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July Issue 2009
Elder Gallery
in Charlotte, NC, Features Exhibit by Gallery Artists
Elder Gallery in Charlotte, NC, will present the exhibit, Studio Selections Volume II, the second in a series of exhibitions which are designed to honor the talent of artists represented by the gallery, from July 10 - 31, 2009.
The gallery has selected paintings from eight of its artists' studios for the second in a series of exhibitions designed to recognize the vast amount of artistic talent represented by the gallery. Featured in the exhibition are San Francisco artist, Daniel Bayless, Tom Perkinson of Santa Fe, Calvin Jones of Atlanta, William Farnsworth from Florida, as well as South Carolina artists Claire Hopkins, Jill Jones, David Benson and Carl Blair.
The July exhibition will also feature sculpture by Mitch Lewis of North Carolina. Art has always been a compelling agent for creating public awareness of social issues, and ultimately affecting change.
Lewis has dedicated his sculpture to that end. The particular social issue that has become the focus of his work has been the unspeakable brutality that is happening to African women and children today. To Lewis the post holocaust outcry of "never again" included, not only the Jewish people, but all of humanity. But once again, in his lifetime, he is witnessing genocide, this time throughout the African continent.
Lewis has been expressing his personal outrage using his most effective form of communication, his sculpture. The series of work that addresses this issue is entitled Collateral Damage and includes both maquettes (small models) and monumental pieces. These works address the plight of these women, who are being victimized in Sudan and Darfur region, as well as in many other nations throughout Africa. Much of mankind has turned a blind eye to their abuse and it has become a "non-issue" for much of the "civilized" world.
Lewis states "my sculpture depicts these women as fragmented figures. I expose their fragility and vulnerability, while at the same time, also portray their strength and dignity. Through the use of missing limbs, I have created haunting negative space and one is reminded of the Japanese expression Zan Ketsu No Bi - finding beauty in something missing."
Studio Selections Volume II will be composed of work from several regions of the nation and will serve as a study in contemporary American regional art.
For further information
check our NC Commercial Gallery listings, call the gallery at
704/370-6337 or visit (www.elderart.com).
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