Merry Everything! Xmas Expo at Gallery Lombardi

No matter how you celebrate the Winter season, artistic inspiration helps enliven the holiday spirit. If last month’s East Austin Studio Tour stirred your hunger for local art, Gallery Lombardi’s Xmas Expo will make your palette sing. Not only will the show feature over 50 local artists, including EAST visionaries Annie Simpson and Morgan Sorne, but live music will accompany your visuals, promising a full multisensory experience.

The Dress Up Issues, the wildly unpredictable amalgam of avant guard jazz musician Chris Vectre and Hawaian Neo-Soul crooner Tacks the Boy Disaster, open up the evening’s set. Black Cock will keep you moving with their heavy techno rock. Coma in Algiers' jazzy punk will keep the party going, and Owen Towles’ African drums will set the evening to a whole new beat.

The Grande Finale includes a performance by adventurous avant-guarde musician Leila Bela, whose ethereal vocals and unique Biblical-era instruments accompany her photography exhibition, “Being Born.” This deeply personal exhibit, sparked by a shattering moment when her mother told her that she regretted Leila’s birth, is a triumphant celebration of life and its transformations. Though Winter traditionally heralds hibernation, Xmas Expo rings in a season of emergence.

Xmas Expo runs through January 10th at Gallery Lombardi.