as you walked down Superior between Wells and Orleans, the crowds filled the street for great art, wine, and never ending conversations with their fellow art lovers.
in attempts to view the aforementioned galleries, our (Lindy and myself) first stop was Zg Gallery which drew us in with their bright lights, easy to manage crowd, and art that seemed worthy of a glance. their featured artist Ben Butler's untitled, cedar sculpture was probably the most interesting piece in the show. upon arriving at the sculpture you are enticed to feel it's apparent smooth surface, but a look at the back makes you appreciate the work on a greater level. his woodblock prints were also interesting and the whole show, compiled with no more than fifteen pieces, created a nice wooded environment. The back office held a small exhibition with gallery artists in which Anna Joelsdottir's where do they all go? caught my eye.
the second stop was up a few floors to David Weinberg Gallery. always a fun affair. they don't miss anything with their openings as directer/owner David Weingberg graciously converses with his guests, curator Aaron Ott carries his oversized wine glass, eagerly speaking about the current installation, and all the other friendly employees extend a greeting and impart their own knowledge to the crowd. the gallery featured two artists, Sebastian Lemm and Amanda Friedman. both artists are working with nature themed subjects. The ambient lighting in Friedman's photographs were breathtaking. if the gallery wasn't packed and i had more time on my hands, i felt as though i could stair at these photos for hours. i did not take to an instant liking, however, to Lemm's work, who was exhibited in the main gallery, but after reading some literature on his process, i left with a better understanding.
gallery three was Roy Boyd Gallery. we walked into a sparsely congregated space, but were graciously greeted with chocolate altoids! all in all i liked the solo show by Marco Casentini but each canvas seemed to have at least one quality (usually the color combination) that would piss me off. the canvases were interesting with different textures, some containing Plexiglass, and the variety of thickness of the canvas itself visualized a three-dimensional quality.
we then headed back on Superior to Printworks. Tiny, tiny space, exhibiting the work of Michiko Itatani. Interesting, but not for me. This was a quick stop before we ascended to the fourth floor to check out Kenneth Josephson at Stephen Daiter Gallery. great show in my opinion. the crowd was familiar as everyone seemed to make their way from gallery to gallery. the room was comfortably packed. the show was entitled "The First 50 Years" presented a vast range of Josephson's photographic series from the last fifty years in his life. it started with a much appreciated humor, then took a more serious approach, sometimes nearing nostalgia, and then to a more racier side. the interesting part is noting the dates of the series. check out the link to see a majority of the show.
we ended the night here, as it was narrowing 8:00, and went to Brehon's Pub around the corner for some dinner and drinks. It was a fabulous evening to say the least. Fine art, fine company, and definitely a fine way to end the week. unfortunately i still had to work today, so i'm exhausted, and will end on that note. enjoy the rest of your weekend.
what i'll be checking out next:
Sunday, March 2 3-5 pm
Dominic Moore: Gallery 214, NIU, DeKalb IL
in attempts to view the aforementioned galleries, our (Lindy and myself) first stop was Zg Gallery which drew us in with their bright lights, easy to manage crowd, and art that seemed worthy of a glance. their featured artist Ben Butler's untitled, cedar sculpture was probably the most interesting piece in the show. upon arriving at the sculpture you are enticed to feel it's apparent smooth surface, but a look at the back makes you appreciate the work on a greater level. his woodblock prints were also interesting and the whole show, compiled with no more than fifteen pieces, created a nice wooded environment. The back office held a small exhibition with gallery artists in which Anna Joelsdottir's where do they all go? caught my eye.
the second stop was up a few floors to David Weinberg Gallery. always a fun affair. they don't miss anything with their openings as directer/owner David Weingberg graciously converses with his guests, curator Aaron Ott carries his oversized wine glass, eagerly speaking about the current installation, and all the other friendly employees extend a greeting and impart their own knowledge to the crowd. the gallery featured two artists, Sebastian Lemm and Amanda Friedman. both artists are working with nature themed subjects. The ambient lighting in Friedman's photographs were breathtaking. if the gallery wasn't packed and i had more time on my hands, i felt as though i could stair at these photos for hours. i did not take to an instant liking, however, to Lemm's work, who was exhibited in the main gallery, but after reading some literature on his process, i left with a better understanding.
gallery three was Roy Boyd Gallery. we walked into a sparsely congregated space, but were graciously greeted with chocolate altoids! all in all i liked the solo show by Marco Casentini but each canvas seemed to have at least one quality (usually the color combination) that would piss me off. the canvases were interesting with different textures, some containing Plexiglass, and the variety of thickness of the canvas itself visualized a three-dimensional quality.
we then headed back on Superior to Printworks. Tiny, tiny space, exhibiting the work of Michiko Itatani. Interesting, but not for me. This was a quick stop before we ascended to the fourth floor to check out Kenneth Josephson at Stephen Daiter Gallery. great show in my opinion. the crowd was familiar as everyone seemed to make their way from gallery to gallery. the room was comfortably packed. the show was entitled "The First 50 Years" presented a vast range of Josephson's photographic series from the last fifty years in his life. it started with a much appreciated humor, then took a more serious approach, sometimes nearing nostalgia, and then to a more racier side. the interesting part is noting the dates of the series. check out the link to see a majority of the show.
we ended the night here, as it was narrowing 8:00, and went to Brehon's Pub around the corner for some dinner and drinks. It was a fabulous evening to say the least. Fine art, fine company, and definitely a fine way to end the week. unfortunately i still had to work today, so i'm exhausted, and will end on that note. enjoy the rest of your weekend.
what i'll be checking out next:
Sunday, March 2 3-5 pm
Dominic Moore: Gallery 214, NIU, DeKalb IL
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