Although the exhibition is titled "Bound By Tradition," there's nothing traditional about the artwork now on display in the Upstairs Gallery of the Salt Lake Art Center. Four women artists - Kathleen Deneris, Martha Klein Haley, Danna Jacques and Jen Shurtliff - convey through the soft medium of quilts and clothing some hard issues affecting women today.
Viewers would not recognize the layers of meaning in this exhibit were it not for explanations accompanying some of the works. Thanks goes more specifically to Deneris and Shurtliff for written descriptions.Deneris' quilt "Boxed In and Bottled Up" is filled with subtle images of women inside sealed quart bottles. It's about self-created, invisible walls that seal women in and life out. The artist explains, "This quilt is about living in a sterile atmosphere where germination and growth cannot take place. Some of the women have escaped; some have the capacity to escape; and some are unaware of the need to escape."
Shurtliff says her large "Wedding Quilt: Bound by Tradition" is a statement about "society's expectation that women sacrifice all of their power to the union of marriage: that women are property, not people." The artist hopes that women will choose to claim some of their power for themselves, "thus building a stronger relationship with their partners, their families and society."
Although some of the concepts border on glittering generalities, especially in today's world of women's lib, these artists reinforce some of the movement's basic issues and provide the viewer with food for thought.
Haley communicates her ideas through wearable art upon which she writes her memories, personal stories and political ideas. One of the most visually striking is a patchwork garment titled "About Black."
Jacques uses a variety of mixed-media when creating her work. For the smaller pieces, she combines Polyform clay, ceramic and acrylic paint. Her two larger works are a fascinating mixture of stretched fabric, acrylic on paper, beading, machine applique and other materials.
This provocative exhibition continues through Aug. 20 at the SLAC. At noon on Wednesday, Aug. 5, Haley will present a gallery talk in the gallery. And at 7 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 10, Judith Elsley will discuss her dissertation "Three Quilt Groups: Finding a Voice From The Margins." There is no charge for either event.
Hours at the Salt Lake Art Center,20 S. West Temple, 328-4201, are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Saturday 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday; and 1-5 p.m. on Sunday.
- Paintings by Robert Marshall graced the walls of Ellie Sonntag Fine Arts for three weeks. Unfortunately the exhibit ended last Friday so Sonntag could move to her new gallery. The good news is that some of his paintings accompanied her.
Anyone who has followed Marshall's art career knows he hasn't become stagnated with one particular style or subject matter. His early medium was watercolor, and style was representational. During that time, he produced some relatively small but visually superb landscapes.
These small paintings suddenly exploded into huge oils of still life, fabrics and a variety of other subject matter. He has now returned to landscape, but he captures it in oil - and on large canvases.
His most recent show was titled "Summer at Giverny." It included a series of works inspired by Monet's lily pond in Giverny, France.
Marshall says, "Presently, my interest is in portraying the wetlands - small vistas of water, sky and overgrowth. Each piece attempts to establish a sense of place, an intimate confrontation and heightened awareness."
While doing this, Marshall never attempts to imitate Monet's impressionistic style. Rather, he imbues his work with his own individualistic method of painting. For example, the lily pads are painted realistically; but the water reflects soft-edged shapes from foliage behind the pond. The juxtaposing of these two styles works effectively.
Although some viewers would categorize Marshall's style as representational, the artist describes it as "abstract realism," since it's a mixture of observation and visual ambiguities. "The concern is for light and surface," he says, "and the work always returns to an involvement with descriptive indicators." He added that paint, mark and gesture never depart from his need to link them to natural phenomenon.
The artist doesn't fill his paintings with hidden meanings. He prefers to present "rather basic familiar images that bring you home to comfortable contemplation."
See these Giverny paintings at Sonntag's new gallery at 132 `E' Street. For gallery hours and/or other information, call 532-6125.
- Although Allen "Ike" Fordyce doesn't live in Utah, he's sharing his photographic talents here in a one-man print exhibit at Gallery 127.
It's hard to believe that Fordyce has only been taking photography seriously for about 10 years. His black-and-white prints rival those of Eliot Porter, John Sexton and Ansel Adams. No small wonder. He worked for extended periods of time with both Porter and Sexton. The latter, of course, was a long-time assistant to Adams.
Fordyce loves arches - whether nature-made or man-made. He's also drawn to massive cliffs punctuated with Indian dwellings and decorated with petroglyphs.
He has a unerring eye for composition. He loves the way sunlight interacts with shadows; he waits patiently until the two contrast dramatically. He also concerns himself with large, simple shapes that create striking designs.
His love for natural landforms emerged as he grew up near the Big Horn Mountains along the Montana-Wyoming border. That appreciation was reinforced when he moved to Scottsdale, Ariz., where he and his wife now live.
Fordyce is represented by well-known art galleries across the country. His works can be found in museums as well as corporate and private collections.
His show remains through Aug. 29 at Gallery 127, Inkleys, 127 S. Main, 328-0561. Viewing hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturdays.