OPENING:
Saturday September 6 from 12 - 12pm
Dally in the Alley 2008
“We
ain’t young anymore” 31st year! 2008
For the first time in the history of the Dally in the
Alley 2008 the chairman has decided to showcase two official
festival artists, in a collaborative effort between Donald
Calloway and U. Newkirk, II. Using this year's grassroots
theme, the artists were invited to create a painting taking
their own personal stance and freedom to expand on the
subject in correlation to the Dally in the Alley and Detroit
itself.
The
first designed Dally poster was in 1982 by Gary Grimshaw,
featuring Brian Taylor's dancing cats, replicas of which
grace a garage wall at Third and Forest. Other Dally poster
artists include Mark Heggie, Jerome Ferretti, Antonio
"Shades" Agee, and Mark L. Arminski.
This
year's first featured artist is Detroit native, Donald
Calloway who has been actively involved in the city's
art scene for over twenty years. Calloway recognized his
passion for the arts at the tender age of three and has
been solely dedicated to his artistic endeavors ever since.
He learned the technical aspects of the arts at the Center
for Creative Studies in the 1980's, and then continued
his dedication at the Greektown Lofts, where his studio
still resides.
Calloway's mixed-media art specializes in oils, watercolors,
pastels, drawings, paintings and sculptures. Although
Calloway delve in numerous outlets, his meticulous constructions,
intentional brush strokes, and bold use of colors erupt
a unique and aesthetically dynamic vision that grabs his
audience no matter what style or medium.
Calloway has exhibited his artwork at the Charles H Wright
Museum of African-American History, Arts Extended Gallery,
Delta Sigma Theta, and the National Conference of Artists
(to name a few). In addition, his art has also taken him
to such cities as New York, Washington D.C., and Chicago,
however despite Calloway's out of state success, he proudly
proclaims that Detroit is always considered home.
Furthermore, Calloway has been heavily dedicated to the
Detroit community through his art mentorship program organized
by The Arts League.
Now married, with a son, he continues his love for the
arts and says, "Art fuels his positive attitude."
The
second selected artist, Detroit born resident, U. Newkirk,
II is presently working on opening a shop in the Russell
Bazaar, under the Russell Industrial Center Development
project. His goal for the shop is to establish a venue
for the youth to collaborate in artistic ventures and
ideas. Amidst this project, he continues to work on art
but through a more commercial foundation.
Starting as a graffiti artist, Newkirk decided to increase
his knowledge of art by attending Crockett Vocational
School. He enjoys toiling with all art mediums, including:
painting, watercolor, acrylics, and writing. Being an
objective artist, Newkirk's motives in his artwork is
grounded on communication, especially having various meanings
for a single piece. His pieces then become, more so, a
tangible philosophy as oppose to an expression of artistic
virtuosity.
Newkirk's artwork has been exhibited at the Charles H.
Wright Museum of African American History, Johansson Charles
Gallery, Urban Park Gallery, and many others. Always being
dedicated to the community, he was also a Broadside Press
poet and an instructor at Wayne State and Osborn High
School. One can view a mural of Newkirk's at the Detroit
Public Library.
Now a father and grandfather, Newkirk continues to expand
the limitations of art through communication. Newkirk
states that one day he "looks forward to evolving
to the point where he can no longer worry about selling
his work, to do his art."
The 2008 Dally in the Alley artwork will be made available
on the website at the end of August, along with presenting
it on September 6th, 2008.
4632
Second Avenue
