Legendary pop art, shape-shifting and sensory overloads are all afoot in March’s gallery offerings. Without further ado, here’s what to do and see in the coming weeks:
“Peter Max: A Retrospective 1960-2014,” at Road Show Company
Reception: March 8, 2-4 pm, 6-8 pm
Exhibition dates: March 8
Love or hate his candy-colored, in-your-face style, there’s no denying that a piece by Max is instantly recognizable as his — and only his. The psychedelic-influenced painter and illustrator became a household name in the 1960s, and he hasn’t fallen off the pop culture radar since.
Max — who has painted five U.S. presidents and countless celebs — is making a personal appearance at Road Show Company on Dragon Street Saturday, along with an expansive retrospective of his work. From his interpretive Masters series inspired by classics from Monet, Renoir and Degas to overpaints and paintings from every era of his career, this show is a visual feast and a rare opportunity to purchase a Peter Max original.
Max, who says he “loves the freshness of the incredible Dallas Museum of Art and how hip art collectors are in the Dallas-Fort Worth area,” has also created a selection of pieces inspired by Big D and the Lone Star State sure to please local Max admirers and collectors.
“Things and Places,” Randy Guthmiller, Allison Ginsberg, Mathew Koons and Alex Revier, at Ware:Wolf:Haus
Reception: March 8, 7-10 pm
Exhibition dates: March 8-15
Trinity Groves may have proved itself as a burgeoning dining destination, but if Arthur Peña has anything to say about it, it’ll be the next great art ’hood as well. The owner and director of Ware:Wolf:Haus is celebrating the kickoff of his second experimental year with “Things and Places,” a multimedia show curated by artist Randy Guthmiller.
The publisher of a ’zine called Shapes, Guthmiller is fascinated by forms, and his approach to the omnipresence of shape in our daily lives lends the work an unexpected liveliness.
“There’s something about his work that’s ambiguous — Ellsworth Kelly would look at things and formalize them, but [these works] are like Ellsworth Kelly at a party,” Peña says. “Kelly’s more Uptown; Randy’s much more downtown.”
Featuring other artists selected by Guthmiller, the show — and the space — most definitely capture that downtown vibe, a spirit that will continue throughout its second season.
Nurtured by developer Butch McGregor’s support, Ware:Wolf:Haus will be offering another year of eclectic music, fashion and art with a musical residency from “Dallas’ David Bowie” George Quartz and other envelope-pushing programming.
“This year is grander in its vision,” Peña says. “It’s a re-introduction to people, and it’s laying the groundwork for this area to be established. [This neighborhood] is an incubator of restaurants and an incubator for art-making and everything in between.”
“Common Sense,” Nicolas G. Miller, at the Reading Room
Reception: March 15, 6-9 pm
Exhibition dates: March 15-April 13
The Reading Room is known for exploring the way words and images interact, but in its current show of works from the Marfa-based Nicolas G. Miller, the gallery adds another sense to the experience by examining the image of how sound appears.
With custom-made editioned vinyl and sculptural installations, the Kimbrough Award-winning Miller’s “Common Sense” features a “soundtrack” derived from the low-frequency effects of Steven Spielberg films.
“Sound is the major idea behind [the show],” says gallery owner Karen Weiner. “All the work refers to the idea of the common sense sort of crowd behavior.
“The place that we experience that the most is in a movie theater, because we’re all looking at the same movie at the same time. It’s a shared experience, but we’re individuals as well.”
Cosmic Runner by Peter Max.
