InsideOut at the SMFA

Today is the official opening of the annual art sale at the SMFA, now called "InsideOut." The sale includes works by current students, faculty, alumni, and "affiliated artists" (like Kiki Smith, who was given the Medal Award by the SMFA). Some of us were able to preview the sale a couple times over the past week. Highlights in the sale include photographs by Esteban Pastorino Diaz (priced around $3800). The scenes in these large photographs look like they were made out of toy models, but they are of actual places taken by a camera flying on a kite. At least one of these photos sold during previews and there is a rumor that the MFA might have acquired one. Other things that I noticed missing (i.e., sold) at my second preview were a punched paper piece by Rachel Perry Welty and a painting of elephants by Meryl Blinder, both Boston-based artists. Lalla Essaydi photographs, a fixture at the sale, were $18,000 this year- and selling. In terms of prints, there were some interesting works by Mary Heilmann (who we were advised to buy last year, when her prices were cheaper and before her current show at the New Museum in NYC) and Chagoya, who some of us "discovered" at the Editions Fair in NYC this year. The image shown here is from SMFA advertisements for the sale and is done by recent SMFA grad, Nicole Kita (represented by Rotenberg Gallery in Boston).