Author Archives: Anastasia Martinova

Review of Michael Cheval’s “Playhouse of Quintessence”

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oil on canvas, 60 x 75 cms, 2007

"Imagine", 2007. Oil on canvas

Contemporary Surrealist and Absurdist artist Michael Cheval managed to turn the interior of New York’s famously stuffy Waldorf Astoria Hotel into a bizarrely decadent escape. The expansive hall leading into the hotel’s Grand Ballroom was filled with promotional and ornamental works from various artists and companies during this fall’s Couture Fashion Week, but Cheval’s was certainly the most intriguing. There was something haunting yet welcoming about his art; the viewer was left in awe at the artist’s skilled and meticulous approach and felt drawn into the vortex of complex ambiguity.

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Blurb 1: John Botte: The 9/11 Photographs (22nd Street, Calumet Gallery)

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John Botte: "Number 84" September 12, 2001Stillness pervades the open space; voices are brutally silenced and colors fade until they become monochromatic. The black and white photographs add more depth to the already heavy subject matter and stun you with their depiction of chaos. Former detective and lifelong photographer John Botte fills his commemorative 9/11 photographs with overwhelming clarity and emotion. The photos depict a tragedy, yet exude a sense of preserved humanity. You are transported to the site on the day of the attacks. You will gasp, cringe, and perhaps even cry, but you will remember and rejoice at humanity’s ability to move forward. This is art in its raw form, captured during the peak of the destruction, but preserved for eternity for all to see.

Anastasia Martinova

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  • The usually grey and dreary sidewalks of New York City were transformed into blooming gardens as the rain poured down yesterday afternoon. Every New Yorker came equipped, and as if on cue, opened their umbrellas as soon as they were confronted by the cold rain. It was like a synchronized dance depicting colors in motion. It was poorly choreographed, but entertaining to watch; it consisted of people going about their usual routines and agendas despite the unpleasant weather.  The colors and shapes of the umbrellas could have been reflections of the individuals’ personalities, or were perhaps just arbitrary selections made earlier that day. Either way, the sidewalk appeared to be illuminated as every color gave the sidewalk a burst of life.

  • unintentionally grouchy