CITY LIGHTS City Lights
#HirshhornInsideOut’s Maker Morning series If your walls are covered with movie posters or dusty diploma frames, there’s no need to worry. The Hirshhorn believes that art can be found anywhere, and has been encouraging patrons to try their hand at recreating famous pieces through the #HirshhornInsideOut campaign. Earlier this month, as part of the campaign’s Maker Morning series, the museum encouraged its social media followers to recreate the work of Dutch artist Piet Mondrian. Mondrian, who is known for his contributions to 20th century abstraction, believed that “the first aim in painting should be universal expression.” In much of his most famous work, he limited his color palette to the basics—white, black, yellow, blue, red, and gray. Although you might not recognize the name, you’ve certainly seen one of his primary-colored pieces. According to the Hirshhorn, creating your imitation painting is as simple as cutting paper into squares and lines, then arranging them in one of his grid-like patterns. If you don’t have ready access to colored paper (or other traditional art supplies), get crafty. Use the plain sides of scrap paper and sharpies or pens to create his sharp black dividing lines. You can even use eyeshadow or other makeup to pigment the squares. Not only will working on your very own Mondrian help pass the time, but you’ll have a fun new piece of wall décor to admire while you’re at home. Learn more about the #HirshhornInsideOut campaign at hirshhorn.si.edu and get the instructions for the Maker Monday challenge on Facebook. Free. —Sarah Smith
City Lights
Women in the Life Magazine D.C.’s public libraries remain closed, but if you’re hungry for new reading material, don’t sleep on Dig DC, an online archive that offers a digital sampling of DC Public Library’s Special Collections. There, you can read high-quality scans of Women in the Life magazine, a publication with roots in the District’s black lesbian social scene—though “there is more to being a black gay woman than just partying,” editor S. A. Reid reminded readers in the first edition, which was published as a newsletter in 1993. While the parties and social events didn’t stop, Women in the Life aimed to serve the community’s intellectual life, covering everything from politics to art, sports to sexuality. Though the writing was often witty, Women in the Life didn’t shy away from more serious subjects. For example, the April 1995 issue included articles ranging from part three of a fourpart investigation into a cluster of HIV cases to a roundup of “hot (or at least lukewarm) flicks.” The approach worked, attracting readers and allowing the magazine to expand over time. By the end of its decade-long run in 2003, Women in the Life had evolved into a full-blown glossy magazine available for free at bookstores across the District. Dig DC currently offers 28 digital issues of Women in the Life that ran between 1993 and 1996. Archives from the magazine can be found at digdc.dclibrary.org. Free. —Michelle Delgado
City Lights
All Souls Bar jigsaw puzzle In the days before the COVID-19 pandemic, one of the delightful markers of spring was the first opportunity the weather afforded to drink a damned cocktail on a patio without shivering. That’s the picture that emerges in the 500-piece jigsaw puzzle from All Souls Bar, the Shaw neighborhood drinkery that, like all the other bars in the city, is now closed to customers looking to imbibe in-house. The rueful scene shows relaxed patrons in a pre-pandemic era socially mixing—not distancing even a little!—while cupping beverages in the bar’s cozy outdoor area. A separate puzzle depicts a close-up of one of the whiskey-and-rosé cocktails for which I would have easily traded a case of N95 masks just a few weeks ago. As far as bar merch goes, puzzles have to be among the most coronavirus-specific options out there. The proceeds go to bar staff, but the benefits flow to the reluctant puzzle-solvers who would rather be drinking a perfect Manhattan patio-side. Move quickly— the puzzle sold out fast on its first run and had to be restocked. The puzzle is available for purchase at shop.allsoulsbar.com. $48. —Kriston Capps 16 april 24, 2020 washingtoncitypaper.com