Immediately after the Ten Tiny Dances, I had to go home.

Which bummed me out: I wanted to check out the last installment of Kulture Lab, I wanted to hang with artists at Tempest Lounge, I wanted to continue the energy I enjoyed as the Portland entity that was Ten Tiny Dances poured their creative souls out on stage.

But I had a kid who expected mom to put her to bed, after declining to accompany me to see the dances.

En route to the mother in law’s house, I saw signs of life at the Rebecca V Gallery, and Pairings.

Nosy by nature (and suspecting a bottle of nice wine might be a welcome thing) I stopped in.

Holy cow.

Mauricio Diaz’ work is crazy-cool.  He uses an architect’s training and eye to render canvases of color and vitality â€" painted primarily with palette knife, occasionally utilizing corrugated board to great textural advantage â€" that bring to mind artists like Van Gogh and Monet, if said artists were to have chosen palettes of vibrant secondary colors with more perspective, less “landscape.”

I loved chatting with Kelly, Tony V, and Mark, and I especially loved the kismet meeting of Heidi, Portland gallery chica, who had no clue that a totally different kind of Portland  Arts gig was happening just up the street from where she was.

It made me walk away smiling, knowing that connectedness really is alive and well.  We aren’t just our own little microcosm of coolness: it’s spreading.

And that’s hot. â€" Jessica Corey-Butler