As the spread of COVID-19 shuts down entertainment and gathering spaces, the Mobile Arts Council (MAC) has launched the MAC Virtual Gallery as of Thursday, March 19, 2020. Our gallery has reopened to the public Wednesdays - Fridays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Masks and social distancing are required.
Each month, our community gallery features new exhibitions of original works created by local and regional artists in our Gallery @ Room 1927, located at 6 South Joachim Street (next door to the Saenger Theatre). The gallery is open Tuesday through Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Any artists are eligible and may submit a proposal for consideration. Exhibitions are usually displayed from the first Monday of the month through the last Friday.
Now, those exhibitions can be viewed here online, in addition to unique arts and crafts created by MAC’s artist members that are available for purchase. The new MAC Virtual Gallery serves our mission by providing patrons the opportunity to support local artists of all mediums and skill levels from beyond the walls of the Gallery @ Room 1927. Be sure to visit monthly for new art pieces, tickets to MAC events, and so much more!
Your patronage of the arts grows Mobile’s collective cultural footprint in a number of ways. It allows MAC to continue hosting exhibitions and artist workshops, award grants to artists and arts organizations, and provide experiences that celebrate the historically heterogeneous culture that makes Mobile so vibrant!
Join us on the second Friday of each month during LoDa ArtWalk for our exhibition receptions. Meet the artists, see their work in person, and create a personal connection with what is on display.
The MAC Virtual Gallery is always open! Click here to view and purchase works from this month's exhibiting artists. Scroll below to view our past exhibitions or to read about what we have on display.
To sponsor an exhibition, please see our Sponsorship Information.
The Gallery in Room 1927 is open to the public Wednesday – Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The July exhibitions, “Quarantine Walks,” “Nature’s Lens,” and “Quilts from Quarantine” will hang from July 3rd to August 27th. View the complete exhibitions in our Virtual Gallery online here!
Micah Mermilliod presents Fujifilm Instax photographs in the exhibition titled, “Quarantine Walks.” Mermilliod has been working on documenting his daily walks during the quarantine. These pieces were created to reflect changes that he noticed in the community throughout the quarantine.
“Nature’s Lens,'” is the collection of oil paintings of Reagan Barnett. She strives to capture detail, while still maintaining an element of fantasy in her works. Barnett has been oil painting since she was 9 years old, but it is a part-time venture for her. She earned her Ph.D. in biomedical science from the University of South Alabama and now teaches in the Department of Natural Sciences at the University of Mobile.
Taylor Shaw exhibits “Quilts from Quarantine,” featuring a series of wooden “quilts” that the artist created collaboratively. Shaw says, “This project became a way to connect with friends, family, and complete strangers through the act of creativity. The United States Postal Service became the backbone by which these quilts were transported from my hands to others and back again.
Each piece speaks to the individual and what was deemed important for that person to convey during the Covid-19 pandemic. It was my hope that this project would provide a creative respite from the constant bombardment of bad news coming out and we could rely on each other, even if it was for one simple act of creating.
Quilts from Quarantine became “productivity” with no ties to money. A group effort to create something larger than the individual. I hope this project provides a sense of a distant community and gives a small break from worries. Take care of each other.”
PAST EXHIBITIONS
Dates: February 1-28, 2016
Our ChARTing New Directions instructor Kathleen Kirk Stoves collaborated with her students to create a Valentine’s Day window display. This homage to “love” features portraits of some of her students, as well as an abundance of floating hearts with inspiring quotes about the meaning and importance of love. This display will be hanging in MAC’s front windows for the month of February.
Dates: February 1-28, 2016
The environmental-themed artwork is the result of a weaving across the curriculum of science, art, and fashion design. Students of Mrs. Dianne Bernasconi’s Family and Consumer Science classes at Fairhope High School spent time immersed in learning about the local habitat of Weeks Bay Estuaries. Angela Underwood, biologist educator, was a guest in the classes to share the importance of our fragile ecosystem and the importance of learning about water runoff and keeping the habitats clean. Nancy Raia, Community Arts Director for Eastern Shore Art Center, spent three days teaching the art of batik and how to design on fabric
Dates: January 1-31, 2016
Colleen Comer’s show, “Structures,” features paintings of buildings and interiors that she sees in everyday life. Her compositions are dramatic and use saturated colors to bring out the geometry and shapes of her subjects. Colleen “wants each painting to exist as an individual idea and world, not as a mere representation.” Comer receieved her BFA Auburn University, and has shown her work in Charleston, New York, Paris and Mobile, AL. Comer’s work is on display in the Skinny Gallery and Smal Room during the month of January. Come meet the artist on artwalk night, January 8, from 6 – 9 PM. MAC’s gallery is open weekdays from 9 AM until 5 PM..
Dates: January 1-31, 2016
The Visual Arts Achievement Program provides local and state recognition for student achievement in the visual arts. The program is designed to offer encouragement to young artists, showcase their work and offer opportunities for advanced training beyond high school. As an arts in education program, it awards students in grades 6 through 12 that are participating in arts programs within their academic institutions. Students from Private studios are not eligible to submit work through their studio instructors. Before the statewide competition, districts will compete and single out winners to advance to the next level. The Mobile Arts Council will be hosting District 1: Baldwin, Clarke, Conecuh, Escambia, Mobile, Monroe, and Washington Counties. The District 1 entry deadline is January 30; we will be accepting work at MAC from 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM. Entry forms (all digital) and additional information can be found on the Alabama State Council on the Arts’ website. If you have any questions, email lgafford@mobilearts.org.
Dates: December 1-31, 2015
Shelley Smith’s exhibition, “Beautiful: A Photographic Exploration & Exhibition of Women of all Ages, Ethnicities, and Backgrounds,” features photographs of over 25 women- all ages, shapes, and sizes. Smith’s photography show culminated as a question and exploration of finding beauty at all ages. ”As I, myself, get older and watch my body change as a woman, staring at myself in a mirror, noticing lines and other aspects that we as women study, I begin to wonder how am I defined socially as well as attractively. It may seem a shallow notion, but I think society has made it abundantly clear how we are often (though wrongly) defined. Beauty is not just a form in the flesh, but is what we are and who we reveal ourselves to be internally.” – Shelley Smith Smith’s work is on display in the Skinny Gallery during the month of December. Come meet the artist on artwalk night, December 11, from 6 – 9 PM. MAC’s gallery is open weekdays from 9 AM until 5 PM.
Dates: December 1-31, 2015
Jenna Cape is a graduating art student from the University of Alabama. Her show, “BIT BY BIT,” includes many small to medium sized vessel-like ceramic forms, as well as some oil and water based paintings. Cape’s work expresses her interest in how things relate to each other, and how strange that connection can be. This is the artist’s first solo exhibition. ”My creative process is influenced by the complex relationships that exist within nature. From the ebb and flow of water, the changing seasons, or the spontaneity of cloud formations, nature holds a sense of mystery that I aim to depict in my work. ” – Jenna Cape Cape’s work is on display in the Small Room during the month of December. Come meet the artist on artwalk night, December 11, from 6 – 9 PM. MAC’s gallery is open weekdays from 9 AM until 5 PM.
Dates: December 1-31, 2015
”Bovines, Ovines, Equines and More” is an exhibition of paintings by local artist Joanne Brandt. For the past ten years, she has been working on a series of cow (Bovine) paintings, eventually adding other pastoral or domestic animals such as goats and sheep (Ovines), and burros (Equines), as well as a few family pets. Her work is realistic, with a touch of surrealism in her treatment of the colors and movement of paint. ”My paintings of these ‘divine’ creatures are treated as portraits, rather than animal paintings.” – Joanne Brandt Joanne is active in several local arts organizations, including the Mobile Arts Association (MAA), the Watercolor and Graphic Arts Society of Mobile (WGAS), PleinAirSouth, the Alabama Miniature Art Society, and the Spring Hill Figure Group. She has shown her work at the Space 301 Gallery, the University of Mobile, The Eastern Shore Art Center, the Mobile Museum of Art, and the Mobile Arts Council, as well as a number of local alternative art venues. Her work has won numerous awards. Brandt’s work is on display in the Large Room during the month of December. Come meet the artist on artwalk night, December 11, from 6 – 9 PM. MAC’s gallery is open weekdays from 9 AM until 5 PM..
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The Artys is an annual awards program that celebrates the important contributions that individuals, groups, and businesses make to the Mobile cultural community. Finalists have been announced in the remaining nine award categories, with winners to be announced live at the event.
Artys attendees will enjoy a night of celebration, complete with food, drinks and entertainment in many forms. A jazz trio comprised of John Milham, Chris Spies, and Chris Severin will play, with performances by Mobile Opera and Joe Jefferson Players throughout the ceremony.
Photo Gallery
