On Exhibit

Touched by an Angel

In this 17th-century painting by Dutch artist Karel Du Jardin that hangs in the Ringling Museum, golden-haired angels provide water and direction to Abraham’s wife, Hagar, and her son, Ishmael, who are lost in the wilderness.

Du Jardin has created an idealized and theatrical scene on canvas with nearly life-size figures to tell a story from the Bible. The four individuals are handsome and attractive, and the painting’s composition offers a near-perfect balance of simplicity and elegance in the refinement of the figures, their poses and the swirls of drapery. The surface of the painting is smooth and almost photographic in its realism, and yet brush marks are evident upon close inspection. They help define the sharp, crisp contours of the clothing. In contrast, bare skin appears soft and supple because Du Jardin studied the Italian Renaissance masters’ painting technique of sfumato, in which the artist paints what appears to be the moist air that hovers just above the naked limbs of the figures.

Du Jardin made this painting for a private chapel in the home of a Catholic family living in Calvinist Holland. He proudly placed his signature in the broken entablature in the left foreground.—Mark Ormond

ART

Venice Art Center. The center’s student exhibition ends its run June 14; it’s followed by a quilt exhibition June 20 through Aug. 10. 485-7136.

Selby Gallery. A Florida Artists Group exhibition continues through June 15, as does a show of pieces by longtime Sarasota sculptor Frank Colson. 359-7563.

Art Center Sarasota. The center’s annual Florida Photo Open runs through June 16 in the Main Gallery, with portrait painters featured in the Front Gallery. Opening June 26 to run through Aug. 4: a juried open exhibition and an Easter Seals juried show. 365-2032.

Sonnet Gallery. Continuing on view through June 20 is Gone With the Circus, featuring figurative works on canvas by San Francisco artist Kate Anderson. Opening at 6 p.m. June 22 is The Erotic Exhibition, featuring different media and interpretations of erotic work by local and national artists. (Due to its content, this show will be in a private area of the gallery.) 928-6490.

Salvador Dali Museum. The museum continues its exhibition, Dali & the Spanish Baroque, through June 24. (727) 823-3767.

Tampa Museum of Art. Two exhibitions, Eberhard Havecost 1996-2006: Paintings from the Rubell Family Collection and Memorials of Identity: New Media, also from the Rubell collection, remain on view here through July 8. You can also see works by “outsider” artist Purvis Young from the museum’s own collection through July 22. (813) 274-5130.

Museum of Fine Arts. Continuing on view through July 8 at the St. Petersburg museum are three shows: 20th-Century North Carolina Pottery; On the Road: Photographs Across America, featuring works by 19 artists that take the viewer on an extended road trip; and Compelling Visions: Florida Collects Folk Art, including works by the Rev. Howard Finster, Mose Tolliver and Purvis Young, among others. (727) 896-2667.

Ringling Museum of Art. In Our Time: The World as Seen by Magnum Photographers continues here through Aug. 12, offering viewers a chance to recapture historic moments as seen through the lenses of such photographers as Henri Cartier-Bresson, Robert Capa and Sebastiao Salgado. Opening June 16 to run through Sept. 16 is Landscapes from the Age of Impressionism, an exhibition of some 40 paintings from the Brooklyn Museum of Art that includes such artists as Monet, Courbet, John Singer Sargent and Childe Hassam. And don’t forget to view the “pocket exhibition” Canaletto Paired: 18th-Century Venetian View Painting, on view through July 29. 359-5700.

Palm Avenue Gallery Walk. The walk offers live music and more from 6 to 9 p.m. June 1 along the avenue. 955-1315.

State of the Arts Gallery. On view this month and next: The Writing on the Wall, featuring artists’ statements and commentaries in the form of art and flags. 955-2787.

Galleria Silecchia. Works on canvas by Cary Henrie dominate the Palm Avenue gallery June 1 through July 5. 365-7414.

St. Armands Crafts Festival. More than 175 artisans participate in this annual event, which also includes live music. From 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. June 10 on the circle; call 962-0388.

*UPDATED* Madonna Stella Studio. On view at this Main Street gallery: Sarasota As I See It by Madonna Stella, and Commotion by Anita Wexler. Classes in clay for adults, preteens and teenagers are also offered. 706-2119.

BENEFITS

Speaking of Women’s Health. The fifth annual WEDU conference in Sarasota is set for June 2 at The Ritz-Carlton, Sarasota, and welcomes keynote speakers Dr. Pamela Peeke (“Be Strong, Be Healthy, Be in Charge: At Every Age”) and Nancy Coey (“What Would Happen If I DID Remove the Mattress Tag?!?!”) There will also be breakout sessions, a continental breakfast, luncheon, health screenings and more. Tickets are $50; call (800) 354-9338 ext. 2241.

Starry, Starry Night Prom. Grown-ups get a chance to improve on their past prom experiences with this evening to benefit Community Youth Development, set for 7 p.m. June 2 at the Bari Brooks Center at the Sarasota Family YMCA. Lots of food, drinks and dancing—but yes, there will still be chaperones. Tickets $100; call 922-5126.

COMEDY

McCurdy’s Comedy Theatre. The lineup this month includes Irishman Jim Brick, June 1-3; and storyteller Scott Novotny, June 13-17. 925-3869.

MISCELLANEOUS

Mystery Florida Writers’ Conference. The Sunshine State’s masters of mayhem and murder come to Sarasota for the third annual conference, June 1 and 2 at the Lido Beach Resort. Book signings and sellings, discussions of suspense, villains and more are all scheduled; writers include Tim Dorsey, Barbara Parker, Randy Wayne White and area authors Wayne Barcomb and Terry Griffin, and Stuart Kaminsky will be toasted for lifetime achievement. For more information on how to attend, visit mysteryflorida.com.

Savor Sarasota. A very special week for Sarasota restaurateurs and their patrons, this second annual event offers fixed-price lunch and dinner menus at more than 30 local eateries (some with Zagat ratings) June 1-10, along with interactive chef demonstrations. A Sarasota Convention and Visitor’s Bureau event; go to www.sarasotafl.org to learn more.

*UPDATED* Wordsmitten Writers' Workshop. Sarasota Magazine editor Robert Plunket will be a featured speaker at Wordsmitten's Writing Your Life workshop on Saturday, June 9, from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Feather Sound Country Club in Clearwater. Cost is $95 for pre-registrants or $125 at the door. Seating is limited. For more information, call (727) 409-0500 or visit www.wordsmitten.com.

MUSIC

Sarasota Music Festival. The 43rd annual summer music fest (the first under the reign of artistic director Robert Levin) gets under way June 4 and continues through June 23, with an impressive array of faculty and students collaborating on a number of concerts. Among the highlights: the Artist Showcase concerts June 7, 14 and 21, each at 4:30 p.m. at Holley Hall; the main festival concerts June 8, 9, 15, 16, 22 and 23 at Church of the Palms, each at 8 p.m.; and free student concerts set for June 10, 14, 16, 21 and 22, all at Holley Hall. This month’s world of classical music includes Bach, Beethoven and Brahms sonatas, Schubert trios, Mozart quartets, Mendelssohn symphonies, Dvorak string quintets and much, much more; for complete schedule call 953-3434 or go online at sarasotamusicfestival.org.

Friday Fest on the Bay. Free musical entertainment on the Van Wezel bayfront, with performers yet TBA, from 5 to 9 p.m. June 15. 953-3368.

Cocktails at Cà d’Zan. Live music and refreshments from 6 to 9 p.m. June 21 on the mansion’s grounds. 359-5700.

SPORTS

Sarasota Reds. Catch the minor league ball players of today (major leaguers of tomorrow) on the diamond this month, with home games at Ed Smith Stadium June 4, 5, 6, 11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 21, 22, 28, 29 and 30. For ticket info call 954-4464.

Suncoast Offshore Grand Prix. The 23rd annual event kicks off with a charity golf tournament June 23 and continues with the World’s Largest Offshore Party June 28 at the Hyatt Sarasota; a parade of boats June 29 down Main Street, followed by a block party; the powerboat dry pit party June 30; and of course, the big race itself July 1 from New Pass to Big Pass. (Best viewing from Lido Beach.) For more complete info call 371-8820 ext. 1800.

THEATER

A Marriage Minuet. This modern take on Restoration comedy deals with two couples and the never-ending dance we call marriage. Onstage through June 9 at Florida Studio Theatre. 366-9000.

Ella. Tina Fabrique stars as Ella Fitzgerald, singing her way through the story of her life in this new show, onstage through June 10 at the Asolo Repertory Theatre. 351-8000.

Darwin in Malibu. A play by Crispin Whittell that places the great evolutionist in a 21st-century beach house, where two old friends arrive to continue the debate about his Darwinian ideas. Onstage through June 10 in an Asolo Rep production in the Cook Theatre. 351-8000.

Laughing Matters…Too. An original satiric revue of pop culture, politics and more, continuing through June 10 on Florida Studio Theatre’s cabaret stage. 366-9000.

The Rocky Horror Show. The stage show based on the all-time fave cult movie continues through June 10 at Venice Little Theatre. 488-1115.

Call Me Madam. The Irving Berlin show about a hostess-turned-ambassador continues through June 17 at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre. 366-5454.

The All Night Strut. A musical celebration of the 1930s and ‘40s, featuring songs like In the Mood, Minnie the Moocher, etc. Running on Florida Studio Theatre’s mainstage June 13 through July 1. 366-9000.

Johnny Guitar. You may remember Joan Crawford and Sterling Hayden in the 1950s Western melodrama of this name; now get ready for a musical send-up of the original, with sultry saloonkeeper Vienna taking on handsome stranger Johnny in a show that features a little doo-wop and some steamy Southwestern ballads. Onstage at the Golden Apple Dinner Theatre June 19 through Sept. 2. 366-5454.

Alligators. Area playwright Sylvia Reed’s piece about a grifting mother, her young daughter and the “Alligator Lady” in a small Florida town is onstage June 21 through July 1 at Venice Little Theatre’s Stage II. 488-1115.

High School Musical. A young cast brings this popular Grease-like show about a boy, a girl and their different worlds to the Manatee Players stage June 21-24. 748-5875.

A Doll’s House. Ibsen’s classic work about a young housewife whose financial dealings lead to a confrontation with her husband—and the very famous closing of a door. Onstage June 28 through July 15 at the Asolo’s Cook Theatre in a Banyan Theater Company presentation. 358-5330.