Upcoming Educational Programs


  • Sat
    06
    Feb
    2021
    11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/live/
    Program events

    Join Visual Arts Alliance, Saturday, February 6th at 11 a.m. as MFAH photography curator Malcolm Daniel presents a virtual tour of the photography galleries in the Museum’s new Nancy and Rich Kinder Building. The Museum’s first galleries dedicated to the display of photographs present more than 150 works from every period and major movement, 1840 to the present. Exhibits include thematic groupings like French and American daguerreotypes, avant-garde photography in the period between the World Wars, large-scale contemporary photographs, and portraits that convey the variety and ubiquity of photography. This program will be live streamed on VAA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/live/.

  • Sat
    10
    Apr
    2021
    11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/
    Program events

    Join Visual Arts Alliance Saturday, April 10, at 11:00 a.m. for a live discussion with Claire Rosen, “Threads of an Artist Approach,” facilitated by author Catherine Anspon. This program will be live streamed on VAA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/.

     

    Journey into the imagination of artist Claire Rosen — following the threads woven through her varied body of work; from fantastical animal banquets to poetic still lives. She will share the inspiration, artistic practices, and passions that underpin her creative work, and the adventures and misadventures they have invited into her life.

    Claire Rosen is an internationally recognized and widely collected artist, her portfolio of elaborate tableaus often feature anthropomorphic animals, archetypal heroines, or still lives steeped in symbolism that’s evocative of classical European painting. Though the work is rooted in traditional themes and aesthetics, it is intended to create dialogue around contemporary issues such as environmental conservation and the need for animal advocacy.

  • Sat
    08
    May
    2021
    11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/
    Program events

     

     

    Join Visual Arts Alliance Saturday, May 8, at 11:00 a.m. for a presentation from Geoffrey Koslov, “Looking at Contemporary Photography Today.” This program will be live streamed on VAA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/.

    How are the content and presentation of photography changing today? Gallerist and reviewer Geoffrey Koslov will address this question in a a discussion which will be of interest to collectors and artists that want to challenge their appreciation, perception and understanding of this evolving medium.

    Geoffrey Koslov co-founded Foto Relevance Gallery, located in the museum district of Montrose in Houston, Texas, for contemporary photography-based art. He is interested in the creative use of media, light and new ways of seeing our diverse world through many different genres of photographic expression. In addition to life now as a Gallerist, and a life-long passion for photography, Geoffrey has 40 plus years of business experience he brings to the arts. Geoffrey is a collector himself who also enjoys writing about photographers he meets who are creating new and challenging work. He had served for many years on the Photography Acquisitions Subcommittee of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston (MFAH), and the Board of Directors for the Houston Center for Photography (HCP). He was formerly a member of HCP’s Exhibitions Committee and a former co-chair of its Print Auction. Geoffrey previously participated as a reviewer with Fotofest, the Center for Fine Art Photography (CFAP), the Colorado Photographic Arts Center (CPAC), The Medium Festival of Photography, PhotoLucida, Critical Mass, PhotoVisa, and ASmith Gallery. Other organizations in which he participates are the MFAH’s Photo Forum, and several photography critique groups, including Pixels&Silver, the Houston Inner Loop Photography, and the Houston Photographic Society.

  • Sat
    05
    Jun
    2021
    11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/
    Program events

     

    Join Visual Arts Alliance Saturday, June 5, at 11:00 a.m. for a conversation with Shana Nys Drambot, an art critic, curator, and author based in downtown Los Angeles. This program will be live streamed on VAA’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/visual.arts.alliance/ live/.

    Shana will document the curation process for her upcoming exhibition called "Fragmentation and Harmony" featuring artists Soheila Siadate and Joshua Elias. She will also discuss the challenges in curating a cohesive show when using different artists.

    Shana Nys Dambrot is an art critic, curator, and author based in Downtown LA. She is the Arts Editor for the L.A. Weekly, and a contributor to Flaunt, Art & Cake, and Artillery. She studied Art History at Vassar College, writes book and catalog essays, curates and juries exhibitions, is a dedicated Instagram photographer and is the author of the experimental novella Zen Psychosis (2020, Griffith Moon). She speaks at galleries, schools, and cultural institutions nationally, and is a Co-Chair of Art Table's SoCal Chapter, is a member of the LA Press Club, and sits on the Board of Art Share-LA the Advisory Council of Building Bridges Art Exchange.

  • Sat
    07
    Aug
    2021
    11:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.4173 Elgin St, Houston, TX 77004
    Program events

    Join Visual Arts Alliance Saturday, August 7, at 11:00 a.m. for a tour of The Blaffer Museum's exhibit Jamal Cyrus: The End of My Beginning with Katherine Veneman, Curator of Education.

    This event will be limited to 15 attendees. Email programs@visualartsalliance.org to RSVP.

    The Blaffer Art Museum, in partnership with Texas Southern University (TSU), is proudly organizing the first survey exhibition of artist Jamal Cyrus, which will span fifteen years of this artist’s prodigious career. As a singular maker, a former member of the pioneering collective Otabenga Jones & Associates, a current professor at TSU, the recipient of the 2020 David C. Driskell Prize, an occasional curator, and steadfast mentor, Cyrus and his influence reverberate throughout his native city of Houston. And while he has participated in a number of national contemporary art biennials, Cyrus’s work has not yet had the platform to be comprehensively studied and celebrated on its own terms.

    In the summer of 2021, the Blaffer will address this overdue need and partner with TSU to present Cyrus’s first museum survey and catalog, titled The End of My Beginning.

  • Sat
    04
    Sep
    2021
    1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m.Lester Marks Collection
    Program events

    Join Visual Arts Alliance Saturday, September 4, at 1:00 p.m. for a tour of The Lester Marks Collection, led by Lester Marks in discussion with VAA's Chair of Programs Committee, Jaymes Earl.

    The tour will have a limited number of participants. Vaccination cards and masks will be required. 

    Email programs@visualartsalliance.org to RSVP. 

    Lester Marks, President of International Art Advisory Services, and a represented artist himself, has been collecting contemporary art for 25 years. He has served as a trustee for both the Museum of Fine Arts-Houston and the Contemporary Arts Museum-Houston. Mr. Marks has also served on the boards of numerous visual art organizations .

    Mr. Marks has been mentoring local artists and sharing his home collection for years, and will give VAA members a private tour of his “mini museum” of contemporary art. We will explore the reasons Lester became interested in contemporary art, the inspirations behind his collection and how his taste has changed over the years.

    The home is built around an outdoor courtyard displaying the sculpture of British environmental artist Richard Long. There are passageways to three small gallery spaces, a studio and even a “subterranean playroom” for the adventurous. The collection features museum-quality works by artists like Jean-Michell Basquiat, Louise Bourgeois, Joseph Cornell, Francesco Clemente, Christo, John Baldessari, Anselm Kiefer, Donald Judd, Kerry James Marshall, Nick Cave, and dozens of others, along with works by hundreds of Houston area artists.

  • Sat
    13
    Nov
    2021
    11:00 amDandee Warhol Studio
    Program events

    Artist Dandee Warhol sits on a stool in front of a large canvas featuring a giraffe's head against a yellow and green argyle pattern Join VAA for an intimate studio tour with Dandee Warhol, contemporary pop artist, as he prepares for the War'hous Astroworld Art Show later in the month.

    The tour will be limited to 20 participants. RSVP to programs@visualartsalliance.org for further instructions.

    Philippines native Dandee Danao, better known by his eponym Dandee Warhol, is a distinguished figure in the contemporary Houston art circuit. Valued for his distinctive aesthetic, Danao is also recognized as a dynamic collaborator, curator, and visionary. His work can be likened to that of his namesake, Andy Warhol, because of its ironic use of popular media as subject.

    “As a pop artist, I draw my inspirations from current trends in the world around me,” says Danao, “and that may come from other artists I admire or the fashion that I'm into, and even things I see on screen and social media. Inspirations have always surrounded me, I just have to choose and pick what I want to use.”

    Danao is self-taught and colorblind, two idiosyncrasies that grant his style definition. Many of his pieces are characterized by meticulously designed geometric patterns. He works chiefly with acrylic on canvas. His style exhibits purity of lines, undetectable brushstrokes and arrangement of contrasting colors.

    Danao founded War’Hous Visual Studios, an art space and assemblage of creative talent providing services including art consultation, design, and curation. Working through the studio, he demonstrats an avid commitment to the local and underground art community by coordinating eclectic shows and showcasing the city’s emerging talents. The upcoming Astroworld Art Show opens November 26 for an exclusive preview.

    Visual Arts Alliance (VAA) is an educational organization for serious practitioners of the visual arts and interested members of the general public. Founded in Houston, TX in 1981, VAA is an all-volunteer run, 501(c)3, nonprofit organization. In addition to educational and recreational programs, VAA produces professionally juried art exhibitions providing opportunities for members and non-members to have their work professionally judged and viewed by the public. For membership details and more information, visit www.visualartsalliance.org.