The focus at the gallery is ever evolving while continuing with the goal to show kick ass stuff that they simply love. I applaud this gallery for staying true to it’s passion and providing a warm and comfortable atmosphere to casually enjoy very cool artwork by self-taught artists.

Enter 94 Faces of Gordon Carver.

Carver recently passed away at the age of 92, and 94 drawings of hairy faces of every expression were found covering his walls. As eery as it may seem, I just had to go see them for myself! Needless to say, viewing the collection and being able to purchase a book of all of the faces with accompanying stories was definitely worth the trip down to Waxahachie.

Currently on Exhibit through August 9:

When In Texas – Act Like a Texan!
ft. Esther Pearl Watson, Mark Todd, Martha Rich, Silke Thoss, Bob Tooke, Scott Ogden

Open Saturdays and Sundays 1 – 5pm. and by appointment.

http://www.webbartgallery.com/
(972) 938-8085
209-211 W Franklin

Jamie Pink creates glittering abstract images of glass mosaic, pierced by light and color. Born and raised in Texas, Jamie holds a BFA from the University of Texas at Austin. She has studied under renowned painter Bill Komodore and world-class mosaicists Sonia King, Emma Biggs, Ilana Shafir, Matteo Randi and others. Her work appeared in the 2008 New Texas Talent show at Craighead Green Gallery and most recently in a juried show at the Bathhouse Cultural Center.

Andrew Wick uses egg tempera to create haunting, moody multi-faceted figurative paintings of the American scene. His copperplate etchings vividly capture the Texas landscape. Andrew holds a BFA from the Meadows School of the Arts at Southern Methodist University and an MA from the University of North Texas. His work has been shown at various galleries in the Metroplex. When not painting Andrew teaches art both in Texas Public Schools and in SMU’s Community Education program.

Visit Wick’s Blog Here
Opening Reception:

Friday, April 17 6-8:30PM

AND

Saturday, April 18 11A-8PM

Location:

600 Cantegral Street, Dallas, TX 75204

Just off Live Oak behind the Latino Cultural Center and cattycorner to The Dallas Center for Contemporary Art.

“Museum Guards” by Paul Greenberg

I was greeted in the front gallery by Paul Greenberg’s “Museum Guards”, which was very simple and straight forward yet it still completely blew me away. I have a bit of an obsession for things that tend to go unnoticed…like the one four leaf clover in an expansive field (true story), complicated stitching on the inside of a coat pocket, or even the guards in a museum that lurk quietly behind the scenes careful to protect but not interrupt the art while it’s hanging there doing it’s thing. The brilliance of Greenberg’s photographs lie not only in his chosen subject matter (including the irony of a meseum gallery as an integral character in the actual artwork itself), but also in the the relationship that is happening between the guards and the artwork they are lingering near. Take a look for yourself…

picture from Conduit Gallery Website

A black curtain seperated the front and middle gallery spaces. On the other side…”Visions of an Insomniac” by Susan kae Grant.

“Visions of an Insomniac is an interdisciplinary exhibition of experimental works that explore the mysterious space between illusion and reality. The works will consist of large scale digital images juxtaposed with cast shadows and psycho-acoustic sound. A nonsensical environment will be created in the gallery that forges a relationship between visual and aural perception. The work will provide visitors entry into an imaginary world of whimsical creations that portray life on the lyrical and playful edge of balance and stability. Large-scale images, sound and projection will suggest a theatrical world that references the ridiculous, the tragic and the unexpected. The walls, floor and ceiling will be illuminated with experimental lighting techniques to create a sense of surprise and wonder.” – Conduit Gallery Website

Ridiculous? Definitely. Tragic? Without a doubt. Unexpected? For Sure! I’ve been meaning to do a blog post about art gallery curators as artists themselves, but it’s been difficult to approach the topic without injecting sickening quantities of personal taste and biased opinions into it so I’ve shied away from publishing anything of the sort prematurely. But…my hat definitely goes off to the conduit Gallery for the atmosphere and mood and experience that they were able to create through profoundly creative curation which only served to enhance art that was already phenomenal.

“Nesting” by Kate Rivers

I made my way towards the free wine…I mean the Project Room to view Kate Rivers’ “Nesting” and immediately fell in love with Kate’s nests! The most striking thing about the nests, which remind me of home, is that they were made of all types of paper materials but mostly maps and stamps and letters; things that remind me of travel. The nests and the symbolism that Rivers used in these pieces were (to be completely honest) just plain cool, and myself a young woman that moved away from home to go to college and and didn’t return to my hometown after graduating, these darn nests stirred up some sentimental emotions that really connected me to the pieces.

I give the Conduit Gallery official MySpace props (circa 2006):

2 Kudos

There seems to be a scandal a brewin’ on the Dallas art scene! I have no interest in getting to the bottom of it, but in the mean time I’ll probably follow it as intently as I did Brit Brit’s “rough patch”. I actually stumbled upon it by complete accident as I was browsing exhibits in Dallas that I might want to check out, and came across an event posting for Eric Trich’s “omg!” exhibit currently on display at the Cathedral of Hope. What caught my attention you ask? Simeen Ishaque, a Richland College art professor, had this to say about Trich and his work: “He could be another Basquiat in the making.”

PAUSE

To get straight to the point, and to not give this any more attention than it deserves, Eric Trich is a 20 year old Dallas artist who is currently attending SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts. So what’s the big deal? Well, Mr. Trich and his mentor Siros have been drumming up lots of hype by creating what is quickly proving to be a fake list of international collector’s that are vying for, and currently own, Trich’s art collections. This Starbuck’s employee, turned overnight artist along with everyone else involved is apparently having a ball creating the “art star fantasy”, as Trich “omg!” is his first solo exhibit and he only has a few others on his resume including an exhibit at Richland Community college (where he was a student before transferring to SMU), a branch library, and now a church.

Full detailed articles can be found at the Park Cities People website as well as Titus O., but from the sheer lack of information available (finding any information about him at all was a chore, and there is no information at all about said art collectors), Trich’s amateur status, and lackluster art that I’ve seen posted on the web…I have reached a conclusion, and I definitely smell a rat!

I will certianly stop by his current exhibit since staying on top of industry news is kind of my job, but don’t expect to see much more free publicity for such ridiculous shenanigans. This type of activity makes a total mockery of the art industry, and I choose to only support artists and art enthusiasts actively working to build a sound, ethical community.

Sidebar: If he’s really selling ALL of his artwork at 4-5 figure prices, wouldn’t you think he’d employ a graphic designer to whip up a more appealing event flyer sans the skull cane? I’m just sayin…

Established Houston artist Gregory Carter is celebrating his 30th birthday with an art exhibit at Gallery 2111! The event will be hosted by Cornbreadd who recently was a top 3 finalist on 50 Cents MTV reality show “The Money & The Power”. The event will also feature performances by the lovely Lisa E. of the Houston Grand Opera and Fat Tony. It’s definitely an event you won’t want to miss!