Walker Art Center's Target Free Thursday Nights in May Highlighted by Artist Talk, Film Screenings, and a Gallery Performance Inspired by the Walker Collection
The Walker Art Center’s Target Free Thursday Nights in May are highlighted by a talk led by artists Chris Johanson and Jo Jackson, presented by the Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC). This husband and wife team emerged from the late ’90s San Francisco-based skater/surf/graffiti scene, and they discuss their processes, sources of inspiration and influence, and future projects (May 1, 7 pm). Other Target Free Thursday Night highlights include the gallery talk American Mythologies: The Art of Richard Prince (Part 2: Fetish), presented in conjunction with the exhibition Richard Prince: Spiritual America (through September 14), led by Paula Rabinowitz, chair of the English department at the University of Minnesota (May 1, 7 pm); a performance of the short play Permanence Collection by Kira Obolensky and Ed Bok Lee, inspired by works in the Walker collection and performed in the galleries (May 8 and 15, 7 and 8 pm); screenings of films from the international series Global Lens, including works from China and South Africa (May 8 and 15, 7:30 pm); and screenings of classic cult films selected by Richard Prince (May 22 and 29, 7:30 pm).
Target Free Thursday Nights sponsored by Target.
Target Free Thursday Nights
May 1, 8, 15, 22, 29
Galleries open 5–9; special events follow.
Free
Thursday, May 1
Gallery Tour, 6 pm
Artist Talk: Chris Johanson and Jo Jackson, 7 pm
Cinema
Free tickets available at the Bazinet Garden Lobby desk from 6 pm
Artists Chris Johanson and Jo Jackson emerged from the late ’90s San Francisco-based skater/surf/graffiti scene, known to many as the Mission School, with portfolios of charged, figurative drawings and immersive three-dimensional environments. As a hus¬band and wife team, the two collaborate often on projects, including an installation that runs from May 3 through June 1 at the Art of This Gallery in South Minneapolis (www.artofthis.net). Join the artists for a talk about their processes, sources of inspiration and influence, and future projects. Presented by the Walker Art Center Teen Arts Council (WACTAC).
Gallery Talk
American Mythologies: The Art of Richard Prince, 7 pm
Part 2: Fetish
Meet in the Bazinet Garden Lobby
A fetish is defined as an object of irrational fascination, power, and desire. This gallery talk, led by Paula Rabinowitz, chair of the English department at the University of Minnesota, explores Richard Prince’s admiration of pulp-novel nurses, celebrities, and cars as fetishes.
Thursday, May 8
Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes Tour, 6 pm
Gallery Performances: Permanence Collection, 7 and 8 pm
Galleries 4, 5, and 6
Inspired by works from the Walker’s permanent collection galleries, the short play Permanence Collection by Kira Obolensky and Ed Bok Lee is a humorous, elliptical, and ironic exploration of class and ways in which we attempt the impossible transformation of our realities into works of art. Listen in as the dialogue comes to life through actors stationed among the artworks. Presented in collaboration with the Playwrights’ Center. Directed by Hayley Finn.
Film: Global Lens, 7:30 pm
Cinema
Luxury Car (Jiang Cheng Xia Ri)
Directed by Wang Chao
Retaining face and dignity has been a struggle for the mil¬lions who have recently fled the rural areas of China, and thousands of parents have lost contact with their children. In this emotionally taut narrative, karaoke bar escort Li Yan Hong tries to hide her job and relationship with her boss from her long-estranged father, who has traveled from his small village to the city to find his son. 2006, China, in Mandarin with English subtitles, 88 minutes. Screening introduced by Jason McGrath, associate professor, Asian Languages and Literatures, University of Minnesota.
Repeat screening Sunday, May 18, 1 pm
Thursday, May 15
Worlds Away: New Suburban Landscapes Tour, 6 pm
Gallery Performances: Permanence Collection, 7 and 8 pm
Galleries 4, 5, and 6
(See description above.)
Film: Global Lens, 7:30 pm
Cinema
Bunny Chow
Directed by John Barker
In director John Barker’s debut feature, up-and-coming comedians Kags, Joey, and Dave make it clear that life in the “new” Johannesburg is not just about hardship and townships. It’s also about hanging out with friends and celebrating life on a raucous road trip to Oppi Koppi—South Africa’s largest music festival. Shot in a cinema vérité style and using the street food “bunny chow” as a metaphor for contemporary Johannesburg’s mix of races, cultures, and attitudes, Barker’s edgy urban comedy asks us to envision a nation through the eyes of its future rather than the tragedy of its past. 2006, South Africa, in Afrikaans, Tsotsi Taal, and English with English subtitles, 95 minutes.
Repeat screening Saturday, May 17, 7 pm
Thursday, May 22
Trisha Brown: So That the Audience Does Not Know Whether I Have Stopped Dancing Tour, 6 pm
Film: Cult Classics, 7:30 pm
Cinema
Artist Richard Prince has chosen these eclectic titles to be screened as complements to the exhibition Richard Prince: Spiritual America. Several other cult classics recommended by the artist are available in the Walker Shop, including The Savage Eye, The Touch of Her Flesh, Sin in the Suburbs, and Lenny Bruce Performance Film.
Two-Lane Blacktop
Directed by Monte Hellman
Musicians James Taylor and Dennis Wilson star as quiet drag racers in a souped-up ‘55 Chevy who challenge a wanderer (Warren Oates) in his new Pontiac GTO to a cross-country race. Monte Hellman’s bare-bones story, spare dialogue, and stunning widescreen vistas create an unprecedented existential masterpiece. 1971, 35mm, 102 minutes.
Thursday, May 29
Gallery Tour, 6 pm
Film: Cult Classics, 7:30 pm
Cinema
A Place in the Sun
Directed by George Stevens
This classic, a winner of six Oscars, shows the effects of escaping poverty at all costs. Grasping for the good life that seems just within his reach, a dashing young factory worker (Montgomery Clift) courts a rich society debutante (Elizabeth Taylor) while fending off a pregnant ex-girlfriend (Shelley Winters). 1951, 35mm, 122 minutes.