Flyer Guide: First Thursday – October 2009

First Thursday Fayetteville has been picking up some serious steam in the last couple of months. August saw a big jump in attendance and last month might just have been even more popular. If you’re still waiting around to see what the fuss is all about, then stop.

There will be art, music, improv and a short film all starting at 5pm this Thursday, October 1. Everything is free and open to the public but donations to the We Can! Campaign to help support local food banks are always appreciated.

The Art

There will be art openings at both Fayetteville Underground and ddp gallery from 5pm to 8pm.

Randy Brodnax’s Own Joie de Vivre – Art by Randy Brodnax
Fayetteville Underground, Revolver Gallery

Randy Brodnax, a life-long potter and educator in Dallas, Texas, creates everything from functional dinnerware to large sculptural vessels and painting. A Louisiana native, Randy has retained much of the Cajun joie de vivre with which he was raised, and has spent a career building bridges among clay artists with all levels of experience. He has specialized in Raku for many years using images from nature and drawing upon a wild fantasy world of creatures of the mind. He’s a very inventive and intuitive technician.

Reclaimed Surfaces – Art by Gregory Moore
Fayetteville Underground, Hive Gallery

For the past 2 years, Gregory Moore has been combing Fayetteville’s salvage yards, scrap heaps, recycling centers and dumpsters in search of the perfect materials to transform into art. He collects pieces of rusted, dented metal debris and paints on them in a way that doesn’t obscure the original texture and color of the object. He seeks out objects that are notable for their interesting stains, rust and damage and he lets those characteristics guide the paintings. This October, Gregory will show paintings of wildflowers, weeds and other plants painted on salvaged metal and wood.

The Nature of Faces – Art by Dana Idlet
Fayetteville Underground, Vault Gallery

Dana Idlet will show her most recent work, a mix of oil paintings on canvas and repurposed cardboard transformed into colorful collage pieces. This show represents where the artist is at this very moment of her life. It focuses on her fascination of the human face and many of its forms and emotions. This subject is juxtaposed by nature–trees, water, color, earth. This exhibition creates a beautiful and balanced organic product which moves the artist and somehow comes across as simply whole. A unique blend of media and artistic interpretation, this colorful collection of art is refreshing.

Things are Not Perfect in the Garden – Paintings
ddp gallery

Things are Not Perfect in the Garden is an exhibition of paintings by Laura Terry and sculptural and functional ceramics by Heather Knight. Both artists explore their relationship with nature through two different mediums.

Laura Terry records dualities she sees in the landscape – she looks close, paints the details of simple, so-called weeds such as thistle and Echinacea – only to obscure them later with an added layer of paint.

Heather Knight‘s sculptural and functional works with helios porcelain are delicate and require a lot of time with her hands in the clay. She brings the nature she craves to experience inside the studio, forming works that are given life when experienced by the viewer.

The Music

It’s been a good year for local favorites 3 Penny Acre. The release of their debut album has been met with acclaim garnering recognition including an official showcase at the 2009 Folk Alliance Conference, they were voted “Best New Band” by the NAMAs, and Shannon Wurst was selected as a 2009 New Folk Finalist.

They’ll be playing in front of the East Square Plaza at 6pm.

Nearby on Block Street, The ROX will play at Sound Warehouse.

Other Entertainment

Improv theatre performances on the square will begin at 6:45pm, immediately following a proclamation by Mayor Lioneld Jordan to honor Arts and Humanities Month.

At sundown, the film “Fresh” will be shown in preparation for the first annual 540 Film Fest which will take place November 5-8 in downtown Fayetteville.

Additional art will be on display at Jammin Java, IM Spa and inside City Hall on Mountain Street.

The Fayetteville Animal Shelter will have adoptable animals at First Thursday and will be accepting donations of blankets, towels, canned food, bleach, laundry soap, dish soap and paper towels.

Kathy Thompson’s new venture Hboxes will open in conjunction with First Thursday, and Kathy will be on hand to discuss the personalized history boxes at her studio on Mountain St.

To ease parking needs, the paid parking lot next to the East Square Plaza building will be open for free parking on Thursday night.