The resident artists of the Banana Factory Art Center are all having a show at the Crayola Gallery right now. The shows, which started mid August, are broken into two parts. The reception for the first part was held last night September 4 for First Friday. I’d like to say that things went swimmingly but in truth I can’t say much for the exhibition except that the artists work in it were fantastic. Honestly though the curating of the work for the show could have been handled better so that all art in the show could shine better. I trace the problem to apathy on the part of us artists in the show and the art center it self. Artists were allowed to put in anything they wanted so long as it fit a certain dimension, and a resident artist volunteered to hang what was submitted. Placement of work was done by lottery and looked it. I take blame personally for not being more invested in making the first show better, I guess all I can say is that I’m a newbie to the banana.
Our relationship at the center is a bit distant and at times frosty amongst the resident artists and with the administration. One of the biggest issues last night was that many artists who were in the show couldn’t attend the reception because we had to man our studios for First Friday guests. I’m hoping next year this can be resolved. Like I said before, the art in the show was still top notch and a testament to the quality artists who occupy that building. We should all at the Banana Factory recognize what a wonderful resource we have in our community here and make sure future exhibitions show us off in the best light. Here are some shots I took of the show before First Friday, last night.
Anthony Smith Jr. 