At Rochester Contemporary137 East AvenueRochester, New YorkHere we are at the beginning of a new season, and the art community here is a buzz. Talking with Bleu Cease, the seasoned Director at Rochester Contemporary, he mentions that this is the 19th year for the 6 x 6 show that recently opened at 137 East Avenue. He said that this year there is slightly more than 6000 entries for the show which is now up on the gallery walls! You could say that there is really something for everyone in this year's exhibition. At $20 per piece you could start an art collection, or add to the one you have already started!Great variety at the 2026 Summer Show for 6 x 6Since it is my birthday, I treat myself to a couple of interesting works of art, and I have just the right place in mind for them at my studio! It is remarkable what people can do with such a small dimension of 6 inches by 6 inches! I look for the standouts, these are the pieces which I find are memorable, but you might have already passed them up! I know [...]

Steven Spielberg is often credited as the father of the summer blockbuster, thanks to his mega-hit “Jaws” in 1975. He's worked effortlessly between prestige dramas and popcorn entertainment for the entirety of his career (sometimes in the same year, like 1993, which saw the release of “Jurassic Park” and the year's Best Picture winner, “Schindler's List”), but his latest film “Disclosure Day” finds him back in a world that his name has become synonymous with at the multiplex. Give or take “The BFG,” Spielberg hasn't had a big summer blockbuster in theaters since 2008's “Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull,” and the buzz leading up to the release of “Disclosure Day” feels like a trumpet-lined red carpet for the return of summer's king. There's an inherent sense of nostalgia baked into “Disclosure Day,” which does a good amount of heavy-lifting for some moviegoers because it brings Spielberg back to his roots. On top of its release date, Spielberg has always been interested in the portrayal of aliens in his films. From “Close Encounters of the Third Kind” to “E.T.,” he's has never been shy about sharing his interest about the possibility of life beyond what is known. That both [...]

Ahead of the full lineup reveal on July 14, Rochester Fringe Festival announced today that popular comedian Pete Davidson would headline the 12-day festival with a stand-up show at Kodak Hall on Friday, September 25 at 8 p.m. Tickets begin at $52.50 for the 18+ show and are on sale now at rochesterfringe.com. Pete Davidson is a celebrated stand-up comedian, actor, writer and producer who can be seen weekly on the unfiltered video podcast “The Pete Davidson Show” on Netflix. He will next appear in “How to Rob a Bank,” directed by David Leitch for Amazon MGM Studios and set to be released in September 2026. Davidson is also the creator, executive producer, writer and star of “Bupkis,” the critically acclaimed comedy series on Peacock inspired by his own life. From 2014 to 2022, Davidson was a cast member on “Saturday Night Live,” becoming one of the youngest performers in the show's history. His signature “Weekend Update” segments and original music videos earned widespread attention and viral success. He has released multiple comedy specials, including “Turbo Fonzarelli” (2023) and “Pete Davidson: Alive From New York” (2020), both on Netflix, following his Comedy Central debut in 2016. He was named to the “Forbes” [...]

Thru July 15th, 2026 "Horse Power" atMain Street ArtsClifton Springs, New YorkYes, we had a beautiful day for a ride out to Clifton Springs to attend the opening of "Horse Power" a large group show at Main Street Arts, 20 West Main Street. When we arrived, there were many people in attendance, and 57 artists whose work had been selected for the exhibition. I saw a window display of sculptural work by Jappie King Black, a noted artist from Brockport. The pieces she displays are haunting and have a dark, fragile personality.Over the years I have seen many group shows at Main Street Arts, but this theme exhibition has a wide range of larger and smaller pieces with many paintings and some photography, all about horses. There is a strong sculptural work that greets us as we all walk in.A surprising thing about this presentation is the fact that I don't remember another theme show that has a focus on this animal - as popular as horses are. I do remember having seen some wonderful horses in a carriage competition held in Pittsford at the Walnut Hill Farm, but that was many years ago!Jacquie Germanow [...]

Merry Christmas Eve! Tonight, some of you will be going to a Christmas vigil mass and will probably hear a retelling of the birth of Jesus. It is a familiar story with some key elements - Jesus in a manger, shepherds in a field, and three kings bearing gifts to the newborn child. With these key points, the story is complete, but it was not always this way. The nativity story that we are familiar with today is actually a composite narrative of canonical and non-canonical writings. In the early years of Christianity, the Church leaders spread this hybrid tale to the masses through art, which Pope Gregory the Great described as “the Bible of the illiterate." The Dijion Nativity by Robert Campin is an example of several nativity stories melded into one. Campin pulled from the canonical gospel of Luke, the non-canonical gospels of Pseudo-James and Pseudo-Matthew, and the popular (at the time) vision of Saint Bridget of Sweden. Dijion Nativity, Robert Campin, c. 1420 Shepherds from Portinari Altarpiece, Hugo van der Goes, c. 1475 The three shepherds peering in at Jesus are from the canonical gospel of Luke. Each of the gospel writers played towards their audience. Luke wrote in Asia [...]

If my calculations are correct, you probably got your midterm research paper back a couple weeks ago, and it was covered with red pen marks. With only four short weeks left before your final paper is due, you're wondering how you can improve your writing to boost your grade for this last assignment. Below, I have listed some of the most common mistakes you should look out for while editing your paper. This is a lengthy post, with no pictures, but I promise it will be helpful for you art history students out there. 1. Using “WH” words outside of a question Who, what, where, when, why, and how. In everyday conversation we say things like “that is where I bought my watch” or “this is how you tie a shoe.” However, in a formal paper, “wh” words should only be used when posing a question. So, if this was a formal paper, that last sentence would be a mistake. I could rephrase it as “…words should only be used if posing a question.” I don't bother making that edit here on the blog because I want to have a conversational tone, but I would never (knowingly) submit a paper with that [...]

Wheeling Community: Exploring Rochester's Little Known Public Art by Kitty Jospé On Sunday, May 3, over 80 people joined Bleu Cease, Executive Director/Curator at RoCo and Photographer Richard Margolis for a tour of eight hidden treasures of public art. This tour, in conjunction with the current exhibit, “Ride It: Art and Bicycles in Rochester” at Rochester Contemporary Art Center (RoCo) celebrated the idea of “slow art” and a chance to notice not only what we often are hurrying by, but to think of larger implications of how we live in our environment. It is heart-warming to join with others on a sunny spring day, and discover art and the stories and contexts behind it—and this incredible dividend: No, not the sounds of trains, or the way sculptures frame fascinating details of buildings, but a sense of feeling connected to others, and connected to our city. Did you know Rochester has had Liberty Poles at the same site since 1830? What a surprise to arrive on site-specific six-part Rochester Project, by Richard Fleischner. It is a magnificent outdoor amphitheatre, looking out on three stone lattices, all the same size but with variations on [...]

“A photograph presents the artist and the viewer with a challenge, because we always want to know what it is—as if the photograph were not there. For over 165 years, an extraordinary number of forces have made us instinctively believe that photographs are windows on reality—even when reason tells us otherwise.” — Carl Chiarenza, 2013 lecture excerpt A photograph of you is not you. It is, in fact, an illusion. That simple viewpoint is perhaps the cornerstone of famed photographer Carl Chiarenza's body of work—and his role as a mentor to other artists. “It's not unreasonable for people who are interested in photography to accept what has been broadcast since the 1830s, which is that the photograph captures reality, actuality,” Carl says. "Mulligan Print," by Carl Chiarenza. Carl's work has been shown around the world and can be found in the collections of more than 50 museums, including The Getty Museum, Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Museum of Modern Art in New York City, The Art Institute of Chicago, and Bibliotheque Nationale in Paris. “From my point of view, it never did that. Every photograph is an abstraction.” That perspective has so informed his work, he avoids some of the [...]

Rochester musician and SUNY Potsdam student Mikaela Davis plays a semi-grand harp, one size down from a concert grand. When she first began to play as a child, she started on a smaller-style troubador harp. “I've always known I wanted to go to school for music,” she says. “I wanted to be a professional harpist in an orchestra and teach harp at a college—until my own music became my main focus.” (photo by Aaron Winters) Let's play word association. “Harpist.” Go. Did you respond with “pop-music newcomer”? You will. Rochester-born Mikaela Davis knows how to show a harp who's boss. Backed by a mix of guitar, keyboards, and her own lilting vocals, Mikaela has deftly plucked a classic instrument out of its past. Spun it into a modern sound. And wrapped it in sparkling lights, ready for download. Her self-titled debut album came out in 2012, and she describes it as indie-pop. Just the same, she's hesitant to commit to a category. “I don't like to put myself in a genre. The music we're doing now, it's nothing like my first album. We went something that's more psychedelic rock on the new EP,” Mikaela says. Brian Moore, audio engineer and owner of Red Booth [...]

The Beauty of Gray: Scapes exhibit showcases video art that's not all black and whiteby Geoff Graser If you don't “get it” right away, Debora and Jason Bernagozzi understand. When the couple tells people they do video art, most people say, “Oh, you do commercials.” Nope. “Oh, you do those weird foreign movies.” Not exactly. The Bernagozzis' art form is more like abstract art—abstract art that moves and talks and sometimes chirps. The Bernagozzis' work is part of RoCo's “Scapes” exhibit on display until Sunday, November 13. On my first try, I didn't exactly “get it.” And that's all right, Jason says, that's partly his point. He thinks Americans are spoon fed so many messages through the media and popular art that people believe what others want them to believe rather than making up their own minds. This echoes some of the work of Nam June Paik, considered the father of video art for his innovations in the 1960s. Paik would take footage of the Beatles and manipulate the waves so the Fab Four would disintegrate. He did this with politicians and other TV celebrities, hoping to convince viewers that the people on TV weren't indestructible gods. So you're not alone if you [...]