Oklahoma City, OK (May 17, 2024) – Every month, the Paseo Arts District hosts First Friday Gallery Walk. This is a time when visitors can enjoy new artwork, live entertainment and great food, all within walking distance. The Paseo Art Association is proud to announce the June exhibitions at the Paseo Arts and Creativity Center. These include Poetic City’s Dynamic Duo in Gallery I, Michelle Canning’s Intuition in Gallery II and Innovative Native’s Evolve or Perish in Gallery III. These shows will open with a reception on June 7 during First Friday, from 6-9pm at 3024 Paseo.
Poetic City is an electrifying fusion of poetry, dance, music, rap and visual art by a dynamic Oklahoma-based Black creative collective, founded by Atavian Blakely. Dynamic Duos is Poetic City’s fourth annual collaborative exhibition at the Paseo Arts & Creativity Center. This year’s artists were asked to create a work of art that depicts two things that work well alone, but really thrive when joined together. Artwork subjects include iconic music duos, acclaimed teammates, favorite food pairings and more.
Michelle Canning’s Intuition is a collection of woodcuts emphasizing the human figure. Using her drawing studies, Canning decided which areas needed to be emphasized within the creation of a woodcut. Canning’s techniques of using carving tools as drawing utensils give these woodcuts loose linework, adding new dimension and a deeper portrayal of emotion. Canning believes wood has a unique and organic character that gives richness and detail to a print that she finds appealing to her work and has influenced her to add abstraction to realism.
Innovative Native's Evolve or Perish is a sequential evolution of Acrybead™, the signature three-dimensional medium of Mvskoke artist, Andrea Day. Acrybead™ consists of acrylic painting and hand sewing small clusters of seed beads directly into stretched canvas. This series of work embodies the significance of Day's transformative art innovation, illuminating its pivotal role in forging a unique path towards Mvskoke language and cultural preservation, while challenging and reshaping categorical perceptions of First American fine art within the art industry.
For more information, call the Paseo Arts Association at (405) 525-2688 or email amanda@thepaseo.org. Visit thepaseo.org/join for membership information.