Thursday, September 30, 2010

More on Vadis Turner at Quirk


In the last post, we mentioned the "content heavy" work of Vadis Turner now on view at Quirk. Below are the artist's thoughts about her work's significance. Be sure to check it out for yourself during this week's First Friday Art Walk...

"Derby Blanket" is part of Turner's "The Last Dowry," now showing at Quirk.

Vadis Turner- Artist Statement

There is a transformative legacy in handmade objects historically made by women. Over time ancestral forms of crafts appreciate in value, maturing into heirlooms that function as cultural currency and which later, as artifacts, serve as a documentation of the artist and her origins. My work engages this progression in a current cultural context.

I am developing a collection of contemporary heirlooms that compose my Dowry. The pre-nuptial heirlooms re-imagine conventional handicrafts, rites of passage and gender roles that represent the values of my generation.

Traditionally exchanged for societal advancement through marriage, the individual heirlooms that comprise my Dowry will be sold or traded for professional gain.

Last Dowry draws from ornamentation and ceremonial adornments used to honor the apex of beauty, fertility or physical potential. It often marks the beginning of the end or the end of the beginning. The works bridge various stages of growth and decay. With fire, a new beautiful energy is being created from a destructive process.


These "hair eggs" are also part of "The Last Dowry."


Vadis Turner's "The Last Dowry" (and more!) at Quirk


Vadis Turner's "The Last Dowry" will be on view at Quirk until October 23rd- be sure not to miss this content-heavy, visually-rich body of mixed media sculptures.






















Currently showing on the shop wall: Daniel Calder







Upcoming in the Vault- Sayaka Suzuki


Upcoming on the Shop Wall- Eleanor Grosch


Get more information about these exhibitions and upcoming events at Quirk's website.

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Tomorrow Night: Preview Reception for Josh George at Ghostprint Gallery


Preview Josh George's new work tomorrow evening at Ghostprint Gallery from 6-8 PM.


George's exhibition entitled "Establishing Shot" will also open to the public during First Friday, this Friday October 1st.

More information is at Ghostprint's fb, and check out their revamped website, too!

Major Picasso Exhibition Slated for this February at VMFA



Congratulations to VMFA on being the only east coast institution to snag this traveling Picasso exhibition, culled from a massive collection of the artist's works housed in the Musee National Picasso in Paris.

VMFA's website details many reasons for the United States to get excited for this visual arts coup:

"...'This exhibition is without a doubt a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for the American public,” says Alex Nyerges, director of the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts. “An exhibition this monumental is extremely rare, especially one that spans the entire career of a figure who many consider the most influential, innovative, and creative artist of the 20th century.'

...

Renowned worldwide, the collection from the Musée National Picasso, Paris is unique because it represents the pieces that Picasso set aside for his own personal collection. Acting almost as a curator for his art, Picasso kept some of his most iconic pieces from each phase of his work, including the Blue Period, Rose Period, Cubism, the return to Classicism, Surrealism, and his later work..."

See VMFA's website to read the specifics and to see some of the masterpieces included in the exhibition, and check VMFA out on fb, as they do a great job keeping their friends updated on the museum's myriad of upcoming events.

Richmond is so fortunate to have this institution and the people running the show within it who continue to evince their great expectations for our city's identity within the scope of the global art world.

Pics from Priscila de Carvalho's "Slick" at Russell/Projects


"Slick" is on view until October 16th.























Get more information about de Carvalho's work at Russell/Projects' website, here.

Monday, September 27, 2010

Pics from last Friday's openings at Artspace

(All shows are on view until October 17th.)

Gary Cawood's "Excavation":









Members' Exhibition:













Leigh Anne Chambers's "Unheimlich":















Jessica Sims's and Jessica Burke's "Vintage Vices":

(first five images are Sims's)




















(next five images are Burke's)










More information about the artists and their work is on Artspace's website, here.