A cigar box guitar in the window of the cigar store on Capitol Street. Is it art? Does it matter? And don’t miss the art hanging on the walls inside.

Sweet and Sour wander idly down Capitol Street, keeping an eye peeled for any outbursts of art, or what might be considered art:
_________
Sour: “Sweet, anything outstanding you saw during our wanderings through Capitol Street today? Personally, my favorite is the cigar “banjo” assemblage hanging in the window of the Cigar Store.”
Sweet: “But is it art?”
Sour: “Ha ha.”
_________
Sweet: “I love the portraits at Ellen’s Ice Cream by Steve Payne. Cute, kitschy and meant to be. Nice mixture of fun and quality. I love all of Steve Payne’s work both portraits and landscapes. He has a great attention to detail.”
Sour: “Along with the banjo cigar assemblage (whether it’s art or not) I loved some other things in the cigar shop. Got to love a cigar shop that wants to display local art. Keith Allen is one of the great semi-discovered talents in the area. Hyper -obsessive, surreal, almost R. Crumb like creations. Somebody needs to give this guy a big grant so he can further his career. If he works hard enough and gets support his stuff can go global.

Also, I’m impressed with a newcomer. Nick Fortney, a young photographer showing at the cigar store. He has sold several pieces (good for him) and the ones left were outstanding. Fresh, detailed, individualized innovative presentation. Highly impressed old Sourpuss here. Look forward to seeing more from this talented young fellow.”

Charlotte C. Clark’s photographic works are among the works now on display at Taylor Books Annex in downtown Charleston, W.Va.

After dishing on Vivian Stockman’s photos on mountaintop removal in West Virginia , now on view at the Taylor Books Annex in Charleston, W.Va., Sweet and Sour turn to review two other photographers on display there: Charlotte C. Clark and Sarah Brinegar

__________
Sweet: “These are two new names in the local art scene to me. Sour, don’t go look at the labels or read the bio info at the table about them. Just looking for the first time, what to do you think of their photographs?”
Sour: “Looks like the work of someone who has just graduated with a B.A. in photography.”

__________
Sweet: Perusing the bio info: “Uh, you are entirely correct.”
Sour: “I bet they got A’s though. It’s pretty competent work for the freshly graduated.”

__________
Sweet: “I think it’s rather adorable that they listed their grade point averages (high 3 pts.) in their vitae. Well, I agree they are competent and I look forward to seeing how they progress in further forming their individual artistic voices as they mature. Good luck to them. Nice effort and keep up the good work.”
Sour: “Kudos to Taylor Annex to shopping for new artistic blood.” (more…)

One of Vivian Stockman’s photos of the devastation of mountaintop removal mining, now on view at the Taylor Books Annex in Charleston, WV

Sweet and Sour are Gazz art bloggers who canvas the local and regional visual art scene. They’ve been around the scene a long time, on and off, in and out of the state. They sent in some thoughts on some local visual arts exhibits and goings-on. They wandered Capitol Street in downtown Charleston this week and had the following spirited discussions about some visual art displayed there. We’ll start with Taylor Annex. About some of the exhibits Sweet and Sour had a “split opinion:”

Vivian Stockman’s photos of Mountaintop Removal at Taylor Annex.

Sour: “But is it art?”
Sweet: “It’s not supposed to be art. It’s a visual documentation of environmental issues impacting the state. Plus, the photographs aren’t bad.”
___________
Sour: “Let’s say they aren’t horrible.”
Sweet: “The point is to document and draw attention to the massive impact on the W.Va. environment of Mountaintop Removal/Valley Fill Coal Mining, which has been called ’strip mining on steroids.’”
___________
Sour: “That’s what the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition calls it in their ‘literature’ copiously strewn throughout the exhibit. Hippies. Vivian Stockman is an employee of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition. Makes the show a bit one sided. Being a Friend of Coal myself, I’ll use the term ‘Mountaintop Mining’ to describe the process. You know Friends of Coal pump in more money to this state and the art scene than anyone else. Don’t bite the hand that feeds you.”
Sweet: “They pump more money out of state to the absentee land holders. A tiny fraction comes back to the state and most of that is to buy politicians. Sour, you are only a ‘Friend of Coal’ if they are thinking of buying some of your art or funding one of your events.” (more…)

“Violet Squared #4″ by Phyllis Renae Wilcox

IF YOU GO: Opening Art Reception of Phyllis Renae Wilcox, “Altered Photo Collages,” from 5 to 7 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 25, 2007. Komax Business Systems, The Cabell Gateway Building, 3135 16th Street Road, Suite 14, Huntington, WV

Komax Business Systems has used its building space to showcase large bodies of work by area artists. Phyllis Renae Wilcox has a new show opening on Tuesday, Sept. 25, at the intersection of artistic inspiration and technology. Wilcox explains what you will see and how she did it:

“If you have never played with photo enhancing computer programs, and maybe even if you have, you will almost not believe that photography is the medium I used to create these vibrant images. With the help of Kodak, Corel, Dell, and H.P., I turned a single bee hovering over a flower into a kaleidoscope party of twelve bees doing a circle-dance. I transformed a gray horse against a background of simple summer foliage into a turquoise beast racing across an alien landscape. See the Digeri Drone Wave, the Balloons of Mariesii and The Faith Mandala and more.”

Clcik to enlarge the following works in the show:

“Faith Mandala”

“Four Directions, One Center

OK, we’ve had an ArtAttack. Now, we’re moving on. Suggest a new name for this gazzblog devoted to the visual arts in the greater Charleston area of West Virginia. It must be three words or less. The suggestor of the winning name will earn a cool coffee-table book called “Fall,” by Christopher Griffith, with cheesecake photos of autumnal leaves. Leave your suggestions below in the Comments, or e-mail to douglas@ cnpapers.com