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An exhibition of works by two gallery members will be on view at Hera
Gallery in Wakefield, RI, from November 18th-December 16th. The public
is invited to attend the opening reception on Saturday, November
18th, 6 - 8 p.m.
Hera Gallery member, Simone Spruce has
made the visual exploration of cultural identity her calling as an
artist. She
draws from familiar and obscure sources to describe the African experience
to diverse audiences. Born in Toledo, Ohio, Spruce received a BA
from The Findlay University. Spruce had lived
in the Midwest her whole life, working to discover her artistic
voice until just a few years ago when she heard about an art-friendly
city in Rhode Island. Convinced, Spruce made the move in 2004, and
has been living and working in Providence ever since.
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Tackling issues of racial identity, gender, religion and politics,
Spruce has created many different bodies of work. In her mammoth
collection of drawings and paintings focused around the 15 Apocrypha
books, Spruce presents "visual sermons" to communicate her
views about contemporary African American society.
The Greek
word Apocrypha refers to a small group of writings whose "divinely
inspired" status
has long been the subject of debate and controversy. Some have
suggested the books were hidden or withdrawn from common use
because they were false or differed from established beliefs.
The
books of the Apocrypha are generally placed between the Old and New
testaments of the Bible
and include events which took place during
the four hundred years between the prophesy of Malachi and the advent
of Christ. Two paintings from this body of work will be on view in
this exhibition. |
Above image by
Simone Spruce
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In addition, Spruce presents a series of delicately rendered, graphite
portraits, as well as a number of mixed media pieces commenting on current
social issues. Each separate body of work can be connected through
Spruce's careful attention to figural representation and her commitment
to representing the history and culture of people of African descent.
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Hera Gallery member Kathryn
Gearon presents sixteen mixed media pieces, drawing and painting
her
way to "Transcendental Light". Gearon, a graduate of Rhode Island College,
lives and works in Providence, and has recently had a number of
exhibitions across the state. Working with a variety of media including
oil paint and wax, Gearon creates depth and light through layered
materials. Commenting
on her inspiration she writes,
"My work stems from the world around
me. It is reflec-
tive as well as sensory. I draw my influence
from natural objects, man-made objects, and the remembered image."
Right: "Untitled #20"
by Kathy Gearon
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Though Gearon's paintings have a strong reference to interior and
exterior spaces, the specificity of forms is obscured through her
use of expressive drawing and painting techniques. Working and re-working
her surfaces, Gearon develops a history of mark referring to actions,
movements and emotions occurring within the symbolic space of the paintings.
Dominating
Gearon's visual vocabulary is the simple geometry of squares and
lines, evoking elements found in the works of modernist painters
such as Mark Rothko, and Franz Kline.
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Above: Untitled White Squares #029, by Kathy Gearon, oil and wax
on canvas, 32" x 30",
2005
(Note: this image was accidentally published upside down in our November e-mail newsletter)
Gearon writes, "The
deconstruction of simple shapes and line is important because it is deriva-
tive
of the larger scale from which the forms have been extracted. In
the paintings multiple relationships begin to form as line and geometric
shape take on visual tensions."
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These programs are presented with partial support from
The Rhode Island
State Council on the Arts,
Hera Educational
Foundation,
and
The Friends of Hera.
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The Rhode Island State Council
on the Arts is
celebrating
its 40th Anniversary.
Learn
more at www.arts.ri.gov.
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