Seyed Alavi's ‘Perpetuation of Myth’ at The Art Museum of Los Gatos

ISLAMIC ARTS MAGAZINE

"Facades #2" (2013) by Sayed Alavi, Photo Collage, 24x36 in, 

CALIFORNIA --- The Museums of Los Gatos presents 'Perpetuation of Myth' a new exhibition curated by Nazanin Hedayat Munroe is on view March 7 - April 14, 2013. Middle Eastern visual culture is still a mystery to most Western viewers, who expect to see overtly political statements or religious sentiments. Shattering these expectations, 'Perpetuation of Myth' showcases the work of four Iranian-American artists with roots in the Bay Area whose works contemplate history, poetry and the cross-cultural issues of identity. [link]

Museums of Los Gatos: 'Perpetuation of Myth' (Ends April 13) 4 Tait Avenue, Los Gatos, California. 408.354.2646 or museumsoflosgatos.org

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Review: 'Gospel According to the Other Mary' Emerges Reborn

LOS ANGELES TIMES
By Mark Swed

Kelly O'Connor, left, plays Mary 

CALIFORNIA---"The Gospel According to the Other Mary" is now another "Other Mary," the "Mary" we have been waiting for. John Adams' Eastertide combination of Passion and oratorio was commissioned by the Los Angeles Philharmonic and given its premiere late last spring at Walt Disney Concert Hall. Impressive and stirring as it was, the work felt a masterpiece still in the making. "The Other Mary" came back Thursday night, revised by the composer and now staged by Peter Sellars, who also compiled the libretto. The work's great ambitions have been realized. But the essence of "The Other Mary" is rebirth. Adams' representation of it, whether in the most beautiful Passover scene in all of music or the delicate orchestral effects describing baby frogs bursting forth from suckholes, are musical reasons to embrace life. [link]

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Did SNL Cross a Line in “DJesus Uncrossed” Skit?

FOX NEWS 
By Hollie McKay
 

“Saturday Night Live” is known for pushing the limits, but the NBC spoof show may have gone too far with a recent skit that mocked Jesus. The inflammatory Feb. 16 skit, inspired by Quentin Tarantino’s excessively violent “Django Unchained,” was titled “DJesus Uncrossed” and depicted a post-resurrection Jesus (played by host Christoph Waltz) slaughtering Roman soldiers with a sword. “He’s risen from the dead,” the narrator announced. “And he’s preaching anything but forgiveness.” The skit didn’t go over well with two of America’s oldest and largest retailers—JCPenney and Sears. Both stores decided to pull their advertising from “Saturday Night Live,” according to a press release issued Tuesday by the American Family Association (AFA), an organization which focuses on the social implications of television and media. [link]

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New Pope Creates New Demand for Religious Art, Artifacts

FOX6 | MILWAUKEE

"Saint Francis Assisi & Doves" by Cyra R. Cancel. Courtesy of  Ebsqart.com

WISCONSIN — The naming of a new pope is creating new demand for religious art and artifacts. The phones began ringing off the hook at Stemper’s in Milwaukee’s Bay View neighborhood on Wednesday afternoon — after Pope Francis met the public. With nearly 80 Catholic parishes in Milwaukee County alone, pictures of the new pontiff are in high demand. That means sales of St. Francis depictions are likely to jump as well. “I’m sure that the Vatican worked very hard to make this happen before Easter because it’s a really huge time of year for all, not only the Catholics but all the Christian denominations,” said Stemper. [link]

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Steven Spielberg Bows Out of Moses Film Project

BREITBART

HOLLYWOOD---Hollywood's new zest for faith-based filmmaking will have to march on without Steven Spielberg. The Oscar-winning director was circling a Moses-themed project but has bowed out according to Deadline.com. [link]

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Opening Friday Night in Indianapolis: The Art of Tony Melendez at IIC Gallery

ALPHA OMEGA ARTS
By Greg Disney-Britton

"Mayan ll" by Tony Melendez

INDIANA---The ICC Gallery at Indiana Interchurch Center presents the solo exhibition, "Tony Melendez: The Espiritu Collection" from Friday, March 15 through April 27, 2013. Celebrating icons of truth, justice and light, the portraits are an interfaith and intercultural collection inspired by a certainty of God even when it cannot be explained. Influenced by his hero Henri Rousseau, the paintings and tapestries by NYC-born painter Tony Melendez, are dream-like jewels filled with spirit and hope.

Opening reception: Friday, March 15, 5:00-7:00 p.m. at the IIC Gallery at Indiana Interchurch Center, 1100 W. 42nd Street, Indianapolis, Indiana. For more informaiton, call (317) 923-3617.

"The Virgin" now in the collection of the Bishop of Indianapolis

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Jordan Eagles: Blood/Spirit Through May 12 at the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art in Saint Louis, MO

RIVERFRONT TIMES

MISSOURI---These scarlet-hued stained glass-like works by New York-based artist Jordan Eagles possess a peculiarly visceral texture that's no accident: They're painted with bovine blood collected from slaughterhouses. Encasing this macabre material in layers of UV resin and Plexiglas, the pieces, which alternate in scale from the life-size to the intimate, embody an eerily deep luminescence. As the exhibit's title suggests, Eagles is exploring — quite literally and with almost scientific ingenuity — the overlap between the body and the spirit. Contextualized in the former chapel that is Museum of Contemporary Religious Art, this ambition seems ideally realized. As a whole, the work does much to re-imagine MOCRA as an exhibition environment — encouraging new ways of seeing the space, both conceptually and physically. [link]

Through May 12 at the Museum of Contemporary Religious Art, 3700 West Pine Boulevard (on the Saint Louis University campus); 314-977-7170 or http://mocra.slu.edu. Hours: 11 a.m.-4 p.m. Tue.-Sun.

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