The Studios Inc Residency Program presents Riding the Rail, over 200 posters, ephemera and album covers by Peregrine Honig. Curated by Sean Kelly and assistant curator Emily Loubser, Riding the Rails displays bodies of work borrowed from New Discretions ( New York, NY ), prints produced by Landfall Press.

( 1970- 2020 ) and Other Criteria ( London, UK ) and The Nelson- Atkins Museum of Art archive. This historical timeline spans twenty seven years of innovative mark-making, intuitive design and accessible editions. From band shirts and bumper stickers to reality television and museum collections, Honig’s career rides the rail between fine art and public discourse, museums and dive bars.

Riding the Rail will be on view at Studios Inc. gallery from November 1 — December 21, 2024. Exhibition hours are Wednesday thru Friday 10am-4pm and Saturday 12 – 4pm.

Studios Inc and Harold Smith present Dr. Blackenstein’s Black Shack of Arts and Sciences, a multidisciplinary exhibition opening on November 1st, 2024. The artist will host special programming throughout the exhibition: Stay tuned to the Studios Inc and Harold Smith instagram, facebook, and websites for details.

From the Artist:

I came of age as a black kid from a blue collar home in the 70’s.

It was an incredible and unforgettable ride.

I recall the sizzling sound of the hot comb from the kitchen on Saturday nights.

I remember chilly Saturday afternoons bicycling down 13th, turning left at Holmes Market, speeding by Salem Baptist and Morning Star Baptist Churches, turning right at 10th Street and skipping into Johnny’s Fish Market at 10th and Walker for some of that legendary fried fish.

Whether it was whiting or catfish, it was still hot, crispy, seasoned to perfection and wrapped in brown paper.

Don’t forget the sides.

I recall the sweet smell of Afro Sheen wafting in the air at Johnson’s Barber Shop on 13th and Quindaro.

Who can forget the mingled aromas of Old Spice, English Leather, and Skin Bracer when dad finally left the bathroom on his way out?

Or dancing in front of the mirror in the basement, trying out the dances we saw on Soul Train?

Remember the Cameo theater on Minnesota Avenue?

I remember taking a few dollars up there and staying all Saturday afternoon to watch Cleopatra Jones, Willie Dynamite, Foxy Brown, Superfly and so many other classics.

And, yes, I sure did have a pair of bell bottom pants and Florsheim shoes from KG’s Men’s store at Indian Springs Mall.

Leon Lincoln and his crew took me to a handful of house parties (with the blue light of course).

I was a wallflower so I didn’t dance but I did enjoy listening to Roberta Flack, Aretha Franklin, and Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes.

Then again, I listened to Parliament Funkadelic every single day.

I still do.

That being said, I invite you to join us at Dr. Blackenstein’s Blacktacular Black Shack of Arts and Sciences from Nov-December at Studios Inc. 

“You can bet your last money, it’s all gonna be a stone gas honey.” — Don Cornelius (host of Soul Train)

Launched to serve mid-career artists, Studios Inc is Kansas City’s only nonprofit arts organization offering pivotal three-year residencies to mid-career artists who are poised to significantly expand their careers. Studios Inc offers a unique immersion experience for resident artists, who use their studio and exhibition space to produce and exhibit work, network and learn from one another, and attract and cultivate relationships with art patrons, collectors, and arts professionals.

Dr. Blackenstein’s Black Shack of Arts and Sciences will be on view in the Studios Inc Exhibition Hall through December 21st, 2024. Exhibition hours are Wednesday thru Friday 10am-4pm and Saturday 12 – 4pm.

Please join us for a solo exhibit of work from artist, musician, and writer Jeffrey Hakes.

In Undying Love: Illustrations of Faith and Courage from the lives of Christian Martyrs, Hakes invites viewers to meditate upon powerful stories of martyrs from the first century to the present day. These martyrs are from various denominations and cultural backgrounds, but with their lives they sent a single message: there is nothing in this world that is worth giving up their faith in Christ.

This moving collection of paintings will not only prompt viewers to enter into these extraordinary stories of faith, but to examine the way that their own faith is displayed in their everyday lives.

First Friday Receptions:
 — December 6: 5:30 – 9pm
- Our gallery will be closed on Friday, January 3.
 — February 7: 5:30 – 9pm, with an artist talk at 6:30pm.

Open Hours:
- Saturdays, 2 – 4pm
- Our gallery will be closed on the following Saturdays: November 30, December 28, and February 22.

The shutter clicks and the image is frozen, but what about the moments before and after? Where do those moments, lost in time, reside?

I’ve always been interested in how the camera can freeze motion as Muybridge famously did in his photographic studies of the human figure. However, I’m even more fascinated by motion blur as an expression of time. It embodies the constant flux of life and the perpetual state of becoming. Motion in my work is a metaphor for growth, transition and the relentless passage of time.

This work is a celebration of movement, light and form. Using light and time, my aim was to create serene transformative images that speak to the grace of movement, the elegance of the human form, and the transitory nature of life.

Working with a gifted dancer, we created a delightfully unique and otherworldly aesthetic by abstracting and exploring the unique properties of motion. As our work progressed, the dancer often appeared to emerge from the darkness, incarnate, as if borrowed from a dream… never to be seen again.

With special appreciation to Laura Wallner and Jennifer Owen.

Steve Wilson 

November 2024

Artist Bio: 

Steve Wilson has been an arts professional and photographer his entire adult life. His interests include exploring 19th century photographic processes, digital approaches, and astrophotography. His work is found in the Hallmark Photographic Collection at the Nelson/Atkins Museum of Art, the former Polaroid Collection, Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and private collections. 

COMMON THREADS

Every day we are immersed in words and images that extol our individuality and uniqueness,

these words and images reflect how distinctive we are 

and how unique our cultures are.

Nevertheless, a paradox lives alongside this individuality and uniqueness. 

A paradox which has become abundantly clear to me over six decades of global wandering,

…we humans all share more commonalities than differences. 

I celebrate our distinctiveness as individuals,

I delight in our unique cultural heritages.

However, 

I revel in the things we share, 

our common threads.

No matter who we are or where we live, 

no matter our age, race, ethnicity or wealth,

or any other characteristic that seems to divide us.

We need to love and be loved. 

We need to smile, laugh and enjoy each other’s company. 

We need to move, dance, touch and even get physical with each other. 

We need to belong, to be part of a family or community. 

We need to express ourselves. 

We need to tell and listen to stories. 

We need time to ourselves to reflect. 

We need to feel a sense of purpose.

In my photography, I work to find those universal things we all seek, feel and do. Whether I’ve captured an ephemeral moment, a gesture or look, a vision of repeating, consoling beauty in our natural or built world, something we glimpse in passing, or a situation we have all encountered at some point in our lives…

we all share these experiences.

Common Threads, those strands we share which bind us and make us part of the greater human tapestry.