Center for the Arts to Open January 2023 Exhibitions
Media contact: Jamie Dunn / Bay Arts Alliance / [email protected] / 850.640.3670
PANAMA CITY, Florida (December 20, 2022) – The Panama City Center for the Arts rings in the new year with two new exhibitions on Friday, January 6, with the opening reception taking place on Friday, January 13 from 5:00pm-7:00pm.
The main gallery features Christopher Kuhl’s “Skyscapes”, Aida Torres will show her work in the Café gallery, and Barbara Sarber’s Christmas Village and the Candy Cane Lane experience continue to be on display in the Miller and Higby galleries.
“We are excited to be hosting both of these unique artists in January at the Center for the Arts,” said Jayson Kretzer, executive director of Bay Arts Alliance. “Christopher Kuhl’s work has been seen in galleries across the globe and Aida Torres is one of our talented local artists. Their styles should make for a nice pairing as we kick off the New Year with art.”
Highly regarded by critics and even world-renowned musician Wynton Marsalis, Christopher Kuhl has an extensive résumé in the art world. He served as the Visual Arts Program Administrator for the City of Atlanta during the 1996 Olympics, and has shown his works in galleries from New York City to Tokyo. For his exhibition, “Skyscapes”, Richard Vine of Art in America magazine said, “Christopher Kuhl’s newest paintings are, in their luscious visual impact, a departure from his earlier socially embedded works. The point of departure…seems to be the contemplation of lushly colored sunsets over a tropical ocean—a subject that envelopes both the eye and the ‘I’ in a seamless melding of sky and water, self and nature, suggesting a third state of being: a purely aesthetic experience.”
Aida Torres, a resident of Panama City since the age of four, will be showing a selection of portraits in the Café gallery inspired by characters in film. To achieve as much realism as possible in her portraits, Torres uses an interesting technique: “I do this weird thing where I try to blur my vision and just focus on the shape of what I’m trying to draw– it helps me with proportions. Once I get the simple shapes down, I go in with the limbs, the face, the details… Shading and implied lines are my best friend when it comes to a face.” This collection started with a portrait of Sarah Williams from one of her favorite movies, The Labyrinth, starring Jennifer Connelly. “I just have always loved how dreamlike that movie is and the music is almost always playing in my head.”
Continuing from last month, the Dickens’ Christmas Village, with over two hundred buildings and twelve different sections, will be on display in the Miller gallery. A one-sheet guide to the exhibit will be provided, as well as a special task for visitors wanting an in-depth look at the village. The Candy Cane Lane experience, with a larger-than-life gingerbread house, will also be open.
Visitors are invited to meet this month’s exhibiting artists at the opening reception on Friday, January 13 from 5:00pm-7:00pm. The exhibits will remain open through Saturday, January 28.
The Center for the Arts is open Tuesday–Thursday 10am–5pm, Friday 10am-7pm, and Saturday 10am-5pm.
Bay Arts Alliance: Since 1978, Bay Arts Alliance has served as the local arts agency for Bay County.
Panama City Center for the Arts: Panama City Center for the Arts in downtown Panama City is housed in the beautiful 1925 historic City Hall building. Panama City Center for the Arts is managed by Bay Arts Alliance.
