1 . Jules Buck Jones : Hand Me My Head | David Shelton Gallery Austin artist Jules Buck Jones is interested in animals , death , evolution , the long passage of time and bones . Lots of bones . If this all sounds a bit glum , rest assured his images are powerful and life-affirming . His superb works on paper , which range from the monumental to the intimate , must be seen in person to be appreciated . www . davidsheltongallery . com
2 . Still ( Ed ) Life : Part 2 | Texas Gallery [ I recommend the David McGee pipe image . The gallery can send it .] This is the second part of a cheerfully eclectic show very loosely based on the idea of the still life . Yes , there will be nice pictures of flowers and fruit , but also more inventive riffs on the theme . The first show was chockablock with delights and discoveries , and we expect the same from this second iteration , including the wonderfully suggestive watercolor of a pipe ( or is it ?) by David McGee , pictured . www . texgal . com
3 . Floyd Newsum : Black and White with Gray and Color | Nicole Longnecker Gallery This show of new work by the venerable Houston artist features a series of paintings on the theme of the kite , which Newsum describes as a symbol of resilience as well as play . This body of work continues his signature style of whimsical depictions of everyday life , but now in a darker , more monochromatic palette that ’ s both elegant and somber . www . longneckergallery . com
4 . Dan Sutherland : peat | Moody Gallery San Antonio-based painter Dan Sutherland doesn ’ t show very often , so don ’ t miss this inventive new series of muscular paintings which pop , crackle and smoke off the walls . Sutherland plays with materials and the shapes of his canvases , and seems to have taken the forms of graffiti as his starting point in many of these works . It ’ s jittery , surreal abstraction that ’ s not really abstract . www . moodygallery . com
5 . Kate Gilmore & Heather Rowe : Only in Your Way | DiverseWorks This is a two-person collaborative show from two New York-based artists who promise performance , installation and site-specific sculpture for DiverseWorks ’ Midtown space . Gilmore is known for her clever and surprising way of addressing gender and power through video , performance and sculpture , in highly physical and absurdist ways that are as confrontational as they are entertaining . It ’ ll be interesting to see how her sensibility intersects with the more formal and architectural Rowe . www . diverseworks . org / in-the-works / exhibtion-performance / kate-gilmore-heather-rowe-way february 17 | LOCAL 35