Something new
Marco Zaragoza debuts a dazzling new art form at an exhibit opening on Saturday, February 4, 4-6 p.m. at the Ajijic Cultural Center.
The work of Zaragoza, who is also a local businessman, lies somewhere between the figurative and impressionistic, assembled with organic materials, such as tile, stones, wood, clay and other materials, in layered colors. The scenes mostly depict local scenery and reflect the translucent and moving light of the Lake Chapala area. For now, the style is being called Ajijic Organic Mosaic Relief.
Show up at the reception, have a gander and enter your suggestion for a new name for this beautiful and unique genre. Zaragoza has promised a prize to the person whose suggestion is selected.
Gallery sale
Janice Kimball, owner of the Aztec Studios in West Ajijic, extends a special invitation to all her clients, friends and their friends for a one-time-only 50 percent-off sale on Sunday, February 5, 2-6 p.m. Stop by, enjoy some refreshment and take advantage of great prices on the beautiful rugs, weavings and prints.
Jan Steinbright will also be on hand with her hand-woven baskets and ceramic jewelry.
Be sure to say hello to the gallery’s public relations director – parrot Max Bird.
ASA
The Ajijic Society of the Arts (ASA) meets Monday, February 6, 10:30 a.m. at La Bodega Restaurant (Calle 16 de Septiembre 124, Ajijic), when Marion Decker will speak on “The Art of Marketing Your Work,” with clues to pricing and merchandising.
President Deena Hafker says all artists who wish to participate in ASA’s Judged Show in March must pay their club dues at the February meeting. All are welcome.
Dance
Take advantage of one of the performances to be given by folk dance troupe Son de Mexico of San Juan Cosala on Thursday, February 9 and Thursday, February 16, 6 p.m. at Auditorio de la Ribera del Lago.
Directed by Luis Guzman, the troupe is composed of young, energetic and enthusiastic dancers aged between 14 and 25. Some are in the early stages of their training while others are already professionals.
The troupe has earned a great reputation for the authenticity of their dances and well designed, lavish costumes. The program features live mariachi music from the Hermanos Vargas.
Tickets cost 150 pesos and are on sale at the Auditorium and at the Efren Gonzalez Gallery, Marcos Castellanos 7, in Ajijic.
Painting guild
The Lake Chapala Painting Guild has announced the formation of an executive committee. They are (L-R) Winnie Hunt, secretary; Geraldine Classen, treasurer; Bev Kephart, co-chair; Lois Schroff, co-chair and Libby Shipman, vice president and director of communications. The group’s next show is scheduled for April at the Centro Cultural Gonzalez Gallo in Chapala.
For the auditorium
You can catch the The Dancing Lips Sync Show on Thursday, February 9, (4 p.m.), February 10 and February 11 (6 p.m.) and February 12 (3 p.m.) at Club Exotica behind the Jardin Restaurant on the Ajijic Plaza. The show is a benefit event for the restoration of the Auditorio de la Ribera del Lago.
The ticket price (same as last year) is 150 pesos for general seating and 250 pesos for VIP balcony seating and a free drink. The show opens with Lady Gaga and ends with confetti and a conga line out into the plaza. Some of the other guests include Cher, Britney Spears, Carmen Miranda, Janis Joplin, Sade, Judy Garland and even Billy Ray Cyrus.
Picture taking is encouraged as is dancing in the aisles. Last year the show sold out in a flash!
Tickets are on sale at Diane Pearl’s Colecciones, Charter Club Tours, Auditorio de la Ribera del Lago and the Lake Chapala society Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon.
Sol Mexicano
Galeria Sol Mexicano (Colon 13, Ajijic) presents the work of artist Ute Hagen during February. An exhibition opening with a reception takes place on Thursday, February 9, 4-7 p.m.
Hagen, originally from Germany and then Canada, has lived and worked in Ajijic for about 15 years. Her distinctive paintings are usually of everyday things – a patio, a window box, a corner of a room or a familiar local landscape – but all with a unique perspective.
Hagen paints as though it is the first time she has encountered whatever the subject is, with what she calls a “beginner’s mind.”
The exhibition will be displayed until March 1. The gallery’s telephone number is 766-0734.
MAS concert
Classical FX, a renowned vocal quartet from the Washington, D.C. Kennedy Center, perform opera favorites, Broadway hits, popular classics and gospel music at the Auditorio de la Ribera del Lago on Tuesday, February 14, 5 p.m.
Tickets for this MAS Musica concert cost 350 pesos and can be purchased at the Lake Chapala Society (LCS) Tickets, Etc. booth, Monday through Friday from 10 a.m. to noon through February 14. They are also on sale at Charter Club Tours in Plaza Montana and, on Sunday, February 5 and 12, on the Guadalupe Victoria walkway near the Ajijic plaza.
The February 14 concert will be followed by a “Meet the Performers” dinner at Roberto’s Restaurant. Roberto is offering a 15-percent discount to all attendees who show their concert tickets for the special Valentine’s Day dinner.
MAS’s next presentation will feature VIVA Flamenco, a highly acclaimed flamenco dance troupe from Mexico City, on Tuesday, March 13. For more information, contact MAS president Kathleen Phelps at 766-0010.
Cordero returns
Fresh from guest appearances at Señor Frog’s and the Hard Rock Café in Cancun, Lakeside’s own acoustic guitarist/singer Daniel Cordero is back and can be heard (and seen) at several local venues. He’s at Wing’s Army in Centro Laguna on Wednesday nights from 8 to 11 p.m. (no cover), Los Telares Restaurant in Ajijic on Fridays (no cover) from 6 to 8 p.m., on the Batur lake cruises on Sundays from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. (tickets purchased at the Chapala malecon) and – when you’re lucky – at Casino Foliatti.
Storytellers
Storytellers returns for Valentine’s Day (February 14, 4-6 p.m.), with stories and poems of love and lust (sometimes both). The Storytellers events feature the original works of Lakeside’s best writers, read by well-known local actors and personalities. The programs benefit the Jim Collums Education Fund, which is distributed by the Lake Chapala Society Student Aid program.
The Valentine’s Day event will feature works by Larry Reeves, Dorothy West, Patricia Hemingway, Robert Drynan and Jim Tipton. Readers will include Liz White, Fred Koesling and Joan Davis.
The festivities are set for the LCS Sala. The cash bar opens at 3:30 p.m. Admission is free but a hat will be passed.
Rainer
Dany Palma’s Galeria Gecko (Ocampo 61, Ajijic) exhibits the latest multidimensional graphics and reliefs by Rainer from February 5 to 25. Gallery hours are 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. The gallery is closed on Tuesday.
Rescheduled
The members of the Ballet Folklorico of Ixtlahuacan dance troupe want to apologize for the confusion regarding their last scheduled performance in Ajijic. The presentation scheduled for January 29 was cancelled due to serious family problems of cast members. Those who had tickets for that date should have been reimbursed. Those holding tickets for which they have not been reimbursed will have those tickets honored at the next performance. The next performance is scheduled for Sunday, March 4, noon at Auditorio de la Ribera del Lago. The program will feature regional dances of Jalisco from the 18th century. Tickets are 120 pesos each and on sale at the auditorium.