And maybe that explains, in part, why the events have been so well attended.
“There are so many driven people in D.C. who are trying to make the world better,” Bennett says. “And so we seek to do it in every spare moment we have.”
Creative convergence: Washington’s new gallery scene
Of course, for all the good they do, the soirees are still meant to be nights to kick back and an opportunity to get a bit of culture while taking advantage of the gallery’s liquor license.
“We want everything all in one place when it comes to entertainment,” Bennett says of Washingtonians. “We don’t want to just see music. We want to have our cocktail at the same time, and we want to talk to our friends and catch up. We’re very efficient.”
The Dunes has played host to a number of collectives, from the storytellers of SpeakeasyDC to local fashion designers and boutique owners, and the crowd has fluctuated accordingly. The only major commonality Bennett has noticed, aside from a preponderance of young professionals, is an appetite for novel experiences.
“Not everyone’s a hipster; not everyone’s a lawyer,” she says. “There are a lot of different cultures coming through, people from all walks of life, but what everyone has in common is just this passion to experience the world and suck up every minute of life.”
What to see: While the monthly Art Crimes exhibition will focus on local artists, the current exhibition features two French artists, sculptor Ferama Wobken, who specializes in the lost wax method, and Antoine Josse, whose paintings bear the influence of Alberto Giacometti’s stylized figures. Through Dec. 7. Free.
The gateway gallery
Lamont Bishop Gallery
1314 Ninth St. NW. www.lamontbishop.com .
If this new wave of art spaces is providing a venue for young talent on the gallery walls, one certainly can’t ignore the talent blossoming in the back office.
Erwin John and Stevenson Dunn, the owners of Lamont Bishop Gallery, are just that sort of up-and-comers — 20-somethings who hail from Brooklyn and, while looking to open a lounge or bar in Washington, ended up with an art space and a growing passion for art.
“The art world seems like this high-on-the-hog, turn-up-your-nose world where you have to speak the lingo and look the look in order to legitimately be a part of it,” says Dunn. He goes on to explain why the pair, who have no art background, fell into the gallery scene. “There’s a whole group of people out there who appreciate art. . . . That’s our perspective: We’re young, professional, coming of age, but we didn’t grow up learning about art acquisition.”
Finding ways to show art accessibly has become their forte. For the opening of “Document the Fresh” earlier this month, Lamont Bishop was decked out with framed images of the likes of Amy Winehouse, Matt and Kim, and Usher by budding photographer Vickey Ford. In the back room lay an edgier offering: a multi-photo installation by artist Dafna Steinberg, whose snapshots, arranged salon-style without frames, chronicled backstage scenes, the summer rooftop parties at the Beacon Hotel and a virtual series on the myriad ways in which to rock a rope chain. It’s a whir of color, a chronicle of street life — and the most divisive work of the night.
- Spam
- Obscene
- Duplicate
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