I have officially been podcast'd...

How cool! It's an audio version of the ArtScene review of my solo show Safari Americana: Scenes of Delight. Here is a link to the whole podcast on ArtScene:

:: bogna ::

SAFARI AMERICANA: As Seen In ArtScene!

I was thrilled to read the review of my solo show in this month's ArtScene. Suvan Geer's review of my art has brought certain themes to my attention, themes that challenge me to grow as a person and as an artist. I am grateful for that.

Part of the reason I make art in the first place is to constantly answer the simple questions, like "who am I?" And the answers keep on coming, which in turn only make me ask more questions. I am sure I am not alone in this.

Without any further ado, here is a peak at the article.

Excerpted from ArtScene
ARLENE BOGNA and BARBARA BLATT
By Suvan Geer (July 2008)
Arlene Bogna’s "Safari Americana" photographs make the viewer sink into a nostalgic reverie. She asks us to consider what it is in human nature, or the American psyche, that makes us delight in the sight of painted, three dimensional animals perched atop sign poles or hawking honey from flat bed trucks. Bogna’s images have the spontaneous feel of snapshots, yet the carefully orchestrated camera angles and artist’s repeated down-low perspective capture the sheer naive exhibitionism of the roadway animal signs.
[Click here to read the full article.]



:: bogna ::

Safari in the Summer? Oh yes.

I had the best summer solstice ever. The opening of SAFARI AMERICANA: SCENES OF DELIGHT packed the gallery at its peak last Saturday (here is a photo by TastyPiePhotography.com before the crowds gathered):
I was so happy to see my friends, some who I haven't seen for a while, come out and support me, willing to spend some time in a crowded white room with me on a hot summer LA night. What a great feeling! And it was fun to talk to people I just met. I loved everyone's interpretations and observations about my work, and I must have had the same empty water bottle in my hand for hours because I was on a roll fielding questions non-stop. And I absolutely loved it when people went over to the audio installation and got the courage to push the button that was there to tempt them (the name of that piece is Satisfaction, and it's okay to push the button, and I'm not telling what happens if you do).
I was quite excited that METROMIX had written an awesome article about my show, and I was thrilled to find out that ARTSCENE is running a preview article by Suvan Geer! It was also a blast to get to meet Peggy Fogelman, so brilliant, so sophisticated, and an absolute curatorial rockstar (you can thank Peggy for putting contemporary artists' work into The Getty Center...yeah, she's that great) only to find out that she helped select my show for the gallery! I am over the moon.
My show is up through July 18th if you haven't already checked it out. And please, if you can, do check it out. I am so happy to have this opportunity to share my work with you.

:: bogna ::