two views of:

Mike Cloud
Chicken with Two Stars of David, 2005
oil on linen with toy from children’s game
39.25 × 37.75 × 40 inches

This, plus the discovery of the paintings of Mira Dancy in the same exhibition, was my favorite thing from our Chelsea outing yesterday. James has a post on the show.

The latest Brooklyn Rail has an article by James Kalm on the future of art criticism, online art communities, etc. with input from me, James, and PaintersNYC. Check it out, and enjoy the horrific photo of us standing in front of some of our collection plus some top-secret web stats.

• Robin Hood eyed for giving to rich
  The Robin Hood Foundation is under scrutiny by Congress for investing charitable money into its donors’ and members’ hedge funds, Bloomberg News reported Monday.
  tags: hedgefunds charity corruption grassley finance

• Did Military and Media Mislead Us? Most Outside Insurgents in Iraq Come from Saudi Arabia
  The Los Angeles Times reports today that according to a senior U.S. military officer and Iraqi lawmakers, about 45% of all foreign militants "targeting U.S. troops and Iraqi civilians and security forces are from Saudi Arabia." Only 15% are from Syria and
  tags: iraq war syria iran saudiarabia

From today’s New York Times article on Suzanne Vega:

TWENTY years have passed since a 27-year-old waif with wide-set blue eyes made it big with her guitar and a song about domestic child abuse. The song was “Luka,” and it was inspired by a streetwise boy whom Suzanne Vega had seen playing with other children on West 23rd Street, where she then lived, half a block from the Chelsea Hotel.

• Roberta Smith reviews Sarah Peters at Winkleman Gallery
  mentions our latest acquisition, "Seance"
  tags: artcollection sarahpeters winkleman art chelsea reviews

I took this last night at Tom Sanford’s studio at his pre-31 Grand re-opening party.

Links:

• Martin’s blog
• Riot’s homepage and more flickr photos

• Vulture Droppings – interview with art bloggers Libby Rosof and Robert Fallon
  tags: art philadelphia blog
• Sen. Mike Gravel: Why I Wasn’t Invited to the Debate on Gay Issues
  The Human Rights Campaign refused to invite him because didn’t raise enough money despite being the most pro-gay presidential candidate. Perhaps they were afraid to have his positions compared to those of Hillary or Obama?
  tags: queer gay politics mikegravel humanrightscampaign hrc

Maybe Lyons Wier Ortt will start a trend. They are moving to Seventh Avenue at 20th Street. It would be lovely to have galleries near places to eat/drink/have a coffee, more like what the burgeoning Lower East Side scene has.

I’m glad the weather is so great today, as there are plenty of group show openings in Chelsea worth a visit:

• Unfathom at Max Protetch
• Solar Set at Foxy Production
• Late Liberties at John Connelly Presents
• Laying Bricks at Wallspace

… plus others at Mixed Greens, D’Amelio Terras, and Frederieke Taylor. Hit ArtCal for all the details.

James and I, however, will be on Ludlow Street for the re-opening of 31 Grand. How could we possibly miss a Barnaby Whitfield painting that has Nicole Eisenman and Tom Sanford (source of image) in it? [Barnaby informs me this won’t be in the show, but it’s too great not to leave in the post.]

Barnaby Whitfield, Gold Lion’s Gonna Tell Me Where The Light Is, 2007, pastel on paper, 30 × 40 inches

The title of the show, No New Tale to Tell, comes from a Love and Rockets song, so to get in the mood hit the last.fm page for the band and listen to some tunes, or just use the widget below.