A former Walgreens on Langston Boulevard is once again getting some local color. The Arlington Artists Alliance is temporarily filling the space at 3130 Langston Boulevard with The ARTS Place (TAP), a pop-up exhibit of 13 mini galleries featuring works by more than 40 alliance members. Following a grand opening on Sept. 10 at 5 p.m., the show will be free and open to the public Fridays-Sundays from noon-6 p.m. through Oct. 25.
The fringe-like exhibit comes on the heels of a similar pop-up staged earlier this year in the same retail space—LOOK: An Unexpected Arts Experience—organized by the Langston Boulevard Alliance (LBA), which concluded in March. Following the success of that show, Rooney Properties, which owns the storefront, invited the Arlington Artists Alliance to use it, according to alliance board member Sandi Chesrown.
Like its predecessor, TAP is a homegrown effort and a testament to the wealth of creative talent in the community.
“I think the beauty of this is that we didn’t curate it,” says Andrea Schellman, an alliance member who helped organize TAP and displays some of her oil paintings in one of the mini galleries. “Most shows get curated—there’s somebody making decisions [about] who’s in, who’s not in, how the pieces are going to be hung, what kind of framing they have. We were really looking for something that gave artists free reign to design how they were going to display their work. We did not select the kinds of art, themes of art, styles, media, any of that sort of thing.”
The diverse works on display include sculptures, paintings, mixed-media installations and functional pieces such as hand-held fans. “You have very traditional plein air painters up against much more current styles of art making or experimental styles of art making, and that gives it a certain kind of energy that is very exciting,” Schellman says.
What’s on Display
Sarah Young, an abstract artist whose acrylic works incorporate natural objects such as tree branches and driftwood, is sharing a gallery space with fellow painter Marshall Ginn, whose oil landscapes skew more traditional. “It’s been really fun to collaborate with artists that aren’t especially in your same style,” Young says. “To be next to each other and learn from each other.”
Taina Litwick, a self-described political activist whose pieces center on plastic waste, climate change and biodiversity loss, will display “Plastic Tsunami,” a mixed-media installation about how “we’re being snowed under by plastic,” she says. “The world needs to find alternatives because we’re obviously not going to change our lifestyles. We just have to change our materials.”
Julian Oteyza uses his dyslexia to put a literal spin on his paintings. Vibrantly colored pieces inspired by his native Philippines can spin to be viewed from different perspectives. “He wants to take the viewer to his experience, which means he is seeing things sometimes topsy turvy,” says Arlington Artists Alliance executive director Carlos Velazquez. “It doesn’t matter because it’s all part of his reality, and he makes it an asset.”
In addition to showing her colorful abstract works, Barbara Januszkiewicz, a Falls Church-based painter who also works with plexiglass, plans to set up a small art library. “When someone purchases one of my artworks, they are welcome to take as many art books from the library as they would like,” she said via email. “It is my small way of paying it forward—sharing inspiration, encouraging curiosity and helping art continue beyond the gallery walls.”
Community Activities
To attract visitors the exhibit, TAP is planning a series of special events and activities during its seven-week run, starting with a Magnets & Mocktails art-making workshop on opening weekend (Sept. 10-13). On Oct. 9-11, locals can celebrate Hispanic heritage with storytelling, music and dance.
“We’ve tried to make it a mix of workshops and maybe some art lectures, some [events] that are very simple little art projects that kids might enjoy,” Schellman says. “We’re going to bring in the potters and printmakers [from The Studios at Arlington Arts] and give them space to show their work as a kind of fall mini show. Things are still popping up. The actual workshop and activity plan isn’t complete. We’re just trying to add things as we go.”
Organized entirely by volunteers, TAP is supported by several other Arlington nonprofits and arts groups. LBA is helping with the weekend workshops, for example, and the Arlington Philharmonic will provide music.
Fans can look forward to an end-of-show art auction (details are still in the works), but if you see something you like, you might want to ask the artist if it’s for sale and snap it up.
“I think a lot of the artists have the plan to change up their exhibits—take some things down, put other things up, give them a chance to rotate what they’re showing,” Velazquez says. “You might come in and find that what you were interested in isn’t there anymore.
