Galleries
Express yourself
Warhol’s clouds, a night at the opera and LGBT portraiture among exhibits
Vintage shots of Andy Warhol with his famous ‘Silver Clouds,’ a 1966 exhibit that’s coming to Artisphere in Arlington. (Photos by Nat Finkelstein; courtesy Artisphere)
The National Museum of Women in the Arts (1250 New York Ave., N.W.) is showing “Equal Exposure: Anita Steckel’s Fight Against Censorship” from Nov. 4-May 9. Steckel, who died last year, was a feminist artist who caused a scandal in the ‘70s by refusing to censor her exhibition featuring male and female erotic figures. The exhibit features personal papers, photographs and art that represent her career and her activism.
“American People, Black Light: Faith Ringgold’s Paintings of the 1960s” is currently on display. It showcases the work of Faith Ringgold, who painted art in direct response to the Civil Rights and feminist movements. The art represents people of all backgrounds — black and white, male and female, rich and poor — and shows tension that arose from interracial contact at the time.
Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for students and seniors, and free for museum members and those under 18. For more information, visit nmwa.org.
“A Night at the Opera,” a 50-item exhibit of artifacts related to composers Verdi and Wagner, is on display now at the Library of Congress in the Performing Arts Reading Room. It’s up through Jan. 25. Visit loc.gov for details.
“Portraits of Life: LGBT Stories of Being” features prominent LGBT people in photographs at the Pepco Edison Place Gallery (701 9th Street, N.W.) in an exhibit presented with Montgomery College. Visit pepco.com for details. It runs through Dec. 17.
The Latino GLBT History Project has a photo exhibit on display at the Mt. Pleasant Neighborhood Library (3160 16th Street, N.W.) starting Sunday and running through Oct. 15. “Immigrant Roots Paving the Way for Today” is the theme for the group’s eighth annual Hispanic LGBTQ Heritage Celebration, which culminates with its Heritage Awards on Sept. 27. The exhibit features about 40 LGBT Latino/a leaders in black-and-white photos by Kevin Kenner. The group is online at latinoglbthistory.org.
Art by Kanika Sircar on display at Waverly Street Gallery in Bethesda. (Image courtesy Waverly Street Gallery)
Waverly Street Gallery (4600 East-West Highway, Bethesda, Md.) is showcasing “Text/Message” by Kanika Sircar, a partner with the Gallery. The collection includes ceramic vessels and wall pieces focusing on the visual impact of writing. The imagery is based on texts, graffiti and calligraphy layered together to reference images such as manuscript pages and envelopes. The exhibit is open now through Oct. 5 with a reception tonight (Friday) from 6-9 p.m. For more information, visit waverlystreetgallery.com.
Artisphere (1101 Wilson Boulevard, Arlington, Va.) is showcasing “Andy Warhol: Silver Clouds” for the first time in the D.C. region, an exhibit on loan from The Andy Warhol Museum in Pittsburgh. It is on display now through Oct. 12. Admission is free. The exhibition will feature a series of complementary programs, including the “Night of 1,000 Andys Dance Party” on Oct. 12 at 8 p.m. Admission to the dance party is $15 in advance or $18 on the same day. For more information, visit artisphere.com.
Corcoran Gallery of Art (500 17th St., N.W.) is also featuring work by Andy Warhol as part of the “Modern and Contemporary Art Since 1945” collection. The collection is a new permanent exhibit and features art by Warhol, Jessica Stockholder and many other contemporary artists. Admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and students, and free for children under 12. Members enjoy free admission year-round. For more information, visit corcoran.org.
The National Building Museum (401 F St., N.W.) will host the Smithsonian Craft2Wear show from Oct. 25-27. The weekend-long show will feature wearable crafts for men and women in all price ranges. Items sold include jewelry, shoes, scarves, clothing and handbags. Admission is $5. The Advance Chance Party is on Oct. 25 from 6-9 p.m. and requires advanced reservation. Tickets for the party are $50 and include wine and hors d’oeuvres, music and more.
Some LGBT vendors include outerwear designer Jeffrey Weiss (jeffreyweissdesigns.com), scarf and clothing designers Randy Darwall and Brian Murphy (randalldarwall.com) and hat designers Ignatius Creegan & Rod Givens (ignatiushats.com).
For more information, visit craft2wear.smithsonian.org.
HEMPHILL (1515 14th St., N.W.) is celebrating its 20th anniversary with “Represent,” a gallery that includes three outstanding works from each one of the 30 gallery artists. Because 90 pieces are too many to fit into the space, the content will rotate in regular intervals, providing a new experience for returning visitors. The public opening reception is on Sept. 21 from 6-8 p.m. From then, the exhibit will be open through Nov. 27. For more information, visit HemphillFineArts.com.
The Phillips Collection (1600 21st St., N.W.) is currently featuring “History in the Making: 100 Years After the Armory Show,” a celebration of New York’s controversial 1913 Armory Show. The show originally included work by Manet, Monet, Picasso, van Gogh and Goya. The celebration features acquisitions made by Phillips Collection founder Duncan Phillips in the decades following the show at the Armory. The exhibit is running now through Dec. 1.
The Phillips Collection is also showcasing “Ellsworth Kelly: Panel Paintings 2004-2009” now through Sept. 22. The exhibition falls during Kelly’s 90th birth year and features seven works consisting of canvases of solid color. Kelly developed his focus on color and shape while immersing himself in the art and architecture of Paris in the late 1940s.
Admission is $12 for adults, $10 for students and seniors, and free for members and visitors 18 and under. For more information, visit PhillipsCollection.org.
Touchstone Gallery (901 New York Ave., N.W.) is showing “Garden Variety” by Linda Bankerd. The exhibit is a series of abstract landscapes of scenes from across the country, from the cheery trees in Washington to the snowy woods of the Arizona mountains and back to the artist’s home of Alexandria.
Touchstone is also showing “ReBirth” by Janathel Shaw. The show tells a narrative of a personal journey. Themes in the collection of sculptures include the struggle of a young black man facing racism and the rise of a phoenix.
Both collections are on display until Sept. 29. For more information, visit TouchstoneGalleries.com.
Studio Gallery (2108 R St., N.W.) is showcasing “Barbarella,” by Brian Williams, an Arlington-based painter. In the exhibition, the 1968 film was “brought to life again via Netflix curating.” The paintings capture the otherworldly landscapes of the film. The exhibition runs through Sept. 28.
Studio Gallery will also present “WildFlowers” by Micheline Klagsbrun. The collection is inspired by a tale in Greek mythology. Orchis had a lustful appetite which ended with him being torn to pieces and scattered, where he grew into the first orchids. The exhibition will run from Oct. 2-26. The run will include a First Friday Reception on Oct. 4 from 6-8 p.m. and an Artists’ Reception on Oct. 12 from 4-6 p.m. For more information, visit StudioGalleryDC.com.
Zenith Gallery (1495 F St., N.W.) is showcasing “Great Streets: The Urban Life of D.C.” through Nov. 8. The exhibition features art capturing the essence of Washington from a variety of artists. It celebrates the District’s creative economy, which is third in the nation, behind New York City and Los Angeles. For more information, visit ZenithGallery.com.
Galleries
Blockbuster Amy Sherald exhibit opens in Baltimore
Artist has emerged as LGBTQ hero after refusing to cave to censorship
Artist Amy Sherald has emerged as a hero in the LGBTQ community following her controversial decision to pull her blockbuster new exhibit “American Sublime” from the National Portrait Gallery in D.C. and move it to Baltimore after Smithsonian officials sought to censor her painting “Trans Forming Liberty.”
That painting depicts transgender model Arewà Basit as the Statue of Liberty, which conflicts with President Trump’s war on DEI and his efforts to erase transgender people from the American narrative.
Sherald issued a statement over the summer that the Smithsonian had “concerns” about the painting. “These concerns led to discussions about removing the work from the exhibition,” Sherald said in the statement. “While no single person is to blame, it is clear that institutional fear shaped by a broader climate of political hostility toward trans lives played a role.”
She said the Smithsonian had proposed including a video in the exhibit that would “contextualize” the painting and likely include anti-trans views. It was then she announced her decision to pull the exhibit entirely and move it to the Baltimore Museum of Art, a major coup for the museum.
Sherald studied at Baltimore’s Maryland Institute College of Art, which she described as “the best decision I ever made,” during a sold out Q&A on Nov. 2 moderated by the BMA’s director, Asma Naeem. Unfortunately, the subject of censorship and the last-minute decision to move the exhibit to the BMA didn’t come up during the discussion. But Naeem rightly described Sherald as “one of the most important painters of our time.”
“American Sublime,” billed as a mid-career retrospective, features 38 of Sherald’s paintings, including her portraits of former first lady Michelle Obama and Breonna Taylor, along with “Trans Forming Liberty.”
Sherald and Naeem joked throughout the breezy hour-long conversation and reminisced about spending time at MICA and in Baltimore. The artist said she still finds inspiration and even potential portrait subjects in grocery stores and on the streets of Baltimore and New York, where she now lives. Many of the portraits in the exhibit were painted in Baltimore.
Although Sherald and Naeem kept it light and avoided discussing censorship, the one serious and non-negotiable subject Sherald addressed was the paramount importance of integrity. Her insistence on the integrity of the work and the inclusion of trans representation in the exhibit brought her to the difficult decision to pull her work from the Smithsonian. It was a bold and inspiring move in a time when so many public figures, CEOs, and politicians have shown a disappointing and dangerous lack of integrity in the face of an administration that seeks to subvert the Constitution and erode the First Amendment. Sherald stands as a powerful symbol of resistance and, yes, integrity in these dark times. Her refusal to cave to authoritarian impulses and blatant censorship will be remembered for years to come. The nation’s top tech CEOs and congressional leaders should see this exhibit and learn from her brave example.
“American Sublime” is open now through April 5 at the Baltimore Museum of Art and requires a paid ticket for entry. (Admission is free on Thursday evenings and free on Jan. 15 and Feb. 19. The museum is closed Mondays and Tuesdays.) For more information and tickets visit artbma.org.
Galleries
New gallery opening in D.C.
Dandelion Collective exhibition features works by John Von Sauerhoff
Dandelion Collective, a new space in Columbia Heights for LGBTQ healers and artists, will open on Saturday, Aug. 24 with an opening reception at 2 p.m. at 3417 14th St., N.W.
This first exhibition features the incredible, ethereal artwork of John Von Sauerhoff. His stunning pop surrealist paintings will transport you to another world.
More information is available at dandelioncollectivedc.com/art-gallery.
New England artists Caroline Rufo and John Rufo, also known as RufoArt will open an exhibition on Thursday, Aug. 10 at 6 p.m. at Nepenthe Gallery.
The husband-and-wife duo will share their paintings and also talk about their inspirations. Caroline explores the natural beauty, ideas, and systems of power that create her surroundings while John works toward an understanding of art as a representation of singular moments of both immediate presence and a larger context of wholeness.
For more details, visit Nepenthe Gallery’s website.
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