May First Friday: The Girls Are Back



If you are late to the billion-eyed audience, you may not know that these two women, displaying the classic Greek tragedy/comedy duality, represent -- well, here at the Blue Raccoon, anyway -- the arrival of yet another First Friday High Art Hike throughout midtown Richmond. And the ladies will enjoy fine weather, suitable for their mode of dress.


[Little did we know, but Catherine Keener, (above?)perhaps with friends, has visited...]

If you know the story, please repeat along. The topmost image was taken, and not by me, at an opening several years ago at the vanished Three Miles Gallery and that this space, and an adjacent one, is now the busy Tarrant's Café.

Before you head into the Presidential-named streets of midtown, though, you need to check out two exhibits by friends of ours across the street from each other, Louis Poole at Page Bond, 1625 W. Main St. and Steve Hedberg's new work at the Glave-Kocen Gallery, 1620 W. Main St.

Both painters create environments in their pieces; Louis' houses verge on the abstract, Steve's buildings, streetscapes and landscapes are rendered with a realistic vision, but he also presents abstract elements.

The Poole here is via the Richmond Federal Reserve site.

As they say, the Glaves and the Kocens, on their site about Steve:

Steve Hedberg - harley on lombardy

Steve Hedberg - street parking on floyd

Steve Hedberg - untitled

new works by Steve Hedberg

May 2 - May 31, 2008
Opening Reception,May 2, 2008
6:00 until 9:00

With his latest body of work, Richmond artist, Steve Hedberg continues to divide his time between two styles: realism and abstract. He takes a slightly gritter approach to his realism, focusing on Richmond's Fan neighborhood, old automobiles and local haunts as subject sources. His work in abstract furthers his exploration of a seemingly alternative universe, using compositions of geometric planes balanced by course texture and color.

By the way, A.d.a Gallery, 228 W. Broad St., turns five years old with this First Friday. Gallerist John Pollard has made a definite mark here, and come June, he'll will be hieing off to Scope Basel in Switzerland. This month, members of the collaborative FEAST are exhibiting.


Below are further directly ripped-off blurbs of some of the premiering events:

Quirk Gallery
Chuck Scalin: Rush: Explorations in Glass

We’re SO excited to see what Richmond based (hum, legendary) artist Chuck Scalin will pull out of the kiln for his upcoming first solo show at Quirk. Kiln? Yes, kiln! Chuck has been working with local legendary artist herself, Jude Schlozhauer, learning the secrets of glass. Taking his exquisite collages to the next level, Scalin creates unique (yeah, you’ve heard it before, but it’s true here) works of art by fusing glass and found objects. Each one a mystery until it emerges from the heat, Scalin then works the surface with addition of objects and by working the surface with graphite or paint. This is a not to be missed show!

Exhibition Statement: The creative RUSH comes after the piece is removed from the kiln, with the challenge of where and how to take the piece to completion. Inspiration for these pieces is derived from the irregular textures, color alterations, and accidents that occur during the firing process and result in determining the direction of the final abstract composition.

Rush opens at Quirk on May 2 and continues until June 21.

VCU MFA Thesis Show!
It’s May and that means a city filled with more art shows than you can shake a paintbrush at, thanks to the many end-of-semester shows presented by art students from across the City.

The VCU School of the Arts Department of Sculpture presents their MFA Thesis Exhibitions at two annex locations that are in the First Fridays area. We’re sure you won’t want to miss the works of these exceptional emerging artists!

Terminal: VCU Sculpture MFA Thesis Annex Exhibition
Featuring: Sami Ben Larbi, Lily Cox-Richard, David Grainger, Eli Kessler

Opening Receptions: May 2, 6-9pm & May 9, 7-9pm
2 Locations: 5-7 West Broad St and 209 N Foushee Street
Exhibition continues: May 2-18, 2008

1708 Gallery 319 West Broad St. Richmond, VA 23220 (804) 643 · 1708 1708gallery.org Tuesday - Friday: 11 am – 5 pm Saturday: 1 – 5 pm and by appointment First Fridays hours: 7 – 10 pm

Forgotten Constellations Artist Paul Cantanese presents projected installations First Fridays: May 2, 7-10pm Exhibition: May 2-31 1708 Gallery was founded in 1978, and is a nonprofit exhibition and performance space committee to expanding the understanding, development, and appreciation of contemporary art.

Gallery 5 @ VA Fire & Police Museum 200 W. Marshall St. Richmond, VA 23220 (804) 644 · 0005 gallery5arts.org Thursday, Friday and Saturday 11am – 5pm, and other times by appointment First Fridays hours: 7 – 11 pm Exintrinsic: The Art of Ebony Patterson, Lisa Kellner, Brooke Hine An exhibition that embraces the fine subtleties and details of the surface and texture of the human body, Extrinsic features Ebony Paterson from Kingston, Jamaica, and Lisa Kellner from Richmond. Both artists create an exquisite visual dialogue about the body as a receptacle or vessel for passage while dissecting the discrepancies between what is perceived and what is visible. Lisa Kellner's work ranges from delicate drawings and paintings exemplifying the topographical qualities in the landscape of the skin to installations that explore the qualities of flesh and bodily structure, juxtaposed with the aspects of personal sanctuary. Ebony Patterson creates large scale mixed media prints that seek to reference specifically female objectification from an autobiographical perspective, while making cultural references to her own experiences with her own body. First Fridays: May 2, 7-10pm; Featuring live entertainment Exhibition: May 2-28 Gallery5, one of Richmond’s newest and most innovative visual and performing art centers, is located in a National Historic Landmark known as Steamer Company No. 5. Gallery5’s mission is to help promote a new understanding of the arts in an interactive atmosphere by combining multiple mediums under one roof. Our monthly exhibitions include a collaboration of both visual works of art, live music, film and a wide array of performing arts.

Ghostprint Gallery 220 West Broad Street Richmond, VA 23220 (804)344-1557 www.ghostprintgallery.com Wednesday - Saturday 1 – 7 pm or by appointment First Fridays: 7-10pm First Fridays hours: 7 – 10 pm Peter Fowler - Let the Paint Speak Fowler is a prolific painter whose bravura brushwork and luscious use of paint convey a sense of joyful energy, whether his subject be impressionistic landscapes or romantic figures of women. Peter may be booked for portraits at his First Friday Opening. First Fridays: May 2, 7-10pm Exhibiton: May 2-31 From the cutting edge to established International artists, non-traditional media to oil painting, Ghostprint Gallery synthesizes disparate elements in an enlightened perspective on art itself.