Just a few events to help you start planning your artsy weekend. There are art happy hours, music, freak bikes and Abracadabra, a fundraiser in which the works of 100 local artists will eventually disappear from the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood and make their way to the homes of lucky raffle winners. … But at this raffle, everyone who buys a ticket wins. We may add more events to this weekend roundup later, so check back.
ART, FREAK BIKES AND JAZZ
Like the big bird says, don’t be a chicken. Check out Armory After Hours tonight. Warm up for the weekend with music from Macarldie and The Jazz Allstars, wine from Patch Block, munchies from Whole Foods Market and custom bikes from the Freakbike Militia. If you’re not familiar with the Freakbike Militia, see this video of its Summer of Love Chopper Ride.
Armory After Hours is also a chance to tour the studios, see classes in progress, participate in creative activities, and explore “Crafted Melodies,”an exhibition of hand-crafted musical instruments.
The event is 6-9 p.m. Thursday (tonight) at Armory Art Center, 1700 Parker Ave., West Palm Beach. Cost: $5 include drinks and munchies. Call 561-832-1776.
ABRACADABRA
Abracadabra is a word that we often hear said before something disappears. So it makes sense that this is the title of the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood’s annual fundraiser where all of the art will eventually be taken home by people who bought raffles tickets.
The exhibition, now in its third year, will kick off Friday and feature the works of 100 invited artists who donated works. Raffle tickets will be sold $375 for one, $700 for two and $1,000 for three, and each raffle ticket comes with admission for two. When the exhibition closes with a big bash on Friday, Feb. 19, the names of ticket holders will be randomly drawn and each who is called will get to choose from all remaining works. The first ticket holder called gets first choice, second gets second choice and so on, until each piece of art has a new home.
Participating artists include Agustina Woodgate, Michelle Weinberg, Kris Knight (whose oil on canvas titled “Lay of the Land” is pictured here), Tony Kapel, Jeremiah Jenner, Maitejosune Urrechaga, Typoe, Jen Stark, Michael Genovese, TM Sisters, Sarah Michelle Rupert, Bert Rodriguez, Carol Prusa, Christina Pettersson, Federico Nessi, Farley Aguilar and many others.
Raffle tickets will be sold in advance and at the door if any still remain on Feb. 19.The evening will feature a free open bar, hors d’oeuvres, magic, and a DJ set from The Whisper. Admission without the raffle ticket is $30. I think that watching each person choose one piece of art would be pretty entertaining. I wonder whose art will be picked first.
The exhibition opens 6-9 p.m. Friday at the Art and Culture Center of Hollywood, 1650 Harrison St., in Hollywood. Call 954-921-3274. Cost: $10 for non-members.
THE D.B.A. SHOW
Many talented artists wind up with jobs unrelated to their passion because they don’t have the business skills needed to make art their full-time job. In 2003, the Artist as Entrepreneur Institute was founded to help artists cultivate and advance their business skills.
This weekend, 10 graduates of that program will exhibit in D.B.A. 2010, Doing Business As ….
The second annual exhibition, curated by Rachel Piering, will include works by Katherine K. Allen, Jeff Breed, Liliana Gerardi, Alan Isely, Jami Nix Rahn and Olga Dziembowska (whose mixed media painting “Decline” is pictured here) and other local artists. On Feb. 20, the artists will participate in a forum that runs 3-4:30 p.m. and will feature special guest Jackie Battenfield, author of The Artists Guide: How to Make a Living Doing What You Love.
The opening reception is 2-5:30 p.m. Saturday at Gallery Six, on the sixth floor of Broward County Main Library, 100 S. Andrews Ave., in Fort Lauderdale.
On a completely related side note: while visiting the Artist as Entrepreneur institute’s Web site, I learned that the Broward Cultural Division and the South Florida Regional Planning Council offer an Artist Micro Credit Program, a community-based, revolving loan program designed to help artists purchase equipment, complete a project, or seize an opportunity. According to AEI, the loans of up to $5,000 are designed to help Broward-based professional and emerging artists advance their careers, and provide help with projects that can’t be funded through conventional sources. Loan applications are reviewed as they’re received. For details on upcoming artist workshops and Artist as Entrepreneur Institute, contact Broward Cultural Division grants administrator James Shermer (954-357-7502 or jshermer@broward.org) or register at www.broward.org/arts and click “Workshops.”
