Current Events

The issues addressed in Milton Rosa-Ortiz’s “The Dodekatheon” series are numerous and dense: religious persecution, nationalism, Greek mythology and even geological topography. But Rosa-Ortiz, a former Aspenite who waited tables at Explore Bistro before moving on to architectural school and the New York art scene, doesn’t mind if all that meaning is overlooked in favor of the mere beauty of the work. Certainly, there is plenty going on visually. Using sticks topped with colored crystals, Rosa-Ortiz has created wall reliefs that are like gazing up at a star-filled sky on a perfect night ” if the stars came in all colors, and twinkled more than they actually do. There’s even more visual engagement than the artist imagined; Rosa-Ortiz only noticed the effect of looking at the pieces with one eye shut, and moving slowly toward the pieces, after he had finished the series. “The Dodekatheon” shows at the Baldwin Gallery through July 21; also showing are gelatin silver print photographs by Vera Lutter.

Some 15 years ago, the residents of Aspen supported preserving the old Red Brick School as a city asset, rather than having it sold off for development ” by a margin of three votes. It’s hard to imagine those three deciding voters regret their decision now that the facility, transformed into the Red Brick Center for the Arts, has become a vibrant complex for visual artists, organizations promoting music, film and theater, and other nonprofits. As for those who voted nay ” now’s their chance to make up for that wrongheaded decision. The Red Brick Council for the Arts, which runs the center, is throwing its Annual Art Auction and Art Festival on Sunday, June 28, at noon. The event features art-making demonstrations, food and drinks, music, and a silent auction of works by some 100 local artists, including such notables as Gino Hollander, Michael Raaum and Betty Weiss, with proceeds going to scholarships for art education, exhibitions and community workshops. It’s a chance to show again that Aspenites made the right choice in maintaining the Red Brick as a community building.

Next week at the Aspen Music Festival, the concerts mostly get handed over to the extended Shaham Family. On Tuesday, July 1, Gil Shaham, who spent summers studying violin in Aspen while his late father attended the Aspen Center for Physics, performs a recital of Brahms quintets with his wife, fellow violinist Adele Anthony. The following night, Gil’s sister, pianist Orli Shaham, also an alumnae of the Aspen Music School, performs with a group of friends in a concert of works by Debussy, Prokofiev, Schumann and more. On Saturday, July 5, Orli’s husband, David Robertson, the well-respected director of the St. Louis Symphony, conducts the Aspen Chamber Symphony in Argentinean composer Osvaldo Golijov’s “Azul,” featuring soloist Alisa Weilerstein, and Schubert’s “Great” symphony.