NM2007 - Visual Art - Albuquerque

Before jutting up to Santa Fe or Taos, stop in the state's urban depot — downtown Albuquerque — for a look at an appreciable variety of established, emerging, and cutting-edge artists.

Richard Levy Gallery (514 Central Ave. SW) shows some of the biggest names in contemporary art: John Balderssari, Thomas Demand, Damien Hirst, Ed Ruscha, Richard Tuttle, Andrea Zittel, and many others.

The gallery's neighbor is the nonprofit 516 Arts (516 Central Ave. SW), a gallery-style art space not to be missed. Its inaugural exhibition, Green, featured 56 works by 23 artists in a variety of media, including one of Taos-based artist Larry Bell's signature glass cubes and stellar examples by New Mexico and Southwest artists Mary Tsiongas, Delilah Montoya, and Joel-Peter Wilkin (Albuquerque), Diego Romero (Cochiti Pueblo), Iva Morris (Las Nutrias), Luis Jimenez (Hondo), and Grant Hayunga, who shows with Linda Durham Contemporary Art in Santa Fe.

The downtown area also serves up hip-hop art and culture at Ace Barber Shop (109 Fourth St. SW); representational work at Concetta D Gallery and Indian arts and crafts at House of Halako, both in The Galeria (20 First Plaza NW); and edgy contemporary art at Albuquerque Contemporary Art Center (301 Mountain Rd. SW), bivouac artspace (1413 Fourth St. SW), and Donkey Gallery (1415 Fourth St. SW).

Nemat Galleries (419-A San Felipe NW) specializes in fine 19th and 20th century American and European art, as well as antique, vintage, and new Oriental rugs, and period photography, engravings, and lithographs. Indeed, traditional Southwest and Native American works also permeate the galleries of Albuquerque, a city that offers a public art tour (www.cabq.gov/publicart/).

For information about ARTScrawl,visit www.artscrawlabq.org or call (505) 244-0362.

SAML, Chad Person’s U.S. currency on canvas from his Tax Cuts series, appears in Attention to Detail, a group show at 516 Arts, through July 21, 2007.
Photo: 516 Arts