22 Oct 2008

iCI launches NEW Web-based program - Artist Video Profiles

iCI is proud to announce Inside the Studio: Artist Video Profiles, a new Web-based program featured at www.ici-exhibitions.org

The Artist Video Profiles present a set of fourteen short films depicting contemporary artists discussing their creative methods and techniques in their private work settings.

Created in partnership with Talking Point Films, the Artist Video Profiles were filmed in artists' studios during the Fall of 2007 and the Spring of 2008. The video profiles capture not only the artists' personal insights about their artwork, but also reveal to the viewers where and how the works are created. iCI's executive director, Judith Richards, notes that iCI is delighted to offer this series to the public as it is an extraordinary opportunity to enjoy an exclusive visit with these distinguished artists who have generously invited us into their studio spaces to discuss their work.

The artists featured in Inside the Studio are Luca Buvoli, Beth Campbell, Jim Campbell, E.V. Day, Mitch Epstein, Teresita Fernandez, Louise Fishman, Lyle Ashton Harris, Mary Heilmann, Nina Katchadourian, Julian LaVerdiere, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, Trevor Paglen, and Howardena Pindell. The selected artists have works in recent and current iCI exhibitions and provide an excellent overview of the range of artwork found within iCI's program. For example, works by Jim Campbell and Rafael Lozano-Hemmer are featured in iCI's Phantasmagoria, Specters of Absence, which will be on view from September 3 through November 8, 2008 at the USC Fisher Museum of Art in Los Angeles, California.

The first three of the fourteen films will premiere on iCI's Website on October 21, 2008, with profiles of Mary Heilmann, Rafael Lozano-Hemmer, and Trevor Paglen. Viewers will hear Mary Heilmann speaking on the ways in which she contemplates the structure of her paintings, and later in the series, viewers will learn why Howardena Pindell chooses to use circles in her artwork. Both Heilmann and Pindell exhibited works in the critically acclaimed iCI exhibition High Times, Hard Times: New York Painting 1967-1975, which concluded its tour in June 2008.

Inside the Studio: Artist Video Profiles reflects iCI's passionate commitment to contemporary art and to presenting the most important new developments in art internationally. This Web-based program will effectively reach a wide-ranging audience, and strongly supports iCI's mission to enhance the understanding and appreciation of contemporary art. Moreover, Inside the Studio's focus on the artist reflects the central role artists play in iCI's activities, equal in importance to its relationships with curators, museums, and art enthusiasts.

The video profiles average 5 minutes in length and will be added to iCI's Website each month from October 2008 through March 2009.

The films are made possible by a generous grant to iCI from Toby Devan Lewis and were produced by Talking Point Films.

About iCI

Founded in 1975, iCI is a non-profit organization dedicated to enhancing the understanding and appreciation of contemporary art through traveling exhibitions and other activities that reach a diverse national and international audience. Collaborating with a wide range of eminent curators, iCI develops innovative traveling exhibitions, accompanied by catalogues and other educational materials, to introduce and document challenging new work in all mediums by younger as well as more established artists from the United States and abroad.

About Talking Point Films

TalkingPointFilms is a video production company formed in 2005 by Matt Bertles and Michael Klein. With over 50 films to their credit, each film delivers stimulating stories about art with a distinct focus on the individual artist. This is achieved by creating a venue for artists and other industry professionals to discuss their projects on film. This New York-based organization produces films with a simple philosophy—turn a camera on and allow the stories to unfold. For more information visit www.talkingpointfilms.com.

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For additional information or visual materials, contact Dina Shaulov at 212-254-8200, ext. 32 or Mary Derr at 212-254-8200, ext. 21 or via email at press@ici-exhibitions.org. Please visit iCI's website at: www.ici-exhibitions.org.