So much going on here in Marfa with Chinati Open House weekend! But just wanted to give a shout out to Sarah Cain’s exhibition, Forget me not, which opens officially today, and runs through 4 December 2011. Part of LAND‘s multi-site, multi-artist exhibition Nothing Beside Remains, happening throughout 2011 and 2012 throughout Marfa, Cain has created a site-specific installation for the first floor of the former Masonic Lodge (generously provided by Jeff Fort). In a series of new paintings, this installation explores, in both concept and imagery, the forget-me-not flower — a Masonic symbol later co-opted unknowingly by the Nazis. Conceptually, Forget me not deals with themes such as belief systems and doubt, double meanings and faith, and investigates physical, emotional, and psychic space. For viewings, please contact LAND to make an appointment.

And people of New York: Come to our first public performance in New York: Atom Fables, a performative work of experimental filmic sequences by artist Laleh Khorramian set to live soundtracks by Shahzad Ismaily. It’s all happening Monday and Tuesday, 10 and 11 October, at 8 pm at the 14th Street passage of the High Line. It’s free, so there’s really no excuse. The program is presented in collaboration with Friends of the High Line, and it’s going to be amazing! More details here and here.

Our pals over at Marfa Book Company are having an opening this Saturday, October 1st at 6 pm, to celebrate Charles Mary Kubricht’s installation The Figure is Always Ground. As Tim Johnson, curator and owner of Marfa Book Company, explains: “The work, which covers four walls, the ceiling and the floor, features a painted dazzle, a form of nautical camouflage used, primarily, during the First World War” (Kubricht is also using this technique on storage containers at the High Line). The Figure is Always Ground runs through January 15, 2012 — be sure to check it out if you’re passing through Marfa.

Photos courtesy of Hunter Oatman-Stanford, September 2007.

We just found these old photos from our former gallery manager, Hunter. He was passing through Valentine on the way to White Sands and ended up stopping at Prada Marfa just as a couple of other cars pulled up. Suddenly three more cars stopped to see what the hubbub was, and it became quite a happening. He snapped some photos, which we love, because they capture Prada’s actual place in the world, with real people sideswiped by its sudden bizarre appearance. If you have photos of your own experience with Prada Marfa, please send them to us — we’re collecting them for our web site to reveal another layer of (real people) experience with the installation.

Update: We’ve received so many amazing submissions; keep them coming! See the photos here.

Awesome news for June: The Alamo Drafthouse and Texas Monthly announced their collaboration for the 2011 Rolling Roadshow, marking the first all-Texas tour of free outdoor 35mm screenings. This year they’re celebrating films in the Lone Star state by presenting 10 Texas films in the iconic locations where either they were filmed or in a thematic setting. Lucky for Marfa, we’re getting both No Country for Old Men and Giant on June 24 and 25, respectively, which were both filmed in and around Marfa. (Rumor has it that the facade of the Benedict home in Giant — built at the Warner Bros. prop department and shipped to the Worth Evans Ranch, twenty-one miles from Marfa — still stands. Though other sources say it’s basically just a few poles.)

The full lineup is great — I started to list all the ones I would go see, but realized I was basically listing them all. (But seriously don’t miss Tender Mercies, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Hud, and ESPECIALLY The Last Picture Show.) All screenings are free; bring a blanket, and come early to get a good spot!

2011 ROLLING ROADSHOW SCREENINGS

June 3 – THE SEARCHERS in Groesbeck, Texas

June 4 – THE TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE in Kingsland, Texas

June 5 – BLOOD SIMPLE in Austin, Texas

June 11 – HUD in Claude, Texas

June 17 – RED RIVER in Forth Worth, Texas

June 18 – BONNIE AND CLYDE in Pilot Point, Texas

June 19 – TENDER MERCIES in Waxahachie, Texas

June 24 – NO COUNTRY FOR OLD MEN in Marfa, Texas (playing in the field east of the Riata Motel)

June 25 – GIANT in Marfa, Texas (playing in front of Hotel Paisano)

July 1 – THE LAST PICTURE SHOW in Archer City, Texas

For more locations and more information, please contact Alamo Drafthouse and Texas Monthly.

Don’t miss the first annual CINEMARFA, a new film festival here in Marfa, happening next weekend. CineMarfa has a unique take on the idea of a film festival, with an emphasis on the intersection between film and fine art. From board member David Hollander’s mission statement:

Almost all of the films in this program come directly from this specific historical moment, a time when a profound sense of ennui, of hopelessness, gives way to the exuberance of youth in revolt. These films, taken as a whole, remind us that power can be found in subversion, and that agency can be realized through the creation of a work of art.

We’re particularly stoked about their screenings of Madame X: An Absolute Ruler, a film written, directed, and produced by Ulrike Ottinger (Saturday, May 7, 2011, 11 am) and the teen-film Over the Edge by Jonathan Kaplan (with awes soundtrack by Cheap Trick, The Cars, The Ramones, and others) (Sunday, May 8, 9:30 pm, outdoors at El Cosmico).

All screenings are free, but as seating is limited, please RSVP to attend: [email protected]. For more details and schedule, visit CINEMARFA.

You may have heard about the terrible wildfires that recently destroyed over 199,001 acres in West Texas (and are only 75% contained at this time). The fire began on Saturday, April 9, a mile outside of Marfa, and raced north to Fort Davis — home to our Texas Biennial artist, Alyce Santoro — and many homes and thousands of acres of ranch land burned.

We are incredibly indebted to Marfa Public Radio and Big Bend Now for their tireless coverage, as well as the local, state and national firefighters and local volunteers who assisted in aid efforts. If you’re interested in helping, here are a few ways:

• A primary way to help those devastated by the wildfires is sending donations to the Jeff Davis County Relief Fund, P.O. Box 1809, Fort Davis, TX 79734. Write the fund’s account number on the check (Acct # 321028). Donations may be sent online to jeffdaviscountyrelief.org, which is facilitated by Fort Davis State Bank.

• Make a monetary donation to the Marfa and Fort Davis volunteer fire departments: Marfa Volunteer Fire Department, P.O. Box 846, Marfa, Texas 79843 or The Jeff Davis County Volunteer Fire Department, Fort Davis, TX 79734. Any amount is appreciated.

• The State of Texas Agriculture Relief Fund, or STAR, collects monetary donations to help farmers and ranchers recover from an emergency. Visit TexasAgriculture.gov to contribute.

You can also give to the American Red Cross Southwest Division out of Midland or the Salvation Army of Texas. For more ways to help, please visit Big Bend Now.

Thanks to The Big Bend Sentinel for these suggestions.