The performing and visual arts are a family affair at UC Davis on Thursday, April 22, with two events that connect faculty to a close relation.

Baritone Caleb Lewis, lecturer in the Department of Music and director of choirs, will perform a program of duets with his wife, soprano Tabitha Lewis. The pair will sing works by Bach, Clara Schumann and others as part of the Shinkoskey Noon Concert series at 12:05 p.m. live and available on YouTube anytime.

“Getting to make music with my wife at home has been one of the silver linings of the lockdown, said Caleb Lewis. “We met while we were in grad school together (Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University), but we never actually got a chance to collaborate on a performance until we came to UC Davis. Tabitha sang as soprano soloist in our performance of Mozart’s Requiem in June 2019. It’s a real treat to get to share some of the songs we’ve been singing for each other at home with the larger UC Davis community.”

At 4:30 p.m. the Department of Art and Art History’s Art Studio Visiting Artist Lecture series in conjunction with the Manetti Shrem Museum presents Arnold Joseph Kemp in conversation with Sampada Aranke. Kemp, professor and dean of graduate studies at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, is the brother of UC Davis Associate Professor Margaret Laurena Kemp, theatre and dance.

“In most biographies about Arnold, they mention that he has been making art for the past 30 years, said Margaret Laurena Kemp. “In fact, he has been an artist for his entire life. My father created special totes to store and allow my brother to safely transport and store his creations.” 

“Today, Arnold creates and talks with the joy and curiosity of one who has just discovered, just tasted the most delicious morsels. These most delicious morsels are what he shares with the world.” 

Both events are free and available online. The concert can be accessed through UC Davis Music’s YouTube Channel. Registration for the visiting artist lecture here.

• Michael French, Arts Marketing Specialist, College of Letters and Science

UC Davis Lecture features 3D designer Julia Koerner

UC Davis, Thursday, April 22, 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m., free, via Zoom. Register. (Virtual)

Julia Koerner, an acclaimed designer whose work intersects with architecture, product and fashion design, will be the speaker for the fifth Alberini Family Speaker Series in Design at UC Davis. This virtual event, Models & Models, is presented by the College of Letters and Science’s Department of Design.

Koerner’s presentation focuses on recent innovations in 3D printing, which have revolutionized the cross-disciplinary design work of architects and fashion designers. Such novel collaborations within the fashion industry are disrupting traditional craftsmanship and empowering innovation by utilizing emergent technologies. These new methods re-form fashion production and potentially reduce shipping, carbon footprint and textile waste, and open opportunities for implementing sustainable processes in production, alongside innovative new aesthetics.

Koerner, an award-winning Austrian designer, is the founder of JK Design GmbH and a faculty member at UCLA. Her recent collaborations include 3D-printed haute couture and the Academy Award-winning costumes for the film Black Panther. For more information about this event, go here.

To learn more about Koerner, check out this story in the Arts Blog.

‘Chuskit’: Film Screening Tonight

Asian Art Museum, San Francisco, Thursday, April 22, 6 p.m., free. Register. (Virtual)

Tune into this virtual event by the Asian Art Museum in San Francisco to stream the award-winning “Chuskit,” the inspiring tale of a feisty paraplegic girl in a remote Himalayan village who dreams of going to school. The screening is followed by a discussion with the filmmaker, Priya Ramasubban. “Chuskit” premiered at Giffoni Film Festival in Italy in 2018, where it won a special Amnesty International Award and won the Global Zoom Prize at the 2019 Children’s Film Festival Seattle.

Learn more about this event and the film here.

Join informational session at Verge Center for the Arts 

Verge Center for the Arts, Sacramento, Thursday, April 22, 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m., free, via Zoom. Register. (Virtual)

Join this virtual information session to meet Verge staff, learn more about the format of this year's program, and find out how to make the most of this year's Sac Open Studios artist opportunities such as the Conversations with Artists series and artist demos. The event will conclude with a Q&A session. 

*This session is meant for both registered artists and artists who have not yet registered but are curious about the program.

For more information, go here. 

See the video: What Is Sac Open Studios?

 

Crocker: ‘Three Women, One Story, and the Generational Power of Native American Art’

Crocker Art Museum, Thursday, April 22, 6 p.m. to 7 p.m., free, via Livestream. Register.

In this much-anticipated appearance, author and editor Kate Nelson discusses the life and work of Pablita Velarde, Helen Hardin, and Margaret Bagshaw (mother, daughter, and granddaughter) through an insightful journalistic lens. Follow along as she takes participants on a journey through the lives and art of "three women, one story, a thousand ears of Native American art in under an hour," and hear what it means to document a celebrated legacy of successful female artists in print.

For three decades, Kate Nelson has documented colorful and varied stories of New Mexico from her base in the Sandía Mountain foothills, near Albuquerque. Author of the biography Helen Hardin: A Straight Line Curved, she is also the managing editor of New Mexico Magazine, where her writing has won national honors. 

The program will be recorded and available to view roughly one month later on Crocker’s YouTube channel and select social media platforms. For more information about the event, visit the Crocker website.

Mondavi Center HomeStage presents ‘Alexander String Quartet’ Saturday

The Alexander String Quartet will make Mozart’s music the focus of their concerts in 2021. This is a historic year for the beloved quartet as violist Paul Yarbrough retires and David Samuel joins the group. To celebrate this transition the group will focus on some of Mozart’s most beautiful (and not-so-well-known) music: his viola quintets will provide an opportunity for Yarbrough and Samuel to play together; and the three-event series concludes with one of Mozart’s very last pieces, the Clarinet Quintet. Tune in Sunday, April 25 at 2 p.m. to enjoy this performance. 

Mozart String Quintet in B-flat Major, K. 174

Mozart String Quintet in C Major, K. 515

A major artistic presence in its home base of San Francisco, the Alexander String Quartet is equally beloved in its second home, the Vanderhoef Studio Theatre. This year the quartet introduces a new member, violist David Samuel, joining cellist Sandy Wilson, and violinists Fred Lifsitz and Zakarias Grafilo. 

Robert Greenberg 

Greenberg has performed, taught, and lectured extensively across North America and Europe. He is currently a music historian-in-residence with San Francisco Performances, where he has lectured and performed since 1994. Learn more about the event on the Mondavi website. 

Get your tickets here. Free for UC Davis students and $15 for regular price.

Coming up ...

SFMOMA’s artist talk features Theaster Gates and Corinne Bailey Rae in conversation

Tuesday, April 27, 12 p.m., free, via Zoom. Register.

Join an online conversation between artist Theaster Gates and Grammy Award-winning musician Corinne Bailey Rae. The U.K.-based singer appears as a key performer in Do you hear me calling? Mama Mamama or What Is Black Power? one of the featured works in the exhibition Future Histories: Theaster Gates and Cauleen Smith (Floor 7 through May 23).  Gates will screen an excerpt from this piece during the program.

Through artworks, exhibitions and ongoing initiatives, Gates has honored the Johnson Publishing Company (JPC, 1942–2019) and its pioneering role in defining and promoting Black culture and achievement with its aspirational lifestyle magazines Ebony and Jet, among other editorial initiatives. Gates’s Do you hear me calling? Mama Mamama or What Is Black Power? (2018) pays homage to motherhood and the power of women by exploring the idea of the Black Madonna through reworking three decades of images drawn from the JPC archives. Making its U.S. debut at SFMOMA, this two-channel video installation interweaves scenes of performances by choirs, musicians, and singers, including Bailey Rae and the artist’s ensemble The Black Monks.

For more information about the event and the speakers, visit the SFMOMA website. 

Pence Gallery looking for artists to show their work

The Pence Gallery's SLICE exhibit is open to all artists residing in California and is juried this year by Faith J. McKinnie, independent curator, and art consultant. The exhibit showcases art that is conceptually thoughtful, technically skilled, and representative of contemporary trends in art. Work may be in any medium except for sound or video but must not exceed 36" wide for 2D work. There are no size restrictions for three-dimensional work. Accepted work should be original and completed within the past five years. To apply, submit 1-3 images and pay $30 ($35 for non-members). Awards will be awarded based on the Juror's choice and are $400, $300, $200. The deadline for entry online is May 28, 9 p.m. Apply here. 

Juror: Faith J. Mckinnie

Faith J. McKinnie's curatorial practice is rooted in the care and prioritization of artists from the margins. Informed by her own experiences with race, gender, politics, and sexuality, Faith wields the transformative power of diverse, equitable, accessible, and inclusive art in her critically acclaimed projects, programs, and exhibitions. She has held leadership positions at the Crocker Art Museum, Sacramento Theatre Company, and the Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum, and is the founding director of the Black Artists Fund.

Important Dates:

May 28: All submissions are due here at 9 p.m.

June 10: Notification to artists of acceptance

June 29-30: Deadline for drop off or shipping of work

For more information about details and important dates, go here. 

Art Social Media of the Week

We came across this Instagram post by Alum Julia Couzens (MFA ‘90) reminding us to check out a conversation about her exhibition, “Stitch ‘n Bitch” on the Patricia Sweetow Gallery’s Youtube Channel.