First Friday Hit-List

Tomboy Design Studio (1817 McGee,
816-472-6200) sells locally designed, sweatshop-free apparel, and exhibits clothing, textile art and design work by independent creators each month. The shop presents a tribute to the memory of Lee Ann Bell, the founder and head artist of Fiber Lab. Check out dyed Shibori and sublimation-dyed fabrics, along with the store’s custom couture, from 6 to 9 p.m.

The Late Show Gallery (1600 Cherry,
816-474-1300) presents the Annual Naughty Elf Show. Owner Tom Deatherage says, “We’re featuring John Davis Carroll — an exhibit called Winterscapes. The west gallery has Pawl Tisdale.” Tisdale is the brother of late gallery owner and artist Mott-Ly, a close friend of Deatherage’s. “This show is really meaningful,” Deatherage says. The show’s Naughty Elves are what he describes as his “standard gallery characters,” including Lori Raye Erickson, Nora Othic, Philomene Bennett, Jesse Christopher and Colby K. Smith. The opening reception runs from 6 to 9 p.m., and the show stays up through December 24.

Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art (2004 Baltimore, 816-221-2626) hosts a 7 p.m. reception for accomplished mixed-media artist Willem Volkerz, who is exhibiting Willem Volkerz: Looking Back. As a teen, the Dutch artist traveled across the United States, capturing distinctly American images of billboards, rural architecture and pavement. He also creates large replicas of mass-market, paint-by-numbers paintings, and he addresses the electric American landscape by incorporating neon into paintings and sculptures and using it in stand-alone pieces.— Chris Packham

Fri., Dec. 3, 6-9 p.m., 2010