Food, festivals & Family | Music | Theater & Dance | Literature and Ideas | Visual Arts
{through 09|08
Strange visions
Recent ceramics by KD Matheson, whose work evokes the mythologies of undiscovered cultures. (SD) City Hall Grand Gallery, free,
artslasvegas.org
{through 09|10
“Materiality, attitude and wit tie their work together”!
Last chance to see work by five artists who’ve participated in UNLV’s artist-in-residence program: Deborah Aschheim, Erin Cosgrove, Lucky DeBellevue, Ash Ferlito, and David Gilbert. (SD) Barrick Museum at UNLV, free, unlv.edu/barrickmuseum
{through 09|22
Nice future you got there
In Science Versus Fiction, a group of stellar local artists — from Linda Alterwitz and and Robert Beckmann to Elizabeth Blau and Vezun — imagine possible futures, particularly in light of climate change. (SD) Reception 5p, September 6, City Hall Chamber Gallery, free, artsvegas.org
{through 09|24
Not kid stuff
There’s a lot going on in these sculptural pieces by Ali Fathollahi: eye-massaging collage, Surrealist meaning-twists, tinctures of erotica. Adolescence, this exhibit, is not to be missed. (SD) Sin City Gallery, free, sincitygallery.com
{through 09|29
We know it when we see it
Artists as diverse as Nanda Sharifpour, Valentin Yordanov, Gig Depio, Maureen Halligan and James Stanford — names plucked randomly from a particularly talented roster of participants — address the nature of beauty, both visually and in their own words. (SD) Reception 5:30p, September 8, Mayor’s Gallery at Fifth Street School, free, appointment only,
702-229-6469
{through 09|30
This Internet — apparently, it’s a thing
The exhibit’s title, KUSO Project, refers to a term in Southeast Asia that has to do with camp and parody on the Internet. This show comprises the work of a dozen Taiwanese artists whose work is rooted in the online experience. A unique cultural exchange. (SD) Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery at UNLV, free, unlv.edu
{through 10|14
This exhibit may be the only thoughtful thing to emerge from Election 2016
If you like art that doesn’t shy from political significance, check out He Said, She Said by Chad Scott — it’s a multimedia installation, pegged to the 2016 election, that riffs on the geysers of competing messages and narratives to ask what it means to be informed. (SD) Reception 5:30p, September 2, Winchester Cultural Center, free, 702-455-7340
{09|23—25
Art is beautiful
If you’re going to the annual music and culture festival that sprawls across a caged-in Downtown, be sure to check out the art offerings, headlined by Shepard Fairey. (SD) lifeisbeautiful.com/art
{09|01
In Greek mythology, Hyperion was one of the 12 Titan children of Gaia and Uranus
Christopher Tsouras, most recently seen exploring the meaning of drones in a memorable series of creatively framed and presented photographs, is back with Hyperion, more mixed-media photos that mash up classical Greek mythology and modern astronomy. Sounds promising. (SD) Through October 11, Enterprise Library, free, 702-507-3760
{09|13
We have met the subject of this blurb, and it is us
A big hand for the 2016 Focus on Nevada photo showcase, the best entries in the annual photography contest curated by Desert Companion. Good stuff here, if we do say so ourselves. (SD) Through October 30, West Las Vegas Library, free, 702-507-3980
{09|15
Pumpkins of art!
If the prospect of creatively carved foam jack-o’-lanterns representing various themes and characters isn’t quite enough to draw you to this show, consider the title of Bryan Yeager’s exhibit: KILLERPUMPKIN.NET. See you there! (SD) Through November 16, Centennial Hills Library, free, 702-507-6100
{09|19
Celebrate and remember
Robin Stark’s colorful ceramic vessels focus on the ceremonial and memorial. (SD) Through November 10. Reception 6p, September 23, Clark County Government Center, 702-455-7340
{09|20
Tell ’em Eleanor Rigby sent you
All you need is a love of The Beatles to check out The Hit List, a suite of Fab Four-related paintings by Fernando Reyes. (SD) Through November 20, Spring Valley Library, free, 702-507-3820
{09|27
Art, craft; craft, art
Art and craft are often considered separate endeavors, but The Art of Craft: Celebrating 10 Years, by the Las Vegas Crafters Guild, tries to glue-gun them together with a show of paintings, artisan jewelry, fiber arts and crafted-paper pieces. (SD) Through November 15, reception 5p, September 27, West Charleston Library, free, 702-507-3940
{10|06
59 beauties
Q.T. Luong has shot large-format photos in all 59 of America’s national parks. This selection shows the stunning variety of natural beauty protected by the Park system. (SD) Through November 22, Mayor’s Gallery at Fifth Street School, free, appointment only, 702-229-6469
{10/7
Make America Break Again
This is the penultimate event in artist Diane Bush’s 10-month project in political art, collectively titled Dishing It Out. At this event, visitors will be able to smash plates festooned with images relating to various political candidates (the shards will help create a free-speech mosaic). Also on hand for this art carnival: poets, music and a voter-registration effort. Free, First Friday.
{10|13
Almost familiar
What is the architecture of an abstracted no place? With his twisting lines and boldly colored shapes, Valentin Yordanaov paints the urban density of a place that isn’t quite real. Exhibit title: New Frontiers. Exactly. (SD) Enterprise Library, free, 702-507-3760
{10/21
Chris Bauder and the kingdom of the artistic skull
The potent symbolism of the skull has been diluted by years of pop culture overuse. Can art restore some of its alas-poor-Yorick vitality as a metaphor for mortality and identity? That’s the premise of The Skull Show, a biennial group exhibit put together by artist Chris Bauder. Some 30 artists from around the country will participate. (SD) Through December 9, The Studio at Sahara West Library, free, 702-507-3630
{10|25
Feeling snappish
Juried work by members of the Nevada Camera Club. (SD) Through December 13, Clark County Library, free, 702-507-3400
{11|01
Fresh from the vault
The photographers of the Las Vegas News Bureau have been shooting events big and small, important and cheesy, Elvis and non-Elvis, for decades. From the Vault will display images never before seen in public. (SD) Through January 24, West Las Vegas Library, free, 702-507-3980
{11|02
More Oil
In this University Forum lecture, photographer Edward Burtynsky talks about his sweeping photo essay, Oil, on view in the Barrick Museum. (SD) 7:30p, Barrick Museum, free, unlv.edu/barrickmuseum
{11|03
He loves L.A.
Jeff Wack parades beautiful, mostly naked women (described by Sin City Gallery as “goddess/provocateurs”) through tableaux of surreal images derived from Los Angeles, thus doubling the entendre of the show’s title, City of Angels. (SD) Through December 30, Sin City Gallery, sincitygallery.com
{11/10
Fantastical Vegas
Artist Yajie Cheng describes his work as “fantastic realist,” by which he seems to mean fantastical images rendered with realistic verve. He now trains his brushes on Las Vegas. (SD) Through January 29, Whitney Library, free, 702-507-4010
{11|22
Beyond the visible spectrum of light
Using an infrared camera, artist Sean Russell depicts scenes from both Minnesota and our own Red Rock Canyon in visually compelling new ways. (SD) Through February 12, Spring Valley Library, free, 702-507-3820
{11|29
Havana in the old days
Armand Thomas’ photo exhibit, Havana: In the Times of Fidel, takes viewers back to a time before America began reaching out to Cuba. (SD) Through February 14, reception 5p, December 1, Summerlin Library, free, 702-507-3860
{12|08
Here they come to draw, paint, sculpt or collage the rooster
Invitational exhibit for which artists interpret the theme “Year of the Rooster,” reflecting the upcoming Chinese New Year. (SD) Through March 4, Mayor’s Gallery at Fifth Street School, free, appointment only, 702-229-6469
I SENSE A THEME
The ways we consume nature — whether in the form of its natural resources, as a recreational experience or as idealized beauty — unite these three photography exhibits.
{09|22
No flotation device required
Geri Kodey’s Down the Colorado is perfect for lovers of vicarious adventure: photos of the Grand Canyon shot while rafting the Colorado. (SD) Windmill Library, free, 702-507-6030
{09|23
Super goop
Oil’s journey from crude to the energy powering our lives — not to mention the many products derived from petroleum — is one of the backbone processes of modernity. Photographer Edward Burtynsky documents it in Edward Burtynsky: Oil. (SD) Through January 14, Barrick Museum at UNLV, free, unlv.edu
{10|27
Postcards from the last frontier
Big place, Alaska. Full of eye-goggling natural beauty. But, really, how likely are you to get up there anytime soon? Good thing Marcella Brendible went. Her photos of the aforementioned natural beauty, exhibited as Experience Nature in a Different Light, should hold you over until you can get the time off. (SD) Summerlin Library, free, 702-507-3860