Sike Out

FRI 8/5
Had Dan Rather and Andy Warhol ever collaborated, the result might have resembled the work of Sike Style. “I put pieces together as if they were hip and stylized versions of the 10 o’clock world news,” Sike tells the Pitch. His first solo show, Conflicted Interest, opened July 15 at the Cube at Beco (1924 Baltimore, 816-582-8997), but the overdue artist’s reception this First Friday promises a vibe more like the events that are often promoted on Sike-designed fliers. DJs J.A.H. and Mike Boogie provide the soundtrack, and we’re betting that the party will go quite a bit later than its reported 7-9 p.m. duration. The collection of digital images reflects Sike’s interest in world issues and political unrest, but art walkers should not expect, say, a rendering of the president’s nefarious-looking mug set against an inverted American flag. That’s old hat. “I try to stay away from the obvious,” Sike says. “Being anti-Bush became so cool that it wasn’t cool anymore.” That’s why, for example, the artist once did a black-and-white piece in reaction to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict that depicts a young Jewish woman surrounded by guns, tanks and masked suicide bombers. “The faces of the everyday people involved, I think, paint a more telling portrait of what’s going on.” — Todd Broockerd

Slide Rules
Artists play show and tell.

WED 810
The latest Slideshow at the Kemper Museum of Contemporary Art (4420 Warwick Boulevard, 816-753-5784) is urban, graphic and gory. The museum’s Slideshows spotlight local artists on the second Wednesday of each month; August’s installation includes work by John Ferry, known for his blue-heavy oil paintings of the West Bottoms and other areas he has haunted, and Archie Scott Gobber, whose graphic drawings, prints and mixed media are both nostalgic and satirical. Their colleague Seth Johnson creates bloody images of the violence he sees in Buddhist symbols, death metal and other subjects. The artists give brief slide presentations and then stick around to schmooze and booze. The free event runs from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the Kemper’s meeting room. — Sarah Smarsh