Past Exhibitions and Events:
Artificial Selection
April 24 – June 26, 2010
Artificial Selection was a group exhibition which brought together art, science, myth and technology. It examined contemporary artists' responses to the processes of adaptation, mutation and survival when the natural order distinguishing species or machine becomes less distinct. Hybrids pervade our mythologies and religions and continue to play an influential role in the way we perceive our capabilities as a creative species. The selective breeding and cross-breeding of plants and animals for domestication was only the beginning of what science is enabling us to create in the 21st century. The exhibition raised questions about the consequences of the process of artificial selection. It featured local and national artists including Krista Birnbaum, Steve Budington, Christine Chin, Robert Dohrmann, Travis J. Farnsworth, Sarah Hearn, Laurie Hogin, Simon Mehalek, Stephanie Metz, Andrea Polli, Adrienne Outlaw, Alison Petty Ragguette, Gil Scullion, Luke Shaw, John Stephenson, Brad Story, Heidi Taillefer and Adrianne Wortzel. Curated by Rhiannon Mercer, 516 ARTS. More details. Artificial Selection Catalog.
516 WORDS: The Relenting - Reading & Book Release Party: Lisa Gill and Kevin R. Elder
Friday, June 11, 7:30pm
A reading and book release party for The Relenting, a long-form poem and book by Lisa Gill. Based on a true story, Gill retold an archetypal encounter she had with a rattlesnake in her living room, and this time the snake spoke back! Tricklock Actor and Co-Artistic Director Kevin R. Elder read the part of the snake. Part poetry, part play, the staged reading was proceeded by various snake songs culled together by DJ Mitch Rayes and it was followed by live music from th3 e1emental orke5tra (Mike Balistreri, bass; Mark Weaver, tuba; Shawn Woodyard, sax & percussion). The trio composed rattling-inspired experimental jazz for the occasion.
516 WORDS Poetry Reading: Erin Adair-Hodges, Hakim Bellamy, and Carlos Contreras
Saturday, May 15, 8pm
Guest poets presented original work including pieces relating to the themes of the Artificial Selection exhibition.
OPENING RECEPTION: Artificial Selection (April 24 – June 26)
Saturday, April 24, 6-8pm
516 ARTS presented a group exhibition of artists from New Mexico and across the country, bringing together art, science, myth and technology to examine contemporary artists’ responses to the processes of adaptation, mutation and survival. Curated by Rhiannon Mercer.
PANEL DISCUSSION: Robotics + Art
Saturday, May 1, 2pm
In conjunction with the Artificial Selection exhibition, 516 ARTS and UNM ARTS Lab presented a theory and technology “smack-down” in the gallery with artists and scientists. Moderated by Andrea Polli, this panel explored common ground and cross-over between fine art, robotics, artificial intelligence and new technology.
SCREENING/PERFORMANCE: Man, Machine & Metropolis: featuring The Chuppers
Friday, April 30, 8pm
In conjunction with the Artificial Selection exhibition, 516 ARTS and UNM ARTS Lab presented a unique evening of live music and digital media inspired by the dystopic vision of Fritz Lang’s classic film Metropolis (1927) and issues of humanity and machines. This event was held at UNM ARTS Lab and featured a performance by The Chuppers. The event took place at UNM ARTS Lab, 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque. Admission: $8/$5 UNM faculty, students & 516 members. Info.
WORKSHOP: Robotics Hack-O-Rama
Thursday, April 29, 2-4pm
In conjunction with the Artificial Selection exhibition, 516 ARTS and UNM ARTS Lab presented a workshop and demo exploring some how-to techniques of robotics and hacking as they could be applied to artistic practices. Workshop took place at UNM ARTS Lab, 131 Pine Street NE, Albuquerque, $15/$12 for 516 members / free for UNM students (pre-register through 516 ARTS).
WORKSHOP: El Otro Lado: The Other Side - Albuquerque
Wednesdays, April 7 – May 12, 9-11am
El Otro Lado was a community-based arts project led by artist Chrissie Orr and writer Michelle Otero, to engage the creative process to explore our human connection to land and place, our sense of home and belonging, boundaries and cultural divides. This project was presented with The Academy for the Love of Learning. The public was invited to participate in workshops at Westside Community Center, 1250 Isleta Blvd SW Albuquerque.
Form & Function
with Joan Weissman Sample Rug Sale
February 6 - April 3, 2010
Form & Function, was a group exhibition featuring the work of artists and designers who explore sustainability, reuse, decoration and innovation. From alternative rugs, lighting, furniture and jewelry, to eclectic art objects that riff on function, viewers found treasures for live and work spaces by renowned artists from New Mexico, across the country and beyond. Featured artists were AREAWARE, Eliana Arenas, Angelo Arnold, ART GENS, Roger Atkins, Julia Barello, Sonya Cramer, Roberto Gallegos, Welmoed Laanstra, Cal Lane, Maria Michails, OFFCenter, Beth Rekow and Joan Weissman, whose much awaited sample rug sale was part of this fundraising exhibition, which offered a rare opportunity to purchase her rugs at great discounts. Work for sale included handmade fine craft for the home, wearable art, inventively designed products as well as sculpture, paintings and more. A portion of the proceeds from this exhibition benefited the free educational programs of 516 ARTS. March exhibition programs for Form & Function were in conjunction with the Women & Creativity series organized by the National Hispanic Cultural Center. More Details. Download Form & Function Brochure.
516 WORDS Poetry Performance
Saturday, March 27, 8pm
516 ARTS and Littleglobe presented a collaborative performance of poetry inspired by the exhibition Form & Function. Guest poets Lauren Camp, Jasmine Cuffee, Jamie Figueroa and Valerie Martinezbuild built on the themes of the visual art on display by considering the edges of life and our interactions with the objects with which we live and work. By bending and shaping language to give new meaning to everyday experiences, these poets created a unique vocal performance.
Panel Discussion on Women & Craft
Saturday, March 6, 2pm
In conjunction with the Form & Function exhibition, 516 ARTS presented a panel discussion exploring the intersection of art, design and business. The panelists included Julia Barello, Beth Rekow, Joan Weissman, and Megan Kameric. The discussion centered around issues with women artists’ careers in the worlds of fine art, design and craft. The discussion was followed by a Creative Women Networking Reception hosted by albuquerqueARTS.
Alley Art Opening
Saturday, February 27, 4-6pm
516 ARTS and Warehouse 508 presented a celebration of the Alley Art mural created by the Warehouse 508 mural project on the back of the 516 ARTS building in conjunction with the Form & Function exhibition. This Youth Opening featured music and spoken word performances with the Duke City Youth Poetry Collective.
The Treehouse: A Poetry Open Mic
Saturday, February 13, 8pm
6:30pm Sign-up • 7pm Open Mic • 8:30pm Feature: Dinah Frank
Erotic Edition for Valentine’s Day
A Destructible Heart Press production
Shy exhibitionist Dinah Frank, world famous for her obscurity, read her award-winning love story to French filmmaker Jean Cocteau. Titled Dirt Cabaret: A Stainless Steel Love Story, the fiction required that she wear a bodice made from Super 8 film, and she complied. Renowned composer CK Barlow played resident DJ for the evening, she performed, among other pieces, selections from eFfeM (frequency modulation): Short Pieces for Vibrators & Radios, built from recordings of vibrators.
destructibleheart.com • treehouseopenmic.com
Four Interludes for the Revolutions International Theatre Festival
Thursday, January 14, 10pm & Tuesday, January 19, 8pm
Thursday, January 14, 10pm & Tuesday, January 19, 8pm
516 ARTS welcomed Tricklock Theatre Company with a play in the gallery for their 2010 Revolutions International Theatre Festival. Four Interludes was a poetic comedy written and performed by Chad Brummett, directed by Elsa Menéndez. A lover, a mother, a muse and a memory collided in a collection of four vignettes about love, sex and near-death. Four Interludes celebrated the woes and whimsy of the human heart, shared from one man’s perspective in an intimate evening of poetic story theatre. This play was part of Tricklock’s Excavations series, showcasing new work by company members.
516 WORDS Poetry Reading: Borderlands
Saturday, December 12, 7:30pm
516 ARTS presented a reading with Albuquerque poets Margaret Randall and Demetria Martinez and special guest Amalio Madueño from Taos, all of whom were included in Mezcla, a poetry anthology recently published by the Tumblewords Project of El Paso. Organized by poet Richard Vargas, this event explored the borderlands aesthetic and was presented in conjunction with the visual work addressing the US/Mexico border by David Taylor and Michael P. Berman currently on view at 516 ARTS. Photos
Separating Species
October 3–December 12, 2009
Concurrent with Grasslands, the Separating Species exhibition featured artists focusing on animals, humans, the biosphere and the U.S. Mexico border, which included photographers Krista Elrick, Dana Fritz, David Taylor and Jo Whaley. Curator Mary Anne Redding recounted an essay by Terry Tempest Williams, In the Shadow of Extinction, about the destruction of prairie dogs on the Navajo Reservation. The Navajo elders objected, insisting that if you kill all the prairie dogs, there will be no one to cry for the rain. Redding says, “all things are intertwined: the rain, prairie dogs, folklorists, environmentalists, writers, academics, even those in the government.” Grasslands and Separating Species looked at these disappearing desert grasslands and the animals that are affected when ecosystems, both in the desert and elsewhere, are destroyed: “no one is left to cry for the rain
Grasslands
October 3–December 12, 2009
Grasslands was a photographic series by Michael P. Berman about the Chihuahuan Desert grasslands in New Mexico, Texas and the northern border of Mexico, where he has wandered into the desert without a compass to, in his words, “live deliberately.” He believes that how you see the land comes down to what you value. “I believe art has a greater potential for meaning when it serves some purpose. People have started to recognize these lands as significant and this is something art can help along. If anything my work is to generate small symbols that reveal the greater complexity of things.” This exhibition was presented together with Separating Species which were both curated by Mary Anne Redding, Curator of Photography, Palace of the Governors, New Mexico History Museum. The exhibition catalog for Grasslands and Separating Speciesis was published by Radius Books, which included essays by William deBuys, Rebecca Solnit and Mary Anne Redding. This catalog is available from 516 ARTS, Radius Books, and select bookstores nationwide.
ART:21 Screening on Art and Ecology
Thursday, December 3, 7pm
This screening of the acclaimed PBS documentary series on contemporary artists featured artists working with ecological themes: Ursula von Rydingsvard, Inigo Mnglanao-Ovalle, Robert Adams and Mark Dion. More Details Download Flyer
Lost and Found
September 15 – November 30, 2009
Lost and Found featured a corn maze created by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith and Neal Ambrose-Smith (both Salish from the Salish and Kootenai Nation in Montana) in collaboration with Gus Wagner Farms. It integrated images based on ancient Indian glyphs into a field of corn in Corrales. The project connected the corn, the people and the glyphs to commemorate the long standing symbiosis between the birds, the animals and humans in a continuum that has lasted for thousands of years. Lost and Found included a signage project about animals in Corrales and a performance by the artists titled Coyote Stories (September 20 & October 10). Lost and Found was a project for SiteWorks, organized by Kathleen Shields Contemporary Arts Projects for LAND/ART, presented by 516 ARTS. landartnm.org Directions to Wagner's Farmland Experience
Conversation with David Abram: Discourse of the Birds
Saturday, November 21, 7:30pm
Conversation with David Abram: Discourse of the Birds, a talk for LAND/ART at 516 ARTS. More Details Download Flyer
Treehouse Open Mic Poetry Reading
Saturday, October 17, 7:30pm
Curated by Adam Rubinstein, was an open mic fashioned in the spirit of the Massachusetts poetry scene: a little depth, a little raunch, a good heaping of craft, and a deceptive healing quality. An hour-long open mic gave way to a thirty minute featured poet whose work we believe embodies all of these things.
Panel Discussion for LAND/ART
Saturday, October 3, 2pm
A LAND/ART Panel Discussion with Guggenheim Fellows Michael P. Berman, Erika Blumenfeld and David Taylor, which was moderated by curator Mary Anne Redding. Article in Adobe Airstream
SiteWorks
Summer/Fall, 2009
(dates vary, all overlap with Second Site, August 1 - September 19, 2009)
516 ARTS presents SiteWorks, was a series of individual, site-specific projects: Anitya by Anne Cooper, Matter of Fact: Walk to Work by Bill Gilbert, The Very Rich Hours by Steve Peters and Lost and Found by Jaune Quick-to-See Smith with Neal Ambrose-Smith, organized by Kathleen Shields Contemporary Art Projects. These projects, which toke place at several locations in the Albuquerque area, addressed relationships of urban and rural, built and natural environments, technology and land use, actual and virtual, art and non-art. Through these artists’ works and experiences of place, aspects of our community were revealed and presented in a new perspective. More details landartnm.org
The Very Rich Hours
August 27-30 and September 4-7, 2009
The Very Rich Hours was created especially for the Old San Ysidro Church in Corrales for SiteWorks, presented by 516 ARTS and organized by Kathleen Shields Contemporary Arts Projects as part of LAND/ART. Taking its title from the detailed illuminated devotional manuscripts of the middle ages, the piece was a meditation on the land and sounds of northern New Mexico as filtered through individual human perception. A separate gallery component to this site project was on display at 516 ARTS for Second Site, an exhibition and reference site for many LAND/ART projects. Download press release
CLUI Display Facility
August 1 - September 19, 2009
On August 1, 2009, The Center for Land Use Interpretation (CLUI) opened a site-specific landscape display facility on the fringes of Albuquerque. This facility was located at a site that drew people into a part of the city that is not often visited. Inside was information about the region, including an exhibit about the New Mexico landscape. The facility was open to the public during regularly scheduled hours, over the course of the Second Site exhibition at 516 ARTS, which sponsored this project. The Center for Land Use Interpretation (CLUI) is a Los Angeles based research organization involved in exploring, examining and understanding land and landscape issues. clui.org landartnm.org Download press release Artidsode CLUI episode
Second Site
August 1–September 19, 2009
An exhibition and reference site for LAND/ART, included related art works and information for many of the site-specific projects by artists including Anne Cooper, Bill Gilbert, Steve Peters, Jaune Quick-To-See Smith and Neal Ambrose Smith, the Center for Land Use Interpretation, Patrick Dougherty, Basia Irland, Nina Dubois, Jeanette Hart-Mann and Robert Wilson as well as the model for the final selected piece for the City of Albuquerque’s major land-based public art project launched for LAND/ART. Works included SiteWorks artist Anne Cooper's documentation of the process of creating Anitya, from harvesting of the clay to the dissolution of the bowls and the growth cycles of the crops, and Nina DuBois and Jeanette Hart-Mann's photographic installation relating to the a passive-solar composting laboratory being created on the UNM campus. landartnm.org Download press release Catalog
Equation: a balanced state?
August 1–September 19, 2009
A program for LAND/ART • A collaborative project exploring land-based art in New Mexico Equation: a balanced state? was an exhibition of site specific installations by artists Katherine E. Bash, Paula Castillo, Ted Laredo, David Niec and Mayumi Nishida, reflecting a world where the environment is as much about ourselves and our creations as the natural world with which we struggle to strike a balance. The exhibition included digitally simulated waterfalls, built environments that glew in the dark, and explorations of the division between day and night in the natural environment as observed in the night sky of New Mexico. Science, technology and the study of climate and land usage played an important role in the research and development of these art projects. Curated by Thomas and Edite Cates of THE LAND/an art site. landartsite.org landartnm.org More details Download press release Catalog
Here & There • Seeing New Ground
June 2–July 11, 2009
Here & There: Seeing New Ground featured 16 artists examining the landscape from perspectives that are both visual and cultural, including exploration of Native American film, as well as Native and non-Native artists who subvert landscape perspective to examine issues of the environment and human beings’ relationship with nature. Featured artists were Norman Akers, Laurie Anderson, Leticia Bajuyo, Alfred Clah, Cheryl Dietz, Katie Holten, Karl Hofmann, Timothy Horn, David Nakabayashi, Rachael Nez, Pipo Nguyen-duy, Shelley Niro, Lordy Rodriguez, Peter Seward, Leah Siegel and John Wenger. Curated by 516 ARTS with Nancy Marie Mithlo and Marcella Ernest. There were two off-site installations in conjunction with this exhibition: COLOSSUS by Karl Hofmann and the students of Amy Biehl High School, in the Gold Street Lofts in Downtown Albuquerque (June 2 - July 11); and Medusa by Timothy Horn at 1711 Painted Sky Road in Santa Fe (July 10 & 11). More details Catalog download landartnm.org
516 WORDS Poetry Reading with Native Poets
Saturday, June 27, 8pm
Part of LAND/ART Symposium Weekend
This reading in the gallery features indigenous voices celebrating the sacred relationship between language and the surrounding natural environment. Focusing on poetry anchored in the perspective of the original inhabitants of this land, the reading includes contemporary works written in the English language and traditional poems sung and recited in the indigenous languages of the tribes. George Ann Gregory, Ph.D. (Choctaw/Cherokee), a Senior Fulbright Scholar, is a language revitalization and American Indian Studies specialist. Her performance will include her own poetry and songs in Choctaw and Cherokee from the removal of these two groups from their ancestral homes. Orlando White (Diné) is from Tólikan, Arizona and teaches poetry in Santa Fe. He holds a B.F.A. degree in creative writing from the Institute of American Indian Arts and an M.F.A. degree from Brown University. Nora Yazzie (Diné) is originally from the Four Corners region of the Navajo reservation. She has directed a play and published short stories and poems in numerous anthologies. This event is organized by Lisa Gill and Richard Vargas. landartnm.org More Details Download Flyer
LAND/ART Symposium Weekend
Saturday & Sunday, June 27 & 28
LAND/ART Symposium Weekend - featured an opening of Experimental Geography exhibition at the Albuquerque Museum, excursions, talks with guest artists and curators, poetry and events at the Albuquerque Museum and 516 ARTS. landartnm.org download press release Photos from the LAND/ART Symposium Weekend
Center for Land Use Interpretation Bus Tour
Saturday June 27
The Center for Land Use Interpretation (CLUI) is a Los Angeles based research organization involved in exploring, examining and understanding land and landscape issues. For LAND/ART, CLUI took passengers on a guided bus tour through some of the more compelling and dramatic built landscapes of New Mexico, places at the core of this landscape-centered state - including Los Alamos National Labs and sites around Los Alamos such as "The Black Hole". The tour was part of the LAND/ART Symposium Weekend. landartnm.org/tours smudgestudio.org Adobe Airstream Article
LAND/ART • a collaborative exploration of land-based art in New Mexico
June - November, 2009
In the summer and fall of 2009, 516 ARTS focused on environmental art with a series of exhibitions and outdoor artworks for the multi-venue, intercity LAND/ART collaboration. For a complete listing of LAND/ART activities, please visit landartnm.org LAND/ART guide download LAND/ART Blog: LAND/ART web exhibition by smudge studio
Treehouse Reading & Open Mic
Saturday, May 16, 8pm
The closing event for the exhibition West Southwest: ABQ-LA Exchange.
Organized by Adam Rubinstein & Jessica Dalzell.
West Southwest • ABQ-LA Exchange
April 4–May 16, 2009
516 ARTS and LA Artcore presented a collaborative exhibition in both Albuquerque and Los Angeles, which featured 20 artists from diverse backgrounds and communities from our two western cities as well as a video program. Concurrent installations were on view on both floors of 516 ARTS and at LA Artcore’s two locations at Union Center for the Arts and the Brewery Annex. Los Angeles artists were selected by 516 ARTS and Albuquerque artists were selected by LA Artcore. The video program on view in both cities was curated by Bryan Konefsky. This project was part of an effort to build an alliance among like-minded arts organizations across the country. More details
Michael Datcher at Outpost Performance Space
Saturday, May 9, 7:30pm
In conjunction with the exhibition West Southwest: ABQ-LA Exchange, Michael Datcher from Los Angeles, poet and critically acclaimed journalist and the author of the New York Times Bestseller Raising Fences, read at the Outpost Performance Space along with local African American poets Maisha Baton, Hakim Bellamy, Idris Goodwin, and Virginia Hampton and Stephanie Willis performed a duet about Charles Mingus. Presented by 516 ARTS, UNM MFA in Creative Writing program and the Outpost Performance Space. Photos from the 516 WORDS Poetry reading with Michael Datcher. Voices Radio Program interview with Michael Datcher. More Details
Organized by Lisa Gill and Richard Vargas.
COLOSSUS
Preview: May 1-9
June 2 - July 11 for LAND/ART
516 ARTS presented COLOSSUS, a collaborative, site-specific art installation held in the Gold Street Lofts in Downtown Albuquerque, with guest artist Karl Hofmann and the students of Bret Aaker at Amy Biehl High School.
Chicana Badgirls • Jessica Helen López, Michelle Otero, Levi Romero, Socorro “Cora” Romo and Richard Vargas
Saturday, March 7, 2009
Celebrating Hispanic poets in conjunction with the exhibition Chicana Badgirls: Las Hociconas, which featured Jessica Helen López, Michelle Otero, Socorro “Cora” Romo, Levi Romero and Richard Vargas. Part of Women & Creativity organized by the National Hispanic Cultural Center. Organized by Richard Vargas and Lisa Gill, was presented in partnership with the UNM MFA in Creative Writing program.
Chicana Badgirls • Las Hociconas
January 17–March 21, 2009
The theme for this exhibition was hociconas, which means loudmouth backtalking women, malcriadas - bad mannered mujeres, in short, disorderly, disruptive, critical-thinking, strong Chicana/Latina women telling it like they see it. They defy, if necessary, conceptual and/or formal rules or simply venture into risky terrain. The exhibition explored three generations of Chicana artists and includes installation, video, performance art, as well as disobedient takes on traditional crafts and art forms. Featured artists were from New Mexico, Texas and California. Co-curated by Delilah Montoya and Laura E. Perez. Special events were in conjunction with the Women & Creativity series organized by the National Hispanic Cultural Center. More details
Chimayó (Güero) Screening & Talk
Saturday, February, 21, 2009
A screening of the short narrative film about the dual nature of Chimayó, New Mexico as a place of both healing and destruction, which was followed by a talk with screenwriter Art Corriveau. More details
Speak Out: Art, Design & Politics
November 1–December 20, 2008
Guest Curator Abby Goldstein, Associate Professor of Art at Fordham University in New York, assembled a provocative two-floor exhibition featuring artists from across the country who are not afraid to speak out. In the past, the power of print was enormous; people could be jailed for what they said, performed or put in print, and this is still true today in a few countries. In our present culture we are bombarded by a plethora of messages that jostle for our attention and flood our eyes and ears through print, performance and the media. This exhibition showcased artists and designers who have taken on the challenge of creating socially and politically charged messages that are responses to and meditations on injustices and atrocities around the globe. Artists included Bread & Puppet Theatre, Sue Coe, the Guerrilla Girls, Pentagram, Pushpin Studio, Dread Scott, Joel-Peter Witkin and many more. More Details
516 WORDS
September 13, 2008
516 WORDS: Book Lung, a poetry reading for STIR: A Festival of Words showcased a phenomenal line-up of poets reading their poems written in response to the art and themes of Cautionary Tales and Finding a Pulse. More details
Poetry Writing Workshop
September 13, 2008
Metaphor as Map poetry writing workshop with Miriam Sagan for STIR: A Festival of Words. Download flyer
Cautionary Tales • A Visual Dystopia
September 6–October 18, 2008
In an epoch in which our global community seems to be rapidly disintegrating politically, economically and most alarmingly, environmentally, this exhibit presented work by artists whose images reflect a world going/gone awry. This is a place where much is not well through misuse/abuse of the environment, where because of the failure of society as a whole to properly take care of itself and the world it exists in, we may actually be near the end of the world as we have always known it. These artists have a common theme of alarm and dismay, while at the same time finding haunting beauty and powerful personal expression in their words of caution to us all. Featured artists include Roger Ballen, Jeff Gibson, Robert Hirsch, Rhiannon Mercer, Lori Nix, David Ondrik, Robert Sullkin, Emily Trovillion, Laurie Tumer, Erika Wanenmacher, William Wilson and Cathy Wysocki. Curated by Holly Roberts. Download the catalog
Finding a Pulse
September 6–October 18, 2008
Finding A Pulse examined themes of hope, healing and the will to survive. A defining aspect of the human being is our ability to imagine and even dwell upon our own death. Compounded by the shadowy threat of nuclear war, terrorism and even natural disasters, these fears (and realities) exist on a global scale. But all is not lost! In spite of our dread, the dream of a happy and meaningful life remains intact. Featured artists include: Sasha Bezzubov & Jessica Sucher (New York), Kristin Diener (New Mexico), Howard Fonda (Arizona), Cay Garcia (New Mexico), Hans Gindlesberger (New York), Jeff Eisenberg (California), D’Jean Jawrunner (New Mexico), George Lorio (Texas) and John Wenger (New Mexico). Curated by Rhiannon Mercer and John Photos.
Book Lung: Poetry’s Spin on Art
September 6–October 18, 2008
In celebration of STIR: A Festival of Words (www.harwoodartcenter.org), 516 ARTS presented a poetry project organized by Lisa Gill in conjunction with the concurrent exhibitions Cautionary Tales: A Visual Dystopia and Finding a Pulse. Lisa Gill says, “Arachnid anatomy has everything to do with my interpretation of how art and poetry inform each other. Situated inside the abdomen of many common spiders are miniature books that breathe—or, lungs that look like miniature books… Writers, like artists, dabble in both the exhibition (and excitation) of blood and breath…Visceral poetic responses to the visual art will be displayed in less-than-conventional art books. The end result will be the exploration of both the inhale and the exhale of creative process.” More Details
Trappings • Stories of Women, Power and Clothing
June 13–August 16, 2008
516 ARTS presented the New Mexico exhibition in the national tour of Trappings: Stories of Women, Power and Clothing, created by Two Girls Working, the collaboration by artists Tiffany Ludwig and Renee Piechocki. The exhibition tour is in conjunction with the release of their book of the same title. Their artwork Trappings begins by asking women to respond to the question: what do you wear that makes you feel powerful? Two Girls Working have interviewed over 530 women in fifteen states. Through its multiple parts Trappings ignites conversations about the meaning and expression of power. The exhibition included a two-floor installation at 516 ARTS and a public art project on bus panels on the downtown D-Ride buses and on banners along Central Avenue. twogirlsworking.com More details Download catalog
Alchemy • Collage & Assemblage
April 12–May 31, 2008
Alchemy celebrated the mediums of collage and assemblage, featuring artists from around the country. The exhibition looked at the historic development of these mediums and showcased contemporary artists who work with cutting, gluing and assembling disparate and often appropriated images and objects to create something entirely new and original. A process akin to alchemy unifies the elements these artists mix together. Artists included Ann Dunbar (Albuquerque, New Mexico), Tony Fitzpatrick (Chicago, Illinois), Ingrid Freidenbergs (Lakeville, Connecticut), Gonzalo Fuenmayor (Miami, Florida), Andrew Ginzel (New York, New York), Bebe Krimmer (Santa Fe, New Mexico), Michael Pajon (Chicago Illinois), Holly Roberts (Corrales, New Mexico), Brooke Steiger (Albuquerque, New Mexico), Leonard Stokes (Pleasantville, New York), Maritta Tapanainen (Los Angeles, California), Andrea Volkoff-Senutovitch (Santa Fe, New Mexico) and Miriam Wosk (Los Angeles, California). The exhibition included a program of collage films organized by Bryan Konefsky. Alchemy is curated by Suzanne Sbarge. More details Special Film Event
Snap Crackle Pow!
April 12–May 31, 2008
Snap Crackle Pow!, an exhibition of drawings organized by guest curator Kathryn M Davis, investigated how the cultures of comic book art (including, but not restricted to, R. Crumb and a correlated mentality that reflects the writings of Charles Bukowski) have intersected with popular graphics (such as those on cereal boxes) to influence a new generation of draftsmen. The exhibition included the work of New Mexico artists Maureen Burdock, Luke Dorman, David Leigh, Larry Bob Phillips, Clayton Porter, Rose Simpson as well as a tribute to R. Crumb. The concurrent exhibitions, Alchemy and Snap Crackle Pow!, both explored a "pieced together" vocabulary of popular culture. More details
516 WORDS
April 26, 2008
516 ARTS and the UNM M.F.A. in Creative Writing program presented a reading celebrating Destructible Heart Press (destructibleheart.com), featuring Dan Darling, Damien Flores, Meghan Jones and Adam Rubinstein. More details download flyer
Poetry & The Absurd
April 19, 2008
Poetry & The Absurd writing workshop with Erika Sanchez. Download flyer
Cut Up or Shut Up!
April 17, 2008
An evening of collage films in conjunction with Alchemy: Collage & Assemblage exhibition. The screening was organized by Bryan Konefsky, kicking off Experiments in Cinema V3.0, the third annual festival of experimental film (basementfilms.org/experiments.html). More details download flyer
Giving Shelter
March 1–29, 2008
516 ARTS presented an exhibition of fifty artists from across the United States and beyond in conjunction with The Cradle Project (www.thecradleproject.org), a fund raising art installation for orphaned children in sub-Saharan Africa. The vision of The Cradle Project was to utilize empty cradles to represent the lost potential of these orphaned children. As a sister exhibition to The Cradle Project, Giving Shelter explored the themes of safe shelter, refuge and sacred space. Exhibition Curator Deborah Gavel says, "We are interested in creatively coming together as an artistic community to bring awareness to a global concern through art." The exhibition included work in all visual media. The Cradle Project was organized by Naomi Natale. Special events throughout the month were in conjunction with the Women and Creativity series presented by the National Hispanic Cultural Center. More details
Public Art Workshop: Creating Shelter
March 29, 2008
An educational art making workshop for all ages in conjunction with Giving Shelter. The workshop took place at the Wyoming Public Library, 8205 Apache NE, Albuquerque, phone 291-6264. Download flyer
516 WORDS: Firestorm • Women’s Poetry Slam & Open Mic
March 15, 2008
We were joined in celebrating Albuquerque's diverse women's voices with an evening of poetry. The winner from this event qualified to compete to be the woman who will represent Albuquerque at the 2009 Women of the World National Poetry Slam. Sign-up was at 7:30pm, reading began at 8pm. Download flyer
Filmmaker Mary Lance & painter Carol Hoy
March 14, 2008
Documentary filmmaker Mary Lance screened excerpts from the work-in-progress of her new film Blue Alchemy: Stories of Indigo, exploring the art and process of making indigo dye with artists from around the world. She discussed her recent trip to Bangladesh and India, where she filmed women in Bangladesh making the indigo dyestuff, which helps support their community economically. Tibetan Buddhist meditation teacher and artist Carol Hoy gave a talk, Taking Refuge, inspired by her life and art practice. Hoy’s life journey has led her to many sacred spaces in Nepal and Tibet. She will speak on compassion and the path of awakening through art making. Download flyer
20 Years 20 Artists
January 19–February 16, 2008
516 ARTS celebrated twenty years of Working Classroom, a nonprofit organization promoting a more inclusive, nuanced definition of our collective identity through free, high quality training to aspiring artists from historically ignored communities. The exhibition featured the work of twenty artists from around the globe who have invested their time and talents to build and sustain this important work/organization. These artists are from Haiti, France, Mexico, Poland and China as well as New Mexico and across the United States. The work includes painting, sculpture, contemporary retablo, photography and video. workingclassroom.org More details
516 WORDS
February 9, 2008
516 WORDS literary arts event that featured Jimmy Santiago Baca, Arturo Sandoval, Erika Sanchez and live music with Cultura Fuerte. More details Download Flyer
R. A. i. R. Works 40 • Selected Alumni from 40 Years of the Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program
November 3–December 29, 2007
For forty years, the Roswell Artists-in-Residence has supported visual artists from across the United States and the globe. Isolated in southeastern New Mexico, the residency provides year-long support away from the demands and distractions of the urban world, while encouraging the free exploration of new directions in contemporary art. The exhibition featured nationally and internationally renowned artists who live in or have ties to New Mexico: Stuart Arends, Eddie Dominguez, Stephen Fleming, Cristina González, Scott Greene, Diane Marsh, Frank McCulloch, Mollie Oblinger, Robert ParkeHarrison, David Politzer, Josh Rose and Raissa Venables. Curated by Stephen Fleming, Program Director, Roswell Artist-in-Residence Program. More details rair.org
Loosely Joined • New Mexico Artists from the Creative Capital Professional Development Workshop
November 3–December 29, 2007
This group exhibition, presented with Santa Fe Art Institute, featured the work of 22 New Mexico artists who participated in the Creative Capital Professional Development Workshop in 2006. This national program acts as a catalyst for the development of adventurous and imaginative ideas by supporting artists who pursue innovation in form and/or content in the performing and visual arts, film and video, and in emerging fields. Featured artists include Madelin Coit, Donna Loraine Contractor, Sydney Cooper, RoseMary Diaz, Christy Hengst, Chris Jonas, Joanne Lefrak, Debbie Long and Timothy Nero. Curated by Diane Karp, Director of Santa Fe Art Institute. More details sfai.org
516 WORDS
November 17, 2007
A reading with literary artists Heather Campbell, Felicia Karas, opened by Anuradha Kowtha performing a dance piece from Southern India. More details download flyer
Ecotone Improvisation Marathon
October 26, 2007
516 ARTS hosted Maratini, a twelve hour marathon of continuous improvised performance, incorporating dance, music, technology, video and drama. More details Read review in Local IQ
SITE Santa Fe • Ghosts in the Machine
August 11–October 20, 2007
SITE Santa Fe presented an exhibition of video art at 516 ARTS featuring the work of internationally renowned video artists including Jeremy Blake (US), Isaac Julien (UK), Ana Mendieta (Cuba), Hiraki Sawa (Japan) and Eve Sussman (US). Though diverse in style and presentation, the works by these artists share a concern with the formal aesthetics and technical capabilities of the video medium. Traditional subjects such as time, memory, and history appear in the forms of silhouettes and shadows and are also explored through a variety of digital editing techniques, including cross-fading, time remapping, and image distortion that create unnatural, otherworldly effects. More details Ghosts in the Machine gallery guide
Pixel This!
October 20, 2007
516 ARTS together with Basement Films presented PIXEL THIS! — a video art making workshop for young people ages 10 to 18, led by Bryan Konefsky of Basement Films. Participants created live video mixes that were projected on the walls of the gallery. The workshop was one of several educational programs offered in conjunction with Ghosts in the Machine, an exhibition of international video art presented by SITE Santa Fe at 516 ARTS.
516 WORDS: Firestorm • Women's Voices Rising
October 13, 2007
516 ARTS hosted a Women's Poetry Reading and Slam with guest poets Inara Cedrins and Inga Abele. More details
Patrick Nagatani • Confessions of a Tapist
May 26–July 21, 2007
516 ARTS presented the work of Patrick Nagatani in the downstairs gallery, focusing on his series incorporating the obsessive and meticulous use of masking tape over the past 23 years. These mixed media pieces utilized photography, collage, painting and assemblage. Nagatani's attention to "Zen of the material and process" was the inspiration for an accompanying exhibition in the upstairs gallery, featuring artists using alternative, inexpensive materials in an obsessive, time-consuming, and complex manner. Curated by Patrick Nagatani, Suzanne Sbarge, and Andrew John Cecil. On July 14, there was a closing reception in conjunction with PhotoArts Santa Fe's Albuquerque day. More details
Attention to Detail
May 26–July 21, 2007
516 ARTS presented a group exhibition, inspired by Patrick Nagatani's attention to the "Zen of material and process," featuring 12 artists using alternative, inexpensive materials in an obsessive, time-consuming and complex manner, and working in photography, collage, drawing, painting, prints and sculpture. Nagatani says, "I relish the focus on details and to be lost in the quiet and minute parts of the whole…" Artists from New Mexico and across the nation were Nick Abdalla, Todd Anderson, Charles Benefiel, Carol Chase Bjerke, Thomas Barrow, Krista Charles, Teo Gonzales, Carlos Quinto Kemm, Leigh Anne Langwell, Chad Person, Aurora Robson and Heather Willems. The exhibition celebrated the transformative and healing process involved in these artists' obsessive approaches to their work and the beauty of their meditative achievements.
516 WORDS
July 21, 2007
516 ARTS hosted a poetry reading with J.B. Bryan of La Alameda Press, Melody Sumner Carnahan of Burning Books and Mark Weber of Zerx Press. Download flyer PDF, More details
Tributaries
April 6–May 12, 2007
A national traveling exhibition with catalog was presented by New Rivers Press in conjunction with the publication of two books of poetry, Mortar and Pestle by Lisa Gill (NM) and Terrain Tracks by Purvi Shah (NY). The exhibition explored the interplay between language and two-dimensional media with the work of visual artists from New Mexico and New York in relation to the poets' work. Artists included Fariba S. Alam, Nandini Chirimar, Chitra Ganesh, Becky Holtzman, Srinivas Kuruganti, Kris Mills, and Valerie Roybal. Curated by Lisa Gill and Purvi Shah. More details
Out of the Underground • Thirteenth Annual Juried Graduate Exhibition
April 6–May 12, 2007
The UNM Department of Art and Art History presented a two-part exhibition of graduate art students, at both 516 ARTS and the Jonson Gallery on the campus of UNM. The exhibition featured some of the best new work coming out of New Mexico, as these students complete the rigorous program of training as professional artists. Juried by Laura Steward Heon, Director of SITE Santa Fe. More details
516 WORDS
April 29, 2007
Poets Lisa Gill and Purvi Shah gave a free reading and tour of the Tributaries exhibition in the upstairs gallery at 516 ARTS.
Eye to I • Self Portraits by Women Artists
February 10–March 24, 2007
516 ARTS presented Eye to I, a group exhibition of women artists working with self-representation in photography, painting, mixed media and sculpture. They took a fresh look at issues of femininity and identity — exploring images of the self through humor, ritual, masquerade, and diverse narratives from the mundane to the fantastical. The show featured 10 artists from across the nation: Susan Byrnes (Ohio), Juliana Coles (New Mexico), Lalla Essaydi (New York), Alexandria Levin (Pennsylvania), Holly Lynton (New Jersey), Jennifer Nehrbass (New Mexico), Abby Robinson (New York), Adrienne Salinger (New Mexico), Claire Watkins (New York), and Sheilah Wilson (New Mexico). This exhibition was presented in celebration of the Women and Creativity series organized by the National Hispanic Cultural Center. It was curated by Suzanne Sbarge, with a catalog essay by Kathleen Whitney. Albuquerque Tribune review
Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe • Mapping Bodies: The Art & Artifice of Science
February 10–March 24, 2007
The Fine Arts Museum/Santa Fe presented Mapping Bodies: The Art & Artifice of Science at 516 ARTS as a satellite exhibition to The Art & Artifice of Science exhibition in Santa Fe. The exhibition explored the intersection of art and science by examining the work of contemporary artists from New Mexico and beyond who employ the language, look and technologies of science in their work. Building on two of New Mexico's long-standing strengths — its wealth of artistic talent and scientific innovation — this show gave a fresh perspective on New Mexico's history as a nexus of art and science. The Albuquerque exhibition was curated by Arif Khan, Gallery Director, Tamarind Institute; and the Santa Fe exhibition was curated by Laura Addison, Curator of Contemporary Art, Museum of Fine Arts, Santa Fe. More details
516 WORDS
March 23, 2007
516 ARTS hosted a free reading with guest writers, Sara Marie Ortiz, Mitch Rayes, Chris Boat and Allen C. Jones, presented in partnership with the UNM MFA in Creative Writing program. More details
516 WORDS
January 26, 2007, 8pm
516 ARTS hosted the first event for 516 WORDS, an ongoing literary arts series presented in partnership with the UNM MFA in Creative Writing program. More details
GREEN • Inaugural exhibition
December 9, 2006–January 27, 2007
516 ARTS presented its inaugural exhibition featuring the work of internationally known as well as up-and-coming New Mexico artists working in a variety of visual media from painting, sculpture and fine craft to photography and digital arts. The exhibition celebrated the regeneration of the arts at 516 Central, and reached out to a broad spectrum of artists and audiences, young and old, traditional and contemporary. Curated by Suzanne Sbarge and Andrew John Cecil. More details
Basement Films & The Guild Cinema • Sidewalk Vidi/Cine
September 16–October 21, 2006
Basement Films and The Guild Cinema presented film, video, and digital imagery projected onto the 25 foot high front window of 516 ARTS, visible from the street. Screenings were from 8–10pm. There was live music on September 16, September 30 and October 14. More details
Made possible in part by McCune Charitable Foundation, and the City of Albuquerque, Martin J. Chavez, Mayor and New Mexico Tourism Department.
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