York City, I made a special trip to Peekskill to see this show because it sounded so intriguing. I was not disappointed. Each of Beth Bailis' pieces gave me a visceral response and also engaged my mind, which is rare in artwork these days. Judith Solomon's works delighted me with the way they somehow expanded into the space around them. I don't know quite how to describe my feelings about the works but all I know is that they stayed in my mind long after I came back home. I'm really surprised to see such disparaging remarks about this creative work.

Patty Villanova March 13, 2011 at 03:53 am

De gustibus non est disuptandum.
The Emperor has no clothes.

Tod Newman March 21, 2011 at 03:33 pm

Patty, you can't come to Peekskill and get the MoMA, even HVCCA struggles with it's location. So rant on and be a smarty party pooper. Innovative Arts is the only gallery in this town really trying, which is sad. Peekskill, with exceptions from a few real talented artists who are hidden throughout the town, to a tourist coming up from the city, this place feels and looks like a place were older artists go who couldn't and didn't make it. There are 200 plus artists in this town, most I would call hobbyists. But word is that this is an art town so they will keep coming, just like Williamsburg in the early 90's was a real place for artist, now it's just a fluffed up idea, an image, a political real-estate agenda, but hey, there's always great hipster coffee around.

Tod Newman March 21, 2011 at 03:38 pm

P.S. Flat Iron isn't good. Last years hat factory showed great promise.

Liz Giegerich (Editor) March 21, 2011 at 08:35 pm

We are happy to have a lively debate on Patch, but please refrain from personal attacks and inflammatory comments.

Alan Kravitz March 22, 2011 at 03:10 am

Despite Liz's somewhat late request for no attacks, Ignorance is Bliss, Patty's review slams Innovative Arts and would have been more credible if she would have walked the 200 yards from her shop to actually see the exhibit. I checked she didn't even view it.

Patty Villanova March 22, 2011 at 12:43 pm

Gee, I didn't notice the spy camera in the IA gallery. As far as Mr. Kravitz's comments, they do not address the substanstance of what I wrote. Typical Peekskill. People feel such a need to "belong"

Judith Solomon March 22, 2011 at 04:20 pm

My name is Judith Solomon and Stephen Spiegel and I are the owners and curators of the Innovative Arts Gallery. Constructive criticism is equally as valuable as praise, and for this I am always appreciative. However, in the case of Ms. Villanova's remarks, I am curious as to the basis on which she generates her criticism as she did not visit our gallery to view this exhibit.
In moving forward, we currently have an exhibit at City Hall in honor of Black History Month,which will be on view through March 31. The following CIty Hall exhibit will be "Living in Peekskill: An Intimate VIew", which will open on April 15. We will also have an exhibition opening at our IA Gallery opening on April 16 entitled "JOHN PAYNE: A Photographer's Life". We would very much welcome a visit to our gallery by each of Ms.Villanova, Ms. Lawler, Juan Escobar, Tod Newman and anyone else interested in viewing the creative efforts of our artists.

Leslie Lawler March 22, 2011 at 04:46 pm

Thank you for the invitation, Ms. Solomon. My commentary had nothing to do with your art or your gallery. My opinion is that the circumstances by which your Gallery was awarded a contract for the City Hall Curator is questionable, and by the way, is a concern shared by many of my taxpaying neighbors. When I, as a taxpayer, foot the bill for a newly-created position in City Hall, and at the same time, I see the benefits of City Hall retirees get cut after providing years of service to the City, I will have something to say about it. When infrastructure problems go unresolved street after street, but a newly-created position in City Hall for a curator becomes the economic priority, I will have something to say about it. While I applaud the creative efforts of your artists, my comments and opinion have nothing to do with the caliber or quality of your art and gallery.

Patty Villanova March 22, 2011 at 05:49 pm

As I said previously, when it comes to art, there's no arguing with taste. I have to agree with Leslie's comments about priorities in this city and also I should mention that Ms. Solomon's partner, Mr. Spiegel recently got a job with the BID as an administrative assistant at the rate of $20 per hour. Prior to getting this job, Mr. Spiegel served as a volunteer on the BID board of directors, a position that he left when it was decided to give him the paying job. So it seems that both Solomon and Spiegel have truly been able to find their niche in the City of Peekskill. By the way, speaking of artistic priorities, it seems that the City's plan to decorate the decrepit looking Park St. garage with site specific artwork is still moving forward. At one point in time, there was talk of spending hundreds of thousands for this project. It will be interesting to see who is commissioned to do the work once things get started. I guess that means once the garage becomes a work of art, we will be stuck with it forever.

Deborah Yaffe March 22, 2011 at 06:03 pm

Deborah Yaffe
This is just a personal comment, not about the artwork per se, but about the art community. I grew up near Peekskill until my family moved away in 1976. It was a city, if not dying, on the way to it. Yes, I understand that like Williamsburg art communities grow and then change, look at Soho. But it was such a pleasant surprise to see Peekskill humming because of the art community, and for heaven's sakes, can't you all work together and keep it that way?

Alan Kravitz March 23, 2011 at 12:42 am

Enough with the negative and Peekskill put-downs.
First if you have never visited the Innovative Art gallery you should. After climbing the stairs you enter into a spectacular professional exhibition space. The high end windows draw the eye to view the installation as a whole. The lighting and mounting system lend this space to complete display flexibility. Obviously Solomon and Siegel invested a lot of time, thought, care and money into the creation of this great Peekskill space. Innovative Art installation Bailis & Solomon: The Assemblagist's Perspective was delightful. Bailis with color and fabric dominating while Solomon with shape and contrasting elements dominating. Two artists, both assemblagists, different but both pleasure to see and wonderfully displayed against each other. As for Innovative Arts winning the curatorial role in City Hall perhaps it was not only because they were the low bidders amongst many entrants, but also because in their own space they had proved that they know how to create a professional installation. Perhaps if more people would give just a little, the way Innovative Arts has, to forward Peekskill as a great art and jazz destination place we will all benefit. Thank you

Leslie Lawler March 23, 2011 at 01:09 am

Mr. Kravitz, again, I will repeat my comments have absolutely nothing to do with the caliber and quality of the art in this studio. You are however, incorrect regarding your analysis as to why Innovative got the award. I will simply refer you to the resolution dated December 2010, available on the City's website for your perusal. The resolution itself states that there were three bidders, however only TWO were interviewed. (which by the way does quantify as "many entrants") So in fact, we do not really know who was the low bidder if all those that bid were interviewed. Further, municipal bidding laws provide that the "qualified low bid" gets the award; how creative someone is with the use of professional space has no merit or bearing on the award, but it sounds like you maybe know something regarding why Innovative got the award that the rest of us don't. Thank you for the intriguing insight.

Alan Kravitz March 23, 2011 at 01:14 am

Everyone who applied submitted a bid. These bids are available. My insight is in the public domain there is transparency per legal requirements. Innovative Arts was the low bidder.

Leslie Lawler March 23, 2011 at 01:30 am

We apparently will differ on the definition of "transparency." Taxpayers would like to know why all three bidders weren't interviewed. Hey, I'm just reading the resolution exactly as written.