Well, as the PA systems in every shopping district with piped-in Muzak in the country have been telling you ever since the day after Halloween, "it's the most wonderful time of the year"--at least for the capitalists who've blown Christmas completely out of proportion in order to separate us all from our hard-earned cash. But if you're looking for an antidote to the out-of-control hucksterism that completely conquered this holiday season quite some time ago, you can't go wrong with a trip through the homegrown art scene that's been thriving right here in downtown RVA for the past decade. And with plenty of unique art from local creators to purchase, the First Friday Art Walk offers you the perfect opportunity to give memorable, one-of-a-kind gifts to everyone on your Christmas list! If all those Mayan-related doomsday prophecies are correct (they're not, but it's fun to pretend they are when writing about them), this will be the last First Friday ever, and we're not even going to make it til Christmas. But if you count on the Mayan apocalypse happening and then it doesn't come to pass, you'll be crammed into the mall on Christmas Eve standing in long lines to buy factory-produced mass market crap, and it'll be a total bummer. Don't take that risk--do your Christmas shopping at First Friday, and give the gift of art this year! Or if you're too poor to buy any gifts (believe me, we know the feeling), at least come out and take a gander at all the great stuff on display. After all, it's free to look! Here's a guide to the sights you'll see:
Ghostprint Gallery: Aqua Illuminations
With oil and enamel paint, bronze and silver leaf, also spray paint, my images evolve slowly and conjure a parallel world of past and present. This world is evocative of centuries past but is also an expression of current emotions and life in the present. Often I begin with ideas like say: “cupid and a bear” and the “war” and off I go with my focus on the paint and its application and my response to the process of painting. I find the process of oil painting an amalgamation of gestures, wonderful materials and chance. I cannot completely define my intentions, and often the final image is far from my initial intent but I feel I am building a world rich in mysticism and characters that are not vacant and will continue to have much to surprise and have much to say. My ten years in Seville, Spain during the decade of the 90’s continue to percolate and influence my work to this day now ten years on. Those 10 years painting in Spain and 10 more painting in Buffalo, NY have combined, and interwoven themselves to create a style oddly baroque and modern. --Peter Fowler
New Illuminations will be on display starting with an opening reception on First Friday, December 7, from 6-9 PM at Ghostprint Gallery, located at 220 W. Broad St. The exhibit will remain on display through January 26.
Gallery 5: Self Abuse & That Noise Downstairs
Gallery 5 presents two shows: Self Abuse, a collection of new works by Adam Juresko, in the Main Gallery; and That Noise Downstairs, found material light sculptures by Kris Krull, in the Downstairs Gallery.
Adam Juresko comes back to Richmond to present the his solo exhibition opening of new works, titled Self Abuse. The exhibition will feature over 80 pieces of all paper collage and acrylic paint on canvas with wood frames.
Shut Up You Big Baby, metal sculpture
"Scrapyards, hardware stores, old-fashioned dumpster dives...I enjoy collecting unique metal objects and helping them find their way into three-dimensional sculptures, projecting light from the inside out...Yeah it's crazy like that!" --Kris Krull
Self Abuse and That Noise Downstairs will open with a reception from 6:30-11 PM on First Friday, December 7. The event will feature music from Mark Eitzel, The Low Branches, Modern Drugs, and Josh Small. The exhibits will remain on display throughout the month of December at Gallery 5, located at 200 W. Marshall St.
Visual Art Studio: Artistic Gifts
Terrie Powers, Jump, acrylic on canvas, 8" x 8"
Visual Art Studio presents Artistic Gifts, artwork and artisan ware perfect for giving this Holiday.
Support our arts community by buying from Visual Art Studio, packed full of artisan ware, fine jewelry & art from exceptional local artists!
Artistic Gifts features works by Terrie Powers, Joanna Lee, Redd Staples, Tony Custalow, Chris Semtner, Greg Lewis, Tammy Bryant, Fred Weatherford, Susan Hribernik, Keith M. Ramsey, Jamie Phillips, Anne Hart Chay, Allen Jessee, Sally Valentine, John Crutchfield, Katherine Benner, Denise Bell, Susan Lamson, Gia Labidi, Joel and Teresa Howard, and Dodie Ortland. It opens with a reception on First Friday, December 7, beginning at 6 PM. The exhibit will remain on display through February 13 at Visual Art Studio, located at 208 W. Broad St.
Books Bikes And Beyond: Huck-a-Buck
Books Bikes and Beyond will be featuring Huck-a-Buck, a selection of new and recent works by James Callahan. The opening reception for this exhibition will take place on First Friday, December 7, from 7-11 PM, at Books Bikes And Beyond Thrift Store, located at 7 W. Broad St. The exhibit will remain on display through January 31.
Studio 6: Open Studio
On First Friday, December 7, beginning at 6 PM, Todd S. Hale presents a display of recent works at Studio 6, located at 6 E. Broad St.
ADA Gallery: Prepaid Wireless & Dark Watercolors
ADA Gallery presents two new shows: Prepaid Wireless and Dark Watercolors.
Prepaid Wireless features works by Jimmy Trotter.
Jimmy Trotter can't be called a man of single interest. His activities range from telecasts about the origins and history of soul music to occult phenomenon. He is a scholar of regional ebonics, teenage code, and unmarked police cars.
Dark Watercolor 001 (detail), 2011. Watercolor and colored pencil on paper, 43 x 43 inches
Dark Watercolors is a window installation by Michelle Forsyth.
My works entitled Dark Watercolors are somber in tone. Here the color grey is achieved, not through a mixture of black and white, but by layering many different saturated washes of color over one another until they cancel each other out. Sometimes the color drips and evidence of layers can be seen in the final surfaces under certain lighting conditions, or at the edges of the paper. Passing my squirrel hair brush from edge to edge and tracing my pencils across the surface, over and over, I linger in the slow and laborious process of building these paintings. Constructed from the large sweeping gesture of my arm, they are a direct expression of my physical body imprinted onto the paper. Having recently being diagnosed with Parkinson’s, the act of mark making is at times difficult, and the process of keeping a steady hand requires a great deal of focus. --Michelle Forsyth
Prepaid Wireless and Dark Watercolors will open on First Friday, December 7, with a reception from 7-9 PM at ADA Gallery, located at 228 W. Broad St. Both exhibits will remain on display through January 6.
VCU 1509 Gallery: The Elephant Of Eastbury
VCU Department of Graphic Design's 1509 Main Street Gallery presents the US debut of The Elephant Of Eastbury, a book by poet Andrew Gates and artist Laura Mitchell.
A child enters his grandmother's house, and finds her motionless. Next to her is a tiny elephant. The child has no idea why. In tears, he leaves, rushing home to tell his parents. They return next door, only to find the grandmother. His parents don’t believe the story, but he knows the elephant was real. This is the tale behind the The Elephant of Eastbury– a poem, lovingly dedicated to the author's grandmother.
Proudly supported by Dept. of Culture & the Arts of Western Australia, this exhibition's opening reception will offer the opportunity to meet the artist and the poet who created The Elephant Of Eastbury. The event will feature signed copies of the book and fine art prints of the plates available for purchase, as well as a live performance of the poem by director/playwright John Spitzer, aka Professor Sprocket. The opening reception for The Elephant Of Eastbury takes place First Friday, December 7, from 6-9 PM at VCU's 1509 Gallery, located at 1509 W. Main St. The exhibit will remain on display through Sunday, December 9.
Main Art Gallery: Proof Of Printing
Proof Of Printing is an exhibition of works on paper, offering an exploration of traditional printmaking processes by local Richmond artists. Print processes include monotypes, lithographs, relief prints, screen prints, etchings and engravings.
Proof Of Printing will open with a reception on First Friday, December 7, from 7-9 PM, at Main Art Gallery, located at 1537 W. Main St. The event also marks the official opening of Westbound Honey Kisses And Alcohol by Richmond artist Ed Trask, which will be displayed in Main Art's outdoor X Gallery. Proof Of Printing will remain on display through January 18, while Westbound Honey Kisses And Alcohol will remain on display through the month of February 2013.
Artemis Gallery: 15th Anniversary Celebration
After three months of renovations, collecting artistic shelving & pedestals, Artemis Gallery opened in October of 1997. At the time the 1600 block of Main St was a deserted group of warehouses and the streets were considered not safe to walk--as evidence of robbery and vandalism, our front glass door was smashed during the first month we were open. It took great courage for Artemis Gallery to open as the first gallery on the 1600 block of Main St. Today after 15 years of consistent First Friday events and openings, we are looking at 12 galleries and around 25 restaurants in the area. As a result, entrepreneurs have found Main St an interesting place to invest and open a business!
For Artemis Gallery, these last few years have been very challenging to stay open during 2 wars and 2 recessions, with a public afraid to purchase luxury and art products. How did we do it? Through persistent commitment and staying focused on presenting the most interesting creative crafts and art. On December 7th we celebrate 15 years with arts giveaways, live music, and libations. A salute to a season well completed. Come join us!
Artemis Gallery, located at 1601 W. Main St, will be celebrating its 15th Anniversary on First Friday, December 7, from 5-10 PM. For more info, click here.
Decor: Paintings By Kathleen Walsh
Inspired by travel and nature, Kathleen Walsh captures the spirit of a person, place, and/or thing in her paintings, engaging the viewer and allowing them to generate a personal narrative based on his or own experiences. Having lived overseas for many years, Walsh draws concepts from her surrounding environments and the people she meets along the way.
Although Walsh did not begin painting professionally until the 90s, a major point of development was her introduction to plein air work. With a love of nature, three seasons of the year she paints plein air. Welcomed by townspeople, she paints at nearby farms, in private gardens, on riverfronts, mountain properties and street corners.
Walsh describes her plein air experience stating, “Plein air work, on the wooded bank of the river or the freshly turned fields of the farm, is a study of beauty. I paint for beauty—beauty and the joy of painting.” In the winter she moves to the studio, working on larger, more abstracted images and wrestling with scale, color and form. “If one were to think of painting as a form of poetry, my goal would become clear.” she says.
Kathleen Walsh's exhibition will open with a reception on First Friday, December 7, from 6-9 PM, at Decor Design Center Of Richmond, located at 19 S. Belmont Ave. The exhibition will remain on display through January 26.
Studio Two Three: Mixtape 4--Remastered
Studio Two Three is pleased to announce our Fourth Annual Mixtape Show! Our theme this year is “Remastered.” As with previous years, contributing artists have created playlists for their mixtape. This group showcase began back in 2009, as a way to bridge our interests in music and art. Since that first show, the project has gone through many permutations in form and concept— regardless of format or guidelines, we advocate the artist's exploration of their personal relationship with music and art.
Mixtape 4: Remastered will open with a reception on First Friday, December 7, beginning at 7 PM, at Studio Two Three, located at 1617 W. Main St. The exhibit will remain on display through December.
Glave Kocen Gallery: UNSEEN
KC Collins, Connector, oil on canvas
Glave Kocen Gallery presents UNSEEN, an exhibition of six new RVA artists: Susan Morosky, Jeff Vick, Russ Havard, Chris Metze, Geoffrey Koslow, and KC Collins. UNSEEN opens Tuesday, December 4, with an opening reception on First Friday, December 7, from 6-9 PM, at Glave Kocen Gallery, located at 1620 W. Main St. The exhibition will remain on display through December 29.
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Artists! Galleries! Would you like your future First Friday events covered in these monthly articles? We might hear about your event anyway, but why leave it to chance? Email your press releases to andrew@rvamag.com.