The ruckus was evident throughout the city as Hygienic Art XXXI opened last Saturday at Hygienic Art Gallery with a collaborative exhibit more akin to a cabinet of curiosity than an art show.
The Hygienic Art Show, adamant in the “no judge, no jury, no fees, no censorship” policy it was founded on, filled its space with everything from an oxygen tank that had been molded into an octopus to a dildo sitting in a shoe-box shrine hanging above a titanic, cardboard brassiere.
Notable writer, editor and voice actor Doc Hammer, a former resident of New London who has gained critical acclaim for his involvement with the animated television series The Venture Bros., was lurking around the gallery.
“I’m walking around counting dicks; so far I’m up to five, which for any other art gallery would be absurd, but for Hygienic is below average,” he said.
Indeed, the Hygienic Art Show has had a long-standing tradition of encouraging the presence of any overtly absurd or risqué sexual pieces, and in classic fashion phallic pieces dominated the scene.
The excitement extended beyond the gallery though as local musicians gathered at the Crocker House for the annual Rock Fix event, headlined by local standards Fatal Film and The Weird Beards with Connecticut College professor-fronted Above/Below also filling out the night.
Waterford resident, Patrick Murphy, RN, born and raised in New London and trombonist of Above/Below, said, “Hygienic historically has less to do with the intrinsic quality of the music and more to do with the community that’s come up around it.”
Murphy noted the dynamics of the Rock Fix line-up as well as the quality of Connecticut College alumni art collective Nasty Outfit’s showing at Muse. Featuring the work of Adam Campos ’08, Catherine “Cato” Johnson ’10 and AJ Zane ’09, the display contained a collection of Campos’s photographs and Zane’s digitally manipulated images.
Connecticut College students were present in fairly high concentrations at both Hygienic Art Gallery and Muse. Notable student submissions in the Hygienic showing included pieces by Dave Alfonso ’10, Justin Levy ’10, Logan Zemetres ’10, and Zoë Diaz-Martin ’12.
Ann Marsh Daly ’12 commented on the quality of amateur work at the gallery. “There was a lot of impressive work from basement artists,” she said.
Sophomore Laura Profeta chimed in, “It’s kind of like a yard sale.”
Hygienic, New London’s biggest cultural event of the year, lays bare the singular qualities of New London, a scene built more around the community than the art itself. Doc Hammer himself has started to come to terms with the allure of New London.
“You just can’t get away from this place,” he said.
Some of the things Hygienic Art Inc.dosen’t want the public to know …
1. An active boardmember had a blog on the hygienic website for 3 months, in which he describes Marc Chagall & Milton Glasier as “Jew artists”. This was defended by other boardmembers as “freedom of speech”!
2. That there was a case of sexual harrassment filed against the president V.Scarano & treasurer J.Stidfole of Hygienic Art Inc. (CHRO Case# 0740337). (settled out of court)
3. Multiple Dept.of Labor Law violations. (6) involving the same parties. monies paid = $3700.
4. a artpiece that satirized the sexual harrassment case was documented and witnessed as entered into the infamous”uncensored” annual hygienic (29th.) show. mysteriously disappeared when the gallery was closed for “cleaning”!
5. As both ex-vice-president and original incorporating officer I can personally attest to the above, (also utilizing the F.O.I. act). and also being threatened with arrest TWICE by Mr. Scarano (hyg. pres.), once at a board meeting because I notified some of hygienic arts finiancial supporters concerning the boards apathy and the anti-semetic blog.
If you scratch under the do-good facade of hygienic art, you will find an antithesis of anything to do with the word Hygienic!
Respectfully,
Gregg Grippo
Norwich, CT
P.S. While I was a community DJ at Conn’s radio station – WCNI-FM, I was instructed by the station manager, John Tyler, not to speak or comment about the above FACTS on the air. When I choose to disobey his edict, I was suspended from the airwaves. ( yet no other DJ’s received any such order!)
I appealed the suspension. My requests for a open hearing was denied. along with my requests for supportive testimony and witnesses. WCNI’s board (kangaroo court) upheld my suspension.
What was funny was that no one at the hearing even knew the name of my radio show- “The Art of the Madder”
What’s not funny is that Conn. Colleges own Vice-President Ulysses Hammond was on a fundraising committee for Hygienic Art Inc.
( Gee…any correlation here ?? speaking of singular qualities of New London.)
…GG.