GRAND RAPIDS — The Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts of Kendall College of Art
and Design of Ferris State University was shortlisted on Tuesday, Sept. 29 for an
ArtPrize Outstanding Venue by juror Steven Matijcio, curator at the Cincinnati Contemporary
Arts Center. One of the exhibition artists, Tamara Kostianovsky, was shortlisted for
the 3D Award, which was juried by Sarah Urist Green, an Indianapolis-based curator,
creator and host of The Art Assignment. Also, ArtPrize released the current Top 25 popular vote-getters in each of four categories. Four of UICA’s six SENSE artworks are currently
among the top 25 popular vote lists.
The ArtPrize 2015 category award jurors revealed their shortlist of five artist entries in the categories of 2D, 3D, Installation, and Time-based
on a live broadcast shown WOOD-TV on Monday, Sept. 28. These twenty finalists will
be in the running to win their respective $12,500 category awards, and ultimately
the $200,000 Juried Grand Prize. A fifth category award juror selected five ArtPrize
venues to compete for the $12,500 Outstanding Venue award.
Artist Heather Brammeier, whose work, ‘This Mortal Coil,’ is currently one of the
Top 25 public vote getters in the installation category, said, “I love that even though
the six pieces in SENSEwere created separately, they are all honored by the juror's
nomination of the UICA for the Outstanding Venue award. I can't thank curator Heather
Duffy enough for including me in the exhibition with amazingly talented artists.”
The juried category award and Grand Prize winners will be announced at the ArtPrize Awards on Friday, Oct. 9.
UICA’s collection of entries for its seventh outing as an ArtPrize venue is titled
SENSE. Seven artists are presenting six works, which span all of UICA’s gallery spaces.
Tamara Kostianovsky (Relic) was born in Israel and raised in Buenos Aires, and currently resides in New
York City. Most recently she has been awarded the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Fellowship, a Pollock-Krasner Foundation Grant, and a Franconia Sculpture Park/Jerome
Foundation Fellowship. Asked about her ArtPrize experience thus far, Kostianovsky
said, “As artist we struggle over many years to build an audience for our artwork.
Artprize accelerates this process by providing an unparalleled level of exposure during
a concentrated time and space.”
Charles Jevremovic (Technician 3) lives and works in South Bend, IN. He was recently a part of the Birdsell
Project in downtown South Bend. Technician 3 is an iteration of his installation in
the Birdsell Mansion. Jevremovic said that ,"One of the reasons people have found
Technician is because UICA has the reputation for being a top venue that is willing
to take risks. This year UICA has really outdone itself. With SENSE, curator Heather
Duffy has put together such a focused experience. Having only six artists in the space
gives our work the opportunity to “breathe.” There is room for each work of art to
really have an effect on the viewer, to really seep into the consciousness. Each artist
brings something different to the experience of SENSE. I’m honored to be part of this
group and grateful to Heather for including me in it."
Heather Brammeier (This Mortal Coil) lives and works in Peoria, IL. She is represented by Moberg Gallery
in Des Moines, IA, has exhibited her work regionally and nationally, and is currently
an Associate Professor of Painting at Bradley University in Peoria, IL. Brammeier
said that she, “…is so glad that people are enjoying spending time in my installation.
I wish I could be there to see people sitting in the triangle structures, taking selfies
with the installation, and exploring different vantage points on the Terrace exhibition
space. I often tell people that artists just want people to see their work and appreciate
what they do. The UICA's exhibition SENSE has given me a larger audience than I have
ever had before.
Michael Peoples (The Great Race) lives and works in West Michigan. His artwork has been exhibited
at the Urban Institute of Contemporary Art in Grand Rapids, Muskegon Museum of Art,
SiTE:LAB, Holland Area Arts Council, and the Fire Barn Gallery in Grand Haven, where
he was recently an artist in residence.
Sara Dittrich and Ben Buchanan (Symphony of Gestures) are a collaborative duo based in Baltimore,
MD. Dittrich, who received a BFA in interdisciplinary sculpture from the Maryland
Institute College of Art, creates objects, installations, and performances to investigate
the dynamic acts of listening, communicating, and moving. Buchanan is beat boxer,
pianist, composer, and performance artist who holds Master of Music degrees in Music
Composition and Music Theory Pedagogy from the Peabody Conservatory. Dittrich said,
"As young emerging artists, we have already learned a lot through the opportunity
to exhibit at UICA. This experience feels like our “debut” into the art world in some
ways, as we are both recent college graduates with our respective Bachelor of Fine
Arts and Master of Music degrees. From the practicalities of budgeting and finding
local musicians, to making new contacts and networking, this experience has taught
us a lot about how to approach and implement future exhibition opportunities. We are
both quite excited to walk through the doors which ArtPrize continues to open for
us."
SENSE is on view:
5 to 8 p.m., Mondays
12 to 9 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday
12 to 6 p.m., on Sunday through Oct. 11
Exclusive UICA and ArtClub Member hours are 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., Friday and Saturday
UICA is located at 2 Fulton West, Grand Rapids, Mich.
A full list of the UICA artist entries follows:
Technician 3, Charles Jevremovic, Installation, Top 25 Popular Vote, Vote Code: 61298
This Mortal Coil, Heather Brammeier, Installation, Top 25 Popular Vote, Vote Code:
62142
The Great Race,Michael Peoples, Installation, Top 25 Popular Vote, Vote Code: 61433
Symphony of Gestures, Sara Dittrich and Ben Buchanan, Time-Based, Top 25 Popular Vote,
Vote Code: 61863
Relic, Tamara Kostianovsky, 3D, Juror’s Shortlist, Vote Code: 61230
(extra)ordinary, Jiyun Hong, Installation, Vote Code: 62248
UICA’s SENSE exhibition is supported by the Michigan Council for Culture and the Arts,
the National Endowment for the Arts, Meijer, UICA Members, and the donors to UICA’s ArtPrize ‘Arts for All’ Challenge on Crowdrise.com.