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BmoreArt’s Picks: Baltimore Art Galleries, Openings, and Events November 22 – 28

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BmoreArt’s Picks presents the best weekly art openings, events, and performances happening in Baltimore and surrounding areas. For a more comprehensive perspective, check the BmoreArt Calendar page, which includes ongoing exhibits and performances, and is updated on a daily basis.

To submit your calendar event, email us at [email protected]!

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<><><><><><><><><><>unicornUnicorn Pizza: Holmes, Kinnett, Klaver, Winik
Tuesday, November 22nd : 6:30-8:30pm

The Room – Mount Vernon
800 Saint Paul Street : 21202

UNICORN PIZZA: A reading series from Ink Press Productions! We ask the burning questions like, “What is a unicorn?”

The series is free – please bring cash for pass the hat to support the performers!

We are honored to present:

Anne Cecelia Holmes is the author of The Jitters (horse less press, 2015) and three chapbooks: Dead Year (Sixth Finch, 2016), Junk Parade(dancing girl press, 2012), and I Am A Natural Wonder (with Lily Ladewig; Blue Hour Press, 2011). Her poems have appeared in Gulf Coast, jubilat, Conduit, Denver Quarterly, and The Atlas Review, among other places. She recently moved to the DC area from Western Massachusetts.

Dylan Kinnett is a writer, spoken word performance artist, and the founding editor of Infinity’s Kitchen. His writing seeks to alter traditional literary forms with the use of media, hypertext, and performance. He lives in Baltimore, Maryland.

Becca Klaver is the author of the poetry collections Empire Wasted, just out from Bloof Books, and LA Liminal (Kore Press, 2010), as well as several chapbooks. She studied poetry and other things at the University of Southern California (BA), Columbia College Chicago (MFA), and Rutgers University (PhD). She was a founding editor of Switchback Books and is currently co-editing the multimedia poetry anthology Electric Gurlesque. This fall, she’s curating a lecture series called Tiny Talks at Berl’s Poetry Shop in Brooklyn. In the spring, she will be the Arts & Sciences Distinguished Visiting Writer at Bowling Green State University.

Marion Winik is the author of FIRST COMES LOVE (Random House, 1996) and THE GLEN ROCK BOOK OF THE DEAD (Counterpoint, 2008.) Her other books are TELLING (Random House, 1994); THE LUNCH-BOX CHRONICLES (Random House, 1998); RULES FOR THE UNRULY (Simon and Schuster, 2001); ABOVE US ONLY SKY (Seal Press, 2005) and HIGHS IN THE LOW FIFTIES: HOW I STUMBLED THROUGH THE JOYS OF SINGLE LIVING (Globe Pequot Press, 2013). She has also published two books of poetry, NONSTOP and BOYCRAZY. Winik’s “Bohemian Rhapsody” column appears monthly at BaltimoreFishbowl.com, and her essays and articles have been published widely. A professor in the MFA program at the University of Baltimore, Winik was the recipient of a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Creative Non-Fiction and has been inducted into the Texas Institute of Letters. She has appeared on the Today Show, Politically Incorrect and Oprah.

Thank you to The Room – Mt. Vernon for providing the space. Don’t forget to buy delicious food + drink!

<><><><><><><><><><>mcdanielEighth Biennial Faculty Art Exhibition – Reception + Gallery Talk
Tuesday, November 22nd : 5-7:30pm

Rice Gallery, Peterson Hall
McDaniel College : 21158

The “Eighth Biennial Faculty Art Exhibition” at McDaniel College highlights a variety of works by current art and art history faculty members. The exhibition runs Tuesday, Nov. 22–Friday, Dec. 16, in McDaniel’s Rice Gallery, Peterson Hall, at 2 College Hill, Westminster, Md. An artists’ reception takes place Thursday, Dec. 15–7:30 p.m., with a gallery talk at 6 p.m.

This exhibition is a rare opportunity to see the range and depth of works by select McDaniel faculty members.

Works in the exhibition include abstract paintings by professor Steven Pearson of Westminster, Md., iPad photographs by adjunct lecturer Walter Calahan of Westminster, Md., and wearable botanical art by adjunct lecturer Linda Van Hart of Union Bridge, Md.

In addition, adjunct lecturer Ken Hankins of Hampstead, Md., exhibits several pottery pieces and professor Susan Scott of Hanover, Pa., who specializes in Chinese and Japanese art history, displays four small Chinese hanging scrolls.

Baltimore artist Chloe Irla, a visiting assistant professor and a 2007 McDaniel alumna, also presents intermedia and digital art from “Blaze Breakers,” an ongoing interdisciplinary project that, according to Irla, “utilizes analog and digital processes to distort, degrade and destroy the color blaze orange.”

The exhibition and reception are both free and open to the public. Rice Gallery hours are MondayFriday from noon–4 p.m.and Saturdaynoon–5 p.m. Call 410-857-2595 for more information. Visit www.mcdaniel.edu for information about McDaniel College.

<><><><><><><><><><>untitled-2_18_1_1Murdercastle: How to Make a Rock Opera
Friday, November 25th : 7:30pm

The Creative Alliance
3134 Eastern Avenue : 21224

An intimate look at the Baltimore Rock Opera Society as they battle against all odds to present their most ambitious production yet: Murdercastle.  

The Baltimore Rock Opera Society was formed by a small group of friends in 2007.  Today the BROS boasts over 300 members.  For their recent large-scale production, Murdercastle, the BROS had 99 days to build the original rock opera from scratch.  Murdercastle: How to Make a Rock Opera takes a tender look at the life of serial killer H. H. Holmes’ infamous “Murder Castle,” a hotel he built with hidden passages and secret rooms to murder 27 guests in 1893 Chicago.  The Baltimore City Paper said of the production, “Call it sincere, call it serious, Murdercastle is the production where the BROS gets ambitious.”  This film takes us backstage where BROS’s ambition rubs up against the group’s own limitations, chafes, and eventually leads to growth.

7:30pm | $10, $7 mbrs | + $2 at the door

<><><><><><><><><><>mice-annex-postersmall1-800-MICE – Opening Night
Friday, November 25th :8pm

The Annex Theater
219 Park Avenue : 21201

1-800-MICE is a sprawling and surreal thriller concerning the fate of Volcano Park, a “seething interspecies metropolis” of the nearish-future populated by humans, evolved animals, and a ruling caste of sentient trees. Volcano Park is in peril – plagued by authoritarian cops, a violent gang of dandy criminals peddling designer drugs and mass oblivion, and a blossoming class-war that threatens to unravel the already-tenuous threads holding the city together. To make matters worse, a mysterious meteor is now racing toward earth.

We topple headfirst into a web of political intrigue and cultural warfare fueled by unhinged psyches, fetishistic eroticism, corporate paranoia, cyber saturation, and new age quackery led by a slew of villainous interests – Aunty Lakeford, The Great Partaker, and the LA Shogun, former bandmates competing for their immortalities and cultural dominance, and Doctor Vial, a cult leader and drug kingpin of the arboreal drug known as Creosote.

These megalomaniacs threaten to bring about the apocalypse of Volcano Park and existence as we know it. Can this diseased city be saved before its mass annihilation? Can anyone be saved?

Directed by Sarah Jacklin*
Adapted by Carly J. Bales and Sarah Jacklin* from the comic novel of Matthew Thurber
Featuring Jacob Zabawa, Nina Mae, Dave Iden*, Carly J. Bales, Alex Scally, Martin Kasey, Philip Rogers, and Suzie Doogan

*Company Members

1-800-MICE opens on Black Friday, November 25th, at 8PM

<><><><><><><><><><>srogpyw_Holiday Bazaar and Tea
Friday, November 25th – Saturday, November 26th

The Cloisters
10440 Falls Road : 21093

Shop local this Black Friday at the Holiday Bazaar & Tea @ The Cloisters! Returning Friday, November 25 and Saturday, November 26 from 11am-5pm, the Holiday Bazaar & Tea features 100% local Maryland artisans selling handmade items inside the historic Cloisters Castle. Visitors can find unique gifts for loved ones while enjoying the beautiful interior and exterior of the Cloisters. Plus, children are invited to participate in a free homemade gingerbread house cookie decorating workshop with Chef Charlotte Galley of the Baltimore Chef Shop. Inside the “Tea Room,” visitors can enjoy tea, finger sandwiches, fresh fruit, scones, cheese and an assortment of pastries and desserts. It is free to shop at the Bazaar, but the tea is $30. The Cloisters is managed by the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts and is located at 10440 Falls Road, Lutherville, MD.

Those interested in making a reservation for the tea should contact the Cloisters directly at: [email protected]  or [email protected] or call 410-821-7448.

The Cloisters was bequeathed to the City of Baltimore by its original owners, Baltimore natives Sumner A. Parker and G. Dudrea Parker.  Inspired by extensive travel throughout Europe, as well as the United States, the Parkers built the castle as their summer home.  Although the structure itself only dates from 1932, many of the architectural elements are far older, lending the house an ancient feel.  The Cloisters features a four-story spiral stair tower, chapel, cloistered garden, windmill, elaborate stained-glass windows & doors, multiple fireplaces, hand-painted murals, ornamental ironwork, balconies and much more.

<><><><><><><><><><>53rju3hLes Liaisons Dangereuses 
Saturday, November 26th – Friday, December 23rd

Center Stage
700 North Calvert Street : 21202

Center Stage is pleased to announce the cast and artistic team for Les Liaisons Dangereuses, its first production of the 2016/17 Season.

Les Liaisons Dangereuses (Dangerous Liaisons) introduces two French aristocrats, the Marquise de Merteuil and her ex-lover, the Vicomte de Valmont, who challenge each other to seduce unsuspecting innocents in this story of revenge, debauchery and hidden motives. Set just before the French Revolution, Les Liaisons Dangereuses is a glimpse into the lives of beautiful people poised to denigrate and control everyone around them, including each other. But when one of them actually falls in love, the real betrayals unfold.

The role of the Marquise de Merteuil will be played by award-winning actress Suzzanne Douglas. Douglas is known for her roles in the WB television show The Parent ‘Hood, the Lifetime biopic Whitney, and the films How Stella Got Her Groove BackThe InkwellJason’s Lyric and School of Rock. Her theater credits include performances on Broadway in The Tap Dance KidIt’s a Grand Night for Singing and The Threepenny Opera.

The Vicomte de Valmont will be played by Brent Harris, who has performed in the National Tour of The Screwtape Letters and the National Tour of Disney’s The Lion King. He also spent three years performing at Oregon Shakespeare Festival and three years at Denver Center for the Performing Arts.

The cast includes Suzzanne Douglas* (La Marquise de Merteuil), Brent Harris* (Le Vicomte de Valmont), Gillian Williams* (La Présidente de Tourvel), Noelle Franco* (Cécile Volanges), Elizabeth Shepherd* (Madame de Rosemonde), Paul Deo Jr.* (Le Chevalier Danceny), Georgia Warner* (Émilie), Carine Montbertrand* (Madame de Volanges), Aaron Bartz* (Azolan), Jeff Keogh(Ensemble), Chloe Mikala (Ensemble), Brett Messiora (Ensemble) and Ricardo S. Blagrove (Ensemble).

The play, by Christopher Hampton based on the novel by Choderlos de Laclos, will be directed by Center Stage Associate Artistic DirectorHana S. Sharif.

<><><><><><><><><><>s1ukekzeGenerations: David + Eli Hess – Closing Party
Sunday, November 27th : 2-5pm

Project 1628
1628 Bolton Street : 21217

Throughout history, it was common for the next generation to join the family business. Bakers birthed more bakers and carpenters succeeded their fathers, passing down tools and trade secrets. It is not surprising, as we trust our kin and share enough chromosomes to be like-minded. Generations of fathers, mothers, sons, and daughters share family name and trade in perpetual cycles of production, each adapting to new challenges of changing worlds.

For 30 years, artist David Hess has made a living making sculpture and furniture. For 23 of those years, he has been a father and a role model. With the recent decision of his son, Eli, to join Hess Industries, David contemplates a new role: partner.

Father-son artist pair David and Eli Hess enters the gallery space to explore themes of relationship and adulthood. This show serves as a checkpoint as the pair draws on their last 21 years of teaching and learning together and looks towards the future of collaboration. The show features sculpture, furniture, and two-dimensional works in mixed media

<><><><><><><><><><>8xiirjnqRobinson Muñoz: In Praise of Love – Closing Reception
Sunday, November 27th : 2-5pm

The Alchemy of Art
1637 Eastern Avenue : 21231

Robinson Muñoz was born in Chile in 1943. After receiving his medical degree, he moved to North America, where he studied Psychiatry and Psychoanalysis. He specialized in working with children and adolescents. Art played a significant role in his practice and he developed an interviewing technique which used drawing and painting as a medium of communication.

<><><><><><><><><><>97hgs2a1CoHosts II: The Yes Men & Transmodern Festival
Monday, November 28th : 7-9pm

Baltimore School for the Arts
712 Cathedral Street : 21201

In 2014, we launched with CoHosts, our inaugural Speaker Series, which was organized with thirteen local commercial, artist-run, and independent galleries. Each gallery responded to a simple question: Who is the one artist or art professional that you want The Contemporary to bring to Baltimore? In 2016-17, we’ve decided to resume the series and have partnered with six artist-run platforms including galleries, spaces, collectives, and festivals. All lectures are free and held at the Baltimore School for the Arts, located at 712 Cathedral Street. The participating cohosts are: EARTHSEEDFirst ContinentPenthouse GalleryPlatform GalleryTerrault Contemporary, and Transmodern Festival.

<><><><><><><><><><>alejandromecanisme-preview

YUMMM! The History, Fantasy, and Future of Food
…ongoing…

American Visionary Art Museum
800 Key Highway: 21230

YUMMM! The American Visionary Art Museum raises a toast for its 21st birthday with a new visual feast in the original art exhibition Yummm! The History, Fantasy, and Future of Food. Inside Yummm! 34 visionary artists join forces with food scientists, farmers, nutritionists, environmental activists, psychologists, poets and humorists to publicly explore humankind’s complex, multi-layered relationship with food. As George Bernard Shaw wryly observed, “There is no love more sincere than love of food.”

Conservative projections of earth’s population by 2050 now exceed 9.5 billion—that’s a whole lot of hungry mouths to feed! AVAM’s Yummm! exhibition aims to inspire a greater public awareness of the revolutionary creativity needed to envision how a future planet of 9.5 billion earthlings will safely eat, cultivate, distribute, share, and even package food in radically more healthful, less wasteful, and equitable ways. With Yummm! AVAM hopes to encourage greater delight and awareness in every bite.

The Yummm! exhibition features intuitively made, imagination-rich, food-centric paintings, sculptures, embroideries, installations, and films. Some artworks are even directly created from edibles. Take, for example, the life-like coconut carved heads of Paul Vilja, Gil Batle’s intricately carved and etched ostrich eggs depicting his experience of prison life, rocker/artist Wayne Coyne’s life-size Gummy Bear self-portrait, Christian Twamley’s award-winning 6-ft tall “Sweepish Chef” sculpture made out of candy Peeps, or a floor-to-ceiling wall mosaic of preserved breads and burned toast etched by a small army of kid artists overseen by Jerry Beck. Visitors will be welcomed by Wendy Brackman’s hypnotic, 10-ft motorized food mandala, complete with a tiny army of marching ants and winged bee pollinators among her full-sized veggies, realistically crafted from intricately cut paper plates. Masterful large-scale food paintings by Cuban artist Ramon Alejandro will also be featured in the main gallery, along with the visual true story of roadside fruit seller, farmer, and Florida folk artist, Ruby C. Williams. Additional highlights include Jim Buhler’s state fair ribbon-winning seed paintings of iconic American singers such as farmer/activist Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash and Ray Charles, and Joe Bello’s intricate food packaging cut-outs. AVAM is particularly proud to host the world premier of the animated sci-fi fantasy, “Food Pyramid” by talented self-taught visionary artist and part-time AVAM security guard, Bernard Stiegler.

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