Northern Virginia Fine Arts Association

03/15/2023

A Feast for the Senses: Songs and Keyboard Solos from England and the Continent at The Athenaeum!

Saturday, March 18 at 6 pm
$40.00

28 Chairs aims to transport listeners out of their daily lives and into a world of beauty and excitement. Come and listen to the wonderful Jolle Greenleaf, Soprano and Jeffrey Grossman, Harpsichord!

Tickets can be purchased here https://www.28chairs.org/tickets/march-18-2023

03/15/2023

Join us in the gallery for an artist talk with Nicole M. Santiago this Sunday, March 19, at 2pm.

Enjoy this video of Nicole walking through her process and discussing her artwork.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3Ndi5Yhr8c&t=2s

Don't forget that the gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

03/15/2023

Nicole Santiago’s exhibition has been reviewed in the Hill Rag! Thank you Phil Hutinet and everyone at the Hill Rag!

Please join us for Nicole’s artist talk on Sunday at 2pm!

You can read the full review here: https://www.hillrag.com/2023/03/14/art-and-the-city-22/

03/13/2023

A Feast for the Senses: Songs and Keyboard Solos from England and the Continent - The Athenaeum, Alexandria, VA - March 18 — 28 Chairs

Join us on Saturday, March 18th at 6pm for "A Feast for the Senses" presented by 28 Chairs.

Jolle Greenleaf, soprano, hailed by the New York Times as “a golden soprano” and "major force in the New York early music scene" will perform a program with harpsichordist Jeffrey Grossman that explores the five senses through music and poetry of the Baroque from England and the continent. Reception with the artists to follow.

Tickets can be purchased here https://www.28chairs.org/tickets/march-18-2023

Saturday, March 18, 2023 at 6:00pm Jolle Greenleaf, Soprano Jeffrey Grossman, Harpsichord Location: Alexandria, VA

03/12/2023

Even though artist Nicole M. Santiago's work is highly personal, she intends to construct something more universal that stretches beyond the limits of her own experiences, expanding into broader familiar themes.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Preparation (Detail)
Oil on linen, 17 x 43
$2,000

03/11/2023

Even though it might be overcast outside today, doesn't mean it should stop you from seeing some amazing artwork! Come by and see Nicole M. Santiago's semi-autobiographical narrative paintings and drawings!

The gallery is one Thursday through Sunday from 12- 4pm

03/10/2023

Join us in congratulating artist Nicole M. Santiago on her exhibit piece in the Washington Post! Such a wonderful review was eloquently written by Mark Jenkins!

Be sure to see her artwork in the gallery! The gallery is one Thursday through Sunday from 12- 4pm

03/10/2023

Indulgence III is part of a more extensive collection that showcases excessiveness. Hear artist Nicole Santiago talk more about this collection at: https://vimeo.com/518146292

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Nicole M. Santiago
Indulgence III
Oil on panel, 48" x 31",
$4,500

03/04/2023

There is nothing more serene than a sleeping baby. Pure, loving dreams and peacefulness for both the baby and the parents. Nothing compares.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Nicole M. Santiago
Susan Sleeping (Red Riding Hood),
Oil on canvas, 9 x 6 (image), 14 x 11 (frame)
$700

02/25/2023

Artist Nicole M. Santiago beautifully renders this heavy moment in time. MoMA defines a monotype as "a unique print, typically painterly in effect, made by applying paint or printing ink to a flat sheet of metal, glass, or plastic" and Nicole definitely hits the mark with this print!

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Them
Monotype, 14 x 11 (image)
$700

02/24/2023

Artist Nicole M. Santiago aims to construct something more universal that stretches beyond the limits of her own experiences, expanding into broader familiar themes.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Susan Sleeping I & II
Graphite, charcoal, & conte on toned paper, 6 x 4 each image, 18 x 16 framed
NFS

02/24/2023

In this beautifully captured artwork, artist Nicole M. Santiago brings truth to our everyday lives, where not everyone has the "normal" valentine. She reminds us to remember to share this time with loved ones.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Unlikely Valentine
Charcoal on paper, 44x34
$3,000

02/19/2023

Artist Nicole M. Santiago reminds us how intimate and personal pregnancy can be, even amongst the joy and celebrations.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Baby-Cakes Pregnancy Portrait
Oil on Canvas, 42" x 33"
$4,000

02/18/2023

Artist Nicole M. Santiago purposely creates layered narratives within these pieces that are opposingly semi-overt and marginally obscured. While storytelling is an integral part of her work, it always remains subservient to the broader formal concerns of the picture itself.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Transition (Detail)
Oil on linen, 16 x 50
$2,000

02/16/2023

Nicole M. Santiago’s work consists of semi-autobiographical narrative paintings and drawings that depict scenes of love, loss, and duty, thinly veiled in the mundane debris of everyday life. While the impetus for Nicole’s work is highly personal, she intends to construct something more universal that stretches beyond the limits of her own experiences, expanding into broader familiar themes.

The gallery is open Thursday to Sunday from 12-4pm!

Artwork featured in this post:
Shifting Celebrations
Oil on linen, 62 x 46
$7,000

02/11/2023

Join us for the opening reception for Nicole M. Santiago's solo exhibition tomorrow from 4 to 6pm!

02/10/2023

Nicole M. Santiago's solo show is open and on view at the Athenaeum Thursday through Sunday noon to 4pm. Stop by the gallery to see her amazing artworks!

02/08/2023

Nicole M. Santiago's paintings have been installed and her solo show opens tomorrow at noon!

02/06/2023

Many thanks to everyone who came out to see the “In and Between” sculpture show and to all those who attended the artist talk yesterday! And a big should out to Steve Wanna and all of the artists who participated in the Athenaeum’s inaugural full-gallery sculpture show!

02/05/2023

Join us in an hour! Today, Sunday, February 5, at 2 pm for our Artist Talk for In and Between | Sculpture, Curated by Steve Wanna and Produced by Veronica Szalus!

Featuring Artists:
Lynda Andrews-Barry
Gloria Vasquez Chapa
Jacqui Crocetta
Pierre Davis
Zofie King
Kirsty Little
Sarah Stefana Smith
Ira Tattelman

02/05/2023

"Within Without No. 2 establishes a discrete enclosure of sheer fabric that can seem transparent or opaque depending on the lighting conditions and the perspective of the viewer. Despite being made of soft and at times translucent material-material we typically expect to have a passive role in architecture, but is here being used to mimic structure-the installation can seem to have an imposing presence, inviting visitors to engage with the space in unexpected ways. Generally sparse and without any repeating patterns, the sonic component creates a reinforcing soundscape that vacillates between feeling disorienting and passively pleasant" Artist Steve Wanna.

"I produce site-specific installations that incorporate the influence of my study in industrial design and deep interest in creating environmental pieces that explore the phenomenon of physical and metaphysical transition.

tilted adaptation is an expression for the transition from one state into the next specifically related to climate change and adaptation as we move into the future. In this installation, the weathered concrete and metal forms represent industrial materials in a habitat that is quickly evolving. Many species of plants and animals have become extinct or will become extinct while other species will adapt and become more aggressive. The tension between the industrial forms and twisted branches in this installation examines adaptation as inevitable, uncomfortable and scary, but still capable of moments of beauty" Artist Veronica Szalus.

Today, Sunday, February 5, is the last day to see this exhibit from 12 - 4 pm.

Artwork featured in this post:

Veronica Szalus
tilted adaptation
Rusted paint cans, rebar, concrete, wire Harry Lauder Walking Stick
7' x 8' x 6'
(In front of Steve Wanna's Within Without No.2)

Photo by: Ulf Wallin

Steve Wanna
Within Without No.2 (Detail)
Fabric and sound
7' x 8' x 7'

02/04/2023

Join us, tomorrow, Sunday, February 5, at 2 pm for our Artist Talk for In and Between | Sculpture, Curated by Steve Wanna and Produced by Veronica Szalus!

Curator Steve Wanna stated:
"In architecture, thresholds can connect spaces in deliberate and inventive ways, but they are often mere afterthoughts resolved by things like a simple door. We use the term to describe a state of potential or transition from something present to something unknown, a precipice that can be exciting and terrifying.

At times we think of thresholds as temporary spaces or states that we pass through, often quickly, on our way from one thing to something else—the emphasis is on the current and next states. What if they could be reimagined as frontiers, temporary resting places that can hold us as we take in a current position and survey what is about to emerge?"

Featuring Artists:
Lynda Andrews-Barry
Gloria Vasquez Chapa
Jacqui Crocetta
Pierre Davis
Zofie King
Kirsty Little
Sarah Stefana Smith
Ira Tattelman

02/04/2023

"My parents never had me baptized. This was upsetting to my grandmother who repeatedly told me I would be stuck in “limbo” between Heaven and Hell if I was not soon christened. In Catholic theology, limbo is the afterlife condition of unbaptized babies who are relegated to this nether region on the edge of Hell. But, I liked the idea of limbo, and imagined I was floating amongst the clouds, enjoying the view from above. My included works contemplate the space between Heaven and Hell, referred to as 'Limbo' by my grandmother." Artist Lynda Andrews-Barry

Don't forget to join us in the gallery for an Artist Talk on Sunday, February 5, at 2 pm

The gallery is open Thursday through Sunday from 12 - 4pm.

Artwork featured in this post:
Lynda Andrews-Barry
Heaven & Hell
Single-channel video, looped size varies
$1750.00

02/04/2023

"Each work of the Piercing Collection involves drilling, measuring, cutting, cleaning, dipping in wax 4 times, piercing, and bending. Thousands of times. Each individual act, simple, repetitive, laborious, echoing the trials and repetitions of daily life. But, when completed, a beautiful organic form is created, over a lifetime a legacy is left. We move forward with hope.​" Artist Kirsty Little

Don't forget to join us in the gallery for an Artist Talk on Sunday, February 5, at 2 pm

The gallery is open Thursday through Sunday from 12 - 4pm.

Artwork featured in this post:
Kirsty Little
Surging (Wall/Sculpture)
Steel wire, cedar wood, wax.
1200 steel wires, pierced into wood, dipped in melted wax
16.5” H x 15” W x 9.5”
$3000

02/03/2023

"My installation was inspired in part by feminist, anti-racism activist and scholar, Peggy McIntosh, Ph.D. In her 1989 essay “White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack,” she identifies some of the many daily effects of skin privilege in her life. I see my unearned advantages as an invisible cloak that has protected me throughout my life. Many of my unearned advantages, including a large number I share with McIntosh, have been incorporated into this work. The lack of progress since 1989 has inspired me to amplify McIntosh’s groundbreaking work through my own expression." Artist Jacqui Crocetta

The gallery is open Thursday through Sunday from 12 - 4pm.

Artwork featured in this post:
Jacqui Crocett
Revealing the Invisible: My Cloak of Privilege
Starched cotton, steel wire, waxed floss, acrylic and gouache paint, stones, mirrored glass
54” x 72” x 84” (variable)

Photo by: Ulf Wallin

02/01/2023

"My sculptural work examines psychological processes, such as perceptions; I’m interested in the human mind. When I made this piece I pictured someone trapped (literally caged) in their way of thinking. The inspiration for Final Thoughts was that humans ascribe certain thoughts, emotions and actions to historical or mythological figures. Even though these may have been fabricated (or were at least more nuanced), they nevertheless become the basis for doctrine that guides human behavior." Artist Zofie King

The gallery is open Thursday through Sunday from 12 - 4pm.

Artwork featured in this post:
Zofie King
Final Thoughts
found objects, acrylic, resin, LED, velvet 66” x 20” x 15”
Ask for pricing

Photo by: Pete Duvall