Fall Season in the Art World of the DMV
Above: Sky Wave ll by Michael Enn Sirvet, photo by Anything Photographic
By F. Lennox Campello
As the DMV gallery art scene enters the Fall season of exhibitions, I start this column by expressing my gratitude (as a former Navy guy) to the men and women of our armed forces and their families – we owe all of you so much! Thank you for your service and sacrifices, and if ever needed, we got your back!
Before I get into the DMV gallery scene, a reminder that next month, during the first week of December the Art Basel week of Miami art fairs starts. As I have noted before, this is the planet’s biggest art event and a must visit (at least once) for serious artists and gallerists alike.
One of the most talented and gifted DMV area painters is Erik Sandberg, a fabulous artist whose career I’ve been following since he was an art student at George Mason University. Sandberg is currently exhibiting at CONNERSMITH and we are told that “this final work in his most recent cycle of paintings exemplifies the artist’s acclaimed Surrealist expression of contemporary humanism. Sandberg sets forth a vivid allegory of our relationships to one another and nature in “Bramble” with multiple human and animal figures who coexist in their own world.
Grounded in cohering elements of earth, trees and grass, the jumble of interwoven figures – five humans, a fox, a rabbit, a monkey and a crocodile – appears to revolve in empty space. In their actions and gestures, Sandberg conceptualizes dynamics among members of a household, community, or society which function as a singular organism. The characters, at odds with their circumstances, move in disparate directions, either struggling to stop, or redirect, the revolving construct, or attempting to destroy the barriers that separate them.”
CONNERSMITH is open by appointment, online, and via social media.
At the risk of reaching outside the DMV, over in Baltimore, the Maryland Art Place (MAP) is hosting their 12th annual “Under $2500” art exhibit!
UNDER $2500 is MAP’s winter benefit and it is a hybrid, physical and virtual exhibition event. The physical exhibition opens Friday, November 22 from 6pm-10pm. Artworks may be purchased by patrons and taken off the walls on a first come first served basis that night. The virtual sale will launch the very next day, Saturday November 23 at 10 am and run through BLACK FRIDAY, November 29, 10pm. The virtual sale will include more artists than the physical sale.
MAP is located at 218 West Saratoga Street in Baltimore.
In the District, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities hosts “DC Art Now 2024” in their first floor gallery at the Commission’s building at 200 I (Eye) Street Gallery SE.
DC Art Now 2024 is an annual exhibition of selected work by finalists for the FY25 Art Bank Program grant. It features many of the most exciting emerging and established artists working in the DC metropolitan region today. Stop by the Commission’s gallery and see DC come to life through photography, sculpture, painting, printmaking, textiles, and more! The gallery is free and open to the public Monday to Friday, 9 am to 6:00 pm and the show runs through December 13.
If you live in the DMV, then you should be aware of Art Bank, which operates in support of local visual artists and District art nonprofit organizations. Via Art Bank, the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities acquires fine art from artists living and working across the metropolitan region. The ongoing and annual acquisition of art becomes a part of the Art Bank Collection and is then loaned to District Government agencies for display in public areas and offices of government buildings. The Art Bank Collection, which started in 1986, has over 3,000 artworks.
From this year’s physical show (there’s also a virtual exhibition of works that were unable to be installed in the physical gallery, either due to space constraints or installation requirements), look for work by Tim Tate, Steve Wanna, Michael Sirvet, Percy Martin, Rush Baker IV, and Elizabeth Casquiero to stand out.
In the Commission’s virtual gallery, I really liked Paula Mans’ woodcut titled “Sister’s Keeper” and Ayanah George’s inkjet photo titled “Coming Through.” You can see all the works in the virtual gallery at https://app.box.com/s/npsije4pwxze458nw039yno9oqzpi2kz – sorry about the complex URL!
About the Author: F. Lennox Campello’s art news, information, gallery openings, commentary, criticism, happenings, opportunities, and everything associated with the global visual arts scene with a special focus on the Greater Washington, DC area has been a premier source for the art community for over 20 years. Since 2003, his blog has been the 11th highest ranked art blog on the planet with over SIX million visitors.
