Your Show of Shows
Art gallery picks of the month: Whimsical works, hobo graffiti and Public celebration
Start the summer with a modern mix of exhibitions, ranging from playful creations from a local artist gaining national fame to girl power at Talley Dunn to a major milestone for Public Trust.
“It’s Like the Beginning of That One Song” by Sergio Garcia
Kirk Hopper Fine Art
Reception: May 31, 6:30-8:30 pm
Exhibition dates: May 31-July 5
Dallas-based sculptor and painter Sergio Garcia has been getting his share of national recognition lately with appearances at the Scope Art Fair plus a recent solo show at San Francisco’s White Walls.
“It’s Like the Beginning of That One Song” at Kirk Hopper is a golden opportunity for collectors to snap up one of Garcia’s playful creations of metal, hydrostone and glass that reflect a childlike outlook on life.
“There’s a lot of styles in Dallas that are very minimal and abstract, and sometimes I feel like I’m taking this road by myself,” Garcia says. “[Art critic] Jerry Saltz did a talk and was mentioning sometimes you don’t choose art, it chooses you. Everyone from little kids to an old person can relate to my work.”
“Atomic Cosmologies” by Amy Myers and “Better Than Most” by Rachel Cox
Talley Dunn Gallery
Reception: June 7, 4-6 pm
Exhibition dates: June 7-July 12
Let’s hear it for the ladies this month at Talley Dunn: The notable gallerist is teaming up two female talents with Texas ties for a dual solo show with two very distinct points of view.
Amy Myers’ spirograph-style works draw from the worlds of psychics and science fiction, revealing the hidden dimensions of space from the gallery walls. Emerging photographer Rachel Cox explores the nature of quality and value in a slyly humorous way.
Says gallery director Beth Taylor, “Even though it’s a generation after the Guerilla Girls, we have some of the same challenges [showing female artists]. We like each artist to have a solo show, and Talley likes to vary the media so you’ve got wonderful large-scale drawings with small-scale photographs.”
Bruce Lee Webb at Neighborhood
Reception: June 12, 6-10 pm
Exhibition dates: June 12-July 12
Bruce Lee Webb is having a busy month. In addition to bringing back Esther Pearl Watson to his Waxahachie space on June 1, he and his wife, Julie, are curating a show at Memphis’ Crosstown Arts while Webb gears up for his own solo exhibition in Oak Cliff.
The painter takes over Neighborhood in Bishop Arts with 41 new works done in his “hobo graffiti” style. Webb gathered Depression-era scrapbook pages and old clothing catalogs as backdrops for his cast of characters that “magically appear on the paper.” But why not unveil them in his own space?
“I don’t want my art to be in competition with the artists I represent,” says Webb, who has previously shown his work at the Belmont Hotel. “I like unusual spots [like Neighborhood], and it’s better not to sell your own art. Let someone else do it.”
“Decade: The Public Trust 10th Anniversary Exhibition” at The Public Trust
Reception: June 14, 6-9 pm
Exhibition dates: June 14-July 12
We love Public Trust owner Brian Gibb for all he does for the Dallas art world — envelope-pushing exhibits, gallery walks and access to the work of street art icons.
Gibb is celebrating 10 years in the community — two with his defunct Denton space, eight with Public Trust — with a timeline-inspired installation encompassing everything from works by past and current artists to the Quicksilver G4 Mac computer he used to design every issue of his publication Art Prostitute. Patrons have a rare opportunity to purchase single issues or boxed sets of Prostitute along with prints and books.
Gibb says his 11th year in business will bring a unique twist on the traditional exhibition, with 10 solo shows featuring a single piece of artwork each. Potential participants include some major heavy hitters in the world of contemporary art, making this unique approach something to get very, very excited about.
“In the beginning you pack in the art in because that’s what you think you’re supposed to do,” Gibb says. “I think people don’t really examine stuff because we give them so much to look at it, but you take away the element of so many choices they’re going to really look at this one thing.
“There’s always a piece that’s the cream of the crop.”