Beyond the Studio

Tonight's 7 p.m. reception for Inda:5, an exhibition at Rockhurst's Greenlease Gallery (53rd Street and Troost, 816-501-4407), is about "building relationships with the public," according to co-curator Julia Cole, chair of interdisciplinary arts at the Kansas City Art Institute. "There's a core in the show of pieces that are oriented toward community engagement," she says. "So, for example, one of the pieces by a recent alum, Zach Springer, is called 'Build Something Together.' He's putting out fliers and letters in the community, inviting people to submit a request for him to come help them build something — anything from a treehouse to fixing a table or repairing a door. In the exhibit, there will be documentation of the projects he's done with people, showing and describing projects he's done."Kari Freitag's "Earning for Yearning" makes a similar public appeal: "She's making five drawings, all for sale at the show," Cole says. "There's an application form that people can fill out to go and visit someone close to them that they haven't seen for a long time. The money Kari makes from the work will go toward a ticket for them to travel and see that person. Her work is about relationships and connecting with other people. She's really interested in having that effect on the world.
Fri., March 20, 7-9 p.m., 2009