Brainard Carey

“What any true painting touches is an absence – an absence of which without the painting, we might be unaware. And that would be our loss.”

-John Berger, The Shape of a Pocket

John Berger was 75 when he published The Shape of a Pocket in 2001. It is a beautiful book in which he writes poetically about art and the world and what it means to really look closely. Reading it, one gets the sense that Berger was feeling that the world was moving toward something dark, which seems to be a recurring theme in history. Perhaps every generation has moments of trepidation about the path they’re treading. And surely every generation that does must decide what they’re going to do about it.

Elias Mung’ora joined us to talk about his museum show, Song of Lawino, which ran until February 21 at the Yang Family University Art Gallery at Indiana State University. The title comes from the epic poem of the same name by Ugandan poet Okot P’Bitek about a woman lamenting a change in her husband after his introduction to Western ideas of education, God and Christianity. The poem explores the idea of colonialism through the lens of its main character. To learn more about this and the work Mung’ora created in response, listen to the complete interview.

Rei Xiao chatted about The Flea and the Acrobat, her first New York solo show, which ran until March one at Fragment Gallery. The premise of the show is based on Xiao’s experiences growing up in Istanbul, Turkey with her mother who housed 15-20 cats in a three bedroom apartment. The work explores Xiao’s past as a Chinese-Turkish person living in Turkey as well has her relationship with her mom and the cats. To learn more, listen to the complete interview.

A Few Words to Keep in Your Pocket.

Are you feeling trepidation? What are you going to do about it?

Outings.

Join me at Yossi Milo for an exhibition of 2024 Yale MFA Graduates

Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android, please click here. All weekly essay pieces are here in a shareable format. The full archive of interviews is here.

More Books to Read.

Ours is a community of readers. Tell us what books you’re reading now by adding your titles to our reading list here. Praxis user Jane Freeman recommends to us Blake’s Nostos: Fragmentation and Nondualism in The Four Zoas, by her late sister, William Blake scholar Kathryn S. Freeman.

Opportunities.

The American Library in Paris Visiting Fellowship offers writers and creators a month-long residency to develop a project and present a public program on the 2025–2026 theme, Ways of Seeing. Learn more at the website. Deadline for applications is March 31.

 

Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis Center for Aesthetics and is currently faculty at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. He has written seven books for artists, including Making it in the Art World. His seventh book, The Problems in the Art World: An Artist’s A-Z Action Guide, is available now. 

Every step you take matters. Whether that means on the journey of your daily life or through your art career, even the smallest thing can have tremendous ripple effects. For artists, this means making decisions grounded in careful thought and with the intention of moving your practice in the right direction. Opportunities abound, but sometimes it can feel overwhelming trying to seek them out. Here are a few to get you started on your next path.

She Built NYC is commissioning monuments to honor five trailblazing women who shaped New York City’s history, addressing the lack of female statues in public spaces. To learn more, visit the website. Deadline for submissions is March 31.

The American Library in Paris Visiting Fellowship offers writers and creators a month-long residency to develop a project and present a public program on the 2025–2026 theme, Ways of Seeing. Learn more at the website. Deadline for applications is March 31.

FIAR, the first U.S. residency for LGBTQ+ artists, offers a four-week summer program in Cherry Grove, NY, featuring studio visits and lectures by leading contemporary artists and scholars. Learn more at the website. Deadline for applications is April 1.

 

Praxis Center believes in artists. Plain and simple. We know that a career in the arts is entirely achievable, and we are here to help you find your way. Explore our course offerings, join our supportive community of colleagues and peers and see how far Praxis can take you.

 

Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis Center for Aesthetics and is currently faculty at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. He has written seven books for artists, including Making it in the Art World. His seventh book, The Problems in the Art World: An Artist’s A-Z Action Guide, is available now.

 

Photo credit: The American Library in Paris

“this is a nervous little decade we’re playing with”

-Richard Fariña, Been Down So Long It Looks Like Up To Me

This quote was meant to describe the 1960s, the decade in Richard Fariña’s beloved classic. And yet, each age, each time has its own feeling. What might we say of the current moment? Is this a nervous little time? A large and in charge kind of moment? What is the shape of things, where will this decade lead us to – individually, communally, globally? It is an interesting pursuit to consider the time in which we live as a moment in history, to think what future generations may say when they look back.

Adam Erlbaum joined us to talk about his show, Flag Building, running until March 16 at Amos Eno Gallery. Erlbaum intentionally chose the title to keep the audience wondering, saying that while on the face of it a flag is flimsy nylon, when we think of building materials we think of brick and mortar and the like. For this show, he wanted to convey the idea of a step upon step journey, much like the slow start of his painting practice 12 years ago. To learn more, listen to the complete interview.

Graham Marks chatted with us about his show, For Joy and Grieving, on view until April 19 at HB381 Tribeca. The duality in the title and the work in the show, Marks says, come from being older – the artist is in his 70s now. There is a good measure of joyful improvisation in the work, but Marks admits that sometimes the images of his life that arise shock him. Memories that are steeped in both joy but also grief for the many he has lost along the way. To hear more of our conversation about these things, listen to the complete interview.

A Few Words to Keep in Your Pocket.

What words would you use to describe our decade?

Outings.

Join me at Lehmann Maupin for work by OSGEMEOS

Interviews are available on iTunes as podcasts, and for Android, please click here. All weekly essay pieces are here in a shareable format. The full archive of interviews is here.

More Books to Read.

Ours is a community of readers. Tell us what books you’re reading now by adding your titles to our reading list here. Praxis user Jackie O Hara recently finished Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert.

Opportunities.

The NYPL Picture Collection Artist Fellowship supports artists or scholars developing new work inspired by the Collection, offering stipends of $2,000–$5,000 and dedicated research access. To learn more, visit the website. Deadline for applications is March 31.

 

Brainard Carey is an author, artist and educator. He is the director of Praxis Center for Aesthetics and is currently faculty at the School of Visual Arts in NYC. He has written seven books for artists, including Making it in the Art World. His seventh book, The Problems in the Art World: An Artist’s A-Z Action Guide, is available now.