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Rob Lee: Welcome to the Truth in its Art, your source for conversations connecting arts, culture, and community. These are stories that matter, and I am your host, Rob Lee, except no substitutes. Today, I'm excited to welcome two figures building alternative markets in the DNV art community. Joining me today to discuss a quiet taste are the founders of the art shopping network and artist, Maxwell Young, also known as Poppy Baker, and the founder of Homme Gallery, Amir Browder. Welcome to the Truth in its Art.

So let's start off with the first question. Maxwell Amir, it is great to have you here. Welcome to the Truth in its Art. And as we start off, we're here to discuss the quiet taste. So before we get there, I would love to learn, drumroll please, with this sort of punny sort of intro. Where did you two acquire your own taste, your individual taste in art and creativity?

Amir Browder: Well, as far as I guess I'll get started off, man. You know, as a Pisces, we're naturally creative. I don't try too hard. I don't really, I just kind of go with this flow and things that are just kind of this intuition that I have when it comes to creativity.

I have a background primarily in fashion. And that's how I got started with Ohm. And as far as with, you know, my acquired taste, the way I get it from on a more or on a more digestible level besides my Pisces nature, it would be from, I would say, from my immediate family, my mother, my father, my grand, my grandparents on both sides, culture in DC, around the world and my, my very close friends as well. You know, so that and of course my individual style that kicks in when I kind of break all this down like Legos and and they would piece it all back together. It just comes from just I'm going to use a hip hop term. It comes from the locks living off experience. Yeah. So Maxwell, what do you got?

Maxwell Young: First off, Rob, this is legendary to be on this podcast with you and Amir. I'm truly grateful for the opportunity and it's a lovely question that you've asked me. I think really I want to echo what Amir said. I mean, I'm a cancer. So likewise a water sign.

Maxwell Young: I'm a water sign.

Maxwell Young: I very much feel, you know, the sort of the sensibilities of humanity, of the collective consciousness. I think that's something that is very innate within me and I think within everyone, how we perceive things.

But I think for me, the beginning of my acquired taste, my draw to art really is like Amir said, with my family. I'm from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, but more specifically, I'm from Allegheny, West. And Allegheny West is the smallest neighborhood in Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh is a city of neighborhoods. And Allegheny West is the smallest, but it's home to literary all stars like Gertrude Stein and Mary Roberts Reinhart. I'm not familiar with those names. Gertrude Stein had salons with Pablo Picasso, Ernest Hemingway and Mary Roberts Reinhart.

She is famous as an author for developing the Butler Get It Trope in crime novels. And so I have grown up with that lineage and it's been all because of my parents. There's a level of historical preservation that is within this neighborhood, within my home, literally. And I think all of that sort of has just made me who I am today. I've had good and bad experiences with art growing up.

I think about eighth grade and St. Edmunds Academy. And this project with we were mimicking Chuck Close's style. And so I mentioned that because as we'll talk later about the great artist of this exhibition that we're planning at home, A Choir Taste, as this sort of full circle moment. But we had to draw portraits in the Chuck Close style and I chose Barack Obama. This is around 2009.

So his first inauguration. And I butchered it so bad and my art teacher thought I was such a lazy artist at the time. And I guess she was right. I guess I was. And that's certainly not my talent being an illustrator in that capacity.

I certainly consider myself more of a writer. But that I think about high school, a Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh and traveling abroad to Barcelona and Spain. And having breathtaking experiences with the architect and Tony Gowdy and experiencing things like a lot of familiar Parkwell. And sort of having my own relationship with art in those sacred moments. I think about DC going to George Washington University and sort of stepping out of that bubble of foggy bottom and exploring what chocolate city is, was, you tell me, this post chocolate city realm that you live in.

But meeting people like Amir, meeting people that live in this ecosystem that Amir knows that Amir has helped and has supported through his curation at home and working with creative artists in the community. I was involved with Uptown Art House at the time in 2017 through 2020. Uptown Art House was this collective in Cleveland Park, right a little bit beyond the zoo, the national zoo.

And in more of the Northwest quiet, you know, reach elements of DC. And it was this moment of sort of, I think about being from Pittsburgh, Andy Warhol on the factory and sort of the collection of artists, the constellation of artists that existed, the superstars, you know, that were in that time and in that space, in that open space, where anything was possible and it was happening. And that was much like Uptown Art House in DC at the time of the 2010s, the late 2010s, pre-COVID. It was such a DIY time, such a DIY element that existed.

And Amir is very much a part of that. And so, yeah, I think just through those experiences, I have grown to really appreciate art. I'm a collector of art. So my relationships with the artists that are in acquired taste are due to my personal collection very much so. I'm very proud of that. So, yeah, I'm very much here because I'm a steward of art and just wanting to connect with humanity. That's great.

Rob Lee: Thank you. And we'll be tapping back in on a few of those things, obviously. I will share this. I didn't see Pittsburgh initially. I'm in Baltimore. We got smoke. I know. I was like, hold on. We got a competition here. We got an apple in the pod.

Maxwell Young: And then, you know, also, ACV, you know.

Rob Lee: But the other thing is... You're cool with everybody, man. I'll say this. Aquarius, right? So, you know, water signs, I'm a water carrier. I'm an air sign. I bring the water. I carry the bucket. You know, I've told people you must have an aquarium.

You might drown. I've said that before in conversation. So I want to go a little bit deeper into sort of your individual sort of pieces.

And I'm going to go back, but I want to start with a mirror on this one. Tell me about Ohm. Like, what is it? What's the story there? Like, you know, how does this start? It's a gallery, but sort of... I don't know if gallery does it justice.

Amir Browder: I don't think we have enough time for me to get into the whole story of Ohm and how it got started. But I will give you a brief analysis of it and how it came to fruition. Like I said earlier, when we were talking off the air, that you know, you know, I'm a fashion guy. I went to school FIT for fashion merchandising and also doing things with how to open up a boutique and also things such as a specialist when it comes to development of people's personal style. So it wasn't a stylist, but it was more so a person who was able to enhance someone's personal style. So long story short, I started when I got fired from my job here in DC from a... Yeah, I can say the name, because I don't work with that anymore. PEPCO, fine, you know, I was working for PEPCO doing pretty well. It's a 20...

When I get fired? 20, 11. At the time, I was also taking classes at FIT. I would go on the bus every Wednesday and take these classes there that was on how to start your own fashion antique. So I would do that every Wednesday.

I think I did it for like four months. I was looking for a way out of PEPCO. I wanted to figure out how can I get into another utility company like in New Jersey or New York. I think it's a pretty good headway. I was like, okay, I could just go with like Con Edison or something like that where I could just do the same thing that I was doing before and be in the mix in New York and New Jersey, right?

And be able to put this all together. Well, that didn't happen like that. And I'm getting fired. And I remember like I just... I believe I got fired in February. And I took the time off for about two months. And I went to the backyard where I was. I said, what are my two favorite things I love to do? And it was fashion and it was football soccer, right?

Because I played it my entire life from five to 18 years old. So I was like, well, how the hell would that work out? How would I put the whole two days together? And I was like, I was like... I started... Remember like Tumblr was big at that time, 2011, right? Tumblr and like Matthew was saying before all these DIYs.

There's a lot of people doing some really cool kitschy stuff, DIY stuff. They were just in their own little world, you know what I mean? I said, let me see. I said, I got it. I said, I want to start my own fashion football line. And I said, well, it's not going to be like jerseys and stuff like that. It's going to be like off of men's essential sportswear. And it's going to be like quality, right?

Like very quality stuff. So I took time and I was like, well, what would the name be? He said the name. And I searched and searched and searched for these names.

And I found this Japanese football company, right? They had a fake football team. The whole thing was fake.

Everything was fake about this except for the clothing. So it was called Brisco FTs, a Japanese brand. And they were sponsored by Nike.

It was a fake football team. So I said, Brisco, I said, wow, I just started diving deeper and deeper into it. And I said, okay. I said, all right, that sounds cool. And they were doing similar to what I was doing with a great scale. I was like, well, shit, I could do that.

And I was like, all right. I said, I said, when was the game of football first invented? And it was 1863.

I said, that's going to be the name of this folding line. 1863 FC. Now, little did I know, or I did know, but of course, 1863 was also when slavery ended. Right? But I did not put it together.

That wasn't even what I was going for. So I searched for all these brands that would give me things that were like, that I didn't have to have a lot of minimums for. So I switched over here, a hat there, a cashew, a scarf here. This and that. All this stuff, put it all together. And I was like, well, what the hell am I selling?

I said, what the hell am I selling this stuff at? And I was reaching out to different clothing, booties and stuff like that. And they were pretty receptive and stuff like that. They were like, we do it on assignment and everything. And I was like, nah.

At that time, I had a seven year old daughter and I was still trying to figure it out. Wasn't working. Well, it was working, but it was like no part time here, here and there at Lord and Taylor. And then I was able to land a gig at Neiman Marcus as a freaking gift wrapper. So here I am, 35 year old gift wrapper with a daughter and just trying to figure things out. And I end up working for Neiman Marcus for the holiday season.

And they ended up keeping me and they put me in their logistics department. Yeah. So I was like, this is crazy. And one day I was traveling back doing MLK weekend because my daughter had this speech for MLK. All the kids are doing it at W 93.9.

That's a DC state if you don't know. And we were coming back, me, my father, my daughter, I was coming back with the car. And a friend of mine was like, yo, stop over here to Anacostia Art Center. I'm like, man, I ain't trying to figure out that I was going to go in the house.

You know what I mean? I don't want to go to the Anacostia because we live on Capitol Hill. So it was right across on 11th Street. So stopping there and it was nothing but these small little boutique spaces. And it was one open at the time was Newby and Newby and Human. She was open at the time. And I looked and I had a price sheet at the rent.

I'm like, this joint kind of high, but I think I could do this joint. So I took it. I took the flyer. I hit the woman up who was running it. I was like, yo, I have an idea. Tell me some business plan.

Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob. I ended up getting the space on my 30th birthday. All right.

I did not have no clothes, nothing like that. And I say, you know what? I'm gonna put it in. I'm gonna put my own clothes in here.

Now I'm gonna mix it with smaller labels that I can source from that, that, that I don't do a minimum for it. And I'm about to close from Neiman markets with my discount. And I'm gonna put those clothes in there to make like a curated experience.

All right. Got some furniture from Neiman. They gave to me, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, Bob, whatever, whatever. And it took off in the country because they never had anything like that. They did not have that type of curated fashion there and stuff like that.

The boutique went really well because it had a great aesthetic to it. So a lot of the photographers will come and take photographs of the space and where the mouth got around. Artists came about it like, hey, you ever thought of doing an art show here?

I was like, nah, nah, really. And they were like, well, I could do an art show. And the first artist that I ever had was an artist named David Ibahta that was curated by a young lady named Martina Downs. I might not have a lot, let's just say Martina. And she curated the first show. After that, other artists started to come into space and I got this kind of nod to the emerging underground scene.

NBC that wasn't represented and you got to have a voice. And I was kind of like this ignorance is a blitz type of thing. Never going to art school, never doing anything. And they were kind of like, yo, can you put my art in here? And I'm like, shit looks cool to me.

Yeah, you know what I mean? So it kind of grew from that. And it wasn't everybody's art. I still had a, I was like, that looks cool.

That looks cool. And it grew from there. And I left the Anacostia Art Center at the end.

I was there from 2014 to the beginning to the end of 2015, went to 520 Street, had to set up shop there again. And then I was like, I'm not doing the art thing. I'm just going to be strictly a men's boutique.

Getting out of work out that way. More artists is like, yo, can we put art in here? So I was like, all right, this is going to be like a guy's studio apartment. It's going to be like art on the wall, clothing, curated clothing in the back, little space where guys could come, women guys could chill and look at art, play music and do stuff.

Did not go out that way. Next thing I know, all these emerging artists are like, oh, can we do a show here? And then I was reaching out as well.

So I was reaching out to them. I got a lot of no's, a lot of no's, a lot of no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, nothing, but dig in some guesses. And some of those guesses are some of these amazing artists now such as Esteban White side, such as Chris Pirate, such as a Zinnia Gray, a Kaleem Flowers, all these different Diego's, all these amazing artists who took a chance on me and we took a chance on each other. And this little hole in the wall space, if you ever look up to the TOC and see where I was, this little hole in the wall space that generated so many amazing artists that were able to make an impact to the DC art scene. And it grew from that to a space where in 2018, it was just blowing up.

I ended up getting this space at DCA airport. It's just a really amazing experience. Fast forward COVID hits. And I was like, well, this is going to be over. COVID shut down a lot of the larger, a lot of the larger institution in gallery. And a lot of people were scared to open up during COVID. And since I was already in a situation where I was very lean, I was able to keep the doors open. I was in different programming and going live all the time and doing all of these different things. So COVID hit and then I was able to be the voice of this underground emergency because all the bigger institutions, all the galleries were closing because they had too much overhead.

I was already lean on top of what went on with George Floyd during that time. So now I have a bunch of people saying, support Black galleries, support Black galleries all around the world. And that's the movie of the guy who did these opportunities and not only Black artists, but artists of all different nationalities and stuff were able to showcase their work at the gallery.

And it went from there. In 2021, I got this space at 2000 L Street. I only got it because of COVID because no one was using the space. And they were like, I had to go to this application process. They were like, yo, we need some art down here. And that's how it happened. Sorry, it would be so long with you.

Rob Lee: No, no, it's like you said, it's an episode unto itself. But also I heard names like I'm friends with David. I'm friends with Zinnia. I know some of these names and it definitely comes up with the roster, if you will, that we will be talking about in a bit. But I want to go back to Maxwell real quick about the art shopping network.

Sorry, Maxwell. I read that it describes itself as a socializing art buying, appreciating artists and their work through accessible and inclusive markets. So why is that important and integral to you? Like right now? Like why is that a focal point?

Maxwell Young: Yeah, well, I'm so happy that Amir was able to provide that context because he is describing, I think, part of what we are also addressing, you know, in the conversation that we look to have about sustainability, about having a new conversation with galleries. And I look at our mission statement to socialize art buying, to appreciate artists and their work, because especially when you look at auction houses or the auction format, a lot of it is artists who are no longer around on this art, walking on this earth.

There art is and there art lives on, lives on and that's impactful. And, you know, this idea of blue chip art as an investment, you know, I wish and I, you know, aspire to be able to afford blue chip art. And I think to an aspect, you know, you can find blue chip art that is affordable. You can find art from emerging artists, you can find art from artists who are going to be selling work at, you know, these monstrous prices that we see that are on news headlines. But what I haven't really seen is the celebration in the auction market, in the secondary market of artists who are alive or practicing, who are making a living. And, you know, it seems to be the secondary market seems to be collector focused, you know, these are these collectors who are stewarding these works of blue chip artists and they're buying and they're selling and they're trading to that effect. That sort of prices out or doesn't really involve the very person who created the work.

And to me, I think that's central to our buying, at least from my experiences in the collection that I've grown. I supported living artists, artists like Esteban White side, like Amir mentioned, and being able to work with them to support them to be a patron is rewarding. And to see that, you know, to see that support, be able to elevate them, you know, I'm not, Esteban is, it's crazy to have known Esteban as long as I've known him. I've known Esteban since 2018, I believe. And even when I met him, he was already doing crazy things.

He was already on Netflix, you know, that she's got to have an episode. His collection was the collectors who have acquired his work was already crazy and it's just grown from that from there. But it's interesting to see how that works whenever you know the person, whenever you have a relationship with that person. And so this idea of art shopping network builds on that. It's how do we create a market that is that allows artists to live and sell their work and be able to also have a proof of concept or proof of sale, you know, the auction. And the one thing that auction does is it tells you what your what your work is worth, you know, what what a collector is willing to buy for it.

And that I think is a level of relativity that is important in this in this conversation. And so for me, it's it's about the artist and supporting their practice, the living artist and collectors being a steward at that process. But it's also about using art as a vehicle for humanity. You know, every sale of art shop at art shopping network supports nonprofits, supports efforts to food security for public health for education for cultural preservation. And so it's a conversation around ethical buying, you know, your purchase of art is enriching for your collection and for living with it.

But it's also enriching for society, enriching for public welfare. There are a lot of things that are happening right now that require our attention and that can be financially funded, you know, and that is this is a way for us to to focus on one of those funds in ways that we think are impactful, you know, a mere mentioned and across the art center as where he found his own. And I think that's full circle because every sale from a fire taste and they at home will be supporting and across the art center. So of course, if every sale will go straight to an across the art center, they're going through redevelopment right now.

They're going to be reopening sometime soon. And that's it. This is real tangible support that's going to benefit the new space of developing at in a cost to art center. The art, the artists that they support the program that they support. And so this is something that is scalable. But it's something that we want to focus on the living artists and being able to use art for better, you know, for change. Good.

Rob Lee: Good to hear. And I think I think in the last, what, five, six or so years, you know, we've seen these different shifts. You know, we've seen the conversation around NFTs and everyone can be an artist. And, you know, I see it even in the sort of podcast space of everyone has a video podcast and they're all just reaction videos.

And it's it's sort of a class thing that's there of only a certain number of people can do it. We at times value notoriety or we value we value clicks. And that impacts, I think, some of these different markets, whether it be the financial market of like, all right, how much is your work selling for, but also the attention market, which is another thing that we're sort of fighting for. So having, you know, opportunities and I'm glad to have two of you kind of laid out your backgrounds a bit, which kind of brings me to this next question of a quiet taste. What is a quiet taste and how did this and I'm using the term collaboration sort of loosely here. How did this collaboration in this you two working together come about?

Maxwell Young: Yeah, thank you. A quiet taste is a two day option to selling exhibition that we're hosting at home. And I really appreciate Amir for being a steward of this program. This is the third selling exhibition from our shopping network. This is not our first rodeo we've done this. We did this six years ago with bid to fight COVID, even going back to what Amir was saying around the urgency of the moment, the way that Amir was being that was able to be agile in that time, while other galleries and sort of other artists organizations and support neighbors were leaving artists. Our shopping network was founded in that moment through bid to fight COVID. And so through bid to two part exhibition that we had in 2020 and 2021. I don't think we'll talk about that a little bit later, but this level of urgency has never left us. And so acquired taste is the new version. It's been five years since our last auction, but the energy, the spirit of what we're trying to do has not left us to we. We are ambitious as we have ever been. And we're so thankful to have a partner like Amir and Ohm to be able to have a roster that has an interesting caliber of artists.

It really doesn't really look at it. The artists that we're going to be exhibiting might surprise you from institutional to emerging to street based practices. And so we're going to be auctioning off 54 exactly 54 artworks across two days on Friday, May 29 and Saturday, May 30.

We'll also have accessible prints, music vinyl and garments. Amir mentioned working with artists like Diego Montoya, who was really, I mean, even since Amir has worked with him when he first met him. These are people I had mentioned Esteban again. Like these are people, these are artists who are locally based, but they're globally minded. They're traveling, they're work travels, their name travels. And they really engage with art and the people who are stewards of it, where they are, you know, and that is on the street. That's in, you know, fine art spaces. And so it's a real privilege to be able to have this duration of artists.

You mentioned Zender Graze, Zender Graze in the exhibition as well. And so you can find art for $1 at Art Jumping Network and At Choir Taste. I mean it for $1.

We have starting bid at $1 from really talented artists. Steven M. Cummings is a photographer from Washington, D.C. And Steven M. Cummings is also a fellow wheat pacer fly poster. He has the, if you're in D.C. or the DMV area, he's the guy that puts the, it's a figure, it's a black figure in spectacles and a top hat. And usually a picture in black and white or sort of a brown tone. But that's Steven M. Cummings.

That's chocolate city rip on Instagram. And he is such a mystery. He, he appears and reappears and disappears. And so to get him to be a part of this auction is to me, I'm really excited about it. And I think it's truly special and to have, you can find the work that the works, excuse me, it's two works that he has in this show. You can find those works at Big Bear Cafe. There are versions of those works at Big Bear Cafe. And so there's some provenance to these works, but he's someone who is, his work has been collected by the Anacostia Community Museum, a Smithsonian property. His photographs, I like his photographs to James Van Der Zee and Gordon Parks, the way that he is able to document Americana and also African American community.

It's unlike anything I've seen. And so to have work from him is stellar. And so yeah, 54 artworks, an additional about, there'll be an additional about 50 to 60 artifacts, like I mentioned, that will be at buy it now prices. And so we'll have this auction and we'll have a buy it now portion as well. And so on Friday, we encourage everyone to come out.

It's from six to 10. And we'll be offering, it'll be a online and in person auction. And that's the key point that I don't want to leave out in addition to the nonprofit beneficiaries. What makes our shopping network so different is the fact this is live stream. This is a broadcast. You can, I don't know any, what are opening can you go to is Basil live streams? Are they, do they broadcast? Don't give him any ideas. I'm saying, I'm just saying, you know, this is.

Rob Lee: Well, let me, let me, let me go back in because I think that's a good point to to key in on a little bit. Like, how did you arrive at that structure to to have sort of reverse access that the private portal, then the live auction, the online component, because it does cast. And I think you touched on this earlier, Maxwell, sort of the, the, the sort of global artists that are looking more globally, like being locally, but being able to broaden out. I think that approach of being able to stream it, it opens up to a larger audience. And it seems like an idea that everyone should be stealing.

Maxwell Young: Yes, it started through the pandemic through COVID because of the quarantine nature and the isolation. How do we continue to engage with the art community? How do we be supportive of the art community at that time? And we, I claim it as the first ever Instagram live art option. I've never seen that content before on Instagram. You know, Instagram live was something that was really popular during the pandemic.

You know, I think about like quarantine radio and things like that. But that making the concept of sort of this HSN QBC live commerce element that you might find on TV and applying it to Instagram was really successful. We were able to raise over $6,000 for artists, over 50 artists in the mid-Atlantic region and a nonprofit and nonprofit organizations.

We raised money for Martha's table for NAACP legal defense fund for some Pittsburgh organizations as well, for one to rescue funding for the advancement of minorities through education. And so that really was a proof point that this could be something that was scalable. And really the whole time, six years ago when we did it in 2020, I always envisioned it as something that was in person too, but something that, you know, it had to start virtually. And so, you know, the scenario, the situation of

Maxwell Young: what it was of the

Maxwell Young: pandemic sort of, you know, made us be agile in that respect. But it was always something that was hybrid. And so, yeah, we are this concept of being in person at the gallery. And again, thank you to Amir and Ohm for allowing us the space to do this because this is now the full sort of existence or the full manifestation of what this idea was six years ago.

This is really what it's the impurity, impurity, its purest form is what it's going to be on May 29th and May 30th. This is the ability to bid on works in person, but also online, whether you're on our website, our shopping network dot com, whether you're on Instagram live, YouTube live, or if you have a smart TV, and you search our shopping network on the boxcast app Boxcast got popular through the pandemic because of churches, churches being able to live stream, but it's become this great app to be able to produce anything shout out to my twin brother. My twin has a lacrosse league six is prized league that he broadcast through boxcast and through YouTube live as well but this idea anywhere in the world if you have access to those platforms I just mentioned, you can watch and you can bid on and buy the choir artwork. And so it's something that we think is very scalable, something that we've done before, and it's something that allows people to have a traditional art gallery opening experience in person and engage sort of a tactile experience but also online. And it's no different from the Amazons and the, you know, eBay has a live commerce section as well. So I've seen art in the last year being sold, fine art being bid on on eBay during these like select live commerce portions. And so it's no different. It's just about establishing our own platform and to be able to build on that and grow the community that we have.

Rob Lee: That's great. And really interesting stuff. I love the scalability that's there. I love kind of repurposing or utilizing something that as you said, sort of boxcast I definitely typed it in is something that's a resource that perhaps underused or used by a specific audience. One of the things that I did before I move into this next question was I got these, you know, the little dot the risk thing that you have for networking you tap it and it takes you to I got cards done right that look like cassette tapes, you know, treating my podcast like a mixtape. And I would go into the people and you almost has the feel of a credit card and I was like, you won't throw this one away. You throw the paper ones away, but you won't throw this one away. And it's technology that exists.

It's an NFC chip. And, you know, we want to cure our codes. We chose that it's like a Transformers or GoBots conversation. Amir, I know you get that one. I know you get that reference.

Maxwell Young: It is sort of that right and repurposing all of this different stuff that's there for the means and, you know, this is not even a question that I have here but more of an observation. I do find it interesting like we have this expectation now I think for everything to be polished, perfect and so on. And I think that limits our opportunity to explore and figure out other ways to do things like we're right right.

Right now, right? We're talking through Zoom and I'm running it through a mixer. I was not trained. I learned to do all of that stuff and I'm sure I'm doing something that an audio engineer would be like, the hell are you doing? But I figured it out and I'm able to produce something from it. And going into it, which is the next question is related to

Rob Lee: artists, the DIY nature of it, you know, once we have these really polished, this is the exact way that you have to do it. There are certain rules that we have. Like, you know, you got to, you know, you got to use a canvas, you got to use a brush or what have you to paint something. But no one's telling you what to paint made out of. No one's telling you the size of the canvases. This is like one of the parameters we're playing with.

And I think utilizing something like Boxcast or doing something that's a little outside of the box or even doing that virtual out blow thing. Let's move it a degree to the left or to the right. And now it's different. And now it's unique.

And now it's novel. And I think that's the thing that leads to collaboration and sort of buy in going back to sort of what you were touching earlier, Amir, with the growth of own, like having, I want to do this. And it's like, that these artists that keep pulling up, you know, and it's just like, this is something that's unique. It's in that vein of it has that third space energy and folks gravitate towards it.

You know, like we have these centers, we have these spaces where creative folks, artists and people down for a good vibe need to be in. And I think the online component hindered that because we used it wrong. You know, especially around that COVID period. But once we got to where we're at now, and what you guys are doing with having sort of boxcast and having the online component to this live thing, it broadens it. It kind of reverses what we've been accustomed to having this silo. It's like, no, we have this in person. If you can't make it in person, also tap in for this version of the experience. I think that's very dope and outside of the box thinking.

Amir Browder: Yeah, you know, here in Mexico, talk about the emerging artists and things of that nature. You know, you can't. Every artist was once an emerging artist. You know what I mean? And every night, every idea was once something that, you know, that had to kind of people have to kind of follow it in a sense.

So like when I, when Matthew was talking about, you know, I don't know why it even is like a battle like this or like that. They will be. But a lot of times what happens, they pull from the streets to underground. They are the ones that create what's being done right now.

They are the ones with all the ideas, no matter how old or young or race or the street, all the ones that give these major companies. They're like, oh, we could have done it like this. Oh, that's so cool. Oh, now they put the battery, the corporate, the glitzy glamour in it. And now next in two years, I'll be live. You better believe it.

Maxwell Young: And they will be out.

Maxwell Young: That's because our network will be broadcasting it, not because they come to the idea though. Let's put that into existence.

Maxwell Young: Check this out. Check this out. Your point is very, very solid. I've joked about this a number of times. I did a couple years back. I did a creative mornings and I was like, ah, don't worry. In the next couple of years, some white girl named Becca is going to be doing the truth in his art. She's just going to replace me. And I say that facetiously because it's like I'm the one that's doing it. I've seen copies. I've seen different versions of it that don't quite work and real recognize real. And I'll make a sports reference before moving to this next question because you know sports and art. It's like when ESB and ripped off, what is it?

Ed Lovers come on son with come on man on Sundays. It's like y'all literally ripped this off and you guys got money. So you're deemed as being the first person to have it because you have all the money. But it's just like this is his. This is his man. Good job, Rob. Good job. Look, I keep it. But here's the thing.

Here's the thing I'm going to go into. So I saw that it was 30 plus artists, you know, sort of in the show, ranging from Chuck Close to various street artists. And I actually have a C artist that I've interviewed on this illustrious podcast.

Yeah, that's the bomb. We have Maurice James. I saw his name. So at least the Browns, Zinnia, Danny Green. Like I know I've interviewed all of these folks who I have you. So, you know, almost it's like you're building an all star team. You're cheating a little bit. So how do you build that roster and what holds it all together?

Maxwell Young: This roster is a totality of everyone who's involved in our shopping network and acquired taste. Truly. This roster doesn't exist without a mirror. This roster doesn't exist without our auctioneer, MAPS Glover. This auction doesn't exist without Jamal Gray and Torrance, our cultural media sponsor. Shout out to him for even linking this podcast together. You have to interview Jamal Gray. The depth of context of DC is profound. But this roster of artists, I mean, you read that correctly and you said it correctly. Chuck Close.

Chuck Close is going to be at Olm 2000 L Street, Northwest May 29th. Not for sale. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Not for sale.

Don't kill me. But where can you find Chuck Close right now? You can find him at Pace Gallery in New York.

He has a show of his smaller prints. Right now it's going on. It's being exhibited. And the steward of the work that we are going to be exhibiting is from his former personal chef.

And so the provenance of this work is truly special. I don't want to give too much away because we have an exclusive interview in our acquired taste issue one auction catalog that details this story. And so I encourage you to go to First Access by that so you can get our magazine.

Every purchase of First Access, you will accompany with our magazine, the inaugural edition of our magazine. But this collection ran just like you said from Chuck Close to Esteban Whiteside to Sydney Vernon, who's from PG County, who now is based in New York City, who has had an exhibition at the Phillips Collection, who is a graduate of Cooper Union and is self-admittedly a little bit zany. But she's very talented. And as someone who, you know, it's interesting how social media plays a role in this and seeing art online through Instagram and things like that and meeting people after you see their work on the feed and sort of have building relationships. But, you know, this, this, a lot of the artists, many of these artists have been involved with, have been involved with Art Shopping Network from the inception, from 2020. Artists like Diego Montoya, Esteban Whiteside, for all three of our exhibitions, Esteban has been involved, Diego has been involved, Aaron Harris is another artist that comes to mind. Please go to artshoppingnetwork.com, take a moment and look at the catalog that we have because it is a really good amalgamation of artworks. And I would love Amir to talk about it too because it is true, like I said, it is not possible to have this number of artists and this quality of work and the sort of the diversity of work as well without curators and gallery owners like Amir and the relationships that we've cultivated throughout our art experiences.

Rob Lee: Yeah, it's, you know, I definitely want to get Amir's thoughts on it and yeah, I think having this sort of intention and building out a roster, it kind of speaks to two different things, right? It speaks to, you know, sort of exceptional taste being tapped and being aware of who's making interesting work. And I use it almost selfishly and almost egoically as a litmus test. I was like, I've interviewed several of these people and several I want to interview. So I have taste. I've acquired taste. I did that. Please, Amir.

Amir Browder: You know, one of the things about a lot of the artists that Maxwell and myself are showcasing, they really were at the ground level of when DC RC was fun, you know what I mean? And I would say around 2013, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, after got after COVID, it became a lot more commercial. And a lot of the artists that were already established here that were doing a thing and didn't have a lot of notoriety.

And besides the community of artists that were here started to get pushed out by a lot of now well, a lot of artists that were professionally trained or coming from almost or transplants that were coming to the DMV area, being able to benefit off of the ability to go from DC, New York, Baltimore, and those Pittsburgh, those places and reap the benefits of what was already cultivated here. But now they're able to step into a system that has already been done. It's like, we keep doing these four clever things. It's like, Steven, it's like, what's my man, Mark Jackson, coaching the Golden State Warriors. And you saw him do all this and then he gets fired next year. Now, the previous year after that, the next year, Steve Kerr went to chance and shit.

Maxwell Young: The work was already done. People such as Latchel, myself, such as you, even taking time out and even know such people such as Danny, such as Zinni, such as David, such as all these people who have been grinding it out, doing it for the love, doing it for the passion, taking second, third, and fourth jobs to be able to keep their artwork going. And now they're in a situation that they should be able to benefit and see their work on a grander scale. And that's why I'm here and that's why it's so important to me that they do get their interest and they do get their recognition. And those artists have been doing it for a while.

And now they're finally doing it for a grander scale. nd I think that's extremely, extremely important because, like I tell a lot of artists, I'm the start of your career. I want you to go on to better, bigger and better, but when you do that, just mention my name. That's all you gotta do.

Rob Lee: Remember us little people.

Amir Browder: Yeah, it's because what that does is for the next group of artists, that's when they'll be able to say, oh, if I go to home and come here, I can get that platform of an emerging independent artist and therefore I can go to the next step. It's that, like, you know, so.

Rob Lee: I'll say this. I relate to that so much because in doing this, like, you know, early on, you know, you're trying to figure out what the thing is. This is season 11, 7 years coming up on a thousand interviews and you go through different iterations as to what do you want to emphasize, who do you want to talk to. And in it, it's, I'm not as comfortable with really gassing myself up as the person, but people will reach out. Can you connect me to this person?

Can you sort this out? And when I reach out to other people about maybe expanding it, it's not for me to be seen as a person of culture or as a critic or as a talking head. I think it brings awareness and attention to the archive.

All of those different people and they're able to share their stories authentically and in a way that's a bit more conversational. So you know how it goes. Like we were talking a little bit before getting started. Like these conversations, folks have nerves. They're trying to get across stuff. And it's, I think I try to provide sort of a calm atmosphere that leads to someone presenting themselves and what they're doing in the best light and you get those extra nuggets.

So with this extra nugget, and I'm going to move into, this is a segue guys, I'm going to move into this other question for Amir before going back to Maxwell. So you know, I'm just going to allow like artists to hone their practice and learn like sort of what it, what works in a gallery setting. How, let's talk about space because this has the online component, right? As far as folks being able to buy and see the work. But what are the, you know, sort of benefits of a physical space and how does it help teach like artists?

Amir Browder: That's a great, that's a great question. I mean, as far as physical space and online space, you know, you're not taking from online of course, because we're definitely, you know, there could be people in Japan or Guatemala or Houston, Texas, wherever who could not make the show. So that's why I think online is an amazing component. But I also think that physically seeing it with your eyes and getting that emotion and being around others and just taking it all in is something that cannot be changed, you know. And to, that's like, if you were to view the, the chair showing on your laptop and you live right down the street when they hear Sean and you see all the work that, oh, I'm going to check out these, these pieces look really beautiful.

But then you say to yourself, well, I actually want to walk to the hear Sean gallery and shut, I mean, they hear something, I want to check this out. It's going to be a totally different emotion. It's going to be, because you're going to have the sight, the smell, the experience of just that whole interaction.

So that's what we're pretty much doing. It's pretty much the five, it's pretty much your five senses. And I, and I know that when people come physically to this gallery, they're going to get off of it. They're going to hear music. They're going to be able to be with different people who are creative and, and collectors and, and, and kind of have a good time. And they're going to be able to see the office and get right up to it like this. You know what I mean?

Rob Lee: You know, so that's one of the things that is something about, and I like that you touched on sort of hitting all of the senses, right? Hitting the five senses. And what a sixth sense.

That's a whole different thing. Every place is haunted. It goes everywhere. But I'll say, yes, I think, you know, being there in a space, I'll say this.

So here up in Baltimore, you should go see if you have the chance. Dorian Fletcher, who did the wearable art, the jewelry in the Black Panther movies and if very well projects, I interviewed her after going to the preview of the show and seeing literally the armor from the, you know, the Supreme Garden and the jewelry. And so I was like, yo, that's Angela Bass's outfit. You know, the whole thing being there in front of being there around it. They give you a different perspective. And I think, you know, she was there as well. So having sort of this component of, I think this fits this way. I think really being involved with the space intimately gives you a different dynamic. And there's much more attention to it. And I think, I remember at a point, especially during the COVID era, when it was at its peak, you know, there was a lot of virtual, you know, exhibitions seeing the work in that way.

And while that can be fine, it shouldn't be the only practice. You have to be there and literally experience it. So with that in mind, I want to move into the question I had for Maxwell. So talk about the sort of back end as far as like our collectors, you have to wait for the auction to acquire works. And thank you for touching on that earlier. But if you want to just hammer that point on again.

Maxwell Young: Yeah, no, you don't have to wait until May 29th and 30th when we will be doing our 10 hour production of acquired taste. You can buy work right now. You can go to archoppingnetwork.com, go to our collecting page, select the first access and purchase it for $30. This is the exclusive VIP package that arch-shopping network that we are offering for acquired taste. And so what this means is that you will receive a password to our online portal where we have most of our auction lots available for buy it now right now.

You can purchase works at their market value. If something grabs your eye, something is so compelling through the virtual space, you can purchase it right now. In addition to that, leading up to the exhibition on the exhibition date, we will have VIP gallery hours are collectors preview. So on Friday from five to six and on Saturday from three to four before the auction and the exhibitions open to the public, you will have time to explore the exhibition with Amir and I and the team of our shopping network for us to provide context and proven arms and for you to just explore, be with the work unfettered. You know, and there's an importance to that, you know, to not be competitive over the work because like some of these prices like you mentioned, the dollar starting bid of Stephen M. Cummings, fifty dollar starting bids for Heather Jones.

You know, some of these bids are some of these starting bids are you know, Clarence James as well. You know, the the it's a really great offering of work at accessible levels. You know, whatever whatever your collector level or where you want to stand, you will find it at our shopping network. You know, we have prints that are for sale that are affordable under our dollars.

Dollars will have garments to be able to purchase. So you'll have a femora to be able to collect from the sale. The magazine, as I mentioned, so you'll have the. The online portal, like I said, will have the collector's preview that you'll purchase with first access, but also you'll have the catalog. And I just hold this, you know, Sotheby's, Christie's, you know, they're obviously a reference point. This is the JVKL Jacqueline Kennedy on asses. This is her estate sale that Sotheby's auctioned off in 1996. I just bought this today. But so this is a reference for the catalog that we're building.

Yeah. For acquired case. With the purchase of first access, you will also get a catalog. We have a public auction, lots and collectibles, sort of price list that you can look at right now in our shopping network.com.

We'll print those out for the public as well, but you can view that on your phone as a PDF. But this collector's version of first access and acquired taste is something that will include exclusive editorial interviews from our steward of the Chuck Close piece of Yellow Raincoat. It'll include a contribution from Shory Sim. Shory Sims is from Baltimore.

Shory Sims is from Baltimore, but I met her in Pittsburgh. She's a very talented artist. I have a really great illustration of hers that reminds me of bath time when I was a kid, but I'm so happy that she's a part of the show.

So happy that she's represented in the DMV. She's also a really talented writer. And so she's contributed an essay to this to the acquired taste issue. Well, issue one, we also have a contribution from Alexis Gomez.

Alexis Gomez is from Alexandria. He's an alumnus of George Washington University, my alma mater. He has a sculpture and as well as a painting in acquired taste. He has some digital renderings of his work.

He works in 3D printing, and he he's a great example of the possibilities of 3D printing. And so that the magazine acquired taste, the catalog is a great way to sort of draw a line between what's real and what's not and what's digital. And so he's got some renderings that are in acquired taste. I've also got some Polaroids from my personal archive that I've taken of, you know, being in artist spaces over the last six, five to six years. You know, I've got Polaroids from Esteban White Sides House and Studio and the DIY approach that he has had.

I've got Polaroids from Shory Sims as well. Just my experience in DC and, you know, experiencing art and being a participant in it. I am a writer and so I will be writing a number of interviews and articles in this in this catalog as well. I'll be covering the interview on the steward of the Chuck Close Piece. Mahadi Lawal is the editor in chief of Big Facts Magazine.

He's helping with this catalog. They're appreciative of that. And so, yeah, first access is the way to buy art right now is the way to sort of have the collectible and memorabilia of acquired taste. But it's important way to celebrate the context in the history of art, you know, like we're not just selling work to sell work.

We're selling work because we love art. We really do. We love participating in it. We love collecting it. We love making it. We love the people who make it. And we love having conversations like this.

And it's important to celebrate those things, you know, like it's it's one thing to move artwork and we've done it. Our shopping network. I want I want to the question I have after this is Amir, how many how many paintings have you sold?

Our shop work, you know, we sold over $20,000 of artwork, which is able to support nonprofit organizations over $7,000 of that has gone to nonprofit organizations and the rest of that has gone to artists. And so this is a very real thing. This is not anything that we're playing around with. This is something that is scalable within the proof of concept is right here with the choir taste at the end of this month. You can go register for free R.S .P.P. Or not and just show up, you know, it doesn't matter, but it'd be great to know if you're coming ahead of time. But it's a free experience, you know, even if you just want to come and observe the wonderful work that's in the show, there's massive work in the show. Clarence James, as Amir mentioned, you know, there's a big painting from Clarence James in the show. There are smaller works. There are works from blue chip artists like Chuck Close. There are works from Estimon White Side. Estimon White Side, you know, is I call him an all pro artist because the releases that he has, the shows that he has at home, you know, are they sell out Estimon is someone is an artist. Those are prices work. I think that is something that could be a whole show, honestly, for you. How do price work as an artist? I think that's an interesting conversation that we have here at our shopping network and through a choir taste. But this is a great opportunity to buy some Estimon White Side at an affordable price, multiple works, Estimon White Side.

Amir Browder: And you got more and you got more research and junior and also not so let them know that we do have already 40 VIP. Yeah.

Maxwell Young: I'm sorry. No, not 40 bad pieces, 40 RZPs right now.

Amir Browder: We want our excuse me. I want it. Come on. We need a lot of RZPs. This should be this should be a big age or moment. Cutting out on this. Truly like this is a way to support artists in the moment. This is a way to see a platform and a process.

Art is unlike anything that you have seen, you know, this is a this is a broadcast studio and art gallery that will be a choir taste and an art shopping network and through own, you know, I also want to highlight the two hour special that we have our culture, Jamal Grand Torrance. Like I said, I can't I can't thank him enough for connecting the dots here with this episode, Rob. You know, like you were talking about just to be part of this community of 900 plus approaching 1000 episodes is epic truly. So thank you. And Jamal Gray has been a true support in that. And so his cultural media agency called Torrance Torrance is

Maxwell Young: a sponsor of our two hour special called subdivision. In subdivision from four to six PM on Saturday, you'll be able to browse and buy music vinyl, you'll be able to buy custom airbrush garments from Diego. Diego. And if you go on Diego's Instagram right now, you've seen this activation in LA. You've seen this in Japan.

You've seen this in Europe. This man, the way that he's able to apply his monsters and his characters of beings, Diego Montoya, Diego at Diego on social media is really it's really a sight to see it and it reminds you of the Nazca lines in Latin America truly from like above the sort of the big, large paintings that are like emblazoned in the dirt. But he will be airbrushing custom pieces at home. That'll be something that is broadcasted. That'll be something that people can engage with and purchase in person and online will have accessible prints from street artists who are very important to DC and the world. Mas Paz, Mas Paz has murals in Baltimore too.

I see Mas Paz everywhere in the DMV. Yes. Yes. Mas Paz has prints, colorful, hueful prints from Columbia directly from Columbia that he worked with a work shop in a print shop in Columbia that will be at our shopping network for sale. You'll see works that he's we based on the street for sale as well. And he also has a painting that he's offered that will be auctioned as well.

Divorce culture is another street artist that will be offering prints. He recently did a Smash Ice. It's a sort of a laborer who's like smashing an ice cube.

And it's a, you know, tongue-in-cheek and pun intended Smash Ice. I thought they were epic and I instantly messaged him like, we need this for a quiet place. Like, can you please, there are massive prints. He, we paste movie scale, movie sized print posters of Smash Ice and other illustrations of descent and urgency.

But we have smaller sized prints of these, of these Smash Ice posters that will be for sale as well. And so this is, this is a show that meets the moment. It really does. Like of the, of the year of this past year of what's going on in the world.

And tapping into humanity and the collective consciousness. We all want to be able to experience these moments in real time, whether you're in DC or whether you're in Pittsburgh, you're in Baltimore, anywhere in the world. You can, we only ship nationwide. So if you're in France, if you're in Paris, if you're in Tokyo, tune in.

But please don't buy this nationwide at the moment. But this is really an exhibition that meets the moment and the artist, it celebrates the mid-Atlantic region. It celebrates what it means to be an institutional art, an art, institutional artist, like I said, Chuck Close, Holly Bass. Do you know Holly Bass? Holly Bass is from, or is a DC based artist, but she was at the Venice Biennale in the, in 2022. And so the, the, when is it, this 2026, the summer it's coming up. Yeah.

The summer. And so she is, this is an institutional artist, Holly Bass, who is mainly a performance artist in my mind, as I've experienced her work in DC, but someone who is a renowned narrative photographer and conceptual artist. And her work is in the show.

And she has a really great fun piece that really cater. I think about the WNBA. I think about basketball.

I think about femininity all in one with her piece. It's called NW, NWBA spin. Go check that out. That's a lot. Number 19, I believe my memory serves me correctly, but there's so much great work in the show, Rob. And I could, that the work in the show is an episode itself. Truly like I, it represents the people and the risks, the relationships, the proximity to artists that again, a mere nose that I know our auctioneer, maps, Glover knows as well. Uh, Cueixon Whitlock is the preeminent printmaker in what, in Pittsburgh PA.

Excuse me. I think about Andy Warhol, Cueixon Whitlock. Is an artist, my best friend from Shady Side Academy, my high school. This is someone who I think about. You asked me earlier about my relationship to art. Cueixon Whitlock is someone who has had an influence on my art perception and art engagement. He's someone who is, I think about someone who has committed to art as a practice and a lifestyle.

Cueixon Whitlock comes to mind. He's a master printmaker and he's my age and he's looks like me. And this is someone who is finding a way in a Pittsburgh scene that doesn't always serve people that look like me.

DC has been a great place to explore ideas such as a quiet taste and art shop and network because you meet people like Amir who look like me, who get it, who have done it, who have done this DIY thing. And you just honestly, I think the, I think about the difference between five years ago when we did bid to fight COVID part two and what's going to happen. On May 29th, which is the five year anniversary of the last auction that we did coincidentally, I think it's honestly the curation of the show. There's not one piece in the show that I looked at it. I wish I could buy every piece in the show.

I swear to you. And I am not, I'm not your, I am not a little collector. Like I honestly, like I, I, I, this is not about the show is not about my collection, but Vanessa German, I've acquired her.

Esteban, white side, I've acquired him. So I'm not like, I, I love this, this curation of artists. And if I am trying to pull out my wallet for all these artists, you should too.

You really should. And I think at every level of whether you, you know, can afford something at the $100 level at the $500 level at the $300 level at the thousand, we have works range our highest, our most expensive work is Clarence James at the starting bidder that $8,500 and that piece is massive. That's a 60 by 48 piece that he will be ex exhibit. He'll be exhibiting and it's amusing museum quality work. It really is a beautiful piece and rendition of Harriet Tubman.

It really is the longer that the longer that I've sat with it, the more I've appreciated it. Honestly, I've appreciated all these works and it's really been great to sit with them throughout this process of developing the catalog and working with a mirror and working with the artists and logistics in the back and forth and to just be a part of their practice for this, this small moment truly. And it's great that Amir has worked with a lot of these artists before. Name that we've mentioned Esteban Heather Jones, Clarence James, Diego Montoya, you know, like we've all had relationships with these artists. Amir and I maps Glover. And so it's, it's just a way to represent our relationships and a way for people to engage with that. Yeah.

Rob Lee: Not if that's, that's good. It tracks it. I hit a passion. It makes a lot of sense. And it actually answers one of the other questions that I had. So I can actually go into sort of this last real question around sustainability. What does sustainability look like? And how do you keep going, you know, in this sort of space without burning out? And it kind of, in some ways, I got to look at it again, you know, my, what I do with podcasting, right? And I see like, Oh, well, these podcasts are doing this. And how do they like prevent that from becoming an avenue that I engage in due to the burnout, due to the sort of perhaps lack of traction? How do you, for lack of a better term, stay pure at what the intent is while sustaining it and staying on point. Yeah.

Maxwell Young: The intent is to create a social atmosphere for our buying, to appreciate living artists and to benefit humanity. That is the intent. And so I think you can explore variations of that. And the way that we do that is by having excellent partners like Amir, like Alme, like Torrance and Jamal Gray, like you, Rob, and the truth in this art podcast. Like it is scalable through the relationships that we build.

It is scalable because I think that this is an idea and our concept and a platform through our shopping network that is should be taken seriously at every art level within the industry in a DIY level. And so for me, it's not about, you know, like disrupting the space. I think it's really about showing the art industry or the gallery scene and or fine artists and artists who just wouldn't consider this, what's possible. And, you know, maybe this model doesn't benefit everyone, you know, and I think that they're through the, as you were mentioning earlier, you know, the, as we've seen over the last several years, how, you know, artists aren't so, you know, amenable to what the traditional fine artists approach or contract agreement looks like and things like that, you know, this might not make sense for someone, you know, we're not, not every penny is going to the artist. You know, we are able to allocate for nonprofit institutions as well. You know, and so for artists who are socially conscious, this is an avenue for you. But I think that it's really the, it is scalable because of the partnerships.

It's scalable through the idea that you can, you can be anywhere in the world because of streaming capabilities and through this in-person and virtual hybrid. You can be anywhere. And so, and we want to be everywhere, but it's also about strategic relationships. You know, we, I want to be able to celebrate the artists that are in my orbit in the community that I've grown up in through DC, who are promising, but also through that, understand the world, you know, where are we in this moment of time? And those who are, I think about Esumon White sign, he comes up so much because he's a great friend, but his work is so great too, you know, like his work means something. He's saying something, you know, there, we want to work with artists who are using their work for a reason, for a message, for, for good. And our work also reflects that too.

You know, our work directly benefits humanity is looking to support public welfare. And I really think about, I will be so sad if I don't mention this. I'm sorry. Um, I really go back to my schooling is a big part of all this, truly.

I'm sorry to say that as like, if that means I'm indoctrinated or something, but like I wouldn't be here without my schooling. And I really, an idea that stuck with me is learning about the Great Depression and the federal arts project and the works, progress administration and what they were doing back in the 1930s before World War two artists were a part of the public infrastructure. Artists were being employed. So they had jobs and artists were enriching our community because of the work that they were putting out the murals. The, everything that they were doing at that time was for the betterment of humanity. And in that, there was an understanding that, yeah, art is, is powerful. It goes beyond what is, you know, what you're seeing right here. There's a, there's a energy behind it that can fuel a nation, you know, that can uplift a nation from the doll drums of the Great Depression through what you look at on the, on the bus, what you look at at the mail post, at the, at the post office, you know, who was employed because of the, of the federal arts project, people like Mark Rothko, like that artist, like Mark Rothko, like that is, they're, you were talking about, Amir was saying, you know, every artist was an emerging artist at one point.

You don't know who you're going to support, you know, at that moment where they need the most, you know, at that moment where, you know, someone is recognized the power in their work and they buy it. And that's just like, wow, not only have you set sort of a nominal, you, you understand the market value, the literal, you know, the monetary value behind the work, but you understand the energy behind the work too. You know, so the bidding is going to be competitive. We have a term, we have a phrase called bid the work. Our auctioneer, maps, Glover, he says bid the work and it's going to be competitive.

Like I said, starting with the $1, starting with the $50. And then we have just really great work. And so I'm really excited to see the collectors that come out. Please RDP. It's free so we can know you're coming out.

We're going to have at, in the auctions that we've had in the past, we've had musical accompanies, accompaniment, we've had music performances. Think about SNL. Think our shopping network is like SNL. I mean it. Like we're going to have an auction and that's going to be like, that's going to be unlike anything you've seen, but we will also have music performances, which will be live streamed. We will have Clark Randolph, who was a violinist.

You can find on MPR tiny desk. She was just at Coachella. She's a violinist who's worked with Snoop Dogg, GZ. She'll be performing, accompanying the visual art that we have in our choir taste. We'll have the best rapper in DC, AKA Marty Heem Cherry performing at the choir taste.

We'll have DJs extraordinaire, Jamal Gray performing at the choir taste. This is really a dynamic experience. This is not just about buying art. This is about how we engage with art at all levels. And it's really exciting. And I'm super grateful for the opportunity to just spew all that. Because it really is exciting. Please, if you're listening, art shopping network.com, RSVP, read a little bit about what we do, look at the catalog and just browse the art because that's the most important thing, you know, whether it's online or in person at all 2000 L street Northwest.

That's where we'll be May 29th, May 30th, six to 10 PM on Friday and four to 10 PM on Saturday. That's 10 hours of on air programming and in person experience. That's unreal. That's unreal. And if we're given away the ingredients for the higher ups in the institutions, fuck it, whatever, like it is what it is, like, but they're not doing it like that.

I guarantee you that they're not doing it like us. And it's really exciting to be back in this position of showcasing artwork and being a part of the whole experience because I like to have a good time. The music's gonna be loud. The music is going to be hip. I'm telling you, this is, please, if you're in town, I'm here, I need you to echo this.

If you're in town, please go to home in May, check out our shopping network. Thank you so much, Rob. Uh, I know we've got other questions to answer. Um, and I look forward to that, but please thank you for the plug and thank you so much for your work because creating an ecosystem in the community where artists can challenge themselves and feel like, Hey, you know, this is part of the process. Like Amir was saying, talking to you as part of the process, I can check this off. Like this is, I am not new to you and your work. Like, and I, and so being able to be on this podcast to me is like, you know, I'm, I think I'm doing something right.

I think that I'm, you know, this message of trying to support or supporting the community and, and using that for good. That's important. So thank you for, for amplifying that.

That's important because people, organizations, things that, you know, this is important. It really is. And thank you for amplifying that. And this is just a different way to experience art. And you know, this is the best place to buy art.

That's what I, that's what we are saying. This is a slogan that my twin created, but the best place to buy art is art shopping network because we're supporting living artists. We're supporting nonprofit institutions who care about what's going on in the world and we're supporting galleries like all who have supported artists that we're working with for a long time. You know, there is a lot to be said for an institution like Ohm, who is supporting people like me, artists like me, who have an idea, send an email, send a DM and you actually get a response.

You know how many organizations don't respond, you know, like, and how that is, you know, yes, no, and being ignored is a part of everyone's experience. But no, that's, you know, it's part of the process, but having someone who can connect the dots and understand what is happening and just see it is important. So thank, and you're someone who sees it and is connecting the dots again. So thank you.

I cannot be grateful and appreciative enough of you, Rob and Amir for letting our shopping network flourish at home. And that's what it will do. And if you're listening, be a part of that, just be a body, be a gallerist.

That's what we call it. Be a gallerist. Rob, I hope to see you be a gallerist for real.

Be a gallerist. It's going to be great salon style, Victorian style artwork everywhere, artwork everywhere that you've never seen artwork from different artists. I'm telling you, it's exciting. Thank you. Absolutely.

Rob Lee: Absolutely. And so that was actually sort of the last real question. I want to hit the rapid fire questions and then I got a saved like advice question. We'll close out on. So not too much thinking in these questions. So the first one, first rapid fire question, just your favorite place for inspiration in the DMV. If you want to go Amir, that'd be fantastic.

Amir Browder: Favorite place for inspiration in the DMV. That's a great question. Man, I would have to say, oh, that's a good one. Hmm. I would say, oh, my gallery. That's a very corporate answer.

Rob Lee: I appreciate it. It's honest answer.

Amir Browder: Because I'm going to tell you a quick reason because I know we got to try to wrap it up. It's quick, quick, quick response. But because of the amount of creative people that come in here, they give me inspiration. Yeah. So whatever I do with new show, whenever I have the doors open, whatever I see, walking down the street, whatever it is, I see the artist and people coming in for openings and appointments. So those are totally different people.

Some I've seen, some I've never seen and they give me inspiration and let me see things from a different scope in a different lens. So that's why I say that. That's great. Maxwell.

Maxwell Young: I would say two, one, that was going to get me find is Union Market because the development in Union Market, I think is it's two, it, the gentrification development is Union Market and the raw energy of the graffiti and sort of the street that you would find where it messes with this sort of distribution point. That's gone. But it was there and it was so cool to live there and work in that space. But that ain't that anymore.

But that's my number one answer. Number two would be the National Gallery of Art, looking at Thomas Cole paintings, looking at Thomas Cole paintings, looking at Watson and the Shark. These are, I studied American art in the age of revolution at George Washington University with Michelangelo Rodriguez. Shout out to him. He's a great photographer in my collection.

But going to museums and looking at a great painting, a big Thomas Cole painting, that'll just, you know, just sort of like reignites whatever sort of creativity that you're looking for, at least for me, you know, like any artwork. I really love going in Pittsburgh because I don't live in DC anymore and the DMV anymore. I was there for 12 years. I do have a DC license, so I feel cool. But in Pittsburgh, I go to the Andy Warhol Museum.

That's my number one answer, truly. The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh. That's the Andy Warhol Museum in the world. That is the headquarters for Andy Warhol. Friday nights is the best time to go.

They're open until 10 o'clock and it's just cool to be around Andy. And that's truly like my like peaceful place in place to be inspired and just sort of think about all the sort of components that exist in art. You know, I think Andy Warhol was really someone who got that like the business side, the entrepreneurial side, the everything, working with other artists, you know, everything. And so, yeah, the Warhol Museum, sorry. I'm sorry. When I'm passing it, I did talk. Yeah. The Warhol Museum.

Rob Lee: Thank you. So here's the second one. Sort of similar vein, still going to be DC focused in this question, but sort of the best spot outside of the gallery or museum setting to see art. I would imagine you got street art that comes to mind. Maybe there's a specific neighborhood, but what's your sort of favorite place to see art outside of the traditional gallery or museum setting? Okay. Get on my mirror. Go ahead.

Amir Browder: Oh, man, I would say I love the Eastern Market corridor. I love the Georgetown corridor. U Street, Georgia Avenue around Old Street as well. So that whole Noma situation. I enjoy that. But to me personally, I would say Eastern Market. And then second would be Georgetown, but Eastern Market tops because there's so many mix and crannies.

There's so much things that go on there when it comes to eating murals or, you know, traditional street art. Like I remember a couple of years back, maybe it would be four or five years ago that there was a sighting and I saw it of a space invader. So there's a space invader on the street of Pennsylvania Avenue. There's space invaders on the asphalt, which was seen super cool because no one knew what space invaders were.

I was like, well, that's pretty well, that's a space invader. In addition to that, you have these different coal and the wall galleries. I'm going to give a shout out to one of the first that ever did it here in DC. And that's the gallery in the Dawg on Islet.

Islet of A Street. Right. Yeah.

Dawg on Crete. So I'm going to give them a shout out because they don't get enough credit and recognition. And they were the ones who actually that I saw DC artists to be honest with me for the first time about 15, 20 years ago.

So I got to keep it real with that. You know, they were in the Dawg on Alley. So I would say East of Market and then, and then Georgetown and then it goes down from there to, you know, U Street and DuPont Circle. You can't forget DuPont Circle.

I love DuPont Circle area. Amazing art. And when we're speaking of art, we're not just speaking of, I don't even street art or something like that, but it goes a long way. It goes culinary. It goes to vibe. It goes to everything. So all right, I wrap it up quickly. That's what I wrap it up fast.

Rob Lee: And yeah, Maxwell, I could see back off that though real quickly because the first, the first piece of art that I acquired in my collection was from the fridge. Broken Safety Exhibition was a group exhibition with Esteban White's Eye and Observedly Well in 2018, 2019. And I acquired an Observedly Well piece and Observedly Well, I mentioned that name and you to follow up to your question about where you find, where else outside of the gallery space can you explore art? For me, I really have connected with the wheat pasting, fly posting scene of Washington, DC and artists like Observedly Well, like I mentioned, is a prolific wheat paster, especially pre-COVID. This man was any political figure that had done something wrong. You was going to find on the street because of Observedly Well. Donald Trump, F. Donald Trump, you know, these let's go Oprah.

Let's, you know, what would it be? Mostly on Capitol Hill. Exactly. Capitol Hill, like Observedly Well, if you know, you know, right? If you're into the DC street art scene, you know Observedly Well, you know names like Divorce Culture, who is in acquired taste, you know, names like Moss Paws with his murals, who's in acquired taste. And so for me to answer your question, I, I'm a writer and I've applied my writing to wheat pasting. I call it fly posting and my canvas was Union Market. I moved to the Batley and Union Market and Union Market became my canvas and I went crazy. I really did. And my literary appellation is Poppy Baker. It's on the screen right now.

I, writer's right. And for me, it was an easy application to see the graffiti everywhere, to see this sort of expression of free speech in wheat pasting. Uh, I'd never seen that before, you know, and I never realized, you know, when an album comes out or a movie comes out, those posters that are on the street, that's wheat pasting.

That's commercial wheat pasting. I never knew that until I started hanging around Observedly Well, until I started hanging around Divorce Culture, Nomu Nomu, Moss Paws, Jamal Gray, Uptown Art House. Uh, and I realized, I was like, I can write signs and posters and manuscripts. And we paste them on public facing things. And so, you know, the wood panels in Union Market, the traffic boxes in Union Market, they became my canvas. And so I say Union Market is the space where I go to get inspired to see other people wheat pasting, to see graffiti, um, hotspots in Capitol Hill, like Amir said, you know, the major, uh, evacuation routes of 18th Street, Nams Morgan, you know, those are the spots that true wheat pastures, they hit, you know, we want people to see the work.

Um, and so Union Market, but lastly, I would say Baltimore, to me, the, the space that has that energy to me, the last, you know, when I go to DC or when I'm in the DMV, the space that gets me excited now truly is Baltimore, like the graffiti in Baltimore, y'all go, you guys are no shame about anything. And I love it. Even that's how it should be, but there it's everywhere.

And it's like, it seems a lot like the last bastion of like rawness, DIY energy is Baltimore. It like I was at, um, I was at, uh, his name is now getting me entirely, but the, it's the, uh, what is his name? The, the, the white house, it's a white house and it's, uh, Adams.

Oh, Derek Adams, Derek Adams. His, what's the name of his retreat? Uh, last resort artist retreat.

Last resort artist retreat. I was there maybe in November or October for it felt like I shouldn't have been there. I walked in, I like, it was for Lena Dunham had had a play, uh, that evening, that night, and I walked in, Lena Dunham was there. Like Lawrence Bernie through Laurels was there. Lena Ray, Lena Dunham. I'm sorry, Lena Dunham, Lena Ray, that don't, don't come from, I'm sorry.

Rob Lee: I don't. Cause I, I, these, these are some of my people right here. I was like, all right, let's do the math here. No, but, but, but I think, I think you're right though. Like that, that space, um, I've done a few interviews there and I've, I've been there before like early on and you know, it is definitely one of those spots. And, and I like hearing that, you know, sort of, you know, Baltimore is one of those, those last bastions of it. And, you know, it's kind of the thing we were talking about a little bit earlier. Of, you know, just kind of staying, staying true and staying on sort of a target. When it comes to what sustainability is, and we got to maintain the things to keep our places special and support the artists that are there. And that's baked into what you, um, Amir and just everyone involved with the choir taste and the art shopping network and home adoring. So that's fantastic. And, um, thank you, Rob.

So the last thing I'm going to do here is, um, lobby it up. I just want one from each of you, since you guys have collaborated and when you have really high and sort of like heavy goals in this sort of the five years and all of these different, uh, details that we've discussed in this episode, what would you say is the number one key to a successful collaboration with multiple collaborators? Cause if it's like one to one, all right, cool. We can discuss this. It's like multiple people. Well, what about this? Well, I'm a little bit more like this. I prefer a great, well, I prefer green. How do you, what is the number one key like trade for a successful collaboration?

Amir Browder: Playing sports, you have to be a decent team player, right? And I think a lot of when it comes to creativity is a lot of individuality, which is awesome. But I think that once we understand that it's a, it's a way to collaborate. Some of the best paintings that we've ever seen were, were collaborations.

Now, whether they credit the people or not, we could go with the credit who are sharp as iron when it comes to different artists who collaborate. Let's take a easy one. Let's just go and Indian and in Bafiak, right?

We can go Pollock and his wife. We could do a lot of these different things where if you're serious and open enough to be able to bounce ideas off of one another, I think that's when the greatness happens and it's, it's, it really makes for a match, match, match that happened. Um, and I think it needs to be done a lot more. Um, but I think what's going, what's happening now with collaborations is everybody wants their just do in it and you can get your just do. And you could have something that's going to last the test of time because you have two minds, what do they say?

Great minds think alike, but two heads are better than one. Yeah. Yeah. And that is that interesting?

So it's, let's just know that collaboration is the key. You know, sorry, I get a little low when it's just like me and Max and talk all day, but I was looking at like, they literally tore up the street right in front of me on L street and they had to like repay me again yesterday. And I looked at it, took them, I think it was like a day and a half to do it, but, but I thought to myself, I said, how the hell did they, did they, did they do the highways and the highways across America?

That must have taken forever. But then I saw all the many little machines and big machines that they would use it and I said, they had to collaborate to get this done for the greater good of what it was they wanted to accomplish. So when it comes to art, you have to understand what the goal is. Yeah. What the purpose is of it. That's all right.

Rob Lee: Well said. Uh, yeah. Maxwell, let's join you and, and we're going to close out after this. Um, yeah. So Maxwell, what are your, what's your sort of number one key to successful collaboration?

Maxwell Young: I would agree with Amir that it's the being willing to collaborate. And I think through that, it's like willing to leave your ego at the door. I'm a twin. And so growing up with someone else who is literally I'm a fraternal twin, so we're not identical, but we shared the same bedroom for 18 years.

We wore the same thing to school. We, our relationships were intertwined, you know, there's a level of like, you know, I struggle with collaboration sometimes in that capacity, having that relationship with someone else who, you know, is exactly like you and has the same aspirations and, you know, we're also wanting to differentiate ourselves, you know, and, but at the same time, like Amir said, two heads being better than one, we grew up my 29 knowing that whatever we do, we were better at it together, you know, sports, you know, sports related. We were going to smash whoever was opposing us because we were playing together, you know, and understanding that one on one, my 29 heated battles.

Don't want to talk about those, but playing together some of the most fun, most dominant, most victorious moments of my life. And that truly is the power of collaboration. When you work with someone who is also putting their ego aside and also understand the, the mission, the goal, the higher power of being in unison, special things happen, you know, and it is as a humanity, like Amir said, like great things happen when you work together. And I think that's, you know, the, the thesis of our shopping network, like working together and selling art and doing and connecting these dots, you know, we are creating a higher energy, a higher spirit, a higher consideration for collecting art, for engaging with art and, you know, participating in this space.

So the key to collaboration is being in it and being, you know, there's a oneness, there's a togetherness that is important, that you have to be, it's not about yourself, it's about the collective, it's about the humanity and the collective consciousness, it's about being together.

Rob Lee: That's great. And I think, I think we got it. So what I would like to do in these final moments is, one, thank the two of you for coming on to spend some time with me.

And I do, yeah, absolutely. And two, I just want you guys to share sort of the socials so folks can stay up to date on sort of, you know, our shopping network, OM and for a quiet taste, the whole thing, just give us the socials and we'll close out on that.

Amir Browder: Okay, I'll do by quickly. Mine is own HL, this is my Instagram and Facebook. It's at HLMME underscore DC. Again, at HLMME underscore DC. Awesome.

Maxwell Young: For Art Shopping Network, you can find us primarily on our website, artshoppingnetwork.com. Our Instagram, TikTok, YouTube is at Art Shopping Network. You can find all information that's pertinent to acquired taste, which is our selling exhibition May 29th through 30th at OM on our website and our social media. So follow Art Shopping Network, go to artshoppingnetwork.com and RSVP, please, it's free. Love to have you.

Rob Lee: And there you have it folks. I want to again, thank Maxwell Young, Poppy Baker from Art Shopping Network and from OM Gallery, Amir Browder, who both came on today to talk a bit about their project coming very soon, um, acquired taste.

And for Maxwell and for Amir, I am Rob Lee, saying that there's art, culture and community. And in an around your neck of the woods, you just have to look for it.