BmoreArt’s Picks: January 21-27This Week: René Treviño and Ellen Hoobler discussion at Connect+Collect, Katie Pumphrey artist talk at Alex Cooper, Material Systems curated by Alex Ebstein opening reception at MICA, artists Angela Franklin and Chevelle Makeba Moore Jones exhibition curated by Schroeder Cherry opening at JELMA, Marisa Stratton artist talk at MoCA, Micah E. Wood and Christopher Chester in conversation with Devin Allen at Bird in Hand, Baltimore Jewelry Center’s 2025 Ornamenta Auction, and E. Brady Robinson at the Pratt Library — PLUS Asia North 2025 call for art and more featured opportunities!BmoreArt’s Picks presents the best weekly art openings, events, and performances happening in Baltimore and surrounding areas. For a more comprehensive perspective, check the BmoreArt Calendar page, which includes ongoing exhibits and performances, and is updated on a daily basis.To submit your calendar event, email us at [email protected]!René Treviño and Ellen Hoobler: Art, Identity, and LegacyWednesday, January 22 :: 6-8pm@ Connect+CollectJoin us on Wednesday, January 22nd, from 6:00 to 8:00 PM at BmoreArt Connect+Collect for an evening exploring the creative process and cultural narratives through the lens of interdisciplinary artist René Treviño and curator Ellen Hoobler. The event begins with a special screening of a 20-minute documentary that offers an intimate look at Treviño’s artistic journey in creating work for his recent exhibition, stab of guilt, at the Wellin Museum of Art. The film highlights Treviño’s meticulous process and his exploration of identity, mythology, and historical reinterpretation.Following the film, Treviño and Hoobler will engage in a dynamic conversation exploring his practice, which reimagines traditional narratives of race, sexuality, and heritage. Ellen Hoobler, the William B. Ziff, Jr., Curator of Art of the Americas at the Walters Art Museum, will offer a curatorial perspective, drawing on her work for the museum’s new landmark permanent installation. This Walter exhibition features over 200 works spanning 40 cultures and more than four millennia, presenting a richly layered exploration of ancient and contemporary art from Latin America/Latinoamerica.Together, they will examine themes of shared humanity and the resonance between historical and modern art practices, offering new ways to think about the connections between the past and present.Katie Pumphrey | Artist Talk + Swim StoriesWednesday, January 22 :: 4:30-6:30pm@ Alex CooperBaltimore-based Auctioneer Alex Cooper’s quarterly art exhibition series is currently on view with an exhibition featuring the work of Katie Pumphrey. On Wednesday, January 22, from 4:30-6:30, Pumphrey will give an artist talk entitled “Artist Talk with Swim Stories.”Guests will be able to view Pumphrey’s Emerge Exhibition and hear the presentation while enjoying light refreshments. The Artist Talk coincides with the preview of the January Gallery Auctions providing attendees the opportunity to tour the auction house as well.Katie Pumphrey famously completed the first swim from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor and is preparing for her third swim of the English Channel.“Katie’s work is informed by her career as a marathon swimmer.  Hearing her talk about her work and her swimming is a rare treat,” said Kathleen Hamill, Director of Art at Alex Cooper. “We look forward to bringing her work and her stories to our customers.”The Emerge Series aims to bring awareness to Alex Cooper clientelle about the vibrant art community that is Baltimore.  Emerge will expand the art buying experience for Alex Cooper customers by providing them with multiple options for creating or adding to their art collecitons.The Emerge Series with Katie Pumphrey runs until January 31, 2025.  All works will be available for immediate purchase on Alex Cooper’s Buy Now Portal. (www.buynow.alexcooper.com)ABOUT ALEX COOPER (www.alexcooper.com)Alex Cooper, headquarterd in Towson, MD, is proudly celebrating 100 years of business.  It is one of the largest auctioneers in Maryland and Washington, DC. The company has more than 50 employees and specializes in the sale of arts and antqiues, jewelry, silver, furniture and decorative arts, as well as the sale of residential, commercial and industrial real estate. The showroom also features a “Gallery of Rugs” offering one of the region’s most expansive rug collection.ABOUT KATIE PUMPHREY (www.katiepumphrey.com)Katie Pumphrey (b.1987) is an American interdisciplinary artist and ultramarathon open water swimmer. Pulling from her experiences in the water, her paintings, sculptures, and installations use abstraction and imagery to investigate our anxieties, fears, and how our imagination plays tricks on us. Incorporating a bit of humor, Pumphrey explores these tensions and the connectedness between human instincts and play. She has a Bachelors of Fine Art in Painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Her works have been exhibited in galleries across the United States, including solo exhibitions in Baltimore, Washington, DC, and Key West.On June 25th, 2024, Katie Pumphrey became the first person to complete the Bay to Baltimore swim, a 24 mile swim from the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Baltimore’s Inner Harbor. Other notable swims include the English Channel (2015, 2022), around the island of Manhattan (2017), and the Catalina Channel (2018, 2024)— those three swims make up the Triple Crown of Open Water Swimming. Pumphrey was the 194th person (73rd woman) in the world to achieve that honor. Her work is deeply connected to this aspect of her life. Pumphrey lives and works in Baltimore, MD.artwork: E E IkelerMaterial Systems | Opening ReceptionFriday, January 24 :: 5-7pm@ MICA Sheila & Richard Riggs GalleryMaterial Systems is a group exhibition showcasing works by artists whose systematic methodologies inform their artistic practices, encompassing works that span painting, printmaking, collage, animation, and sculpture. Through additive processes, these artists construct, layer, and integrate materials into cohesive yet dynamic works that emphasize craftsmanship and materiality.The exhibition foregrounds the artists’ use of meticulous processes, such as stacking, layering, and excavating, to form their distinct artistic voices. Often defying or expanding the limitations of artistic categorization, many of the works blend technologies and traditional techniques to find hybridity between media. Similarly, themes of memory, identity, transformation, nostalgia, and angst are explored and combined in the works presented. The exhibition, held at MICA’s Riggs and Leidy galleries, is meant to inspire student artists to explore the conceptual significance of materials and methods in their own creative practice.Alex Ebstein is an artist and curator based in Baltimore, MD and James Williams II is an artist, curator and faculty member of MICA’s painting department.  The two artists/curators both work in the area of painting and utilize atypical materials and techniques to achieve their ends, including yoga mats, velcro, mixed media, applique, and ceramics.Exhibiting Artists: Matt Bollinger,  Richard Hart, Andrew Hladky, E E Ikeler, Saskia Krafft, Gracelee Lawrence, Austin Lee, Aryana Minai, Danni O’Brien, Michael Stamm, Elisa Soliven, Karen Yasinsky, Monsieur Zohore.Read more of this week’s picks at BmoreArt.