By Coral Gables Gazette staff

Ten black-and-white photographs created over a decade and across three continents will anchor a busy Gables Gallery Night on Friday, alongside an appearance by a prominent Mexican painter, four exhibitions at the Coral Gables Museum and open houses at two local galleries.

Participating venues will welcome visitors from 6 to 10 p.m. Aug. 7. The evening’s featured opening begins at 7 p.m. at Books & Books, where photographer Ken Lyon will present Suspensions, Tensions + Illusions. The event is free, with advance registration requested.

Books & Books: A decade of mystery in black and white

Lyon’s month-long exhibition brings together 10 photographs made during a 10-year period in North America, South America and Europe.

The images are connected less by location or subject than by their treatment of mystery and illusion. Some reveal their visual puzzle immediately; others ask viewers to look longer before the apparent scene begins to shift.

Each photograph was captured digitally and printed on Hahnemühle Photo Rag Ultra Smooth paper. Lyon also submitted the series to the 2026 edition of Critical Mass, the annual juried portfolio review organized by the Portland, Oregon, photography nonprofit Photolucida.

Lyon began working with photography nearly six decades ago in a home darkroom in Worcester, Massachusetts, and later attended the School of the Museum of Fine Arts. He then took a long professional detour into the restaurant business as a chef and restaurateur.

During the past 15 years, he has returned to photography as a primary artistic practice. His work remains rooted in black and white but combines contemporary digital capture with hand-pulled platinum and palladium printing, a process whose origins extend to the 19th century.

Lyon will attend Friday’s opening at Books & Books, 265 Aragon Ave., giving visitors an opportunity to discuss the images and the decisions behind the series.

Coral Gables Museum: Four exhibitions, music and sculpture

The Coral Gables Museum will offer free admission from 6 to 10 p.m., with a live set by DJ Kauze, a cash bar and happy-hour specials throughout the evening.

Visitors can explore four exhibitions:

• Many Voices, One Nation: En Nuestras Palabras, organized by the Allapattah Collaborative CDC in partnership with the museum;
• Local Leadership, National Legacy: Coral Gables Mayors Across a Century;
• La Vida Es Un Carnaval; and
• George Merrick’s Vision: Revisiting Arva Moore Parks’ “Creating the Dream” Exhibition.

The museum’s sculpture collection also includes Jaume Plensa’s Minna, an untitled work by Ilse de Manzanares and Beatriz Kohn’s Rebuilding Motherland.

The museum is at 285 Aragon Ave., a short walk from Books & Books.

Mexican consulate: Amador Montes meets visitors

The Consulate General of Mexico will devote its Gallery Night program to Amador Montes, an Oaxacan painter known for expressive, dreamlike imagery and intense color.

Montes will attend the opening reception and give an artist talk about his career, creative influences and the stories behind his work. The program offers visitors a relatively unusual chance not only to view the exhibition but to hear directly from the artist whose work fills the gallery.

The consulate is on the fifth floor at 2555 Ponce de Leon Blvd.

H. Benitez: Romance, emotion and Cuban color

H. Benitez Fine Art Gallery will present a selection of original paintings by Cuban-American artist Humberto Benítez.

The works explore romance, emotion and the beauty of everyday life through the vivid color and sense of movement that have become signatures of Benítez’s painting. His Coral Gables gallery, which first opened in 2001 and now operates at 233 Aragon Ave., is devoted exclusively to his work.

The Aragon Avenue location places it within walking distance of both the museum and Books & Books.

The Americas Collection: Music, drinks and the current exhibition

Farther south on Ponce de Leon Boulevard, The Americas Collection will remain open from 6 to 10 p.m. with complimentary drinks and music.

The gallery invites visitors to view its current exhibition and meet other artists and collectors during its monthly open house.

The Americas Collection is at 4213 Ponce de Leon Blvd.

Planning the evening

Coral Gables Gallery Night
Friday, Aug. 7
6 to 10 p.m.

Books & Books
Ken Lyon: Suspensions, Tensions + Illusions
Opening begins at 7 p.m.
265 Aragon Ave.

Coral Gables Museum
Four exhibitions, DJ Kauze, cash bar and happy-hour specials
285 Aragon Ave.

H. Benitez Fine Art Gallery
Works by Humberto Benítez
233 Aragon Ave.

Consulate General of Mexico
Amador Montes exhibition and artist talk
2555 Ponce de Leon Blvd., fifth floor

The Americas Collection
Current exhibition, complimentary drinks and music
4213 Ponce de Leon Blvd.

The city encourages visitors to use the Coral Gables trolley or Freebee service when traveling among participating venues.