SPRING GROUP EXHIBITION
Blue Gallery is thrilled to present SPRING GROUP EXHIBITION.
Please stop by to see this stunning exhibition in person.
Hope to see you soon!
Kelly + David
Join us for the opening reception of Kevin Townsend’s Solo Exhibiton, AT HOME IN TIME.
A conversation about connecting art with urban resiliency initiatives in Kansas City.
On May 11th, an American Hornbeam, Carpinus caroliniana, will be planted in front of the Goethe Pop Up Kansas City as part of an initiative to increase the tree canopy cover and reduce the impact of global warming. The tree planting happens to coincide with the 40th anniversary of the launch of 7000 Oaks, a sculptural installation by German artist Joseph Beuys (1921 – 1986) that called for the planting of oak trees throughout the city of Kassel, each paired with a basalt stone. This happy coincidence provides the perfect occasion to look at the relationship between art, activism, and environmental awareness – and further explore these ideas in connection with the work of Joseph Beuys, as we did in fall 2021 with the exhibition Unconventional: The Legacy of Joseph Beuys.
Join us for this informal conversation with community leaders, artists, and environmental activists — we want to hear your thoughts! Admission is free, but space is limited, so we ask all participants to register via the link at the bottom of the page.
Please note: To ensure the safety of our staff and guests, we ask all visitors to provide proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test.
About the participants
Jean Schmitt is a visual artist and educator based in the Crossroads. She combines a passion for creativity and sustainability and is dedicated to the roles of art and design in convening and supporting diverse, healthy and resilient communities. This year, she is one of 7,000 Humans, a connective practice piece conceived at the global Social Sculpture Lab in Kassel, Germany, running parallel to the Kassel Documenta. Forty years after Joseph Bueys Documenta piece 7,000 Oaks, this project connects 7000 trees and their humans across the globe to explore communal thinking networks with embodied local practices around trees. As a result of her participation, she discovered and celebrates the incredible urban tree networks in Kansas City!
Rick Usher is a Board member at the Crossroads Community Association and leads the Crossroads Street Tree Initiative. Rick is a former Assistant City Manager at the City of Kansas City, Missouri, where he led small business and entrepreneur support programs. Rick is now in private practice consulting on local government public policy, digital access and digital equity, and entrepreneurship.
Sarah Crowder is a certified arborist and sr. program manager with Bridging The Gap (BTG). Sarah is an urban forester with most of her experience in state and city government. She proudly joined the BTG team to oversee the Heartland Tree Alliance six years ago. Since this time, her team has seen the planting of over 20,000 trees in the Kansas City area.
Studios Inc is pleased to present Kevin Townsend’s solo exhibition, AT HOME IN
TIME. Join us for an artist talk from 12 – 1 pm on Saturday, May 14th.
In 2022, Americans are acknowledging mental health more widely — especially surrounding trauma. Many may know what it feels like to be disconnected from one’s self due to a traumatic experience that left us feeling unsafe, unworthy, and even unloved.
Reconnection explores paths to wholeness of individuals from varying walks of life and traumatic experiences, such as abandonment, domestic violence, and war. Through ceramic portraiture and animal symbolism, the work communicates each person’s reconnection to a state of authenticity. In addition, exploring how the vessel and mindful ritual can be offered as a tool towards reconnection; anchoring one’s attention to the present moment, and cultivating healing.
Artist Statement
My ceramic vessels and figurative sculptures are vehicles to investigate our human emotions and psyche. I view my role as an artist as an act of service and wonder how my work can best serve others. In contemporary America, I see many people disconnected from their emotional and physical well-being due to the many prevalent consequences of chronic stress and trauma. My work’s intention is to encourage emotional healing by sharing the lived experiences of others and through meditative interactions.
I make sculptural relief portraits to tell stories of those on the path to liberate themselves from mental prisons of childhood and adult traumas. Life-size portraits are paired with an animal (either real or mythological) establishing a duality. This creates a face-to-face conversation between the viewer and portraits as well as a symbolic relationship with the creatures — representing a reconnection to a transformed and authentic self.
My drinking and pouring forms, such as teapots and cups, help establish a relationship with my audience through sensory experience. In a guided class or alone, participants in my tea rituals are asked to notice little things about their cup, which most of the time are overlooked, such as surface, texture, weight, and temperature change as the beverage is being poured and sipped, smelled, and appreciated. This gives participants the opportunity to cultivate an awareness of the vessel, thus elevating tactile, visual, and olfactory perceptions.
My vessels and sculptures evoke raw emotions through their colorful yet earthy surfaces and a sense of motion, flow, energy, and torsion through fluid mark-making. With my pottery, I apply abstract textural marks with liquid clay to the forms. However, I carve into my sculptures resulting in recessed gestural lines.
Clay offers me an opportunity to share my truth and concern for my fellow humans. It is my desire through my ceramics to share the inspiring and healing journeys of others and educate people about introspective mindful rituals.
Artist Bio
Jason Wang is a ceramic artist who is currently a resident artist at the Northern Clay Center in Minneapolis, MN. He intends his vessels and sculptures to invoke a strong emotional response in order to further the dialogue about identity, mental health, and healing in contemporary America. Jason earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute in Kansas City, MO. He was awarded a scholarship to partake in a workshop at Anderson Ranch Arts Center in Snowmass Village, CO and has exhibited in group exhibitions at Leedy-Voulkos Art Center in Kansas City, MO.
