Art for Valentine's

By Lauri Apple in Arts & Entertainment on Feb 14, 2009 7:45PM

Aw ... poor wittle wone-wee singleton has no romantical dinner plans tonite? Well, stop your whining and crying, Sadsack, and get out of the house to see some art:

The Green Lantern in Wicker Park offers up an opening reception for Queen's Tailor, a solo-show by Matthew Jinks that runs til March 14. An English artist based in Chicago, Jinks' work explores the shifting structures of belief, memory and loss. In his new video work for Green Lantern, he re-enacts scenes from the Ealing Studio's film The Man In The White Suit. The misplaced aspirations of an eccentric English inventor are played out in a context shifted from post-colonial 1950s England to Chicago's contemporary Indian/Pakistani community, exploring the displacements and potentials of a hybrid, rewritten Diaspora in Chicago. 7-10 p.m. There's a closing party on Saturday March 14 from 6-10 p.m., if you miss it. 1511 N. Milwaukee Ave., 2nd Floor.

Also tonight, Spoke in the West Loop hosts My Whole Life: 30 paintings from the pages of Ryan B. Richey. Though the opening reception for this show is next Friday, Feb. 20, you can apparently stop by tonight from 6-9 p.m. and check out the art. Through Feb. 28. Opening night will feature readings from the text and a performance by Hannis Pannis. Readings and performances by Richey and other various artists on Friday Feb. 27 from 6-9 p.m. 119 N. Peoria #3D

If you do end up staying at home tonight due to heart flu or some other ailment, you can celebrate Valentine's Day tomorrow, Feb. 15 by attending "A Classical Valentine," an afternoon of romantic song featuring soprano Kimberly Jones and tenor Cornelius Johnson. Jones, an alumna of the Ryan Opera Center, has been featured in Opera Now's "Who's Hot in Opera" and has graced stages from Chicago to Milan, Paris, Tokyo, and beyond. Chicago tenor Cornelius Johnson quickly gained attention as an artist in opera, concert, and as a recitalist and has performed throughout the United States and abroad. 3 p.m. Preston Bradley Hall, Chicago Cultural Center. 78 E. Washington St.