Bravo's Untitled Art show might be more interesting than I thought...
First, I only know of two New Englanders who headed down to NYC for casting -- Jeff Warmouth and Scott Listfield -- and neither went on to further casting. Did anyone else out there (New Englanders or otherwise) go to a casting call? Any stories to tell? Anyone moving on to the next round? Anyone want to share pictures? Post a comment -- we'd love to hear how it went down.
The second note is a link (via/via) to art critic Dean Valentine's Facebook wall, where he has posted an hysterical sour grapes email from one of the rejected contestants, a painter named Paul Cumes. You can read the whole thing here, but here's an excerpt:
I merely showed you my ability to synthesize and abstract from representationalism and it was totally lost on you. The funny thing is everyone else got it and saw the modern intuitive angle. My art has love and feeling to it that is modern and priceless. You dont know shit. You are ugly. Probably color blind too! You were just mad cause i know more than you and made u look stupid in front of everyone..and yes i know your credentials. Suck my balls and dont forget my name you rude fuck.
Having received more than a few of these myself, I've always wondered what to do with these strange, sometimes fascinating emails. Now I know: post it on Facebook.
Image: Art critic Dean Valentine, found here.
Update: ArtForum.com has a piece about the NYC casting, which features some funny pix, and includes this:
From Boston, a wit who had answered “Scott” on the questionnaire when asked to describe himself in one word, had an equally apt business card: I PAINT ASTRONAUTS AND SOMETIMES, DINOSAURS. Which he did, quite amusingly.
Update 2: Here is a link to the New York Times piece about the casting call (registration required for free access). The second paragraph mentions another NE artist, Jeff Lipsky, from Tyngsboro. A quick glance at his website reveals that Jeff is also known as Filthy Fluno, the artist who has received much attention on Second Life and was included in the recent Boston Cyberarts Festival. I've sent Jeff an email asking for his experience with Bravo, I'll post any response if I get it.
Also, as I post this, Scott Listfield's current Facebook status reads "Thanks to everyone who supported me in the process of selling myself to Bravo. I had a fantastic time, and I have a ton of stories I'm not at liberty to share. I fared better than most, but ultimately didn't make the final cut. And I'm quite OK with that."
The images below are from the ArtForum piece.
Update 3: (7/21) WNYC has a piece on the NYC casting, with some great pictures of the gathered artists. It features NE's own Jeffu Warmouth. That means that all 3 of the NE artists I know of that tried out have appeared in a major news outlet. Sadly, none were cast for the show... 
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