Art Openings and Events: November ‘08

by Laura Seewoester

October 31 - November 2

• The Trammell Crow is having a family festival celebrating the festival of light. (I believe this is called "Diwali.") There will be Indian dancing, folk tales, crafts and museum tours.
• Arts Fifth Avenue is having a Day of the Dead celebration. In addition to work by local artists, they will also have a community Ofrenda if you would like to bring something that represents the memory of a lost loved one to add to it.
• mighty fine arts is opening a show for three artists, Steve Cruz, Brian Jones and Brian Scott. The show runs through the end of November.
• "Open Terrain" is opening Saturday at 500X, featuring work by work of Thomas Feulmer, Keri Oldham, Brian Spolans, and Kyle Warren. The artists offer their analysis on life amid contemporary media, attempting to evaluate the minutiae of modern-day living and humanness. Sounds rather Seinfeld-ish. But maybe less comical.
• If you're feeling giving this weekend, support your local artists and a good cause at the Art with a Cause Art Show and Sale, at the Bank of Texas. The show supports Hope for Peace & Justice. In addition to the art, there will be complimentary wine and hors d'ouerves and some live music.

November 7 - 9

• There is an opening reception for Bill Komodore at Gerald Peters.
• Centraltrak is hosting one of their Open Studio events, where you can listen to each artist talk about their work. This is muy helpful, because the way an artist's mind works is not always obvious in their art. (Yeah yeah, figuring it out is half the fun, but it's still awesome to get an artist's personal insight.)
• El Centro is having a reception and student fundraiser.
• La Reunion TX is hosting another round of Art Chicas Unidas at their new space in the design district. Art Chicas Unidas is an artist mentoring program for young women in junior high and high school.
• The Olafur Eliasson exhibit opens at the DMA on Sunday. I'm expecting this one to be big and sparkly, more to come soon on this exhibit.

October 14-16

• Decorazon in the Bishop Arts District is opening a show for Adam Morey.
• The Three Graces is opening at Haley-Henman Gallery featuring works by Elisabeth Schalij, Gisa Elwazir, and Silvia Thornton.
• eNeRGy opens at Kettle Art with works by a few favorites of the Kettle crew: Mark Nelson, Richard Ross and Sergio Garcia.

November 21-23

• There is a lecture at the DMA about burial practices in ancient Egypt and China. Sounds almost creepy, and it's free.
• The Sons of Hermann is hosting the 1st Annual Etsy Dallas Jingle Bash. Remember Etsy? We love Etsy. This event is a good way to support your local artists and get a head start on your Christmas shopping. Just think, the more gifts you buy here the less time you have to spend at the mall during the holidays.
• David Aylsworth is opening "Is it the Real Turtle soup?" at Holly Johnson. If you think you're clever, try to find the references to musicals in his work.
• ArtLoveMagic is having their final event for the year at Mokah Coffee Bar. Vision is a show featuring 20 local artists who each chose a specific theme when selecting their pieces.

November 28 - 30

• Being the weekend after Thanksgiving there isn't a whole hell of a lot going on outside of the recurring exhibitions. But if your mother in law is driving you crazy to the point where her safety is becoming an issue, check out the opening of Vicious Pink at Centraltrak. It will likely cater to your post-Thanksgiving-sick-of-family angst.

On Goings and Goings On

• Quilt lovers, it is your time of year. The Irving Arts Center is hosting Quiltmania II, featuring three full exhibits of nothing but quilts. The Old Red Museum also has a quilting exhibit through March.
• The Trammell Crow has an exhibit of Chinese tomb art. This might be a good one to check out before or after you visit the Tut exhibit. Make it an afterlife kind of day.
• Molas of the Kuna People, featuring woven textiles from the Kuna people of Panama, opens this month at the Latino Cultural Center and continues through mid January.
• The Modern in Fort Worth has a new photo/video exhibit running through the beginning of the year that is worth a look-see.