Visual art news and events • St Pete Catalyst

Multi-disciplinary artist Jason Hackenwerth, owner of Sixstar Art Studios in The Factory St. Pete, has collaborated with singer Siobhan Monique for a one-time-only performance Friday.

The event (7 to 9 p.m.) is called Tarantula, and it also includes the debit of a show of paintings by Tanner Simon. Hackenwerth is a painter who’s also known globally for his intricate latex balloon sculptures.

The ticketed event ($75) includes an open bar and various goodies; find tickets and additional details here.

“Tarantula”: Siobhan Monique; installation by Jason Hackenwerth. Photo provided.

The main gallery space at The Factory St. Pete will be taken over by BLISS, artist and curator Chad Mize’s annual, always anticipated Pride Month show.

It opens with a reception Friday from 6 to 9 p.m., and will of course be available to view during the next day’s Second Saturday ArtWalk. “Bliss Poetry Night” is on the schedule for 7 to 9 p.m. Saturday.

Mize says he purposely wanted to avoid a “trials and tribulations” theme for Pride Month, choosing instead to “switch it up and curate an exhibit about bliss, a state of complete happiness or joy.”

Contributing artists are Andrea Pawlisz, Amy Ilic-volpe, Angela Warren, Artist Jones, Bask, Caelan Jeffery, Cake Marques, Calan Ree, Camilo Loaiza Bonilla, Chad Jacobs, Chad Mize, Charley Soderbergh, Cristi Lopez, David Kafer, Domenico Pontoriero, Emmett Freeman, Eric Doctors, Ethan Early, Ezra Sembler, Fax 727-289-3069, James E. Hartzell, Jay Hoff, Jeb Katsiopis, Joey Vitale, John Gascot, Katie Niewodowski, Keifer Calkins, Lucky Leroy, Macy Eats Paint, Mark Williams, Mikeybear Mcgrath, Nathan Truly, Nelson Perez Jr., Nova Fro, Palm Nguyen, Perry Devick, Rhys Meatyard, Saumitra Chandratrya, Spencer Meyers, Summer Elaine Hue, Tate Leigh, Tommy Bayot, Tyler Gillespie and Wasil.

“Rainbow River Overview” by photographer Carlton Ward., Jr., at Wild Space Gallery.

New this weekend at Wild Space Gallery, inside The Factory: Connect & Protect, photographic imagery from the first 40 properties approved for protection since the Florida Wildlife Corridor Act passed in 2021. Lauren Yoho, a conservation photographer behind many of the images, will discuss her work in the field. The other photographers featured are Carlton Ward, Jr., George McKenzie Jr., Katie Bryden, Max Kelly, Dean Saunders and FDEP personnel.

The last few days have been momentous for The Factory – it sold to a new owner, a developer who vows to not only keep the art and the artists but improve their conditions and magnify their visibility in the community.

Then came the announcement that Fairgrounds St. Pete, the facility’s art-centric anchor tenant, is changing its name to FloridaRAMA.

Saturday’s June Second Saturday ArtWalk, including 40 or so St. Pete studios and galleries in seven districts, lasts from 5 to 9 p.m. Here’s the map for this month’s self-guided tour.

Work from the annual ArtOUT exhibition (the artist’s name was not provided).

Now on view at the Art Lofts, 10 5^th Street N., is the third annual ArtOUT exhibition, Art and Soul, as always celebration the culture, emotions and experiences of the LGBTQ+ population. Art Lofts will be open during the Second Saturday ArtWalk. The exhibit is co-sponsored by OUT Arts & Culture, the resource center headquartered at the Gulfport Public Library, where some of the Art and Soul works are displayed.

New at the Museum of Fine Art St. Petersburg is True to the Tint: The Quest for Color Photography, tracing the historical journey from manually adding tints to the development of true color photography. It’s drawn from the museum’s extensive photography collection and other sources, and will be on view through Sept. 22. MFA Curator of Art Katherine Pill will be Friday’s guest on our Arts Alive! podcast.

Esterio Segura’s “Hybrid of a Chrysler.” Photo provided.

“Hybrid of a Chrysler,” Cuban artist Esterio Segura’s sculpture of a 1953 Chrysler Limousine with a 31-foot wingspan, is back at the Tampa Museum of Art. The two-ton piece debuted at the museum in 2016, then went on a world tour. And now it’s home again, on the second-floor terrace, and visible from the Riverwalk – and, of course, inside the museum itself.

Please add us to your mailing list – send all press releases and event info to bill@stpetecatalyst.com.

You can also submit your events to the Catalyst calendar, by clicking here.