March 2024 Exhibits
Spring is here! Celebrate with us in Manchester on March 22nd with an evening of culture, art, music, refreshment, libations and mingle with talented artists and art enthusiasts. This month you’ll experience the world of ceramics. And you will see the transformation of discarded items into artwork in the annual Recycled All Media Show. And if you want to challenge your depth perception and optical awareness, Wendy van Boxtel’s exhibit will take you on a magical art adventure. This event is free and open to the public.
Emerging by Wendy van Boxtel
Boxtel loves playing with depth perception, using continuous patterns and lines alongside sculptural components that seem to emerge right out of the wall and evoke different emotions in different people. Combining painted optical illusions with sculptural elements, her art goes beyond traditional installations, physically and visually extending the boundaries of art. So be prepared to question what you see with your own eyes when engaging with Wendy van Boxtel’s art.
As a child in the Netherlands, besides drawing, she was fascinated by how the brain has “its own mind” and can be tricked, or better, seduced by the art of illusions. Looking for a fresh start and making some dreams come true, she took the difficult decision to leave family and friends behind and start the new millennium in the US. With a BA degree in Activity Counseling, she explored various aspects of art and worked as an art facilitator with children who have special needs, designed juvenile lighting, and worked as a graphic artist for several years.
With roots in two different countries, two different cultures, often makes Wendy feel like Alice in Wonderland. There is freedom, longing, and a constant search for balance between two worlds. This feeds the blazing fire of her creativity. The layers in her work often surprise her. Humor is the key to unlocking the emotions which hide in the shadows of the illusion of her art; empathy, compassion, and being yourself.
“Luctor et emergo is what we say in The Netherlands when we talk about the constant battle with the sea, meaning I struggle and emerge. Sometimes I wonder if that is a theme in my art but at other times, like Alice, I think, it’s no use going back to yesterday, because I was a different person then.”
Today, Wendy lives in Richmond, VA, with her family of seven. She says, “…once they (her art) are out in this world, out in the open, I start to see what they mean to me. But then, someone else looks at them and a new meaning is born. Something, I think, is wonderful and inspires me to continue this artistic journey that brings me closer to unknown horizons and beyond.”
Intersection X Redirection curated by Max Trumpower
Max Trumpower curator of this exhibit explains:
For centuries, craft and culture have converged not only in the process of making, but have expanded into the realm of fine art. At this intersection, BIPOC and queer makers have radicalized the creation of ceramic objects and produced astounding results as a display of identity. Intersection X Redirection is a collection of such artists, who utilize craft as a reflection not only of culture, but of how these identities often intersect.
This coalescence of identities within ceramic craft creates imperishable community bonds and reinforces the importance of solidarity in our field.
Each artist in this exhibition explores their identity through the narrative of sculpture. The artists in this exhibit each have their own influences, techniques, and concepts that inform their work. Each artist holds unique validity in their influences, making techniques, and concepts regardless of work directly relating to identity or not.
It is impertinent in our field to acknowledge and enliven such work for the sake of this work itself, rather than solely for its tokenization. Through this collective making by BIPOC and queer communities, the field of ceramics is undergoing a revolution of reclamation. Despite coming from a variety of backgrounds, the work represented in this exhibition collides seamlessly through the concurrence of our existences and experiences.
As a material, clay holds memory of not only the maker, but the history of a culture. Throughout centuries, we have learned a myriad of information simply from the ceramic objects that were left behind, as evidence and a testament to civilization. These ceramic objects act as a connection point between various cultures, merging ideas between communities that might not otherwise have intersected with one another. By utilizing this material, the artists within this exhibition are attesting to the resilience of their respective identities and serve as a reminder to the larger art community of our permanence.
The sculptural objects represented in this exhibition will outlive us all, whether as complete forms or as mere shards. Regardless, the message remains the same: we are not going anywhere.
Meet Me at the Intersection curated by Chantel Bollinger
The artists in Meet Me at the Intersection demonstrate finding community in material and storytelling through ceramics.
Many artists find themselves at a crossroads of materiality and identity. The artists in this exhibit express their lived experiences and the various communities from which they come. What does it mean to be an artist and exist between the margins of multiple identities? This exhibition explores this question through ceramics and the response is a coalescence of many into the whole, the building of many to stand as one, The exhibit approaches intersectionality politically, personally, and collectively. Meet Me at the Intersection is a deep dive into those many.
Curator: Chantel Bollinger is the curator of Meet Me at the Intersection. As a ceramic maker Bollinger is interested in the ways artists from marginalized backgrounds put themselves into their work whether intentionally or otherwise. This exhibit speaks to the ways in which people with intersecting identities use clay to share their unique perspectives and stories.
Contributing artists: Cal Duran, Vincent Frimpong, Esther Elia, Cesar Pita, Cortney YellowHorse-Metzger, Jessica Marie Gross, Margarita Paz-Pedro, Harley Torres, Kwakye Oppong Asamoah, Eleanor Heimbaugh, Juana
Being Bridges curated by Devishi Seth
Devishi Seth, curator of this exhibit, brings together six young artists from diverse backgrounds and explores the interconnection between spirituality and clay—how a state of aliveness is experienced through clay while transforming relationships within oneself.
Devishi Seth explains:
Bridging different human experiences, clay connects us to one another. Our bodies molded, through clay, act as an extension of the Earth. Becoming a mediator that bridges us to the spirit underlying all phenomenon. Being Bridges expands on the duality of ceramic and human bodies.
As clay brings us together, we use this material to become a bridge for society and to produce a meaningful future. Through ceramic vessels, we can simultaneously reflect and shape our reality through our fingertips. The desire to create with this malleable medium is present across time, across cultures, and across ideologies.
In this exhibit, some works reference specific cultural iconographies, while others use a language of their own. Some pieces revisit personal history, while others use shared experiences. Some are cast from real objects, while others are sculpted from the imagination. Displaying varying subject matter and aesthetic sensibilities, they are connected in their reach. They all serve as metaphorical and literal bridges to connect us with energies outside of ourselves. Through its curation, Being Bridges celebrates the infinite ways in which this amorphous material is used to bridge this everlasting expanse.
The NCECA 2024 conference theme, Coalescence, plays an important role in Being Bridges as it taps into the power clay has, how it shapes us, and our desires to create. How it becomes a spiritual extension of oneself, affecting every particle of our bodies.
Artists: Malak Kaki, Devishi Seth, Tao Tao, Eve van Rens, Jeremy Wong, Luqing Zhang.
Breadth
Breadth is presented by the clay faculty of the Art League School in Alexandria, Virginia. The exhibit will be in Studio 123 at Art Works. Ceramics Director, Brian Grow organized the exhibit.
Brian and the Art League School is instrumental in sponsoring The IMPart program (Injured Military Personnel + Art) cornets recent Injured Military Personnel with visual arts experiences created for relaxed social engagement, the improvement and redevelopment of fine motor skills, post-traumatic growth, and expressive catharsis.
March All Media Show
The Recycle All Media Show is an annual commentary on awareness of waste and the disregard of the human impact on the planet. Artists make use of materials found and recovered from various states and locations. They recycle, upcycle and repurpose these objects for this exhibit with hope that viewers take notice of our excessiveness as humans and move forward with change.
This is a juried show with cash prizes for 1st, 2nd and 3rd place. The show is open to all artists and all mediums. Any medium is acceptable as long as recycled attributes are included.
1st Place – Useless Lumber -Spalted Maple – January 2024 by Brandon Mittman, Salvaged Wood and Resin, 15×30, $450
2nd Place – Trash Fish by J Jen Cook-Asaro, 5×3.5, $400
3rd Place – Iterative Skin by Ellen Porter, Oil, Shredded Paper, 48×48 $2300
Honorable Mention – Cultural Discover by Richard Harding, Used Nylon Baling Twine, Polyester Thread, Jute Chord, Brass Wire, 26×40, $950
Manic Ceramic
The NCECA Conference is coming to Richmond in March 2024. We reserved Gallery 201 for local ceramic artists and potters to display their clay creations. This extended show will be on display from February 23 through April 20, 2024. Ceramic artists, sculptors who work in clay, and mixed media artists who use clay in their creations were invited to submit entries in this juried show. Lee Hazelgrove, master ceramic artist and potter is the juror for the exhibit.
1st Place: Lisa Battle Rebirth, Stoneware (wood fired), 20 x 10 x 5, $500
2nd Place: Paul DiPasquale Not My Type, Stoneware, resin, raku, linen, 31.5x 25.5 x 4.5, $1650
3rd Place: Nancy Sowder Lotus Bowl, Stoneware Underglaze/Glaze, 4.75 x 12 x 12, $350
Honorable Mention: Kay Franz Large Textured Vessel, Ceramic, 10 x 12 x 12, $465