Jane Franklin Dance, chocolate, and art at 2nd Thursday Art Night at the Torpedo Factory

The Torpedo Factory Art Center will be full of art, chocolate, and dance during Second Thursday Art Night Thursday, December 10. Jane Franklin Dance performs, Target Gallery and The Art League Gallery host receptions, the Alexandria Archaeology Museum looks at the city’s role in 19th century sugar production, and artists will have sweet treats in nearly 80 studios.

6 – 9 pm:

• More than 100 artists in nearly 80 studios will have sweet chocolaty treats for visitors to enjoy as they shop for gifts of art throughout the building.
• Visit the 3rd floor landing for a hands-on snowflake-making activity.
• The “taking of chocolate” was a patriotic beverage alternative for colonists who refused to pay the high tax on tea. The Alexandria Archaeology Museum (studio 327) will have samples of American Heritage Chocolate mixed with a traditional spice blend to enjoy. See examples of 18th-century of chocolate pots and cups from the museum’s collection.

6 – 7 pm; 8 – 8:45 pm:

• Jane Franklin Dance performs Incidence on the first floor lobby. Dancers manipulate and incorporate kinetic sculptures in their performance as an exploration of the nature of chance on the progression of the piece. The company will also have a gift-wrap challenge, a raffle, and sweet treats for visitors.

7 pm:

• During the reception for Target Gallery’s (studio 2) new exhibition, Printed Matter, juror Gretchen Schermerhorn, artistic director of Pyramid Atlantic Art Center in Silver Spring, Maryland, shares her thought about the prints, illustrations, artists’ books, and other works on view. Visitors can also create their own xerography work of art, too.

7:30 pm:

• The Art League Gallery (studio 21) hosts openings for December’s all media Open Exhibit, juried by Clint Mansell, director of Principle Gallery, and Kathlyn Avila: No Ordinary Woman, which draws on the artist’s life and the memorable characters she has known.

7:45 pm:

• Chocolate wouldn’t be sweet without sugar. Alexandria Archaeology Museum (studio 327) presents on Alexandria’s role in 19th century sugar production at the Moore-Mclean Sugar House Site at North Alfred and Cameron Streets.

About The Alexandria Archaeology Museum
The Alexandria Archaeology Museum opened in 1984 in the newly renovated Torpedo Factory Art Center. The museum serves as the hub of the City’s archaeology program where visitors interact with archaeologists and volunteers working in the public laboratory; experience Alexandria’s 13,000 year-old-history through exhibits, self-guided tours, and hands-on activities; and view the latest finds from current excavations. For more information, go to www.alexandriaarchaeology.org.

About The Art League
Founded in 1954, The Art League, Inc., a 501(c)(3) organization, is among the nation’s largest and oldest multi-service organizations for visual artists. As a major component of the cultural fabric of Alexandria, The Art League offers extensive exhibit opportunities for artists through its gallery, outstanding fine art education through the school, and valuable outreach programs to the local community. The Art League is headquartered in the landmark Torpedo Factory Art Center.

About Target Gallery

Target Gallery is the contemporary exhibition space for the Torpedo Factory Art Center. The gallery promotes high standards of art by continuously exploring new ideas through a variety of visual media in a rotating schedule of national and international exhibitions. The gallery is open daily from 10-6 pm and until 9 pm on Thursdays.

About the Torpedo Factory Art Center

Founded in 1974 in an old munitions plant, the Torpedo Factory Art Center is home to the largest number of publicly accessible working artist studios in the U.S. The organization’s mission is to foster connections between artists and the public that ignite the creative spirit. Just south of Washington, D.C., the Torpedo Factory Art Center overlooks the Potomac River in the Old Town section of Alexandria, Va. Each year, more than a half million national and international visitors meet and interact with more than 160 resident artists in 82 working studios and seven galleries. The Torpedo Factory Art Center is also home to The Art League School and the Alexandria Archaeology Museum. For more information visit torpedofactory.org or follow the Torpedo Factory Art Center on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram via @torpedofactory.