Recurring dream
RECURRING DREAM
Katie Byrum | Jade Hoyer
July 7 - 27, 2017
Opening Reception: Friday, July 7, 6-10pm
Project Statement:
Recurring dream is collaboration between poet Katie Byrum (Brooklyn, NY), and visual artist Jade Hoyer (Minneapolis, MN). Byrum’s poem, To the River House (recurring dream), is a poignant work on coming-of-age, of quiet hometowns and nostalgia. Inspired by Byrum’s work, Hoyer addresses these ideas through printmaking (woodcut and silkscreen) and installation.
National Fly Killin' Week by Chance Murray
National Fly Killin' Week
June 21 - August 4
First Friday Receptions: July 7 & August 4
Artist Talk: TBD
One day I walked into my house and it was full of flies. “ have mercy, I am going to need a whole lotta fly swatters” so I made some, 100 to be exact. Later that same day, the interior of my house looked like World War two for flies. The next thought was, there ought to be a national damn holiday for this. So I now present you with how opening day for National Fly Killing Week would look, kinda like Disney world if it was opened by your Uncle Bubba. complete with parade, a celebratory hornworm drop at midnight, souvenir fly swatters and pointers on how you may wish to decorate your own home for National Fly Killin week.
National Fly Killin’ Week is real. Believe it. If you still don’t believe it, come see for yourself. After all, there’s a week for everything else…
ARTIST BIO
Chance Murray is a Southerner first, and an artist second. Using skills grafted from farming his large-scale mixed media works cobble together traditional painting, woodworking, and pure redneck engineering, producing vivid and slightly skewed scenes of rural life. these conjured images often come from a place both hard to describe yet somehow familiar, casting the viewer into a crudely altered world. Roughly scribbled text, often severing as comic relief, sprawl across the surface enhancing these scenes, sometimes providing description while sometimes, or simultaneously, flipping the image on its head, changing and confounding any sense of meaning. Chance is the recipient of the 2011-2012 Ella Fountain Pratt Emerging Artist award, He lives and works in Cedar Grove, N.C.
Under Pressure: The Performance Exhibition
Under Pressure: The Performance Exhibition
July 7 - 27
PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
First Friday, July 7 - Various
July 8 - Ginger Wagg & Charles Chace - Drum Power
July 12 - Reflex Arc - Crowmeat Bob & Ginger Wagg
July 14 - Cara Hagan - The Body in the Breath (In Color!)
July 15 - Heather Gordon and Chris Vitiello - Typeface
July 19 - Chandler Thomas - /Skein/
July 20 - Andi Steele - Ignorance is Bliss
July 21 - Stephanie Leathers - Valve
July 22 - Debra Wuliger - Wisdom Collects
July 26 - The Upward Dogs
July 27 - Julia Casten - Privilege Coffee
Performance Exhibition Project Seed Grant
As a part of the Under Pressure: Performance Exhibition, VAE gave away two $250 grants to artists whose work is performance based and are looking for resources to begin new projects, further their current practice, and continue their creativity.
Grant Recipients
Stephanie Leathers
Bio-
Stephanie Leathers is a choreographer, educator, photographer, performer and Durham native. In addition to connecting and collaborating with members in the community, she is the organizer of Sunday SITES, a site-responsive investigation to infrastructural change. Currently, Stephanie teaches at American Dance Festival’s Samuel H. Scripps Studios and is a Dance Educator for Durham Public Schools. Learn more about her work at stephaniepleathers.com.
Maria Lindseth
Bio-
A kaleidoscope human, born in the USSR, grew up in Prague and residing in the US since 2005, I've had formal art education as a youngster but swayed away to freedom of my own art soul. An enthusiastic artiscientist with solid background in diverse fields, I enjoy challenges and a fast paced environment. I've received BS in Microbiology from Arizona State University and worked as a scientist before returning to art full time. I've always regarded art as this absolute freedom and joy. Similar to that feeling when you are Skipping and catching wind on your face. My goal is to bring that feeling to viewers through my work. To achieve the goal, I use acrylics and mixed media with a variety of application methods including palette knives, household objects and palmar action. My abstract work is centered on diversity and beauty of People and Nature, and the complexity in human souls. The elements of exploration and discovery in my often vibrant and dynamic work facilitate connection and exploration in viewers.
Under Pressure: The Print Exhibition
Under Pressure: The Print Exhibition
June 30 - July 27
VAE sought artists to submit works that had been created through any and all of the printmaking processes that utilize pressure. Pressing ink into paper has served as a catalyst for reproducing ideas in both in text and image throughout history and VAE wants to show how artists are using these techniques today.
Under Pressure: The Print Exhibition
July 7 - July 27
VAE sought artists to submit works that had been created through any and all of the printmaking processes that utilize pressure. Pressing ink into paper has served as a catalyst for reproducing ideas in both in text and image throughout history and VAE wants to show how artists are using these techniques today.
ACCEPTED WORKS
Olivia Adams Preserved
Dylan Bannister Identity Withheld - Venus
Anna Butler Two Sides of the Same Coin
Hunter Davis La Cathédrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg
Kimberly Edwards Mother Tree
George Gregory Labels
Melissa Hill Spring Trillium
Sarah Kinard Comma
Joyce Watkins King Jeans Geology
Megan Klosterman Untitled 03
Ann M Lawtey Into the Pool
Sydney Lee Sounds Like, Looks Like
Emily Lees A Glimpse Beyond
Jessie Mathers Nestled in love, Through the crack
Moira McManus Today & Tomorrow
Barbara Rizza Mellin Safe Harbor (spring)
Nick Osetek Howl (Positive)
Jonathan Prichard Skeleton
Adrian Rhodes Beeball, Dearest
Robert Simoneau Seven-letter Word
Susan Soper Calm
Matina Marki Tillman Thrill of Flight(I), The social thinker
Miriam Weirich OF YOU
Georgia Welch Moral March
Jessica White The Calling, Lead Army
Robert Witchger Sound Side, Winter
Heather Youngblood Confessions
Artwork Drop-off
Wednesday, June 28 - Friday, June 30 11 am - 6 pm
Saturday, July 1 11 am - 4 pm
HUNG
June 2 - 22, 2017
Opening Reception: June 2, 6-10pm
Project Statement
Liz Kelly and Sarah Tector have come together in this collaborative effort to explore their mutuality while pushing each other towards new ideas. Tector is known for her clean, geometric and architecturally influenced jewelry and Kelly for her elegant and strong functional pottery. Turning their attention towards home adornment, H U N G explores pendant lighting and functional wall pieces. This exhibit reflects a partnership of craftspeople exploring new processes and each other’s visual language.
Anthony Garcia-Copian / AJ Fletcher
Anthony Garcia-Copian
AJ Fletcher Foundation
May-July
When I paint, I paint abstract memories. Sometimes the memory is foggy and has been replaced by an imaginary sediment, a residue that has made one memory solid and the other fluid.
Everything in art is a memory.
I have empathic traits, therefore I paint the images of the emotions that I am able to absorb from strangers and from those who surround me.
The only expectation that I have from my art is pleasure.
- AGC
SCOPE '17
SCOPE '17
June 2 -22
SCOPE is a survey of the southern landscape. While being bold, beautiful, provocative, and enticing the landscape is also set in histories, cultures, and people. These histories, cultures, and people affect and are affected by the political and societal landscapes, that make the South as we see it and talk about it today.
SCOPE '17
June 2 -22
SCOPE is a survey of the southern landscape. While being bold, beautiful, provocative, and enticing the landscape is also set in histories, cultures, and people. These histories, cultures, and people affect and are affected by the political and societal landscapes, that make the South as we see it and talk about it today.
ACCEPTED WORKS
Randy Akers Emit Grove
Phoebe Alicia Art is Everywhere
Rick Bennett Last Light
William Breazeale Shopping Center
Larry Brown Evolution of Strange Fruit
Edde Burgess Edge of the field, Where the light comes in
Lisa Ellis Sailaway
Melinda Fine The eyes have it
Gina Franco "Life's a Drag"
Leif Gann-Matzen Idol
Ursula Gullow Night Terrorscape
Dawn Hummer Makin Hay
Brian Imfeld Our Vantage Point Because The Destination
Judy Jones Virgin Pines, Reconstruction: Fine Food
Carolyn Kerecman Appalachia, Paradise Lost
Randy McNamara Beach Blanket Bingo
Joan Meade Set Rock Creek Falls
Colin Murasko The Velvet Cloak Inn (d. 2017) Raleigh, NC
Libby O'Daniel Mehlynn
Eric Raddatz Kittrell Farm
Eric Saunders Not Quite Frozen No. 2
Austin Sheppard Forefathers' Guise
Matthew Smith Lava Flow
Emily Smith Grandmother's Mantel, Sweet One
Maggie Snoke Joey
Mary Starke On the Ground, Gloves Don't Matter
Sterling Stevens After the Tempest
Richard Stickney Soul Food
JP Trostle State of the Nation
Chris Vitiello The ability to sustain damage by choice
Anne Willson Open Vine
AWARDS
The Brancato Award - 1st - Erin Ethridge Baptism
The Brancato Award is given each year to an artist whose work has a unique take on landscapes. The Brancato Award is the First Place award for VAE's annual SCOPE exhibition. Kathy Brancato was a valued member of the VAE community who painted innovative landscapes. Kathy was also very supportive of her fellow artists and this award will allow her creative spirit to encourage other artists.
2nd - Tricia McKellar Landscape + Memory
3rd - Jeff Murphy Pier
Sheila Hall / United Arts Center
Sheila Hall
United Arts Council
The bold and vibrant hues of SJ Hall’s art give us pause as we go about our otherwise busy routines of life. Passionate crimsons, royal purple and gold denote culture and ceremony. Bright yellows and orange reflect the warmth of the sunlight or floral gifts of nature. Hall paints and creates from experiences, memories, dreams and visions.
Originally from North Carolina, SJ Hall ventured to Alaska in 1981. For eighteen years she taught art to children and adults of all ages. Having retired after thirty plus years as an educator, principal and supervisor Hall now paints for enjoyment and on commissioned works. Sheila Judge Hall is best known as an Alaskan artist whose work can be found in several art collections in Anchorage Alaska. She has been a featured artist in Anchorage Wild Salmon on Parade Sculpture Project, Transformed Treasures Salvation Army Benefit art exhibitions and has donated art to many charitable silent auctions. Her colorful artwork is among many private art collections from Anchorage to North Carolina. Living and working in Alaska for over twenty years exposed Hall to a multitude of nationalities and cultures, which influenced her art. Visit sjhallartwork.com to see some of her work and shopvida.com/collections/sheila-j- hall for wearable art. Hall has returned to her native state and now works from her home “Color Speaks Studio,” in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Sheila Judge Hall is a graduate of East Carolina University, School of Art and Design, and the University of Alaska Anchorage. Hall is currently a professional artist in Raleigh, NC and a member of NC Artspace. She is a proud wife, mother and grandmother.
The Lived Body
The Lived Body
Subverbal Collective
May 5-25, 2017
Can I Keep You by Erin Canady
The Lived Body
Subverbal Collective
May 5-25, 2017
First Friday Reception: May 5, 6-10 pm
“My body is my point of view on the world not just another object in the world.”
-Merleau-Ponty
In this group exhibition six artists have chosen to engage with Merleau-Ponty’s notion of der Leib or the body as lived body. As a phenomenologist, Merleau-Ponty sought to describe the world of human experience and to describe the world as experience.
One essential structure of human existence for his view is the body. For Merleau-Ponty, the body was not merely an anatomical physical object in the world (der Körper) but a necessary part of the order and the structure of existence. It is how humans engage with the world and how knowledge is directly acquired. The body also organizes and structures our phenomenological knowledge of being a being-in-the-world.
In this exhibition we engage with this notion of the body in six unique ways.
SUBVERBAL COLLECTIVE IS AN ARTS COLLECTIVE BASED OUT OF THE RALEIGH/DURHAM AREA OF NORTH CAROLINA. FOUNDED IN 2016 BY SIX VISUAL ARTISTS WHO ARE CURRENT AND RECENT GRADUATES OF UNC'S MFA PROGRAM, SUBVERBAL SEEKS TO PROVIDE A SPACE FOR CRITIQUE, DIALOGUE, AND COMMUNITY.
ULTRALIGHT
Exhibition run May 5-25, 2017
ULTRALIGHT is an exhibition of artwork about disability, created by artists living with disabilities. VAE is offering a platform for artists who identify as living with disabilities to take back the narrative that is so often controlled by the medical field, media, and stereotypes. ULTRALIGHT seeks to exhibit work that challenges the viewing public to leave their preconceived notions and sympathy at the door, and experience artwork that tells the real story of living disabilities and the current state of access. The exhibition breaks access into three parts: physical, communication, and attitude.
ULTRALIGHT
Exhibition run May 5-25, 2017
ULTRALIGHT is an exhibition of artwork about disability, created by artists living with disabilities. VAE is offering a platform for artists who identify as living with disabilities to take back the narrative that is so often controlled by the medical field, media, and stereotypes. ULTRALIGHT seeks to exhibit work that challenges the viewing public to leave their preconceived notions and sympathy at the door, and experience artwork that tells the real story of living disabilities and the current state of access. The exhibition breaks access into three parts: physical, communication, and attitude.
Works and Artists
Theresa Devine Till Disability Do Us Part
Ken Morgan New York School, Snake Charmer
Eduardo Lapetina Searching for the music in us
Brian Markuson Bees, My lips are sealed
David Adelman Elegy, Ability, and Glitch
Jeff Newell Entering the World, A Bird in the Hand
Shelby Scattergood Blind Faith
Anthony Garcia-Copian Witches of Depression
Cary Brief Cat and mouse
Jean Shortall POLIO INDUCED INSOMNIA
King N. Godwin Me and my family are together “71”, Hawaii is cool because there are starfish in the ocean
Mitchell Price Pirate Baseball
Evan Webster Future, No One Is Perfect
Luis Rosario Central Park
Jessica Baisey Incomplete
Darryl Johnson The Goddess Comforts the Blind
Wiley Johnson Darnkness Streams
David Chadderton Mystical Infusion
Sherry Spencer Out of the Woods, Speak to Me
Awards
- 1st - Theresa Devine In Sickness And In Health
- 2nd - Shelby Scattergood Popcorn
- 3rd - Eduardo Lapetina Where the intangible hovers
- Honorable Mention - Rea Rossi Cilia
- Honorable Mention - Heather Youngblood In my head.
Project Seed Grants Awardees
Darryl Johnson -
Part One. “Beautifully Disabled”
In this piece I challenge traditional concepts of feminine beauty. For example is a disabled woman considered beautiful? I know the question can be considered “offensive”, but I believe it is valid. After all, when was the last time a beauty care or clothe advertisement featured a disabled woman. This piece will feature a beautiful disabled woman.
Part Two. “Divine Suffering”
Typically when society sees someone with a physical disability we think of how much pain or suffering that individual must endure. Usually the topic ends there. I believe some types of pain have a nobler purpose. Christians see the suffering of Christ on the cross as being divinely inspired. Christians have taken the crucifixion, which was a common instrument of capital punishment at the time, and elevated it to a greater purpose that they believe was divinely inspired. I believe that the suffering that I must endure as a disabled person is divinely inspired. Perhaps my very practiced ability to bear some of my limitations teaches others humility or compassion. Maybe they become inspired and think "Me too- but the grace of God." Thus my disability becomes something greater. It is transfixed to that of noble teacher.
Part Three. “The Goddess Comforts the Blind”
Social isolation and evil mockery are some of the hardest things my wife and I endure because of my disability. No matter where we go, naturally some places are better than others, when we are together we always hear, sometimes in a whisper other times in a shout "why oh why is she with him." Is she pretty but "stupid". Perhaps she "feels sorry for him because he's so low." Oh this whole thing must be some type of fraud. "Everyone knows that the pretty don't marry the blind."
Cary Brief- Life Under the Sea
Hand painted wood 3D cutouts exploring Life under and around the sea and humans' affect on it. Octopus, starfish, crabs and fish coral etc. They are large colorful, hand painted fun images that have multi layers and lots of depth coated in an epoxy for an intensifying effect. "I started this project in 2016 but due to disability and a move I haven't been able to work on it as much as I'd like to." The funds will be used for materials so I can finish the project.
Collective Behavior by Maggie Evans
April 22 - June 3, 2017
Maggie Evans is an artist based in Savannah, Georgia. Using drawing, painting and site-specific installation her work examines human collective behavior and the hierarchies, homogeneity and social divisions that result.
Collective Behavior
Maggie Evans
ARTIST STATEMENT
Western art has long emphasized the uniqueness of each human being. But beneath these independent identities and myths of rugged individualism lies our deep, intrinsic desire to be part of a group. The group provides security and comfort, but it is also vulnerable to manipulative leadership, oppression of independent thought, and exclusion of those seen as “others.”
Using hundreds of simple, uniform chairs I create drawings and site-specific installations that examine this propensity towards collective behavior and its resulting power structures and homogeneity. Uniformity and repetition are more important than individuality in my work. Yet simultaneously, we are vaguely aware that each chair represents an individual. Though reminiscent of organized, ritualistic gatherings, the specific purpose of the chairs remains undefined and irrelevant, further emphasizing the sheer ubiquity of our collective behavior.
BIO
Maggie Evans is an artist based in Savannah, Georgia. Using drawing, painting and site-specific installation her work examines human collective behavior and the hierarchies, homogeneity and social divisions that result.
Maggie’s work has been included in over fifty national and international juried exhibitions and a number of art publications including New American Paintings and Manifest Gallery’s INPA 6. Artist residencies include The Hambidge Center for the Arts, Central Trak in Dallas, Texas and a full fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center. In 2011 she was awarded a Chinese Government Scholarship that granted her ten months to develop new work at the China Academy of Art in Hangzhou, China. She has had thirteen solo exhibitions and been invited to lecture on her work at a number of institutions including Indiana-Purdue University and the University of Texas, Dallas.
Maggie holds an MFA in Painting from the Savannah College of Art and Design (2008) where she is a part-time Professor of Foundation Studies. In addition to her work as an artist, she performs regularly as a professional jazz singer and bassist.
Off Route Journals
Off Route Journals
presented by Betsy Peters Rascoe, Mike Cindric, & Sam Cox
Join us as we celebrate the unique people and landscapes of Eastern North Carolina.
April 7 - 27, 2017
Opening Reception: April 7, 6-10pm
Project Statement
North Carolina’s coastal plain has a fertile landscape and rich agricultural and cultural history. Yet, the counties between Interstate 95 and the coast remain a blank spot on many North Carolinians’ mental maps. Most experience the region as a blur of pine trees, fields, and gas stations as they rush towards the beach. What can we learn by slowing down and engaging Eastern North Carolina in a conversation on its own terms?
Click here to continue following the conversation on Facebook.
Michael Bambuch / United Arts Council
Micheal Bambuch
United Arts Council - March
I'm not cool enough to talk about myself in the third person. I'm a photographer, original from the northeast(New Jersey and Massachusetts), that has landed in Apex, North Carolina.
I shoot people. I love conceptual. I want my photos to be dynamic, to shape a perception, whatever you feel it might be. I do not have formulas and I never went to art school. I won't be able to explain or defend my work with gregarious themes and deeper meanings. I subscribe to the idea that you can just shoot something and like it. It doesn't have to go further than that. If you find something deeper, kudos, I've done something to elicit a response. I suppose that's what art is about? My photographic inspirations are Ritts, Lagrange, Blumenfeld, Wolf, Avedon and Walker. I don't think my work necessarily looks like their images, but they drive a lot of what I do.
e1ev1n I Warren Hicks
e1ev1n
Warren Hicks
February 22 - April 8
Artist talk, April 8, 11 am
A conceptual self-portrait composed of time, events, locations, and professional and social interactions — all relative to the times and number 111 and 1111 — captured by 170+ iPone screenshots over a 2 year period.
e1ev1n
Warren Hicks
February 22 - April 8
Artist talk, April 8, 1:11 pm
ARTIST STATEMENT
In February 2015, I began documenting random observations of the times 1:11 and 11:11. They became too frequent to continue to ignore. Initially, I only made notations of the date of occurrence. Then I started capturing the occurrences with wallpaper screenshots on my phone, ultimately including elements of what was happening in my life as well.
My days are far from routine, so occurrences aren’t triggered subconsciously by repetition or location, but I do spend a lot of time on my phone. I don't cheat and wait for the time to come around. It has to be a random glance at a clock or phone or an event that happened or was captured at those times, to be included in this documentation project.
Eventually, these numbers began revealing themselves beyond the realm of visual time. One example is three addresses in Durham, NC that have significance in my life and are all located within one block of each other. They form an isosceles triangle as demonstrated on the map:
111 W. Parrish St. (original Carrack location - exhibitions)
111 Corcoran St. (21c Museum Hotel - exhibition installations)
111 W. Main St. (a close friend's apartment)
The result of this ongoing documentation is a self-portrait composed of time, events, locations, and professional and social interactions — all relative to the numbers 111 and 1111 — observed and recorded within a two-year period. The first recorded occurrence was February 12, 2015. The installation of this exhibition began on February 13, 2017. A total of 171 time captures to date are represented on the chalk wall.
FYI – The blue text bubbles in the message screenshots are my voice.
BIO
Warren Hicks is a visual and conceptual artist working in a variety of media including photography, video, sculpture, and installation. Hicks lives in Chapel Hill, North Carolina and works in his studio at Golden Belt in Durham.
Completely self-taught, Hicks' artistic evolution has been as unique as his personal revolution. Hicks has morphed through a progression of styles, mediums, and influences—embracing, digesting, and discarding. A restless experimenter with a keen sense of humor, he is constantly pushing himself into new ideas in visual art and in writing.
Born and raised in Chickasha, Oklahoma, Hicks studied architectural design at Oklahoma State University. Prior to graduation, he fled Oklahoma under cover of darkness to Miami, Florida to explore opportunities within the music industry. After twelve years of toil and slight hearing loss, Hicks returned to architectural drafting and relocated to Chapel Hill. In 2002, at the ripe age of 36, he began painting.
Although Hicks established himself as an abstract painter, his recent forays into photography and conceptual art have been well received. Hicks' work has been shown throughout the U.S. as well as in Beijing, China and Skopje, Macedonia.
When he isn't making his own art, Hicks is a freelance art preparator for museums and corporate art collections. Museum clients include: NC Museum of Art, Raleigh, NC; Nasher Museum of Art, Duke University, Durham, NC; CAM Raleigh, Raleigh, NC; Ackland Art Museum at UNC-Chapel Hill, NC. Some of the artists whose work has passed, but not slipped, through his hands include Picasso, Miro, Calder, El Greco, Rauschenberg, Van Gogh, Wangechi Mutu, Nick Cave, and El Anatsui.
interface I Ely Urbanski
interface
Ely Urbanski
February 3 - 23, 2017
I have been collecting clothes from friends, family and my previous exhibitions visitors. These clothes are the matrices for my monoprints on fabric. Most of the clothes have a story, they were worn for a long time, the person who owned the clothes had an emotional attachment to it, they only used them in special occasions, etc. What I noticed is that those clothes have one thing in common: they are stories of relationships. A material reminder of an interaction with a living person, with someone they missed or a particular situation in their lives.
I believe that what I transfer to the substrate (a piece of fabric, a reclaimed sheet) is not only the material image but also part of the memory|energy of the clothes and their owners|users.
interface
Ely Urbanski
February 3 - 23, 2017
Opening Reception: Friday, February 2, 6-10pm
Project Statement
I have been collecting clothes from friends, family and my previous exhibitions visitors. These clothes are the matrices for my monoprints on fabric. Most of the clothes have a story, they were worn for a long time, the person who owned the clothes had an emotional attachment to it, they only used them in special occasions, etc. What I noticed is that those clothes have one thing in common: they are stories of relationships. A material reminder of an interaction with a living person, with someone they missed or a particular situation in their lives.
I believe that what I transfer to the substrate (a piece of fabric, a reclaimed sheet) is not only the material image but also part of the memory|energy of the clothes and their owners|users.
Our bodies, like pieces of clothes come in different fashions, colors, patterns, but the invisible part of our beings are made of the same common raw material and manifests itself through our positive or negative actions.
As it is invisible, we may not notice it at first glance, but if we take the time to focus on a conversation, a story, actions|behaviors we may start seeing the character of a body. The same way, if you allow yourself to see the invisible part of my works you may picture the memories, the stories, the interface.
About Ely Urbanski
Born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil. Her father a photographer and her mother a dressmaker, influences seen in her works. Ely studied Art Education at the University of São Paulo where she studied with well-known printmaker Evandro Carlos Jardim.
From 1993-1995 she lived in Tokyo. Returning to São Paulo she started a series of works on fabrics, using sewing and drawing as an attempt to add trip memories and experiences to her prints.
From 2005-2011 she lived in Suzuka, Japan. During this period she developed a series of prints where the matrices were articles of clothing. Because of the lack of equipment, she used her own weight as the pressing instrument. During this time she participated in several group exhibitions and had her own solo show in Suzuka.
After the earthquake of 2011 in Japan, she decided to return to Brazil.
Back in Brazil and trying to rebuild her life she met her future husband online. In December of 2013, she arrived in North Carolina and became Ely Urbanski in January 2014.
Ely has been developing her art in Snow Camp, N.C. She creates prints on paper (monoprints, woodcuts).Other projects use clothes as matrices for her prints. Most of them are donations from friends or her exhibition visitors. Some of the donors participate in video recordings where they talk about the stories behind the clothes they donated. Interacting with the local community has been an important part of her creative process.
If you would like to participate in the exhibition, Ely Urbanski will be collecting clothes and recording interviews at VAE on the following dates:
2/4 (Sat) 12-4pm
2/8 (Wed) 3-6 pm
2/10 (Fri) 3-6 pm
2/11 (Sat) 12-3 pm
2/16 (Thu) 11am-3pm
2/18 (Sat) 12-4pm
2/22 (Wed) 11-2pm
2/23 (Thu) 3-6 pm
SEE ATTACHED / DEPTH / FLUSH
Triple Threat
January 6-26
First Friday (redo) January 13 6-10pm
For the month of January VAE will be showcasing three exhibitions in our Main Gallery.
Triple Threat
January 6-26
First Friday (redo) January 13 6-10pm
For the month of January VAE will be showcasing three exhibitions in our Main Gallery.
FLUSH
We invite all to come write their woes from the past year on some ultra-soft double ply and throw them down the toilet. It safe to say 2016 wasn't the best year for everyone. But in an effort to move on, to start anew, to carpe diem in 2017, we are flushing away the crap from 2016.
DEPTH
VAE is showcasing the work of both our amazing 3D artist group and some of our past sculptors. VAE's Three-Dimensional Artist Group is a supportive network for artists who explore ideas and techniques and offer each other feedback. Artists are encouraged to bring a current work but are by no means obligated to. This group is open to anyone who works with a three-dimensional medium or would like to. All artists’ groups are free to VAE members and $5 for non-members.
The work included ranges from ceramics to game mods.
See Attached
VAE will be going back in time to the early 1990s when the state of the art technology of the email attachment was invented. Since then it has changed information exchanges in a major way.
Artists sent VAE emails with their work attached, and we have plastered our gallery with their art, and their emails.
Dreams Deferred
A community art project inspired by Langston Hughes' poem, "Harlem"
Documented by Ariyah April & Veronique Moses
Dreams Deferred
A community art project inspired by Langston Hughes' poem, "Harlem"
Documented by Ariyah April & Veronique Moses
January 6-26, 2017
Opening Reception: January 6th, 6-10pm
First Friday Do-Over: January 13th, 6-10pm
Artist Talk: January 21st, 11am
Join Ariyah & Veronique for a casual conversation with opportunities to ask questions of some of their photo subjects: Mr. Henry "Hank" Williamson; Lea Salas; Sonja Matheny; Tavi Hawn; Mark Alkins; and Anuragini Barman.
Harlem
by Langston Hughes
What happens to a dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore-
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten meat?
Or crust and sugar over-
like a syrup sweet?
Maybe it just sags
like a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
Project Statement:
Magic marked in ink are the uncurbed dreams of a child, “when I grow up, I want to be a doctor, fashion designer, track star, a mother.” Our dreams evolve as we move through life, some remaining constant and others fading into time. As an adult, we may reconcile that there are no gold medals on the shelves or open-heart surgeries on the calendar, but what happens to the elusive dream that remains close and fleeting?
“Dreams Deferred,” titled from Langston Hughes’ poem “Harlem,” is a photography-and writing-based storytelling project examining what becomes of a dream and the people behind them. It invites the viewer to bear witness externally, and to reflect internally. “Dreams Deferred” is a collaboration between two local photographers, Ariyah April and Veronique Moses, with the local community.
In his poem “Harlem,” Hughes asks: “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore—and then run?” April and Moses explore whether lifelong dreams chain us or lead us to hope.
“Dreams Deferred” profiles six dreamers analyzing their own big wins and big losses. No matter the circumstances or perceived external differences between them— and the viewers— the gut-survival need for dreaming is evident. With thought on their own elusive dream, dreamers set out to answer Hughes’ poignant question and to further identify their dreams with one of the potential scenarios Hughes leave us with. Moses and April have posed their six dreamers in a dual documentary portraiture reflecting both the weight and hope of such dreams and visually inspecting Hughes’ six potential scenarios.
Alongside the profiles, “Dreams Deferred” features an interactive and evolving installation collecting the community's contributions over the course of the exhibit. All visitors are encouraged to record their own dreams on a piece of the installation, allowing them to (anonymously or not) speak their truths, share and reaffirm them. The community art piece symbolizing dreams still in flight signifies our collective dreams and strikes a profound statement about interconnection.
April and Moses are emerging documentary artists impassioned to continually share the stories of those whose voices often go unheard and undocumented. Their own experiences serve as the driving forces to expand this contextual lens aimed at frankly removing the perceived barriers around us.
“Dreams Deferred” embody the same humility and servitude when it comes to depicting the realities of its dreamers. The hope is that participants leave the exhibit with insights into their fellow humankind, as well as a sparked ignition for driving their own lives.
Janet Coleman / Aloft on Hillsborough
Janet Coleman
January-March
Animals, landscape, people and objects are often common themes in my work. By defining forms through layering of texture and color, I search for the accidental image. These images often serve to guide the piece, and ignite inspiration from memory, experience or dreams.
Janet Coleman
January-March
Animals, landscape, people, and objects are often common themes in my work. By defining forms through a layering of texture and color, I search for the accidental image. These images often serve to guide the piece and ignite inspiration from memory, experience or dreams.
Brian Davis "Elevation V2"
December 21, 2016 - February 3, 2017
First Friday Receptions: January 6 & February 3, 2017 6-10pm
Brian Davis lives and works in Northern Virginia. Born in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, Mr. Davis was raised in Guam and South Carolina. He has taught New Media and Sculpture at The George Washington University and American University. Mr. Davis has a B.F.A in General Studio from Winthrop University and an M.F.A in Sculpture from the University of Florida.
Elevation V2
December 21, 2016 - February 3, 2017
First Friday Receptions: January 13 (Do-Over) & February 3, 2017 6-10pm
Brian Davis lives and works in Northern Virginia. Born in Ft. Walton Beach, Florida, Mr. Davis was raised in Guam and South Carolina. He has taught New Media and Sculpture at The George Washington University and American University. Mr. Davis has a B.F.A in General Studio from Winthrop University and an M.F.A in Sculpture from the University of Florida.
From his roots of skateboarding and playing guitar for a punk band in the Deep South, he has embraced the D.I.Y. aesthetic. These social and creative endeavors, activities like organizing punk shows and collective ramp building, led to an interest in sculpture, video art, and to the current work that explores connectivity, interaction, and the possibilities of effecting change in the surrounding world.
Davis’ artistic practice is varied and experimental and includes elements of public sculpture, multimedia installation, and virtual applications. His work and research explores cross-discipline techniques and practices to exploit the medium’s connection to the viewer and the surrounding space. While focusing on viewer experience, Davis also strives to create a dialogue with the history of sculpture and video art.
Elevation V2 is a multipart installation consisting of a variety of interconnected elements. The central element is a tripod structure on which two segments if a wooden chair are propelled towards the ceiling of the gallery space. The mechanism that propels the chair segments upward is controlled by a gallery visitor who must stare intently at their own disappearing image in a computer monitor. Only while this person is actively interfacing with the monitor will the mechanism continue to operate; as soon as the connection is broken, the chair separates and is guided back to the gallery floor. While the work is active, the interfacing individual cannot view the active space behind them.
George Gregory / Open Gallery at Red Hat
George Gregory / Open Gallery at Red Hat
My production process often leaves me with scraps of wood that are too small to incorporate into my work, but too big to throw away. I find myself saving these scraps for potential use in the future. After much deliberation, I found myself dipping these scraps into acrylic paint and laminating them together. This process was the inspiration for Pixel-ed.
Pixel-ed by George Gregory
My production process often leaves me with scraps of wood that are too small to incorporate into my work, but too big to throw away. I find myself saving these scraps for potential use in the future. After much deliberation, I found myself dipping these scraps into acrylic paint and laminating them together. This process was the inspiration for Pixel-ed.
Pixel-ed is made out of 14 sheets of ¾” pine plywood. I spent about 20 hours on the table saw ripping the plywood into 1 ½” strips. It took 6272 cuts on the miter saw to cut the strips into varying lengths. I dipped these pieces into 33 different colors of acrylic paint and laminated these pieces into 63 total units.
ARTIST STATEMENT
I am inspired by personal narrative from my childhood, adolescent and adult relationships. Since childhood, I have embraced materials considered part of the arts and crafts world. It is a way for me to combine my childhood experiences of crafting with my Grandmother and spending time with my carpenter Father while he worked. The materials they used in combination reveal the tensions between low art and high art. Through their use with form, I am leveling the playing field.
The relationship between hard and soft plays an important role in my work. This is demonstrated through the materiality of fiber and wood. My material choices and processes reference my experiences with lost relationships. I pay homage to my Father and Grandmother by incorporating the same materials that played a part in my childhood. Creating a delicate balance.