Are You With Me?

 My paintings are inspired by the magical, in-between world of the bar, offering a no invitation necessary social setting for friends, acquaintances, and strangers. There's a power structure in play, as the bartender is in control. She has her eye on the situation, noting interactions between patrons and keeping the mood and balance correct while managing the flow of banter and flirtatiousness with an edge of Anything Could Happen. My scenes often include cats, skeletons, and ghosts, as an older bar will always contain some form of the past, either as an imagined wispy entity or in the stories repeated by regulars over the years. The visual clutter of bar signs, beer lights, bar stools, and oversized cocktail glasses is inspiring to me as well, as my style inclination tends toward overload, both in color and pattern, and incredulity. I especially enjoy a good U-shaped bar which stimulates interaction, eye contact and conversation.  

Artist Talk:

In conjunction with Twin Cities Art Week, Rosalux artist Mary Gibney will be in conversation with special guests Bill Lindeke and Andy Sturdevant 

Artist Mary Gibney, with special guests Bill Lindeke and Andy Sturdevant, will be bantering about dive bars and our attraction to them, including what makes them valuable as a hangout and melding spot for friends and potential friends, a bit about the power dynamic between bartender and potentially unruly patrons, and the collections of beer signs, handwritten postings, visual clutter and other symbols of bar-ness that influence Mary's paintings. Bill and Andy are the authors of "Closing Time," a very subjective and funny history of local dive bars, as well as a variety of other quirky publications. Closing Time and other publications will be available for purchase at this event. Hamms beer and bar snacks will be served. 

Gallery Hours:

12-4 PM on Saturdays and Sundays. 

Image: (Detail) "It's a Pink Pink World", Acrylic on Canvas, 36"x36", 2023