On Being Not-Nice in the Art World

"America: Idiomerica and the Terminal Century, a conversation with with R.C. Baker and Sharon Butler" Recorded live, Saturday, February 18, 2023, at Jennifer Baahng Gallery A BAAHNG SPOTLIGHT Production. Produced by Jennifer Baahng Gallery /  Artists Bob Baker, Editor in Chief and art critic of the Village Voice  and Two Coats of Paint publisher Sharon Butler delved into the ways  their work grapples with the digital miasma, September 11, living in  America at the turn of the century, and art as a vehicle for soft  diplomacy. They discussed some of their older projects and their  interest in the evolution of digital tools. This early work is on view  in “Pitches and Scripts” at Baahng Gallery through March Episode notes: "Pitches and Scripts," Spotlight Series at Jennifer Baahng Gallery; R.C. Baker's gallery webpage, Sharon Butler's gallery webpage, MoMA Refik Anadol exhibition, Kevin Roose in NYTimes, A Conversation With Bing’s Chatbot Left Me Deeply Unsettled, Robin Pogrebin and Elizabeth A. Harris in NYTimes, Warren Kanders Quits Whitney Board After Tear Gas Protests, Colin Moynihan in NYTimes, After Surviving Opioids, Nan Goldin Goes After the Makers.

Recorded live, Monday, February, 20, 2023 / A multi generational conversation between Catherine Howe and Zachary Sitrin, with host, Sharon Butler, and guests Elizabeth Riggle, Peter Dudek, Elisabeth Condon, and Janice Caswell. We discuss what it means to spend a lifetime engaged in the solitary studio practice of painting. Episode notes: Brooklyn Rail Conversation with Rob Storr; Rob Storr's show at Kingfish Gallery in Buffalo; the story of the erased DeKooning; Roberta Smith's review of the Derrick Adams exhibition at the Flag Art Foundation. Read Two Coats of Paint here.

Recorded live on Clubhouse, Monday, February, 6, 2023 / Hosted by sculptor-professor Peter Dudek, moderated by Sharon Butler. A discussion about museums, especially the ones we haven't been to in ages. With Laurie Fendrich and Camilla Fallon. 

Recorded live on Clubhouse, Monday, January 23, 2023 /  Hosted by Adam Simon and Laurie Fendrich, moderated by Sharon Butler. Are contemporary artists and critics too nice about the work being made today? In an era of community-building, gratitude, and identity politics what has happened to honest opinions, harsh critique, and the scathing review? With guests Elisabeth Condon, Peter Dudek, Saul Ostrow, and Alexi Worth.

Recorded live on Clubhouse, Monday, January 2, 2023 / Moderated by painter and Two Coats of Paint Publisher Sharon Butler, hosted by sculptor-professor Peter Dudek. Listen to a live discussion about the art exhibitions we missed in 2022. Is it possible for artists to see too many exhibitions? Featuring artists-writers Laurie Fendrich, Franklin Einspruch, Patrick Neal, and painters Louise Belcourt and Catherine Howe.

A BAAHNG SPOTLIGHT Production. Produced by Jennifer Baahng Gallery / Recorded live on Saturday, October 8, 2022, at 2 pm. Noted poet and art critic Raphael Rubinstein sat down with artist and Two Coats of Paint publisher Sharon Butler to discuss “Next Moves,” Butler's solo exhibition at Jennifer Baahng Gallery in New York. In this BAAHNG SPOTLIGHT event, Rubinstein and Butler explore the nature of conjunctions, addenda, commutations, and the many ways artists navigate the passages from one body of work to the next. Episode Links: A video of the conversation is available at BAAHNG SPOTLIGHT Conversations . Other links: Sharon Butler “Next Moves” at Jennifer Baahng Gallery  / Sharon Butler Instagram Drawings / Raphael Rubinstein website and gallery project “The Silo” / Two Coats of Paint / Barkley Hendricks / Martin Barré / Francis Picabia

Recorded July 25, 2022, on Clubhouse / Sharon Butler talks to East Village artist Sally Apfelbaum about Art Republic Space,  a fiscally sponsored organization that Apfelbaum has created to explore  ideas and develop housing models that address the needs of older  artists, from live/work space to archiving and storage. “Our goal is to  enable older professional artists to keep working and enriching the  arts, and culture; to build community, and provide support.” Episode Links: Episode image courtesy of Sally Apfelbaum / Sally Apfelbuam’s website / Artspace website / Artspace PS109 website / Art Republic Space website /  James Turrell Roden Crater project website / Donors to Roden Crater / Sacramento Warehouse Artist Lofts information

Recorded on June 1, 2022 / Artist Carolyn Zick has published the outstanding art blog Dangerous Chunky since 2001 from New York, then Seattle, and now New London,  Connecticut. Find out what she’s up to — from writing poetry, drawing,  and making books to dealing with a serious cancer diagnosis. Hosted by  Sharon Butler. Episode Links:  Carolyn Zick’s website / Dangerous Chunky  / Carolyn’s “Poets vs. Painters” List / instagram.com/carolynzick/ Chapbook Project/ Seattle people and organizations: Sharon Arnold, Eva Lake, Robert Yoder, Art Dish / Art Bloggers @, the DIY organization formed by Sharon Butler and Joanne Mattera to bring attention to the early art blogging community / Joanne Mattera’s blog / New York Academy of Art / Kimberly Brooks, The New Oil Painting  / Jonathan Silver at Victoria Munroe Fine Art  /  The Crit Lab / “Intimacies,” the exhibition we discussed that features work by Crit Lab members, including Carolyn Zick.

Recorded on the Clubhouse app on May 23, 2022 / Inspired by "Matisse: The Red Studio," an absorbing exhibition at MoMA that includes the plans for the outbuilding Matisse designed for his workspace, host Sharon Butler invited artists Steve Hicks and Teri Hackett to talk about building their studios and what the process has been like. Chris Moss joined to share details about building in Savannah,Georgia. Episode links:  Teri Hackett /  Steve Hicks / Chris Moss / Matisse: The Red Studio /Hansen Pole Buildings / Garage Journal  /Shirk Pole Buildings /

On Saturday, May 14, 2022, Sharon Butler had a conversation with Pauline Decarmo about "Exit," her solo show on view at LABspace in Hillsdale, NY, through May 29. Decarmo's graphic new paintings are informed by the stress-free days of childhood, when she lived in South Jamaica Queens with her parents and seven siblings, and loved to play the street game Skelly with the neighborhood kids. The event was hosted by Julie Torres and Ellen Letcher.