We hope you cleared your calendar and laundered all your black clothes, ’cause it’s a busy weekend out there for art lovers.
>> On your way to the opening day of the Newseum tomorrow, swing by the old convention center grounds (you know, the parking lot that was supposed to break ground for new construction in January 2008, now, supposedly, in January 2009) at 10th Street between New York Avenue and H Street NW to see the unveiling of the third ArtWalk at noon. Yeah, we kinda hated the first one; the second one was a skosh better, but we’re hoping the third installment with its theme, Emerge and work by 12 artists will be the best yet. If you can’t make it down, we’ll have pictures and a review for you tomorrow afternoon.
>> Crafters, eat your hearts out. The Smithsonian Craft Show, “one of the nation’s most prestigious juried exhibition and sale of contemporary American craft,” officially opened yesterday at the National Building Museum. Check out and purchase all kinds of museum quality crafts in 12 media categories by 120 artists. The show only lasts through the weekend; see the web site for hours. Daily admission, $15. Tonight go to a special reception from 6 to 8 p.m. with drinks, door prizes, the craft exhibitors, and the curator of contemporary craft and decorative art at SAAM. $20 at the door.
>> The National Geographic Museum has a bunch of new features. In honor of upcoming Earth Day, they installed 50 life-size Trash People, by German artist H.A. Schult, in their courtyard last week to represent the amount of waste people produce. Inside, three new exhibits open soon, the first on Monday featuring photographs from around China. Head over on Tuesday for an accompanying lecture by two writers and two photographers from National Geographic about the country, its changes and, of course, the upcoming Olympics at 7:30 p.m., $18. (Don’t forget to visit the awesome frog exhibit while you’re there.)
>> The Arlington Arts Center opens their big annual Spring Solos show on Friday with a reception from 6 to 9 p.m. Six regional artists show off their artwork, from Jennifer Mattingly tiny matchbox dioramas (pictured above) to Sondheim Prize winner Laure Drogoul’s hopefully-not-overly-creepy séance for soldiers buried in nearby Arlington Cemetery.
