Several local galleries unveil new exhibitions in conjunction with First Friday
Several new art exhibitions open this week in Dayton’s premier galleries. Take advantage of downtown Dayton’s First Friday activities to catch the openings of these shows and more entertainment to start your November.
Dayton Art Institute: “Ralston Crawford: Air +Space + War” features 72 of Crawford’s works, which include paintings, drawings and photographs by the American artist. The Dayton Art Institute will be one of only two venues to present this exhibition. Crawford (1906-1978) was influenced by aviation through personal experiences in flight, his exposure to the construction of airplanes and the destruction they wrought in WWII, and the atomic bomb tests at Bikini Atoll.
Visitors to this exhibit are also admitted to “Norman Rockwell: Stories of Emotion.” This intimate exhibition features a dozen original works by America’s most beloved illustrator, on view through February 13, 2022. “Rockwell was a master at expressing emotion and telling stories through his art. Seeing his original paintings and drawings just brings home what a remarkably talented artist Rockwell was, and what a treat it is to have these works available to share with our community,” said Jerry Smith, DAI chief curator and director of education.
The Contemporary: The Co presents three new exhibits opening at the Arcade gallery Friday. “The Empire is Falling” features recent large-scale paintings by internationally renowned artist Samuel Levi Jones. Jones’ works are rendered covers of books whose purpose is to influence, educate, and inform. “Kneel” is a newly commissioned body of work by Dayton artist and activist Willis “Bing” Davis. The exhibition explores recent issues of police brutality and will feature “Colin Kaepernick, George Floyd Knee Cushion.” Vietnamese artist, Tuan Andrew Nguyen, explores strategies of political resistance enacted through counter-memory and post-memory narratives in his work, “The Boat People.” Set in an unspecified future at the precarious edge of humanity’s possible extinction, “The Boat People” follows a group of children led by a strong-willed and resourceful little girl who travel the seas and collect stories of a world they never knew through objects that survived through time.
Front Street, a warehouse where dozens of artists call home, is preparing for another First Friday art hop. Tour collections of the artists who work onsite, and check out new exhibitions at some of the galleries, including: The Dana L. Wiley Gallery presents “Nature/Nurture,” an exhibition featuring the artwork by local painter and printmaker, Gretchen Jacobs. Opening Friday, this exhibit highlights perceptions of landscapes through the artist’s relationship with nature as the subject matter. The ARTery welcomes new artists Samantha Farkas and Fabienne Bee to the rest of the ARTery family. Check out their works and the latest from other artists during the opening reception during First Friday.
Dayton Society of Artists, located in St. Anne’s Hill, debuts its final exhibition for 2021. “Small but Mighty” is a small works exhibition featuring works by DSA members that are 12”x12”x12” or smaller and priced at no more than $400.
