GOLDMARK CULTURAL CENTER

Norman Brown Gallery

Jim Hastings
“Life Goes On

Through May16

Join us at the Goldmark Cultural Center’s Norman Brown Gallery on Saturday 5/3, from 5:00pm – 7:00pm for the reception of “Life Goes On”, an exhibition of new paintings and drawings by Dallas artist Jim Hastings.

About the Exhibition

”My artwork is primarily figurative, with a focus on portraiture and family relationships. Human interactions, comedy, and honest depictions of life are what I’m constantly trying to find as I makes pictures. When people look at my drawings or paintings, I hope they see something familiar. There are so many aspects of our lives that are universal, and yet we often feel alone. I hope that people will see themselves laying on a couch or working in the yard or helping a child get ready for bed. Jim is married and the father of 5 children, who keep him very busy!”

About the Artist

Jim Hastings, is a Dallas native. He earned a BFA in Painting and Drawing from the Kansas City Art Institute, and an MA in Art Education from the University of North Texas. He has been a working artist and teacher for the last 25 years.

Ruth Andres Gallery

“TIDAL IX”
Jenni Simms

closing reception May17 // 12-3PM

About the Exhibition

In my second solo show since graduate school, with TIDAL IX I share my deep felt response to the current state of affairs of women’s rights- the virtue signaling, cancel culture, Orwellian “wrong-think” and horrifyingly forbidden use of basic logic, all in the name of trans rights and inclusion which deny protections and equality to women and girls. Without definitions grounded in fact, i.e. biology and not feelings or mental complications such as gender dysphoria, women’s rights are being eroded before our very eyes. This labyrinthine and convoluted unwillingness to recognize the harm this is causing women and girls has taken hold in many institutions such as governing bodies in education, incarceration, health, and mainstream and social media. Many people with gender dysphoria (including current and former trans identified people) are in agreement, as well as a large portion of the LGB community who find the “hormone therapy” of puberty blocking (and therefore chemically castrating) drugs and surgery (especially of MINORS) to be largely homophobic. Many of these children would have simply grown up to be gay, instead of insisting they are something they are not and compelling others to take part in their delusion. Many of these children regret this decision and wonder why the adults weren’t there to protect them from an irreversible and majorly harmful decision about their health in their most psychologically vulnerable age of life.

Please use the accompanying two-sided “Descriptions” page (from left to right) on the pedestal when viewing the work for more information on each of the pieces and to get a better understanding of their titles.

To be perfectly clear, I believe that ALL human beings deserve to share in equal protections and should be treated with kindness and compassion. My views on women’s rights as described throughout this work do not imply otherwise. My stance on this issue has caused me to be cancelled and berated by now former friends, and have felt the loss acutely. In hindsight, I suppose I am grateful for this trial by fire, as it has inspired me to stand up and protect women and girls, and indeed all children and other feminists like me who believe that trans identifying people deserve their own movement.

I consider this to be my most important body of work to date — I have until now only made a handful of political paintings throughout my life. In TIDAL IX, I continue my exploration of different textiles (such as raw, chiffon & organza silks, & velveteen and linen) and processes in addition to my oil on canvas and panel paintings.

Please join us for the closing reception on Saturday, May 17th from 12-3pm in The Ruth Andres Gallery at Goldmark Cultural Center in Richardson to view the work of this dynamic up-and-coming Dallas based artist.

About the Artist

Jenni Simms is an artist with a deep reverence for the inherent mysteries of the natural world and observes the human place within it mostly through her landscape oil paintings, which often have a slightly enigmatic and enchanting aura about them. She is a Tucson, AZ native and grew up in McKinney, TX, but has spent most of her life in the regions of San Diego and Los Angeles, where she attended her undergraduate and graduate studies in studio art. In 2009 she co-founded a non-profit art school for youth in Ocean Beach, CA, which she has recently moved to McKinney, TX when she returned to the hometown of her childhood to be closer to her most loved ones. She is a current resident artist at Goldmark Cultural Center in Dallas, TX in studio 127-B.

The Goldmark Cultural Center

13999 Goldmark Drive
Dallas, Texas, 75240
214.693.4555