City Week

On the Fringe

$#!@ JUST GOT REAL

Reception: 6 to 9 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 27

Exhibit on display 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday-Saturday, through Saturday, Dec. 25

Fragment Gallery

44 W. Sixth St., Studio 22

310-8788;

www.fragmentgallery.com

In Tucson, most of us aren’t all that fancy to begin with. But if your taste for artwork is a “step down” from what is on display, say, at the Museum of Contemporary Art, or if you are ready to see the realness of lowbrow art, the $#!@ JUST GOT REAL show at Fragment Gallery might just blow your mind.

Mark Matlock, owner of Fragment Gallery, explained his motivations behind the show: “My gallery in general kind of caters to the lowbrow ... which is pretty much any modern art that isn’t accepted by the mainstream.”

Lowbrow art is artwork that is on the fringe of modern art. While it is not any less admirable than other contemporary art, the material used to make it and the subject matters represented often push the envelope of what is considered worthy in fancy-pants mainstream art.

The show will feature artwork from the Golden Mean artist collective. Members include both Tucson and Phoenix artists who do work in a number of different mediums. “The art range is from photography to steel sculpture, silk screening, and acrylic and oil painting,” Matlock said.

The group has been together for three or four years, Matlock said, and includes Addie Mannan, Dave Carender, Jean-Leon Magnotto, Adam Reed, Chase Euerle and Alec Forszt.

The show will include a “multimedia explosion” as well as installation art pieces. While still tentative, the multimedia may be in the form of video, and some of the work might be kinetic—like moving sculpture.

The event is free, and is on display from this Saturday’s opening reception through Christmas Day —E.B.


Chat With the Prez

Conversations With Arizona Leaders: UA President Robert Shelton

6 to 7:30 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 30

Himmel Branch, Pima County Public Library

1035 N. Treat Ave.

594-5305, ext. 3;

library.pima.gov

Want to learn more about our community? Perhaps conversing with community leaders will help you feel more clued in.

Join other community members who feel the same way and get the opportunity to meet UA President Robert Shelton at Meet Me at the Library: Conversations With Arizona Leaders, taking place at the Himmel Park Library.

”When we were going through and making our strategic plan for the library, we had community forums, and people wanted more opportunities for civic engagement, said Mary McKinney, of the Pima County Public Library.

The goal of the Meet Me at the Library project is to promote local awareness and offer residents opportunities to become more-informed members of the community.

”In this case, the aim of the program is to provide a casual atmosphere in which members of the community can ask questions in order to learn more about Dr. Shelton and the UA,” said McKinney.

The program makes it possible for a variety of politicians, community leaders and community experts to converse with interested residents.

”People attending might be interested to get a sense for what a day in the life of a university president is like—the challenges, the decisions, the best aspects and the future of the UA, for example,” said McKinney.

Librarians will moderate the discussions between residents and community leaders; however, McKinney said that the community members will drive the conversations.

Meet Me at the Library will host different guests at various branch libraries once a month, leading up to the Arizona Centennial in February 2012.

Admission is free. —K.M.


Watercolors, Watercolors Everywhere

Experimental and Innovative Works in Water Media

On display through Tuesday, Nov. 30

Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild Gallery

5605 E. River Road, Suite 131

www.watercolor-sawg.org

Catch the first exhibition of the year in the Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild’s new gallery before it’s too late. The gallery, located at the River Center at Craycroft and River roads, is hosting Experimental and Innovative Works in Water Media through Nov. 30.

”So far, this exhibit has been very successful,” said Mary Kramer, vice president of shows for the Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild. “The Southern Arizona Watercolor Guild hasn’t had a gallery in years. Right now, we are getting a lot of traffic, so that’s a good sign.”

The SAWG is a community of artists who enjoy the exploration of a wide range of water media; value continued learning and practice; exhibit and sell their art; and support young artists through scholarships.

Members of the SAWG provide the art for the group’s shows. Each exhibition has a member who takes charge and becomes the chairman for that show.

”It is all run by volunteers and most people who show their work,” said Kramer.

More than 70 members—showing 107 paintings—are included in Experimental and Innovative Works in Water Media.

”The artists have done all kinds of creative things with all kinds of different materials,” said Kramer. “In the past, our work has been strictly watercolor. Artists were given the opportunity to expand on their creativity and mix the media this time around.”

Artists were allowed to use almost any materials they wanted, as long as the work incorporated water media.

Admission is free. The gallery is open 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., Friday; 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday; and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Sunday. —K.M.


This Cause Isn’t Dead

2010 World AIDS Day Celebration

4 p.m. to midnight, Wednesday, Dec. 1

Hotel Congress

311 E. Congress St.

622-8848;

www.hotelcongress.com

There was a time in American history when HIV/AIDS was a huge deal. Not only where people scared; they were also uneducated, which only fueled their fear and anger toward those they thought were responsible for “spreading” the disease. It has been close to 30 years since our country fell victim to the scare—and it seems we have all but forgotten that time.

Dante Celeiro, a local member of the committee for World AIDS Day 2010 and a member of gender-performance troupe Boys R Us, said about Wednesday’s event: “I think it’s one of those things for people who need to be educated about HIV and AIDS, because you don’t hear about it anymore, unfortunately. Now that there is medication available, people think it is not a problem—but it really is. People need to understand that this still is a real problem, and that actually, the rate of infection has gone up in women and youth.”

This free event will feature an outdoor stage where all are invited to enjoy local Tucson talent up to 8 p.m. Club Congress will host an indoor stage where attendees can view entertainment from 8 p.m. to midnight. The event seeks to honor those who have fallen victim to HIV and AIDS, as well as to bring light to the successes in prevention and treatment over the years.

”So what you do is you get the community fully involved,” said Celeiro. “You get all of these different organizations and all these different entertainers together to show that we are united as a front, because this is still very much a problem.”

Admission is free. Visit the Hotel Congress website for a complete schedule. —E.B.