10th Annual MUSE Art and Body Art Show
ArtPool ratchets it up a notch with models — laboriously and lovingly painted over eight hours. With video art, music and some other unannounced delights, think of this as the perfect first date or maybe a chance to meet someone as adventurous as you. Or, you know, just go because it's gonna be completely unparalleled. ArtPool Gallery, 2030 Central Ave., St. Pete. Feb. 10, 8 p.m.-12 a.m. $20; $45, VIP (suggested by CL). artpoolrules.com.
Bassmi Ibrahim: The Isness of Being
This exhibit of Cairo-born-but-Clearwater-based Bassmi Ibrahim’s series — Isness — features abstract, meditative works that encourage the viewer to look inward. Gallery 221, HCC Dale Mabry, 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd., Tampa. Mar. 16-May 4; reception, Mar. 29, 5 p.m. with 6 p.m. artist lecture. Mon.-Wed., 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thurs., 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; and Fri., 9 a.m.-2 p.m. 813-253-7386, hccfl.edu/gallery221.
Bay Life Art Exhibit & eARTh from Space
This show will feature Florida wildlife artists who paint our local paradise: Karen Baker, Bill Castleman, Elaine Hahn, Bill Renc, Joyce Walker and Sandra Williams. Meet NASA astronaut Nicole Stott, who painted aboard the International Space Station and, at 7 p.m., will talk about what that was like, which had to be... surreal. Tampa Bay Watch, 3000 Pinellas Bayway S., Tierra Verde. Feb. 23, 4-9 p.m. tampabaywatch.org.
Climate Change Cuba/USA
While one might be tempted to think this is a show about rising sea levels, acid eating our beloved coral reefs, and how one day I'll have waterfront property, no, that's not it — it's a show where eight artists use art to interpret the changing relationships between the USA and Cuba. Glexis Novoa, Celia y Yunior, Antonio Eligio Fernández "Tonel" and Javier Castro will exhibit new sculpture, painting, drawing, art installation and video that speak to these changes — or any lack thereof — on all levels, from governmental to personal. Curated by Noel Smith. USF CAM, 4202 E. Fowler Dr., Tampa. Through Mar. 3, with special events on Jan. 25, Feb. 8, Feb. 16, Feb. 22, Feb. 27 and Mar. 3. Mon.-Fri., 10 a.m.-5 p.m.; Thurs., 10 a.m.-8 p.m.; and Sat., 1-4 p.m. cam.usf.edu.
Operation Finale: The Capture & Trial of Adolf Eichmann
True, the Florida Holocaust Museum isn't an art museum per se, they do one hell of a job of using art to make people think about their perennial topic: genocide. And while many of their exhibits focus on holocausts outside the Nazi extermination of the Jews in WWII, this one celebrates — yes, celebrates — the capture and trial of a logistical evil genius who masterminded the mass deportation of Jews. After the war he fled to Argentina, but he was captured and tried in an Israeli court, behind bulletproof glass (that will be at FHM as part of this exhibit) and, for one of the first times ever, on TV. Florida Holocaust Museum, 55 5th St. S., St. Pete. Daily, 10 a.m. with last admission at 4 p.m. Membership starts at $45; nonmembers pay $16. Feb. 10-Jul. 15. flholocaustmuseum.org.
Princess Smith: Unfiltered
Finishing off her MFA with her thesis show in 2016 at USF CAM, I can still recall her confronting figures to this day. Princess Smith’s solo show will continue her explorations of the minority female body and racial social injustices through new drawings and paintings. Favoring a highly chromatic palette, Smith’s paintings will fight off the winter blues — and even pack a more conceptual punch too. Gallery 3, HCC Dale Mabry, 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd., Tampa. Through Mar. 5. Mon.-Wed., 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thurs., 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; and Fri., 9 a.m.-2 p.m. 813-253-7386, hccfl.edu/gallery221 —Caitlin Albritton
SIPP: Sharpie, Ink, Pen & Pencil
There's always art adorning the walls at The Studio@620, with our one regret that they don't keep regular gallery hours so more people can see it. No matter; between their myriad of events, opening and closing receptions and Second Saturday walks, you have your chance to soak it all in. SIPP: Sharpie, Ink, Pen & Pencil, a curated show with a hefty handful of artists, puts forth an exhibit of art all created with writing implements probably rattling around in your kitchen junk drawer this very second. The only difference? The people wielding them. Studio@620, 620 1st Ave. S., St. Pete. Through Feb. 3. Gallery hours by appointment. Learn more.
The Chicken Dance — Ybor Style
This looks fun, as do so many of Tim Gibbons sends me through his Funky as a Monkey artist collective. So, to start, Ybor has a Chicken Society. This show "features the chickens we all know and love" in oil and acrylics, all painted by Lynn Rattray, who's a part of the Ybor Chicken Society and has apparently developed bonds with the hens and cocks as she volunteers to, uh, tidy up after them. The Bunker, 1907 N. 19th St., Ybor. Feb. 4-Mar. 4. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Ybor Chicken Society. 813-957-1663.
Utopias: Mark Thomas Gibson and William Villalongo
Two artists who are no stranger to the Tampa arts scene, Mark Thomas Gibson and William Villalongo, exhibit together in Utopias. The exhibit consists of paintings, prints, video, and artist books, both personal and historically-based and, remember, these two artists create work that deals with being black in America. Expect to leave pondering how you perceive the world and how others perceive it, social realities for African Americans and varying cultural narratives. Gallery 221, HCC Dale Mabry, 4001 W. Tampa Bay Blvd., Tampa. Through Mar. 1. Mon.-Wed., 9 a.m.-4 p.m.; Thurs., 9 a.m.-7 p.m.; and Fri., 9 a.m.-2 p.m. 813-253-7386, hccfl.edu/gallery221.
