Outta the Box

ell, well, well…guess who’s turning a year older? Hint: it has a penchant for pushing buttons and you’re browsing it right now. Yup, SFR is adding another candle to the cake—but don’t go calling us middle-aged just yet.

To celebrate, we’re putting together

, a shindig that features 20 of our iconic street boxes embellished, revamped and reinvented by a dream team of local artists that includes the likes of

,

,

, modern santero

and the subject of the first Arts Valve feature,

.

Before hitting a corner near you, the assemblage will be present for a one-night-only art show

this Friday

at the City of Santa Fe Arts Commission’s

.

Piqued your interest yet? Conceptual sculptors

will also be presenting a box, as will airbrush master

and the guerrilla knitters of

.

Lisa Danner

serves up an under-the-sea-inspired piece and joins

;

Lupe Garza

, who gets his muerto on;

Michael Lahargoue

and

Sophia Livingston

;

Rob Krumholz

;

Leif Smith

;

, known for his metal animal sculptures;

; the papertastic

; and

.

Made by both established and fledgling artists, the boxes range in themes from playful to colorful, head-scratching to political.

“I’d just gotten off the

exhibit, and I started thinking about royalty and the New Spain,” Banks, the creator of “El Emperador: The Gold Standard” (pictured) says. “It’s about imperialism—the haves and the have nots.”

, half of Axle Contemporary, delivers an interactive blackboard box that he hopes will draw the community in. “I like the simplicity of it,” he says, “and I also like the old-schoolness of chalkboards, felt erasers and such.”

Many of us have been together for 39 years. We have hooted and hollered together; had our a-ha moments; have ugly-cried together and we’ve done our gratitude journals. Hold on…I just ripped off Oprah Winfrey’s

. Senior moment, I guess.

Back to the show. Swing on by, say hi to the love-them-or-hate-‘em team, and help us pave the way for the next 39. This love letter is yours, Santa Fe. Come open it. Facebook event info here.

6-9 pm Friday, June 28. Free.

Community Gallery,

201 W Marcy St., 955-6705

Santa Fe Reporter