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I’m sick, this will be a less glitzy and amusing e-mail than usual. Hence this notice coming out so late.

THIS WEEK:

We set the record straight about our rumored conflict with Gallery 400, although we definitely didn’t like the show they have up right now. We check out the utterly fabulous collection of shows at the Cultural Center. AND to make it total art overload, we go to the MCA and take in an array of shows there too. Also our London branch (Ben Tanner and Christian Kuras) checks in and we get a brief NOVA plug from Michael Workman.
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THIS WEEK:

Duncan and Richard interview James Rondeau, superstar curator and Cecelia Edefalk, superstar artist. We just bought the right to the word “superstar” so we are compelled to use it as much as possible. Stealing liberally from the AIC’s press release bank we now paste the following for your enlightenment.

“The Art Institute of Chicago presents the first solo U.S. exhibition of Swedish artist Cecilia Edefalk as part of its Focus exhibitions of contemporary art. Double White Venus, a series of 12 paintings all titled Double White Venus, will be on view in Gallery 139 of the museum from February 2 to April 23, 2006. Born in 1954, Edefalk draws viewers in by exploring, through repetition as well as innovative installations, the mechanics of making and looking at painted images. Edefalk works slowly and deliberately, in direct contrast to our high-speed, image-based world; she began Double White Venus in 1999 and completed its 12 paintings over the course of nearly 7 years.”

James Rondeau is the Frances and Thomas Dittmer Curator of Contemporary Art at the Art Institute of Chicago, and a damn nice guy. He has overseen the significant growth and expansion in recent years of the Art Institute of Chicago’s commitment to contemporary art.

Brian Andrews our west coast correspondent has really been earning his keep these days. This week he interviews Andrew Bancroft aka the superstar rapper Jelly D. from the brilliant Maximum Wage video.

“The son of an ex-pool hustler and former Catholic nun, Andrew Bancroft grew up in Maine, where he developed an early love of acting and music. Andrew graduated with honors from Wesleyan UniversitySan Francisco in 2000. Andrew’s many film credits include the title role in Gabriel Angel Of The Lord, as well as directing and starring as rapper “Jelly Donut” in Illbilly’s mock music video Maximum Wage . He has many other performance credits, including The Ken and Andy Show and Popcorn Anti-Theater.”

If you don’t go check out www.Illbilly.com your toes will rot off.

Names Dropped: Stan Douglas, Anne Goldstein, James Coleman, Michael Asher, Madeleine Grynsztejn, Jeremy Strick, Claude Monet, A. James Speyer, Philip K. Dick, Robert Gober, Francesco Clemente, Robert Ryman, Sean Scully, Buzz Spector, Suzanne Ghez, Francesco Bonami, Thomas Hirschhorn, Lisa Dorin, Chalres Stuckey, Neal Benezra, Anne Rojimer, James Wood, James Cuno, Kenny Taylor, the all important Bob’s Donut Shop in San Francisco, CA, and more, more, more

NEXT WEEK:

Reviews from London, Gallerist Wendy Cooper, maybe some reviews, c’mon I just finished this damn show do I really need to dish about what we have for next week. Sheesh.
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An interview that goes off the rails, reviews, our San Francisco branch checks in! Wow!

Check out our new NEWS FLASH section below.

THIS WEEK:

Liz Armstrong, author of the Chicago Anti-social column in the Reader.

From her Wikipedia entry:
Liz Armstrong lives in Chicago, Illinois. She has performed solo and with the bands To Live and Shave in L.A. and To Live and Shave in L.A. 2 under the stage name “Misty Martinez.” Since 2004, she has written first-person party journalism for the Chicago Reader in her “Chicago Antisocial” column.

But that doesn’t begin to cover our knife wielding interview. Liz is the first guest to show up “heavy” to an interview. She was none-the-less delightful and wacky to talk to. Amanda and Liz have a battle royalle and end up pals! This interview is a non-stop action fest loaded withconfessional jaw dropping moments. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, it will become a part of you. You’ll listen again and again. It’s downright worthy of Chicago Anti-Social.

If that wasn’t enough, Amanda, Duncan and Richard review the new shows at Giola, Gescheidle, Aron Packer and the Beverly Art Center.

Names dropped:

Fred Stonehouse, Michael Noland, James Rosenquist, Barbara Weisen, The Gahlberg Gallery at the College of DuPage, NASCAR, Arturo Herrera, Martin O’Conner, Jeremy Black, Jason Ruhl, Marcel Dzama, Michael Dumontier, Neil Farber, The Royal Art Lodge, Shelley Spector, Instant Coffee, Kiki Smith, Kota Ezawa, Cornelia Parker, Wang Du, Wangechi Mutu, The Beverly Art Center, Jenny O’Conner, Stephen Warde Anderson, Hank Feeley, and there are about a zillion artists in the Tattoo show that you need to go and check out on your own as I left the list at work, sorry.

NEWS FLASH:

New City answered all of our Gallery 400 related questions. Check it out
The Rest of the Story!!!

While you’re at it check out Amanda’s review!
Amanda’s Review

VOTE FOR US PLEASE! We are listed as the second best art podcast, how dare they! Help us be #1!!!
VOTE NOW!!!

NEXT WEEK:

Reviews from London, our San Francisco correspondent interviews internationally famous rapper and performance artist Jelly-Doughnut at the Doughnut shop featured in the Maximum Wage video, and so much more! The following week we are interviewing rock star curator James Rondeau. Free up some time to listen, these will be great shows.

Direct download: Bad_at_Sports__Episode_22_Liz_Armstrong.mp3

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Another great show, tell your pals that we kick ass. Duncan cries inside because there are still people in town who haven’t been reached by our pithy commentary.

WHY OH WHY doesn’t Tony Wight at Bodybuilder & Sportsman respond to our e-mail? Everybody else in 119 responds; where is the love??? We are just trying to give you some airtime–we won’t be mean, honest. Wendy Cooper writes back, c’mon buddy.

THIS WEEK:

We visit Barbara Koenen at her lovely home and discuss resources available for artists in the City of Chicago. Barbara is in charge of the utterly bad-assed Chicago Artists Resource website, which shines the light of knowledge into the dark pit of confusion for us local types. If you don’t already participate, sign up now!

Chicago Artists Resource website, GO NOW!!!

ALSO: Duncan and Richard shut the hell up (leave the room even) so that Amanda and Shannon can review the new show at 40000 “Versus”

Names dropped:Brian Andrews, Cody Cloud, Rose DiSalvo, Dennis Hodges, Josh Mannis, Video Machete, Dan Peterman (also can’t write back to us), Rich Mansfield, Duncan MacKenzie, Heather Mekkelson, Jenny Walters, Sze Lin Pang, Naomi Robbins, Geoff Smalley, Mayor Richard J. Daley, Alan Artner, Scott Power, BAT magazine, New Art Examiner, Bridge, Art News sucking, Flash Art, Paul Klien, Michael Workman, NOVA art fair, ACME, Switching Station Artists Lofts, Artspace, The Chicago Transit Authority, LaShawnda Crowe Storm, Michael Thompson, Michael Hernandez De Luna, New York Foundation for the Arts, Michele Feder-Nadoff, Greg Cameron, Carl Hammer, Carrie Secrists, Natalie Van Straaten, and we weep for the lack of funding for the Chicago Artists International Program.

NEXT WEEK:

Liz Armstrong from the Reader? James Rondeau? Michael Workman dishing on who pisses him off? We have lots of stuff in the queue, let’s see who we manage to schedule time with.

Direct download: Bad_at_Sports_Episode_21_Chicago.mp3

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20 shows! Wow! I think back to my initial conversations with Duncan in a bar downtown and I doubt we ever expected to get an audience as large as we now have (which has doubled in the last month), the number of great, brilliant people working with us around the world, and the wonderful feedback we have been getting, thanks to you all! We continue to look at Bad at Sports as an open resource, so let us know what you think. If you want to contribute (particularly if you are somewhere other than Chicago), let us know! We are here as a public resource. Thanks!

Also, curious minds are still waiting to hear a good explanation of why, without permission from the artist, UIC took the Death by Design piece down off of the Temporary Allegiance flag pole at Gallery 400. Someone please enlighten us.

Check out the cool pictures of us Duncan posted: http://www.badatsports.com/pages/about.htm

Lane Relyea purportedly thinks we are cool.

THIS WEEK:

We interview Mark Booth–artist, teacher, and curator of the forthcoming “an incomplete map of everything” festival at Links Hall.

Per the Links Hall press release: “an incomplete map of everything is a fragmentary atlas of an imaginary world. The festival is comprised of co-existing “landforms” of an experimental nature; the Goldsmith archipelago, the Bök atoll, the plateaus of Goulish, the Bervin Sea, the isthmus of Mallozzi, and the fjord of Ross. There are other topographical features as well, both familiar and unfamiliar; emerging glaciers, new volcanoes, and uncharted estuaries. If there is one thing these artists have in common apart from their shared commitment to experimentation and investigative exploration it is their interest in probing the minimal elements that form the materiality of human experience.”

Mark also talks about being mistaken for a spaceman.

Richard and Amanda apologize to Duncan for creating confusion over the name Middle Management.

Duncan and Amanda fight TO THE DEATH over whether or not it is acceptable to curate yourself into a show.

And, finally, Richard insists you bow down to the genius of Patti Smith’s first record!

Names dropped:

Tiny Hairs, Terri Kapsalis, Libby the cat, Christian Bök, Judd Morrissey, Relaxation Record, Jesse Seldess, Luc Tuymans, Leonie Weber, Ben Brown, Meg Nafziger, Jeff Kowalkowski, Michael Workman, NOVA, Lou Mallozzi, Björn Ross, Fessenden, Institute of Failure, Trent Smith, Petrova, Jen Bervin, Lilli Carré, Erin Tikovitch, Tony Rosati, The 6 Ghosts of Fear, Ginger Krebs, Erin Moore, Kenneth Goldsmith, Ken Fandell, Matthew Goulish, Justin Cooper, Christopher Lavery, Daniel Borzutzky, CJ Mitchell, Goat Island, James Rondeau, Jimi Hendrix, Patti Smith, Open End Gallery, and last, but not least, Furries.

NEXT WEEK:

Barbara Koenen, fabulous overlord of the Chicago Artist Resource site, talks about how artists can make the most of what Chicago has to offer, and so much more.Direct download: Bad_at_Sports_Episode_20_Mark_Booth.mp3