Hello world, it's a song that I'm singing....come on get happy!

I know I'm going to have that song stuck in my head now. Dang!

Hello Beautiful Person! I was thinking earlier today about how hard it's been for me to post entries to this blog lately. You see, I decided to take on the leadership role at Art on Alberta, which has been really rewarding in many ways, but takes up a lot of my time that was otherwise spent dreaming up and writing fancy blog entries! We have been really busy interviewing a lot of really interesting and energetic people for our board, plus getting ready for Art Hop, our big event of the year that will happen on May 17th. More about that later, but I just wanted to mention I have been thinking fondly of you, dear reader! Don't be jealous now!

I have been working in the studio, but nothing is really in a state to show you. The only art show I've seen in the past week was a really cool show at Powell's Basil Hayward Gallery by a local museum I have been meaning to check out for years called the Velveteria. Apparently, they have the largest collection of velvet paintings in the world! They took some of their favorites from their collection of over 1000 black velvet paintings and hung them salon style at Powells--and it's a really amazing walk through the history of the medium. This show is in conjunction with their new book called Black Velvet Masterpieces, which is more than just a book with campy images, but there's some step-by-step images of how these paintings are made, as well as a historical text that covers everything from content to context.

On the other end of the art spectrum, I'm looking forward to one show that opens this weekend-- my buddy TJ Norris' solo show at the New American Art Union called Infinitus. TJ is the second in the NAAU's couture series of really talented artists doing thought provocative work and TJ's debut solo show there as well. Won't you join me at the opening Saturday night? TJ's show sounds like it's going to be worth seeing--here's an idea of what to expect:

Infinitus is the third and final component of the installation series "Tribryd," conceived by TJ Norris. For his exhibit, Norris will create a video lounge enveloping the visitor in an endless, seamless city that questions the templates for our civilization is using to generate future landscapes. Imagine the entire globe manifesting itself by its interconnected man-made mini malls and the like. It is a viral sign, a shift towards the abandonment of the fragility of nature altogether. A world minus the underbelly of the faded industrial age. Skyscrapers reach higher, taking the place of mountain peaks.

Click here for more details on the New American Art Union and the opening this weekend.