Art Gallery

By Kevin Lee Associate Editor

Mobilians can beat the heat, but the slightest cold is what invariably sends them scurrying to the safety of their homes. In light of such, the crowds that turned out for the LoDa Artwalk on Friday, Dec. 8 were heartening. Though far from the thick throngs that strolled the downtown galleries in autumn, there were enough people defying the 30-degree temps to tell observers something has caught on with the locals.

The usual venues were packed. The abstract expressionist works at Off.Dauph seemed, along with the quilts and woodcut prints at the Skinny Gallery, among the most notable of the night.

Understandably, hot apple cider and coffee seemed to be the libations of choice although a sizable helping of bourbon that mysteriously appeared before this reporter from the back of one gallery seemed to provide a nice amount of inner warmth.

Fairhope has enjoyed resounding success with their monthly art walks and its comforting to see the same type momentum building on the western side of the bay.

Mose T

In a departure from their usual contemporary fare, a tribute to Alabama folk artist Mose T continues at Space 301 through the end of the year.

Mose Tolliver was born the youngest of 12 children in a sharecropping family from rural Montgomery County, Alabama around 1920. After leaving school in the third grade, Mose went to work for a tenant farmer.

Mose married and raised eleven children while holding a variety of jobs including painting, plumbing and carpentry until he was injured in the late ‘60s. While working for a Montgomery furniture store, a crate of marble fell on Tolliver leaving him unable to walk without the aid of a walker. During a period of depression, Mose was encouraged to take up painting by his former boss and a new purpose emerged in his life.

In 1982, exposure via the Corcoran gallery in Washington D.C. put Tolliver in high demand and his journeys took him from The Metropolitan Art Museum to the National Gallery of Art to the White House.

Some of the more enthusiastic reviews of Tolliver’s career dubbed him the equivalent of Picasso to the folk art realm.

Mose T. passed away weeks ago, the day before this past Halloween.

The gallery facing the south side of Cathedral Square is open Wednesday through Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sundays from noon until 5 p.m.. Entrance is free.

Eyes of the Storm

Natural disaster is always traumatic and those often hit hardest emotionally are children. Finding ways for kids to cope with such tragedy is a chief obstacle in helping them get beyond it.

Alba Middle School students approached the post-Katrina turmoil by meeting it head on. The youngsters in South Mobile County saw the worst of the storm in Alabama and recorded it for themselves and others. The collection of therapeutic writing and photography was compiled and sits on display at the West Regional Branch of the Mobile Public Library at 5555 Grelot Road. The observations and recorded dilemma can be both poignant and heart rendering.

The collection has also been amassed into a book available for $12 at the circulation desk.

The library’s hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m., Monday through Thursday and 9 a.m. until 6 p.m., Friday and Saturday.

For more information, call 340-8549.

Spoken word

A recent stop by the Skyview Lounge on a Monday night met with a surprise. The nightspot perched atop the Lafayette Plaza/soon-to-be-Holiday Inn in downtown now plays host to spoken word events known as Mellow Monday.

The Toulminville Branch of the public library has featured poetry events for the last half-decade now, the Gulf Coast Ethnic and Heritage Jazz Festival has included similar activities and the Arts Alive! festivals have supplied venues for spoken word as well.

Whether this literary foray into the commercial realm pays off won’t be seen for a while yet, however the considerable cover charge at the Skyview door might be something of a hurdle until it catches on.

Kevin Lee is Lagniappe associate editor. Contact him at klee@lagniappemobile.com.

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