New Work (2008)

Some new work from this year. None have titles as of yet, as I am still working/tweaking them all.

"The Fabric of Folly" at the Art Mission Gallery (2008)

My solo exhibit, "The Fabric of Folly", opened this past weekend (March 8, 2008) at the Art Mission Gallery in Binghamton, New York. I was present for the opening, but the drive home was grueling, particularly since Ohio got so much snow along the I-71 corridor. It took me over four and a half hours to drive home to Cincinnati once I hit Columbus. Well worth it, though.

Click on the title of this blog to visit the Art Mission Gallery website.

Invitational Show in Manhattan

I was privileged to be invited to participate in a themed exhibit dealing with the notion of currency in art at Marymount Manhattan College in New York City (December 3 - January 22, 2008). During the run of the exhibit, the gallery director had indicated that my work was the impetus for the thematic content of the show.

Improving Home Improvement 2
36 inches x 48 inches
Oil on Canvas

The Difference Between One and One
42 inches x 50 inches
Oil on canvas

Solo Show at Amy Baber Fine Art (December 2007)

"Exposed" at the ArtWorks Gallery in Cincinnati (2007)

"Exposed: Top Secret Artists from 2006" (October 5-26, 2007) is an invitational exhibit, featuring the work of top juried artists from the 2006 Secret ArtWorks event. I was honored to be among those chosen.

Click on the title of this blog to visit the ArtWorks website for "Exposed."

Before and After the 60-year War 2007
24 inches x 18 inches
Mixed media on paper

"Trappings" at the Parkland Art Gallery (2007)

"Trappings" was a three-person show at the Parkland Art Gallery at Parkland College in Champaign, Illinois.

Click on the title of this blog to visit the Parkland Gallery website.
Click on the images to view larger versions.

New Work at Amy Baber Fine Art (Summer 2007)

Epheme 2007
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Against a Kantian Sky 2 2007
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Ambigue 2007
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Collective Pinings 2007
oil on panel
30 inches x 40 inches

Works on view at Amy Baber Fine Art (Spring 2007)

Left of Center 2007
oil on canvas
24 inches x 30 inches



Right of Center 2007
oil on canvas
24 inches x 30 inches



American Fancy 2007
oil on canvas
45 inches x 35 inches



Fashion/ Function 2 2007
oil on canvas
45 inches x 35 inches

"Play Things" Exhibit

"Play Things" is an invitational group show being held at the Upstairs at the Greenwich Gallery in Cincinnati during the month of December 2006. Revolving around the thematic cohesion of "play things", the show features many prominent artists from the area, including Denise Burge, Tarrence Corbin, Carrie Nixon, Matthew Litteken, Hollis Hammond, Jennifer Ustick, and Matthew Miller-Novak.

Suburban Legend 2007
48 inches x 50 inches
Oil on Canvas

Suburban Legend 2 2007
oil on two canvases
42 inches x 66 inches

"SECRET ArtWorks" Exhibit

SECRET ArtWorks Exhibit

Three small works included in the invitational exhibit and fundraiser for ArtWorks Gallery in Cincinnati (November 2006). All works included in the exhibit were unsigned, and priced at $75 each. The artist's name was only revealed after the work had been purchased. The non-profit ArtWorks Gallery raised over $30,000 for various programming in the up-coming year.



Home Decor 2006
7 inches x 5 inches
Oil and Collage on paper




Drop/ Repeat 2 2006
7 inches x 5 inches
Oil and Collage on paper






















Drop/ Repeat 3 2006
5 inches x 7 inches
Oil and China marker on paper

"In Process" Exhibit

These are seven small paintings included in the exhibit In Process, the 2006 Faculty Show at the University of Dayton's Rike Center. They are now being exhibited at Amy Baber Fine Art in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Between (The Gap) 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















Intimate Vistas 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















Intimate Vistas 2 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















The Fabric of Folly 2 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















Untitled (N) 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















This Way Comes 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches



















Drop/ Repeat 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

"Magnitude SEVEN" exhibit

magnitude SEVEN
second annual international exhibit of small works

co-curated by Trevor Ponder

Featuring 30 works by 18 artists from eleven states and three countries. Works in the exhibit are from California, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Missouri, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oregon, Ontario Canada, and Derby, United Kingdom.


Works by Yoonhee Choi, Margot Cormier Splane, Andrew Dailey, Dan Gerdeman, Kathy Goodell, Shane Harris, Jennifer Jenkins, Matthew Litteken, Joseph Macklin, Ladianne Mandel, Tom Mueske, Brent Payne, Nathan Poglein, Russ Revock, Alex Roulette, Gretchen Scharnagl, Kate Smith, and Vaughn Wascovich.

Media represented include painting, drawing, printmaking, collage, sculpture, and photography.This exhibit will conclude Manifest's second season of programming. Season 3 will begin in late September.

Read the full press-release here.
Download the announcement card here.


Images from top to bottom:

Untitled (E) 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Intimate Vistas 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Home Decor 2006
oil on panel
7 inches x 7 inches

Paintings--Selected Recent Works

Matthew W. Litteken
mwlitteken@nni.com

Click on images to enlarge.

"Improving Home
Improvement (2)"
35 inches x 45 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Under Color Of"
45 inches x 35 inches
Oil on Canvas














"The Difference Between the
One and One"
42 inches x 50 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Transience (3)"
25 inches x 19 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Transience (2)"
25 inches x 19 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Transience (1)"
25 inches x 19 inches
Oil on Canvas













"Oriented to Spend"
36 inches x 48 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"After-dinner Mint"
45 inches x 35 inches
Oil on Canvas















"Good as Green"
21 inches x 23 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"The Notion of Aesthetics"
36 inches x 32 inches
Oil on Canvas









"Improving Home
Improvement (1)"
35 inches x 80 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"The Settlement
(State Commerce)"
48 inches x 50 inches
Oil on Canvas










"Aesthetically Baroque"
20 inches x 37 inches
Oil on Two Canvases
















"Sub-sublime"
60 inches x 52 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Fashion/Function"
50 inches x 48 inches
Oil on Canvas














"Public Programming"
42 inches x 60 inches
Oil on Canvas















"The Ticket for Admission"
48 inches x 60 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Against a Kantian Sky"
70 inches x 50 inches
Oil on Canvas
















"Untitled # 1"
40 inches x 28 inches
Oil on canvas
















"Face Value (1)"
48 inches x 42 inches
Oil on Canvas















"Face Value (2)"
42 inches x 48 inches
Oil on Canvas















Study for "Reconfigured"
36 inches x 42 inches
Oil on Paper
















"Stretching the Value"
48 inches x 48 inches
Oil on Canvas

Images of the Studio

I am always curious as to how other artists work in their studio. I thought it might be relevant to include these pictures for whomever is interested. The image below includes my wall of inspiration, complete with artists' postcards, magazine clippings, and show announcements. Unfortunately, I do not have enough wall space to include the other 500 or so scraps of inspiration.

Resume

Matthew W. Litteken
mwlitteken@nni.com





Education
MFA—University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH—2004
2-D studio major (Painting).

BFA—Miami University, Oxford, OH (cum laude)—1995
Painting and Ceramics major.

Exhibition Record

Solo Exhibitions

2009    Burnell R. Roberts Triangle Gallery/ Sinclair College/ Dayton, OH
2008    The Fabric of Folly/ The Art Mission Gallery/ Binghamton, NY
2007    New Works/ Amy Baber Fine Art/ Shreveport, LA
2005    Stretching the Value/ Upstairs at the Greenwich Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH
2004    American Fancy/ Thomas More College/ Crestview Hills, KY
     Value for Value/D.A.A.P. Galleries Downtown/ MFA Thesis exhibition/ University of Cincinnati/
Cincinnati, OH
2000    The World as Best as I Remember It/ Celebrate-the-Arts Program – DPC Gallery/
Doylestown, PA

Two, Three, and Four-Person Exhibitions

2009    The Painter’s/ The Carnegie/ Covington, KY  (Three-person show)
2007    Trappings/ Parkland Art Gallery/ Parkland College/ Champaign, IL
(Three-person show)
        Random Thoughts/ Upstairs at the Greenwich Gallery/ Cincinnati OH
(Three-person show)
2005    Re-Visions/ Main Gallery/ Northern Kentucky University/ Highland Heights, KY
  (Invitational Four-person show)
2002    Recent Works/ 840 Gallery/ University of Cincinnati/ Cincinnati, OH
(Three-person show)
2000    Painted and Thrown/ Carriage-House Gallery/ Lambertville, NJ
(Two-person show)                                       
1998    All on Their Own/ Mercer Museum (Fonthill Terrace Pavilion)/ Doylestown, PA
(Four-person show)

Invitational Group Exhibitions

2008    Bicentennial Exhibit/ Miami University Art Museum/ Oxford, OH (contacted by curator of
exhibitions, Lena Vigna)
2008    Connections/University Gallery/ Institute of Art and Design, University of West Bohemia/
Pilsen, Czech Republic (exhibit with the Art Faculty of Miami University in conjunction with the Pilsen Liberation Festival 2008)
2007    Money/ Marymount Manhattan College/ New York, NY (contacted by gallery director,
Professor Millie Burns)
Exposed/ ArtWorks Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (contacted by gallery director, Elaine Lynch)
Social Grace/ Upstairs at the Greenwich Gallery/ Cincinnati OH (contacted by curator,
Matthew Miller-Novak)
2006    Play Things/ Upstairs at the Greenwich Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (contacted by curator,
Matthew Miller-Novak)
2003    Gloss/ The Mockbee Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (contacted by curator, Allen Cochran)
Best of…/ Reed Gallery/ College of DAAP / Cincinnati, OH (contacted by gallery director,
Ann Timpano)
1999    Fly Ash and Comet Tails/ 9 West Grant Gallery/ Lancaster, PA (contacted by gallery
director, Caroline Henderson)

Group and Juried Exhibitions

2007    Exhibition 280/ Huntington Museum of Art/ Huntington, WV (Jurors: Michael Rush, Director
of the Rose Museum at Brandeis University; Mark Masuoka, Director and Chief Curator at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art in Omaha, Nebraska; and David butler, Executive Director of the Knoxville Museum of Art)--catalogue
Hands to Work/ ArtStreet Galleries/ University of Dayton/ Dayton, OH
2006    Magnitude SEVEN/ Manifest Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (group show)--catalogue
Sixty Square Inches/ Purdue University Galleries/ West Layfayette, IN (Juror: Peter Olsen,
Northern Illinois University Art Museum)--catalogue
Hidden Charms/ ArtStreet Galleries/ University of Dayton/ Dayton, OH (group show)
In Process/ Rike Center Gallery/ University of Dayton/ 2006 Department of Arts Faculty
Show/Dayton, OH
Hiestand Galleries/ Miami University/ 2006 Department of Art Faculty Show/ Oxford, OH
Amy Baber Fine Art/ Gallery Artists Exhibition / Shreveport, LA
DeBottis Gallery/ Gallery Artists Exhibition / West Chester, PA
2005    DeBottis Gallery/ Gallery Artists Exhibition / West Chester, PA
Rike Center Gallery/ 2005 Dept. of Arts Faculty Show/ University of Dayton/ Dayton, OH
2004        DeBottis Gallery/ Gallery Artists Exhibition/ West Chester, PA
Risch Gallery/ Fort Thomas, KY
Rike Center Gallery/ 2004 Dept. of Arts Faculty Show/ University of Dayton/ Dayton, OH
2003    DeBottis Gallery/ Gallery Artists Exhibition / West Chester, PA
840 Gallery/ University of Cincinnati/ Cincinnati, OH (MFA group show)
Recent Works/ Edwards Gallery/ College of DAAP/ Cincinnati, OH (Five-person show)
2002      Small Works, Top Priority/ The Stage Gallery/ Merrick, NY
National All-Media Juried Exhibition/ The Artists’ Museum/ Washington DC
(Juror: Claire Huschle, Director of Target Gallery/Torpedo Factory Art Center)
Art of the State-Pennsylvania/ The Greater Harrisburg Arts Council, Susquehanna Art
Museum/ Harrisburg, PA (Juror: David Ambrose, University of Pennsylvania)
Works on View/ Foxglove Gallery/ Stroudsburg, PA
National Spring Open Juried Exhibition/ Wayne Art Center/ Wayne, PA (Juror:
Barbara A. Wolanin, Curator for the Architect of the Capitol)
2001    “Works on Paper”/ Stage Gallery/ Merrick, NY
73rd Annual Juried Exhibition/ Art Association of Harrisburg/ Harrisburg, PA (Juror:
Susan Mallette Cross, Assistant curator, Guggenheim Museum)
Art for Artists’ Sake/ Philadelphia Art Alliance/ Philadelphia, PA
(Juror: Michael W. Schantz, Director and CEO, Woodmere Art Museum)
2000       Member’s Juried Exhibition/ Celebrate-the Arts program/ Doylestown, PA.
1999    Riverbank Gallery/ Stockton, NJ                                                        
Member’s Exhibition/ Celebrate-the Arts program/ Doylestown, PA Shad Fest Arts and Crafts Show/ Lambertville, NJ.  First place for exhibit.
1998    Mercer Museum Arts and Crafts Show/ Mercer Museum/ Doylestown, PA
Member’s Exhibition/ Celebrate-the-Arts program/ Doylestown, PA
40th Annual Tinicum Art Show/ Tinicum Park, Upper Black Eddy, PA
1997    Mercer Museum Arts and Crafts Show/ Mercer Museum/ Doylestown, PA
39th Annual Tinicum Art Show/ Tinicum Park, Upper Black Eddy, PA
1995    Ask the Magic 8-Ball/ Hiestand Gallery,  BFA Senior Exhibition/ Miami University/
Oxford, OH.
Viola Peacock/ Juried Group show, Miami University/ Oxford, OH
First Annual Undergraduate Art Exhibit/ Machine Shop Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH.
Merit award for both painting and ceramics in a juried show.
1994    Viola Peacock/ Juried Group show, Miami University/ Oxford, OH.
Untitled Show IV/ Juried Group Show, Miami University/ Oxford, OH.
Society of North American Goldsmiths Exhibition/ Portland, OR.

Fundraising Exhibitions/ Artwork Donated

2008    Secret Artworks 2008 – benefiting the community programs of the non-profit Art Works
Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (5 Mixed-media pieces donated)
2007    Secret Artworks 2007 – benefiting the community programs of the non-profit Art Works
Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (5 Mixed-media pieces donated)
2006    Secret Artworks 2006 – benefiting the community programs of the non-profit Art Works
Gallery/ Cincinnati, OH (3 Mixed-media pieces donated)
2004    The Mockbee Gallery – benefiting the repair and maintenance of the non-profit gallery and
studio  spaces / Cincinnati, OH (3 paintings donated)

Professional SERVICE

2006-2008    Faculty Advisor — Visual Arts Club, Miami University, School of Fine Art, Oxford, OH
       2007    Curator – TOP SHELF: Regional Undergraduate Art Exhibit/ Upstairs at the Greenwich
Gallery, Cincinnati, OH                
       2007    Co-Faculty Mentor – Miami University, School of Fine Art, Oxford, OH
(Workshop on Surviving the CAA Conference for MFA Graduate students)
2004-2007    MFA Graduate Mentor — Miami University, School of Fine Art, Oxford, OH                                    
       2006     Co-Coordinator – Color: In Living Color, University of Dayton, Interdisciplinary
Performance Piece for the Celebration of the Arts (Mural and Performance), Victoria Theater, Dayton, Ohio
      2005    Senior Thesis Advisory Critique — University of Dayton, School of Fine Art, Dayton, OH
      2004    Co-Curator — DAAP Master of Fine Arts Student Showcase, Upstairs at the
Greenwich Gallery, Cincinnati, OH
2002-2004    Visiting Artist Committee Member — University of Cincinnati, School of Art
         (Visiting Artists:  Faith Ringgold, Hamza Walker, Maggie Taylor, E.V. Day)
2003-2004    Gallery Coordinator — 840 Gallery, University of Cincinnati, School of Art
1997-2002    Gallery Host & Volunteer — James A. Michener Art Museum, Doylestown, PA
1997-2000    Assistant Art Coordinator — Celebrate-the-Arts program, Doylestown, PA

Professional EXPERIENCE

2007-2008 Visiting Assistant Professor— Miami University/ Department of Fine Arts/ Oxford, Ohio
2004-2007 Adjunct Professor — Miami University/ Oxford, Ohio
2004-2007 Adjunct Professor — University of Dayton, Dayton, Ohio
2003-2004 Teaching Assistant — University of Cincinnati, College of Design, Architecture,
Art, and Planning (instructor of record)          
2001-2002 Studio Assistant — Tom Judd, painter, Philadelphia, PA
1995-2002 Instructor & Production Ceramist — Moravian Pottery and Tile Works
Museum, Doylestown, PA
1999        Instructor — Teacher’s workshop (tile-making), James A. Michener Art
Museum, Doylestown, PA
1997        Teacher’s Assistant — Youth art program, James A. Michener Art Museum,
Doylestown, PA
1994-1995  Studio Assistant — Craftsummer program, Miami University, Oxford, OH

Visiting Artist LECTURES
           
2008 The Fabric of Folly/ The Art Mission Gallery/ Binghamton, NY
(in conjunction with solo show)
2007 Discourse of Creative Work/ Parkland College/ Champaign, Il
(in conjunction with three-person show Trappings)
2007 Acrylic Painting Workshop – University of Dayton, ArtStreet Galleries, University of
Dayton, Dayton , OH
2005 Guest speaker/critic – Introduction to Painting, University of Cincinnati
2004 The Value of Art & American Fancy/ Thomas More College, Crestview Hills, KY
(in conjunction with solo show)
2004 Discourse of Creative Work/ Alfred University, BAFA program, Alfred, NY

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Upcoming Chinese design journal "Art & Design" published by Tsinghua University Press (Article about Univ. of Cincinnati’s DAAP program—date and title of article not yet released—image reproduced)

Harkavy, Tamara & Walsh, Cathy, catalogue for the exhibition “Exposed: Secret Artworks”,
November 2007 (image reproduced)
Muente, Tamara, “Review: Random Thoughts”, Cincinnati CityBeat, August 15, 2007 (image reproduced)
Culligan, Jenine & Hammond, Cate, catalogue for the exhibition “Exhibition 280”, May 2007
(image reproduced)
Vaughn, Jacquelyn, “Articulations”, Cincinnati CityBeat, February 2, 2007
Ponder, Trevor, catalogue for the exhibition Magnitude SEVEN, July 2006 (image reproduced)
Martin, Craig, catalogue for the exhibition Sixty Square Inches, March 2006 (image reproduced)
Jarman, Alex, “Re-visions opens in art gallery”, The Northerner, NKU, September 2005
Pearce, Sara, “Posters, Landscapes…and Money”, Cincinnati Enquirer, January 2005 (image reproduced)
Bernzot, Julie, “Look Here! Art, Artists, Etc.”, Cincinnati CityBeat, January 2005

Artist Statement

Matthew W. Litteken
mwlitteken@nni.com

As a tangible item, currency is one of the most ephemeral things in the external, practical world, constantly defined and redefined in relationship to its fluctuating value. Money has become such an integral part of our consumer-based existence that the motif of currency is commonly used as a symbol of value or purchasing power. We are bombarded with its imagery, especially within televised advertising, printed coupons, and journalistic illustrations. Even with the rising technological substitutes for money, paper currency—actual, physical money—is still plainly capable of evoking delight and mystification. It is this mystification with value and money with which I am concerned in my work. Since value and its correlation to money are so transient, I am interested in questions such as: What do we value? Why? By what standards do we assign value? This question is particularly apt in light of the popular and easily-accessible means to purchase “manufactured” art and décor in such venues as the “big box” merchandise chains. My work investigates this aspect of consumerism through the exploitation of currency and value in a two-fold series of introspective paintings. The two projects, completed in tandem with one another, call for the personal inventory of spending practices and value assignments, predominantly in relation to art as commodity.

The first approach involves providing pictorial experiences in value-manipulated color as an integral part of the visual decoding and expression of my paintings. This occurs particularly through exploiting the tonal ranges and psychological associations with color. I find this extremely relevant, in that I seek to provide a “value experience” within my work, by representing the certain areas on the denominations in very similar tonal ranges, nearly devoid of contrast. One aspect of this project that intrigues me is the play on the meaning of the word “value”. Value, as it alludes to formal art issues, is the relative lightness or darkness of a color, and cannot be associated with the estimation of “more” or “less”. This assessment of value is a matter of relativity, which may be described only in terms of a color’s tint, tone, or shade. I relate this enigmatic definition to the fluctuation of both monetary and artistic value assignments within society: What is a good value? What makes x more valuable than y? But, more importantly, these works, as paintings, propound: what is the value that American society places upon the visual arts?

The second series revolves around the notion of aesthetics, or lack thereof, in American currency. With the totality of colorful figures and events of American history, why is U.S. currency so aesthetically dull? I have based this series largely upon the eighteenth and nineteenth century ideals of the sublime and the “awe-inspiring”, where art objects came to be equated with, but distinct from, the transformative, contemplative power of religious relics. One of the visual tools these artists employed to evoke the “awe-some” is the imitative depictions of natural landscapes, particularly through the fundamental use of clouds, or “sky-scapes”. My tactic involves the appropriation and reconfiguration of the decorative elements of U.S. currency situated within these “scapes” to provide the viewer with the ironic sense of the sublime as it relates to the dry motif of money, while raising aforementioned issues of artistry, value, and pictorial worth. Is aesthetic beauty valued, or even relevant? What do we value (monetarily or aesthetically) in art? By what standards are these judgments made? In context of the critical assessment, and consequent taste, of the viewer I regard my work, not so much as the answers to these questions, but rather, as the inquisitors.