TAC-KC: 04.27.12

Tracy's Art Calendar — KC & Lawrence for April 27-30, 2012:
Final Friday; KCAI Class of 2012 shows continue; Speakeasy

Teal Wilson, Untitled, pencil with embroidery on paper, 2011, is part of her debut solo exhibition, Year of the Horse: Born into a Family of Rabbits, opening as part of Final Fridays in Lawrence, Kansas, at Wonder Fair, from 6 to 10 p.m.
Image: courtesy of the artist via the gallery

It's Final Friday in downtown Lawrence, Kansas, this evening, and, as usual, you can see all that's going on at the organizers' fine and comprehensive site. One space, the quirky, artist-run gallery, shoppe, and event venue, Wonder Fair, hosts one of the many KCAI senior thesis exhibitions that make this time of year exciting for art enthusiasts.

Teal Wilson's work is a response to her upbringing, namely that she, a self-described tsunami of an extrovert, was born into a family of quiet introverts. See how that turned out.

I love running out to the exhibition/sale on campus (next weekend), going to the all-class annual show at H&R Block Artspace (on view through May 12), and seeing the students' work in the various individual or small-group exhibitions around town. New talent! Fresh energy! A chance to note trends and to guess which artist was most influenced by which teacher, and time to nod backwards a little to when, as a graduate, life was nostalgically rosy, and that world was one's oyster.

I have met some fine pearls from recent KCAI classes, and I'm vastly grateful for their allowing an "older person" to hang out and learn things with them.*

Speaking of pearly youngsters' projects ; ) . . . .

The Speakeasy is in its fourth weekend of events; tonight, a gathering of KC literary (non-stuffy) types will be reading from their work. All day Sunday is the Coffee & Toast version of BREAD! KC micro-granting (in which you vote with your tips on three different projects presented via video), and from 2 to 4 p.m. join in the third Speakeasy Exchange discussion, about the non-profit "art business" model, the non-non-profit way of doing things, and, in general, about the various mainstream and alternative models for arts and cultural centers.

You're invited to participate. I hear that I will be there : )

Friday, April 27:

Generation of Warriors
senior exhibition by Marshall Fife (KCAI '12, digital filmmaking)
Leopold Gallery, 324 West 63rd Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-333-3111
Opening reception: April 27, 6-8 p.m.
Open: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
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Reach Beyond Death
featuring more than 30 tattoo artists' non-tattoo work from across the country, presented on forearm casts provided by Adam Smith Studios
at Windhorse Tattooing and Art Gallery, 1717 Wyandotte Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-283-0500
Closing reception: April 27, 6-10 p.m.
Open: Wednesday-Sunday, 11 a.m.-7 p.m., through April 29, 2012
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Reading Night Brouhaha
Celebrate local author Jordan Stempleman's release of his recent book of poetry, No Not Today, and enjoy readings from various writers, including: Pete Cowdin, Marie Dougherty, Gina Kaufmann, Alex Savage, Aaron Storck, and others.
at The Speakeasy (at La Esquina), 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115
Readings and fun: April 27, 7:30 p.m.
The Speakeasy is open for viewing/visiting/conversing: Friday-Saturday, noon-6 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. + special events, through May 13, 2012
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Schema
senior exhibition by Travis D. Williams (KCAI '12, photography)
at The ROOST, 1324 West 12th Street, 2F, Kansas City, Missouri: contact twilliams@kcai.edu
Opening reception: April 27, 6-10 p.m.
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Trashy, Multicultural, Feminism Exhibition: and Other Late Night Social Justice Issues
a senior "thesis adventure" including video installation pieces, site-specific discussions and performances by Emily Kissner (KCAI '12, digital filmmaking) at three locations; for the full experience, come to the Walnut location at 7:30, 8:30 or 9:30 p.m. to ride along in the Trashy Transit shuttle, room permitting (Info: contact ekissner@kcai.edu)
at Brushcreek Room, 4041 Walnut Street, Apt. 306, Kansas City, Missouri
Showing April 27 & 28, 7 p.m.-midnight;
at Marriott Country Club Plaza, 4445 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri;
Showing April 27 & 28, 7 p.m.-midnight; and
at The Strand Adult Theater, 3544 Troost Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri
Showing: April 27 and 28, 9 - 11:30 p.m.
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Year of the Horse: Born into a Family of Rabbits
senior exhibition by Teal Wilson (KCAI '12, printmaking)
at Wonder Fair, 803 1/2 Massachusetts Street, Lawrence, Kansas: 785-856-3247
Final Friday opening reception: April 27, 6-9 p.m.
Open: Wednesday-Friday, noon-6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-7 p.m., through May 20, 2012

Sunday, April 29:

Speakeasy Exchange
"A conversational platform designed to draw on the collective knowledge and experience of all participants. Rather than reinforcing the roles of expert panel and attentive audience, invited guests in this series will come prepared with questions to stimulate and guide public discourse. The third Speakeasy Exchange discusses the various mainstream and alternative models for arts and cultural centers. The public is invited to partake in this exchange of dialogue to weigh the pros and cons of such establishments and the roles in today’s art communities."at The Speakeasy (at La Esquina), 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115Exchange: April 29, 2-4 p.m.
The Speakeasy is open for viewing/visiting/conversing: Friday-Saturday, noon-6 p.m.; Sunday, noon-5 p.m. + special events, through May 13, 2012

Monday, April 30:

With Cranes
a short film as part of senior exhibition of Kidjchai Yingsery (KCAI '12, digital filmmaking)
at Screenland Crown Center, 2450 Grand Boulevard, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-545-8034 (artist contact: kyingsery@kcai.edu)

Note:
* (Come on! I certainly had nothing in common with people 15+ years my senior when I graduated from college! Maybe I just didn't know any artists -- or I only ran into smarmy or bitter 30-somethings, or something . . .)


PS, All opinions here are my own, and no one edits this — besides me — so any errors are also solely mine. Corrections are appreciated: needsaneditor@gmail.com

TAC-KC: 04.20.12

Tracy's Art Calendar — Kansas City for April 20-22, 2012

Sarah Taylor, Swamp Fetus, inkjet print, 11.7" x 16.5", 2012, on view as part of her senior thesis exhibition (KCAI, '12, photography) at The Trap Gallery, with an opening reception tonight from 6 to 10 p.m.
Image: courtesy of the artist via the gallery and KCAI

It's that time of year when the upcoming college graduates put their work on view and give us the chance to see the "now." Last Friday, the annual Kansas City Art Institute BFA Exhibition opened at the H&R Block Artspace (16 East 43rd Street), and work from the Class of 2012 is on view there (every gallery, both floors; it's always one of my favorite exhibitions to visit/view) through May 12. The annual closing reception / farewell party is May 11, from 6 to 8 p.m.

A host of individual student exhibitions are scheduled in various galleries in the coming weeks, and I aim to bring you timely notice of those as they happen. Three open tonight: Revenge of the Pixel Blobs by Sarah Taylor (pictured above); a three-person exhibition at For Sale (also in Columbus Park) by Kathy Brown (fiber), Emily Connell (ceramics), and Kaelyn Helmer (painting); and Body Vernacular by Ruben Castillo (printmaking, at Leopold).

Tonight, the Charlotte Street Foundation is marking 15 years with a many-artist, many-faceted Urban Culture Project endeavor, The Frontier, opening tonight at Paragraph and Project Space downtown. It is:

"A SERIES of evolving, collaborative, multi-disciplinary projects. A LIVING ARCHIVE of artist-driven efforts in Kansas City. A SITE for interviews, research, discussions, and public programs. A LAUNCH PAD for excursions, investigations, and propositions. An INVITATION for YOUR participation."

Part of the Living Archive includes long lost issues of Review magazine, dating back to its founding in fall 1998 through its final print issue in Spring 2010. I'm looking forward to remembering my early days in Kansas City, when, indeed, the Crossroads were barely populated, and downtown was more like a ghost-town than the loft-ful, Power & Light District place it is today.

Don't forget about The Speakeasy. There's something new every weekend: today, Jessica Rogers is on site with her CartWheel mobile craft venue; tomorrow, she hosts a "stitch and bitch" at 2 p.m., and later that evening there's a musical performance by Howard Iceberg & The Titanics, along with Grisly Hand; and Sunday, you can come at 3 p.m. to participate in a food swap. All the details are on The Speakeasy blog.

I almost forgot! You can get started early with some of your favorite people at the Arts Council of Metropolitan Kansas City: it's Spring Happy Hour for Now Showing, from 5 to 7 p.m. Featured artists include Cheryl Eve Acosta, José Faus, Adolfo Martinez, and Jason Sierra. Refreshments for all at ArtsKC's offices, on the 10th floor of 906 Grand Boulevard. Mattie Rhodes Art Center will have a folk art installation on the first floor. There's even complimentary valet parking in the UMB garage just to the south. RSVP is requested. Please click here to do that.


Friday, April 20-22:

Body Vernacular

Ruben Castillo

at Leopold Gallery, 324 West 63rd Street, Kansas City, Missouri:816-333-3111
Opening reception: April 20, 6-9 p.m.
Open: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. through April 26, 2012
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CartWheel

Jessica Rogers's mobile craft store, featuring Kansas City artists
at The Speakeasy, located at la Esquina, 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115
The Speakeasy is a
Artist reception: April 20, 5 p.m.
Stitch & Bitch with the artist: April 21, 2 p.m. Come and learn about sewing from experienced "craftivist" Jessica Rogers and discuss the current state of craft in contemporary art and design
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Frontier

at Paragraph and Project Space, 21-23 East 12th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-816-221-5115
Phase I opening: April 20, 6-9 p.m.
Open: Wednesday-Saturday, noon-5 p.m.; Thursday, 11 a.m.-6 p.m. through July 7, 2012, with third Friday receptions/performances on May 18 and June 15, 6-9 p.m.
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Revenge of the Pixel Blobs
Sarah Taylor

at The Trap Gallery, 525 Gillis Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-853-7510 (S. Taylor)

Opening reception: April 20, 6-10 p.m.

Open by appointment through May 13, 2012
______

Senior Exhibition: Kathy Brown, Emily Connell, and Kaelyn Helmer

at For Sale Gallery, 916 East 5th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 510-284-7067 (K. Brown)

Opening reception: April 20, 6-9 p.m.

Open by appointment through April 28, 2012

PS, All opinions here are my own, and no one edits this — besides me — so any errors are also solely mine. Corrections are appreciated: needsaneditor@gmail.com

TAC-KC: 04.13.12

Friday the 13th weekend

Stephen T. Johnson, whose work is inspired by language and the Roman alphabet, is on view at both the downtown/main Kansas City Public Library and at Weinberger Fine Art in the Crossroads.
Image: courtesy of the artist; may not be reproduced without permission


The Speakeasy is open now. Rest your eyes or ears and you will miss something. New talks, works, collaborations (and food) happening daily. Read about it here (in The Pitch, by Theresa Bemnister).

On Saturday, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art opens a truly fun romp of an exhibition about fancy things from the Worlds Fair shows, 1851 through 1939 (admittedly, I am a 19th century junkie and can't wait to get over to the Titanic exhibit at Union Station … ). I wrote about Inventing the Future here for The Pitch, where I also did a little profile on Judith G. Levy, one of this year's Artopia honorees (party is Saturday at Screenland).

In true Kansas City style, there is plenty of visual arts culture to take in this weekend, even if it's not a First Friday:

Abstractions
Stephen T. Johnson
at Weinberger Fine Art, 1800 Baltimore Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri: 913-940-0104
Event: April 14, noon-3 p.m., with Reading Reptile and "their famous cupcakes"
Open Tuesday-Friday: 11 a.m.-5 p.m.; Saturday: noon-5 p.m., through April 28, 2012
(Johnson's Art, Language & Play is on view at the Kansas City Public Library through April 28, 2012.)
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Derrick Breidenthal and E. Spencer Schubert: New Work
at Leopold Gallery, 324 West 63rd Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-333-3111
Opening reception: April 13, 6-9 p.m.
Open Monday-Friday: 10 a.m.-6 p.m.; Saturday: 10 a.m.-5 p.m., through at least April 19 (please contact gallery for more information)
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Hobbs Open Studios
at Hobbs Building, floors 1-4, 1427 West Ninth Street, West Bottoms, Kansas City, Missouri
Open: April 13, 6-10 p.m. with music by Whiskey for the Lady, and vendors from Good You, Prairie Fire Oven, and CartWheel & April 14, 1-4 p.m.; more than 25 artists work from the Hobbs Building; open studios are twice a year and a great opportunity to see work in progress, to talk about art, and (a-hem), to buy new things : )
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Pop-Up Store
HalfLetter Press
at The Speakeasy, located at la Esquina, 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115
Open April 14, noon-6 p.m.
The Speakeasy has something happening (different! and including a BREADKC! microgranting dinner/presentation each Sunday) constantly through May 12, 2012; please see their site for updates . The space is open Friday & Saturday: noon-6 p.m.; Sunday: noon-5 p.m. and special events (so, please check back with Speakeasy and drop in often).
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Undergraduate College Student Exhibition
at Kansas City Artists Coalition, 201 Wyandotte Avenue, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-421-5222
Opening night: April 13, with reception, 7-8:30 p.m.; Executive Director Janet Simpson to give remarks at 6 p.m. (open to all); this annual event shows off juried work by those who are up-and-coming
Open Wednesday-Saturday: 11 a.m.-5 p.m. , through April 27, 2012
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War Is Trauma
by Temporary Services, a portfolio organized by Brooklyn, Justseeds and IVAW
at The Speakeasy, located at la Esquina, 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115
Talk with Marc Fischer (Temporary Services) and William Stewart (Iraqi Veterans Against the War) is April 13, 6-9 p.m.
The Speakeasy has something happening (different! and including a BREADKC! microgranting dinner/presentation each Sunday) constantly through May 12, 2012; please see their site for updates . The space is open Friday & Saturday: noon-6 p.m.; Sunday: noon-5 p.m. and special events (so, please check back with Speakeasy and drop in often).
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Wes Janz Presentation
Hear from the first architect in the United States to get a permit for a permanent structure made out of discarded shipping pallets shares his story.

at The Speakeasy, located at la Esquina, 1000 West 25th Street, Kansas City, Missouri: 816-221-5115

Talk: April 14, noon-1 p.m.

The Speakeasy has something happening (different! and including a BREADKC! microgranting dinner/presentation each Sunday) constantly through May 12, 2012; please see their site for updates . The space is open Friday & Saturday: noon-6 p.m.; Sunday: noon-5 p.m. and special events (so, please check back with Speakeasy and drop in often).

PS, All opinions here are my own, and no one edits this — besides me — so any errors are also solely mine. Corrections are appreciated: needsaneditor@gmail.com