Tek-nique Entertainment continues to put on great shows throughout Tampa Bay, the newest being the State of the Art 2.0 show, put on at the Roosevelt (1812 N 15th St Tampa, FL 33605) in Ybor City on Saturday, 04/25/2009. The show featured a mixed expose of art from local artists, ranging from digital production to living art to traditional canvas pieces.
Last year’s State of the Art showing was voted the Best Art Party of 2008 by the Tampa Bay Times. Version 2 was just as impactful, giving a glimpse into the work of artists including Christine A. Galas and J.E. Feightner.
While waiting for the show to open, an artist was outside painting a mural from scratch. Using spray paint, we watched as he sculpted an image of a robot monster “Meka” for the passing street crowd.
The first exhibit when walking through the door is “Slaves of the 21st Century” an homage of characters living out the sin-filled existence of excess and external fulfillment.
An electronic music show provided the soundtrack to the experience until the band arrived.
Art filled the walls. Some of it thought provoking. Some of it interesting. A lot of the work had political and social overtones that couldn’t be overlooked.
The work wasn’t limited to models and prints. Here you see a frightening sculpture in the upstairs staging area.
The show got crowded quickly. Within 20 minutes of opening, it was packed with art lovers both upstairs and down.
It was a great turnout for a nice show. Tek-nique has really been putting out quality shows in the last several months. If State of the Art 2.0 was any indication of things left to come, I’m very excited for the next exhibit.
Bryan, 2 years ago
I was there and the show was awesome. The story behind the building and what they are doing currently to make it "zero-energy" is quite noteworthy. It is collaborative between Tek-nique, Eco-Tech Construction, Zenlofts Design, and thecampus.tv
They are doing an ongoing renovation of the building to make it a model of sustainability. I went to Pecha Kucha a couple of weeks later and they are about to do the roof which will feature a rooftop garden and rain catchment; there was even more art there for this event and apparently it has become quite the spot for local up and coming artists to hang out. The guys are doing a great job.