For local art scene neophytes, the Dallas Art Dealers Association’s (DADA) annual Fall Gallery Walk is an ideal way to explore area showrooms. More than 30 DADA members open their doors for extended hours just for art lovers. “DADA is here to let people enjoy art,” says Lisa Taylor, DADA’s executive director. She says the Gallery Walk is unique because it allows participants to visit a museum full of masterpieces, such as the Meadows Museum at SMU, and then contrast those works with the hip, contemporary art in the Design District.
An appraisal workshop by Heritage Auction Galleries has been added to this year’s lineup. For a fee, hopefuls can bring in their fine art objects (random contents of your attic need not apply) for an assessment, Antiques Roadshow-style. All proceeds benefit the Edith Baker Art Scholarship Fund, which helps put a Booker T. Washington High School for the Visual and Performing Arts graduate through art school each year.
In addition to perusing the Design District’s usual suspects, Taylor recommends art walkers stop at some of the spaces owned by the city of Dallas, such as the Latino Cultural Center and the Bath House Cultural Center. “These are places that people usually don’t go,” she says. “They’re all off the beaten path.”
For those who like their art produced close to home, several galleries are featuring work by Texans, including Missy Sofey’s Texas Landscapes at American Fine Art, and an exhibit created by Dallas female artists at Bath House Cultural Center.
Despite some local flavor, Taylor jokes that both DADA and the Gallery Walk are misnomers because DADA’s members are located all over North Texas. No one is suggesting walking from Dallas to, say, Irving. But even if you have to hop in your car to take the “walk,” there is plenty to enjoy at every stop.
Dallas Art Dealers Association Fall Gallery Walk: Sep 13, 10 am–8 pm. Multiple locations. 214-943-1099. dallasartdealers.org.
