Artista Vista

More than a dozen galleries in the Vista will participate in Artista Vista, Columbia’s oldest gallery crawl.

As part of the 21st annual event, the galleries, open from 5-9 tonight, will be offering visitors beverages and hors d’oeuvres as well as insight to their various art exhibits. (Artista Vista continues Friday and Saturday during regular business hours.)

This year streets throughout the Vista will be closed so that attendees can experience artistic installations and music in car lanes.

“We thought if we closed the streets it would give the event a different feel,” said Clark Ellefson, head of the Vista Gallery Group and owner of Lewis + Clark gallery.

The closure has enabled “Live Art on Lincoln.” Graffiti artists Dalvin Spann and Cedric Umoja will be painting graffiti on an old car in the street throughout the evening.

Live music performances will include alto sax player Chris Andrews, who will be playing outside of Nonnah’s and Carol Saunders Gallery. Violinist Brian McCullough will be playing inside Nonnah’s. Rock duo Prettier Than Matt will be playing under the Lincoln Street canopy while Kerk Sponge Band will play bluegrass at Gallery 80808.

There will also be six public art installations. From “Rangoli: Giant Bird Feeder,” an Indian-inspired sculpture created from natural materials, to “Ghost Trees,” stumps and trees made of layered paper and adhesive, the installations aim to complement the art inside the galleries.

“It’s a way to add something else to the whole experience,” said Jeffrey Day, who organized the installations. “It gets people outside to look at the art in some fresh ways. I think it generates a little more talk because it’s a different sort of approach.”

Last year, all the art installations were housed in a single building and were only up for three days. All but one of the installations will be outside this year and they will be up for a month.

McKissick Museum provided funding for the installations.

McKissick director Jane Przybysz said that the museum’s collaboration with Artista Vista is an opportunity to enhance its presence in the community while it remains closed for renovations. “There are a lot of people in the community that don’t really know what we do,” Przybysz said. “The museum doesn’t have that street presence and doesn’t have a lot of community visibility.”

McKissick Museum’s primary mission is to document stories of Southern life, and to educate the community about the cultural heritage and natural environment of South Carolina. The installations in Artista Vista follow this theme as well.

“I was thrilled to see how many of the pieces were inspired by folk traditions and used craft-based media,” Przybysz said.

Trustus Theatre will join the Artista Vista party by offering “A Behanding in Spokane,” a Black Box show, Thursday through Saturday. Managing director Kay Thigpen said that the show is a natural fit for the gallery crawl because it’s funny and offbeat.

“You don’t have too many shows about a man looking for his missing hand,” Thigpen said, adding that attendees should plan to end their night with the full length show after they have had their fill of the galleries.

Ellefson said Artista Vista has changed a lot since its humble beginnings with only three galleries in the mid-1980s.

“Back then, the district was still on the wrong side of the tracks and run-down,” Ellefson said. “Now we have a greater density of art galleries here than anywhere else in the city. (Artista Vista) showcases that.”

Ellefson said Artista Vista has more media and video displays this year. At The Gallery DuPre, for example, Barry Brian Wheeler’s “Instant Vista” photography exhibit uses instant cameras and smart phones. “Technology has certainly changed. It’s not just paintings on canvas anymore,” Ellefson said.

Attendees can also merge art and technology by participating in the Artista Vista Foursquare contest. By downloading Foursquare onto their smart phones, visitors can “check in” at each gallery and a tip will pop up about the gallery and the art being viewed. It’s a way for people to follow along and learn more about each gallery. Participants will be eligible to win a certificate to Motor Supply Company Bistro.

“If you like the arts, there’s definitely a lot to see,” Ellefson said. “it’s a great celebration of the visual arts in our community and most of us think that’s pretty important stuff.”

This story was originally published April 26, 2012 at 12:00 AM with the headline "Artista Vista ."