This spring, “Arts Season” is in full swing from new productions on stage to fresh vibes at music venues and local watering holes to visual art found on the walls from museums to galleries. The latter is my domain while esteemed colleagues of mine write about other parts of the local art scene for TheBurg. Gina Napoli expertly covers the theater scene much like critic Jesse Green of the New York Times, while Skye Leppo, music writer and 3rd in The Burg coordinator, skillfully wraps both, akin to Jon Carmanica, music critic for the Times. For April, Skye picked a trifecta of winners.

Good things come in threes: from primary colors to three coins in the fountain to the third time’s the charm. And as we know every picture tells a story. For three local photographers, their focus finds “form, flex, and flow,” featuring the human body and more as core to the narrative. Man about town, Nate Foster, the director of exhibitions at the Art Association of Harrisburg, flexes his artistic savoir-faire for his latest offering “form, flex, and flow,” the new show at the AAH that opened April 4 and runs through May 8, featuring the work of Evelyn Burton, Robert G. Nulph, and Michelle DiNicola. The opening reception is this Friday from 5 to 8 p.m.

“form, flex & flow” at Art Association of Harrisburg

There’s a lot to be said about old school techniques when it comes to photography. For award-winning photographer Evelyn Burton, the dark room is where the magic happens. With art credentials a-plenty, she brings a special skill set to produce images that transcend time using the knowledge gained from decades of experience. Evelyn divulged, “the solace of the dark room allows me to experiment…using traditional chemical photography…each negative provides the opportunity to try variations of material and technique, and to take that image as far as the imagination allows.”

“Some call her Sister of the Moon; some say illusions are her game…” In her haunting piano demo for “Sisters of the Moon,” Stevie Nicks’ paean of poetry pledges an oath of fealty to a fellow disciple. “She was dark at the top of the stairs, she called, she called, me…” Digital artist, mosaic manipulator and photographer, Michelle DiNicola specializes in digital compositions of urban and landscape photography. She traffics in the land found between twilight and dusk with an incendiary imagination lighting her way. One can almost sense the eerie emergence of fog filtering in from the moors, the flicker of a candle in the window, the turn of a key in the lock…a storyteller in ideas and images burning incandescently.

Retired professor Robert G. Nulph’s photography has moved on from the landscapes of nature to the body-scapes of the human figure sans clothes. After decades of photographing serene sunsets and coastal contemplations, his academic attention finds fascination with the feminine form of beauty unadorned. Today his photographic calling card features high-resolution nudes. Achieving perfection is not the goal here but does provide a lens for commentary on society’s idea of the feminine form. Nulph’s photographs promote form, flex and flow as part and parcel of the mystique and allure the naked female body holds in regal repose or standing sublimely sculpted, scintillatingly surreal.

“Is it Mr. Anderson or Neo, which do you prefer?” was never a line from “The Matrix,” but it could have been. For one, Douglas D. Anderson, who is not a “neo”-phyte painter in the art scene but an experienced artist, makes a valiant stand against agent Smith and all evil in the upstairs gallery at the AAH for his spring show. Being “the One” is a heavy mantle to carry, so let it suffice that Douglas is well among one of the Ones. At times, his style may resemble that of Grant Wood and at others makes a statement with his political pop art but always reflects a strong impressionistic ideology all his own. Collectively the paintings are front and center in his current show, “Recent Excrementations.” “Whoa!”

Jazz is truly the only music genre that is 100% pure American, stemming from its earliest roots in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Jazz emerged as an art form born in the African American communities of New Orleans, blending African and European musical traditions, constantly evolving into the extremely diverse branches and today appreciated by enthusiasts worldwide. Skye’s pick for “jazzophiles” locally comes from the 1926 phrase while, in 1932, “jazz cat” was the term coined to herald its audience. The Central Pennsylvania Friends of Jazz drops their latest gift as the Kirk Reese Trio mesmerizes the crowd for a memorable jam session. The evening is sponsored by Members 1st Federal Credit Union and takes place at Pursuit Coworking at 922 N. 3rd St., right next to TheBurg.

It is hard to believe that the Kirk Reese Trio has been together for four decades now as its members are the stuff of legend. With multi-talented Kirk, equally at home behind the piano or playing guitar or saxophone, the trio shines bright, lighting up CPFJ’s first jam of the season Friday night. With Steve Meashey on rhythm guitar and Jeff Stabley on the drums, the two propel the intricate nuances of jazz to new heights like a well-oiled machine. The chemistry between the musicians is undeniable. Be sure to catch their vibe from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. for a special night of music.

Exceptional entrepreneur Elyse Irvis of La Cultura has a vision so clear that she can see the future, bold and bright, fully formed and focused, always on display at the intersection of “artist hub and market space” for persons of color from all over the Eastern seaboard.

Night Market at La Cultura

Touted as a “Tri-state pop-up” of poetic personalities plying product and presentation under one roof makes for powerhouse events. Movers and shakers from Pennsylvania to Maryland and Virginia have all flocked, falling under La Cultura’s ethos. Taking it to the stratosphere, holding sway and swagger with aplomb, promotes their ideas and art to the max. Join this SoMa “Night Market” Friday found at 19½ N. 4th Street for an evening of art, cuisine and magic that you’ll help make.

Art Lover’s Unite!
Millworks Spring Bizarre takes place Saturday, April 26, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Meet the “Movers, Shakers and the Makers.” Feel free to be “Takers.” After you pay–no Miss-take–here’s the icing on the cake! Paintings, prints, jewelry and more . . . photographs, pottery, so much more in store. The Gallery is filled to overflowing. Bring a friend . . . you’ll both be glowing with the bounty and loot from 40 artists to boot!

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