The latest installment of the Solar Anus reading series goes down at Kavarna tonight. New York native David Lehman will be reading poetry and Georgia-based Josh Russell will read short fiction.
The prolific David Lehman has two books out this year – a collection of poetry titled Yeshiva Boys and a non-fiction volume about Jewish songwriters titled A Fine Romance – as well as the latest installment of The Best American Poetryseries, which he initiated and continues to edit. You can check him out reading a poem called “The Double Agent” below.
Solar Anus is, hands down, the best name for a reading series in Atlanta. Local author Jamie Iredell hosts the roving series, which will conclude 2009 with a reading at Beep Beep Gallery this Friday, November 20 featuring Kate Greenstreet, Brigitte Byrd, and Scott Wilkerson.
As usual, here are a few arts events to add to your weekend roster. Also, don’t forget about the Hense exhibition at The Rail Yard and the Kvares show at Beep Beep. This weekend’s art scene is chock-full so enjoy.
FRIDAY (Today)
Head to Castleberry Hill’s tattoo parlor/art gallery City of Ink to check out John Hairston Jr.’s vivid, realistic graffiti-style art. His latest work, Hollywood Africans, celebrates the life and career of Jean-Michel Basquiat. Walk away with a unique perspective on one of the world’s first African American art greats and maybe even some new ink. Free. City of Ink. 404-525-4465. www.thecityofink.com/.
Fresh from the NYC fashion scene House of Diehl’s Style Wars hits Atlanta runways. Watch designers battle head-to-head and make killer creations in 5-minute knock-out rounds. It’s Project Runway on crack! $15-$20 7:30 p.m. Opera. 404-874-0428. www.houseofdiehl.com/stylewars.
SATURDAY
Eyedrum’s First Annual Ear Ball is sure to satisfy all your aural cravings. The event–originally conceived as a fund raiser–is a showcase of the works of a diverse pool of local sound artists. Whether you’re into jazz improv or are looking for some electronic soundscapes Eyedrum’s got you covered. Pay what you can. 12 p.m.-2 a.m. Eyedrum. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org.
Get This! Gallery is housing Atlanta neopop artist Fahamu Pecou’s first solo show. Whirl Trade was inspired by Pecou’s travels in Africa and explores the interpretations and misconceptions of blackness in African-decended communities. Through images that are arranged as faux magazine covers he sends a powerful message about popular media and the power of influence. Free. 7-11 p.m. Get This! Gallery. 678-596-4451. Gethisgallery.com.
SUNDAY
It’s Pecha Kucha time! Volume 14–the last of the fall season–is titled Back to Basics. The diverse roster (including CL favorite Danielle Roney and former mayoral candidate Kyle Keyser) promises to provide some tasty food for thought and make for lots of candid conversation. Free. 7 p.m. Octane Coffee Lounge (Westside). www.atlantapechakucha.com.
Good intentions don’t always make for successful realities. Atlanta based artist Alex Kvares explores those “moments of unfulfilled hope” in his solo show Oh So Fail, opening at Beep Beep Gallery this Saturday, November 14. Oh So Fail looks at abandoned cold war military bunkers, Jodorowsky’s Holy Mountain, and other connections to “collapsed ideals, dilapidated utopias and various ruined promises.” Kvares often draws in colorful short, stitch-like strokes, referencing craft-making and psychedelic aesthetics. You can preview a few of the pieces from the show and listen to Kvares discuss his work in the video.
Oh So Fail runs from Sat., Nov. 14 until Sun., Dec. 6 at Beep Beep Gallery. 696 Charles Allen Drive. 404.429.3320. beepbeepgallery.com
See 'The Accumulation of Change' at Eyedrum Fri., Oct. 16.
This weekend’s arts calendar is jam packed with a little something for everyone, whether you’re into wearable art or are fascinated by DNA and all things genetic.
TONIGHT (Friday)
Beep Beep Gallery presents Pretty Awesome at Aurora Coffee L5P, a combo art auction/concert/fund aiser. In an effort to host more all ages shows (and keep up their rep as the 2009 Best of Atlanta Readers Pick for Best gallery spotlighting local artists) art from 25 local artists, including Lucha Rodriguez, Ann-Marie Manker and Shaun Thurston, will be auctioned off between 7 and 10 p.m. Afterward, for only $5, there’ll be a concert featuring Carnivore, Recompas, El Fossil, Pleasure Cruise and Em! (The Back Pockets). Auction: Free. 7-10 p.m. Concert: $5. 10 p.m.-1 a.m. Aurora Coffee Little Five. 404-429-3320. www.beepbeepgallery.com.
Lelavision brings The Accumulation of Change, a unique and interactive performance, to Eyedrum. Expect a hybrid art-science experience that blends Lelavision’s kinetic musical sculptures, music and dance with the research of biomolecular chemistry professor Dr. David Lynn of Emory University. Audience members will participate in a twisted and spectacular game of genetics through the use of classroom clicker technology as they learn about the chemical origins of life and Evolution. $10-$15. 8 p.m. Eyedrum. 404-522-0655. www.eyedrum.org.
Events at Beep Beep Gallery have featured live DJs, local bands including Judi Chicago and Noot d’ Noot, and even live storytelling performances. On a good opening night, conversations typically spill out onto the sidewalk, sometimes into the street. Enthusiasm runs high.
But the gallery’s also open during the day. You might be surprised at the finer details, and nuances of meaning, learned from just a little “quiet time” spent with original artwork. Even if you experienced the reception for Sam Parker’s Neoteny last weekend, the works still merit another view. Regular hours are Fri.-Sat. from 12-6 p.m. (Watch the Studio Visit interview above for some background on the show.)
Saltworks is one of five galleries participating in the Westside Arts Walk + Wine Pairings event. Attend all five (free) wine tastings and receive a 10% discount at Hop City!
BOMAYE!! Michi Meko sizes up for a new, conceptual/object-based exhibition at Beep Beep Saturday, in his continuing battle with the ghosts of the Old South.
Speaking of Dosa Kim, don’t forget to check out his collaboration with local Sam Parker tonight, Fri., June 12 at Art Department’s grand reopening. The Studioplex complex is a strange beast — it’s easy to get lost once you’re inside, but it’s still definitely worth the trouble.
LOOK MOMMIE! Duncan McDaniel's "Death and Conception"
During last year’s drought, the State of Georgia entertained a grudge over the water supply along the border with Tennessee, a row that was as much a waste of time as it was eerily antiquarian. Fortunately, recent trends in our local arts community show otherwise: The Peach State can get along with its neighbors, after all.
This Sat. May 9 from 8-11 p.m., Beep Beep Gallery opens a new exhibition of drawings and paintings, appropriately titled Southern Comfort. The show features a select delegation from Nashville’s Twist Art Gallery: Duncan McDaniel, Erin Plew, and John Whitten. All three artists are Nashville natives, chosen because they “differ greatly in their respective subjects and techniques, but underlying their imagery there is a tone of disconnect, nostalgia, and an absurd take on violence.” In exchange, Beep Beep offered up locals Ann-Marie Manker and Jason R. Butchter, whose exhibition in Nashville opened last weekend.
The show also gives the excuse to quote Flight of the Concords:
Women like three things: Men in kilts, Southern Comfort, and Chris Isaac’s ‘Wicked Game.’
GARAGE ESOTERICS: An untitled work-in-progress by BORN. See the finished work at the show opening.
The artist known as BORN is a mechanic. How do I know? In preparation for BORN’s newest exhibition, Relief, Beep Beep Gallery released a YouTube video interview this week, shortly after publishing a series of preview images on its website. The format, in both cases, is a studio visit with the artist — in a small corner of the same auto repair shop where he works during the day. Relief opens Sat., April 11 from 8-11 p.m.
I personally enjoy this type of interview. In the case of BORN’s mechanic shop, we see the objects and colors that influence his daily life — the cool grays of concrete, browns of weathered wood, and touches of primary color on various tools. The artist will incorporate some of these elements into objects of “beauty composed of the things we usually associate with ugliness.” Additionally, studio visits like these help drive home the fact that art is a legitimate type of labor: It takes effort and persistence over time.
The music video above, “Night of the Knife” by the local band Cassavetes, was included in the very first episode of “WonderRoot TV.” Expect more from episode two — including a spotlight on the Disregardables, a local punk act, and a visit with Dosa Kim at his recent Beep Beep Gallery opening — premiering tomorrow night, Wed., April 1 at 8 p.m at WonderRoot.
Each 30-minute program, featuring short art films, animation, music videos, and profiles on local artists and musicians, is comprised of original footage (shot and edited by WR volunteers) as well as submissions collected via an open call to the community. The final product is then broadcast on cable every Thursday on channel 24 People TV Atlanta. (”WonderRoot TV,” episode one is also available online at YouTube in four separate parts.) WonderRoot hosts a screening on the first Wednesday of every month.
If you’re an aspiring filmmaker, animation artist, or a local band working on a music video, here’s your opportunity to get on TV. Interested? If so, WonderRoot has scheduled an informational meeting about the program Thursday at 7 p.m. Continue reading “Community-based media and ‘WonderRoot TV’” »
SPIRITUAL/FAR-EASTERN
Emory’s Carlos Museum will host a monthlong series of traditional thangka painting demonstrations by Tibetan artists-in-residence beginning Tues., 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
Meanwhile, at Emory Visual Arts Gallery, Diane Solomon Kempler’s new show, Divine Chaos, gives physical expression to experiences during her recent trip to India.
CONCEPTUAL/GROUP SHOWS
After a long winter break, Solomon Projects finally opens POISED, a group show by Ridley Howard, Scott Ingram, Odili Donald Odita, Jeff Sonhouse, tonight from 6-8 p.m. There will also be an artist talk tomorrow at 11 a.m.
The similarly titled (but equally promising) PLAY “offers the opportunity to freely explore our natural senses of curiosity and wonder.” It opens at Spruill Gallery Thurs., March 19, and features work by Avantika Bawa, Black Blue, Philip Carpenter, Barrett Feldman, Jason Fulford, Jeffrey Merritt, John Douglas Powers, Staci Stone, Martha Whittington. George Long, Mario Schambon among others.
CRACK THAT WHIP: "Potential Unbridled" by Dosa Kim. Heard of 'Kanye's Workout Plan?' If we're to infer anything from his artwork, Kim's weight-loss program might be a little more drastic…
Anyone who’s been following Beep Beep Gallery this spring may have noticed something different at their last show: The walls have been repainted, the ceilings redone, and overall, the artwork presentation seemed to follow a calculated plan rather than some late-night whimsy. The distinction isn’t obvious, but it applies to both the gallery owners as well as the artists.
Take for instance the work of Dosa Kim, whose solo exhibition Diet opens Saturday from 8-11 p.m. The show’s title represents a continuation of the visual themes addressed by the artist’s previous work in Weight, a surprisingly fresh coffee-shop revue at L5P’s Aurora Coffee last fall. Kim’s new work bubbles with tremendous angst, but he’s recently incorporated several techniques used primarily by the “grown-up” art establishment: uniform framing (representing a monetary investment by the artist) and certificates of authenticity (signifying for collectors an object worthy of investment).
Of course, Beep Beep is still — in spirit and in practice — a predominantly D.I.Y endeavor. As a self-styled leader in equally self-styled Atlanta underground art, the gallery is similarly caught up in these dialectics of professionalism v. rebellion — between “selling out” and “keeping it real.” The psychodrama continues this weekend: Dosa Kim leads the charge in Beep Beep’s ambitious curatorial program for 2009, a succession of exclusively one-man or one-woman shows. Continue reading “Dosa Kim’s Diet opens at Beep Beep Saturday” »
