Meet Allegra LaViola, Juror and Host of the Academy’s Seventh Annual Summer Exhibition

By Maggie Mead
Images courtesy of Allegra LaViola Gallery

Asked what gave her the confidence to start her own contemporary art gallery in 2008, Allegra LaViola rolled her eyes and smiled. “Naivete," she said. "Stupidity.”

Back in 2007, when she made the decision, selling art seemed easy. The economy was booming, and paintings were flying off the walls of the New York galleries where Allegra had been working. Having gained experience selling artwork, working with clients as an art consultant and organizing a few shows of her own, she felt ready to be the boss.

"There was this youthful eagerness and this desire to be in charge and to be the decider and in control," Allegra said. "Whether that was smart or stupid I suppose only time will tell.”

179 E Broadway, New York, NY 10002

Being a gallerist turned out to be much more difficult than Allegra originally thought. Still, almost five years later, she has weathered the economic recession—which began exactly one week after her gallery opened in September 2008 with the collapse of Lehman Brothers—and confidently established Allegra LaViola Gallery as one of the most dynamic and provocative contemporary arts spaces in the city, representing 12 artists and focusing on painting, installation and performance.

Allegra LaViola Gallery may be best known for its interactive installations. In May, the gallery presented Amanda Browder’s PRISM/LIVIN/ROOM, an installation of stitched together fabric that the public was invited to transform on designated “sewing days.” For much of June, the gallery was the setting for a multimedia installation by Electra KB that imagined a women-led revolution of a fictional empire. It was interactive too; visitors were asked to confess wrongdoings to performers who would echo them back. 

Amanda Browder's Triangle Wall (2013)

Elektra KB's Panopticism (sureiller et punir) (2013)

Elektra KB's White Papess in Catalytic Confessional Noise Machine (2011)

Allegra's interactive art events have often taken the form of theatrical dinners. One of the most memorable of these, according to Allegra, was Jennifer Catron and Paul Outlaw's December 2010 show Imeday Imeda Ollarday Icklenay, for which the artists transformed the gallery into what Allegra described as "The Frick on acid." 

Dinner guests sat at a long table raised in the air by a carlift. The artists had decorated the walls with painted wallpaper and surreal photographs referencing old master paintings. Throughout the evening, performers dressed as characters from the paintings climbed ladders to interact with the diners.

 

Catron and Outlaw's Aintsay Eromejay in Ishay Tudysay (2010)

Catron and Outlaw's Euszay and Etisthay (2010)
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Then of course, there was Laura Ginn's 2012 art event Tomorrow We Will Feast Again on What We Catch, an urban survivalist-themed dinner consisting of courses made from rats, cooked by chef Yuri Hart. "Laura and Yuri spent one year test-cooking rats until they found recipes that were good enough that they could pass muster," Allegra said. "Laura made an entire dress out of rat pelts. ... She was playing this video of her braining a deer in the snow, which was projected on the wall, while we were eating." The event was covered by the New York Times.

Laura Ginn's Untitled (Washing Carcasses), 2009009

Laura Ginn with some rats
Credit: Evan Sung of The New York Times

Credit: Evan Sung of The New York Times

Allegra's love for performance art was born from her own love of being onstage--she acted in plays in high school and college--as well as the art form's ephemeral nature. “There is nothing that you can take hold from it," she said. "It relies on you giving up your inhibitions and joining in something which increasingly as a society at least in North America we do less and less."

A New York City native, Allegra studied art history at University of St. Andrews in Fife, Scotland. She loved painting of all kinds, but her interests were always more historical than contemporary. In fact, Allegra said she studied “no contemporary [art] at all,” writing her thesis on Venetian Renaissance painting. “I had missed everything from 1945 on, so theoretically I was extremely behind,” Allegra said, “but I perhaps had a greater sense of history and the genesis of art, rather than having leapt in at 1970 and thinking that these ideas were springing from nowhere.”

Allegra’s tastes evolved in the years after college as she worked in various art galleries, foundations, auction houses and festivals in Venice, London and New York City. Some of the things she values in art today include craftsmanship ("I do not like things that look sloppy or collegiate or half-done," she said), originality, and references to art history. 

Perhaps most of all, however, when Allegra looks for pieces to show in her gallery she is seeking art that sparks a reaction in th viewer. “I like immersive,” Allegra said. “I think a minimalist painting can be just as immersive as a giant insane installation, bu there is something about walking into a space and being like, ‘Wow I am in another world.’”  

Sandi Slone, Worlds Apart (2012)

Jeremy Willis, One More (2012)

One aspect of Allegra's taste that has remained the same is her dislike for a specific brand of conceptual art: “Like, here’s an unwound paperclip next to a piece of tape and a four-page essay that sounds like a thesaurus spit up all over it,” Allegra said. “That kind of thing is not of interest to me, and I think it’s extremely popular and it’s very current, but it’s not my taste.” 

Though Allegra acknowledged that figurative art is not currently considered to be at the cutting edge of contemporary art, she has no doubt that it will always have an important place in the art world. 

"They used to say in my English class at University in order to be a good plumber you can’t just go in and replace the outside of the sink, you have to know how the pipes work," she said. "You have to know how paint works or any media really. It’s not just opening up a tube that you got and splashing some crap on a canvas. You have to make sure you know how to build it, and painting needs to be built the same way a sculpture does."

The Academy is thrilled to be partnering with Allegra LaViola Gallery for its 2013 Summer Exhibition and wishes to thank Allegra for her support and hard work!

The Academy's Seventh Annual Summer Exhibition runs from June 27 to July 27.

A Chat with the Speaker

Zach Brown reflects on the meaning of his time at the Academy. 
By Maggie Mead

Painting student Zach Brown was nominated by his fellow classmates to deliver the student speech on commencement day, Friday, May 24. Such an assignment might have struck fear in the hearts of some students. (How do you sum up the experience of your class? How do you get the words out without fainting?) But this jovial native of Mars, Pennsylvania—the set of Night of the Living Dead, by the way—exhibited no nerves at all when I spoke to him the day after he’d finished writing his speech. And he had only warm things to say about the Academy – and all of the artists here.

“I couldn’t have asked for a better experience,” he said. “Everyone here is excited, and they’re motivated to do their own work. I don’t know if it’s because it’s figurative, and that creates a certain empathy when you’re working with the human body – if it just creates a certain breed of person who’s maybe not as cold as a minimalist!”

Check out the rest of the interview below.

How long did it take you to write the speech?
It was pretty easy to write. … I didn’t have to force thinking that everyone’s gonna do awesome. I really do think everyone’s gonna do awesome. 

Are there some good jokes in it?
I don’t know if they are good jokes, but there are jokes! I think it will be more about the delivery than anything.

Did you practice it in front of the mirror?
Yeah, and I practiced it in front of my girlfriend. She’s normally my go-to to make sure I’m being appropriate. 

Did she laugh?
No, but she smiled. It was one of these: <<puts his hands over his face and shakes his head>> 

Sounds like it will be good. Why do you think you were voted to speak?
I think it’s because I sing and dance in class a lot. … One of the questions [on the email we received] was "If you get selected, would you like to speak?" So I said, "Well, I’ve got a big mouth and I love attention, so I’d be happy to speak!" Then people were asking me if I’d be interested in doing it, and I said "Yeah, sure, that’d be great!’”

What kinds of things were you thinking about when you were writing the speech?
Honestly, the best thing I’m taking away from this school is the student body. Of course you learn a lot of things. There’s a lot of classes. … This is going to sound terrible, but I think if they just put all the students that they accepted in a room for a long enough time, everyone was going to learn something really quickly. They orchestrate an amazing environment just by the students they accept into the program. … Everyone brings a different skill set and background, and it creates a lot of energy – it’s fun. 

(From left to right): "Rectangle Mask," "Blue Dog," and "Feather Mask"

What made you come to the Academy?
I knew I wanted to teach. It seemed like a sweet gig. But I wanted to work more. I did my undergraduate degree [at RISD] in illustration, but I mostly just painted. … A professor of mine told me about the New York Academy. I was applying to other places, and my girlfriend looked at this school and was like, "Zach this is perfect for you." And I was like, "Yeah, but it’s in New York City. I don’t know if I want to be in New York…"

That's a strange reaction. Why didn’t you want to be in New York?
It has tons of great stuff, but it doesn’t have what I really like. It’s a great place for museums and all that stuff, but not as far as abandoned warehouses and field parties and dirty garages and bars that you can smoke in and all that fun Pittsburgh stuff.

So do you plan to go back to Pittsburgh?
Definitely. There’s a lot of exciting things going on the Rustbelt right now. Rent’s cheap. There’s a lot of big spaces. There’s a lot of young people going there and treating it like their own frontier. There’s cool stuff going in Detroit, Cleveland, Columbus, Buffalo, Pittsburgh and Philly.

A good buddy of mine just started up this magazine called the Rustbelt Almanac, where essentially they travel around and interview young movers and shakers of this new Rustbelt revival, Rustbelt Renaissance, whether it’s art or young entrepreneurs or tech or young designers. … In the Rustbelt you have an opportunity to get a lot of attention for what you want to do – and do it relatively cheaply. 

"Burial Masks"

Have you found places where you feel comfortable in New York?
The places I like best in New York are places where there aren’t people, so I find myself frequenting a lot of construction sites. I live in this closet over in Hell’s Kitchen, so a lot of times I walk down to where the bus stations are and where the train yard is. It’s weird because it’s still midtown but no one really goes there, except for people who are oddly waiting for the Megabus. It has a nice transient nature to it. ... When I first moved here, the guy who was showing me the apartment was like, “Oh yeah and there’s this great club down the street, with discotek music, and a lot of Europeans go to it. Is that what you’re into?” And I’m like “No! Not at all!”

Has your work changed significantly during your time here?
The goals haven’t changed too much. I’m still using a lot of similar language. It’s just the subject matter has become less specific. I came in using a lot dogmatic imagery and iconography. And they are still very much icons, but it’s not like specifically St. Peter or something like that. ... I found ways to reference the imagery and try to touch on something less specific, but it invokes similar ideas.

******

Congratulations, Class of 2013! Looking forward to seeing you walk across the stage on Friday!

Growth Spurts and New Directions

By Madeleine Hines (MFA 2014)

It's interesting to see how artists change and develop over the course of their careers. I asked some of my classmates to share how--in their view--their work has progressed now that they have one year under their belt at the New York Academy of Art.

Zoe Sua Kay

"Since coming to the school, my work has become more conceptually driven. My interest in figure/space relationships has developed to the point of becoming as relevant to the subject matter as the mind/body relationship, which has always been such a central point of focus in my paintings."

BEFORE THE ACADEMY

 

AT THE ACADEMY

Krista Smith

"For me my work has not drastically changed in subject matter but on a technical level, the school has really whipped me into shape."

BEFORE THE ACADEMY

 

AT THE ACADEMY

 

Steve Vollo

"New York has changed my work because my work deals with my life. The place where I lived is gradually starting to feel more and more insignificant. I have gone from painting monumental images of my experiences to making work that deals with past experience with both indifference and empathy."

BEFORE THE ACADEMY

 

AT THE ACADEMY

Alonsa Guevara

"Being at the Academy has been such an enriching experience. Not only have the excellent instructors in each class been a big help for me, but also being surrounded by a group of amazing artists that advise me in each critic as well as my talented classmates who share their knowledge with me when I need it."

BEFORE THE ACADEMY

 

AT THE ACADEMY

Garrett Cook

"From day one, this Academy has change the way I perceive and handle paint. I thought I understood the intricacies of the material, but the NYAA has embedded within me a deeper understanding of the true meaning of a painting. I now understand what truly separates painting from all other artistic mediums."

BEFORE THE ACADEMY

 

AT THE ACADEMY

Madeleine Hines is blogging throughout the academic year about her first year at the Academy and moving to New York City. Check the label "First Year Experience" or "Madeleine Hines" for more posts about his first year at the Academy.

Inside the Studio with Meg Franklin

By Maria Teicher, MFA 2013

Meg Franklin is a fellow artist, New York Academy of Art student and good friend of mine.  She is an incredible talent and one of the most creative individuals I’ve met in quite some time.  Not only does Meg work as a visual artist, she also has her MFA in creative writing.  She runs a naming website called Gabooldra that combines both her creativity with text and drawing. I’m a frequent visitor and big fan.

When I began these artist interviews it was a delight to find out how hard Meg was working this past summer.  As with all studio visits, I couldn’t have been more honored to be behind the scenes in her painting environment.

Meg is originally from a small town in the Appalachian Mountains called Young Harris in Georgia. She came to New York about three years ago for work and describes life as a student in this city as “really wonderful.”  When I asked her what drew her to NYAA she describes the location as being essential.  “There are so many advantages to studying in New York: some of the best teachers, gallery exposure, access to the best museums in the world, constant gallery openings. Also, of course, I was drawn to the academy because my work is primarily figurative.”

Maria: “What does your artistic background look like?”

Meg: “I studied creative writing, specifically poetry, before landing on painting. I actually have a MFA in creative writing from the University of Florida, which I received almost straight out of college. I had a great experience there, but soon after finishing the graduate degree, I realized that I didn’t enjoy the act of writing. In fact, it sort of felt like torture. 

I fell back on painting, which I’d always done for fun, and after a few years of working on portraits from my apartment, I began to take my painting very seriously. I enjoy the act. And I found in painting something that I didn’t even fully realize was missing from my writing pursuits: it holds my attention. In fact, painting completely lords over my attention. I think the word “passion” is kind of cringe-inducing, but it’s the only word that really fits what I feel for painting.”

Maria: “Why have you chosen to pursue becoming a fine artist?”

Meg: “Because I love painting, because I don’t mind being poor, and because it allows more personal freedom than most other jobs.”

Now into her second year at the academy, she says her experience so far has been both enlightening and exhausting.

Maria: “What's the most valuable thing you learned last year?”

Meg: “My drawing really improved. I used to rely on gridding, but now I can draw and paint without the grid. I still wouldn’t say I’m even close to the top of the class in terms of accuracy in drawing, but that’s fine. I got where I wanted; I refined my skills while retaining a bit of my personal hand--scrappiness included.  

Also, I learned not to be afraid to put a lot of paint on my palette. I used to treat the stuff like liquid gold and would only squeeze out pea-sized amounts to work with. I quit that.”

Maria: “What is the class you learned the most from?”

Meg: “Probably my two painting classes.”  

Maria: “How were you able to bring your own ideas into an assignment heavy first two semesters?”

Meg: “I chose subject matter that I thought was very rich.” 

After an intense year, Meg found herself spending the entire summer in her studio just ten minutes from her apartment in Greenpoint, Brooklyn.  It was a shared space in a nice building just far enough away from any main streets to be comfortably quiet.  When first walking through, the bright white walls and cubicle like spaces could’ve felt cold and unwelcoming.  This wasn’t the case when I came to photograph Meg’s actual studio space.  Natural light came through a large window to show off walls of paintings, drawings, trinkets, and still life set-ups.  The large spot towards the back of an aisle of other studios (that were empty) felt like a little piece of home.  

Maria: “How important is your studio space to your creative practice?”

Meg: “Very. I wish I could say that I would happily paint anywhere, but that’s unfortunately not the case. My perfect studio is the one I have this summer: close to my apartment, mostly private, distractionless, large, and with a big window.” 

Maria: “Do you work on several projects at a time or just one?”

Meg: “Several.” 

Maria: “How long does a piece take you to complete?”

Meg: “It differs. Sometimes a few hours, sometimes months.” 

Maria: “Do you listen to the radio or music while creating?”

Meg: “Yes, music.” 

Maria: “What are your favorites?”

Meg: “This summer: really just the Beatles, The Beach Boys, and Neil Young. Sometimes after I finish that rotation, my iTunes moves on to Britney Spears’ latest album. I know I’m really into a painting if I let it iTunes get several songs into “Femme Fatale” before I notice and turn it off. Britney has her place. But it’s not the painting studio.” 

Maria: “Have a favorite color?”

Meg: “I like titanium white. And caput mortum, partially because of the name, partially because it’s good with shadows on skin.”

Maria: “Any favorite painters?” 

Meg: “Giorgio Morandi and Wayne Thiebaud are my two favorites. Then I like Fairfield Porter, Alice Neel, early Vuillard, Lesley Vance, and Khalif Kelly.”  

Maria: “Is there anything you keep in your studio for luck or inspiration?”

Meg: “I usually put on the same Bill Callahan song when I start a new painting. I’m not sure why. It’s called ‘From the Rivers to the Ocean.’ ”

Meg tells me she might be interested in too much and feels like someone coming into her studio might assume that three or four people might use the space.  Her productivity this past summer shows her dedication to all of her interests. Viewing all of the work together in one space, I don’t share her opinion.  For me, it’s very clear that the hand in all of her paintings is the same.  It’s refreshing to be able to look around and see so much. You become quite captivated and just want to keep looking around.

“This summer I’ve painted people sleeping, made multi-media 2-D diamonds, composed and painted still lifes made up of unidentifiable objects, copied Morandis, done portraits of friends from life, painted geometrical abstract works, and built on my website, Gabooldra, which combines my drawings with a strange fixation I have with naming things. There’s probably more that I can’t remember.”

Maria: “Where does your drive to create come from?” 

Meg: “My brain chemistry? Who knows.”

Maria: “Any thesis ideas brewing?”

Meg: “Right now, I’m pretty into the still lifes made up of non-object objects, aka pieces that the viewer can identify as real physical things, but can’t quite tell what they are. The confusion is not because I’ve painted them especially abstractly, but just because they are objects the viewer has never seen. They have no real function.”   

Maria: “Any advice for artists thinking about grad school?”

Meg: “Go when you’re a little bit older. See what the real world is like before jumping into graduate school. You’ll appreciate your school experience more and take it more seriously.” 

Two months into her second year now, Meg has picked up her summer studio and moved it back to school.  It looks pretty similar to her comfortable summer spot and she’s working just as hard.  A few of her pieces are currently on display through the halls of NYAA but if you can’t make it to New York, feel free to check out her work on her website:  http://www.megfranklin.com