Gallery Closure
One of Dallas’ best new art galleries departs Design District too soon
A feisty young gallery in the Design District is shutting down abruptly: Zhulong Gallery will close on January 31.
A statement from the gallery's representative said that the final show, Johanna Billing's exhibition, I'm Lost Without Your Rhythm, had been canceled.
Zhulong opened in April 2014 under the direction of artist-founder Chris Lattanzio, who parted ways with the gallery a few months later. It was hailed as an alternative to Dragon Street's grid of interior designer-based showrooms, with its frosted white-glass façade and unusual dragon-themed configuration; "zhulong" is a Chinese deity that crosses a human and a dragon.
Its focus was on artists who worked in technology, video, sound, post-internet, and new media, as well as traditional mediums. Led by director Aja Martin, its staff included an audio-visual team that could handle the installation of projections for special digital and video pieces.
Well-received offerings included the Lauren Woods solo exhibition, which tackled the topic of race via a mix of video pieces and sound interventions. Zhulong also formed atypical partnerships such as the preview of works by Jeremy Couillard which featured a chef-prepared dinner presented on a 40-foot table that itself was a work of art.
Zhulong's closure marks the second artsy departure from Dragon Street, as Photographs Do Not Bend left the area on December 30 for a new space at 154 Glass St.
In a statement issued by the gallery, Martin says she is shifting her focus. "As I turn my sight on academic pursuits, I look forward to participating and supporting the Dallas’s growth as an art destination," she says.
