Ethan Chan: 'Selections From the Closets of the People That I Love'
Visual art
Sculptor, installation and performance artist Ethan Chan will open a new exhibition at Oceanside Museum of Art this weekend.
This show is a series of garments made from cafeteria and fast-food restaurant sauce packets. Chan has turned hundreds of miniature plastic-foil rectangles of ketchup, soy sauce, mayo, mustard, etc., into clothing.
Beyond the shock is a quieter undercurrent: Chan created each piece with a friend in mind, then documented those friends wearing the outfits at home, going about their day. The photography is powerful and draws on ideas of consumerism, individuality and style. Just don't sit on any white couches.
Details: On view Saturday, Jan. 14 through Apr. 30, 2023. This weekend's museum hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. Oceanside Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside. $0-$10.
Shellie Zhang Studio Series + Art of Elan
Music, Visual art
ICA San Diego-North artist in residence Shellie Zhang will discuss her work and "What We Bring and Leave" exhibition with UC San Diego-based composer Lei Liang. Liang and Zhang's works intersect with themes of home and migration.
Following the discussion, the musical ensemble Art of Elan will showcase compositions by Liang. The artist talk and Q&A will begin at 6:15 p.m., and the performance starts at 7:15 p.m.
Details: 5:30-8:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 13. ICA San Diego-North, 1550 S. El Camino Real, Encinitas. Free (RSVP required).
Eva Struble: 'Midden'
Visual art
The Athenaeum Music and Arts Library will open a solo exhibition of new work from San Diego State University professor of painting and printmaking Eva Struble.
The exhibition, "Midden," looks at the mutual human impact on nature (think: altered landscapes) as well as nature's impact on human structures (think: infestations). The term midden is used for piles of trash or refuse, whether created by humans or animals and often store information and "clues." The pieces range from large paintings to even larger textile hangings. Struble's works appear both natural — almost bucolic — and complicated, with a rich and sometimes disruptive use of color.
Details: Opens with a reception at 6:30 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 13, and is on view through Mar. 4. Athenaeum Music and Arts Library, 1008 Wall St., La Jolla. Free.
'Blues in the Night'
Theater, Music
North Coast Repertory Theatre will open a production of the Sheldon Epps-conceived musical revue "Blues in the Night," which follows a cast of singer-actors through their stories and plenty of blues hits.
Bessie Smith's "Nobody Knows You When You're Down and Out" and "Wasted Life Blues," the titular "Blues in the Night" by Harold Arlen and Johnny Mercer, and dozens more songs pepper a dialogue-free story of heartbreak and survival from the perspectives of three scorned women. It's directed by Yvette Freeman Hartley and stars Karole Foreman, Anise Ritchie, Elijah Rock and Ciarra Stroud.
Details: Opening night is Jan. 14, and it's on stage through Feb. 5. Remaining preview performances are 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 12; and 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Friday, Jan. 13 ($57). Regular performances this weekend are 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday; and 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday. North Coast Repertory Theatre, 987 Lomas Santa Fe Dr., Solana Beach. $60-$68.
'Edgar Allan Poe's Gruesome Gallery of Grotesquerie'
Theater, Youth
San Diego Junior Theatre presents a new original work, conceived by their students and based on the work of Edgar Allan Poe. It's a musical, so expect some original songs (composed by Morgan Hollingsworth) and there's also elements of dance, puppetry, poetry and storytelling. The play is geared toward ages 10 and up.
Details: On stage Jan. 13-22, 2023. Performances are 7 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 3 p.m. on Sunday. Casa del Prado Theatre, 1600 Village Pl., Balboa Park. $16-$18.
Hyeyeon Kim: 'We Miss'
Visual art
Best Practice (in the Bread and Salt complex) will open the first U.S. solo exhibition of Hyeyeon Kim's work with "We Miss." The show includes several videos and performance works, and one piece is made using only leftover or spare footage from prior projects.
"Looking at the huge amount of trash that is waiting because there is no more space to dump it, it seems that mankind can now be sustained with what has already been made," Kim wrote in her artist statement. "Potential trash sleeping in the corners of computers, cell phones, and external hard drives? This time, I will call them potential works."
Kim received her MFA from UC San Diego and is based in Seoul, South Korea. One of the works, "Take Care," involves live performance art beamed live from South Korea at 6:30 p.m. each Saturday during the exhibition — not just to Best Practice but to an extensive CCTV network in Seoul's metro region.
Details: Opens with a reception at 5-8 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 14 and is on view through Feb. 18. Best Practice, 1955 Julian Ave., Logan Heights. Free.
Even more at Bread and Salt:
Sibyl Rubottom will hold an artist talk and walkthrough of her survey exhibition, "Visual Memoir: 1962-2022," beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday at the Athenaeum Art Center during Barrio Art Crawl. I recently spent some time with Rubottom to profile her work with the AAC Print Studio. She retires this month. Check out my feature here.
Marisol Rendón's "En La Ribera del Rio Cauca" closes on Jan. 21, so consider this your final Barrio Art Crawl extended hours to see it. The building will be open until 8 p.m.
Following the gallery hours, Francisco Eme's sound art performance of "Treatise on Violence: The Invention of Us," presented by Project [BLANK], will take place at 8 p.m. in the Brick Room. $10.
Soul Shack's Anniversary Show: Drug Hunt, RhymeStyle Troop and more
Music
Soda Bar is host to a showcase to celebrate three years of Soul Shack, a Normal Heights record shop. Performers are psychedelic rockers Drug Hunt, hip hop artist RhymeStyleTroop, Yazi the Lyricist, Iconoclash and The Jake Najor Trio. Sal from Thee Sacred Souls will deliver a vinyl DJ set.
And, of course, another big music name in town is celebrating an anniversary this weekend: The Casbah is holding a packed weekend of shows to commemorate its 34th birthday, but they're all sold out.
Details: Soul Shack's Anniversary Show is at 7 p.m. Sunday, Jan. 15. Soda Bar, 3615 El Cajon Blvd., City Heights. $10-$12.
For more arts events and Editor's Picks, or to submit your own, visit the KPBS/Arts Calendar. And be sure to sign up for the weekly KPBS/Arts newsletter.
