D e s e r t E x p o s u r e
February 2010
Art Shorts
Silver City/Grant County Arts Scene
The approach of Valentine's Day once again brings the Mimbres Region Arts Council's annual Chocolate Fantasia fundraiser, Saturday, Feb. 13. Participating downtown Silver City galleries and other establishments will whip up exotic chocolate creations for strolling sweethearts and other visitors to sample. A $20 ticket gets you 20 chocolates, available from 12-4 p.m. The Monsoon Puppet Theatre will also return this year with a puppet parade down Bullard Street.
A special reception immediately following the chocolate-chomping will honor the top three award-winning confection makers, at Isaac's on Bullard Street. See if you and the judges agree on who created the confection best in taste, texture and presentation.
And new this year is "X'ocotal," an evening of "extreme chocolate indulgence," 6:30-9 p.m. at the Gila House, 400 W. Market St. The event will feature wine by St. Clair Winery and hors d'oeuvres by Rob Connoley of the Curious Kumquat. Those who choose to add the evening event to their calendar will be charged $50 for MRAC members and $75 for non-members.
Tickets and more information on Chocolate Fantasia can be found at the MRAC office, 1201 Pope St., online at www.mimbresarts.org or by calling 538-2505.
Galleries that will be doing something special--besides the delicious treats, that is--for Chocolate Fantasia include: Seedboat Gallery, offering "Amor Y Mas" gifts for your Valentine; Art & Conversation, featuring "Passion Pets" by Janey Katz; and Yada Yada Yarn, with special chocolate soaps.
Downtown Silver City's newest gallery is Artesanos Gallery, 211-B N. Texas St. It's a joint venture of Kaye Martino, Jean Buchanan, Anna Buchanan (Jean's granddaughter) and Greg Patrick. Photographer Patrick, seamstress and landscape painter Jean Buchanan and aromatherapist Martino all previously displayed their creations at the outdoor Art Mart on Bullard Street. Anna Buchanan is a jeweler. Also showing at Artesanos will be Kimberly Sellon, who makes hand-painted silk scarves and leather creations. Artesanos' grand opening is set for Feb. 13. 519-0804
Another red-letter day in downtown Silver City will be Feb. 5, when the new First Friday brings special events and shopping opportunities. Anima! gallery will mark the occasion with an artist's reception for "Saints & Sinners," a new show by Teri Corbin. And Blue Dome Gallery will feature "Flotsam," a show of found-object jewelry by Diane Marshall ("Marsh"), with an artist's reception 4-7 p.m.; the show opens Feb. 1 and continues through the month. Marsh is a two-year resident of Silver City via Minnesota. Her first solo show at the gallery features jewelry created from found objects, stamped text, hardware parts and antique photos. These are mixed with copper, brass and silver. The work includes locally gathered stone from the creek in Fierro and old glass from the San Vicente trail.
Also this month, the community, parents and students are invited to get to know the teaching artists from the Silver Consolidated Schools Elementary Arts Program, a partnership with the Kennedy Center For The Arts. Teaching artists will be exhibiting a sample of their own artwork at the Wild West Weavers Gallery, 211 D Texas St. in downtown Silver City. The exhibit opening will be Saturday, Feb. 13, 12-6 p.m., and the exhibit will continue through Feb. 25. Hours are Monday through Friday, 11 a.m.- 4 p.m. and Wednesdays 11 a.m.-4 p.m. and 6-9 p.m. For more information contact Debbie Seibel at 538-9723. And the JW Art Gallery in Hurley will be featuring oil-on-canvas landscapes of New Mexico by Greg Allen this month. 537-0300, jwartgallery.com.
Las Cruces/Mesilla Arts Scene
The Feb. 5 Downtown Ramble in Las Cruces will introduce a new gallery for art lovers to "ramble" to. Longtime local artist Sally Quillin is opening the Quillin Studio and Gallery behind COAS, in the space formerly used for a coffee shop. Quillin will be working and teaching art in the studio and displaying her art in the gallery. The gallery space will also display the work of Dedri Quillin, a fiber artist who specializes in wearable textiles, and Aline Fister, a silversmith whose contemporary style of jewelry is inspired by unique stones. The gallery will be open Monday through Thursday and Saturday; call for times. 312-1064. Internationally known artist George Mendoza will be featured in an exhibit at the Rio Grande Theatre this month, including the Feb. 5 Downtown Ramble, 5-7 p.m. 211 N. Downtown Mall, 523-6403, www.riograndetheatre.com. Acrylic painter Judy Bess is this month's featured artist at the Las Cruces Convention & Visitors Bureau, 211 N. Water St., 521-2051, 541-2444.
New works by internationally acclaimed mixed media sculptor Akira Blount will be featured at Tierra Montana Gallery. Blount's work is in permanent collections in the White House, the Louvre and the Renwick Gallery of the Smithsonian. 535 N. Main St., 635-2891.
The Museum of Art is hoping for a little more than "15 minutes of fame" with its new show, "Warhol & Pop Art," on display Feb. 5-April 3. The exhibition features over 20 pieces by Andy Warhol and several from his well-known Pop Art contemporaries, including Robert Rauschenberg, Jim Dine and Roy Lichtenstein. Organized by the museum, "Warhol & Pop Art" includes artwork from the NMSU Art Gallery's permanent collection, as well as works belonging to a private collector, some of which have never been publicly displayed. Classic Warhol images, such as Marilyn Monroe and Campbell's Soup Cans, are on display. Also included in the exhibition are photos of Warhol's New York studio, the Factory. These original photographs were taken by in-house photographer Billy Name, a member of Warhol's entourage and frequent collaborator.
The opening reception is from 5-7 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 5, and will include a musical performance by Cella Bella and a screening of an excerpt from the 1964 Warhol film Empire. This silent, black-and-white movie shows continuous footage (beginning at sunset) of the Empire State Building in New York City.
Art historian Debora Rindge will be speaking at the museum on Feb. 6 at 11 a.m. on "The Transformative Power of Pop Art: Celebrating the Mundane and Taming Celebrity." Rindge is an art historian and the owner of Mirari Fine Art Consulting in Las Cruces. 491 N. Main St., 541-2137, www.museums.las-cruces.org.
The New Mexico Watercolor Society-Southern Chapter, will exhibit the works of 12 local watercolorists as part of this year's For the Love of Art Month Event (see story in this section). The show, entitled "Around the Year in Las Cruces," opens at the Branigan Cultural Center on Feb. 5, with an artists' reception from 5-7 p.m., and continues through Feb. 27. The show will consist of 12 small paintings, with each artist offering his or her interpretation of a month in Las Cruces. The show includes work from Jan Addy, Donna Ayres, June Decker, Melanie Stone Jack, Regina Nelson, Penny Simpson, Lois Smith, Arlene Tugel, Laurel Weathersbee, Carlos West, Donna Wood and Phil Yost.
The society will meet on Feb. 14 at 2 p.m. at Good Sam's, 3011 Buena Vida Circle. After a brief business meeting, members will conduct an artist trading card exchange followed by a program by Carolyn Bunch. She will share her approach to the challenges of portrait and figure painting. The public is welcome and there is no charge. For more information, contact Marie Siegrist, 647-1193.
Also at the Branigan, "Barberia," a photographic essay on barbershops of the borderlands by Roy Jacobson, will have an opening reception on Feb. 5. Jacobson will attend and the public is invited to meet him. The exhibit remains on display through Feb. 27. Barbershops across the nation are fading into the past as unisex hair salons grow. The classic barbershop was more than a place to get a haircut; it was a place where stories are shared, a vital part of the living history of the community. The exhibit includes photographs of surviving shops from Brownsville, Texas, to Tucson on both sides of the border, including a shop in Mesilla Park. Says Jacobson, "In these photographs, I hope I have faithfully represented the barbers, their shops, their trade and the camaraderie that exists in these classic barber shops." 501 N. Main St., 541-2154, museums.las-cruces.org.
Las Colcheras Quilt Guild presents its 10th biennial quilt show, "Mountain Mysteries," Feb. 6-7, at the NMSU Corbett Center. Show hours are 9 a.m.-5 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. on Sunday, and admission each day is $5. More than 200 quilts will be on display, including a special journal quilt exhibit by local quilt artists. Quilt artist, author and lecturer Carol Doak will be teaching workshops at the show, and quilt appraisals by certified appraiser Bobbie Aug will be available (call for appointment, 527-2779). The show will include free demonstrations, a merchant mall, a quilt boutique, silent auction and hourly door prizes. The 2010 Raffle quilt, "Quilter's Journey" will be raffled at 3 p.m. on Sunday. 522-4902, www.lcqg.org.
The Mesilla Valley Fine Arts Gallery will feature the artwork of Helga DeLisle and Ruth Ann Sugarman this month. The gallery will also celebrate For the Love of Art Month by once again holding its "My Masterpiece" contest, in which gallery artists paint pieces in the style of famous artists. 2470-A Calle de Guadalupe, 522-2933.
Deming Arts Scene
February is "For the Love of Fiber Arts" month at the Deming Arts Council, featuring works by the Southwest WomenÕs Fiber Arts Collective, Feb. 5-26. A membership tea and reception will be held Feb. 14, 1-3 p.m. 100 S. Gold, 546-3663.
Sierra County Arts Scene
This month's Art Hop in downtown Truth or Consequences will be Feb. 13, 6-9 p.m. Galleries, studios, shops and restaurants are open late; visit the DGDA website for info on opening exhibits and other events. www.torcart.com.
"A Gathering of Quilts" will bring more than 100 quilts, vendors, a raffle and appraisals to the Ralph Edwards Auditorium in T or C Feb. 26-27, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. each day. Admission is free. For more information, contact Winter Quilters, Ginger Van Gundy, 744-5472, ginjohn@valornet.com.