Alexandria, VA – Whether in like a lion and out like a lamb, or vice versa, it’s March. That means springtime for the DMV. Signs of rebirth are all around. If spring cleaning of the home and garden are de rigueur, why not give the heart, mind, and soul a breath of fresh air.
Consider art as a conversation between the viewer and the creator. Art is transactional.
Art is interactive. Art can be provocative or conciliatory. So what makes art meaningful? Community and collaboration have come to be especially impactful. As much as dissent and protest, art dictated progressive movements of its own for the last one hundred years.
Public art shapes perspectives, ultimately altering precepts as well as policy. In Alexandria, we are fortunate to have the Alexandria Office of the Arts, which in the last several years has presented world-class public art to Port City, as well as the Alexandria Arts Alliance, a consortium of nonprofit arts organizations and galleries citywide.
On January 28, the ALX Arts Alliance held its first ever membership gala event. “New Year, New Alliance” was held at the West End’s Mark Center Hilton. The Hilton management has been very supportive of the ALX arts scene. They have held events showcasing work from artists around Alexandria, exposing ALX arts to a diverse clientele from across the country and around the world.
Community impact is integral to Del Ray Artisans’ mission. So much so that the art space, which has existed for more than three decades, could be called the “Del YAY Artisans Community Gallery.” Its dedication to outreach is demonstrated in countless ways: fostering educational opportunities, sponsorship, fellowship, and mentorship.
Last month DRA was nominated for the Heart of Del Ray Award, competing with such beloved Del Ray institutions as St.Elmo’s Coffee Pub and The Dairy Godmother/Just Fine Donuts along with neighborhood newcomers Del Ray Hardware and Guatave Boulangerie. DRA unveiled the HOPE Quilt Project during COVID and in 2024 created a yarn bomb installation in celebration of Alexandria’s 275th birthday.
Across the Potomac, the Washington National Cathedral helped warm winter’s bones with the return of the ever-popular Seeing Deeper art installation held inside the nave of the magnificent Gothic structure. The always-sold-out event was extended this year to host a full week of aesthetic and spiritual illumination via a dazzling light display and a revitalizing community/family yoga experience for all ages. Mindfulness achieved through movement of light, shape, and imagination were complemented by sound bath meditations amid majestic vaulted ceilings and stained-glass windows.
Back in Port City, Galactic Panther never stops expanding the mind and artistic soul. GP stoked the sure-fire cure to assuage the mid-winter doldrums, curating five exhibitions: Limbs, Symbols, & The Last Scream, The Way of the Gods, and On the Record. The last is artists reimagining iconic album covers. The Way of the Gods is a solo Canal Center satellite exhibition of archetypal mythic sculptures by Jamie Lester.
March at Nepenthe Gallery is gearing up for spring with four ART + WINE + CHEESE Thursday evening events in Hollin Hall. On March 6, join master photographer Renée C. Gage as she unveils her hand-painted oil portraiture. The following Thursday, meet sculptor Michael Alfano, known for his whimsical out-of-the-box figurative and surrealistic sculptures. Fairfax County has commissioned Alfano to install ten of his sculptures along Richmond Highway as part of the Faces of One public art campaign.
On March 20, come for the wine and cheese. Stay for the never static, ever elevating art on view at Nepenthe. Meet artist Kim Yourick, whose work recently has become inspired by the aesthetics of architect Frank Lloyd Wright – from her current emphasis on oil painting landscapes en plein air to abstract and more contemporary styles.
The final Thursday night at Nepenthe is a March 27 discussion by Kim Gilliam, author of “Dragonfly,”, a memoir about mothering a child with mental health and neurodivergent challenges. Gilliam will focus on her chapter “Deserts to Mountaintops: The Pilgrimage of Motherhood.” What a fitting finale to Women’s History Month.
March is a month for artful mindfulness. Whether it’s attending the National Gallery’s premier 2025 Spring NGA Nights on March 13, appropriately themed “Revolutionary Women”, a celebration of women in the arts…. OR stopping by Del Ray Artisans to be transported back to once upon a time by Fairy Tales Around the World, on exhibit March 7 through 29, with an opening reception Friday, March 7 that’s free and welcomes all.
ICYMI: Celebrating A New Year of Alexandria Art and Artistry in 2025
