There is something enticing about a blank sheet of paper, or a clean freshly prepared canvas, or even the blinking cursor of a brand new document, ready for your ideas to take shape. But the art of sculpture requires, literally, a more three-dimensional approach. From a universe of available materials, sculptors imagine and invent and shape and transform and create stunning works of art. For those of us who look at a giant piece of marble and think “countertop” rather than David, it seems nothing short of, well, magic.
The new exhibition at the Oxford Arts Alliance, Imagined, explores that juxtaposition of imagination, abstraction, and material which results in the art of sculpture. Featuring local artists Jill Beech, Lele Galer, Katee Boyle, Michael Csuy, Rhoda Kahler, Michael Kahler, Helen Mason, Lisa Fedon, and John Baker, the exhibition includes abstract sculptures created with a wide range of materials.
Jill Beech, curator of the show and also a participating artist, at first was unsure if she felt qualified to curate an exhibition, but then “thought about the many accomplished artists in this area and decided it would be ‘fun’ and interesting to curate an exhibit of abstract sculptures,” she explains. “I chose artists whose work when exhibited together would hopefully provide a diverse ‘banquet’ for viewers.”
Beech hoped to create a show which would allow visitors to experience “appreciation for the diversity of ideas, images, and forms (shapes, spaces, shadows within works) created by artists, the variety of materials that can be used, the many skills used for working with different materials, and a sense of how we all can imagine, explore, and create/make.”
Using diverse sources of inspiration is a key element of the show. “My studio space is in an industrial building with an auto body shop,” says Lisa Fedon, when asked about the inspiration behind one of her pieces in the show. “The owner, Otis Stewart, has created an environment that he has become. He is always there and often gone. He brings cars back to life and gives life to others. He is stability and chaos all at the same time. Otis was my inspiration.”
This unusual inspiration became two pieces, Thing One and Thing Two, which use painted steel from old cars, steel wire, and other miscellaneous materials. Fedon says, “I was focused on the spirit of the same person but wanted to create it as an environment that represents him.”
Others saw inspiration in even more unlikely places. “A big twisted piece of thick metal just screamed Nike [the Greek god, not the shoe] to me,” says Lele Galer. That piece became Nike, a manipulated twisted piece of hard steel which somehow also carries grace and form. Folly Tower, another piece by Galer, was inspired by “the cookie jar that I grew up with as a child.” It is a perfect reminder “that with any medium, you can use your imagination and create something wholly unique and wonderful,” Galer says.
Looking beyond the materials to the implied subjects and settings is part of the experience of viewing abstract art. “Since my work crosses the borders of fine art and craft, of nonfunctional and functional, the parameters are pushed and tested,” says Helen Mason. “I am concerned with simplification and reduction of form.” She plays with these ideas by incorporating unusual materials in familiar items, such as in Neckpiece, which replaces silver and gold in statement jewelry with paper, rubber, and cord.
“Personally, I seem to gravitate to geometrical shapes and found steel objects to make sculptural pieces that bend the concept of simply intersection,” says Michael Csuy. “I created Intersection originally as two merging irregular triangular pyramids with no level surfaces.” But sometimes, even the artist is overruled. “My wife (and muse) was uncomfortable with the sharp points of the triangles facing horizontally so I subsequently created the stand consisting of three more irregular pyramids as legs with the original sculpture vertically piercing the base.”
This transition made for an interesting and dynamic artwork. “The two parts can be lifted apart to become independent pieces at the whim of the owner.” On the other hand, some artists took this opportunity as a chance to bring ideas together. Rhoda Kahler and Mike Kahler, who are married, collaborated to create High Impact, a large structural piece created with steel and found materials.
Curator Jill Beech hopes visitors will find an “appreciation for the scope of artists’ creativity and use of materials, and the viewer then perhaps seeing ‘mundane’ materials and structures differently, and thinking ‘I have an idea . . .’” Lele Galer definitely understands that feeling. “The best shows make me want to rush to my studio and get immersed into a new creative project . . . and I hope that this show does that for the viewers!” she says. But then there is the classic dilemma of every artist, decorator, and crafter, which Michael Csuy sums up so well: “Of course, the downside is that I save everything thinking that I can use it on the next project.”
Imagined is on view at the Oxford Arts Alliance from March 3rd until March 31st. An Opening Reception will be held Friday, March 3rd from 5 to 8 pm. Also check out the Emerging Artist Gallery which hosts Reflections on Home, a Solo Exhibition from Olivia Stoltzfus, a student at the Rhode Island School of Design, features her textile designs inspired by her Amish heritage. It is on view from March 3rd through April 28th. The Oxford Arts Alliance is at 38 S. Third Street, Oxford, PA. More information can be found at OxfordArt.org.
About Victoria Rose
Victoria Rose (she/her) is an editor, writer, avid reader, self-described geek, and fan of all things creative. Her passion for words has led to her current career as a freelance editor, and she is the owner of Flickering Words, an editing service. When not wielding a red pen (or cursor), she loves reading books of all genres, playing video, board, and word games, baking ridiculous creations to show off on the internet, or enjoying the gorgeous outdoors. She is a board member of the West Chester Film Festival and part of the Thirsty Monsters, a team of streamers from around the world who fundraise for various charities supporting LGBTQIA+ and accessibility rights. She can be found online @WordsFlickering or the Brandywine Art Guide @BrandywineArtGuide.
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