Postcards image by Meaghan Schwelm and Rick Rox.
In "Just another American Myth", Rick Fox (Worcester, MA ) presents a blend of specific dream imagery and associative images in his large scale charcoal drawings and soft sculptures.
Rick states, "I mean to come to grips with the challenges and joys within my attempt to "participate" in different roles - an adult, an adolescent, a man, a boy, a son, a friend." Themes of a relationship to animal, scale, authority, and nature are apparent as they make recurring visits throughout his narratives.
The intuitive directness and physicality involved in working with the charcoal, ink, and graphite of his drawings, and the cutting, piecing, sewing, bending of the sculptures inform spontaneous meaning. Often what he stumbles upon within his "process" is a fleeting and layered accessibility to potential metaphor.
Image: Detail of a large scale drawing by Rick Fox.
Rick Fox received his BFA from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst; and his MFA from Mass College of Art where he was honored with a Graduate Book Award, an Outstanding Scholar in Painting in 1994.
He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA in 1990. Rick Fox has also studied painting, drawing, and sculpture in Italy. He exhibits at The Works Gallery in Wellfleet, MA and has had two shows at Gallery M3 in Boston. Currently Rick teaches Drawing and Painting full time at Assumption College in Worcester, MA besides creating art work in his studio at Pearl Street Studios in Somerville, MA.Visit http://homepage.mac.com/rickfox1/PhotoAlbum23.html for more installation images of "Just another American Myth" by Rick Fox.
Meaghan Schwelm (Salem, MA) presents an installation and wall sculptures in her vernal (in) formation show.
Meaghan's process begins with a collection of papers given to her in the everyday passage of information. In transforming these miscellaneous papers into a new form, she thinks of each scrap as part of a collective. Each piece torn from its original place from a receipt or letter becomes part of a new visual material. The process of papermaking is sensorial and meditative to Meaghan. She states, "It contains sounds and movements that are deliberate, the tearing of paper and the pouring of water and pulp. At the same time it is a process of surprise, each new paper possessing its own unique texture and pockets of transparency."
Meaghan pairs off her handmade paper with other visual information torn from its original context. She connects these fragments into long strings with threads then suspends them at a reference level above. These forms bear a resemblance to the pouring of water and pulp; a viscous liquid cascading from height if you will. In creating a space for vernal (in) formation, Meaghan intends to combine the deliberate composition with the moving form. The fluidity of this space is dependent on the active viewer and the passerby.
Image: A single cluster.
"The vernal equinox signifies a time of emergence, and along with this new growth, a disappearance of the white shroud of winter. Many small objects that had been lost under fresh then muddy sheets of snow reappear. Change occurs silently, simply by the wind our bodies create as we weave through discarded information of all kinds."
Image: "Here are clusters of handmade paper discs threaded together with copper wire. Small found ephemera are attached to and extended by the loose ends of copper wire. The effect is that of things floating or hovering in a state of suspended animation." Meaghan explained.
Meaghan Schwelm graduated from Montserrat College of Art with a BFA. She was honored with a Sculpture Recognition Award (concept), Sculpture Merit Award (annual award), and Sculpture Achievement Award (class award) in 2003. She has participated in an Alumni Sculpture Show at The Salem Visitor's Center, presented an installation in the annual juried exhibit RED at LynnArts, and took part in SMALL WORKS, a juried show at artSPACE@16 in Malden. Currently Meaghan is working on illustrating a poem with the possibility of publication by Valentine Publishing out of Gloucester, MA.
To learn more about Meaghan's work visit http://cloudcuckooland.carbonmade.com/projects/80481#19
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artSPACE@16 - a non-commercial gallery est. in 1998
This alternative art space is operated on a voluntary basis. It has been making today's art accessible to the community-at-large by donating space for ongoing art exhibitions and collaborating on related events within the community. artSPACE@16 has created a common ground for everyone to come together for art appreciation, an educational experience, and information sharing as well as networking. It distributes information regarding the City of Malden's artist studio space venture through postings on the artSPACE@16 website and e-mailing list. It also provides information on art resources and exhibition opportunities in and outside of Malden. Through these ongoing voluntary art initiatives, artSPACE@16 hopes to continue making its contribution in strengthening the connection between artist communities in the neighboring cities. artSPACE@16 encourages others to come play a vital role in establishing a vibrant artist community in Malden. To learn more, please visit web site .............
"There is a place for everyone."
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