–Madeleine Dahl

By Jason Kachadourian

While brainstorming my Friday blog post, I stumbled across an exciting event that I hope to attend tomorrow: Summer Silent Auction. Summer Silent Auction will take place tomorrow, June 30th, at 439 Franklin Ave. Apt. 2 from 5-9pm. The space acts as a temporary arts space and will use the auction, not only to sell a diverse range of work, but to also connect emerging artists with people seeking to purchase affordable art. As I currently intern at Recession Art, a gallery dedicated to creating networks between emerging artists and emerging collectors, I already feel an affinity with this event.

The production, distribution, buying and reselling of artwork is an inherent component of most anything related to the art world. Artists produce work. Museums collect and purchase work they find integral to their mission as social collectors and for their educational purposes.  Galleries sell work and sustain art markets and support artists’ careers and satisfy collectors’ ambitions. So, all this in mind, when I found this upcoming event, I was intrigued.

First of all, I’ve never attended a silent auction with the intention of purchasing a wide variety of artwork. When I have attended silent auctions, they were fundraisers for non-profits or specific causes; the items were either kitschy or luxurious (meaning I and my bank account could never really win anything). Interestingly enough, the proceeds from the Summer Silent Auction go directly to the participating artists. For me, this means I can assuage any guilt I might feel about spending x-amount on a piece of art with the fact that my money is completely, 100% filling the pockets of the person that made the piece that seduced me entirely. The other component I am excited about with this event is the range of emerging artists’ work: paintings, photos, prints, furniture design, and sculpture. It will be exciting to have so many mediums occupying the same place, and the curious curator within me wants to know how the works will be arranged to facilitate curiosity and appeal. I also already enjoy some of the participating artists’ work. Confirmed participating artists include: Kelwin Coleman, Maggie Bard, Jason Kachadourian, Jenn Sweeney, Naomi Leibowitz, Sam Kalda, Aubrey Edwards, Jeremy Wiles-Young, Matthew C Lange, Phoebe Streblow, Aimee Lusty (who also has work on the walls at Recession Art), and Kim Westfall.

By Kim Westfall

So I and a few of my friends will hopefully be there tomorrow, both to understand how an event like this operates and to see, possibly purchase, some interesting artwork.

Interesting event? Definitely. Intriguing work? Check. Refreshments? Likely. See you there? I hope so.