Out with a bang: The summer’s final Art on the Rocks event
It isn’t too late to enjoy the summer’s most immersive arts and cultural experience. The eleventh season finale of the Birmingham Museum of Art’s Art on the Rocks series will take place Friday, Aug. 14.
The revelry begins at 7 p.m. with wonders to behold in the museum’s lobby and Oscar’s Café. A delectable wall of doughnuts baked and constructed by We Have Doughnuts will likely provide enough of a sugar rush to jumpstart the evening. The GIF photo booth nearby will allow social media butterflies to capture and download moving images of themselves and friends. An “accessories buffet” by Southern Living and Pepper Place presents a Stone Hollow Farmstead perfume bar and Becky Stayner’s Biscuit Leather Company textile works. Seasick Records will be spinning in the lobby all night.
The Contemporary Galleries will be transformed into intimate theater settings from 7:15 to 7:45 with live performances from the Birmingham Contemporary Dance Company and AROVA Contemporary Ballet. Afterward, Opera Birmingham will take over the European Galleries starring soprano Jennifer Bryant and pianist Christopher Steele. Patrons may wander through any of the galleries during Art on the Rocks, taking this opportunity to see pieces by artists from Peeter Neeffs the Younger to Hale Woodruff.
The night concludes with spoken word and musical performances in the Upper Plaza beginning at 8 p.m. First, WordSpeak and We Are Rtists (WAR) present “High Octane,” a poetic experience combining the forces of poet-actress Shaunteka LaTrese and musician Arturito LaCruz. Next, Birmingham-based rock band In Snow takes the stage to deliver “a powerful, cinematic post-rock set, alternating between loud brooding rock and meditative interludes.” Brooklyn band, Clear Plastic Masks, will end the night with an explosive performance of “nostalgic rock ‘n’ roll that is at once bone-deep familiar and not like anything else you’ve heard.”
Art on the Rocks will take place on Friday, Aug. 14, from 7–11 p.m. at the Birmingham Museum of Art. Tickets are $25. For more information, visit artsbma.org.
THURSDAY, AUGUST 13
Meet the Artist Reception: Don Estes — Aldridge Gardens. 3530 Lorna Rd. Kicking off his exhibit at Aldridge Gardens’ Eddie and Kay Aldridge Arts & Historical Collections Museum, artist (and Alabama native) Don Estes will share the thoughts and inspiration behind his work. Free. 6–8 p.m. For more information, visit aldridgegardens.com.
SATURDAY, AUGUST 15
Public Tour: Rising Up — Birmingham Museum of Art. 2000 Rev. Abraham Woods Jr. Blvd. This docent-led tour will delve deeper into the BMA exhibit Rising Up: Hale Woodruff’s Murals at Talladega College. Free. 2-3 p.m. For more information, visit artsbma.org.
WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 19
Interchanges Opening — The Edge of Chaos. 1700 University Blvd. PaperWorkers Local presents, Interchanges, a new exhibition of paper works at The Edge of Chaos on display through Sept. 30. Displaying artists include Mimi Boston, John Demotte, Jill England, Andy Harris, Tenisha Hicks, Roger Jones, Linda Merry, Michael Merry, D’Arcy Savage, Richard Stockham, Joi West and Cathy Wright. 4:30–7 p.m. Free. For more information, email paperworkerslocal@gmail.com.
ONGOING
The Right to Decide — Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts. 1221 10th Ave. S. In commemoration of the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, signed into law on August 6, 1965, the Abroms-Engel Institute for the Visual Arts presents this international poster invitational featuring 62 artists from 25 different countries with never-before-seen posters on display through Nov. 16. Mondays to Fridays from 10 a.m.–6 p.m. and Saturdays from noon to 6 p.m. Free. For more information, visit uab.edu.
It Is Art — Four Seasons Gallery. 2910 18th St. S. Corrine Cox’s collection, It Is Art, highlight’s the artist’s command of pottery and sculpture in the raku tradition. Most pieces in the collection are interactive, whimsical and narrative. The exhibition will be on display until Aug. 31. Free. For more information, call (205) 803-4059.
Annual Student/Teaching Artist Exhibit — Space One Eleven. 2409 Second Ave. N. Space One Eleven (SOE) presents the Annual Student and Teaching Artist Exhibition. Collective works by rising second through sixth graders who attended Space One Eleven’s 2015 summer art camps will be on display next to works by the teaching artists who lent their vision to the summer camp “I’M AN ALABAMA ARTIST TOO.” Pieces from the Portfolio Development Course for Teens are also on exhibit. Free. For more information, visit spaceoneeleven.org.
Let Us Now Praise the Roma — Birmingham Civil Rights Institute. 520 16th St. N. Karen Graffeo’s collection of documentary photographs offers more than a glimpse into the lives of the complex culture of the Roma people of Northern Italy. The artist spent 15 years among the refugee encampments, caravans, slums and housing projects of the Romani, or “gypsies,” and has emerged with a body of work that is consistently gaining national and international attention. Tuesday through Saturday, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. and Sundays, 1–5 p.m. until Sept. 13. $12. For more information, visit bcri.org.
Layers of Meaning — Birmingham Public Library. 2100 Park Place. The acrylic paintings in Layers of Meaning surge with emotion and energy that reflect the artist’s intuitive process of discovering deeper levels of color, mood and importance. Matthew Mayes explained that the properties of acrylic paint allow each painting to determine its direction and give the artist the opportunity to exercise confidence in his talent and display an impressive array of themes. Available through Sept. 4. For more information, visit bplonline.org.