Community Calendar

The Contemporary Dayton is proud to present Xaviera Simmons: Figure Eleven, a major solo exhibition bringing together recent works in photography, painting, video, and the world premiere of a new body of bronze sculptures by one of the most bold and visionary artists of our time.

Simmons’ practice is deeply rooted in art history, both through deliberate assertion and continuous engagement, drawing on references that span from antiquity and the American landscape to contemporary media. Her work unfolds through a cinematic sensibility, where narrative, movement, and stillness intersect. This is evident in her photographic series such as American Book Covers and Sundown, in her monumental text paintings, and now in this new body of bronze sculptures.

Performance, choreography, and the sensual are integral to Simmons’ artistic language. In this recent sculptural work, these elements coalesce into forms that feel both classical and contemporary. As with much of her practice, Figure Eleven situates art history within an ongoing continuum, like a film that resists final resolution.

The sculptures recall the Venus of Willendorf and Venus de Milo while simultaneously reflecting the multiplicity of contemporary bodies and motifs. Their power lies in their capacity to collapse and reconcile distinct historical and cultural narratives. The figures embody a poised stillness that resonates with the language of movement and performance. Figure Eleven, both the exhibition’s title and the newest figurative sculpture, appears as if drawn from a film still, a moment suspended between gesture and permanence.

In Small Measure is our inaugural fundraising exhibition where we ask participants to create a postcard sized work of art, donate it to us, and in exchange, it will be included in an exhibition on February 13-14, 2026 at The Contemporary Dayton, Dayton, Ohio’s contemporary art center.

Submission Deadline (Postmark): Feb 1, 2026

In-Person Drop-Off Deadline: Feb 4, 2026

Exhibition Dates: Feb 13-14, 2026

December 3 – 27, 2025

Opening Reception: December 3, 6 – 8 pm

Closing Reception: December 27, 2025, 4 – 6 pm

Lori Daugherty: Bold Whispers brings together a series of intimate encaustic works in which color, wax, and heat converge to form small but potent moments of energy. In each piece, Dayton-based artist Lori Daugherty coaxes organic bursts of form and pigment into being—gestures that feel alive, expanding, and quietly insistent. These works reward slow looking: what first appears delicate reveals surprising force, and what seems restrained carries a pulse of movement just beneath the surface.

Working with encaustic wax and inks, Daugherty builds her compositions through layered translucency, texture, and the dynamic unpredictability of a torch and flame. The resulting surfaces hover between control and spontaneity, abstraction and suggestion. Together, the paintings in Bold Whispers invite viewers to linger in the space where subtlety becomes powerful and small moments open into larger stories.

All artworks in this exhibition are available for purchase. Please visit the reception desk or speak to a staff member to purchase. Proceeds support both the artist and The Contemporary Dayton’s mission to connect artists and audiences through accessible, engaging contemporary art experiences.

Katie Gast wanted to open a baked potato restaurant.
Ashley Ashbrook knows how to make them.
Lily’s is going to let them borrow their kitchen.

Don’t have a “root” awakening - take a break from Christmas shopping and join us on Monday, December 22nd, from 5-9 pm for our first potato partnership at Lily’s Dayton!

Preordering is preferred and the link will be available later this week on Lily’s website. We’ll have a few extra spuds available for our buds who would like to walk in. Lily’s full bar will be open for business, too. Tiki cocktails and comfort food? A match made in heaven!

Stay tuned for the menu and reservation link!

Join us every Monday for our service industry thank you party. Come by to meet people and make friends over great drinks, food and pool at Belmont Billiards.

Ages 16 + Learn a beautiful art form in Rosewood’s newly renovated glass studio! The Intro to Enameling course provides students with a basic understanding of enameling through creation of small enamel pieces. Students learn various techniques, such as graphite drawing, water color, and separation enamel. Each class session will introduce different enamel techniques. Classes are devoted to demos and working on the techniques introduced.

Come play chess with us! Mondays, 6:30PM!

In her work, Eden Quispe creates interior scenes using inherited quilting techniques, embroidery, printing, and collage. Quispe expresses the precarious balance of her multiple roles as a mother, artist and teacher with symbols and materials;  her daughter’s baby clothes, grandfather's ties, and inherited fabric from her family and husband's Peruvian culture are painted and sewn upon and cut to become walls, tables, and chairs. These object memories are sewn together and printed on to create her patchwork paintings.

Denny Gerwin’s ceramic sculptures and vessels reference the female form, acknowledging artifacts created up to 30,000 years ago and illustrating universal human interest in precarious subject matter. Recognizing himself as the “other” in the equation, and noting that this is a rare position for him to sit in, the artist is grateful for lessons learned in vulnerability. More recent works in this series show clinched fists, an aberration from traditional depictions of Venus and an apt departure given the threat to women's power.

The Contemporary Dayton is proud to present Xaviera Simmons: Figure Eleven, a major solo exhibition bringing together recent works in photography, painting, video, and the world premiere of a new body of bronze sculptures by one of the most bold and visionary artists of our time.

Simmons’ practice is deeply rooted in art history, both through deliberate assertion and continuous engagement, drawing on references that span from antiquity and the American landscape to contemporary media. Her work unfolds through a cinematic sensibility, where narrative, movement, and stillness intersect. This is evident in her photographic series such as American Book Covers and Sundown, in her monumental text paintings, and now in this new body of bronze sculptures.

Performance, choreography, and the sensual are integral to Simmons’ artistic language. In this recent sculptural work, these elements coalesce into forms that feel both classical and contemporary. As with much of her practice, Figure Eleven situates art history within an ongoing continuum, like a film that resists final resolution.

The sculptures recall the Venus of Willendorf and Venus de Milo while simultaneously reflecting the multiplicity of contemporary bodies and motifs. Their power lies in their capacity to collapse and reconcile distinct historical and cultural narratives. The figures embody a poised stillness that resonates with the language of movement and performance. Figure Eleven, both the exhibition’s title and the newest figurative sculpture, appears as if drawn from a film still, a moment suspended between gesture and permanence.

In Small Measure is our inaugural fundraising exhibition where we ask participants to create a postcard sized work of art, donate it to us, and in exchange, it will be included in an exhibition on February 13-14, 2026 at The Contemporary Dayton, Dayton, Ohio’s contemporary art center.

Submission Deadline (Postmark): Feb 1, 2026

In-Person Drop-Off Deadline: Feb 4, 2026

Exhibition Dates: Feb 13-14, 2026