Style Spotlight: News From the Gallery Front

Jack and Lisa Frost entertain at Goldenstein Gallery. Credit: Mal Cooper

Eating local is a big deal for diners. Could buying local be just as big a deal for art lovers? Owner Linda Goldenstein, of Goldenstein Gallery in Sedona, Ariz., thinks so. The gallery, celebrating its 10th anniversary this year, has achieved success through its commitment to showcasing the work of local and regional artists. It features a new show each month and hosts notable First Friday events with live music, wine and artists. One recent event featured an Apache medicine man offering a traditional corn blessing.

Aspen, Colo., just got a little more artsy with the opening of a new venue. Drasner Gallery features paintings, photography, prints, sculpture and glass from artists such as Robert Indiana, McKay Otto, David LaChapelle, Tomas Sanchez and Andy Warhol. The gallery, which had its grand opening Aug. 5, also shows owner Lora Drasner’s photographs, taken during her travels around the world. “It’s very eclectic,” Drasner says of the gallery’s offerings.

Shopping for sparkly things is always a treat, but it’s even more fun in a really cool place, like the six-story, 12,500-square-foot, National Register of Historic Places-registered building on Washington, D.C.’s, Connecticut Avenue that is the Tiny Jewel Box. Indeed, the gallery took first place in the Big Cool division of INSTORE magazine’s list of Coolest Stores for 2011. The store, established by President Matthew Rosenheim’s grandparents in a 100-square-foot breezeway, is now big enough that you can find both a jewel and a handcrafted jewelry box to put it in. And buy a really fashionable handbag to carry home the receipt. How cool is that?

Downtown Bethesda, Md., is getting a new space for artists and art lovers. The Bethesda Arts & Entertainment District and Bethesda Urban Partnership are teaming up to offer Gallery B to interested artists and arts organizations for one-month rentals. The gallery will consider painting, photography and sculpture, but it is not limiting itself to those mediums. The gallery takes no commissions on artwork sold during an exhibition. To find out what’s on display or to submit an application to use the space, go to www.bethesda.org/bethesda/gallery-b.

One door opens, another closes. After more than 27 years, Vespermann-Cooper Gallery in Atlanta closed on Aug. 31. The gallery is credited with introducing Atlanta-area residents to art glass. Seranda Vespermann will continue to design corporate awards and execute stained-glass commissions, and Jeannie Cooper will continue to paint and do commissions. While they’re disappointed that the gallery has shut its doors, Vespermann said, “It doesn’t make a lot of sense to be sad or melancholy about doing the smart thing.”