Kick off the New Year by checking out some of the plentiful new exhibits around town. >>The Dupont Circle galleries will be open late (6-8 p.m.) for First Friday this week. Highlights include two new solo shows at Irvine Contemporary, featuring paintings and drawings by Brooklyn-based Bede Murphy and photographs by D.C.’s own Jason Zimmerman. The artists will give gallery talks about their work on Saturday at 2:00 p.m. Zimmerman’s Straight, Street, Traditional is shown…

DCist is happy to share news this week of area events and exhibits by our fellow bloggers. First off, Lenny Campello of DC Art News, opens a show of his recent drawings on Friday at the Georgetown Fraser Gallery. There’s a reception for the show that night from 6-9 p.m. A drawing from the exhibit is shown at right. >> Frank Warren is still sharing secrets people send him in the mail on his…

>> The Corcoran is all abuzz these days with their newly-announced director and blockbuster shows featuring Andy Warhol and D.C.’s beloved Sam Gilliam. A new exhibition opens there on Saturday that focuses on the depiction of banjos in paintings, drawings and photographs, including the ca. 1895 photo of the woman at right. Interestingly, the exhibit is partially funded by the Steve Martin Charitable Foundation, according to the museum’s website. (Who knew that Steve Martin was…

>> Irvine Contemporary opens two solo shows on Thursday, by artists working in extremely different styles and techniques. On the one hand are Sean Foley’s creepy, colorful paintings and works on paper. (At first glance, the image on the gallery’s homepage conjures up images of old Ren & Stimpy episodes.) On the other are haunting new photographs by Gina Brocker of a family of Irish migrants. Chat up the artists about their work at the…

Sean Scully loves to paint. The bulk of the pieces currently on view at The Phillips Collection are wall-sized oil paintings saturated with rich color and layer upon layer of paint. Visible brushstrokes are everywhere. The tones vary from cool grays, blues and blacks to warm rusts, yellows and pinks. The floating blocks of color — reminscent of Rothko — have blurred, soft edges. Bright yellows and oranges peek through darker foreground colors. Even without…

>> Studio One Eight, a new alternative art space in Adams Morgan, opens its first a new show this week. Threesome: A Girl, a Guy, and a Gay features figure drawings and paintings by D.C. artists Dana Ellyn, Greg Ferrand and Scott G. Brooks. The artists’ reception is Saturday night from 7 – 10 p.m.; miss that and you’ll need an appointment to see the show. Ferrand’s “Mortality recognized at breakfast” is shown at right….

>> This month marks Irvine Contemporary’s second anniversary. Help celebrate by checking out their exhibit, “Christine Kesler: New Directions,” opening Friday (reception 6-8 p.m.). Work on display includes multi-media collages by the MICA graduate. >> Conner Contemporary Art also opens a new exhibit Friday, featuring the work of Wayne Gonzales. A New Orleans-born but New York-based artist, Gonzales uses his paintings as a means of political commentary. For the works in this show, he focused…

>> Last weekend The Phillips Collection’s exhibit of work by Sean Scully opened. This is the first U.S. show of his Wall of Light series, inspired by a trip to Mexico 20 years ago, according to the Museum’s web site. This show is also a good chance to see the Phillips’ newly-expanded space, in case you haven’t already. Niels by Sean Scully is shown at right. >> Busboys and Poets, the new coffeehouse/restaurant/”gathering place” at…

>> The National Gallery opened two new exhibits this past weekend — that makes six new shows in one month! The latest round includes an exhibit of manuscript paintings from the Italian Renaissance period, on loan from the J. Paul Getty Museum in L.A., and a show featuring John James Audubon’s bird-obsessed paintings from his well-known publication, “The Birds of America.” >> Also new on the Mall this week is “Virtue and Entertainment: Chinese Music…

>> In case you missed it, the dates for the inaugural Capital Fringe Festival (which DCist told you about back in April) were announced on Saturday during the Arts on Foot festival in Penn Quarter. Mark July 20-30, 2006 in your calendars now! You can celebrate and get more info about the festival tomorrow night at The Warehouse Cafe & Bar at a happy hour from 6 – 8 p.m.; with the promise of $2…