Jennifer Coster, Canaries in McMansionland, 2012, Mixed media and live canaries, 64 x 18 x 12 inches.>> Tonight at 7 p.m., the Corcoran Gallery of Art will host the first of two community meetings in August to discuss the Corcoran’s future and issues surrounding the Gallery specifically. This session is focused around listening to the broader Corcoran community and will include a panel of community members, including Transformer gallerist Victoria Reis, former Corcoran faculty member Bill Dunlap, and writer and performer Holly Bass. Chief Curator Philip Brookman will be on hand to answer questions, and Director of Development Communications Mark Swartz will moderate a discussion around three topics: integration of the Gallery and College, the Corcoran’s identity, and a sustainable model for the future. 7 p.m. Free, but registration is encouraged.
>> Yesterday, as part of Take It to the Bridge, the Corcoran Gallert of Art in conjunction with Washington Project for the Arts, opened Canaries in McMansionland. This short term installation wittily comments on the comforts and perils of modern luxury in contemporary American culture. In cages four times the size of typical canary cages, live birds sing and fly behind a façade of suburban style houses. See it quick, as the installation will come down Sunday.
>> Tonight’s Phillips After 5, is the Food Truck Fiesta. This second annual Food Truck Fiesta features local favorites including DC Empanadas and Rolling Ficelle. Then, indoors, explore American Sign Language imagery in recent prints by Jasper Johns through sign language classes and silent films. 5 to 8:30 p.m. $12, members free.
>> ReMixed Messages: A(I)DS, Art + Words closes tonight at Fathom Creative’s Fathom Gallery. Get one last look at thirty text-based works reflecting reactions to and connections through HIV/AIDS across generations at the closing reception tonight from 6 to 8 p.m.
>> The Fridge opens the 2nd annual FRESH PRODUCE featuring six D.C.-based collectives including Panda Head, EMP Collective and VESTIBULE, with 30 individual artists (and growing) such as DECOY, Asad “ULTRA” Walker, Joseph Hale, Tim Conlon and HKS181. This month long event opens on Saturday with END OF SUMMER BUMMER featuring 15 new short films from 15 artists especially created for the evening plus a new collaborative paper installation. 8 to 11 p.m. $6.
>> Happy Birthday to SCRAP DC, who is turning two years old. Celebrate this Friday night with delicious birthday treats and $6 bag deals, where you can fill a bag with your favorite SCRAP supplies for only six bucks. 6 to 9 p.m.
>> Touchstone Gallery presents the work of 38 artists in MiniSolos@Touchstone. This artists exhibition fills two perpetual community needs: that of giving emerging, artists the rare opportunity for exhibition space in a top-notch downtown gallery, and that of providing collectors access to work they don’t yet know. Attend the opening reception on Friday from 6 to 9 p.m.
>> Congratulations to the 2012 Trawick Prize: Bethesda Contemporary Art Awards finalists.
>> The artdc Gallery is pleased to announce Glass 2012. This exhibition highlights work from DC GlassWorks, a glass blowing and sculpture studio. Opening reception this Saturday from 7 to 10 p.m.
>> At the Washington Printmaker’s Gallery, see the 15th Annual National Small Works and Plein Air to Print shows. The opening reception and Awards Announcements with Brian Garner and Hannah Phelps will be Saturday from 1 to 4 p.m.
>> On Saturday at 2:30 p.m., historian Jonathan Conlin visits the National Gallery of Art to discuss the fabled 1972 BBC John Berger series Ways of Seeing on the occasion of its 40th anniversary alongside segments of the program. Then on
Sunday at 4:30 p.m., the Gallery’s annual preservation series From Vault to Screen: Recent Preservation continues with the ciné-concert The Spanish Dancer followed by Shoes, with Andrew Simpson on piano. A restoration from EYE Film Institute, Amsterdam, The Spanish Dancer stars Pola Negri as gypsy entertainer Maritana, entangled in court intrigues with poor nobleman Don César de Bazan (Antonio Moreno) and other hapless hearts (including Wallace Beery and Adolphe Menjou).
>> Del Ray Artisans presents BOARDERLINES, an art exhibit by six members of the Board of Directors, featuring a silent auction and take-away art. Opening Friday from 7 to 10 p.m.
>> The Foundry Gallery in cooperation with the Department of Culture and Community at the Kurdistan Regional Government Office will present guest artist, Lukman Ahmad’s solo show: A Small Hope. Ahmad is a Kurdish artist from (Syria) and uses raw materials to artistically express his profound personal connection to the Kurdish land and its people. Opening reception Friday from 6 to 8 p.m.
