BmoreArt

This week’s news includes: BMA receives largest gift in its history from Amy and Marc Meadows, BOPA becomes Create Baltimore, Driskell Center adds to its archives, Amy Sherald excitement, AVAM celebrates 30 years, MICA announces a new MPS degree, Academy Art Museum celebrates Robert Rauschenberg, Trump fires Arts Oversight Committee, BSO’s November schedule, Women Artists of the DMV reviewed, art officially makes us happy, Confederate Monuments transformed, PFA Gallery, and a Halloween treat from Barnyard Sharks — with reporting from Baltimore Magazine, Baltimore Fishbowl, The Baltimore Banner, and other local and independent news sources.

Header Image: Dindga McCannon (seated), Linda Hit (l.), and Miriam Francis (r.), Where We At Black Women Artists, circa 1975 (Photographer unknown). The Where We At Black Women Artists Archives. The Driskell Center at the University of Maryland, College Park.

BMA Announces Transformational $10 Million Promised Gift from Amy and Marc Meadows to Establish Education Endowment
Press Release :: October 24

The Baltimore Museum of Art (BMA) today announced an extraordinary promised gift of more than $10 million from philanthropists Amy and Marc Meadows for the sole purpose of supporting arts education at the museum, with a focus on K-12 schoolchildren in Baltimore City and the surrounding region. This gift from the Stoneridge Foundation of Amy and Marc Meadows will establish the Amy and Marc Meadows Education Endowment, which will progressively distribute funds toward five of the six core educational initiatives (outlined below) until such time as the full endowment, including earned interest, is dispersed to the museum. The cumulative financial impact of the endowment makes it the single largest gift to the BMA in its 110-year history.

Amy and Marc Meadows have spent most of their personal and professional lives engaged with the arts and maintained strong commitments to education, witnessing first-hand the power, joy, and great benefit of the arts on young learners. They also established a longstanding relationship with the BMA with Amy Meadows serving for many years as an active Trustee of the museum’s Board and now as an Honorary Trustee. She has also supported the museum’s current director Asma Naeem throughout her career, beginning with her first curatorial role at the National Portrait Gallery. The promised gift announced today is the result of careful consideration of the BMA’s dedication to education initiatives and on the positive impact it can have on creating lifelong appreciation for the arts.

“The phrase ‘art patrons’ does not begin to describe the passion, intellectual rigor, and peerless insights that Amy and Marc have shared with me over the many years of our friendship. With the Amy and Marc Meadows Education Endowment, the BMA will give Baltimore and our communities the resources they deserve: a thoughtful range of programs and opportunities for students, families and caregivers, and lifelong learners,” said Asma Naeem, the BMA’s Dorothy Wagner Wallis Director. “Arts education has been proven, many times over, to have a positive effect on children and teens, supporting critical thinking skills, emotional regulation, and creating pathways to successful academic performance across disciplines. It is an understatement to say that I look forward to what we will be able to achieve together through this transformational gift and model of civic and art philanthropy. We are immensely grateful to Amy and Marc for their generosity, collaboration, and forward-looking vision.

The funds are earmarked for six core initiatives designed to support engagement with the arts, to spur personal enjoyment of and professional opportunities within museums, and to encourage the next generation of museumgoers. This includes support for:

• Transportation for organized public school trips to the BMA
• Maintaining Free Family Sundays and other access-oriented public engagement activities
• Expanding the Close Encounters program with a 2-year pass system that creates opportunities for free attendance among family, caregiver, and friend networks
• Developing an internship program for teaching apprentices in museum education
• Creating a speaker series for adults focused on the future of museums and community
• Endowing future additional positions for museum educators

Of the gift, Amy and Marc Meadows said, “We seek to make a difference for others with experiences that we ourselves enjoyed.” Amy further added, “The Baltimore Museum of Art has been an integral part of my life since attending afternoon art classes during my elementary school years. My studies and career are an outgrowth of my time at the museum. I am so pleased that Marc and I will enable children, young adults, and adults the chance to absorb the wonders of the museum as I did.” Mark noted, “The introduction to art and architecture during my childhood was of critical influence in how I saw the world around me, as well as the friends I made along the way. Learning and experiencing art and culture has tremendous impact on both character and social development. Amy and I are so pleased that with our gift, both school children and adults alike will be able to enjoy and grow with exposure to the art and treasures of the BMA.”

The Amy and Marc Meadows Education Endowment builds on other recent major investments in education at the BMA. In fall 2023, the museum reopened the newly renovated Patricia and Mark Joseph Education Center, which was designed to expand hands-on artmaking and interactive engagement for families, students, and art lovers of all ages at the museum. The 5,625-square-foot center features new and refurbished classrooms for both dry and wet artmaking; a Wall of Wonder with tactile and digital displays that invite visitors to consider creative processes; and a series of participatory art installations by internationally acclaimed artists Derrick Adams, Mary Flanagan, and Pablo Helguera. The BMA has also made education a core strategic pillar of activity under Naeem’s leadership, to be further realized with the appointment of Elisabeth Callihan as Chief Education Officer.

:: See Also ::

BMA to receive $10 million, the single largest gift in its 110-year history
by Matti Gellman and Caitlin Moore
Published October 24 in The Baltimore Banner

Baltimore Museum of Art receives $10m gift to support education initiatives
by Gabriella Angeleti
Published October 24 in The Art Newspaper

BOPA Rebrands as Create Baltimore; Will Continue Operating Top of the World
Press Release :: October 27

From the Top of the World Observation Level, overlooking Baltimore’s skyline, Create Baltimore today announced its evolution from the Baltimore Office of Promotion & The Arts (BOPA). The new name embodies the organization’s mission, momentum, and unwavering belief that creativity fuels a thriving city and a more connected world.

The announcement, made by CEO Robyn Murphy alongside Mayor Brandon M. Scott, marks a significant milestone for Baltimore’s creative community. “Baltimore’s Renaissance is here, and we’re seeing that
historic growth and transformation reflected in our arts and culture,” said Mayor Brandon M. Scott.
“From our festivals to our museums and beyond, our creatives are the best in the world, and we are making sure they have the support and resources they need to be successful. Create Baltimore’s evolution is a key part of that — and they’re hitting the ground running with this agreement to keep the Top of the World open to the public. I look forward to their continued partnership, alongside my Office of Arts and Culture, as we invest in the events, institutions, and creatives who make Baltimore Charm City.”

The new name reflects the organization’s evolution into a more community-driven agency deeply connected
to the artists and audiences it serves. With a revitalized mission and renewed strategic vision, Create
Baltimore is focused on strengthening the city’s creative ecosystem through collaboration, accessibility, and sustainability.

“Art is not a luxury; it’s a lifeline,” said Murphy. “Creative expression strengthens communities, fosters empathy, and helps us imagine what’s possible. By reintroducing ourselves as Create Baltimore, we are reaffirming our role in ensuring that all Baltimoreans — artists, audiences, and neighborhoods — have access to the inspiration and opportunity that creativity provides.”

Over the past year, Create Baltimore has focused on bolstering fiscal stability, elevating program delivery, and developing Baltimore’s first-ever Arts Council Plan, a blueprint for equitable and sustainable support of the arts. The organization also launched Artscape 365, a year-round initiative extending the spirit and impact of Artscape into neighborhoods across the city.

Other recent milestones include:

• Expanding partnerships with organizations such as APGFCU, investing in artist entrepreneurship and
financial literacy, and the Living Classrooms Foundation, collaborating on education and community
engagement initiatives.
• Rebuilding the Community Advisory Committee under the leadership of Director of Community Engagement & Events Daniella Greeman, ensuring community voices remain central to all
programming.
• Enhancing communications and outreach, led by CMO Tia Goodson, resulting in record engagement and attendance across programs and facilities.

:: See Also ::

Top of the World Observation Level is staying in place ‘for years to come,’ city leaders announce
by Ed Gunts
Published October 27 in Baltimore Fishbowl

BOPA no more: Rebranded Create Baltimore says Top of the World will stay open
by Wesley Case
Published October 27 in The Baltimore Banner

The Driskell Center is Proud to Announce The Where We At Black Women Artist Archives and The Dindga McCannon Archives
Press Release :: October 24

The Driskell Center at the University of Maryland, College Park, is proud to announce that the Center’s Archives will be home to The Where We At Black Women Artists Archives (Gift of Dindga McCannon and Gordon Taylor in honor of the Where We At Black Women Artists) and The Dindga McCannon Archives (Gift of Dindga McCannon).

Since its founding in 2001, The Driskell Center has sought to create an intellectual home for scholars seeking a fuller understanding of the American art canon. That understanding can only come about through a reckoning with the outsized accomplishments of artists of African descent. This was David C. Driskell’s lifelong vision and his motivation for assembling an archive, the David C. Driskell Papers, over the course of five decades, that he donated to the Center in 2011. The Driskell Center Archives houses multiple collections, including the Faith Ringgold Study Room Collection, Harmon Foundation Papers, Hayes-Benjamin Papers on African American Art and Artists, Alonzo Davis Collection, Michael D. Harris Collection, robin holder collection, Crumpler Collection, the Okoe Pyatt and Shelley Inniss Archive of the Weusi Artist Collective and now The Where We At Black Women Artists Archives and The Dindga McCannon Archives. The Driskell Center’s Archives is supported in part by major grants from the Terra Foundation for American Art, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

ABOUT THE COLLECTIONS

Artists Dindga McCannon (b. 1947), Kay Brown (1932-2012) and Faith Ringgold (1930-2024) founded “Where We At” Black Women Artists in 1971. McCannon and Brown were the only two women artists in the Weusi Artist Collective. Together with Ringgold, they felt they had no alternative but to form a collective addressing the specific challenges faced by Black women artists. In addition to the three artists, the original members were Carol Blank (1941-2013), Jerrolyn Crooks De Gracia (b. 1947), Pat Davis, Mai Mai Leabua, Onaway “Onnie” Millar (1919-2008), Charlotte Richardson Ka, and Ann Tanksley (b. 1934). The group’s name derived from an exhibition at the Acts of Art Gallery in Greenwich Village, “Where We At, Black Women Artists, 1971.” The collective fostered the careers of its members. Still, its broader mission was to nurture creative and cultural awareness in the community at large, conducting workshops in hospitals, prisons, schools, colleges, and cultural centers. Through an apprenticeship program, aspiring artists had the opportunity to work with “Where We At” artists in their studios.

Dindga McCannon has embraced various media across a six-decade career as an artist. “I have worn many, many hats; that of a painter, printmaker, and wearable art maker, and that of a muralist, writer and illustrator, and fiber artist/quilter. Currently, I consider myself a multimedia/mixed-media artist.”* Her work is in the collections of the Studio Museum in Harlem, the Brooklyn Museum, The Phillips Collection and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C. She donated her archives, The Dindga McCannon Archives, in addition to The Where We At Black Women Artists Archives to The Driskell Center, greatly expanding the Center’s capacity to support research in the visual arts of Black women artists.

The collections include correspondence; photographs; clippings; catalogues and exhibition ephemera; event flyers; posters; newsletters; meeting minutes; writings; 35mm slides, and negatives. Highlights of The Where We At Black Women Artists Archives include photographs of exhibitions held in homes, membership information, newsletters, and meeting minutes. The Dindga McCannon Archives includes a hand-illustrated galley of McCannon’s Omar at Christmas and catalogues, ephemera, and articles documenting McCannon’s practice and career.

ABOUT THE DRISKELL CENTER

The Driskell Center is a creative incubator dedicated to a world where Black artists exist at its center. We invite inquiry, experimentation, and dialogue to reexamine histories and shape shared futures. All programs at The Driskell Center are free and open to the public. For further information regarding exhibitions and activities at The Driskell Center, please visit driskellcenter.umd.edu or call 301-314-2615.

*Brooklyn on My Mind: Black Visual Artists from the WPA to the Present, Myrah Brown Green. Schiffer, 2018.

Amy Sherald’s acclaimed exhibit lands in Baltimore — and excitement is soaring
by Wesley Case
Published October 29

Everywhere you turn, their gazes lock eyes with the viewer — a Baltimore farmer atop a tractor, a former first lady, a legless boxer in the corner of a ring.

The 38 painted portraits of Black Americans comprise “American Sublime,” the exhibit by former Baltimore-based artist Amy Sherald that opens at the Baltimore Museum of Art on Sunday.

Response to the news of “American Sublime” coming to Charm City has been outsized, to say the least, said Asma Naeem, the Baltimore Museum of Art’s director. She’s never seen anything like it.

“There’s just been an overwhelmingly ebullient response from not just our devoted patrons and members and the art community at large, even beyond Baltimore, but even those who are not necessarily art lovers here in Baltimore,” Naeem told The Banner. “It’s been really wonderful to see that kind of breakthrough into new audience members who want to come see this show.”

Numbers provided by the BMA reflect the anticipation: The paid exhibit in the usually free museum sold more than 4,900 tickets in the first week of sales, while the museum also saw a huge boost in membership — 262 new members joined the BMA in the month following the “American Sublime” announcement. In the same period last year, the museum had 22 new members. Membership renewals also more than doubled year-over-year.

On Wednesday morning, Naeem described Sherald, who rose to international prominence after painting Michelle Obama’s portrait in 2018 while living in Baltimore, as “one of the most important painters in the world today.”

“American Sublime,” located in the Contemporary Wing of the BMA’s second floor, was never intended to come to Baltimore. But a whirlwind three months changed everything — while making Sherald one of the most discussed American artists of the year.

In July, the painter pulled the mid-career retrospective, scheduled to run at the Smithsonian’s National Portrait Gallery in Washington, D.C., over potential censorship concerns related to “Trans Forming Liberty,” her portrait of trans model Arewà Basit as the Statue of Liberty. Weeks later, The New Yorker used the image on its cover.

As the art world wondered which city would follow San Francisco and New York in hosting “American Sublime,” the BMA secured the homecoming of an artist who earned her MFA in painting at the Maryland Institute College of Art. Not to mention that Sherald — who lived and worked in Baltimore from 2001 to 2018 — was once a hostess at Gertrude’s, the museum’s restaurant.

Upon entering “American Sublime,” visitors are greeted by one of Sherald’s newer works, 2024’s “Ecclesia (The Meeting of Inheritance and Horizons),” a serene triptych of three Black figures in the sky. The survey also features Sherald’s most famous works, including the Obama portrait, “Trans Forming Liberty,” and a stately painting of Breonna Taylor, the 26-year-old Black woman from Kentucky who was killed by police.

Seeing Sherald’s paintings reveals fascinating micro-details — reminders that screens will never capture the magic of witnessing art in person: the sleekness of a shiny silver playground slide, the worn guts of a John Deere tractor, a bouquet of marigolds. These paintings, some of which tower over the viewer, are deeply pleasurable artworks in which to simply stare.

The Columbus, Georgia-born Sherald, who declined an interview request, created roughly half of the paintings in “American Sublime” in Baltimore, Naeem said. Many of the subjects are Baltimore people.

The BMA’s announcement came in early September, giving its staff just weeks to quickly prepare and produce the exhibit.

“We’ve been joking that it normally takes us two years to do what we’ve been doing in two months,” said Elisabeth Callihan, the BMA’s chief education officer.

Sherald recently told Anderson Cooper — who loaned his own 2019 Sherald painting, “Handsome,” to the BMA — why she pulled the show from the National Portrait Gallery amid increased scrutiny from the Trump administration over “woke” art.

“There were conversations about the work being censored. The show is ‘American Sublime.’ It was a whole narrative and a trans woman is a part of that narrative for me,” Sherald, 52, told “60 Minutes.” “Any kind of contextualization around the work would have been unacceptable.”

This story was republished with permission from The Baltimore Banner. Visit www.thebanner.com for more.

:: See Also ::

Baltimore Museum of Art is bracing for record crowds when ‘Amy Sherald: American Sublime’ opens this weekend
by Ed Gunts
Published October 29 in Baltimore Fishbowl

The American Visionary Art Museum Announces Cheers to 30 Years: AVAM’s Birthday Bash!
Press Release :: October 27

The American Visionary Art Museum (AVAM) invites the public to attend “Cheers to 30 Years: AVAM’s Birthday Bash,” a day-long celebration in honor of the 30th anniversary of the founding of Baltimore’s Congressionally-designated museum for self-taught, intuitive artists, on Saturday, November 22, 2025 from 10 AM to 5 PM. The jubilee celebration will feature vibrant, family-friendly festivities, including guided tours, art-making, birthday cake, artist meet-and-greets and other quirky surprises—all included in the price of admission.

“AVAM is thrilled to commemorate its 30 years of awesome artistic endeavors with a celebration that invites and thanks our beloved visitors,” says AVAM’s Executive Director, Ellen Owens. “Come for the cake, and stay for your unique dose of creativity! We look forward to our next 30 years of manifesting wonder for Baltimoreans through the infinite possibilities of intuitive art.”

Visitors can look forward to a full day of visionary-inspired fun—meet iconic AVAM artists Bob Benson and Matt Sesow, join docent-led tours of the museum’s newest exhibitions (including Fantastic Realties: Truth Stranger Than Fiction), and get creative in hands-on artmaking workshops fit for all ages. In addition, Absolutely Perfect Catering will offer a selection of food items for purchase in the AVAM Café from 11 AM to 3 PM.

Since opening its doors in November 1995, the American Visionary Art Museum has stood as an institution dedicated to championing art as a universal expression of humanity. As the nation’s museum for visionary art and a hub for creative education, AVAM remains committed to inspiring generations to discover their innate artistry, and to celebrate individuality through the power of visual storytelling—affirming that our differences have the power to unite us.

Cheers to 30 Years: AVAM’s Birthday Bash takes place Saturday, November 22 from 10 AM to 5 PM. The full schedule of activities is listed below. For media inquiries, please contact Valerie Williams at marketing@avam.org or Greg Tucker at greg@tuckercomms.com.

Schedule of Activities

All day
Scavenger Hunt & Fifi photo ops!

10 AM–12 PM
Blinged-Out Birthday Hat Workshop & Face painting

10:30 AM–11 AM
Meet the Artist: Bob Benson

11 AM–12 PM
Collection Highlights Docent Tour

11 AM–3PM
Pop-Up Kitchen in Café with Absolutely Perfect Catering

12–1 PM
Birthday Songs & Cake

1–3 PM
Screen Painting Demo with artist Michael Seipp

2–3 PM
Collection Highlights Docent Tour

3–3:30 PM
Meet the Artist: Matt Sesow

2–4 PM
Mini Art Car Workshop

:: See Also ::

‘Cheers to 30 Years’: American Visionary Art Museum to throw birthday bash
by Aliza Worthington
Published October 27 in Baltimore Fishbowl

Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) launches redesigned MPS in Product Management with customized career pathways that blend Design Thinking, Generative Intelligence, and Global Strategy
Press Release :: October 23

The Maryland Institute College of Art (MICA) is reimagining advanced education for professional practitioners once again with the return of a redesigned Master of Professional Studies (MPS) in Product Management — a 30-credit online graduate program built for creative professionals seeking to lead at the intersection of design, technology, and innovation. Combining design thinking, generative intelligence tools, sustainable sourcing, and effective communication strategies, the program prepares graduates to manage artisanal, digital, and luxury products in today’s rapidly evolving markets.

Applications are open now, with classes beginning in January 2026. Designed for working professionals, the program offers the flexibility to learn on your schedule while gaining the tools to bring ideas from concept to market. With four flexible pathways—Digital Product Management, Luxury Goods & Experience Design, Artisanal & Craft Production, and Ethical Global Sourcing & Sustainability—students gain both strategic vision and hands-on expertise to bring responsible, market-ready products from concept to launch  and graduate with the confidence to lead creative teams, tell compelling product stories, and drive innovation across industries.

At launch, the program features two specialized Pathways:

• Digital Product Management — Bridge creativity and technology to lead digital innovation through AI, data insight, and emerging product strategies.
• Luxury Goods & Experience Design — Create meaningful experiences and sustainable luxury brands that balance cultural value, aesthetics, and responsibility.

Launching in Fall 2026, two additional Pathways will expand the program’s reach:

• Artisanal & Craft Production — Shape sustainable futures for tangible products through ethical sourcing, design thinking, and circular production models.
• Ethical Global Sourcing & Sustainability — Lead responsible innovation on a global scale by integrating design, strategy, and environmental stewardship.

“At MICA, we believe creativity is a catalyst for change,” said Cecilia McCormick, President of MICA. “The MPS in Product Management equips professionals to lead with vision and purpose — applying creative problem-solving to design products and systems that make a real impact.”

Rooted in MICA’s mission to advance creativity for a better world, the MPS in Product Management prepares makers, designers, and innovators to navigate the complex space where art meets industry. Graduates will emerge ready to lead — bringing thoughtful, forward-looking solutions to some of today’s most dynamic fields.

Applications for the Spring 2026 cohort are now open.
Learn more and apply at mica.edu/pm

:: See Also ::

MICA launches redesigned master’s program in product management
by Aliza Worthington
Published October 28

Academy Art Museum Celebrates Robert Rauschenberg’s 100th Birthday with Intimate Centennial Gathering
Press Release :: October 24

More than 100 of the Academy Art Museum’s closest supporters and donors gathered on October 22, to celebrate the centennial of visionary artist Robert Rauschenberg. The intimate evening—filled with champagne, storytelling, and reflection—honored one of the most influential figures in modern art and previewed the Museum’s upcoming exhibition, Rauschenberg 100: New Connections, opening December 11.

Guests enjoyed a Rauschenberg-inspired cake and heartfelt remarks from Don Saff, Rauschenberg’s longtime collaborator and Easton, Maryland resident, who shared personal stories from their creative partnership. Curator Lee Glazer offered an inside look at the exhibition and screened a short preview of 100 Foot Photo, the documentary chronicling the making of Rauschenberg’s monumental 100-foot work Chinese Summerhall.

A centerpiece of the upcoming exhibition, Chinese Summerhall is among the artist’s most fragile and rarely exhibited works. The Rauschenberg Foundation is highly selective in granting loans of such magnitude due to the artwork’s sensitivity and size. “Now I’m really letting you in on some insider information,” shared Charlotte Potter Kasic, Museum Director.

“This exhibition almost didn’t happen if it weren’t for our tenacious curator. These works require an extraordinary level of care to display, and being approved for a loan of this caliber is a true testament to our team’s professionalism and our donors’ commitment. We are so fortunate to share such significant works with our community.”

In concert with the Rauschenberg Foundation’s global centennial celebration, the Academy Art Museum proudly represents the Eastern Shore among museums worldwide honoring Rauschenberg’s radical creativity, collaborative spirit, and enduring legacy.

“My hope is that this extraordinary exhibition draws visitors from our community and from communities well beyond the Eastern Shore,’ said Kasic.

“Given Rauschenberg’s profound commitment to building community, I think that’s something he would have loved.

Trump Fires Entire Arts Oversight Committee
by Isa Farfan
Published October 29 in Hyperallergic

Excerpt: The White House has terminated all members of an independent federal commission established by Congress to advise the president and the government “on matters of design and aesthetics, as they affect the federal interest and preserve the dignity of the nation’s capital.”

The six sitting members of the Commission of Fine Arts were notified in an email sent by White House personnel that their positions were terminated effective immediately “on behalf of Donald J. Trump,” the Washington Post first reported on Tuesday evening. According to the Post, the agency was expected to review Trump’s ballroom and proposed “Independence Arch” projects.

Baltimore Symphony Orchestra’s November Concert Lineup Features Spellbinding Symphonies, Broadway Royalty, and Iconic Tributes
Press Release :: October 29

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) presents a vibrant and wide-ranging slate of performances this November, showcasing everything from magical symphonic storytelling and romantic masterworks to pop culture tributes and beloved Broadway icons. Music Director Jonathon Heyward leads dramatic programs inspired by fantasy and fire, Music Director Laureate Marin Alsop returns to conduct Brahms’ lyrical Third Symphony, and Leslie Odom, Jr. returns to end the month on a high note with a festive holiday performance.

Family Concert: Dead Composers Society
Jonathon Heyward, conductor
Dan Rodricks, narrator
A spooky, playful introduction to classical music featuring The Composer Is Dead, Poe-themed surprises, and post-concert Trunk or Treat fun. This performance is part of the Sherman Foundation BSO Family Collection.

Saturday, November 1, 3:00 PM – Meyerhoff

Haunted Hall: Halloween Film Favorites
Damon Gupton, conductor
From Jaws to The Witches of Eastwick, conductor Damon Gupton leads this ghoulishly fun concert of horror and sci-fi film scores.

Saturday, November 1, 8:00 PM – Meyerhoff
Sunday, November 2, 3:00 PM – Meyerhoff

(Opening night at Strathmore on October 31 was previously covered in October highlights.)

Symphonic Poetry: Magic, Fire & Light
Jonathon Heyward, conductor
George Li, piano
University of Maryland Concert Choir, vocalists
Enter a world of mystical landscapes and musical imagination in this visually stunning program featuring Scriabin’s Prometheus: Poem of Fire, complete with projected lighting effects. The concert also includes Dukas’ The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, Ravel’s Daphnis et Chloé Suite No. 2, and Mussorgsky’s Night on Bald Mountain.

Thursday, November 6, 7:30 PM – Meyerhoff
Saturday, November 8, 8:00 PM – Meyerhoff
Sunday, November 9, 3:00 PM – Strathmore

BSO’s Live at the Meyerhoff Presents: Bernadette Peters in Concert
The legendary Broadway star returns for one night only, performing songs by Rodgers and Hammerstein, Sondheim, and more in a heartfelt evening of musical storytelling.

Friday, November 7, 8:00 PM – Meyerhoff

(Note: The Orchestra does not appear on this program.)

Alsop Conducts Brahms 3
Marin Alsop, conductor
Nemanja Radulović, violin
Music Director Laureate Marin Alsop returns to lead Brahms’ radiant Symphony No. 3. French Serbian violinist Nemanja Radulović makes his BSO debut with Khachaturian’s passionate Violin Concerto. The program opens with Reena Esmail’s evocative RE|Member.

Friday, November 14, 8:00 PM – The Clarice
Saturday, November 15, 8:00 PM – Strathmore
Sunday, November 16, 3:00 PM – Meyerhoff

Music Box: Baby Mozart
For Ages 6 months to 3 years
Explore the melodies of Mozart and more with the BSO String Quintet and interactive fun for little ones. This performance is part of the Sherman Foundation BSO Family Collection.

Saturday, November 15, 10:00 & 11:30 AM – Meyerhoff
Saturday, November 22, 10:00 & 11:30 AM – BlackRock Center

BSO’s Live at the Meyerhoff Presents: Itzhak Perlman in Recital
Violin icon Itzhak Perlman celebrates his 80th birthday season in this intimate recital featuring works by Mozart, Franck, and Dvořák.

Saturday, November 15, 7:30 PM – Meyerhoff

(Note: The Orchestra does not appear on this program.)

BSYO 2025–26 Season Opener
Celebrate the passion and promise of over 450 student musicians across the BSO’s four youth ensembles.

Sunday, November 16, 6:30 PM – Meyerhoff

Symphony in the City: Johns Hopkins
Jiannan Cheng, conductor
Assistant Conductor Jiannan Cheng makes her debut leading the BSO in a free community concert featuring works by Coleridge-Taylor, Debussy, Grieg, Price, and Vaughan Williams.

Wednesday, November 19, 7:30 PM – Johns Hopkins Turner Auditorium

Presented in collaboration with Johns Hopkins Medicine.

ICON: The Voices That Changed Music
Lucas Waldin, conductor
Capathia Jenkins & Ryan Shaw, vocalists
Celebrate the timeless music of legends like Whitney Houston, Stevie Wonder, Michael Jackson, and Prince. Broadway sensation Capathia Jenkins and GRAMMY-nominated vocalist Ryan Shaw bring soul, pop, and power to the stage in this unforgettable orchestral tribute.

Friday, November 21, 8:00 PM – Strathmore
Saturday, November 22, 8:00 PM – Meyerhoff
Sunday, November 23, 3:00 PM –Meyerhoff

BSO’s Live at the Meyerhoff Presents: Leslie Odom, Jr. — The Christmas Tour
Ring in the season with Tony and GRAMMY Award winner Leslie Odom, Jr. performing holiday classics, Broadway hits, and songs from Hamilton.

Saturday, November 29, 7:30 PM – Meyerhoff

(Note: The BSO does not appear on this program.)

Ticket Information
Tickets are available at BSOmusic.org. For complimentary press tickets, please contact the BSO Press Office.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall | 1212 Cathedral Street | Baltimore, MD 21201
The Music Center at Strathmore | 5301 Tuckerman Lane | North Bethesda, MD 20852
UMD’s The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center | 8270 Alumni Drive | College Park, MD 20742
Turner Auditorium at Johns Hopkins | 720 Rutland Avenue | Baltimore, MD 21205
BlackRock Center for the Performing Arts | 12901 Town Commons Drive | Germantown, MD 20874

About the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra
For over a century, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra (BSO) has been recognized as one of America’s leading orchestras and one of Maryland’s most significant cultural institutions. The orchestra is internationally renowned and locally admired for its innovation, performances, recordings, and educational outreach initiatives, including OrchKids.

The BSO performs annually for more than 275,000 people throughout the State of Maryland. Since 1982, the BSO has performed at the Joseph Meyerhoff Symphony Hall in Baltimore, and since 2005, with the opening of The Music Center at Strathmore in North Bethesda, MD, the BSO became the nation’s first orchestra performing its full season of classical and pops concerts in two metropolitan areas.

In July 2022, the BSO made history with the announcement that Jonathon Heyward would succeed Music Director Laureate and OrchKids Founder Marin Alsop as the Orchestra’s next Music Director. Maestro Heyward began his inaugural season in September 2023.

The Baltimore Symphony Orchestra is a proud member of the League of American Orchestras.

More information about the BSO can be found at BSOmusic.org.

East City Art Reviews—Women Artists of the DMV
by Claudia Rousseau, Ph.D.
Published October 28 in East City Art

Excerpt: By now anyone interested in the visual arts scene in this region is aware of the monumental project organized by F. Lennox Campello in eighteen venues and featuring approximately six hundred artists. Simply titled Women Artists of the DMV, in each, Campello intended to stage enough diversity to create a “survey” of what women artists at all stages of their careers are doing in the region. He also stated in a video interview that he wanted to demonstrate that there is “no such thing as women’s art. It is art, period.” The idea for what has been described the “largest curated exhibition ever held in the United States,”[1] began to form about two years ago, but the process of bringing it to fruition really took shape in late 2024. Lenny, as he is widely known, began by contacting about twenty-odd gallerists, curators, museum directors and collectors (many of them women) asking them to nominate ten artists each. He also put out a call on all the social media platforms including his own blog The Daily Campello Art News. The response was very nearly overwhelming. Many of the artists first contacted provided contacts for dozens of others until the number of participants grew into the hundreds. This, in itself, was impressive, as was Lenny’s ability to obtain venue space for them in what was a rather short time. By this past January there were still only around 300 on the list, and far fewer venues were set with the exhibits opening in September.

Lenny has always been a sincere promoter of the art scene in the Washington DC metropolitan region and, an artist himself, has curated numerous exhibitions. He also published a book in 2011 featuring 100 area artists, both men and women that was well received. His aim, as he has expressed it, then and now is to give these artists exposure and thus opportunities for exhibitions and sales. A worthy aim by any standard.

Picture of health: going to art galleries can improve wellbeing, study reveals
by Andrew Gregory
Published by October 27 in The Guardian

Excerpt: Enjoying original works of art in a gallery can relieve stress, reduce the risk of heart disease and boost your immune system, according to the first study of its kind.

Researchers measured the physiological responses of participants while viewing masterpieces by world-renowned artists including Manet, Van Gogh and Gauguin in a gallery.

They found that art positively influences the immune, hormone and nervous systems all at once – something never previously recorded. The findings suggest that seeing original art not only moves people emotionally, but also calms the body and promotes health and wellbeing.

How to Make Art Out of Confederate Monuments
by J Wortham
Published October 28 in The New York Times

Excerpt: In the fall of 2023, at a foundry outside Virginia, a team of welders in protective gear dropped pieces of a Robert E. Lee statue into a 2,250-degree furnace. An arm disappeared into the heat, then a leg. It took many multihour sessions to liquefy the monument of Lee astride his horse. When they were ready to burn Lee’s face, they cut it from the head with a torch and lowered it into the molten abyss. As it melted, his mouth seemed to widen into a scarlet scream.

This was about more than the transformation of an old artifact. It was an attempt to destroy myths about the Civil War and the righteousness of the Southern cause that had persisted for over a hundred years.

The Lee monument went up in the early 20th century, when a campaign of racial terror was rapidly spreading across America, enforcing a postwar social order that positioned white people on top. Jim Crow segregationist policies were being instituted, and the Ku Klux Klan was reviving, galvanized by “The Birth of a Nation,” the 1915 film by D.W. Griffith that portrayed African Americans as violent caricatures. This, rather than the war or its immediate aftermath, was the era when massive public monuments to the Confederacy were erected, specters of a past to rule the present.

Pazo Fine Art is transitioning to PFA Gallery
Announcement :: October 24

Dear Friends, Colleagues, and Patrons,

I am pleased to announce that Pazo Fine Art is transitioning to PFA Gallery—a development that reflects the gallery’s evolution over the past five years and signals our expanded commitment to advancing contemporary abstract practices within critical and institutional discourse.

This transformation has been unfolding organically since the gallery’s inception. When I established Pazo Fine Art in 2020 in Kensington, Maryland, the program was dedicated exclusively to the secondary market, focusing on postwar abstract painters whose historically significant contributions warranted renewed scholarly attention and institutional recognition. My intention was to illuminate these under-examined figures and reposition their work within broader conversations about American abstraction.

Over time, this historical foundation evolved into a robust primary program—a shift cultivated through sustained engagement with artists whose practices embody comparable formal discipline, chromatic sophistication, and material intelligence. These relationships deepened the gallery’s investigation of the generative processes defining abstraction across the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, positioning the program as a critical nexus between generations while continuing to champion overlooked voices within the modernist canon.

The opening of our Washington, D.C. location in 2023 further catalyzed this evolution. Maintaining dual exhibition spaces has enabled the gallery to sustain a more dynamic and consistent presence within the city’s institutional art ecosystem while preserving our Kensington foundation. The two locations now operate in productive dialogue, facilitating programming that positions historical and contemporary practices in rigorous, sustained conversation.

The transition to PFA Gallery acknowledges this maturation. The refined identity honors the gallery’s origins while embracing a broader curatorial mandate—one that situates postwar abstraction within an expanded continuum of inquiry encompassing materiality, gesture, phenomenology, process, and conceptual rigor across generations and geographies.

Moving forward, PFA Gallery will continue to advance a program distinguished by scholarly research, rigorous exhibition-making, and critical publications. The gallery remains committed to cultivating long-term collaborations with artists, estates, patrons, and institutions, and to serving as an essential platform for abstract practices that persistently expand the visual, material, and intellectual vocabularies of contemporary art.

I am deeply grateful for the sustained support of this community—the artists, patrons, curators, and colleagues who have accompanied this journey—and I look forward to this next chapter with renewed purpose and conviction.

With appreciation,
Luis Pazo

“12-Foot Skeleton” music video by Barnyard Sharks
Press Release :: October 24

Baltimore’s veteran genre-hopping rock mutants, Barnyard Sharks release their first music video, a timely ode detailing new singer Bridget Cimino’s love affair with a 12-Foot Skeleton from that big box store. Sure to be a holiday classic for years to come, the video, filmed in a graveyard with a giant skeleton, comes just in time for Halloween and Dia De Los Muertos, but isn’t just a seasonal novelty and has kicked off their scorching live shows for the last couple years.

The video marks the first release with a new-and-improved lineup and the first single since the band’s 2023 classic Kick the Can. Cimino joins Aaron Henkin (drums and vocals), Albert Garcia (bass and vocals), Dan Pavlik (guitar and vocals), Michael Shank (guitar and vocals), Ruby Fulton (flugelhorn and vocals), and Baynard Woods (vocals and keys).

The video, produced by Cameron Granadino, and single, recorded by Craig Bowen at Tempo House, are the first in a series of releases leading up to an as-yet untitled album expected early next year.