Kristen Peterson

Art Reporter

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A new way to look at books: In this electronic-information age, artists’ focus on literary medium is timely; Thursday, Nov. 5, 2009; Two art exhibits held in conjunction with the Vegas Valley Book Festival present books as art in ways diverse enough that the works could appeal to those not normally fond of the usual “book art.” “Inscribed/Messages” features art that is created mostly in book form. “Altered States: Artists Re-imagine the Book” features art created by using the book as medium.
Vegas Valley Book Festival: Finding our own voice: Local writing scene is displayed in works of authors, professors and journalists; Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2009; In its eighth year the Vegas Valley Book Festival is plucking from local waters for most of the five-day festival that begins today in downtown Las Vegas.
Local man has the instinct to dance: Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley
Festival to honor dead, and traditions: Friday, Oct. 30, 2009; Amid the paintings of skeletons and flowers in this year’s Day of the Dead community art exhibit is a strikingly peculiar sculpture by artist Julie Mahorney-Saenz, a composition as wild as it is contained.
On a shoestring, arts group strives to stay relevant: The Contemporary Arts Center, a fixture of the local scene for years, looks to remain on vanguard; Wednesday, Oct. 28, 2009; The current exhibit at the downtown Contemporary Arts Center is not immediately accessible.
Mundo Juillerat: 'Life in pursuit of guitar solos': A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2009; Juillerat started out playing ukulele in Hawaii and became a “shredder” — a rock guitarist who plays fast — in various bands and production shows.
Some films to interest the Whole Foods set: Festival of shorts includes at least two on organic farms; Thursday, Oct. 22, 2009; Hosted by the Nevada Wilderness Project and Nevada Conservation League, the Wild and Scenic Environmental Film Festival — an offshoot of the larger festival held each year in Nevada City, Calif. — looks at individual efforts to reclaim land, save energy or preserve wildlife.
Janis McKay: Spotlight on the bassoon: Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2009; “Composers have started writing music without bassoon because there are not very many of us. That concerns me."
Zombies your thing? Read on: Friday, Oct. 16, 2009; There’s nothing like a rotting corpse slogging toward you with an empty gaze and flesh-eating desire. Its limbs fall with abandon, its hair is atrocious, and that muted, low, aching groan is alarming to say the least. Zombies wipe out entire towns by eating the decent citizens.
Opener celebrates all that’s new with the Nevada Ballet: Friday, Oct. 16, 2009; When Nevada Ballet Theatre opens its season Saturday with “Timeless Innovations,” audience members will get a taste of new artistic director James Canfield, if not a better understanding of who he is.
Painting causing stir at UNLV: It’s not an original, artist’s attorney says, and he’d like it removed; Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009; For more than a decade, UNLV thought it had a valuable Frank Stella painting hanging in the lobby of the Judy Bayley Theatre. The painting was something of a mystery. The owner, who loaned it to UNLV, died. Someone called shortly after to claim the painting, but never responded with proof of ownership. So there it hangs. Unsigned, undated, tattered and torn with a broken frame and no official provenance. Theatergoers pass beneath it. Professors have questioned its preservation — or lack thereof. Students study it.
But is it really a Stella?
Sculpture at CityCenter's Aria designed to provoke thought about water: Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009; Artist Maya Lin watches as her 87-foot rendition of the Colorado River is installed behind the registration desk at CityCenter’s Aria.
King of all things vintage, kitschy and camp: A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2009; The November exhibit at his new gallery, Alios, at 1217 S. Main St., which also houses his business, coincides with the Vegas Valley Book Festival and features the work of Las Vegas artists who created “Drunk, a Comic About Bar Stories.”
Ceremony spiked as debate swells over how gays should celebrate law: Friday, Oct. 9, 2009; Earl Shelton, associate publisher of a local gay publication, accepted an invitation from the Erotic Heritage Museum to celebrate the effective date of Nevada’s landmark domestic partnership law with a commitment ceremony honoring his nine-year relationship with his partner.
Ethereal paintings evoke feelings of longing, loss: Friday, Oct. 9, 2009; A child in a skeleton costume sits on his Big Wheel and shoots bubbles from a ray gun.
Chamber music man anchored in Las Vegas: A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Oct. 6, 2009; Born in Valdivia, Chile, Fernandez grew up listening to classical music on the radio and Victrola
Audience invited for part in the show: Friday, Oct. 2, 2009; Audience members at last month’s Las Vegas Philharmonic concert were almost hurling themselves at the stage after Giora Schmidt’s performance of the Tchaikovsky Violin Concerto.
Photographer’s Old Vegas work to be at center of upcoming events: Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2009; Dennis McBride knew about a collection of photographs given to the Nevada State Museum, but only recently did the curator of history and collections realize the richness of the supply left behind by photographer Jay Florian Mitchell.
Vikki Baltimore-Dale: The continuum of her life: Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley
Shelled 'Peanuts': Trio of artists stylize iconic comic strip characters by stripping them of detail; Friday, Sept. 25, 2009; Over the summer, a trio of artists known as Ripper Jordan created a piece titled “Nine Paintings of Paintings.”
Unashamed to explore eros: Museum gives people ‘permission to be themselves’; Thursday, Sept. 24, 2009; The Erotic Heritage Museum opened on Industrial Road in Las Vegas a year ago.
Won over by 'Zumanity,' now here to stay: Tuesday, Sept. 22, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley
A peek at coming attractions: Bellagio gallery exhibit showcasing art and design of CityCenter; Friday, Sept. 18, 2009; At the Bellagio Gallery of Fine Art an art handler is on a ladder making some final adjustments to a Jenny Holzer installation while colleagues look on with anticipation.
Another art gallery scales back its schedule: Despite steps taken to bring customers in, Henri & Odette forced to end open hours; Thursday, Sept. 17, 2009; Jennifer Harrington sits inside her gallery on a summer afternoon and talks about her failed efforts to draw people into Henri & Odette.
Locals defend 'sketchy' area slammed on TV by ‘The Office’ star: Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2009; An actress who plays a ditsy office gossip on TV has a Las Vegas neighborhood in a lather. Mindy Kaling of TV’s “The Office” appeared on “The Late Show with Craig Ferguson” on Friday night and trashed the neighborhood of the venerable Luv-It Frozen Custard. She told Ferguson she was a little mad at his recommendation that she visit the tiny blue shop in the shadow of the Stratosphere. “We went to this frozen custard place in I believe the most dangerous and sketchy neighborhood I’ve ever been to in my entire life,” Kaling said.
Ricardo Cobo: 'Guitar was bewitching': A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Sept. 15, 2009; Cobo debuted at 17 with the Orquesta Filarmonica de Bogota, then went on to become an award-winning, internationally known classical guitarist. He toured nonstop, sometimes performing as many as 130 concerts a year — solo and with orchestras.
An infusion of art: Contemporary works from Los Angeles gracing UNLV’S Donna Beam space; Friday, Sept. 11, 2009; There may not be an abundance of contemporary art galleries in Las Vegas, but a small group of curators does what it can to get art to the people. This time it’s Jerry Schefcik’s turn. The director of Donna Beam Fine Art gallery at UNLV saw a gap in the gallery’s scheduling, contacted Los Angeles’ Western Project to see if UNLV could borrow works for an exhibit and put together the show in two weeks.
While you were at home passively watching TV: Thursday, Sept. 10, 2009; At the Fifth Street School auditorium, Swiss artist Christoph Draeger is delivering montages of titillating carnage, barbaric acts and natural disasters, merged with some of Hollywood’s best plane crashes and rampages.
Lack of museum leaves gap in art education for Clark County students: Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2009; Students from Pat Diskin Elementary School sat before a Donald Suggs sculpture at the Las Vegas Art Museum discussing symmetry.
Montana Black: Religious iconography plays a large role in work: A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2009; Early works included diners portrayed as holy places and triptychs of condiments and other diner ephemera — a coffee cup flanked by squeezable ketchup and mustard containers. Subjects in her figurative works are often surrounded by a glow or halo.
Bloodshed, disaster, end of the world — it’s all part of Swiss artist’s work: Friday, Sept. 4, 2009; Swiss artist Christoph Draeger delves into the absurdity of contemporary media culture through photos, paintings, installations, videos and sculpture.
Passionate about art education: A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2009; Before joining the Smith Center three years ago Schneider spent 31 years connecting youth with the arts in the Clark County School District.
Investing in the District: Developer says he has a philanthropic goal in mind for his gallery; Friday, Aug. 28, 2009; Normally when people open a gallery in the Arts District, they lease a storefront space, put up a sign and hold an opening.
Linda Quinn, executive director of the Lied Discovery Children’s Museum: Three years after taking charge, Quinn muses on the past and the future of the museum; Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009; Linda Quinn moved here from Charlotte, N.C., three years ago to run the outdated, financially strapped Lied Discovery Children’s Museum. The museum, next to the Las Vegas Library in the downtown Cultural Corridor, has overhauled its exhibits, is now operating in the black and has been asked to move onto the campus of the Smith Center for the Performing Arts.
Richard McGee: Conductor, trombonist: Another weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, Aug. 25, 2009; Richard McGee was 8 years old when he saw “The Music Man” on television. You could say it shaped his life. By the time he was a junior in high school, McGee knew he wanted a music career.
Toni Basil teaches street dance at 'Ballet Boot Camp': Friday, Aug. 21, 2009; Toni Basil is getting funky to a James Brown song in the Nevada Ballet Theatre studio. Her hair, artfully mussed, caps off the stylish and somewhat moneyed look of successful choreographer who has aged very little since her MTV days.
Pinball Hall of Fame a balm for the Vegas soul: It’s the anti-Strip — it reminds us of a simpler time; Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009; I’m hanging out with gun-slinging cowboys, trapeze artists, bowling queens and rock stars. Mike and Ikes litter the carpet. Flickering lights catch my eye as I load fistfuls of gumballs into my mouth and join in on the collective nostalgia that is the Pinball Hall of Fame.
Artist Amy Sol: Experimenting with paint: Tuesday, Aug. 18, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley: Sol’s work is impeccably clean, lyrical and illustrative. She merges manga, Japanese screen prints, children’s illustration and pure fantasy in finely detailed, imaginative landscapes, vignettes and portraits.
Artist capturing the look of a Vegas night: Bright lights and neon are dominant in native Las Vegan’s vibrant works; Friday, Aug. 14, 2009; Artist Jerry Misko sits on the back of a 1970s gray velour coach in his home studio — an annex off his living room. A laptop is open in front of him.
Artists shine light on cabaret: Benefit show aims to help acts thrive at Liberace Museum; Thursday, Aug. 13, 2009; The Liberace Museum’s collection of rhinestone and mirrors is enough to make any fan of theatrical kitsch swoon. But who knew the museum’s little cabaret room would house such a coveted spotlight? Theater performers from the Strip have fallen so in love with the intimate space that they’re holding a benefit to raise money for a sound and lighting system to accommodate their cabaret shows, many of which are late-evening events.
Artist Danielle Kelly: Like Vegas, always evolving: Tuesday, Aug. 11, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people in the Las Vegas Valley
A look at womanhood: Exhibit explores feminine side of life; Friday, Aug. 7, 2009; When a gallery exhibit falls through at the last minute and the curator has only one week to find a replacement, there’s no telling what will end up on the walls, particularly with a group exhibit where multiple artists’ works must be sensibly corralled.
A boost for UNLV gallery: When the Las Vegas Art Museum closed, its donated Vogel collection was left in limbo, until now; Friday, Aug. 7, 2009; A collection of art given to the Las Vegas Art Museum last year is being sent to UNLV’s Donna Beam Fine Art Gallery. The decision was made by the original donors after they learned the museum had closed its doors in February.
Singer-songwriter: 'It’s not overwhelming. It’s inviting.': Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley.
Curb and animal appeal: Wednesday, July 29, 2009; Art collectors Milo Miloscia and John Nelson bought a desert modern-style house in Las Vegas about four years ago. The home was perfect for their collection of contemporary art and high-end design, but they wondered what to do about the addition out back. The building with its open floor plan overlooks a pool and was added by the home’s second owner as a gallery to showcase his personal art collection.
Playwright: 'Everything I do comes back to this': Tuesday, July 28, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley.
Bernice Fischer, arts patron: A weekly snapshot of creative people living in the Las Vegas Valley; Tuesday, July 21, 2009; Born in Brownsville, Texas, Fischer had little exposure to the arts. While in college she attended her first important concert: Brazilian opera singer Bidu Sayao and Spanish pianist Jose Iturbi.
Museum pieces to ﬁll masterpiece architecture of Ruvo Center: Proceeds from rotating exhibitions of contemporary art to be funneled back into patient care, research; Saturday, July 18, 2009; The Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health has hired Libby Lumpkin, former executive director of the Las Vegas Art Museum, to amass and curate a rotating art exhibition. Proceeds of admissions and sales will be funneled back into the institution and its clinical care and medical research.
Artist Vicki Richardson: Multiculturalism, front and center: Tuesday, July 14, 2009; A weekly snapshot of creative people in the Las Vegas Valley
Artist to exhibit her flower power: Friday, July 10, 2009; There’s good news for Mary Warner fans. This month the artist has two shows — at UNLV’s Donna Beam Gallery and with artist Helga Watkins at the West Wing gallery at Rosemary’s Restaurant.