Alexandria, VA – If you haven’t been to Nepenthe Gallery recently you haven’t been to Nepenthe! The ever and always diverting Hollin Hall art gallery and framing experts moved around the corner last month, now occupying a more expansive art space. You won’t miss it driving by as there’s a spectacular new addition on display in the window.
Fans and patrons of Nepenthe may recall that last year one of the elephants from the Great Elephant Migration, Li Doo Mooh, was on display in the garden at River Farm. Li Doo Mooh was sold to a forever home. Nepenthe owner Carrie Garland travelled to Los Angeles, the last stop of the elephant walk across the country, which stretched from Newport to New York, south to Miami Beach, then west to Houston, Jackson Hole, onward to a Native American reservation in Montana, and ending up on Santa Monica Boulevard in Beverly Hills.
Photo Scott MacConomy
For the occasion of Nepenthe’s new digs, Garland procured another perfectly plaintive pachyderm, Jai. Constructed out of the invasive Lantana Camara (a flowering evergreen shrub that is threatening the elephant native habitats) and metal by the villagers in India’s Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, Jai is part of the latest Great Elephant Migration Movement, now attracting new pilgrims to see them in Boston.
Jai means victory or triumph in Hindi. It’s a fitting tribute to Nepenthe’s great gallery migration on Fort Hunt Road. The art space proves to be as stylish as the owners and staff. Think Soho meets DTLA with a splash of Art Basel Miami. The boldly painted pink back wall is HOT HOT HOT!
Nepenthe’s artwork on exhibit is never static. Thursday evening events are the cure for the what-to-do midweek blues. From Frederic Church to Miro, Warhol, Gilliam, Bearden, Basquiat, Kusama, or local favorites Barbara Januszkiewicz, Marsha Steiger, or Camille Koumoumdjian, there’s something for every taste and budget.
The twelve-foot-high Jai can be yours to keep for $25,000. And if you’re not able to make the trek to Boston this month, and don’t plan to visit the Harborview Hotel on Martha’s Vineyard any time soon, there’s good news! The Great Elephant Migration Project will be joining Jai in the DMV. Dates TBD. So stay tuned.
Falling for Fall Art Festivals
The 24th Annual Howard Alan Alexandria Art Festival is coming to John Carlyle Square Park on Saturday, September 26, and Sunday, September 27. The festival features a juried selection of artwork from local and national fine artists across every medium. Offerings include life-sized sculpture, paintings, jewelry, pottery, and textiles. This festival has been voted as one of the top-ranked art festivals in the nation by Sunshine Artist magazine.
And mark your calendar for Art on the Avenue in Del Ray on October 3. Why not go to both and then decide which one was your favorite?
The elegant evening in the garden promises period cocktails, live razzmatazz jazz, and flapper-style frolicking. Sorry, no fountains to jump into – yet. But knowing Board of Directors President Ed Horn, it may well be in the pipeline of historically accurate projects and improvements that Sips and Secrets benefits. Currently, the outhouse is marked for restoration. While not as glamorous as doing the Charleston under a starry sky, restoring the necessary was a necessity.
So is raising funds for projects such as the house basement renovation, the chimney repair, the stunning facelift of Alexandria’s favorite painted lady, and the pending new fencing perimeter. Individual tickets are $105 with a tax-deductible value of $60. Ladies, find your finest flapper beads and feather headbands. Gents, don your zazziest jazz suit for a night to remember. For tickets and sponsorship opportunities go to the Lee-Fendall website or Eventbrite NOW!
