Artful Weekend April 2-3 – The Art League

Welcome to Artful Weekend, our guide to fun and interesting ways to enjoy art in person or virtually.

This weekend: Two photography exhibits and a member show at the League; Yayoi Kusama returns to the Hirshhorn; student photography at The Phillips; Nana Bagdavadze at Artists & Makers Studios; and a carnivalesque send-off at the American Visionary Art Museum.

March Open Exhibit

Open Exhibits at The Art League present an array of works in a variety of mediums created by our member artists. March’s Open Exhibit features 97 artworks, and was juried by Gage Branda, artist, educator and Development & Curatorial Coordinator at the American Visionary Art Museum.

Jennifer Allevato received the Best-in-Show Award for her painting Cornflower Blue Lines and Flowers. Says the artist:

“These are not flowers, they are paintings of flowers: pieces created 100% by my hands. The movements, the lines, the brushstrokes, the drips: all indications that a person was here. These eye-popping, imperfect borders are just another reminder of the act of creating. Perfectly imperfect.”

Allevato presented Seated, an exhibition consisting of colorful, mixed media paintings of interior spaces with unoccupied chairs, as our May 2021 Solo Artist. Here she talks about it.. 

The March Open Exhibit is on view through April 3.

Women Around the World

During Women’s History Month we are excited to present Women Around the World, a photography exhibition by Solo Artist Kathryn Mohman. As a globetrotting photographer, Mohrman is fascinated by people with one foot in their traditional culture and the other in the modern world. For her exhibit Women From Around the World she trains her lens on women living that type of duality.

“The photographs reveal women from around the world: working, celebrating, enjoying their children, looking curiously at the photographer,” says the Mohrman. “These images celebrate the many ways in which women around the world pursue the same goals in life that you and I do.” Women around the World is on view through April 3.

Special Exhibit: The Photographic Process

The Photographic Process is a special exhibit that highlights the wide scope of photographic techniques and the unique approaches that photographers use to create their work, from hand developed negatives to digital photography, tintypes, cyanotypes, and more. This exhibit was juried by Em White, a visual artist and documentarian, specializing in historic photographic processes and large format work. It is on view through April 3.

One With Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection

The works of Yayoi Kusama returns to the Hirshhorn!  One With Eternity: Yayoi Kusama in the Hirshhorn Collection, a tribute to the life and practice of this visionary artist, features two transcendent Infinity Mirror Rooms, sculptures, an early painting, and photographs of the artist all from the museum’s permanent collection. It opens Friday, April 1, and is on view through November 27; Independence Avenue and 7th Street, NW. The museum will remain open until 8:00 p.m. on Friday and Saturday—April 1 and 2—for this much anticipated exhibit.

DC Is Beautiful

The Phillips Collection partnered with the photography club at Woodrow Wilson High School for DC Is Beautiful, a photography exhibit inspired by the recent exhibition Alma W. Thomas: Everything Is Beautiful (on view at the Phillips fall 2021). Using Holga cameras and film to capture beauty in their own worlds, each student brought their own unique perspectives to create photographs that are complex, compelling, and of course, beautiful.Their photographs serve as an invitation to look for and find beauty in our own lives. DC Is Beautiful is on view through April 10; 1600 21st Street, NW.

The Prayer for Peace

Artists & Makers Studios presents new work by metro-area artist Nana Bagdavadze in her solo exhibit The Prayer for Peace. The Georgian born and classically trained artist will exhibit work to honor Ukraine – along with two additional exhibits and Open Studios. The April 2nd opening will run from 11:00 a.m.– 3:00 p.m. Bagdavadze will be in conversation about her exhibit and artistry on Saturday, April 16^th, 2022, 1:00–3:00 p.m.; 11810 Parklawn Drive, Suite 210, Rockville, MD.

Rebecca’s Farewell Carnival

American Visionary Art Museum‘s Founding Director and Primary Curator Rebecca Alban Hoffberger is retiring with a bang! And the public is invited! Join the museum Sunday, April 3, for a fun-filled afternoon of music, dancing, food, games, scavenger hunts, crown-making and carnival acts. Rebecca’s Farewell Carnival is free, and takes place on the museum’s outdoor plazas. Touring the museum requires regular admission costs; 800 Key Highway, Baltimore, MD.

Enjoy the weekend!