visions | october 2008

Event: Roanoke 40+40 Fest inauguration / Emerging Artists Opening/Public Art Unveiling
Date/Time: Wednesday, October 1 from 5 – 8pm
Location: Main Roanoke Public Library
706 S. Jefferson St Roanoke VA
Location: Roanoke Civic Center
710 Williamson Road
As a genuine Milestone for Roanoke’s arts initiatives the unveiling of Roanoke’s first public art project under the Percent for Art Program will be a community gathering celebrating Roanoke. It also starts the 40+40 countdown to the Taubman Museum of Art Opening. The 30’ tall stainless steel sculpture by Rodney Carroll, titled “People, Pride and Promise”, puts Roanoke on par with major art centers around the world. Few have notable works that are publicly accessible to visitors and residents. The gloriously ascending stainless steel sculpture, selected from a pool of 89 entries, will be installed next to the Performing Arts Theatre.

The unveiling and the 40+40 Fest starts at the Roanoke Civic Center and the festivities continue at the Main Roanoke Library with the opening reception for a new Emerging Artists Event, showcasing “local skate stuff’” featuring Ken and Krystin Marshall and Matt Brennan. It includes refreshments, live music and several activities revolving around the skateboarding theme.

The 40 Days 40 Nights countdown carries the momentum from the unveiling throughout October and into November. Their calendar, available at 4040fest.com, is packed full of more than 200 regional Arts and Culture Events. Don’t miss this city wide month long celebration culminating November 9th with the opening of the new Taubman Museum of Art and the 2nd Annual Roanoke Arts Festival.

The City of Roanoke views arts and culture as integral to the community. By recognizing this potential of arts and culture to enhance quality of life, the City expects to increase tourism, support education and stimulate the economy. To find more events that are part of the 40 Days 40 Nights countdown go to 4040fest.com . For more information about this event go to www.roanokeva.gov/publicart or contact Susan Jennings, Public Art Coordinator, at 853-5652

Event: 29th Annual Roanoke City Art Show/Salon de Refuse
Date/Time City Art Show: Artist Reception, Sept. 25th from 5-7pm
Exhibition, Sept. 26th –Nov. 9th
Location: Center in the Square One Market Square
2nd Floor Galleries Downtown Roanoke
Location: Dialog Gallery
18 Kirk Ave. in Downtown Roanoke
Date/Time Salon: Reception Sept. 28th and Nov. 2nd from 2 – 5pm
Exhibition, Sept. 28th –Nov. 2nd
Outstanding high quality art is a hallmark of the Annual Roanoke City Art Show. In its 29th year the exhibition and reception, orchestrated by The Arts Council of the Blue Ridge, is guaranteed to give participants the best. As one of the authoritative must see art shows in Roanoke, it attracts a wide assortment of artist hoping to have work accepted. Guest Juror this year is international renowned artist Helen Fredrick, founder of the Pyramid Atlantic Art Center. The naturally competitive entry process leaves many fantastic artists out. For the first time in long time, this year’s overflow of talent doesn’t have to wait 365 days to try again. The new gallery, Dialog, is hosting a Salon de Refuse to showcase the art that didn’t fit the mold. The recreation of this rebellious art tradition links Roanoke with many historically world renowned artists, like Cezanne, Whistler and Manet.

The new gallery Dialog located at 18 Kirk Ave. is using the Salon de Refuse to draw attention to new and provocative art, not typically seen in established venues, and to provide art enthusiast with an unfiltered view of local art. Organizer, Ed Olinger, hopes to heighten the awareness of the Annual City Arts Show and to introduce the new nonprofit gallery, Dialog, to Southwest Virginia. The Salon exhibit will both open and close with a reception. The closing on Nov. 2nd also doubles as a Day of the Dead party.

The 29th Annual Roanoke City Art Show, presented by Arts Council of the Blue, is sponsored by: Ginny Jarrett, Davenport & Company, LLC; The City of Roanoke, and the Roanoke Arts Commission. This activity is funded in part by the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information about the Annual art show go to www.theartscouncil.org. For more information about the Salon de Refuse contact Ed Olinger at (540) 460-9968

Event: Interior Design and Fine Art Reception and Exhibition
Date/Time: October 22nd from 5-9pm
Exhibition from October 23-29
Location: 2209 Crystal Spring Avenue, Roanoke
New and exciting art is flourishing throughout the Roanoke Valley, and Stedman House interior designers is showcasing their harmonious integration of it with an artist reception, October 22, and a week long exhibition. The reception will enable guests to enjoy the synergistic collaboration of fine art and functional art while talking with artist and designers. Their intimate involvement in the host of fine details associated with transforming plain space into a living environment will give them plenty to talk about. Artists represented include: Joey Burroughs, Timothy Burke, Eric Fitzpatrick, Frances Gemini, Mary Ann Harmon, Suzun Hughes, Brett LaGue, Andre Lucero, Stephen Mitchell, Diane Patton, Robin Poteet, Jim Phelps, Ian Cross, Gari Stephenson, and John Wilson.

The primary objective of artists and designers is to complete all projects with quality craftsmanship. Regardless of the projects scope each element is taken into account… from an upholstered footstool to custom window treatments to complete accessorizing. This is because artists understand that each and every detail affects the composition as each note affects a symphony.

Founded in 1942 in Roanoke, Virginia, Stedman House is the oldest continuously operating interior design firm in Virginia. The Company has been headquartered in Charlottesville, Virginia since 1970. They have eleven full-time designers, and several part-time designers throughout their different Virginia based offices. Stedman House designers have carried out residential and commercial design projects throughout Central Virginia and the United States. Designer and artist reception is Wednesday, October 22 from 5pm to 9pm at 2209 Crystal Spring Avenue, Roanoke. The exhibition will be open Thursday Oct 23 through Wednesday Oct 29, Monday through Friday 10am-5pm, or by appointment. For more information go www.stedmanhouse.com or call (540) 345-7797.

“White Liquor, Blue Ridge Style” at the History Museum of Western Virginia
October 25, 2008 – September 20, 2009
White lightning. Moonshine. Mountain dew. No matter what it’s called, it’s been the source of fascination and controversy for generations; inspiring songs, movies, books and even video games. Stock car racing even has its roots in the stuff—it got its start when moonshiners modified their automobiles to outrun federal agents.
White Liquor, Blue Ridge Style, an exhibition that opens October 24 at The History Museum of Western Virginia, showcases the real nature of illegal distilling in the southern Virginia mountains—a tradition ingrained in the culture and history of the region (early English and Scots-Irish settlers were accustomed to making grain whiskey legally in their native countries) that became a multi-million dollar cottage industry thanks to know-how, low operating costs, interstate distribution networks and just plain hard work.

The exhibit includes photographs, still displays and interviews with former moonshiners and federal agents. (Exhibit closes September 20, 2009.)

There will also be a Moonshine Express bus tour (date TBA) led by the Franklin County Historical Society.
Center in the Square (3rd Floor) downtown Roanoke, Va. www.history-museum.org or call (540 342-5770). Tuesday - Friday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets: Adults $3, seniors and children $2. “Free Fridays” – no charge from 1:00-4:00 p.m. every second Friday of the month.

Grand Opening, Wilson Hughes Gallery, Downtown Roanoke
Thursday, October 2, 2008 5 – 9pm
With the upcoming opening of the Wilson Hughes Gallery, residents and visitors to Roanoke now have the opportunity to experience west coast “urban chic”. The new “Campbell Avenue Arts District” building has a glass and metal facade similar to San Francisco fashionable Geary Street Prada store and is the latest in the influx of renovations and galleries in downtown Roanoke. The Wilson Hughes Gallery will be located at 117 Campbell Ave SW

“The Outline of Metal Against The Sky” photographic exhibition at the O. Winston Link Museum
October 18, 2008 - January 26, 2009
The Link Museum welcomes Kevin Scanlon, a photographer out of Pittsburgh, Pa., this October as he will exhibit photographs in The Robert Kulp Trackside Gallery. Scanlon, like Link, is very aware of the undeniable cultural role his subjects play in the lives of those who inhabit the same landscape, and writes the following of his photographs of them: “What has drawn me to industrial subjects is their place in culture, history, and landscape. During industry’s retreat I find myself drawn to study the bones and listen to the echoes of the voices.”

A reception for the artist, including a lecture by Kevin will be held October 18 at 7pm. A special exhibition preview for Link Museum members will be held at 6pm. Admission: $5 (Members Free). Kevin will also be leading a photography workshop on the 18th, for more information visit www.linkmuseum.org.

Pottery from the Civil War era, Earthworks Pottery in Roanoke
Jugs, bottles and other clay ware from the 1800’s will be on sale and display from October 2 thru November 7. The contemporary holdings of the gallery will also be available during that time. The show opening will be on Thursday, October 2 from 5 until 9 PM. Earthworks is located at 1902 Main Street in Roanoke. Call 985-8698 or email claystudio@cox.net.

“A Meditation in Paint”, Pamela Jean Gallery, Downtown Roanoke
Pamela Jean Gallery is pleased to present “A Meditation in Paint” by nationally recognized Annapolis Artist, Christine Graefe Drewyer. From rolling hills to costal wetlands, Drewyer captures the drama of light in her serene landscapes. As a master tonalist, celestial moments such as twilight and dusk are often captured creating a ballet of sight for the beholder. The show runs the month of October, with a reception to meet the artist Friday October 3rd from 5pm to 8pm.

“Print as Muse: Reflections on Vanitas”, Hollins University, Roanoke
The Eleanor D. Wilson Museum at Hollins University presents Print as Muse: Reflections on Vanitas from the James W. Hyams Collection, on view through October 25, 2008.
Taking a cue from the 16th century Northern European still life painting tradition, this exhibition explores the subject of vanitas, a reminder of the transient nature of vanity and youth. These contemporary works from the James W. Hyams Collection explore, exploit, or relate to the impermanence of life and our culture’s obsession with beauty. James W. Hyams is a noted collector whose work has been shown throughout the commonwealth, including a 2004 photorealist print exhibition at the Joel and Lila Harnett Museum of Art in Richmond. Print as Muse includes selections by well-known artists such as Jeff Koons, Damien Hirst, Vito Acconci, and Andy Warhol. For further information, please contact Laura Jane Ramsburg at 540.362.6081.

Rebekah Payne Polymer Clay Jewelry at Gallery by the James, Buchanon
October 3 – 26, 2008
Inspired by the rich beauty of nature and the wonders of fantasy, Rebekah Payne creates delicate and detailed jewelry and sculptural artwork from polymer clay. The Gallery by the James, 19827 Main Street in Buchanan, will feature this artist with a show October 3 to October 26, 2008. Rebekah Payne will give free demonstrations of her polymer clay art on Saturday, October 4 at the Gallery by the James from 11 AM to 3 PM. A reception will be also held there on Sunday, October 5 from 2-4 to open the month-long show. For additional information call 540-254-9708 or e-mail gallerybythejames@comcast.net

Posted: October 1st, 2008 under Visions.
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