By Lilia Menconi I’m not going to bore you with the ga-jillionth summary of Frida Kahlo’s life. But, just in case you missed the movie with Selma Hayek, the autobiography, the children’s book, the plush toy, the poster and the endless websites made by teenage girls dedicated to this artist,…
“So . . . jumpsuits, eh?” Combined with a look of slight confusion, that’s the reaction I’ve gotten when I’ve told people I’m writing a review about jumpsuits. “All for One and One for All: The Jumpsuit” at the Phoenix Art Museum may sound like a fluff show, but, as…
By Lilia Menconi Eve Plumb as we remember her. Celebrity and art – yum! – one of my very favorite topics. I’m endlessly fascinated with the way celebrities are able to assign instant value to an artist simply by purchasing a piece. Or, better yet, when a celebrity decides to…
By Lilia Menconi If you’re a local artist, I know you have a pile of pieces leaning against one of your apartment walls collecting dust, hairspray spritzes and probably the occasional splash of beer. Well, it’s time to bust those babies out of forced retirement, take some slides and submit…
By Lilia Menconi By Joseph Labate. I absolutely love the West Valley Art Museum. But I didn’t grow up on the Westside, I only have a few acquaintances who live there and I don’t have any ailing grandparents in Sun City. So, other than the museum, there’s not much reason…
By Lilia Menconi If you grew up in the West, you’re probably pretty hungry for space. With our ranch-style homes, big back yards and seemingly endless desert, we’re sensitive to the way our walls block us from that which we crave. Such is the focus of a discussion, curated by…
By Lilia Menconi A sample of recent works by Colin Chillag as seen on the show’s flier. First Fridays can set my brain on fire. I always show up in a rush because my third coat of mascara took too long or I got stuck in game traffic or I…
It’s difficult to enter “Lowriders and Tattoos” at Mesa Contemporary Arts without preconceptions. Let’s be honest: Both cultural phenomena carry a negative stigma, even in a country where Hispanic culture is blossoming and, according to exhibit curator Patty Haberman, nearly half the population is inked. My fondness for body modification…
By Lilia Menconi Some of the goodies for sale by Roy Wasson Valle. If I don’t see something art related at least once a week I just kinda feel yucky all over. First off, it’s my job to check out local museums and galleries on a regular basis and I…
I’m sort of befuddled about the recent requiems for Phoenix arts community members who’ve left town for greener pastures — just as they always have and just as they always will. Okay, so it does seem like there’s an arts diaspora going on here, which some scene watchers view as…
By Lilia Menconi For legal purposes, the longest caption ever: James Turrell”Knight Rise,” 2001Venetian plaster, stainless steel, concrete, neonA “skyspace” commissioned by the Scottsdale Public Art Program for the Nancy and Art Schwalm Sculpture Garden, Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary ArtPhoto: Florian Holzherr I have a daily early morning ritual that…
By Lilia Menconi A Katrina pool photo. People person or not, interaction with undesirable personalities is inevitable during the course of a life. Thankfully, we get to pick our friends. And now that I’m pushing 30, I’ve finally perfected my craft of surrounding myself with truly phenomenal folks. I prefer…
Stephen Strange and Mike Red look kinda tired. It’s only natural, given that the two have been working around the clock since May on Television Noir, their beyond-bizarre late-night TV series that’s debuting this weekend on local station KAZT. But despite his fatigued state, Red’s able to summarize the frenetic…
By Benjamin Leatherman Perehelion Arts’ new home at the Artisan Villages complex. Here’s a news tidbit just in time for tonight’s monthly First Friday event: Perehelion Arts has left its long-time home on Grand Avenue and relocated two miles east to Roosevelt Row in the Evans-Churchill neighborhood. The renowned downtown…
Arty Girl, Phoenix Art Museum, Jumpsuit
At first glance, Allison Manch’s work looks quaint, maybe a little fussy. Her delicate, hand-embroidered handkerchiefs recall a prettier era, before someone thought to invent Kleenex; back when no gentleman or lady left home without a clean, pressed hanky tucked into pocket or purse. But a closer look at Manch’s…
By Lilia Menconi Bats II If you’re at all a part of the downtown art scene, you’ve surely found yourself sharing a Bikini Lounge booth with strangers. That’s how I met Kathryn Pinto. She graciously let my best friend and I join her highly coveted booth on the evening of…
By Lilia Menconi I’ve always given myself a big, fat pat on the back for being somewhat self-aware. Usually, I can admit to my flaws without too much of a problem. So here’s a little confession: I grew up in the suburbs and I’m a consumer. I can’t help it…
For the downright dazzling opening ceremony of the 2008 Beijing Olympics, world-famous film director Zhang Yimou utilized the form of a basic painting scroll as the quintessential backdrop for his techno-savvy take on 5,000 years of Chinese cultural history. As it unfurled, Zhang’s mammoth 95-by-381-foot roll became the perfect prop…
By Lilia Menconi By The Mighty Human Race Lincoln’s face – which I personally can’t decide is attractive or not – is one we’ve seen a million times over. In fact, I don’t think the image even registers for me anymore. At most, if I see the guy on a…
By Sarah Fenske and Amy Silverman Just when it felt like the Valley’s arts community was growing strong, it shrunk. First it was Wellington “Duke” Reiter, dean of the college of design at Arizona State University, announcing that he was headed for greener pastures (namely, the Art Institute of Chicago)…
Weston’s life was as sensual as his photographs.
