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November Issue 2005
Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, Opens New Exhibits at Turchin Center
The exhibition, Redefining Space, will
open Nov. 4, 2005, in the Main and Mezzanine Galleries of the
Turchin Center for the Visual Arts' East Wing, and will feature
works by Samuel Nigro, Laura Amussen and exhibition partners Venske
& Spänle. The exhibtion will remain on view through Jan.
28, 2006. Nigro, Amussen and Venske & Spänle will also
present at the Tri-State Sculpture Conference, held on campus
at Appalachian State University in Boone, NC, on Nov. 3-6, 2005.
Also, in the Center's Gallery B will be the exhibition, Distant
Drums: Preserving Inuit Heritage through Contemporary Prints and
Sculptures - Works from the Dr. H.G. Jones Collection, and
in the Mayer Gallery, Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead).
Both exhibitions will be on view through Nov. 19, 2005.
Samuel Nigro is a sculptor and multi-media artist who resides
in New York and works internationally as well as in the United
States. His work centers on two distinct and opposing materials:
stone and video. Simply worked stones are joined with other materials
that act as both sculpture and film props, which are often integrated
into a performance that yields a video. Nigro combines three-dimensional
objects with video, creating an installation which functions as
both a sculptural experience and a documentation of an event.
Laura Amussen is a sculptor who uses natural materials "to subtly explore women's issues and the relationship between life and nature." A native of California, she is currently an MFA Candidate at the Maryland Institute College of Art, Rinehart School of Sculpture in Baltimore. Her work is informed by her past career in health care, working both in nursing and physical therapy. In a review of her 2003 Honors Thesis Exhibit, the Baltimore City Paper called her work "light-handed mastery [that] demands to be taken seriously." About her work, Amussen says, "I have personally found art very helpful in sifting through the struggles and chaos of daily life."
Venske & Spänle are collaborative sculptors who live and work primarily in New York and Munich. Their work is composed using materials and techniques rooted in ancient history, but their abstract polished marble forms are far from traditional. Fluid, vital and energetic, their large pieces fill exhibition spaces - often undulating from walls to floors. Venske & Spänle work internationally, and in addition to the United States and Europe, they have exhibited in Asia, Australia and South America.
A number of educational programs will also
be held in conjunction with the Redefining Space exhibition.
The Redefining Space exhibition and the exhibits of new works
by artists Stephen Hendee and Julianne Swartz (which were completed
on-site at the Turchin Center in July and are on display through
Nov. 19, 2005, in Gallery A and Carroll Gallery, respectively)
and the correlating educational programs are all supported by
a grant from The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts.
Gallery B presents the exhibition, Distant Drums: Preserving
Inuit Heritage through Contemporary Prints and Sculptures - Works
from the Dr. H.G. Jones Collection. The works in this exhibition
were collected by Dr. Jones during his travels to Nunavut, which
encompasses more than one-fifth of Canada's land mass and is home
to the majority of the country's Inuit population. These works
represent contemporary Inuit art, and serve to document and preserve
an important part of Inuit heritage: traditional drumming and
dancing. The exhibition will be on display through Nov. 19.
In the Mayer Gallery, the Turchin Center will continue its partnership with High Country Amigos in hosting a community celebration of Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead). Local Hispanics and Anglos have created and constructed ofrendas - altars with offerings of food, flowers, mementos and remembrances - that will comprise the centerpiece of the exhibition. Educational displays and videos will explain this tradition of honoring the "faithfully departed." This exhibition will also be on display through Nov. 19.
The "Day of the Dead" is a Mexican
holiday, which has its origins in Aztec, Mayan and other Meso-American
civilizations, explains Dr. Rachel Shinnar, a professor in the
Management Department of Appalachian State University's Walker
College of Business. Death is seen as the continuation of life
-instead of fearing death, these cultures embraced it. People
believed that souls continue to exist after death, resting in
Mictlan, the land of the dead, not for judgment or resurrection,
but for the day each year when they could return home to visit
their loved ones. In fact, in ancient Mexico, daily life was so
uncertain and difficult that death was expected at every turn.
Mexicans view death as a transition of life, a normal stage in
the circle of life on earth, a natural progression, not an ending.
The "Day of the Dead" is celebrated so as to honor the
memory of someone who touched one's life. While this is usually
a family member, a child or a parent, it can also be celebrated
in the honor of someone loved and respected outside the family.
Any such person can be the subject of a "Day of the Dead"
altar, placed in the home for the "Day of the Dead'. This
celebration offers not only a way to honor deceased loved ones
but also an opportunity for closure. Because burial must take
place within 24 hours, there is often little time for acceptance.
Preparing for the return of the spirit each fall, lets the family
remember and honor their dead, and gives them a chance to heal.
According to Mexican tradition, people die three deaths: The first
death is when our bodies cease to function, when our hearts no
longer beat of their own accord, when our gaze no longer has depth
or weight, when the space we occupy slowly loses its meaning.
The second death comes when the body is lowered into the ground,
returned to mother earth, out of sight. The third death, the most
definitive death, is when there is no one left alive to remember
us.
The Spanish conquest of Mexico in 1521 brought about the fusion of Catholic attitudes and indigenous beliefs. "The Day of the Dead" celebration is the result of the amalgamation of the pre-Spanish Indian ritual beliefs and the imposed ritual and dogma of the Catholic Church. The Spaniards considered the "Day of the Dead" ritual to be sacrilegious and the indigenous people to be barbaric and pagan. To make the ritual more Christian, the Spaniards moved it, so it coincided with All Saints' Day and All Souls' Day (Nov. 1st & 2nd), which is when it is celebrated today. Previously it fell on the ninth month of the Aztec Solar Calendar, approximately the beginning of August, and was celebrated for the entire month. Festivities were presided over by the goddess Mictecacihuat, also known as "Lady of the Dead."
The altar is decorated with items that are believed to be beautiful and attractive to the souls of departed ones. Such items include offerings of flowers and food, but also things that will remind the living of the departed (such as their photographs, a diploma, or an article of clothing), and the things that the dead prized and enjoyed while they lived. This is done to entice the dead and assure that their souls actually return to take part in the remembrance. People often burn incense, which is believed to whisk away all bad spirits and leave a clear path for the dead soul.
Typical decorations for the "Day of the Dead" celebrations include sugar skulls inscribed with names, little white skeletons performing daily tasks, flower wreaths, and crosses as well as other flower decorations. Candles in different colors symbolizing pain (purple candles), hope (white candles), and celebration (pink candles) are placed on the altars as well. Food is also used as decoration, especially fruit, candy, and a special, sweet bread called Pan de Muertos (bread of the dead). Colorful tissue paper is cut into intricate designs to produce the Papel Picado and is strung to flutter over around the altar.
For further information check our NC Institutional Gallery listings, call the Center at 828/262-3017, or at (www.tcva.org).
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