When artists travel to distant places, either literally or metaphorically, the resulting expressions can be surprising—who else envisions a zebra striped in shades of lavender, lime and saffron? Two artists, Marion Coffey and Laurel Lueders, journey to distinctly different continents and allow their ingenuity and thoughtful impressions to explore new territories. Coffey, a well-loved Milwaukee artist who recently returned from Africa, will exhibit her fresh interpretations of the trip beginning June 6 at the Tory Folliard Gallery. . .

When photography's advent eclipsed pen and ink as a means of reproduction, the city—representations of which dotted the landscape of art history for centuries—became a symbol of modernity, most famously with Atget's photographs of fin-de-siècle Paris. In Gingrass Gallery's “Urban Perspectives” show, a group of artists use the city, its essence and architecture, as a point of departure for myriad ways of interpreting the natural habitat of industry and contemporary Western culture. The harsh angularity of the modern city attests to a human mastery of engineering; of man's struggle to impose civilized geometry upon nature's organic sinuosity.

“Since I was a little girl, about 3 or 4, I was always drawing pictures and hanging them on the walls [of our home],” says artist Flora Langlois, 80, in a recent phone interview. “Then I’d charge a quarter for the neighbors to come and look at them.” So began the artistic career of Langlois, whose exhibit, “One from Wisconsin: Flora Langlois,” opens at the Museum of Wisconsin Art (MWA) on June 4 . . .

In some respects, Santiago Cucullu’s on-site installation at the Milwaukee Art Museum encapsulates the postmodern spirit. Rather than being a single cohesive piece, it’s an agglomeration of micro-narratives. Titled MF Ziggurat, an allusion to the centrality and untouchable sacredness of those imposing Mesopotamian and Central American structures, the piece seeks to transgress the inviolable quality of our modern-day ziggurats—soaring skyscrapers and elegant art museums in whose deep shadows the city churns in habitual ferment.

Beginning May 28 at the Charles Allis Art Museum, George Ray McCormick Sr. juxtaposes his two visions of life in the retrospective “Journey from the Secular to the Spiritual: Works by George McCormick Sr.” The approximately 35 pieces include imaginative, finely crafted carvings, assemblages and sculptures that illustrate McCormick’s artistic transformation.

Hotcakes’ last hurrah is this year’s “Third MARN Mentors Show,” highlighting the outcome of a year-long collaboration between established local artists and those just getting their feet wet. The MARN Mentors program is supposed to encourage new talent to stay in Milwaukee, so it’s hard to ignore the incongruity: There’s a stark contrast between work born of such a hopeful concept and Hotcakes’ liquidation sale atmosphere.

From May through August Wisconsin’s summer art festivals offer unique art experiences at exciting outdoor venues. Each festival becomes an imaginative blend of fine art, cuisine, and entertainment that makes the most of the balmy seasonal weather. Choose from this array of exceptional summer festivals for the pure pleasure of admiring the artists or adding to an art collection.

A collaborative performance and mixed media installation at UWM's Union Art Gallery, “Implosion: Cultural Integration and Transformation,” attempts to draw a through-line among disparate cultures using the lightning rod of religious iconography. Rather than focusing on Abrahamic, monotheistic religious expressions, artists Leandro Soto, Raoul Deal, and René Maldonado, in collaboration with Nigerian dramatist Awam Amkpa, ask viewers to consider the feminine roots of polytheism.

A new art gallery creates excitement by turning previously bare walls into vehicles for fresh, contemporary work. Following are some of the galleries that have recently opened or are set to open this week: Primum Marketing Communications opens an intimate gallery in its second-floor conference room at 400 E. Wisconsin Ave., Suite 2A. Currently on display is “American Industrial Art,” featuring found objects left over from the Beloit Corp. The exhibit presents reinterpretations . . .

The journey from Latin America to the United States, literally and metaphorically, echoes the journey of creating an expression of art. Both require an individual to cross barriers with courage and faith, allowing history, heritage, hopes, dreams and experiences to transform into physical realities. These dual expressions resonate through multiple mediums in the exhibition “Caras Vemos, Corazones No Sabemos: Faces Seen, Hearts Unknown: The Human Landscape of Migration.”