It was announced last night that Gallery Lombardi will close on January 15th, 2009. The contemporary art gallery, currently located on West 7th Street, has existed in Austin since 1996. Proprietor Ron Prince and Director Rachel Koper cite not making "nearly enough money this year" as a reason for closing the gallery. The sad news broke at last night's opening reception for Lombardi's current show, the Xmas Expo. Prince debuted a collage informatively titled "The Gallery Will Close in January". The celebration of the last show went on as scheduled and featured music by Coma in Algiers and Leila Bela among others. As is typical of Gallery Lombardi openings, the space was packed to overflowing and art appreciators spilled out into the gallery's parking lot. more ›