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March Issue 2004
Artspace in Raleigh, NC, Launches a Host
of Exhibitions in March
Artspace in Raleigh, NC, is presenting several exhibitions including:
Gallery 1 will feature the exhibit, Sparkings, a mixed
media invitational featuring the work of Paul Andrews, Madonna
Phillips, and Lynn Whipple, on view from Mar. 5 through May 1,
2004; Gallery 2 will feature, Within and Without, featuring works
by Jennifer Anderson, on view from Mar. 5 through Apr. 16, 2004;
Upfront Gallery will feature the exhibit, The Wisdom of Insecurity
In Praise of Wrinkles, by Joan Walecka, on view from Mar.
5 - 27, 2004; and the Artspace Lobby will feature, Recent Works,
by Leni Newell, on view from Mar. 5 - 27, 2004.
Sparkings represents the work of three mixed media artists
residing in the Southeast. The common thread among all the artists
is the use of found materials in their work, such as vintage photographs,
old letters, wooden boxes, and fabrics. Each artist breathes new
life into these old objects, creating deeply personal social commentaries
from the forgotten remnants of other peopleís pasts.
Paul Andrews
Paul Andrews notes that in the catalog for
the 1961 MOMA exhibition, The Art of Assemblage, curator
William C. Seitz wrote of "the fabric of meaning woven by
materials." Seitz observed "as element is set beside
element, the many qualities and auras of isolated fragments are
compounded, fused, or contradicted so that - by their own confronted
volitions as it were - matter becomes poetry."
Utilizing anonymous photographs, old paper, cardboard, bookbinding,
cloth, glass, wire, galvanized metal, boxes, and assorted natural
and man made objects, Andrews intends to create a chemistry among
the disparate elements. Through his work, he attempts to create
an expression of human concerns: longing, isolation, and relationships
to both the physical and spiritual worlds.
Andrews was born in 1961 in northern England. His family immigrated
to America when he was two, settling in a house on a dirt road
in the small town of Shelby, NC. He currently lives and works
in Charlotte, NC. Andrews exhibits his work nationally, including
at the Lowe Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, the Lowe Gallery, Atlanta,
GA, Gayle Wilson Gallery, South Hampton, NY, Gasparilla Festival
of the Arts at the Tampa Museum of Art, The Blue Pony Gallery
& Press, Charlotte, NC, and Bennett Galleries, Knoxville,
TN.
Lynn Whipple
Lynn Whipple incorporates drawing, painting,
collage, sewing, and found objects in her assemblage work. She
relishes the search for interesting items and has always been
fascinated by history, old books, lost letters, worn fabrics,
family photographs, wooden boxes, and odd pieces of memorabilia.
Her process is to surround herself with all of these found items
and play, seeing how different combinations will take hold and
lead her down a path. Whipple's work at times may be playful or
serious, simple or complex, large or small. She enjoys objects
with a past, things that are slightly beat up, but have much more
charm because of their journey.
Whipple is currently involved in a body of work called the Ninny
Series. She has been collecting old photographs for over 10
years, and has amassed more than a thousand images, mostly portraits.
Using the found image gives Whipple a starting point when she
begins a new piece. She usually starts by collaging the image
onto wood or paper, then using acrylic paint, drawing and found
objects. Whipple is drawn to the absurd, believing that humor
is one of humanities greatest gifts.
Whipple is a Florida native. Both she and her husband John maintain
studios at McRae Art Studios, an artist co-op with 25 artists
in Winter Park, FL, which was started by John's family in 1988.
Lynn's goal in art as in life is to be honest, grow, learn, experiment,
laugh, and enjoy each day.
Madonna Phillips
Artspace is pleased to exhibit the work of
Artspace Artists Association member Madonna Phillips in this special
invitational. Phillips can often be found amid the beads, fabric,
glass, and found objects in Studio 204 at Artspace. She is continually
exploring the process of combining materials and methods from
the past with contemporary art making. Her mixed media constructions
point to connections between Style and Pop Culture, between Fashion
and Politics.
Phillips was raised in Cheraw, SC, where she took art classes
at an early age. She received instruction in the classic methods
of stained glass painting and cartooning, working for many years
as a stained glass painter in Knightdale, NC. She currently exhibits
her mixed media assemblages throughout the United States, including
at the Smithsonian Craft Show. Phillips is a long-standing member
of Piedmont Craftsmen, Winston-Salem, NC and Carolina Designer
Craftsmen, Raleigh, NC. In 2002 her work was selected by Sean
Kelly, Grand Arts, Kansas City, MO, as one of "twenty-three
of North Carolinas most innovative artists." Her work was
exhibited in a show Kelly curated at the Green Hill Center for
North Carolina Art, Greensboro, NC. Phillips and her husband Greg
enjoy collecting and selling mid-twentieth century antiques and
vintage clothing.
Jennifer Anderson
Within and Without
by artist Jennifer Anderson will be offered in Gallery 2.
The words within and without suggest both a state of being and
the idea of a border or barrier, largely something that separates
the inside and the outside. Skin acts as that vehicle for the
body. It is the barrier for the body and its outmost perimeter.
On top of the skin, clothing exists as a continuation of this
border and often as a continuation of self as well.
Within and Without is a play upon the ideas of skin, clothing,
and the body in light of a post-Cartesian definition of self.
Is the body something we exist within like our clothing? Is the
skin a fragile dress we can simply remove and our existence continue
or is it the core of our existence? Are we within or without of
our bodies?
Anderson was born and raised in East Tennessee. Her early childhood
was filled with the presence of a large extended family and the
tales and folklore of southern Appalachian culture. She completed
her BFA with honors at East Tennessee State University before
continuing to pursue a MFA in printmaking and book arts at the
University of Georgia, Athens. Anderson's work has been exhibited
in various venues throughout the United States. She lived in the
Triangle area of NC for a year before leaving the southeast to
accept an assistant professor of printmaking position at Indiana
State University.
Joan Walecka
The Wisdom of Insecurity In Praise of Wrinkles, an exhibition of fiber works by Joan Walecka.
Over the past year, Walecka has created an exhibition of work
as inspired by the ideas presented in Alan Watts' book The
Wisdom of Insecurity. Responding to the writing, Walecka felt
free to plunge into the unknown, disregarding preconceptions of
how to go about making her artwork. The all white pieces in the
exhibition rely on the effects of light and shadow and texture
to define rather than color from dying and stitched line. Boundaries
beyond the rectangle are explored. Consciously letting go of a
dependency on past processes and preferences, Walecka enjoyed
the freedom of responding to the materials and inspiration of
the present moment as each piece evolved.
Walecka began taking art classes at the Cincinnati Museum of Art
while in the first grade. She continued taking classes, hoping
to be shown the way to make art. Walecka received her BA from
Centre College in Danville, KY, and her MSW from University of
Washington, Seattle, WA. She studied at the University of Washington
for four additional years, as well as at NC State University and
Penland. Walecka credits NCSU Craft Center instructor Peg Gignoux
with helping her to trust her own intuitive creative spirit. This
has made a profound difference in Walecka's approach to artmaking.
She has exhibited her work throughout the state, including at
the NCSU Craft Center, Appalachian State University Cultural Museum,
and the Green Hill Center for NC Art.
Leni Newell
Leni Newell's exhibition of, Recent Work,
presented in Artspace's Lobby, explores the concept of wastefulness
in our society: industrial waste, corporate waste and consumer
waste. She has been exploring abstraction through collage since
Artspace opened in 1986. Newell is the recipient of a Regional
Artist Grant from the United Arts Council. Her award winning work
appears in juried shows around the country and is represented
in many corporate collections.
Artspace is a non-profit visual art center dedicated to presenting
quality exhibitions and education programs in an open-studio
environment. Artspace is supported by the North Carolina Arts
Council, an agency funded by the State of North Carolina and the
National Endowment for the Arts; by the United Arts Council of
Raleigh and Wake County, with funds from the United Arts campaign
and the Grassroots Arts Program of the North Carolina Arts Council;
by the City of Raleigh based on recommendations of the Raleigh
Arts Commission; and by individuals; businesses; corporations;
and private foundations.
For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery
listings, call the center at 919/821-2787 or at (www.artspacenc.org).
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