MidCity Artists – Spring Open Studios | May 18th & 19th
The time has come again for the MidCity Artists Open Studios!
Tour the neighborhood and visit with local artists in their own studios. Here at Vastu, you can chat with and see works from Colin Winterbottom and Brian Petro.
Click the link below for a map of this weekends’ participants:
And if you have a smartphone, click here or the main image above for a mobile-friendly app.
New Art Exhibit: Brian Petro
Brian Petro
Vastu again welcomes artist Brian Petro back to our walls March 25th through early June. From classic floral and sculptural imagery in his signature transfer style, to his fresh new chunky oil paint abstracts and scrawled quirky painted drawings, Brian elicits comfort, joy, and humor in this show.
"bois and girlz"
His work represents his wandering and wondering mind. He credits his style to the dichotomy between his supportive, rural, central-Pennsylvanian upbringing and the brutal independence of urban life. Global travel and urban exploration fuel his search for images, ideas and processes.
"pink"
Brian is presently represented by galleries in Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and Rehoboth Beach. His work is also on display in venues in Brazil, England, Italy and Hong Kong. Past commercial clients include Absolut Vodka (who commissioned Brian to design the Absolut Dupont Circle Ad), The Ritz Carlton Hotels, Saks Fifth Avenue, and The Library of Congress. Brian has been published in regional and national news magazines and newspapers, and he and his work have been featured on several television shows including HGTV’s Curb Appeal and Showhouse Showdown
"used car"
To see more samples of his art and to learn more about Brian, please visit www.brianpetro.com, see him on YouTube.
To arrange a tour of Brian’s studio, located in the lower showroom here at Vastu, please contact him directly at (202) 270-7352 or brianpetroartist@yahoo.com.
New Art Exhibit: Allen Levy
Credit: the Lorton Patch
No stranger to the walls of the Vastu showroom, Allen Levy is back with new captivating pieces. His compositions play on the concepts of color, light and luminosity while flowing between the abstract and expressionistic.
"Nightfall" 36"x72"
“My paintings are driven by chance through layering, mixing, and pouring, to create a composition that is truly unique. As I paint, ideas emerge providing new opportunities and directions for me to explore and expose – but, I am also aware of my original scope of work which is structured and planned. The images often resemble “dreamscapes” of the landscape – a sunset, the weather, or even a season, but, all are subject to interpretation. As with every dream, each is unique, limitless, and truly one-of-a-kind.”
"Nebula - Peridot" 48"x48"
WHERE:
Vastu
1829 14th St NW
Washington, DC 20009
202-234-8344
WHEN:
January 22nd, 2013 through March 24th, 2013
Event: Gothic Resilience
Colin Winterbottom, who has a studio and has shown his work several times here at Vastu, will have a new and exciting show at Long View Gallery from January 10th through February 10th.
Titled Gothic Resilience, the exhibition showcases a series of photographs from an ongoing collaboration between Winterbottom and the National Washington Cathedral highlighting rare elements of the Cathedral damaged in the August 2011 earthquake.
“The selection richly conveys the Cathedral as a vantage point over a complex urban landscape and as part of that landscape: an iconic piece of the country’s architectural heritage that resonates with people of varied faiths and speaks to the city as a whole.”
What:
Gothic Resilience | Colin Winterbottom’s Photographs of the National Cathedral
When:
January 10th – February 10th
Opening Reception: Thursday, January 10, 6:30 – 8:00pm
(RSVP by January 9th to info@longviewgallery.com)
Where:
1234 9th Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
New Art Exhibit: Greg Minah
Vastu designer favorite, and past exhibitor, Greg Minah is back in the showroom again! Through January 20th, 2013 you’ll have the chance to see and purchase great pieces of art from this Baltimore-based artist.
Greg Minah creates his abstract paintings by pouring thinned out acrylic paint onto the canvas and then tilting and turning the stretcher to precisely control the flow of the medium. Often, a layer is partially removed with pressurized water before it has a chance to completely cure, leaving only the outline of the poured paint and revealing the multi-layered construction of the work. This method of working might best be described as a collaboration between artist and material–a balancing act between the creative force of the artist and the natural forces acting on the flowing paint. The result is a lyrical moment suspended in time but the significance remains fluid as it relies entirely on the encounter with the viewer.
Of his painting method, Minah states that “inspiration comes directly from the working process itself. I am so physically engaged in this process that it really becomes a part of the final painting, a documentation of a sort of prolonged performance piece. And while I can exert a lot of my will on the behavior of the paint and I choose the colors, composition, etc, there’s always something unexpected that will happen when I work this way, something that I’ll have to react to in the moment which give a sincerity and freshness to the work that I find appealing in art.”
Mid City Artists “Fall Open Studios” This Weekend
It’s that time of the season again for the Fall Open Studios hosted by the Mid City Artists. This is a great opportunity to support local art and visit various artists in their own studios.
Photography by Colin Winterbottom
Here at Vastu we have artists Colin Winterbottom and Brian Petro. You can visit their studios (located in our lower showroom) from 12pm to 6:30pm on Saturday, October 13th and 12pm to 4:30pm on Sunday, October 14th.
Art by Brian Petro
Vastu will be open on Saturday, October 13th from 11am-7pm and Sunday, October 14th from 12pm-5pm.
New Art Exhibit: M. Jane Johnson
We have a new art exhibit up on the walls of the Vastu showroom. This collection of abstract paintings comes from local Virginia artist, M. Jane Johnson.
Her bold, high-energy paintings are very representational of her physical painting style. Poured paint, thrown paint, loose juicy drips, and bold scribble line work are all elements you’ll find in her work alongside collage and multiple mediums including oil sticks, charcoal, acrylic, and oil.
“When working on a piece, I am drawn to developing the canvas to find a story within the canvas and to build the surface. I want the viewer to stand back and take in the whole image as well as on a more intimate level where the surface reveals hidden treasures of texture and layering. There are many layers in each piece from acrylic, collage, oil, and various drawing implements. The image is developed with a play of the build-up of transparent and opaque to give it a surface tension that pulls the viewer in and out of the picture. Drips glazed over, palette knives of paint, artful papers, all make my work have its own unique surface. The work and process is similar to what Renoir’s son once said about his father’s work. ‘He was very careful to keep an impression of transparency in his picture throughout the different phases of the work … he worked on the whole surface of his canvas [and] the motif gradually emerged from the seeming confusion, with each brushstroke.’”
WHERE:
Vastu
1829 14th St NW
Washington, DC 20009
202.234.8344
WHEN:
September 24th, 2012 – November 18th, 2012
New Art Exhibit: Kimberly Iles
Our newest art exhibit on display at Vastu is from artist Kimberly Iles. Kimberly creates abstract/contemporary works through the use of mixed media to produce a range of effects on canvas and panel.
In this collection, Kimberly explores a not-so-artistic topic: science. Specifically, alternate universes and realities.
“Whereas science deals in the search for fundamental truth, art deals in imagination. Albert Einstein captured these sentiments in his essay on “The World As I See It” saying The most beautiful experience we can have is the mysterious. It is the fundamental emotion that stands at the cradle of true art and true science. For me, one of the most fascinating of scientific mysteries is the concept of parallel universes; the idea that there are an infinite collection of existences sharing every common likeness, memory, and perception of reality as you.”
About Kimberly Iles
Kimberly D. Iles is a graduate of the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with Honors, 1990. Her early professional career involved work in graphics design with Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University, and corporate design in the private sector. From 1995 to 2008 Kimberly owned and operated Ilesnet Design. The design company provided graphic and web design services for a variety of clients, including government agencies, corporations and non-profit organizations. In 2009 she founded In Theory Communications, LLC, to continue in the spirit and tradition of Ilesnet Design.
Today, Kimberly has transitioned to a fine arts career highlighted by participation in international and national exhibitions and juried art shows.
WHERE:
Vastu
1829 14th St NW
Washington, DC 20009
202.234.8344
WHEN:
July 23rd, 2012 – September 23rd, 2012
Almost Gone…
There are only 6 more days left to stop by the Vastu showroom and see work by local artist and Vastu art director, Brian Petro, up close and personal. Taking pieces from his Supermarket Series and Roman Series, Brian showcases his talent as well as his versatility with materials and methods.
"Grand Roma"
All of Brian’s pieces are for sale.
Please see or call a Vastu designer for availability and pricing.
Spring Open Studios from the Mid City Artists
A press release recently went out about this fun event held twice a year:
“Mark your calendars for the weekend of May 19 and 20 when twenty-one artists who are part of the “Mid City Artists” collaborative, will open their studio doors as part of The Mid City Artists Spring Open Studios Tour. This bi-annual event in DC’s “Mid-City” – in and around the Dupont Circle and Logan Circle neighborhoods – offers a special opportunity for art-lovers to take a peek into the artists’ creative process, connect personally with artists and learn more about how and where they make art, and purchase art as well. The participating artists represent a great diversity of work, including drawings, sculptures, paintings, prints, photographs and mixed media.”
Here at Vastu, we’re pleased to house studios for Mid City Artists Brian Petro and Colin Winterbottom, the former of which has a show currently hanging in our showroom.
So come out this weekend, explore the neighborhood and meet and support some local artists!
Vastu will be open on Saturday, May 19th from 11am-7pm and Sunday, May 20th from 12pm-5pm.
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