SFR Picks—Week of March 1

Bowerbirds

Artists as collectors at Pie Projects’ new exhibit

Your first moments inside Dana Newmann and Dana Hart-Stone’s joint exhibition at Pie Projects may feel like you’ve entered a kaleidoscope pointed at an antique scrapbook. But the more time you take with A State of Newness, the more patterns start to emerge—both within each piece and between the two Danas.

Newmann, a Santa Fe local whose work ranges from photo collages to curiosity cabinets, builds pieces around pre-established themes such as “surrealist wonders” or “dangerous possibilities.” Hart-Stone takes a more retrospective approach to his large-scale collages, noting that, “I realized the plaid [in my piece ‘The Life and Times of Plaid’] was only the entry point into a study of socioeconomic status, of race, of gender, of place. That sort of snuck up on me.”

That same fabric spotlighted in Hart-Stone’s enormous collage points to another connection between the artists: a shared interest in textiles. Newmann often physically interweaves photographs in her pieces, citing Japanese fabrics as a source of inspiration.

“If you look at kimono and you study one element really thoroughly, you begin to see how they use the drama of empty space versus full space,” she observes.

Hart-Stone similarly uses scale and repetition to consciously evoke a connection to cloth.

“There’s a double read where people see the work from a distance and it reads as a textile,” he explains. “These really rich patterns and colors do that.”

And both artists are ultimately united by a passion for assemblage.

“I’m endlessly fascinated with the stories of objects that were scattered around—old leather shoes, graniteware, enamel pans…we don’t know the whole story and that’s always fascinated me,” Hart-Stone confesses.

Newmann, meanwhile, highlights the same drive in more zoological terms.

“There is a quality of calmness that comes over one when you make a connection between an object you’re very familiar with and one that you’ve never seen before, and that particular feeling has a lot to do with why I love to put things together,” she says. “On the whole, it’s humans who want to bring things together. Humans and bowerbirds.”

Maybe that’s why Newmann and Hart-Stone’s work scratches a particular animal itch. It gets at the primal satisfaction of a truly beautiful collection. (Siena Sofia Bergt)

A State of Newness Opening: 3:30 pm Saturday, March 4. Free. Pie Projects, 924B Shoofly St., (505) 372-7681

Demonstrable

Native arts have a huge role around here, and most everyone can agree their inter-generational place in our homes, our streets, our galleries and our institutions is essential and amazing. Despite a countless number of expert artists, craftspeople, etc. operating throughout all corners of our region, we don’t always know how the sausage gets made, so to speak. Enter Acoma artist Frederica Antonio and her upcoming pottery demo event at the Museum of Indian Arts & Culture. Legend has it Antonio was inspired by her mother-in-law, Mildred, to get into the hand-coiled/hand-painted pottery game. With an eye toward intricate design and a knack for technical brilliance, Antonio made a name for herself, and now she’ll show you how she goes about it. Is “fascinating” a strong enough word? (Alex De Vore)

Frederica Antonio Pottery Demonstration: Dazzle the Eye: 1-3 pm Wednesday, March 1. Free with admission. Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, 710 Camino Lejo, (505) 476-1269

Oh, Demetri

It’s honestly kind of shocking that comic Demetri Martin’s upcoming stop at the Lensic Performing Arts Center hadn’t completely sold out at the time of this writing, but that just means comedy fans have an opportunity to see one of the funniest people working today. Martin is a nerdy joke trailblazer—which is meant as a compliment—but kind of like a spiritual successor to the likes of Mitch Hedberg and Emo Philips. He’s a bit of a visual artist, too, and a talented musician and creator of varied shows that speak to those who fancy themselves part of the intelligentsia, fans of deadpan excellence and/or satire and pretty much anyone else who likes thoughtful comedy. Whether you know him from appearances on Comedy Central, shows like New Girl or elsewhere, you’re likely gonna want to go. And if you don’t know the guy and just like laughing...well, it’ll be worth it. (ADV)

Demetri Martin: The Joke Machine: 7:30 pm Friday, March 3. $35-$149. Lensic Performing Arts Center, 211 W San Francisco St., (505) 988-1234

Love Stinks

Theater troupe Tri-M Productions returns after successful runs of Spring Awakening and A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to the Forum with I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change, playwright Joe DiPietro’s 1996 musical comedy take on all things love. Across three couples, viewers will get an incisive, biting and ultimately hopeful view of modern romance in all its forms, and though Tri-M Artistic Director Marilyn Barnes tells SFR the show required a bit of updating to rework some problematic ‘90s content, she ultimately finds the show’s themes universal and enduring. “It just seems like every scene, practically every line...either you laugh or you laugh ruefully,” Barnes tells SFR, “because you’ve gone through it.” Barnes also says the show might be smaller than we’ve seen recently from Tri-M, but that the more focused cast is a real winner. “I think these people are kind of brilliant,” she adds. (ADV)

I Love You, You’re Perfect, Now Change: 7 pm Friday, March 3; 2 pm and 7 pm Saturday, March 4; 2 pm Sunday March 5. $30-$40. The Actors Lab, 1213 Parkway Drive, trimsantafe.org