Heights Arts Thinks Sideways, Shines Two Spotlights, and Focuses on Emergent Artists This Spring

Michelangelo Lovelace, To Sexy

Opening March 8 in the Heights Arts group exhibition space is a show that could be titled Playing. The artists in SIDEWAYS THINKING—Leslye Discont Arian, Catherine Butler, Julianne Edberg, Laurie Garrett, Jenny Mendes, and Melissa O’Grady—take us to alternate, more fantastic worlds. Guest curator Julianne Edberg says, “When we play, we let loose the inspired part of our mind to think sideways instead of logically. Ideas flow more freely. Questions may be raised. It is definitely a more fun, more magical place—perhaps less polished, less formal. Creating in this state of mind calms the nerves and provides new perspectives. Q: How did you think of that? A: I was just messing around.” The community is invited to hear SIDEWAYS THINKING artists discuss their work at the “Ekphrastacy” event Thursday, April 4, 7:00pm, where invited Cleveland poets will also read new writings in response to art on view.

Heights Arts exhibition committee member Bill Schubert writes, “Best-of-Cleveland lists always include the Orchestra, the sports teams, the Metroparks, and the Westside Market. They should also include the painter Michelangelo Lovelace. In acrylic on canvas, Lovelace shows the streets of our often-troubled inner city and the rich lives that are lived on them. Like a parent, he has a deep unbreakable love for his birthplace.” Opening March 22, the show offers seven paintings from 2017 that have never been shown publicly until now—a must-see for anyone who loves The Land.

Opening April 26, Heights Arts highlights upcoming local talents in Emergent 2019, an exhibition celebrating rising artists trained in Northeast Ohio. First presented in 2015 and again in 2017, Emergent includes a small number of works by each of approximately a dozen artists. Represented institutions in the 2019 edition include the Cleveland Institute of Art, Kent State University, the University of Akron, and Oberlin College. The corresponding gallery talk and poetry reading will be May 23, 7:00pm.

The work of Karen Sandstrom is showcased in the spotlight exhibition opening May 10. Sandstrom muses, “Some of us prefer to live at the center of the Venn diagram where human and animal communication overlap.” Her sketchbooks and stand-alone works on paper celebrate the mystery and belovedness of those whom George Eliot described as “such agreeable friends.”

For more information on Heights Arts community programs and events, including house concerts, gallery performances and outreach, visit heightsarts.org.

 

SIDEWAYS THINKING | MARCH 8–APRIL 21
RECEPTION 6–9PM FRIDAY, MARCH 8
GALLERY TALK 7PM THURSDAY, APRIL 4

SPOTLIGHT: MICHELANGELO LOVELACE | MARCH 22–MAY 5
RECEPTION 6–9PM FRIDAY, MARCH 22

EMERGENT 2019 |April 26 – June 9
RECEPTION 6–9 PM SATURDAY, APRIL 27
GALLERY TALK 7 PM FRIDAY, MAY 24

SPOTLIGHT: KAREN SANDSTROM | MAY 10–JUNE 23
RECEPTION 6–9PM FRIDAY, MAY 10

Heights Arts
2175 Lee Road
Cleveland Heights, Ohio 44118
216.371.3457
heightsarts.org