Tempe Center for the Arts Presents Mixing It Up: Building an Identity

Tempe Center for the Arts’ latest exhibition, Mixing It Up: Building an Identity celebrates Mexican American artwork and examines the identity of artists who have been influenced by the mixing of Mexican and American Culture in the United States. More than 60 pieces by Mexican, American, and Mexican American artists, including Luis Jimenez, Enrique…

Five Favorite Comic Book Shops in Phoenix

We were sad when Atomic Comics closed all of its stores last month, but luckily, there’s no shortage of alternatives for comic book fans in the Valley. Whether you’re looking for an energetic atmosphere filled with caffeinated gamers and superhero mannequins, or a quiet vault filled with endless boxes of meticulously…

Geoffrey Gersten Goes Gothic at Modified Arts

After taking a few courses at the East Valley Institute of Technology and interning at Honeywell, art was the furthest thing from Geoffrey Gersten’s mind.”I was doing static component tool design,” he laments of his post-EVIT sojourn, explaining that his Honeywell gig entailed designing tools to machine fixed (or non-revolving)…

Indie ArtHouse Presents Brian Harrison @ 50: 30 Years of Artwork

​”When I was 4, I saw saguaros in an encyclopedia,” says Brian Harrison. “I was obsessed with them. They’re what brought me to Arizona.”Harrison says the Southwestern landscape is an inspiration for a lot of his artwork; it’s the reason he lives in Arizona. The local artist turned 50 this year,…

David L. Bradley’s “Vox Pupuli/Memento Mori” at Eye Lounge

You’ll see some famous faces if you visit Eye Lounge on Friday, September 16. You could even tell Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio off to his face, and not worry about retribution. That’s because Arpaio’s head — along with those of Sarah Palin, John McCain, Tiger Woods, Kim Kardashian, and…

“Six-String Masterpieces” Brings Art Guitars to Mesa Arts Center

Pete Townsend’s intentionally trashed countless guitars on stage. But the guitarist of The Who would probably be hard-pressed to smash a single axe in the “Six-String Masterpieces” exhibit that opened Friday at Mesa Arts Center. Each guitar in this exhibition is a custom work of art, painted by a well-known…

Burning Man 2011 in Photos

There was no shortage of spectacular and surreal art work at this year’s Burning Man festival in Nevada. Huge pirate ships, neon-covered Trojan Horses, and other mutant vehicles rolled around alkali flats of the Black Rock Desert during the annual event, which was held this past weekend. Meanwhile, an eclectic…

Phoenix Design Museum to Open in October

in downtown Phoenix since April. Come October, the oldest warehouse in Phoenix will host the city’s first Design Museum. Mark Dudlik, a local designer and the museum’s co-founder, says the project’s been in the works since 2009, and is an effort between himself and designer Tanner Woodford, with the help of copywriter…

Elise Deringer’s Perception & Passage at Harry Wood Gallery

​”It’s all about understanding that nothing is permanent,” says Elise Deringer, of her latest solo exhibition, Perception & Passage, opens tonight in the Harry Wood Gallery at ASU.Deringer’s handmade filters and containers (from silk and cotton nets) dangle from the gallery’s ceiling and walls. They’re filled and embedded with sand, salts,…

Conspire Hosts Ice Cream Anti-Social at First Friday

Painters James B. Hunt and Travis Vallance have a sure-fire way of getting people to beat a path to their show at Conspire: They’ll be dishing out ice cream.The pair will be hosting the Ice Cream Anti-Social at the vegan-friendly venue during the tonight’s First Friday art walk, where root…

“Grief: Sukiyaki” at Eye Lounge Bids Sayonara to Lost Love

The breakup gods are being summoned at eye lounge. As part of the installation “Grief: Sukiyaki,” Jenna Duncan has organized the west half of the Phoenix gallery into an informal pop-up Shinto shrine, with different “stations.” First, there is a Purification Station, in case one might want to use the…