Series Premieres Wednesday, June 9 At 11 PM ET/PT
Bravo paints the creative competition landscape with “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist” premiering Wednesday, June 9 at 11 p.m. ET/PT. The exciting new series is the creative synergy between the Emmy-nominated producers Dan Cutforth and Jane Lipsitz from the Magical Elves (“Top Chef,” “Top Chef Masters”) and Sarah Jessica Parker’s production company, Pretty Matches, along with producers Alison Benson and Eli Holzman. “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist” assembles fourteen of the art worlds most talented, up-and-coming artists in New York where they will compete for a solo show at the prestigious Brooklyn Museum and a cash prize of $100,000.
Bringing fine art dialogue to the forefront of pop culture is host China Chow, who will serve on the judging panel alongside three art luminaries – Bill Powers, a New York Gallery owner and literary art contributor; Jerry Saltz, the senior art critic for New York Magazine; and Jeanne Greenberg Rohatyn, esteemed curator and owner of Salon94 gallery in New York City. World-renowned art auctioneer Simon de Pury adds his voice of expertise as a mentor to the contestants.
In each episode, contestants are faced with the challenge of creating unique pieces in a variety of mediums such as painting, sculpture, photography, collage and industrial design. Whether they are using a trash heap as their canvas or creating original cover art for a classic novel, the weekly assignments challenge the artists’ to push the limits of their technical skills and creative boundaries.
Joining the expert panel each week are inspiring, professional artists known for crossing mediums and breaking barriers in the ever-evolving art world. Guest judges include renowned mix-media artist, Jon Kessler, provocative photographer Andres Serrano and hyper-realistic painter Richard Phillips. With a gallery showing at the end of each challenge, these industry elite dictate which artists have successfully mastered the subject matter and creation of their piece, as well as whose concept leaves the greatest impact. For a sneak peek of “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist” go to: http://www.bravotv.com/work-of-art/videos/the-next-great-artist
Following are the 14 Artists competing on the series:
· Abdi – 23, Hometown: Baltimore, Md.
· Amanda – 35, Hometown: Chicago, Ill.
· Erik – 31, Hometown: Homer Glen, Ill.
· Jaclyn – 26, Hometown: Miami, Fla.
Jaclyn graduated Cum Laude from the Maryland Institute College of Art in 2007 where she received numerous scholarships and awards for her artistic achievements. After graduation, she moved to New York City and worked as a studio assistant to mix-media artist Jeff Koons for two years. Jaclyn currently has her own art studio in a professional artist community in Long Island City, NY, where she concentrates on oil on canvas, though she is also experienced working with video, photography and drawing. Jaclyn’s pieces deal with themes of sexuality and spirituality, and through her narrative paintings of women, she embraces and questions this supposed dichotomy. The work serves to chronicle her personal experiences while making relevant social commentary. Ambitious and focused, Jaclyn paints for the pure love of it, but seeks to further engage herself in the cultural dialogue of the contemporary art community.
· Jaime Lynn – 25, Hometown: Lawton, Okla.
· John – 40, Hometown: Dekalb Ill.
· Judith – 62, Hometown: Albany, N.Y.
· Mark – 32, Hometown: Santa Maria, Calif.
· Miles – 23, Hometown: Minneapolis, Minn.
· Nao – 46, Hometown: San Joaquin, Calif.
· Nicole – 25, Hometown: New York, N.Y.
· Ryan – 27, Hometown: Libertyville, Ill.
· Trong – 38, Hometown: Saigon, Vietnam
· Peregrine – 33, Hometown: San Francisco, Calif.
“Work of Art: The Next Great Artist,” is produced by Pretty Matches and Magical Elves for Bravo. Dan Cutforth, Jane Lipsitz, Sarah Jessica Parker, Alison Benson and Eli Holzman serve as executive producers.
Bravo is a program service of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, a division of NBC Universal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Bravo has been an NBC Universal cable network since December 2002 and was the first television service dedicated to film and the performing arts when it launched in December 1980. For more information, visit www.BravoTV.com. Follow on Twitter at https://twitter.com/BravoPR.
CHINA CHOW
Host and Judge
China Chow was first introduced to the art world by her parents, restaurateur and art connoisseur Michael Chow and style icon Tina Chow. Born in London, Chow moved to New York at age five. As her father’s restaurant, Mr. Chow, became a mecca to the art world that ruled Manhattan in the eighties, China was fortunate enough to grow up around some of the most prominent artists of the time, including Andy Warhol, Keith Haring, Julian Schnabel and Francesco Clemente.
Chow has fond memories of learning to draw elephants with their family friend, renowned artist Jean-Michel Basquiat. Having spent most of her Saturdays at museums with her parents, it was inevitable that she would become an avid art enthusiast. “Art is one of the most authentic ways for a person to express themselves,” Chow believes. “Clothing has to be functional, food has to taste good – but art is the purest form of expression, existing without set boundaries.”
As the host and judge of Bravo’s new creative competition series, “Work of Art: The Next Great Artist,” Chow will serve as the perfect tour guide through the often foreign-seeming art world. Her irrepressible passion for art and tremendous appreciation for beauty is contagious as she works to access the talents of aspiring artist throughout the course of the series.
Chow’s acting debut was alongside Mark Walberg in the 1998 action-comedy “The Big Hit.” She has also starred in the 2001 film “Head Over Heels,” as well as in hit television series including “Burn Notice” and “That ’70s Show.”
After earning a psychology degree from Scripps College, Chow spent several years successfully working as a model for Shiseido cosmetics, Tommy Hilfiger, the GAP, and Lane Crawford. As one of Harper’s Bazaar and Vogue’s “Best Dressed Women in the World,” she is routinely found splashed across the pages of fashion magazines.
Chow currently resides in Los Angeles.
BILL POWERS
Judge
Bill Powers, a self-proclaimed “art fan, ” is the co-owner of Half Gallery in New York and the editor-at-large for Purple Fashion magazine.
Powers’ colorful path in contemporary art first manifested itself in 1997 when he became the editor-in chief of Blackbook magazine. Until 2005, Powers remained with Blackbook, while writing about art and culture for other prominent titles including the New York Times, W, Paper, Vanity Fair and Details, to name a few. Through his extensive editorial work, Powers has interviewed some of today’s preeminent contemporary artists from around the world, including Damien Hirst, Jeff Koons, Kara Walker, Ed Ruscha and John Currin.
Powers’ written work extends beyond his contributions to press. His foray into the field of publishing led him to issue art books for the promising German multi-media artist, Jonathan Meese, as well as for American painter Rachel Feinstein. Powers published his own first novel, “Tall Island,” in July 2004. The satire following the entangled lives of three downtown New Yorkers was called a “must read” by Harper’s Bazaar, and a “clever comedic romp” by the Los Angeles Times.
In addition, Powers is an ardent art collector, with an impressive collection of works by Richard Prince, Elizabeth Peyton, Tom Sachs, Irving Penn and Dana Schutz, among others. The first piece of art that he ever bought was a photograph of ToeJam the Clown by Terry Richardson in 1998.
Powers is currently on the board of the non-profit RxArt, an organization that places contemporary art in hospitals and healing environments.
Powers currently resides in New York with his wife, fashion designer Cynthia Rowley, and their two daughters.
SIMON DE PURY
Mentor
Simon de Pury is one of the art world’s leading figures, renowned for his legendary performance on the auction podium and for his deep and longstanding knowledge of the global marketplace.
De Pury is Chairman and Chief Auctioneer of Phillips de Pury & Company, the leading global auction house for Contemporary Art, Design and Photography, and still owns a significant share in the business after selling the majority in October 2008 to the Mercury Group, Russia’s largest luxury retail company
De Pury joined Phillips in 2001 when his art advisory firm – the Geneva-based de Pury & Luxembourg Art, which he had started in 1997 with Daniella Luxembourg – merged with them
A spirited and highly successful career at Sotheby’s preceded this chapter. De Pury was appointed Chairman of Sotheby’s Switzerland in 1986 and later became Chairman of Sotheby’s Europe. This function, which he performed with his inimitable zeal and enthusiasm — coupled with sharp business acumen — saw him conduct important sales all over the world. These included the Thurn und Taxis sales in Geneva and Regensburg, the Margrave of Baden sales in Baden-Baden, the Palazzo Corsini sales in Florence, part of the Jacqueline Onassis Kennedy sales in New York, and all major Impressionist and Modern Art evening sales in both New York and London since 1994. He was also the initiator and auctioneer for the historical and first international auction to be held in 1988 by Sotheby’s in Moscow
From 1979-86, de Pury was curator of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection and organized numerous exhibitions not only in the Villa Favorita in Lugano, Switzerland, but also in major museums around the world. He was also responsible for the coordination of four key exchanges between Baron H.H. Thyssen-Bornemisza – then the most important collector of his time – and the State Hermitage, the Pushkin Museum, the Russian Museum, the Tretyakov Gallery and the Kremlin Museum in Russia. Prior to this, de Pury had started his career at Sotheby’s in 1974 and was active in their London and Monte Carlo offices before opening the Sotheby’s office and auction venue in Geneva.
De Pury studied the Japanese painting techniques of “Sumie” and “Nihonga” at the Tokyo Academy of Arts. He was born in Basel, Switzerland, and is the father of four grown-up children. He lives between London and New York.