It’s the first Friday of the month, so it must be time for the First Friday Art Show in Greenville. We started our art trek with dinner at Snapshot Cafe, where they were featuring an exhibit by Rebecca Stockham. Rebecca’s photography is abstract, consisting mostly of macros of various textured surfaces such as rust and plaster.
After dinner, we headed downtown, which was hopping with activity. There was Jazz on Main on one end of the street, and a Greenville Drive ballgame on the other. Finding parking was a challenge.
Our first stop was the West End Gallery. While West End always has great art, it can be hit-or-miss as to whether or not it’s something we like. This time they were featuring the works of Henry Ascencio, which constist mainly of nude women. They still had one or two of the Robert Cook paintings that Laura likes so much, but these were relegated to a back room.
From the West End, we headed down to the galleries at the new Art Crossing area in the River Place buildings. There we came across the studio of Al Keiser. Al’s wife, Lesley Quast, is a Furman education professor with whom both Laura and I have worked, so we had a chat while admiring Al’s art. Al’s display consisted of local images printed on satin and ceramics. We peeked into a couple more of the galleries along the river, then decided to continue our trek.
After much searching, we finally found the studios of Olaf Sorensen and Diane Hopkins-Hughes in a former medical clinic off of Pendleton Street. Both had taught at Furman, and Laura really wanted to see their work. Most of Olaf’s work is abstract acrylic on canvas frames that have been mounted together in unusual shapes. He had stacks and stacks of these in his studio. He also had some prints made from plexiglas or acrylic and ink which I liked, and a few figure studies in pencil.
Diane’s work consists of black and white photography. In her later works, she has been hand-coloring the photos to create a more abstract view.
A glass of wine and bit of brie shared with Olaf, and we were off. We drove through, but did not stop at the collection of galleries at the upper end of Pendleton Street. This area is finally turning into what I hoped it would. It seemed the perfect spot for eclectic shops and art galleries. Right now the galleries are gaining a foothold, but I’m hoping the shops and restaurants will soon follow.
As we made our way back home, we passed by the BiLo Center, and I remembered that Elton John was performing there tonight. What clued me in was the group of young men in white shirts and dark ties carrying signs. I only had to catch the word "Abomination" on one of the placards to know why they were there.
Well, I do like Stockham’s photograph; however, in some ways it just looks like she framed a section of wall in some of Athen’s downtown resturants.