Zygote Press — which has been proactive in reaching out to other arts organizations and innovating for survival in tough economic times — launches yet another smart project this week with the first show of what director Liz Maugans calls "the print expedition." It's a collection of prints from the organization's archives, which are packaged as a complete exhibit and available for loan to other venues — especially nonprofits with gallery space in need of a show, but also to corporations (which pay a fee for the service). Works are framed and ready for hanging, and the show comes with promotional materials and other support to make it easy to export. It features 25 works by Cleveland-area artists, including Matthew Kolodziej, Laurence Channing and the Rev. Albert Wagner, and represents the range of printmaking that goes on at Zygote. The show debuts with a reception at 4:30 p.m. Friday, January 8, and continues through February 19 at the Howson Gallery at Judson Park (2181 Ambleside Dr., 216.791.2885, judsonsmartliving.org). Free.
"What's in a name?" Juliet asks Romeo, implying that names are just words. But sculptor Terry Durst finds the resonance of the people behind the names, and that's what he's used to motivate his work in The Carter Excavations. The sculptor says he chose the name Carter because it's a common American name and — besides referring to country-music pioneers the Carter Family and English archaeologist Howard Carter (who discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun) — can invite viewers to look at the works as "excavations" of their own emotional states. The Carter Excavations opens with a reception from 6-9 p.m. Friday, January 8, and closes with a reception and music by Mystery of Two at 8 p.m. February 6 at Arts Collinwood Gallery (15605 Waterloo Rd., 216.692.9500, artscollinwood.org). Free.
The First Mondays series ends a three-year run at Dobama Theatre Monday, January 11, with a reading of Margaret Lynch's For the Price of a Cow, the story of Emmett Gaughan's early-20th-century immigration from Ireland to Cleveland and his search for an aunt who hasn't been heard from since she immigrated 20 years earlier. First Mondays moves to the Alcazar Hotel starting February 1. The reading of For the Price of a Cow is at 7 p.m. at Dobama Theatre (2340 Lee Rd., Cleveland Hts., 216.932.3396, dobama.org). It's free; donations are accepted.
