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INSIDE THE FRAME ABN ART IN MOTION G IFs. In the early days of the Internet they were, well, crude. All dancing babies, fl ashing "Under Construction" banners and the oc- casional spinning globe. But as the Web has evolved, so has the GIF—into a medium some call an art form. T e GIF turns 25 this year, so it's a fi tting time for Moving the Still: A GIF Festival, the fi rst large-scale exhibition dedicated to the format. In keeping with the collaborative nature of the Web, Moving the Still began with an open call inviting artists to sub- mit their original GIFs for consideration by the festival's Selec- tion Council, members of which hail from a variety of creative industries, including photography, video art, painting, fashion and music. T e accepted entries, on view at movingthestill.tumblr.com, range from the stunningly beautiful (Nick Knight's Roses Mc- Queen Met Ball) to the vibrant and energetic (Erica Anderson's abstract Red Streaks). However diff erent they are though, they ART BIZ CONFIDENTIAL I J. JASON HOREJS GOES FROM "STARVING" TO SUCCESSFUL f you're like most artists, you've got one goal in mind for the upcoming year: Sell more art! Yes, even if 2012 was a banner year for you, there's always one more client out there. And one more gallery in which your work is destined to hang! Frankly, it can all be a bit overwhelming. Just as with personal relationships, it takes time to forge professional connections. And only a lucky few artists know a true industry insider who can also serve as a part-time creative confi dante. Until now. Art has been a lifelong endeavor for J. Jason Horejs, the founder of Scottsdale's Xanadu Gallery, who has been playing matchmaker to artists and collectors since the age of 17. Five years ago, he developed a workshop to help artists put their most professional selves forward when approaching galleries. Now he has taken that passion for education one step further with "Starving" to Successful: T e Fine Artist's Guide to Getting Into Galleries and Selling More Art, a must-read handbook for artists wanting to improve their bottom lines. "My goal in these pages is to give you an understanding of the art business, a concrete plan for systematic preparation in ap- proaching a gallery and the necessary tools to cultivate a relationship with the gallery owner/director," Horejs notes in his Intro- duction. Few people are better equipped to provide just that. By focusing the bulk of his 180-plus pages on the importance of building relationships (not simply assuming that your art will "speak for itself"), Horejs off ers a unique—and much-needed—perspective into what it truly takes to successfully sell your art. Within its 17 chapters, Horejs off ers his readers step-by-step guidance on how to achieve greater success. His advice is easy to read, simple to follow and truly invaluable for all artists in every stage of their careers. Visit www.xanadugallery.com/book to purchase a copy. (T e book is also available via Amazon.com and for Kindle.) —JENNIFER M. WOOD 20 WINTER 2012 MOTION CELEBRATING THE GIF all have one thing in common: T ey're art. "T e GIF fi le format is in and of itself its own medium— a medium that has already been employed by some of the world's top contemporary artists," explains Collin Munn, edito- rial manager of Paddle8, an online destination for art collectors, which launched the project with Tumblr. Moving the Still will culminate with a Miami Art Week ex- hibition, where 25 pieces will be projected onto screens and pre- sented alongside contextual material on the history of the GIF. GIF art, Munn says, "seems to continue the trajectory begun by the advent of video art—which was a slowly accepted me- dium, too—but in a diff erent way, by blending antiquated 'stop motion-esque' aesthetics with clearly digital ones. A look back at the diverse history of video art makes me very excited to see where the GIF goes." Visit movingthestill.paddle8.com for more information. —REBECCA PAHLE