Art and Meaning

She Found Her Voice by Gail Crum
from the exhibition 
Uncovered Stories

  If you are a member of the viewing public as opposed to being an   artist,   you may not know that one of the many beautiful things   that art does   is bring meaning to the times. Artists have a way of   looking at the world differently than most people. That quirky way   of   seeing gets   combined with the tools of expression, and the     end   result, the piece of  art, is what you see when you visit an   exhibition like my current   one, Uncovered Stories. 

 In this three-woman exhibition, the fourth one presented by Gail   Crum, Jill Milenski, and me in as many years, much of the work   presented was made during the pandemic last year. Artworks, such   as our trio of altered books made to keep us going and connected,   reflect what was happening just as a contemporaneous journal   written during the Civil War would. You just need to open your   heart to connect to the artwork.

The artists created altered books, which they shared in a 
round robin during the pandemic, to stay connected with 
each other when they couldn't meet.

 

Gail's piece, shown above, finds meaning in  uncovering the beauty in a cast-off cloth doll, which she placed in a glass case she lined with delicate handmade paper. She recasts the broken-down figure, ennobling it with beauty and grace. Indeed, she found her voice.

In her piece, below, Jill combines drawing, painting and  collage to create Doorways Into the Past, a piece that contemplates the joys and perils of raising a teenager during the pandemic. It's both fraught and wistful at the same time, and certainly something any parent can relate to.

Doorways Into the Past by Jill Milenski, as
seen in Uncovered Stories.

    Jill has made nearly two dozen pieces in this series,   exploring the rabbit hole of feelings, finding new   expressions every time. This is another beautiful aspect of   art, this time reserved for the maker of art. Yes, the viewer   reaps the benefits of the rabbit hole journeys, but for the   artist, long series such as this one, lead not only to deep   personal meaning, they create breakthroughs in one's   work  that forge new paths and create new challenges. It's   an exciting place to be.

  One of my own series relates to home and houses. I   started both drawing and constructing them as   assemblages about five years ago, when we were working   on an exhibition entitled Memories Evoked: Circling   Back  Home. In addition to teensy little oil pastel   drawings  of houses on top of boxes, I added sticks   stitched in place. I even created one large piece from an   old dresser drawer. Called Pink House, it was almost a     3-D  diorama of my childhood home. I put legs from an   old television on the bottom and an old rabbit ears   antennae on the top. I love that piece, which I still have.

Traveler by Gayle Pritchard, as seen in 
Uncovered Stories.

As I was preparing for my current exhibition, I started working on several new house drawings for my series, including Traveler, left. The two-dimensional wooden house is mounted on another piece of wood replete with my ubiquitous marks. A sort of map is nailed to the bottom, the "ground" area, and a beach stick is attached at the bottom. My oldest brother died as I was completing it, so I decided to dedicate the piece to him. I added the word cut from an old dictionary, traveler, as a sort of send-off for his soul. The map will help him find his way. Traveler is also a metaphor for his Irish blood; he had even more Irish DNA than the rest of his siblings, and one of our Irish surnames is a "traveler" name. Rest in peace, my brother.

So, these are just a few of the ways that artists both find and create meaning for the rest of the world to contemplate. I am grateful for the task.

Uncovered Stories: Open Through May 14, 2021

Yes, the Playhouse Gallery on the BAYarts campus is open, and our exhibition, Uncovered Stories, is installed. We had a terrific (and safe) opening last Friday, with more guests flowing through all afternoon on Saturday. Hope you can stop by to see the show. Click here for the show times and appointment schedule. We will be in the gallery every Friday night and Saturday afternoon through May 14th.
 

As always, it is such a rare honor for artists to be able to speak with exhibition guests about their work. Many visitors were familiar with our styles, but many weren't. Gail, Jill and I are always eager to answer questions.

In the front of the gallery we installed Jill's Fairy Tale series, which makes for an intricate and unusually beautiful entry into the exhibition. Along with many other highlights, the altered books we made during the shutdown, and shown at the Yards Project exhibition last year, were very popular.

In the BAYarts Sullivan Gallery the same night David King's exhibition Time Travel opened, also an interesting exhibition of paintings about family.

After the crowds died down, we enjoyed the firepit and lovely outdoor patio with some pizza from the delicious new hot restaurant on the campus, Chatty's Pizzeria. I can personally attest to the deliciousness of their gluten free cauliflower crust. Yum!

Installation view, Uncovered Stories

  Today, SCENE magazine had a nice article about both       exhibits on the BAYarts campus. Arts writer Shawn Mishak,   who interviewed us prior to the opening, called our work   "outstanding and contemplative." 

  

Gayle and Jill relax on the patio in their
Gudrunjodens dresses.

We had a lot of sales at the opening, but there is a lot of excellent work available and waiting to go on YOUR walls. Hope you can stop by the show. It will be installed through May 14, 2021.

Gail Crum, Gayle Pritchard and Jill Milenski
at the opening of their exhibit Uncovered Stories.

New Year, New Art, New Opening

In Our Studio

   Spring has arrived, along with vaccines, we have a new studio       space, new artwork, and a new exhibition.  

   The opportunity to exhibit our new work, and some made just       at the beginning of the pandemic, came about suddenly. In the       past three weeks, we have been working like crazy to finish up       pieces and install the show. It opens this Friday. Here's the             information:

Uncovered Stories

featuring the artwork of Gail Crum, Jill Milenski and Gayle Pritchard

BAYarts, Playhouse Gallery

28795 Lake Rd., Bay Village, Ohio 44140

Hope to see you there! Masks are required, and the number of people in the gallery at once is limited. So, grab your mask, and enjoy the beautiful patio and firepit after you see the show.

Feeding Body and Soul: Staying Healthy and Happy During Social Distancing Season

Instead of our usual giant salad for lunch, yesterday I made a delicious 

soup with leftover veggies and ramen noodles, served with homemade beet

tahini. It was delicious, and a nice change. It made lunch at home feel special.

So, I'm sure you can imagine that my art group's exhibition, Women in Conversation, came to a screeching halt here in north-eastern Ohio, where we are battling the spread of coronavirus. The artwork remains installed, while we await the day where a semblance of life as normal returns. I'll keep you posted.

Meanwhile, a week into Staying at Home, I am keeping busy, and hope you are, too. Because I love to cook, read, sew, sketch and write, it isn't hard. Now might the time for you to develop a hobby. I'm just sayin'...

Earlier in the week, I set up a still life after my sweet husband went out for a brief grocery run and brought me some lovely yellow roses from the store. The kaleidoscope roses in the small vase came by mail from my sister, a congratulations gift for the opening of my show way back before we knew we had to Stay at Home.

Sketch in progress, still life with yellow and kaleidoscope roses together
with my favorite vases: two artist vases with faces, and an antique
amethyst glass vase that belonged to my grandmother. Though it
looks black, when you hold it up to the light, the amethyst color glows.
To me, it's the perfect metaphor for the way we can change our perspective
and find beauty in the process.

I have never seen kaleidoscope roses. They are so unusual, I just had to include them in my drawing. Though I am often the one to say there is nothing new under the sun, both the beautiful kaleidoscope roses and the dystopian nightmare we are experience disprove me. I am trying to make the most of it.

I am working with soft pastel pencils that I have had since drawing classes in college. I don't work with them a lot, because I really prefer oil pastels. That said, there is immense pleasure in the way soft pastels mark and blend. I love how they show up on colored pastel paper, as well.

Drawing is contemplative. It is a relaxing, focused activity. It is a skill than can only improve with practice. It is a challenge with an immediate sense of reward. It also frees your mind to wander while your eyes and hands are busy learning to see. Even if you are one of those many people ruined by a childhood "art" teacher who told you that you can't draw, I am here to tell you that you can. Give it a try. Don't show anyone. Do it for yourself. Any plain old pencil and paper will work. I highly recommend Danny Gregory's Art Before Breakfast to build your confidence. Danny is the founder of Sketchbook Skool, and presents as a gentle, kind soul and wonderful and enthusiastic support for artists and would-be artists. Take an art class with him online. Learn a new skill!

After two days spent gathering extra art supplies, I dropped them off yesterday (no social contact involved) at our our local non-profit art center, BayArts. Shout out to the amazing director Nancy Heaton and her wonderful staff, Karen, Jessica and Linda. They are creating free art kits for kids that can be picked up on the porch once a week. The first week, two hundred bags disappeared within hours of being set out. It feels good to do for others. See what you can do in your community. This coming week, I will be sewing face masks for first responders.

The other thing that I accomplished this week was to finally set up our reiki table again. My husband and I became reiki masters over the past decade. Though I give reiki to friends and family members, I have used my daily practice primarily as a tool for personal growth and healing. My husband does the same, but has also spent a lot of time teaching reiki for hospice, and giving reiki to hospice patients and their families. Instead of keeping our reiki table set up downstairs, I made space and moved it upstairs to a more quiet, personal space. I still have some rearranging to do in the coming days. In these uncertain times, it will be good for us to have a dedicated space to chill out, rest, refresh, and feel loved.

Wishing you peace and love. Take this time to do something special for yourself and those you love. It's a rare opportunity that has been foisted upon us. Stay in touch!

Reiki table almost ready to go.

Appreciating Life With Eyes Closed

Gayle's assemblage in progress



I  hurt my eye last weekend, but I have no idea how or when I managed to do it. When I finally went to see my eye doctor, he found the scratch, and told me it could have even been caused by a stray hair blowing in the wind. I guess this might be a downside of having long hair. In any case, once again I was forced to STOP: stop what I am always doing, which is working, and close my eyes; rest. God, I hate that!

Maybe you have a similar personality, and maybe you don't. Years of journaling and self-examination prodded by observations from my loved ones have taught me that I feel best about myself when I am accomplishing my goals. For me, this probably comes out of my childhood, growing up in a large family, and trying to be noticed in a good way. The end result, in my adult years, is that I have a very difficult time shutting down. My active artist's mind races through the day, and thinks all through most nights, as ideas flow into my consciousness and spill over into my dreams. I love that!

This week, I was left unable to actually bring my ideas into fruition, as my hurt eye failed to cooperate. I was left pondering ideas, and thinking of lists of what I wanted to do next. The situation was aided by the fact that two of my young grandbabies were here all week while their parents traveled. There is nothing like caring for babies to make one stop and smell the roses. They are a constant reminder of what is important in these brief lives we live. Stopping the whirlwind of self-absorbed brain activity to sit down on the floor and play, make lunch, read stories and cuddle is a good way to remember that the number of hugs and memories of being loved are a large part of what makes us who we can be.

Yesterday, I was able to get back to work. My week ended on an especially high note in my Be a Pro workshop. I had a great class of eight articulate and ambitious seekers, and the discussions were lively. I felt buoyed, and I hope the participants felt more empowered to find their ways forward as artists and writers.
Later this month, I will be teaching a workshop I call Spirit Boxes, Sacred Vessels and Shrines. We'll be making personally meaningful assemblages from found objects. Hope those of you who live locally can join us. Now...back to my journal lists. Have a great week, all!



Gayle's Reflections of Mexico assemblage



This Way, Please, Part 2: It's Hell Getting Old

Here are some more pix from my visit last week to Clare Murray Adams' studio. The day ended with a quick dinner at home before heading out to the gallery at BayArts for the member's show opening. My friend Gail Crum's wonderful piece, It's Hell Getting Old, was one of 50 pieces juried into the exhibition!

It's Hell Getting Old, a mixed media artwork by Gail Crum

My friend Gail inside the free-standing library. 





One of Clare's artworks onsite



Everywhere you looked, indoors and out, Clare and her artist husband are surrounded by artwork. It doesn't get any better than that!



Artwork everywhere! Here are some of John's sculptures



After an inspirational tour of the property, we sat in the living room for dessert. How can you not love the Rooster Chair?

After stopping by the opening to see Gail's new work, we headed over to a local winery to see one of our favorite musicians perform, Cletus Black.  A fabulous bluesy singer-songwriter, Cletus is also just a really cool guy. I have never seen anyone so comfortable in their own skin.



Cletus at the winery

It was the perfect ending to a fabulous day.



It may be hell getting old, but I plan to do it surrounded by art and artists; this is what keeps us young at heart.

New Classes Scheduled

I am teaching classes locally for the first time in many years: check out the Winter Newsletter at BayArts for more details. (My class descriptions begin on page 11 of the pdf document.) Hope to see you there! Here is the newsletter description for the first one, coming up in January.

Mixed Media - new & cool
Unraveling the Stories: narrative fiber collage - with Gayle Pritchard

In this course, you will learn the elements of design, composition, color use and idea development, along with lots of encouragement to develop the confidence needed to explore.
Using surface design and embellishment techniques, small base images will be created on canvas. Layer by layer, the compositions will be developed through mark-making, stitchery, collage and narrative to create an art object from the stories of your everyday life. No previous experience is necessary. Drop the kids off at school and enjoy a few hours of relaxation, creativity and spirituality.
tuesdays 9:30 - 11:30 am
Jan 12 - feb 9 (5 weeks)