Two new exhibitions opening this Friday at The Gallery at Vivid Solutions and Honfleur Gallery

The Gallery at Vivid Solu/ons and Honfleur Gallery are pleased to announce two exhibitions opening April 26, 2013. Figures in Jazz by John K. Lawson at Honfleur Gallery presents large-­‐ scale vibrant collage portraits of jazz legends, including Louis Armstrong, Charlie Parker, Miles Davis, Nina Simone, Wynton Marsalis, and Miles Davis. Unsung Jazz by Antoine Sanfuentes at The Gallery at Vivid Solu/ons brings together the photographer’s ongoing project of documen/ng the local jazz performers who have had a substan/al impact on jazz in Washington, DC but are rela/vely unknown outside the area. There will be a joint opening recep/on with the ar/sts on Friday April 26, 2013 from 6-­‐8 p.m., with a performance by the Nasar Abadey Trio from 8-­‐10 p.m. There will be two addi/onal jazz performances at Honfleur Gallery during the course of the exhibi/ons; on May 16th and on June 6th.

John K. Lawson was born in Birmingham, England in 1962 and raised mostly in the countryside un/l his family moved to South London when he was a young teenager. He first came to America on a student exchange program in engineering at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. There his ar/s/c abili/es were encouraged, and he returned to England two years later to concentrate on landscape pain/ng. Eventually, Lawson was drawn back to the Deep South, and soon became part of an underground art culture in New Orleans that included working in tacoo, T-­‐shirt and mural designs long before these mediums became mainstream. Hurricane Katrina submerged his studio and destroyed 25 years’ worth of artwork and ephemera. Lawson began to rework the damaged remnants into collages and started working in the manner in which he made the Figures in Jazz portraits.



Lawson explained his inten/ons for this body of work, “My wish was for these portraits to become universal documents, exploding with an inner energy not only found in music but also in our mul/ layered everyday life.” Although the original work is not for sale, limited edition reproductions of the work are available. Addi/onally, Lawson and Honfleur Gallery produced a book to accompany the exhibition that pairs each of the Figures in Jazz portraits with original poems by Lawson. Copies of the book will be available for purchase throughout the exhibition.

Unsung Jazz marries two of Antoine Sanfuentes’ personal interests, jazz and documentary photography, together in an exhibition that lends an insider’s look into the Washington, DC jazz scene. An Emmy-­‐winning producer and talented documentary photographer, Sanfuentes also works closely with People Encouraging People, an organiza/on that supports disabled and disadvantaged people in the Bal/more area. He is an accomplished drummer and music enthusiast. Sanfuentes received his Bachelor's degree in anthropology from American University.

Sanfuentes is the Senior Vice President of NBC News. Most recently, Sanfuentes served as NBC News Vice President and Washington Bureau Chief. In his 20 years as a journalist, Sanfuentes has covered virtually every corner of the globe including Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2009, Sanfuentes coordinated NBC News' Special "Inside the Obama White House" reported by Brian Williams. Over his time at NBC News, Sanfuentes has also produced notable coverage from across Africa alongside Ann Curry; including reports from Darfur, the eastern Congo and a historic interview with Sudanese President Omar al-­‐Bashir.

Immediately following the opening recep/on with the artists, Nasar Abadey Trio will play a free jazz concert from 8-­‐10 pm. Nasar Abadey is a drummer, composer and leader of SUPERNOVA.

Honfleur Gallery and The Gallery at Vivid Solu/ons are pleased to be partnering with Twins Jazz to produce the three jazz performances that will take place over the course of Figures in Jazz and Unsung Jazz. Both exhibi/ons run through June 28, 2013. The exhibi/ons are partially funded by the National Endowment for the Arts.

Honfleur Gallery is a contemporary fine art gallery located in Historic Anacostia at 1241 Good Hope Road SE, Washington, DC 20020. The Gallery at Vivid Solutions is a photography and digital exhibition space, that opened in 2009. It has relocated to the upstairs space at Honfleur Gallery. Honfleur Gallery opened in 2007. Both are projects of ARCH Development Corporation.

www.archdevelopment.org | www.honfleurgallery.com | www.vividsolu8onsgallery.com | www.twinsjazz.com