ATX Art Beat • Aug / Sept 2021
When the mercury’s rising, there’s only one place I wanna be: The 78702. The charming, eclectic Eastside is my favorite spot to cool off, kick back, and simmer down from long summer days. This month’s edition features three hot spots on East Cesar Chavez, an ever-expanding art hub.
Elizabeth Chiles @ grayDUCK Gallery
grayDUCK Gallery | 2213 E Cesar Chavez, Austin, TX 78702
Aug 28th — Oct 3rd | Sat/Sun 12–6pm | Opening reception: Aug 28th, 7–10pm
One of my first loves in the Austin art scene, Elizabeth Chiles is a maestra of light. She captures ephemeral garden scenes on film, and manipulates the images to create richly layered landscapes where lithe leaves and flirtatious flowers take on a life of their own. She goes beyond the visual world we take for granted, with its crisp lines, set perspectives, and 7-color spectrum, inviting the viewer to explore another way of seeing.
Chiles’ work is otherworldly, trippy even. You’ll feel transported, as if to a Martian botanical garden, where the colors are electric, almost piercingly so, and the laws of physics are abandoned entirely. Her still life scenes are anything but — poppies and peonies dance a tantalizing tango, their motions so fluid you can’t tell where one starts and the other begins.
Chiles will present her latest body of work “TIME BEING” at grayDUCK Gallery, opening August 28th. Pull on your moon boots, blink your eyes three times, and prepare yourself for an out-of-this-world experience. The universe is right in our backyard.
We Know Who We Are @ Women & Their Work
Women & Their Work | 1311 E Cesar Chavez St, Austin, TX 78702
Through Sept 21st | Tuesday — Saturday 10am-6pm
Speaking of Cesar Chavez, there’s a new kid on the block, Women & Their Work. A longtime favorite serving up local art and community empowerment, W&TW reopened with a bang at their new location this summer.
The current show, curated by creative multihyphenate Vicki Meek, features 9 Texas-based women artists exploring a variety of different mediums, each one offering their own unique perspective on feminism in our contemporary world.
Featured artists: Nida Bangash, Lauren Cross, Rehab El Sadek, Angela Faz, Pallavi Govindnathan, Lahib Jaddo, Pat Johnson, Lovie Olivia, and Naomi Wanjiku Gakunga.
Creative Combo @ Something Cool Studios
Something Cool Studios | 1717 E Cesar Chavez St, Austin, TX 78702
One night only: Saturday, Aug 28th, 6–10pm
I’ll have the #8 — curly fries and a Diet Coke. If there’s one thing I know, it’s that Texans love a good combo.
Mix up late your late night drive-thru routine and indulge in the smorgasbord that is Creative Combo, a celebration of Almost Real Things 20th Edition, hosted by Something Cool Studios. There’s something for everyone, with live music performances, a pop-up market, backyard dance party, and of course — the main entrée is ART.
Pick and choose from the following to dream up your own delicious combo:
A pre-dinner cocktail of musical performances, featuring: Chappie Funk, Penny Jane, Dead Space Dash, and The Wanderers.
Finger food, interactive activities to include: Soulshine Rhythm Experience, Cyanotypes with Yasmin Youssef, Get a Job with Elliot Liebman, Soft Sculpture with April Garcia, Phoetry with SJ Salazar Aponte, and a Photo Booth with Red Herring.
Droolworthy appetizers, live performances to include: Live Painting by Lindsay Laser Smith & Erik Ross and a Roller Skate Performance by Darryl Demps.
…and the main entrée, featuring visual art by: Brandon Munley, Saira Holland, Phoebe Joynt, Daniel Wood Adams, Shruti Mehta, Kerry Hugins, Hallie Rae Ward, Topher Sipes, Alyssa Young, Ryan Crawley, and Leslie Kell.
