Recent arts coverage:
- Evolutionary biology. Aesthetic determinism. Live action role playing. The Rude Mechs are making a new play again
- Suburban battlefield: Women fight invisible foe in Amie Siegel’s ‘Black Moon’
- In eerie paintings by Ana Fernandez, a house isn’t just a house
More arts coverage | Follow this blog on Twitter @artsinaustin | Read recent arts reviews
Austin360 blogs > Austin Arts: Seeing Things > Archives > 2009 > July > 01
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
A ‘Project Runway’ for visual artists? Bravo TV is now casting
It was just a matter of time.
Building on the success of ‘Project Runway,’ ‘Top Chef’ and other creative competion reality shows, Bravo TV has announced the creation of a yet-to-be-titled show (right now, it’s listed on the Bravo site at Untitled Art Project which could actually work as real title) that will pit contemporary artists against each other is some kind of undefined competition.
Casting begins soon in four cities across the country. See the casting notice.
The new series is being produced by Magical Elves (producers of ‘Project Runway’ and ‘Top Chef’) and Sarah Jessica Parker and her production company, Pretty Matches.
Wonder who will be plucked to handle the Tim Gunn and Heidi Klum roles?
The Bravo project isn’t technically the first reality competition series for contemporary artists. Art dealer and impressairo Jeffrey Deitch launched ‘Artstar’ in 2006 that followed eight artists who were selected for a group exhibit at Deitsch’s New York gallery and documented their work readying for the show. The series was screened at a few museums, but never broadcast on a television network.
Permalink | Comments (0) | Post your comment
Celebrating pride with chamber music
Inclusive, accessible, celebratory — and FREE — a new addition to the line-up of the Austin Chamber Music Festival offers a fresh and much-needed way of considering classical music.
Thursday night it’s ‘Pride Concert: Celebrating Music by Gay and Lesbian Composers.’

Organized by Austin composer Russell Reed and pianist Jim James, the free concert features the work of gay and lesbian composers. ‘I think it is important for people to know about gay artists, both living and dead, who have helped to shape our artistic and cultural heritage,’ says Reed. ‘I wanted to do this for my community because I am constantly dismayed about how little gay people know about their own history.’
On the program are works by well-known composers such as Aaron Copland (Duo for Flute and Piano), Benjamin Britten (Lachrymae), John Cage (‘In a Landscape’) and Reynaldo Hahn (Sonata for Violin and Piano). And representing today’s new music by living composers is Reed’s own ‘Princess Songs,’ William Lackey’s ‘Twisted Tension’ and Pauline Oliveros’ ‘To Valerie Solaneas and Marilyn Monroe.’
Reed, by the way, was most recently nominated for Best Original Composition from the Austin Critics Table for ‘Light the Lovely Candles,’ a song cycle he wrote for soprano Elizabeth Petillot and violist Aurelien Petillot.
Aurelien Petillot is one of the musicians on the roster for Thursday’s concert. Also performing is Kim Pollini, soprano; Joseph Smith, violin; Seeth Shivaswamy, flute and Adam Bedell, percussion. Both Reed and James will play piano.
‘Pride Concert: Celebrating Music by Gay and Lesbian Composers’
7:30 p.m July 2
St. James Episcopal Church, 1941 Webberville Road
www.austinchambermusic.org
Photo: Russell Reed




