From Portland to huehuetenango

The quiet classiness of the Sherry Leedy Gallery (2004
Baltimore, 816-221-2626) provides a cool undertone that equally
complements styles as disparate as tonight’s offerings: Ixchel,
a survey of Guatemalan textile art; paintings by Valerie Beller; and
some unconventional quilts by Bean Gilsdorf. Gilsdorf’s quilts are
striking and stark, incorporating design elements of poster art and
illustration. The quilt series, Like Magic, juxtaposes images of
midcentury businessmen with cultural and corporate iconography —
guns and stuff. Ixchel brings the artistry and cultural
significance of traditional Guatemalan textile art to American viewers.
“Guatemala has a very long history of weaving,” says gallery owner
Sherry Leedy, “primarily, if not exclusively, by women, passed down by
mothers to daughters. They make these fabulous woven and embroidered
cloths that they wear. This is a continuation of that tradition and
some really extraordinary pieces that were selected for this
exhibition.”Beller’s Nature & Memory is a collection of
abstractions visually representing the input of other senses: “It’s
like visual music,” Leedy says. “It’s sort of an analogy for sound. It
has a transcendental quality that is really part of a long tradition in
art.” All three exhibits open tonight at 7.

Tuesdays-Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Starts: May 22. Continues through June 27, 2009