Pittsburgh Art Events: 3/27-28/09.

Years ago, when Pavement was still together playing vital music, frontman Stephen Malkmus used to wear a shirt that said, "Fuck Art. Let's Dance!". While I certainly understand the sentiment (and there are plenty of options to dance now that Spring is upon us), I'd rather not see y'all get zombified by the pollen clouds. Remember that there's nothing better to get you moving later in the night than looking at original art live in person. And there are some opportunities this weekend. Take advantage of them.

Friday

You could go downtown. Really, you could if you were of such a mind. No, it's not a crawl per se, but there are a couple of openings that seem like they might be worth checking out. With Potato/Tomato: The Cover Project, Future Tenant has organized a show around a potentially interesting concept- they've asked artists to riff on other creators' work. Those folks are always so adorably post-modern, and this presentation might just cause me to venture downtown early Friday evening (6-9PM). Or then again, it might not. If you do think you might be interested, check out their page here...

But perhaps you don't want to do too much driving. Maybe the idea of fighting the Friday Rush Hour snarl is too daunting to penetrate the Golden Triangle. If so, then I got sumptin' for ya. Go to the Zombo Gallery. It's your last chance to see Breitkreutz and Copeland in March- two up-and-comers worth keeping an eye on. Did you go to the opening? Was there too much going on that night (at 6-freakin' PM?!)? Don't just do a drive-by this time. Put your poison on hold and have a look at some paintings. There will be lots of time to go out later.


Saturday

This might just be some sort of freakin' typo... but is LUPEC (Ladies United for the Preservation of Exotic Cocktails) really hosting their Annual Women's History Month Closing Party at 7-ever lovin'-AM on Saturday morning? That's hardcore. I wonder what kind of strange rituals they will be perpetrating Friday night. Regardless of when it really happens, it's reported that they will be talking about cosmetics. That's even more appropriate at such an ungodly hour.

If you do get drunk that early in the morning, you might as well schlep your wares over to the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts' Simmons Hall for the New Member Screening of the Pittsburgh Society of Artists. Bring three gallery-ready pieces and $35. Meet some ah-tists. Buck the trends.

As far as the night is concerned, I didn't find any gallery openings on Saturday. Of course there's the possibility that some swell space somewhere is having their special people over for drinks and show-and-tell, but I'm not privy to such rarefied society. So I'm considering taking my sass over to Pittsburgh Filmmakers for the Black Maria Film Festival (7:30PM- $7). For years I've made it a habit not to see films in theaters, and I've rarely challenged that resolve. But with this event there should be lots of breaks, which are essential to my viewing pleasure. I don't know what you'll see if you go, but the press release explains:

"Since 1981, the annual Black Maria Film & Video Festival, an international juried competition & award tour, has been fulfilling its mission to advocate, exhibit and reward cutting edge works from independent film and videomakers. The festival is known for its national public exhibition program, which features a variety of bold contemporary works drawn from the annual collection of 50 award winning films & videos."

Then again, maybe your tastes run more toward the lowbrow. In that case, I don't think you can afford to miss Tromatic Movie Night at the Obey House (1337 Steuben St.). That's in Crafton Heights. Where the f'n hell is Crafton Heights? It just might be real cannibals and toxic freaks that you encounter out that way. Sound like an adventure? It's $5, it starts at 6PM, and it features "Magic Hat Beer Specials And Troma Vendor". Alrite then...

Pittsburgh Art Events: 3/13-14/09.

Tomorrow is Friday the 13th... again. 2009 is an extraordinarily rare year in that there are actually two of these "unlucky" days in subsequent months. For some that is reason enough to revisit the rather tepid series of horror movies that takes for its title the delineating characteristics that mark it on the calendar. Others will cast a glance or two over their shoulders, on the look-out for the bad luck that is supposed to accompany the date. There are even some (I am quite sure) that will go through their day as if it were any other. After all, there are folks who make every effort to approach life in a manner circumscribed by logic and rationality. But what fun is that? What fun is a world without magic?

Friday

It's ironic that (on such a foreboding day) that we should be so fortunate as to have the opportunity to check out the new work of Ben Kehoe. If I was forced to identify my favorite couple of painters around town, Ben would certainly headline my list. I'm not just whistlin' Dixie either... if you paid a visit to my house, you'd see my appreciation for Ben on my walls. There are very few artists (other than myself) who are better represented in my art collection. And I'm going to make it a point to get to the Beleza Community Coffeehouse on the North Side (1501 Buena Vista) early to see what Ben makes available from his new series. The actual reception for Watching and Wary runs from 6-8PM.

For years Kehoe has painted witty figurative images featuring medieval knights engaging in all manner of scallywag behavior. Some time ago he decided to shake things up and abandon that theme. Since the shift, I've only seen a few examples of his new direction. I'm anxious to see what he's come up with. If you can't make it, be sure to check out his website.

Meanwhile, Zombo Gallery (4900 Hatfield St, Lawrenceville) is featuring a doubleheader by Christian Breitkreutz and Ron Copeland. I've seen the work of the former at Modern Formations during a previous Unblurred. His stuff was reminiscent of the Kehoe brothers, and priced reasonably to sell. His latest group of paintings (Don't Let Me Die) apparently reflects his "struggles with death and dying", but no doubt there will be a substantial element of countervailing humor to offset the darkness. As far as I know, Copeland is relatively new to the local scene. Zombo's description of Another Broken Thumb makes the artist sound like he's obsessed with detritus. That sounds right up Michael's alley.

Saturday

It seems like forever since Moxie Dada (1416 Arch Street) hosted an opening reception. Well friends, the time has come once again. It's a bit of a shame that it's not scheduled for Friday, because otherwise only one trip to the North Side would be necessary this weekend. Anyway, Unveiled features virtually the full roster of the gallery's artists (including Mark Traughber, Randie Snow, Robert Huckestein, Jason Shorr, etc.) . Christine promises a mix of new and previously shown work. Make sure to stop by between 6 and 8PM.


Note: Sunday's Obscure Movie Night selection at the Double Wide Grill (2339 E Carson St.) is "Bad Boys", starring the foremost actor of his generation- Sean Penn! Come see how he distinguished himself as a young lion... it starts at 9:30PM.