Showing posts with label What's Important Now. Show all posts
Showing posts with label What's Important Now. Show all posts

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Nevin Kelly Gallery bids the public farewell...for now



With a little bit of sadness and great appreciation for your support over the years, we wish to announce that Nevin Kelly Gallery will close its permanent gallery space effective January 31, 2010 in favor of a different approach to exhibiting art. For the past seven years or so, we have tried to bring a fresh perspective to offerings of contemporary art in the Washington, DC area. We have featured work by established Polish and other European artists and showcased works by talented local artists. Along the way, we have made some great friends and have had the pleasure of being surrounded by some really fine art.

The past year has been exciting. After six years on U Street, we moved to the Highland Park Building in Columbia Heights. We are grateful to Chris Donatelli and Bozzuto Management for their support of our efforts and for the use of public space in the building to display art. We also made a second trip to the Affordable Art Fair in New York City and received a heart-warming nomination for Best Gallery in DC courtesy of the readers of Express Newspaper, owned and printed by the Washington Post. In the last year, we hosted two solo shows featuring works by H. Wesley Wheeler and Ellyn Weiss, respectively, and staged two group exhibitions that reflected the issues of the day. The first, Stimulus, was meant to stimulate the mind and the economy by offering all works at $500 or less. The second, Zeitgeist II: What's Important Now?, a follow-up to 2008's Under Surveillance, presented the participating artists' views on the most important issues we currently face as Americans.

Although we are closing our retail space, we hope to continue our participation in DC's vibrant art scene. We will seek opportunities to host shows in pop-up locations and will continue to gather artists together to talk and showcase their ideas.

So, stay tuned by checking out our blog or by receiving updates via our newsletters. Thanks for being part of our community during the last few years!

Thursday, December 03, 2009

Video from the opening

Thanks to Vince Brown, the man behind The Boulevardier View blog, for his video trip to the opening of Zeitgeist II: What's Important Now?



Our show Zeitgeist II: What's Important Now? will be up till December 12. If you can't stop by before then, make sure you come to our OPEN HOUSE/closing event that afternoon. For more info, you can go to Facebook and RSVP while you're there.

Saturday, November 21, 2009

People were curious to find out What's Important Now

On Thursday, What's Important Now? opened to a big crowd eager to learn all about what sixteen local artists had to say about the world's current situation.

This is how it started...

The artists were present and happy to engage with their audience and each other.

Artist Ellyn Weiss and poet BRASH, who recently wrote a couple of poems inspired by Ellyn's previous works, exchange words. Behind Ellyn, you can also see artist Groover Cleveland (unless I'm mistaken) and poet Carol Beane.

Two of the artists catching up: Aziza Claudia Gibson-Hunter and Michael B. Platt

Sondra Arkin and Judy Byron's online project, What's Important to You?, went live! TV monitors set up in the gallery and in an adjacent "party room" displayed the responses submitted by visitors to the website over the past month, as well as those being submitted by guests during the opening. One of my favorite responses comes from Gretchen from South Dakota: The intangible ring of laughter, the warmth of real love, and hope for tomorrow.

Guests submitting answers to "What's Important to You?" website

Thanks to everyone for coming out despite the stormy weather and making the night such a success. And a special thanks to the friends that helped make our guests feel taken care of: Beth, Cheryl, Anya and Alaina.



The show runs through December 12...plenty of time for you to stop by.

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

An Important Preview

Here is a sneak peek of some of the works featured in our upcoming show. The artists have created pieces that act as their very own personal statements regarding the question "What's Important Now?" sometimes by identifying current issues that resonate throughout our society.


Scott G. Brooks, "Patience," oil on canvas, 36" x 24"

Aziza Claudia Gibson-Hunter, "Cheney-Bush-Rove," acrylic mixed media, 35" x 26" (each)

Rosina Memolo, "W. Ellington & Tobias," color chromira print, 16" x 20"

Renée Stout, "The Real Chess Game (American Style)", detail, mixed media, 3 1/2" x 16 3/4" x 12 1/4"

Ellyn Weiss, "You Get What You Need", detail, encaustic on board, 12" x 12" (each)


“Zeitgeist II: What's Important Now?” runs from November 19 through December 12 with an opening reception on Thursday, November 19 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm.

Monday, November 02, 2009

Upcoming Show: "Zeitgeist II: What's Important Now?"

In October 2008, the Nevin Kelly Gallery hosted the first "zeitgeist" show, titled Under Surveillance. Curated by Ellyn Weiss and Sondra N. Arkin, it presented the responses of twelve artists to what Weiss and Arkin saw as one of the most important elements of the then-prevailing ethos: "the increasingly diminishing zone of personal privacy available to any of us as we are constantly under surveillance by a growing array of government, corporate and media technologies." As a follow up, Weiss and Arkin are asking a group of local artists to reflect upon an uncertain future and respond to the question: "What's important now?"

Participating artists include Sondra N. Arkin, Carol Beane, Scott G. Brooks, Judy Byron, Groover Cleveland, Richard Dana, Anna U. Davis, Thomas Drymon, Aziza Claudia Gibson-Hunter, Deb Jansen, Rosina Memolo, Michael Platt, Renée Stout, Tim Tate, Ruth Trevarrow, and Ellyn Weiss.


Show runs from November 19 till December 12. Opening Reception to be held on Thursday, November 19 from 6-9pm. You can RSVP on Facebook.

Also, remember that you can still help participating artists Sondra Arkin and Judy Byron complete their collaborative project for the show. Simply go to www.important2you.com and let them know what is important to you at this point in time.

Thursday, October 22, 2009

Artists ask the public to participate in communal art project

Local artists Sondra N. Arkin and Judy Byron have teamed up to create a collaborative work of art and they need your help to complete it. The work is to be included as the artists’ contribution to our upcoming group exhibition entitled What’s Important Now?, which is set to run from November 19 through December 12.

Arkin and Byron are asking the public to answer the question “what’s important to you?” (in 10 words or less) by logging onto www.important2you.com. People can answer as many times as they want, subject only to the 10-word limit per response. Follow the project on Facebook and on Twitter @important2you. The final product will be revealed at the opening reception for the exhibition, which will take place at the gallery on November 19 from 6:00 to 9:00 pm. More info about the show to come soon.