Okay, I admit I did not get too far on Gallery Night.  I did manage to visit about half a dozen Design District galleries.  Of that, two artists stood out:  Shawn Smith at Craighead Green Gallery and Jill Foley at Conduit Gallery.

Smith makes whimsical constructions from balsa wood and ink.  Depending on one’s generation, they are either reminiscent of elementary math rods or animated pixels.  They are masterfully constructed into moving objects, such as flames, birds and even body parts.  Equally exciting are the intricate collages, with impossibly tiny bits of paper seemingly dissolving across the paper.  While staying within the canon of traditional sculpture and collage, the work is unique and very much of its time.

Jill Foley’s installation, The Mountain, is divine.  Taking up a large part of the back gallery at Conduit, Foley has created a multi-room cave fashioned from cardboard.  It is fully furnished, with a faux bear skin rug warming up the floor in one room.  It is illuminated by lamps and chandeliers and its womb-like warmth is completely alluring.  It is the sort of place I would enjoy moving into for awhile.  There is a schedule of events at its entrance.  And, in fact, Conduit has been running a series of poetry slams and other programs throughout the run of the exhibition.  What a perfect venue. 

There is about one week left in the run of both exhibitions.  They are not to be missed.