5 Art Exhibitions to See this Weekend

Hey Sunshine at Liliana Bloch Gallery

From Providence, Rhode Island, Lynne Harlow’s art has been exhibited nationally and internationally for 15 years. In her latest show, she continues a reductive exploration of light, color and material, placing added emphasis on the behavior of light in relation to color and space. Hey Sunshine runs through May 7 at Liliana Bloch Gallery (2271 Monitor St.), with a reception for the artist at 7 p.m. Saturday. A combination of fine art and commercial materials was employed for their inherent physical characteristics: the expansive glow of fluorescent Plexiglass, the subtle movement of vinyl curtain and the delicate translucency of sheer fabric. They are arranged in seemingly austere, formal combinations, but each piece surpasses the formal to generate visual experiences that extend beyond the works themselves and into their surrounding space. For more info, visit lilianablochgallery.com.


Aligned: Sit, Breathe, Slowdown, Relax at Kirk Hopper Fine Art

With a title that is both a reflection of her creative process and a suggestion to viewers, Jaq Belcher brings her newest solo exhibition to Deep Ellum. Created with single sheets of paper and an X-Acto knife, the 12 pieces presented are a hybrid of drawing and object. Belcher considers them primitive blueprints of alternate states of being. These fields of energy are three-dimensional landscapes, intended to interact with those who stand before them. Aligned: Sit, Breathe, Slowdown, Relax opens on Saturday and runs through May 21 at Kirk Hopper Fine Art (3008 Commerce St.). The exhibition centers around an installation titled “Beyond Home.” The artist will complete a site specific, 9 x 9 foot floor drawing using 69,993 hand-cut paper seeds that she has collected from works made in the last 15 years. For more info, visit kirkhopperfineart.com.


MINISHOTS at Shamrock Hotel Studios

Known for collaborative projects and works that have been traded and altered by resident artists and invited guest artists, Shamrock Hotel Studios (4312 ½ Elm Street) is a vibrant community of rotating artists working in tiny studios. Its 20th birthday is celebrated on Saturday at 6 p.m. with MINISHOTS, a group exhibition of work by current and previous studio residents. Back in 1996, a group of graduating art students from SMU collectively rented the upstairs of a building on Elm Street to use for studios. Twenty years and 40 residents later, the cooperative continues. The exhibit features work by Bryan Billingsley, Sean Cairns, Kristin Cochran, Lanie Delay, Lauren Grey, Jonathan Gryder, Lily Hanson, Eric Harvey, Vince Jones, Tom Lauerman, Peter Ligon, Lisa Lindholm, Kirsten Macy, Margaret Meehan, Melissa Mohammadi, Marianne Newsom, Keri Oldham, Patricia Pelehach, Brian Ryden, Susan Sanders, Katy Scott, Noah Simblist, Sunny Sliger, Erica Stephens, Keer Tanchak, Saul Waranch and Lizzy Wetzel. For more info, visit shamrockhotelstudios.com.


Three New Exhibitions at The Dallas Contemporary

The Dallas Contemporary (161 Glass St.) has three solo exhibitions opening on Saturday and running through August 21. Dan Colen: Oil Painting tracks the major developments in the artist’s practice, beginning with his earliest works and continuing through his most recent. Preparatory drawings, source material, studies and experimental paintings from the artist’s studio will be exhibited for the first time. Through skillful mutations of form, volume, light and the material history of objects, Helmut Lang’s BURRY explores the space between abstraction and figuration with enigmatic sculptures using sheepskin. Paola Pivi’s first exhibit in the United States, Ma’am, features work that exemplifies the range of this nomadic artist. On display are anthropomorphic feather-covered polar bears, canvases of cascading pearls, video showing fish in flight on a passenger jet, and her iconic inverted G-91 fighter jet. For more info, visit dallascontemporary.org.


Misbehaving at Kirk Hopper Fine Art

Erin Stafford's new solo exhibition engages the viewer with concepts relating to ideas of fetishes, absurdity and visual pleasure. Her ability to fluidly combine pomp and majesty with quintessential kitsch creates a visual language that evokes creature comforts. Misbehaving opens with a reception at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Kirk Hopper Fine Art (3008 Commerce St.) and runs through May 21. Stafford creates a backdrop from ideas of the home as a physical manifestation of the self, ultimately showing the aesthetics and contradictions of decay and beauty in a domestic setting. Several of her sculptures, tromp l'oeil paintings and installations are odes to lost interior spaces that celebrate sentimentality while blending visual surrealism with animalistic undertones, and are layered with nostalgic references to the decorative arts. There are also soap sculptures created from dessert molds alongside elaborate garnishes to mimic edible delights. Stafford’s interest stems from soap novelties that resemble food items with verisimilitude accuracy, along with banquet traditions that used food as sculpture. For more info, visit kirkhopperfineart.com.