Mold MadeJune 26 – August 1, 2009
Opening Reception Friday, June 26, 6pm – 9pm
Hands-on Casting Workshop, Saturday, June 27, 12pm
Paint Creek Center for the Arts is excited to present Mold Made, a group show of sculptures made using various casting processes. The show was co-curated by Norwood Viviano, Assistant Professor of Art at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan, and PCCA’s Exhibition Committee. Participating artists include: Jeremy Brooks, Lansing, Michigan; Todd Erickson, Farmington Hills, Michigan; Hank Murta Adams, Troy, New York; Daniel Petraitis, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; Sharon Que, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Benjamin Teague, Birmingham, Michigan; Elona Van Gent, Ann Arbor, Michigan; Graem Whyte, Hamtramck, Michigan; Blake Williams, Lansing, Michigan; Lauren Youngling, West Bloomfield, Michigan; and Renee Zettle-Sterling, Allendale, Michigan.
Sculptors have used mold-making and casting processes for centuries to create objects in a variety of materials. While a mold can be used to make faithful copies of an original, the process is much more than a method for reproducing multiple objects. In the words of Blake Jamison Williams, “An object made from a mold can be considered a trace of the initial form. I use mold-making processes and their associated materials because the physical act of creating becomes a metaphor for the act of remembering.”
Mold Made features contemporary works made using traditional techniques. Works in the show include bronze sculptures made by Todd Erickson and Elona Van Gent, using the lost wax process; an installation made up of hundreds of small elements made by Blake Jamison Williams; cast-resin objects by Daniel Petraitis and Lauren Yougnling; a minimal installation by Jeremy Brooks; a cast glass sculpture by Hank Murta Adams; and many other works.
In conjunction with this show PCCA will host a hands-on casting work for visitors of all ages, conducted by participating artists. We’ll explore some simple casting techniques to learn what is involved in making molds and using them to create multiple objects. Children as young as 4 years old are welcome, as long as they are accompanied by parents. Older children, teens and adults will find this workshop enjoyable as well.
PCCA will host an opening reception to honor the artists, on Friday, June 26th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. Join us again on Saturday, June 27th at 12:00 pm for the hands-on workshop.
The opening reception and workshop
are free and open to the public.
Ian WeberConstructed Realities
June 26 – August 1, 2009
Opening Reception
Friday June 24th 6pm– 9pm
Paint Creek Center for the Arts is excited to turn over our First Floor Gallery to Constructed Realities, a solo show of photographs by Ian Weber. Ian graduated from Adrian College in 2008, where he concentrated primarily on photography and electronic art.
Paint Creek Center for the Arts is excited to turn over our First Floor Gallery to Constructed Realities, a solo show of photographs by Ian Weber. Ian graduated from Adrian College in 2008, where he concentrated primarily on photography and electronic art.
He has exhibited his work in student shows at Adrian.
This show at PCCA is the first solo exhibit of his work.
Weber’s photographs are simple, playful explorations of toy animals placed in unusual contexts. He plays with scale and environment to create new realities. The photos were set up in an old barn full of objects and in the landscape of a family farm. While the images are not digitally manipulated, the settings become fantastic through juxtapositions of toys among old objects. Spark plugs in an old engine block become jungle vegetation, habitat for prowling big cats. A rusted license plate forms the back drop for what could be a museum diorama featuring a gazelle.
Weber’s photographs are simple, playful explorations of toy animals placed in unusual contexts. He plays with scale and environment to create new realities. The photos were set up in an old barn full of objects and in the landscape of a family farm. While the images are not digitally manipulated, the settings become fantastic through juxtapositions of toys among old objects. Spark plugs in an old engine block become jungle vegetation, habitat for prowling big cats. A rusted license plate forms the back drop for what could be a museum diorama featuring a gazelle.
Through shifts in scale and viewpoint, the photographer
has created entire worlds inhabited by wild beasts.
The artist says of his work, “A photograph can appear to be very simple, usually viewed as a distinct moment captured in time, but upon further examination many hidden aspects become apparent. Photographs are a manipulation of the natural world where lighting, composition and realism can be abstracted and distorted to create an artistic portrait. Subtle appearances stand out, the composition gets more interesting and it becomes its own unique image.”
This show runs in conjunction with Mold Made in our Main Gallery. Both shows will open with a reception on Friday, June 26th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm.
The artist says of his work, “A photograph can appear to be very simple, usually viewed as a distinct moment captured in time, but upon further examination many hidden aspects become apparent. Photographs are a manipulation of the natural world where lighting, composition and realism can be abstracted and distorted to create an artistic portrait. Subtle appearances stand out, the composition gets more interesting and it becomes its own unique image.”
This show runs in conjunction with Mold Made in our Main Gallery. Both shows will open with a reception on Friday, June 26th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm.
The reception is free and open to the public.
