Musical art show ends, but books available

Friday, June 2, 2006 | 7:20 a.m.

Didn't get to buy any Tim Bavington works during his two-month solo show at G-C Arts?

For $40 you can get a copy of Bavington's first book, which chronicles the artist's paintings since 2002.

Bavington will sign copies (published by Steidl and the Mark Moore Gallery in Santa Monica) from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. today at G-C Arts, 1217 S. Main St.

The British painter, who lives in Las Vegas, is known for transposing music into airbrushed paintings by matching the 12-tone musical scale to a 12-hue color wheel. The stripes on the paintings match the duration of each note held in a particular song.

The book's cover features Bavington's painting of the song "Physical S.E.X." by The Darkness. The painting was accepted by the Museum of Modern Art in December. Art critic Dave Hickey, who taught Bavington while the artist earned a Master of Fine Arts at UNLV, wrote the book's foreword.

Tonight's book signing and closing party is the last chance to see some of Bavington's pencil drawings, digital studies and "Wonderwall," a three-walled room papered in stripes to the melody by Oasis.

Ryan Spencer, assistant director at G-C Arts, said the show's exhibits have sold out. Smaller 6-by-6-inch works sold for $750, and the painting "Sympathy for the Devil" sold for $26,000.

The show will be taken down Saturday. For more information, call G-C Arts at 452-2200.

Gallery P

When it finally hit Alex Volborth that he didn't want to live as a starving artist, he had already turned to science and was studying to become a geologist. Volborth, now 82, traveled the world during his career, and studied rocks in Egypt and Australia.

And when back at his home in Searchlight, he would photograph Southern Nevada's rock formations.

Through July 7, Gallery P in the Holsum Lofts, 231 W. Charleston Blvd., will feature 64 photographs and giclee (zhee-CLAY) prints by Volborth, who often captures rock formations that imitate noted works of art. Giclees are digitally printed versions of original artworks.

Joe Palermo, owner of Gallery P, says he was drawn to Volborth's photography and its connection to noted American and European masterpieces.

The exhibit opens tonight as part of First Friday, the downtown monthly art event. Giclee prints of Volborth's work sell for $750. His other works range from $100 to $1,500.

For more information, call the gallery at 384-8155.

First Friday

Crowds will descend on the Arts District tonight for art, music and food. Most First Friday events will be from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m., and trolley stops will be at the Arts Factory, Holsum Lofts, Dust, G-C Arts, Commerce Street Studios and at the Colorado Avenue and Casino Center Boulevard street festival. More information can be found at www.firstfriday-lasvegas.org.

MTV?

MTV representatives visited the Las Vegas Academy for International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts last month. Officials at the school, the county magnet campus for the arts, said the MTV reps were at the school for a screen test. They declined to comment further, and MTV officials did not return phone calls .