Contemporary Figurative Drawing at Spinning Plate

The exhibit of figurative drawing at Spinning Plate is pretty intense. The artists are well matched, in theme and in medium. The works are consistently produced in dense blacks on white surfaces. Just by dint of the media, the works are imbued with intense impact.

Richard Clraraval

When I stopped in to see the exhibit, I was really taken with these small drawings of Richard Claraval's. These drawings represent his planning process for an upcoming exhibit.

Tim Fabian

I would have liked to get a better image of the above drawing by Tim Fabian. I've been following his posts of his figure drawing for awhile, and it has been interesting watching the permutations of his figurative drawings evolve. I've seen them included in other exhibits, but this is the first time I've seen several assembled in the same place. They have a dynamic action, and a freely expressed gesture, that is open to interpretation.

Marc Snyder

Marc Snyder's drawings for this exhibit are strong, and violent. Decapitated torsos are threatened by elaborate shadows; limbs and skin have been separated from the body. In all, a disquieting presentation that will take some time to read.

Stephen Tuomala

I've seen several of Stephen Tuomala's drawings in previous exhibits. But I loved the way that they are suspended in front of the windows that wall the gallery. The book pages looked like they were on fire, even on the cloudy day that I visited. It brought an entirely different dimension to the large scale drawings. Especially with the pentimenti of the construction casting shadows through the work.

There's a special music and dance performance on Saturday, July 26. It would be the perfect time to catch some good music and cool art. details

Contemporary Figurative Drawing
Spinning Plate Gallery
5821 Baum Blvd, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania 15206
Tues, Wed, Thurs, 7 to 10 PM. Fri and Sat 4 to 7 PM.

Play @Panza

I loved Tim Fabian's statement about his curatorial intentions for the Play exhibit:

"In one way or another each of the people in this show evidence play in their work. I think of this show as my loose group of playmates."

His caliber of playmates is extraordinary. There is a lot of good work in the Play exhibit, and some artists used this opportunity to step out and present work that is new and exploratory.

Bill Wade at Panza

Bill Wade had several abstract pieces, focused on vibrant color and pure shape. The works are created on photographic paper, using objects and light. Although Mr. Wade is best known for his documentary style of work, it is obvious that these works are something that he has been exploring for awhile.

Jean McClung

Oh now, this was just a wonderful piece. Ms. McClung has been blending transparencies and light into small sculptures for several years. This permutation of the idea is wonderfully freash, and does embody the concept of play quite well. FYI, Jean McClung is in an upcoming exhibit in April at ModernFormations.

David Grim

Okay, so this was like striptease meets art. David Grim's work usually draws a lot from distorted images and surreal concepts. For Play, Mr. Grim covered his work with small photos. The artist was selling each of these small photos for one thin sawbuck, gradually unveiling the work that was actually what he was presenting. When I was at the opening, the above was all that you could see of the collage underneath. Here's the final reveal.

George Kollar

The works presented by George Kollar were so very expressive. At first glance, I assumed that they were traditional drawing materials. But these works were created directly on photographic paper. The non-traditional format made the works even more compelling. Photographic paper, worked with the chemicals used in darkroom work lend the pieces some interesting qualities.

The exhibit is up through February 16 and is well worth the trip over to Millvale. While you're there, stop by Pamela's Diner, right around the corner from Panza. If it's good enough for our First Lady... Honestly, it's great diner food.

Play
Jan. 19, to Feb. 16, 2013.
Panza's image album
Panza Gallery
412.821.0959
panzagallery@mac.com
www.panzagallery.com

gallery hours:
wd.thur.fri 10-5
& sat 10-3

What I'm doing this weekend

It's so nice when the universe aligns and so many good things happen at one time. Granted, there are plenty of weekends, weekdays and holidays when good things happen. Universal alignment is when they are all happening in proximity to where I live.

Play promises to be a really great show, because I am pretty familiar with most of the artists. Since it's also curated by Tim Fabian, I am more than sure the exhibit will be a good one. The list of artists, in case you are curious:

Sue Abramson, Ruth Drescher, David Grim, Tom Gigliotti, George Kollar, Jean McClung, Mark Panza, Michael Sahaida, William D. Wade

Now, isn't your curiosity piqued?

Please please try to make it to Fe for Words for Poems. I am familiar with Laurie Trok's work and it is exceptional. But the show has a VERY short run and will be gone before you know it. If you happen to be in Larryville during Fe's extended hours for the show, venture down to Espresso A Mano. It's just a few blocks away from Fe, serves great coffee, and currently is hosting David Grim's work on it's walls.
David Grim: Looking @U
More information about this show
Espresso A Mano
3623 Butler St

Play, opening January 19, 2013
More information about this exhibit
Panza Gallery
115 Sedgwick Street
Millvale Pa 15209

Words for Poems, opening January 19 2013 at Fe Gallery
More info about this exhibit
FeGALLERY | 4012 Butler Street, Pittsburgh PA 15201 | 412-254-4038
Thu - Fri: 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm
Sat: 12:00 pm - 6:00 pm
Sun: 12:00 pm - 4:00 pm
www.fegallery.org

November Unblurred

Tugboat Printing

As always, there is somebody trying something new during Unblurred. This month, Tugboat Printshop had a shallow sort-of bookshelf kiosk on Penn, between Winebiddle and Evaline. I hope they make it back again next month. The booth was such a nice addition to the Unblurred event.

Artists in Mission

Another new face, Artists In Mission Gallery (AIM), located at 5159 Penn, had a photography exhibit by Jessica Nan and a reading. The venue was a private residence, and the exhibit was held in the livingroom. It was really crowded and I couldn't get an interior shot, but it was so cool that someone opened their home for the Unblurred event.

I never have a chance to get to all of the venues and special events during these first Fridays. There was so much more that was just happening for the evening, and there are still all of the regular venues, like Awesome Books. I did stop in to say hello to Christine Bethea at ARTica. The shop got a recent "face lift" from designer Joesph Hall and is looking particularly spiffy. If you're looking for some quirky or unique gift, stop in and poke around a bit.

ARTica

The Irma Freeman Center for Imagination (5006 Penn)
Closing reception for Pittsburgh by Pittsburgh Artists II
 

June Edwards

Wendy Osher

Tim Fabian

The Irma Freeman Center has moved to an alternating monthly exhibition schedule, covering two months for each exhibit. So it does give you a little longer to come back and really explore the works. The current show, Pittsburgh by Pittsburgh Artists, is a really far-ranging survey exhibit. There are several pieces that are exceptional among the works presented, alongside some that are sort of naive. The installation was well thought out, though, so the works didn't clash. Among the best works were those by Tim Fabian, June Edwards and Wendy Osher (pictured above).

ModernFormations 
 “The Good Fight” New Works by Christian Breitkreutz

Christian Breitkreutz

From the show statement --

Men, women, children and beast alike, we cannot afford another day lost behind blinded eyes. This is a call to arms to do battle against the trumpets of evil sounding off in our brains! We must all rally behind one another to keep fighting The Good Fight!

Do you like Quentin Tarantino, with his over-the-top portrayals of violent acts? You know what I mean; shiny, farcical violence, violence that is so extreme it becomes kitsch. Like a Tarantino movie, this was an exhibit of some pretty intense images of stylized violence. Cute skeletons, pretty blood colors and decapitated heads with bland expressions. There was also a touch of the kind of imagery you would see in a Dia De Los Muertos festival.

Most Wanted Fine Art
"A Year in A Life" - new works by Nina Sauer and Ryan Dunmeyer

Ryan Dunmeyer

Ryan Dunmeyer

Curses. I really need to get a new camera. Yes, I took pictures of both artists' work. Please take my word on it that Nina Sauer's work is really great. They were small-format pieces, with a really nice sensibility. Her work pairs very well with Mr. Dunmeyer's, pictured above. Definitely a show worth catching, and Most Wanted Fine Arts does have regular hours.

If you want to catch the transitory stuff that happens each month, you might want to sign up for the Unblurred e-blast. Or just be spontaneous and show up some First Friday. You never know what you'll find.

Pittsburgh Center For The Arts Video

OK, It's kind of hokey, but here's a video that I assume the PCA, put up on You Tube about itself. Not many places have a place like this on this kind of scale or at least very few smaller cities.