Art Exhibit: Wally Bowling

Louisville-born artist Wallace Bowling hasn’t spent much of his career as an artist. He spent 30 years as an architect before retiring in Chicago and becoming director of the city’s Douglas Dawson Gallery, where he has worked for the past dozen years. The gallery, founded in 1983, specializes in ancient and historic tribal art.

Like his architectural career and some of the tribal art his gallery sells, Bowling’s art is rooted in utility, given his canvas is often boxes that had a prior function. He transforms these boxes to take on the kind of ambiguous references that might be integrated into the beaded headdress of the leader of the Yoruba people of Nigeria, or a shield created by the Massai of East Africa.

An opening reception will be held at 5-7 p.m. Oct 12. This event is free to the public.