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The Eyes Teaching The Hands
Opening February 5th
February brings the passion, beauty and metaphysical symbolism of the human form and spirit of Kirk Vaughn-Robinson’s
bronze sculptures to daas
Gallery. A well rounded and accomplished artist, Vaughn-Robinson creates the edgy drama of what his eyes want to see, through
his hands. His sculptures are the result of deep meditation, dreams and day
dreams as well as his passion for the performing arts. The opening reception is scheduled for Friday, February 5th, in conjunction with the
monthly Fort Myers Art Walk.
Kirk Vaughn-Robinson received a Bachelor of Music Degree
in Vocal Performance from Converse
College in Spartanburg, SC. He performed as an Apprentice Artist with the Santa Fe Opera and was also awarded a scholarship to the American Institute
of Musical Studies in Graz, Austria. He
has also performed roles with the Cincinnati
Opera, Cincinnati Opera Outreach, Dayton Opera, Sorg
and Whitewater Opera Companies. He has been a cast member of the National Broadway Tour of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s The Phantom of the Opera for 11 years and currently sculpts while touring
the country 365 days a year. Vaughn-Robinson is currently showing 9 sculptures in his first New York gallery show at
the Leslie/Lohman Gallery in SoHo (Nov. 17- Jan. 23). He will also be a featured artist in two upcoming coffee table books Simply the Best and 100 Artist of the Male Figure.
To create the perfect harmony, we have invited two of the most talented artists of South West
Florida to take over our walls for the month of February. Erin Hefron, recently graduated from the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD), brings the texture, romanticism and classic feel with her beautifully crafted paintings
and Rob Stegman captures the mystery and beauty of enchanted locations with his photography.
The exhibition will be on display through Saturday, February 27th, 2010.
David Acevedo's
works featured at the SECC in Glasgow, Scotland
The
Homes and Interiors exhibition 2009 returns to Glasgow’s SECC for its fifth year, having firmly
established itself as the leading interiors event in the country. There is a wealth of wonderful exhibits including
designer workshops, wine tasting and flower arranging. New this year is a dedicated Art Gallery section showing
a huge variety of styles with something to suit everyone.
Ronnie Ford and the Vibrant Art Movement will
be occupying stand K2 for the three days of the show, exhibiting new Ford TextureScapes, a selection of Vibrant
Artists including paintings from David Acevedo from USA, illustrations by Jonathan Jay Lee from Hong Kong, graffiti art by
Marcello from Switzerland and glass sculptures and jewellery from Petra Kaiser. Also on show Cushy numbers - limited
edition hand-made cushions by Carol Ford. Original paintings and high quality prints available.
Celebrating Our First Anniversary:
The Happy Birthday daas Contest!
Yes!
Your favorite gallery in downtown Fort Myers is celebrating its first anniversary. It seems like yesterday
when we first had that talked about salad buffet at the very first opening reception on August 22, 2008. For those who missed
it or do not remember, the very first exhibition at daas was called “Comienzo: The Artists of daas”. It was a fantastic collective of the artists that daas chose to represent. Pieces from important local,
national and international artists established what would be a series of phenomenal and successful opening receptions throughout
2008 and until today. This first exhibition not only presented beautiful and contemporary art work to our visitors, but also
established daas’ reputation as a hip, modern, edgy and essential for the art scene of South West Florida.
To celebrate this first anniversary,
daas is raffling an original painting by Lee County’s Visual Artist of the Year 2009 David Acevedo. Every customer who makes a purchase of over $30.00 between August 22 and September 22, 2009 will receive
a raffle ticket. The winner will be announced on September 25th on this website. So stop by and see if you can
be the proud owner of an original Acevedo painting and keep supporting the local art scene!
David Acevedo: International Artist
Yes, he is! David Acevedo's art work is currently being exhibited at the Atelier
23 Studio in Scottland. Ronnie Ford and his lovely wife Carol fell in love with Acevedo's art work when they visited Fort
Myers for Ronnie's Texturescape exhibition in our gallery. Ford, who uses vibrant colors for his creations, felt a direct
connection with Acevedo's work as they share that same passion for color and texture.
Art and Movement:
daas’ Interpretation of Two Ancient Practices for the Mind, Body and Spirit
Staying true to their promise, daas Gallery is coming up with two new and exciting
workshops: Yogaart(An artsy approach to Yoga) and The Art of Belly Dancing sessions.
The
gallery has joined forces with three of the best instructors in the area and together they have created a program that integrates
the body and the arts. Certainly thinking “waay outside the box” as their slogan promises, the directors
at daas Gallery strive to bring to South West Florida modern art and innovative events that are normally found in bigger and
cosmopolitan cities. “The mix of Yoga and Art seemed logical to me” says owner and curator David Acevedo in reference
to the “Yogaart” sessions. Participants will experience a Yoga class with a very artistic twist where they will
draw their experience with a specific color during a meditation exercise. Certified instructors Jessica Mankoff and Rhiannon
Mayhugh will guide our visitors through a wonderful journey of relaxation and art therapy. Multiple sessions are opening starting
Tuesday June 16th at 5:00pm.
The
Art of Belly Dancing is another fascinating interactive event where participants will experience a connection with their body
and its movements. Geared towards the artistic aspects of the Belly Dance, veteran instructor Na’ila will share her
knowledge and passion for this beautiful way of artistic expression. There will be a session for beginners on Thursdays from
5:30pm to 6:30pm and a Tribal Belly Dance session on Sundays from 7:30pm to 8:30pm.
Yogaart
and The Art of Belly Dancing sessions are scheduled to begin in mid June. Participants can sign up online at www.daasgallery.com or by calling 239-939-1194. Walk ins are also welcomed during scheduled classes. To see a full
calendar and more information, please visit the gallery’s website.
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And the Winners are...
The Lee County Alliance of the Arts proudly announced the winners of the 6th Annual Angels of the Arts Awards on Monday, April 6th at The Broadway Palm Dinner Theatre.
Host, Bill Wood from Fox 4 entertained guests between
award presentations and performances by Kacie Phillips, Paul Gavin and Kat Epple.
Winners were selected from 82 individual nominees in 13 categories.
And the 2009 winners are...
Literary Artist of the Year: Lorraine A. Vail
Arts Teacher of the Year: Dr. Carol
A. Nabatoff
Arts Volunteer of the Year: Shareen Groce
Arts Journalist of the Year:
Shawn Holiday
Arts Organization of the Year: Art League of Bonita Springs
Business Arts Sponsor
of the Year: Commissioner Tami Hall
Young Artist of the Year: Joshua Galang
New Artist
of the Year: Daniel Calvert
Performance Artist of the Year: Kat Epple
Organization
Leader of the Year: Tom DeMarchi
Arts Publication of the Year: Happenings Arts & Entertainment
Magazine
Visual Artist of the Year: David Acevedo
Artist: Lifetime Achievement:
Bruce Gora (posthumously)
The Angels of the Arts Awards recognizes the positive and essential impact of artists, art organizations,
artistic educators and supporters in Lee County.
And the Winner is...
Julia Perry was the winner of the original piece "Mint City Girl"
created by David Acevedo and donated by daas Gallery for the Art Walk December contest. Participants purchased the collectible
Art Walk button and names with information were collected for the drawing. There will be more contests and new buttons every
first Friday of the month during Art Walk. Julia and Tom Krakauer claimed their prize during daas' Christmas Party on December
19th.
Congratulations to Julia and Tom!
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| David Acevedo with Linda Perry and Tom Krakauer, winners of the original piece "Mint City Girl" |
Art Walk Downtown Fort Myers:
Now means SUCCESS!
We did it! Art Walk Downtown Fort Myers' premiere was a huge success
for galleries, restaurants and businesses in general. The amount of visitors was beyond what everyone involved expected, but
hoped for.
Hundreds of people walked the streets of downtown Fort Myers wearing their Art Walk buttons
and ejoying great art, music and food! Every single gallery was crowded! Friday, October 3rd, 2008 marked a page in the
history of this city without a doubt!
MATTHEW DAVIS
RECEIVES SPECIAL RECOGNITION
daas Artist MATTHEW DAVIS of CAPE CORAL,
FLORIDA has received two Special Recognition Merit Awards for artwork in the "10th Annual Abstraction Juried Online International Art Exhibition” hosted
by Upstream People Gallery.
This international exhibition received approximately 300 entries
from around the world including artists from China, Ireland, Japan, Belgium and the
Republic of Tchad in Chad and Canada. Fifty-one artists were selected by the juror Larry Bradshaw, Professor of Art at the University
of Nebraska at Omaha, U. S. A.
Professor Bradshaw states this about this
specially recognized work:
"MATTHEW
DAVIS of Cape Coral, Florida has a fanciful way of working in watercolor especially noted in his works "Hearts Wild" and "Orchestrated
Melody"."
The exhibition will be featured online through
October 31, 2008
at www.upstreampeoplegallery.com and continue for 12 months, closing September 30,
2009.
Further information about the artist’s
work in their own words:
'"Orchestrated Melody” is the last piece of my previous series, Energetic Configurations. "Hearts
Wild" is the first piece of my new series, Soul Songs. Both stem from the same theme, getting out of my own way, and are fueled
by spontaneity. In the newest series I have been moving away from the raw free form calligraphy like approach to a more formed
type of art."'
Finally here! Downtown Fort Myers Art Walk!!
We've all been waiting for it. Our downtown needs it. It is a sign of growth and togetherness! What it is? Well, it’s
our very own Art Walk!
Downtown Fort Myers’ elite has gotten together to give
life to an idea that has been on everyone’s mind for a long time. With a solid group of business owners and the help
of the city of Fort Myers, the Art Walk will have it’s debut the first Friday of every month starting October 3rd, 2008.
Galleries and restaurants will be open during the event from
6pm to 10pm. There will be Opening Receptions and performance arts for everyone’s enjoyment. Many surprises for all
art supporters and enthusiasts! The Downtown Fort Myers Art Walk committee is excited and hoping for complete success. It
is a solid step towards the creation of our Arts District of Downtown Fort Myers!
Successful "Soft" Opening:
Not so "Soft!!"
"Honestly, we did not expect that many people there!!" The "soft" opening party for daas Gallery was not quite as ancticipated
by gallery owners, David Acevedo and Xavier Brignoni. There were lots of people there, including friends, family, artists
and the media. Food was great and the wine was abundant!
If you missed the party, do not worry! There is always a "Grand" Opening!!
October 3rd at 6pm, daas will have an even bigger celebration to let Fort Myers and all of SW Florida know they
are there and they mean business! Art business!!
The Phoenix
is About to Rise!
Carved out of solid wood, a beautiful and very special sign is being hand carved by gallery owner, David Acevedo. Using
traditional wood carving tools, he is hammering his way through an intricate design of the daas Gallery symbol: the Phoenix.
Driven, as always, and ignoring the wrist
pain, Acevedo has managed to carve the phoenix on both sides of a solid, round wood plank. Other signs in the building and
neighboring businesses are typical rectangular shapes with cast plaster lettering imitating a carved chunk of wood. Not intending
to put anyone’s work down, Acevedo could not bear the thought of a generic looking sign for his gallery. Having the
talent and the drive, he decided to create it himself. After all, the folks at
daas always think “waay” outside the box!
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