The Violet Hour

Wash down a couple of Prozac with some wine before attending the Henry’s new group show. “The Violet Hour” (through October 12 in the Stroum Gallery) showcases three artists’ responses to–or are they predictions of?–the coming global apocalypse. What’s ailing the world? Take your pick among political strife, environmental degradation, and world war, which all figure in the work of Croatia’s David Maljkovic, New York’s Jen Liu, and Olympia’s Matthew Day Jackson. It’s an international misery tour! Jackson says his skeleton installations signify people who’ve discovered the only way to escape our corrupt society is death. (Yeesh–lighten up a little, buddy.) Liu’s videos show nature under siege. Maljkovic plumbs the ennui of post-Soviet Eastern Europe in his photos and videos. All three young artists are grouped under a phrase from T.S. Eliot’s The Waste Land: The “violet hour” marks that dusky transition to night. That poem was written in 1922, surveying the landscape after World War I. And not many years later, lest we forget, things got even worse. Cheers. Henry Art Gallery, 4100 15th Ave. N.E., 543-2280, www.henryart.org. $8–$10. Opening reception 8 p.m. ERIKA HOBART

June 20-Oct. 12, 8 p.m., 2008