Open Studios at the Joan Mitchell Center

This morning, the residents at the Joan Mitchell Center opened up their studios to the public for the second Community Coffee event of the season.

The Joan Mitchell Center is an artist residency center here in New Orleans with a mission to “support local, national, and international contemporary visual artists…{by} offering both time and space for artists to create work in a contemplative environment.” Each month they host an event that is open to the public.

After meeting the residents last month, we were so excited to come back to see what they have been working on. The artists have clearly been working hard, as they each had an impressive amount of work to show, and it was a treat talk with them about their projects. A memorable and engaging piece by Paul Rucker was one that we especially enjoyed. Rucker stuck large yellow and white post-it notes to the walls of his studio and placed a pile of markers in the middle of the room. As he played a beautiful harmony on his cello (did we mention he’s also an incredibly talented cellist?!), Rucker invited visitors to write something they worry about or fear on the yellow post-its and an adjective to describe themselves on the white. What a beautiful interactive piece - one that made us think about ourselves, our inner thoughts, our power, our voice, the community, the world, and the interconnectedness of it all.

We are blown away by the creativity and intelligence of all of the artists at the Joan Mitchell Center. Read more about them here or see it in person at the next Community Coffee on Wednesday, November 14th.

Art for Art's Sake

Every first Saturday of October, hundreds of galleries and shops throughout New Orleans open their doors late night for Art for Art’s Sake, the second largest art event of the year in New Orleans. We are excited to be opening our October exhibition “Options” by Zona Wainwright on this chic and exciting evening. Degas Gallery will be open from 6-9 pm tonight, October 6. Please come by to enjoy the show and meet artist Zona Wainwright!

Art for Art’s Sake is a phrase that emerged in the 19th century arguing that art can be “good” because of its formal qualities rather than having a “deeper” context rooted in something deemed more important such as history or religion. This phrase led to ground-breaking artistic movements that forever changed the art world as we know it. Today it is used more casually, to defend the freedom of artistic expression. Either way we are a fan - Happy Art for Art’s Sake! Hope to see you tonight.

Duane Couch at the Freeport-McMoRan

We are happy to announce that work by Duane Couch is now on view in the Freeport-McMoRan building on Poydras Street.

About Duane:

A lifelong resident of New Orleans, Duane Couch finds inspiration in primitive images and the mark making of children – both spontaneous and sure. Couch’s work is rooted in her interest in the interplay between what is visible on the surface of her paintings and the layers underneath. She feels that this dialogue, in some small way, expresses part of the experience of life. 

“I believe that something of the life and soul of the artist is expressed in his or her work, that paintings are alive with that spirit, and that the viewer responds to it, and the two are united, viewer and art”. 

 -Duane Couch

See the installation today through November 1st at 1615 Poydras St.

A Morning at the Joan Mitchell Center

This Wednesday, we attended the first Community Coffee of the season at the Joan Mitchell Center. The Joan Mitchell Center is an artist residency center here in New Orleans with a mission to “support local, national, and international contemporary visual artists…{by} offering both time and space for artists to create work in a contemplative environment.” The Joan Mitchell Center feels like an idyllic artist oasis, the breeze is soft, the birds are chirping, and there are butterflies galore. What is so special about JMC, however, is their dedication to the New Orleans community. They host regular events (like the Community Coffee we attended) to serve the broader community of New Orleans, creating a welcoming, inclusive gathering place for artists (and everyone!) throughout the city. 

We loved getting to meet and mingle with the new residents as well as the Joan Mitchell staff and other local artists, curators, and community members. There will be more of these events as the season progresses - and we cannot wait to attend! The next one will be October 10thwith open studios!

Interview with David Doherty

Gallery manager, Emery Gluck, sat down with David Doherty to discuss his current show, Evolve.

EG: So, David, you titled the show Evolve, and I think that’s a great place to start. Where did this title come from? 

DD: Before I start anything on canvas I like to get an idea of where it’s going with a series of paintings on paper. I call them prototypes, maybe that’s because of my engineering background, but yeah I make these prototypes/studies and the work evolves from there. My whole philosophy about painting is that the work takes a life of its own and continues to evolve throughout every step of the process. 

EG: Can you tell me more about your process? What’s a typical studio day like for you?

DD: “Well it starts around 4:30 am. My studio is in a large container building with no air conditioning so I like to get there early. But once I’m there I like to work for about 30 minutes, making some initial gestures, just laying out a general composition. If I’m working on a large canvas I get a lot of inspiration from the paper prototypes I mentioned earlier. I don’t copy them, they just inspire me as I further the process. So, after my initial marks I take some time to sit with the work, to think, and then I come back to it. I like to think my paintings have lives of their own, I ask them ‘Where do you want me to go next’? I talk to my paintings all the time – literally, out loud ‘Hey honey, how you doing this morning’? You have to have a conversation with the work, some of these conversations are easy and a painting seems to happen instantly, others are more of a struggle. The final part of this conversation is knowing when to step away. You have to know when to step away. 

 EG: I love that you talk to your paintings. I see a lot of evidence of these conversations in the scribbly, handwriting-like gestures that seem to be a common characteristic of your work. It reminds me a lot of Cy Twombly, did he inform your style at all?

DD: Oh definitely. I used to live in Houston and would just spend hours in the Cy Twombly Gallery. I would sit there in amazement, surrounded by these gigantic paintings. Twombly is a huge source of inspiration for me, his work really helped expand my practice and way of approaching a piece. I spent a lot of time researching him – his life, his work, the end of his career. I knew I couldn’t replicate his work, but I began to take bits and pieces of inspiration from him and put them back together in a new way that made sense to me. 

EG: Yes, I definitely see that in your work. It became with a fascination with this artist, and it all Evolved from there. 

DD: Exactly! It all evolves. 

On Our List

This Saturday, September 8, Second Story Gallery (2372 St. Claude Ave) opens 30 New Orleans Artists, a show celebrating New Orleans' tricentennial featuring the work of 30 New Orleans artists including Degas Gallery manager Emery Gluck and New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts collage instructor Aimee Siegel. 

Also, our friend and local talent Alex Beard begins his book tour today: The Lying King a children's book which features his witty prose and enchanting drawings. 

In New York - "Joan Mitchell: Paintings from the Middle of the Last Century, 1953–1962" recently opened at Cheim & Read. We cannot wait to see this show!

Finally, check out Hieronymous Bosch on Netflix. A film we are loving!

September at Degas Gallery

Currently on view at the gallery is Evolve - the work of David Doherty. David Doherty is a New Orleans based abstract artist. Doherty's large, non-representational mixed media pieces demonstrate his interest in formal elements, such as shape, line, and color. His work has been showcased in multiple exhibitions throughout the United States. The artist has recently received the Gia Prima Foundation Award II, as well as the Nell Tilton Faculty Award from the New Orleans Academy of Fine Arts