Longtime Paradise Valley resident, philanthropist, and journalist Maxine Marshall died on Wednesday, June 17. She was 89. Marshall owned The Scottsdale Daily Progress from 1963 to 1987 with her late husband Jonathan Marshall, who served as the progressive newspaper’s publisher and died in 2008. The Marshalls’ influence extended to Jewish life…
We’re about as giddy as we ever get this time of year, thanks to this summer’s magnificent dearth of exhibitions curated around the topic of heat. We get that it’s hot here, so we’re not looking for reminders. Instead, we’re looking for escapes. This month’s Third Friday offerings include a…
There’s plenty of onstage action around these parts for those who like to mix their summer heat with short escapes to other worlds created by metro Phoenix artists. This summer’s crop of dance and theater offerings include a classic play about America coming to grips with AIDS, a behind-the-scenes look…
Another gallery in the Scottsdale arts district long known as Old Town is closing at the end of June, providing yet another reason to wonder what’s to become of this part of the city that’s long prided itself on plentiful arts and culture offerings. “We are saddened to announce that…
Downtown Scottsdale will be a bit brighter than usual this summer, thanks to a new temporary public art installation along the Scottsdale Waterfront, a portion of the Arizona canal that’s become a hub for shopping, entertainment, and City of Scottsdale projects including festivals and temporary art installations. Golden Waters, created by…
Despite the rain, there was plenty of action in the downtown Phoenix arts scene during June’s First Friday, as assorted visual and performance artists activated spaces from a local restaurant to a vacant gallery turned pop-up exhibit space. These are several of our favorite finds. Sheriff satire Most works we…
Bentley Gallery officials announced Monday, June 1, that it’ s planning a “major restructure” that involves “dramatically changing its facility.” Brian Stark of StarkJames, LLC is spearheading the design of a new exhibition space within the existing 25,000-square-foot facility. The Scottsdale-based architectural firm designed Lisa Sette Gallery within a historic Al Beadle…
It’s a word that’s fallen out of fashion, but still “potpourri” seems the best way to describe this month’s First Friday offerings — which feature everything from ceramic iterations of fish in frying pans to projections of anatomy onto a planetarium surface that looks almost like a canvas. This month…
“You may have heard the rumors and they are true.” So begins a statement recently posted on the Method Art website by owner and photographer Davin Lavikka, who says he is closing the gallery at the end of June in part because Scottsdale’s art market has collapsed. But he’s not leaving the…
Once the season of blooming cactus and spring breezes is behind us, it’s time to trade the glorious outdoors for indoor experiences that offer the added bonus of air conditioning. Happily, metro Phoenix has all sorts of art spaces that fit the bill — including those offering this year’s crop…
For those who feel they can never be too close to arts and culture venues such as Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix Theatre, or Arizona Opera, there’s a new condominium development being built right in the heart of midtown. Jason Boyer is both architect and developer for the new residential development…
For several weeks the house at 314 East Roosevelt Street sat raised off its foundation as curious neighbors and tourists wondered why. Months before, it was one of three buildings at the heart of a controversy about the future of Roosevelt Row. Even as developers eyed and purchased lots along…
Outdoor fitness options are all good and fine during days with double-digit temperatures. But a steady stream of triple digits will soon be upon us, prompting most people to think about indoor alternatives. It’s tough to hike or bike inside, so we figure dance is really where it’s at for…
The interplay of art with commerce has long been a controversial topic in the arts world. Artists fear that the business side of things might somehow stifle their creative muse, and yet they lament the fact that their artworks aren’t in higher demand. It’s sometimes tough for artists to strike…
For many decades, major performing arts organizations including ballet companies have followed a fairly predictable path: presenting well-known repertory in large venues, while expecting contemporary audiences to sit through lengthy productions of classic works. For ballet audiences, it’s included a never-ending stream of Swan Lake, Giselle, and The Nutcracker. They’re…
Last fall’s ARTELPHX, the third iteration of the multi-night mash-up of visual and performance art founded in 2013 by Tara Sharpe, was fresh and funky. The event, held at The Clarendon Hotel, even earned our best arts festival praise. Still a relatively new enterprise, its foibles were easily construed as…
Scottsdale artist Saskia Jordá, whose flocks of suspended wooden birds were recently featured at both Mesa’s Spark! Festival of Creativity and Scottsdale’s Canal Convergence, received the 2015 Arlene and Morton Scult Contemporary Forum Award at Phoenix Art Museum on Wednesday, May 13. The Contemporary Forum, a support organization for Phoenix…
Seeing everything on your Third Friday wish list is going to be more challenging than usual this month if your top picks include ARTELPHX at The Clarendon Hotel, which features 29 performances and installations. So we’re sharing a relatively short “must-see” list, but also offering a friendly reminder that ARTELPHX…
You might think, walking the aisles separating large cases of ceramics at the ASU Ceramics Research Center, that ceramic works are simply objects. Grouped by decade, they appear to be mere artifacts from bygone days. Some are functional, decorative, or both. But few beckon viewers to consider the fluid nature…
Memories of last fall’s ARTELPHX installations, from a room filled with suspended paper fish to a soft screen of mouths that made sounds when people poked it, still linger. It might be hard to top the event we dubbed last year’s best art festival, but event director Tara Sharpe is…
Phoenix artist Bill Dambrova recalls doing a short stint as a Phoenix Art Museum guard during the early ’90s. The maroon blazer he was expected to wear at the time was a far cry from the shorts and T-shirt we found him sporting during First Friday in May. The orange…
The street art that’s relatively common around certain parts of Phoenix, including Roosevelt Row, is typically a whole lot harder to come by in Scottsdale. But that’s not the case this week, as Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Art features works created by some of the best known street artists in…
