Gallery gossip

• If you’re tired of work made by people with MFAs being billed as folk art, go to the current exhibit at the Asheville Area Arts Council’s Front Gallery. The show comes from The Open Hearts Art Center, pieces done by local adults with mental, physical, developmental and emotional disabilities. They show joyful self-portraits, colorful abstractions, innovative sculpture and collage—including one collage, by artist Merlin, that uses Japanese cartoons as a departure point.

• Lauren Gibbes’ first New York exhibit will put her in the room with some art-world heavy-hitters: She’ll be showing at the Cynthia Broan Gallery with Janet Biggs, Beverly McIver, Suzanne McClelland, Dr. Lowery Stokes Sims and the late Mae Wilson, among others.

• Bernie Hauserman may be best known for his innovative directing at Asheville Community Theatre, but he wears his painter hat in his work about dreams in the back part of the Arts Council’s Front Gallery. The theater is clearly an important part of his subconscious, evinced in wonderful masks and two lively circus paintings. The whole installation speaks of adventure and discovery.

• The Scholastic Art Show in Pack Place Gallery boasts the commitment of area junior-high and high-school teachers, as well as the work of their students. Mary Alice Ramsey’s 10th-grader Cecily Anderson shows a rhythmic little mixed-media work called “Dancers,” and eighth-grader Charles Payton exhibits a toothy D-Form sculpture; his teacher is Cathy Mills. Freedom High School’s John Hilston has a 12th-grade student with two outstanding works: Katie Kath’s “Cow” is a mixed-media piece, and her “Coming Apart at the Seams” is sculpture. All this aside, there’s still the question of the appropriateness of art being about competition.

• Urban artists sometimes consider a subway train a blank canvas. Satellite Gallery has given 20 or so local participants the opportunity to decorate or otherwise alter 18-inch subway-car models. It may be our last chance to see work by Dustin Spagnola—he’s moving to Japan on Feb. 25.

SHARE

Thanks for reading through to the end…

We share your inclination to get the whole story. For the past 25 years, Xpress has been committed to in-depth, balanced reporting about the greater Asheville area. We want everyone to have access to our stories. That’s a big part of why we've never charged for the paper or put up a paywall.

We’re pretty sure that you know journalism faces big challenges these days. Advertising no longer pays the whole cost. Media outlets around the country are asking their readers to chip in. Xpress needs help, too. We hope you’ll consider signing up to be a member of Xpress. For as little as $5 a month — the cost of a craft beer or kombucha — you can help keep local journalism strong. It only takes a moment.

About Webmaster
Mountain Xpress Webmaster Follow me @MXWebTeam

Before you comment

The comments section is here to provide a platform for civil dialogue on the issues we face together as a local community. Xpress is committed to offering this platform for all voices, but when the tone of the discussion gets nasty or strays off topic, we believe many people choose not to participate. Xpress editors are determined to moderate comments to ensure a constructive interchange is maintained. All comments judged not to be in keeping with the spirit of civil discourse will be removed and repeat violators will be banned. See here for our terms of service. Thank you for being part of this effort to promote respectful discussion.

Leave a Reply

To leave a reply you may Login with your Mountain Xpress account, connect socially or enter your name and e-mail. Your e-mail address will not be published. All fields are required.