Welcome to Artful Weekend, our guide to fun and interesting ways to enjoy art in person or virtually.
This weekend: Last chance to see April shows at The League; a walking art tour in DC; two new exhibits at Studio Gallery; and more!
April Open Exhibit
This is the final weekend to see April’s Open Exhibit, juried by contemporary and performance artist and curator Adriel Luis. Our open exhibits are a great way to view the breath of mediums and styles of our member artists. This month’s show features two large-scale fiber art pieces by Best-in-Show Award winner Cynthia Grisdela and Susan Lapham; a colorful sculpture made from piano innards by Tory Cowles; Michaela Borgehese’s vibrant fused glass Fan of Many Colors; James Wehner’s terracotta trio that calls to mind classical sculpture; and much, much more. See it in-person in the Gallery, Wednesday-Saturday 11:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sunday noon-5:00 p.m., through Sunday, May 2. You can also view the exhibit online.
Justin T. Worrell: Breath on Glass
Oil painter Justin T. Worrell captures the ephemeral, dusky prelude to nightfall in his solo exhibit Breath on Glass. Inspired by the American Tonalist school, Worrell’s landscapes blur the boundary between our physical world and the spiritual realm; on view at The Art League gallery through May 2.
Glover Park Art Walk & Sale
Last December, artist Jodi Ferreier organized an art stroll and sale in her Northwest DC neighborhood. “I had this idea because I thought there were a lot of creatives living here,” she says. She was correct and it was a hit. This Saturday, May 1 from noon to 5:00 p.m., the Glover Park Art Walk is back by popular demand. Take a self-guided tour and see paintings, drawings, jewelry, prints, photography, pottery and fiber art made by 20 artists who reside in the area. You can purchase a Mother’s Day gift while you’re there. Print out this map or pick one up at 3824 Beecher Street, NW on the day of the tour. The rain date is Sunday, May 2.
Alonzo Davis: Navigating Climate Change
When Alonzo Davis’s studio assistant traveled to Micronesia, a country of islands clustered in the Pacific Ocean, the artist became intrigued with the region and its culture. In Navigating Climate Change, Davis presents new mixed media works inspired by his fascination with Micronesian navigation stick charts (an ancient seafarer tool) to call attention to the devastation that the climate crisis is bringing to the Pacific Islands and the rest of the world. It is on view through June 19 at Joe’s Movement Emporium (appointments for viewing the work can be made for Thursdays from 6:30 pm- 8:30 pm and Saturdays from 12:00 pm- 4:00 pm). An outdoor Artist’s Talk will take place on Thursday, May 6 at 7 PM. RSVP here; Joe’s Movement Emporium, 3309 Bunker Hill Road, Mount Rainier, MD.
Micheline Klagsbrun: Night Boats and Deborah Addison Coburn: Ignorance Was Bliss
There are two new exhibits to view online or in-person at Studio Gallery: Night Boats, a series of mixed-media sculptures by Micheline Klagsbrun, expresses the dislocation and migrations she and her family faced as they escaped from and to various countries. The precarious quality of her pieces speaks to their sea voyages. Patched together from a variety of unseaworthy materials, this work evokes the refugees’ desperation and determination to escape, their resourcefulness and resilience.
Ignorance Was Bliss is a reference to the period just before the pandemic when artist Deborah Addison Coburn stepped away from politically charged drawings to create the playful watercolor paintings in this exhibition. Coburn ponders how the lighthearted doodles she created in the before-times now, a year later, appear eerily microbial, as if to foretell what would come. Both exhibits are on view through May 22 at Studio Gallery, 2108 R St. NW.
Enjoy the weekend. Wear your mask.