Make Contemporary Art a Part of Your Routine

Maquette for Sparky, collage, 2004 by Sarah Atlee
Collage maquette by Sarah Atlee

No matter where you live, you live near an artist. We are everywhere! Visiting gallery shows, poetry readings, theatre, live music shows, and other art events is a great way to support your local arts community, and enjoy yourself to boot.

If you're in the Oklahoma City area, it's easy to stay in the loop for local arts events. The Weekly Gazette arts calendar is fairly comprehensive. You can also read about local arts in ArtBeat, the Daily Oklahoman, and the Norman Transcript.

If handling paper isn't your thing, visit the OVAC and Plaza District blogs, and sign up for the Untitled Artspace E-newsletter.

To find out about art events in the Tulsa area, Holly Wall's blog is a great place to start. Also, feel free to explore the Oklahoma Artists section of my Links page. Many of those artists have their own blogs, Facebook pages, and Twitter streams.

Never been to a gallery show before? Everyone is welcome, and artists are always happy to answer questions about their work. Dip your toes into the monthly First Friday Art Walk in OKC's historic Paseo District, this coming Friday from 6 to 10 pm. Highlights for July include the Flora & Fauna show at aka gallery, 3001 Paseo. As always, there will be food, art, music, and plenty of atmosphere.

Get'cherself some cultcha, yeah? Your neighborhood artists will thank you.

This post is part of NaBloPoMo for July 2009.

Philbrook Museum Trading Tulips for Tomatoes

Path, from the Philbrook Museum gardens, by Flickr user trp0. Click image to visit on Flickr.
Path, from the Philbrook Museum gardens, by Flickr user trp0. Click image to visit on Flickr.

The Tulsa, OK Philbrook Museum of Art is doing something different with their grounds this summer. Faced with a budget shortfall that prevented them from maintaining all of their formal gardens, they decided instead to plant vegetables and harvest them for hungry Oklahomans. NPR reported on this story: click here to listen.

The Urban Tulsa Weekly reports that the Community Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma welcomes the fruit and vegetable donations:

"Fresh produce is one of our most highly coveted items," [community relations director Cindy Stevens] said. "To be able to offer not just fresh produce, but produce picked that day or the day before is something that is a tremendous gift to our programs."

It will help people to eat healthier, too, which is so often a difficulty for low-income families. The seeds and other supplies for the vegetable garden were donated, and with the help of local volunteers, the museum staff is maintaining and harvesting the crops. Read the Philbrook Museum's full press release here.

This is something I love about living in Oklahoma. We seem to have an innate do-it-yourself impulse, and we are serious about supporting our local communities. Kudos to the Philbrook for turning economic hardship into an opportunity to help others.

UPDATE: Speaking of public gardens, here is a cool infographic of the new White House vegetable garden.

Later this month at the Philbrook, I will be giving a public talk about the Peggy Preheim exhibit. Preheim's mind-bogglingly intricate work, mainly miniature pencil drawings, present quasi-personal narratives that pull the viewer into her mysterious world. Come to the museum on Wednesday July 8th at noon to listen and discuss.

This post is part of NaBloPoMo for July 2009.

Dr. Sketchy's OKC with Savonne the Minx, 2009.06.14

Dr. Sketchy's Flyer featuring Savonne the Minx, 20090614 The next Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School, OKC edition, will be this Sunday evening at aka gallery in the Paseo. Madame Marylin tells us that Savonne the Minx, who hails from Tulsa, is a burlesque ballerina!

Also, she said something about hula hoops. Come on down.

Click here to learn more about Dr. Sketchy's Anti-Art School. Click here to see my other Dr. Sketchy's drawings. Click here to see the Dr. Sketchy's OKC pool on Flickr.

Venues Announced for 24 Works on Paper

Romy, ink on paper, 2009 by Sarah Atlee Romy, pigma micron on Rives BFK, 22 x 28 inches, 2009. Click image to visit on Flickr.

Romy is one of the pieces included in the upcoming 24 Works on Paper show, a collaboration between the Individual Artists of Oklahoma Gallery and the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition. Several of the show's venues have been announced.

From the press release: IAO & OVAC 24 Works on Paper will travel to locations across the state for one year and debut at IAO Gallery’s space on Broadway on July 18. Venues already include Eleanor Hays Gallery, Tonkawa; East Central University Ada; Firehouse Art Center, Norman; SWOSU, Weatherford; Plains, Indians, and Pioneers Museum, Woodward; Tulsa Artists Coalition, Tulsa; and Gardiner Art Gallery, Stillwater. Additional venues may be added.