At Micheline's Studio, Talk and Transformations

Sing, O Muse, of a place where the like minded can gather and converse, as the greatest of orators, about the most divine of mortal pleasures, art.

At artist Micheline Klagsbrun's studio, artists and academics alike did just that last night. Studio Gallery's inaugural Artist Salon was both intellectually stimulating and visually rewarding for those in attendance. Approximately 30 guests convened in a post-industrial space, at 52 O Street Studios, with soaring ceilings and paint on the floor which hinted at the creation that takes place there. Though Micheline normally uses the space to paint and host weekly drawing classes, last night she welcomed anyone enthusiastic about the artistic dialogue of Washington, DC.

Standing among paintings in various degrees of completion, a swordfish, and a large oriental style umbrella, Klagsbrun cited inspiration as eclectic as her surroundings with particular interest in Ovid's Metamorphoses. Indeed, after hearing Klagsbrun's vivid invocation of her poetic inspiration, one could have believed one of the several mannequins that surrounded her could have sprung to life as if Pygmalion's sculpture, at least after several glasses of wine seemingly poured from the generous hand of Dionysus himself.