PHOTO: CHRISTOPHER DUGGAN.
I met Jeffrey Dell a year ago in Arturo Palacios’ office, and have been looking forward to his Art Palace exhibit ever since. Something about his use of color, the crispness of the paper and the play of perception reminded me of everything I treasure about printmaking.
This June, it’s Printmaking that’s busting out all over. I love the way we do things in Texas—big and sprawling. Dana Mattice gives us a quick tour of PrintHouston.
Big thinking was involved when former Houston Ballet artistic director Ben Stevenson gave a young Trey McIntyre the go ahead for Peter Pan. Like its namesake, this ballet doesn’t age, and feels as fresh as it did when it premiered in 2002.
More bold moves can be found at Stark Naked Theatre as they tackle the Macbeth for the first time, Texas Music Festival as they bring in the finest conductors and The Bridge Club as they make their Currents New Media Festival debut.
After wrapping up part one of his Art League Houston exhibit, A+C visual arts editor Devon Britt-Darby takes up residency in the front gallery to complete his largest text painting to date. He’ll also work on our July/August issue, so stop by to ask about his process or give him an earful about his latest Loose Ends column.
Speaking of which, controversy magnet Britt-Darby digs deep into several years-worth of Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s annual reports and attendance figures, salutes the Cyrus Cylinder and makes your summer road trip plans for you. Unbeknownst to Britt-Darby when he invited Houston artist Nathaniel Donnett to contribute June’s Art/Ad Bomb, Donnett had his own institutional critique up his sleeve, part of a larger project you can explore at nathanieldonnett.com.
Meanwhile, Britt-Darby’s report on Ben Tecumseh DeSoto’s innovative Whole Mind workshop for juvenile probationers highlights the difference art makes in the lives of our most vulnerable citizens.
We lighten up a little on the web, with stories on Blue Man Group at SPA, the ins and outs of being Wendy in Peter Pan and my chats with pop culture diva Abby Koenig on Girls and Mad Men.
Dig in and see you on the stomp,
–Nancy
nancy@artsandculturetx.com
