Weekly Art Lens by Beth Shook

Artist Will Ryman’s assistants install his rose blossom sculptures on the Phillips Collection lawn. Photo by Beth Shook.

Will Ryman’s Roses: 58th Street
Five of Will Ryman’s monumental rose blossoms have been plucked from their home on Park Avenue in New York and relocated to the Phillips Collection. Installed at the corner of 21st and Q Streets NW, the roses’ pink petals and neon stems clash pleasantly with the red brick of the Duncan Phillips House. The sculptures will be on view on the lawn through the end of the year in celebration of the museum’s 90th anniversary.
Where: The Phillips Collection lawn (Metro: Dupont Circle)
When: Until Jan. 5, 2012.
How Much: Free

5th Annual East of the River
This year, the annual juried exhibition of art from Wards 7 and 8 will include work by six local artists: Marlon Norman, Jon Malis, Jonathan Edwards, Deborah Terry, Danielle Scruggs and Lark Catoe-Emerson. The judges, including Federal Reserve Board Fine Arts Program Director Stephen Bennett Phillips, will choose a Best in Show to be announced at the opening reception on Friday.
Where: Honfleur Gallery (Metro: Anacostia)
When: Aug. 5 to Sept. 16. Opening reception on Aug. 5 at 7 p.m.
How Much: Free

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(Un)Lock It: the Percussive People in the Go-Go Pocket
Meanwhile, Honfleur’s sister gallery at Vivid Solutions will be unveiling its own hyperlocal exhibition. (Un)Lock It, a photographic series by artist/scholar/poet Thomas Sayers Ellis, explores the lexicon and culture of Go-Go music within the context of D.C. politics. While his mission to “reclaim the pictorial power of photography for D.C. residents” is a bit hazy, Ellis’ interest in the relationship between gentrification and community tradition should strike a chord with visitors from both sides of the Anacostia River.
Where: Gallery at Vivid Solutions (Metro: Anacostia)
When: Aug. 5 to Oct. 7. Opening reception on Aug. 5 from 6 to 8 p.m.
How Much: Free

Summer Print Show
This week is your last chance to see a diverse and lively set of prints from the last 30ish years at the Marsha Mateyka Gallery. The six artists form an interesting stylistic melange, ranging from big names to local favorites (not to mention Gene Davis, who is both). Visitors can look forward to both the signature expressive black splotches of late abstract expressionist Robert Motherwell, and Aline Feldman’s more recent woodcuts of colorful, Cubist cityscapes.
Where: Marsha Mateyka Gallery (Metro: Dupont Circle)
When: Until Aug. 6.
How Much: Free

Short list: Summer Group Show: Unseen at Studio Gallery; Text as Inspiration: Artists’ Books and Literature at the National Gallery of Art; Variations and Opposing Planes at Hillyer Art Space.