Five Big Nights Out for the Visual Arts

The Umlauf’s Starlight Soirée

Help support Austin’s Umlauf Sculpture Garden & Museum by enjoying – among all the upscale finery of the Domain, no less – an alfresco dining experience with a tasting menu of appetizers, entrées, and desserts from more than 15 local restaurants. Also, beer, wine, and bubbles, live music from Plush, prize giveaways, and more.

“dARKagEs”

Leon Alesi and John Mulvany aim to unearth, uncover, and breathe new life into images and artifacts that may have seemed invisible, hidden, and unknowable. Alesi’s photographs, collages, assemblages, and found objects embody a sophisticated folk-art sensibility suggestive of an imagined past that echoes into the present; Mulvany’s paintings originate in extensive photographic research from Victorian-era natural history museums and West Texas taxidermy shops.

“Chroma + Lux”

“Chroma,” from the Greek “khrōma,” meaning “color.” “Lux,” from Latin, meaning “light.” Now artists Larry Akers and Janet Brooks bring the two together in an exciting intersection of styles, methods, and materials.

“Mystic Mirrors: Transcending the Veil”

A surreal exhibit that bends the rules of perception, a show of work by more than 40 artists, presenting a “poetic dance of the subconscious, where reality and fantasy waltz together, leaving you both entranced and questioning the boundaries of your own imagination.”

“Raíces”

Catch the debut of this new exhibition that features works from Angélica Rahe, Karmita, Laura Clay, Lys Santamaria, Marcela Homrich, Mónica Ceniceros, and Maridad Studio in honor of their Hispanic cultures. Dance to a salsa band, enjoy complimentary drinks, and support the local scene while benefiting the New Philanthropists.

This article appears in September 29 • 2023.