Join us for our opening for the Call of the WILD, featuring 16 female illustrators from around the world.
This months exhibition is focused on female empowerment, and the impact societal conditioning of cultural norms that have impacted the sense of self.
Doors open at 5pm.
Artists Featured:
Eszter Lakatos
Elmira_moohel
Mruna
Rin Hedges
TAIRAFINA
Enchanted Quill Artwork
64Rising
Shumilina
Vasicovska
ShadiShaay
WomenGalaxy
Melallen7
UFOfi
Art By Tiya S
vetlana Mellin
PeymanArtist
Just close your eyes and hold your breath and everything will turn real pretty is a quote from Close Encounters. I feel it reflects the bizarre world we’re living in currently. Sometimes we need to alter our state of mind to face the reality of the world. I tend to accomplish that through art. This work is a reflection of the lightness & darkness that surrounds us. The effects of religious wars, political violence and social media has taken a toll on the fundamental goodness intended for our species. Although optimism tends to hold strong, I can’t help but wonder what we’re heading into while the darkness continues to fight for control.
Artist Statement
My artwork tends to reflect our current state in the world. Religion, social issues, politics as well as humor play an enormous role in my approach. No expectations. Look, close your eyes, feel or don’t.
Bio
Lori Raye Erickson is a multidisciplinary artist working in Kansas City, Missouri. She received her BFA from The Kansas City Art Institute and continued working at Hallmark cards for several years after graduating. Taking a break from the corporate world she has worked in property management while continuing to create works of art shown throughout the US.
Headspaces is a show about two friends getting to know the ins and outs of each other’s art processes and interior landscapes that produce their most recent work.
John Raux and JT Daniels both grew up in KCK and connected some years ago while painting murals in the Midwest. Early morning coffee conversations about each other’s upbringing and spirituality in process is the heartbeat of their collaboration.
Piecing together symbols and caricatures of personality and community, Daniels graphically layers the complexities of tradition, culture, and societal nuance into playful and uplifting collages of intersectional representation.
Carving polystyrene pieces into lightweight stonelike forms, Raux’s sculptural painting process layers collisions and contouring colors into poetic, social, and spiritual commentary.
Peace I leave with you. My peace I give to you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Don’t let your heart be troubled or fearful. -John 14:27
Our fast-paced cultural moment seems to demand our immediate response to each and every situation. The pressures of modern life can fill us with anxiety: social change, political tensions, the pervasive noise of technology and social media, and the rise of a dopamine-addicted culture of distraction. In this juried group exhibit, artists prompt viewers to consider what it means to have a non-anxious, Spirit-filled presence in an increasingly anxious and distracted world.
Our August First Friday reception will also feature a Q&A with several of the visual artists featured in the show, beginning at 6:30pm in the gallery.
Belger Crane Yard Gallery presents Passing Moments: Belger Arts’ Eleventh Annual Resident Exhibition.
The exhibition includes work by Joel Pisowicz, Gina Pisto, and Logan Reynolds and is the culmination of their artist residencies at the Belger Crane Yard Studios. The past year has been one of growth and change for the artists and the exhibition is a reflection of the “passing moments” experienced during this pivotal time in their careers. Passing Moments explores nostalgia, memorial, and how objects present a view into the past.
While styles and techniques are unique to each artist, all three delve into themes of memory and the passage of time in their practice. Joel Pisowicz refers to monoliths with his austere, vertical sculptures. His forms and aesthetics pay homage to the post-industrial environment of his blue-collar upbringing. Gina Pisto creates sculptures referencing still life, flora, and domestic space. Pisto meditates on how objects are imbued with memory and emotion, transforming them into metaphorical portals to the past. Logan Reynolds’ familiar yet distorted domestic objects use humor to explore intergenerational relationships and value systems. Collections of cartoonish items referencing popular culture and consumer products are treated equally with “nostalgic fondness” and ambivalence. The exhibition is on view through September 7, 2024.
