Park out front-plenty of parking-and come on in. You wouldn’t
have guessed that the Center includes multiple art studios, a gallery, a theater, even an
art-filled coffee shop and about a thousand and one activities going on at any time of the
day, evening or weekend.
First you might want to sample some of the activities in the Open
Multi-Sensory or Classroom Studios. You’re told the many established programs have
been enhanced by visiting artists-in-residence from around New Mexico and the world. Today
an Ojibwe basket weaver from Minnesota, tomorrow a drummer from Uganda, next week a
mask-maker from Albuquerque. There are evening dance classes, art therapy groups,
community meetings and more.
Ready for a look at the art? These works are produced here and
throughout the community by artists who, in many cases, portray an “outsiders”
perspective of art and life. It’s all here at the Center’s Community Gallery. In
the larger room, an exhibit consists of new work created by apprentice artists. From deep
rich swirls of blue, gray, olive that seem to bring a rainy day indoors, to bright squares
marching crisply across the paper, to delicately-presented watercolors of New Mexico
landscapes. It’s abstract in one frame, intricately detailed underwater world in
another, and over there the head of a beautiful Indian woman emerges from bright slashes
of primary colors.
The work featured this month in the smaller gallery space is from a
group home for the mentally ill and homeless, selected for the idiosyncratic choice of
style and subject. A variety of habitats familiar to the homeless are depicted in chalk,
oil and pencil, and through the very clever use of doll houses and furniture made
shabbily-livable with touches of paint and scraps of fabric. There’s even a park,
complete with hobby store trees and a miniature sleeping bag. Not your usual art show, is
it?
If it’s getting late, why not grab a bite to eat before
returning for the evening’s show? Right in the neighborhood there’s the
town’s best barbecue, authentic “New Mexican” at more than a few places,
real coffeehouse with coffee and scones minutes away, or any one of several other sandwich
and pizza choices nearby. North Fourth is booming… looking, tasting and sounding
better all the time.
Back for the show. The lights are lit, the music is playing…
You’ve arrived for an evening at the Center’s Theater North, a 100 seat
black-box theater. Hmmm… nice theater… flexible seating… fully
accessible… good dance floor… quality lighting and sound… this will be
great!
Just enough time for a quick coffee and a giant cookie in the coffee
shop before the show starts. The young guy pouring coffee says proudly that he’s one
of the apprentice artists here during the day and helps operate the concession at
night.
So what’s playing tonight? Could be an evening of work by the
Buen Viaje Dance Company, or the Equilibrium Theater Company—VSA arts’ companies
of talented and professional artists with and without disabilities. Their perspective is
unique—a visit to another way of thinking and doing, another realm of ideas, another
culture.
Wait…maybe tonight is that North Valley rock musical Freedom
High students have been working on with a local playwright.
Actually, looks like tonight’s presentation is part of a touring
series—a brilliant hip hop dance-theater artist from New York who has worked all of
his life on crutches, simultaneously fashioning a performance career around the world and
creating work for Cirque d’Soleil and other prominent performing groups.
Seems Theater North focuses on what’s uniquely creative in
Albuquerque and the world.
Now the evenings over. You stroll out to the car, full of good art,
good dance, good cookies and coffee—and full of amazement. You had no
idea…innovative and challenging work being created by artists who you had previously
thought of as disabled…and now just think of as talented or brilliant or unique or
visionary…or all of the above!
THE PRESENT
BACK to 2002. Between now and “the future” is only a little time, a lot of hard work and YOUR SUPPORT.