Primped Out

Two exhibits at Sherry Leedy Contemporary Art (2004 Baltimore, 816-221-2626) explore the intersections of mass culture, style and image with different approaches. Photographer Judy Miller, inspired by a visit to the venerable waxhaus Madame Tussauds, assembles Imaginary Dioramas, placing waxwork celebrity figures such as Lucille Ball and Woody Allen into troubling or incongruous backdrops. The pieces are digital composites assembled from images that she has taken over the years and reconfigured. Meanwhile, ceramist Misty Gamble makes an exploration of women in contemporary society with Primping and the Currency of Worth. Her “Shoe Pile” is a jumble of handmade ceramic shoes in imitation of designer footwear. Gamble, a ceramics instructor at the Kansas City Art Institute, is interested in such dimensional figures as statuary and puppets; her exhibit includes some of the life-sized, ceramic, figurative sculptures that have engaged her recent work. The show runs through April 24.

Thu., March 4, 7-9 p.m.; Fri., March 5, 7-9 p.m.; Tuesdays-Saturdays, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Starts: March 4. Continues through April 24, 2010