Arts Agenda: 2008-2009 Season Kick-Off
Maro Vandorou's photographs will be on display at Hillyer Art Space. |
Arts lovers, we hope you've cleared your calendar for the next two weekends. The 2008-2009 season kicks off en masse with nearly every gallery in the region opening new exhibits. Both Dupont and the 7th Street corridor are coordinating openings this weekend, so let's see what they've got:
Dupont Circle:
This weekend is First Friday, and it looks like the consortium of galleries has launched a new, more informative web site this year. The Galleries page lists each venue and its art focus, along with regular business hours, a link to its web site, and an contact email. Their handy, redesigned map even makes north face up now, hooray!
>> We recommend starting with Hillyer Art Space, which is featuring an exhibition put on by International Art & Artists in conjunction with the Embassy of Greece. Maro Vandorou's medium format photographs (pictured right) in Fragmented Light are worth seeing not only for their subject matter but for her intricate techniques. Vandarou photographed the ancient Keramicos cemetery in Athens, Greece and created a classic sense of life, death and passing time by contact printing the images "as Platinotypes on a rare, handmade paper made from the fibers of the Gampi bush found only in the wild, mountainous regions of Japan." The opening features music by DJ SteveLove and catering by Zaytinya. 6 to 9 p.m.
>> Then move over to Foundry Gallery, which is holding Hush!, a silent auction to benefit the Duke Ellington School of the Arts. Over 30 works are up for bidding, including pieces by Marina Reiter and 2007 DCist Exposed winner Brett Davis. The bidding continues throughout the month, until the closing reception on September 27. 6 to 8 p.m.
>> A couple more picks in Dupont: Marsha Mateyka Gallery opens Three American Masters featuring color school heavyweights Gene Davis, Sam Gilliam and Nathan Oliveira. Jane Halsam Gallery has the extraordinary and intricate work of printmaker/etcher Peter Milton.
7th Street NW Corridor:
>> Also on Friday, Civilian Art Projects opens Way Down in New Orleans on the third anniversary of Hurricane Katrina. Nearly 40 artists and other creatives collaborated for this exhibit, each one affected by the storm or its aftermath. With this show, Civilian launches its new initiative, Art4Rights, "that will serve as a gateway to exploring crucial issues and stimulating change." Tonight they're partnering with DCAC to host a preview fundraiser with food, drinks, and music, with proceeds going to the New Orleans Kid Camera Project. Fundraiser is 7 to 10 p.m., $40 at the door. Free public reception is tomorrow, 7 to 9 p.m.
New work from Anthony Cervino is at Flashpoint. |
>> Flashpoint opens their new season with Anthony Cervino's Anti-Plastic. Cervino deconstructs toy model kits and rebuilds them into scenes of his own design on canvases (pictured left). Friday, 6 to 8 p.m.
>> Also in the neighborhood: Carroll Square Gallery opens They Came From Beyond the Beltway: Tourists at the National Mall, with work by Lucian Perkins (6 to 8 p.m.); Reyes + Davis features the clever work of Barbara Liotta (6:30 to 9 p.m.); and Zenith Gallery opens Singular Vision with the work of four artists. (6 to 9 p.m.; artist talk on Saturday, 3 to 5 p.m.).
Elsewhere Around Town:
>> Picturing Politics: Artists Speak to Power at the Arlington Arts Center actually opened a few weeks ago and is getting some strong reviews. Check out the group show for yourself during its official reception on Friday, 6 to 9 p.m. Curator Rex Weil will be there to answer questions about the issues the artists tackle.
>> If the new exhibit at the Smith Farm Healing Arts Gallery is as good as the last one, they'll be in good shape. See the opening of Shelters and Shadows with the work of four artists who "revel in their materials and speak to the fragility of our lives in their own way." Friday, 5:30 to 8 p.m.
>> Art Whino is throwing a Block Party that lasts all weekend. On Friday from 7 to 11 p.m., get to the Adidas store in Georgetown (1251 Wisconsin Ave NW) for live painting by Daniel Fleres, music from DJ Alex Gold, and a sneak preview of some of the works that'll be in the gallery exhibit. On Saturday get to the gallery at National Harbor for the exhibit opening, featuring work on wooden blocks at affordable prices that are meant to encourage a discussion about the "value" of art pricing and buying. 6 p.m. to midnight. Both events are free.
>> For something a little darker, head to H&F Fine Arts in Mt. Ranier for Bodies of Marvel, Monsters and Women. These "eight women artists explore ideas of the grotesque and other worldly, the monstrous, the unimaginable, the uncanny, and the strange through painting, woodcut, installation, mixed media, video, photography, and illustration." See them at the reception on Saturday, 5 to 8 p.m.
Dance:
>> The DC Dance Collective, a non-profit studio in Tenleytown, hosts the Collaborative Arts Festival this weekend. On Friday visit their opening reception ($50 suggested donation) to see work by local artists and a "celebrity" dance performance. 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday they'll have a Dance Sampler from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for $20, where you can choose from 36 classes like flamenco, belly dancing, house, and even music video choreography. Take as many as you can fit in the 6 hours, then relax at 8 p.m. with a dance performance from the studio ($20). On Sunday they'll host two performances of The Last Five Years, at 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. ($15)
>> Jane Franklin Dance starts a new series of Adult Dance Technique classes this Saturday, 9 to 11:30 a.m. Classes are $16 each or $90 for six classes.
>> Or take some classes while doing some good for the world: CityDance at Strathmore is holding workshops this Sunday to benefit the Burmese who were affected by Cyclone Nargis. Choose from modern, hip hop, or Burmese dance workshops for $25 each, or take them all with a $100 day pass.
Art Notes:
- District Fine Arts opens new photographs by John Trevino in What Comes Next. Reception with music by DJ Adrian Loving on Saturday, 5to 8 p.m.
- The Anthenaeum Gallery will host Mark Cameron Boyd and Dr. Lisa Lipinski for a discussion about Boyd's work in TXT MSG on Sunday from 5 to 7 p.m.
- Visit the Kreeger Musuem's Open House this Sunday from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. with artist talks, workshops, and activities for the kids. Free.