by Paul Heney
Last updated: 11:00 PM ET, Thu July 19, 2018
Cleveland's inaugural FRONT International Cleveland Triennial for Contemporary Art opened this past weekend, with a press conference at the Cleveland Museum of Art. William M. Griswold, Director and President of the Cleveland Museum of Art, noted that the northeast Ohio region remains home to a disproportionate number of cultural institutions. FRONT, he said will "encourage others from outside our region to discover the cultural richness of northeast Ohio."
FRONT actually includes venues in the nearby cities of Akron and Oberlin, and Griswold explained that, "Each venue shares the same important goals and values. To advance the understanding of art and to enhance the lives of" those who come to see it.
Fred Bidwell, Executive Director of FRONT, one of the region's foremost art advocates, said that the exhibition is a celebration of the creative resources of the people in northeast Ohio for the people of northeast Ohio, as well as those beyond. He thinks it will be a nice alternative to the more commercial art fairs held in other cities.
"Cleveland has the right to do this because of the incredible resources here in town," Bidwell said.
FRONT's theme this year is "An American City: Eleven Cultural Exercises." The event, which runs from July 14 through September 30, is being held, in collaboration with museums, civic institutions, and alternative spaces across Cleveland and the region.
Visitors will find portions of the exhibition at traditional locations, such as the Cleveland Museum of Art, the Akron Art Museum, Cleveland Institute of Art, Museum of Contemporary Art Cleveland, the Richard D. Baron '64 Gallery at Oberlin College, and Transformer Station. But they'll also find art at unexpected places, including the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, Cleveland Clinic, West Side Market, St. John's Episcopal Church, Steamship Willian G. Mather Museum, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland.
Plus, FRONT is taking place outside, as well. Chicago-based artist Tony Tasset has placed his commissioned work, Judy's Hand Pavilion, on Toby's Plaza at Case Western Reserve, as a social focal point for the university, and Cleveland's Uptown neighborhood. The sculpture doubles as a dramatic public shelter and gathering spot and animates this crossroads as a site of continued programming during the Triennial. Large murals on downtown buildings adds to the community aspect of the exhibition. And City Stages is a series of six free concerts on Wednesdays featuring an array of global music-these extend to five neighborhoods across Cleveland.
My family toured the opening day exhibition at the gorgeous Akron Art Museum, a Coop Himmelb(l)au designed structure that seems to be simultaneously exploding, flying, and embracing the 1899 Italian Renaissance (former) Akron Post Office, which was incorporated as part of the complex. Here, 15 artworks are on display from artists from the U.S., South America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Displays examine who we are and how we relate to our surroundings.
We particularly enjoyed Jessica Vaughn's After Willis (rubbed, used and moved) #010, which uses public transit seats displayed in abstract patterns and Walead Beshty's Office Work, a crazy cascading tower of exposed office machinery-which occasionally rumbled, beeped and chattered. And Nicholas Buffon's series of drawings of gay locales in New York, Cleveland and Akron was moving and thought-provoking, especially for this queer family.
Cleveland and its environs are already a lovely Summer and Fall destination, with warm temperatures and lake breezes. But with FRONT in town for the next 11 weeks, art and culture lovers have another major reason to come sample the so-called North Coast.
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