Art in a (sweat) box

An art show on wheels is a pretty clever idea, especially when you're getting the wheels at a 20-percent discount (thank you very much Ryder trucks). While I perused the 24-foot long truck, Ryder Richards (one-third of the Lubbock team that brought the Nomadic Gallery to the Southwest School of Art & Craft) gladly spoke to the steady stream of art patrons. On Saturday, the last day of the two-day showing, the truck was parked directly behind SSAC, in the back of the Central Library, and passersby stopped to catch a glimpse of what Richards and the all-Lubbock produced art show had to offer.


The Nomadic Gallery made a special SA stop in honor of CAM and showed us city folk what the hometown of the late, great Buddy Holly has cooked art-wise. The gallery's mission statement says, "We are the jaws-of-life for the three car pile-up of installed inspirational pursuits, but there is still more work to be done … " The gallery reflects the statement perfectly. For some the space was a sauna with fancy pieces of works decorating the interior walls — but it's definitely an artistic work-in-progress. From Ryder's  nostalgic acrylic on wood mixed-media pieces to Piotr Chizinski's cast aluminum replicas of houses, the featured artists made the most of their small quarters and amazed with the simplest of art forms, such as Jon Whitfill's "Encylclopedia Fame, Vol. IV," seen below, which is a mixed-media piece that contained 80 1-by-1 images of famous figures. (I know for certain I spotted Marie Antoinette, as for the rest I was a bit fuzzy with the names.)

San Antonio marks the eighth stop for the Nomadic Gallery and although gas prices are a killer, Ryder and the rest of the gang aren't hitting the brakes just yet. They're taking a bit of a siesta, but be sure to mark your calendars, their next stop is the Chinati Open House in Marfa on October 10.