VEER MAGAZINE REVIEW: Prophetic Unknown Outcome a Must-See

by Jeff Maisey | Jul 26, 2020 | Art, Art News, Art Reviews

(Sheila Giolitti (Norfolk ,VA), Atlantis Project #1, Mixed media, Plexiglas, pigment)

By Betsy DiJulio

A year ago, as the Hermitage staff prepared for an August public forum announcing calls for proposals for their summer 2020 exhibition, Unknown Outcome, they had no idea just how prophetic that title would become.

Though it references human impact on the environment, the title now resonates against the backdrop of COVID-19 with sinister layers heretofore unimagined. Still, the show is resolutely about the effects of sea level rise, climate change, water pollution and related topics given that experts predict that much of Norfolk, including The Hermitage Museum & Gardens, will be under water by the year 2100.

The twelve fully-funded exhibited works were chosen from some 50 proposals from individuals, pairs, and teams of artists throughout the region. Situated both in the galleries and gardens, the projects are alternately absurd, satirical, ironic, contemplative, metaphorical, and highly conceptual.

May Britton and Lorrie Saunders (Norfolk)
Jean Benvenuto (Portsmouth) and Luke Stone (Norfolk)
Nico Cathcart (Richmond)
Yuxiang Dong (Richmond)
Nicole C. Harp (Norfolk) and Sam Hughes (Norfolk)
Alexander Rudd and Karen Rudd (Norfolk)
Brendan Baylor, Kelly Morse, and Natalia Pilato (Norfolk)
Cristina Fletcher (Norfolk)
Lindsay Horne (Norfolk)
Sheila Giolitti (Norfolk)
Rayn Singree (Norfolk) and Wade Hunter (Norfolk)
Bob Kaputof (Richmond)

Outdoors

“The Museum Tree” is Benvenuto’s and Stone’s striking visual response to the absurdity of elevating everything of value as a viable counterpoint to sea level rise. Here, three paintings copied from the museum’s collection and five purchased objects representing the diverse cultures and religions in the Hermitage collection are suspended from the boughs of a live oak in neon-lit acrylic frames and Plexiglas vitrines. Neon encircling the tree’s trunk changes colors to signify increasing depths. There is something deeply resonate about the juxtaposition of the grand old oak, the manufactured components, the hand-made paintings, and the cultural and historical objects forged into an uneasy relationship.

Cathcart, a muralist and graphic designer, addresses the single-use plastics choking our oceans in “Symbolic Swim.” An accordion-folded mural in gorgeous oceanic colors seduces you to come closer. Viewed from one side, the panels depict languid jellyfish drifting in the turquoise waters; viewed from the other, plastic shopping bags, strikingly similar in shape and movement; and, from the front, the two comingled. And therein lies the problem: sea turtles and other animals often mistake the plastic for tasty jellyfish.

Indoors

In “Flight Path,” Britton and Saunders, previous collaborators, have created a lyrical and organic site-specific installation that takes a poetic look at the decline of bee populations and floral resources, yet is grounded in research. Made of grape vine, real flowers, and woven copper wire, their wall-mounted design functions within the burgeoning world of graphic visualization to contrast “loop” and “zigzag” motifs that constitute the paths bees make on learning flights. Over time, the flowers will dry and wither and the copper will lose its shine as a symbolic parallel to the declines that inspired this piece.

In “One Foot Under”—a pun on “Six Feet Under”—Harp and Hughes offer a satirical response to nuisance flooding in modern life. Their suite of five large photographs depict people going about their daily routines—picnicking, grocery shopping, boarding the school bus—with a foot of water swirling around their shins. Barnacles grow on dining table legs, fish dart between human legs, and children sport both backpacks and flotation devices. Shot in the 757, the series draws upon photography, staging, and photo illustrator to create a compelling comic tension between realism and illustration.

Singree’s and Hunter’s room-size site-specific installation “Certainty” is an eerie visualization of sea level rise. Intaglio prints of near-life size human figures standing with their backs to the viewer line three walls of the gallery. Three Plexiglas hand-engraved drypoint plates from which the prints were made are suspended in the center of the room. They create a kind of ghostly presence as the walls are slowly bathed, from top to bottom, with blue light as though the room is filling with water. The deniers/ignorers/skeptics appear oblivious to their impending fate.

Space limitations preclude highlighting all the worthy pieces, some of which were included in our March preview. However, the Hermitage grounds, especially, offer pleasant opportunities for social distance and close encounters with relevant works of contemporary art. So plan a visit—but don your mask—because you will want to submerge yourself in the indoor work as well.

WANT TO SEE?

Unknown Outcome: A Coastal Virginia Collaboratory

Through October 2

The Hermitage Museum & Gardens

www.thehermitagemuseum.org

R adius250

STYLE MAGAZINE: Richmond's alternative for news, arts, culture and opinion August 06, 2013

The Practice of Thinking : Artspace's "Radius250" has some compelling work hiding in its corners.

BY AMANDA DALLA VILLA ADAMS

In its fifth year, "Radius250" again offers a selection of sculpture, paintings, drawings and installations culled from within a 250-mile radius of Richmond'. Artists hail from as far away as Trenton, N.J., Pittsburgh, Charleston, W.Va., and Wilmington, N.C.

Curated by N. Elizabeth Schlatter, deputy director and curator of exhibitions at the University of Richmond Museums, the exhibition includes work by mostly emerging or midcareer artists in an effort to define the zeitgeist of art making in the mid-Atlantic. Prizes go to the top four works, as well as three honorable mentions.

All this information, plus several images, I receive in the news release — which means I expect the prize-winning works to be the highlights of the exhibition. Indeed, I'd already pigeonholed the exhibition as nothing more than an excuse to say, "Hey it's summer, why not have fun?" But when I visit Artspace, I'm pleasantly surprised to discover overlooked works that quietly — but demandingly — fix my attention for their subtle subject matter, critical engagement and aesthetic quality.

"Trinkets," by Andrea Vail, a master of fine arts candidate in crafts at Virginia Commonwealth University, hangs unassumingly in a back corner, perhaps why it's easy to bypass. It's composed of discarded pieces of rusted metal, some still recognizably functional and others scraps of once-larger objects. Each is hand-wrapped in pale, pinkish-peach thread and fastened to the wall, forming a large circle. When I lean forward to examine the small, intimate — even fetishized — objects, I feel as though I could be consumed by the installation. Swept away into a world of sacred objects chosen by an anonymous curator, the installation causes you to create a narrative that considers the standards for inclusion and history of each object.

Narrative also is explored in Catherine Day's digital photographs, "Urn and Tracks" and "Urn and Flowers." Each is printed onto four layers of translucent fabric stacked on top of each other to form a composite image. Because the layers are only sewn together along the top perimeter, the individual pieces of fabric loosely separate along the bottom. This allows the images to oscillate between unrecognizable blobs of color and finished photographs, depending on where you stand. Day has chosen a somber scene: empty chairs at a memorial service positioned in front of an urn. Devoid of people or grief, the photograph unemotionally captures a pervasive fear, namely, will I be remembered or honored when I die?

Elegiac subject matter is found in Jon Mallis' "Da-Lite Silver Flyer" as well. The title lists the media as "salvaged projection screen mounted on stretcher frame," but the work is more than just reclaimed materials. Its horizontal lines and subtle grayscale gradation appropriate the language of landscape in a way similar to Hiroshi Sugimoto's seascapes. Mournful and still, the two-dimensional object begs lyrical interpretation.

Other notable mentions include a pair of paintings by Ed Dolinger, and May Britton's installation at the entranceway. Dolinger's layered, laborious surfaces under a highly polished sheen offer records of historical sedimentation, while Britton's cheesecloth cones hearken back to Eva Hesse's use of the same everyday media.

Admittedly, juried shows almost always lack cohesion. It's exceedingly difficult to siphon more than 450 entries into an exhibition that retains focus, high standards and critical appeal. Coming up with a list of winners from such a diverse audience is even more insurmountable. "Radius250" offers a compelling show that should be examined by each individual viewer. Don't fall prey to only noticing the highlighted works but instead spend some time exploring, discovering and critiquing for yourself.

At the end of "Four Quartets" (1943), T.S. Eliot admonishes his readers to "not cease from exploration [because] / the end of all our exploring / Will be to arrive where we started / And know the place for the first time." The viewer has a responsibility and cannot merely ingest others' perceived values, assumptions or ideologies; this has far deeper implications than just artwork in a gallery. Instead, the process of exploration — here, the decision of aesthetic value — is an individual journey not about arrival, but self-discovery. Finding an alternative world or a moment of hope. Practicing this process of discernment and critical thinking in a gallery is a small exercise. Taking it and applying it to one's life becomes a much larger case study that is well worth the endeavor.

"Radius250" runs through Aug. 18 at Artspace, 0 E. Fourth St. For information, call 232-6464 or visit artspacegallery.org.

Published: December 6, 2007
Section: Virginian Pilot, Daily Break, page E5
Source: TERESA ANNAS
Landmark Communications Inc.

By Teresa Annas The Virginian-Pilot

Norfolk sculptor May Britton has been exhibiting her work in clay in this area for about 15 years. A solo show of mostly recent work suggests she is a formidable talent growing in depth.

Her show, called "Dirt," is the opening event for ArtGallery , which is unlike any other commercial gallery in Hampton Roads. Owner Lorrie Saunders fashioned the concern after metropolitan galleries - white walls; black, exposed ceilings; plenty of space between artworks. It opened Nov. 24.

This is a welcome, sophisticated addition to the local art scene. Saunders will sell art but not framing. She expects to change shows roughly every six weeks and will feature solo and group shows with artists from here and elsewhere. There will be no rear room or wall with a tight cluster of artworks - just the changing shows. Previously, she ran an art and antiques store on Granby Street.

Britton shows 28 pieces ranging from semi-abstract female figures to a wall installation inspired by a tree stump. Nature is the common denominator in this show - not in the sense of landscapes, but in the artist's homage to nature's way. One of her strongest pieces is "Cycle Simulation I," which she created in 2004 for a show benefiting The Nature Conservancy. Imagine a cracked, red clay floor, 8 by 4 feet, positioned atop a low, black base. The work suggests a dried creek bed out West but could also be taken as a cautionary tale regarding global warming. Britton made it by rolling out a giant slab then drying it quickly, which she knew would result in many cracks. Her title alludes to how she simulated that natural cycle of drying and cracking. The artist then drew a template, numbering each fragment so she could put it back together after all those individual pieces were fired in the kiln. The piece has a spare, elegant form, as does much of her work.

Britton is of Filipino descent and says her influences include some Asian art. Britton builds most of her forms using the coil method, which results in surfaces that suggest adobe structures or layers of earth strata. The pieces are inspired by trees, sea shells, arches and canyons. She has many handsome figures on display. Some of the larger ones suggest truncated, antique statues, recently unearthed. Two pedestals feature a cluster of small-scale female nudes in relaxed poses. Britton's figures have been reduced to essential forms with sensual surfaces. She might build a figure out of coils and not entirely smooth that ribbed surface. In one instance, the coils suggest a rib cage. The only non clay piece consists of a cascade of locust pods dangling from a copper rod. The pods are not merely tied along a cord; they are wired in a complex pattern that makes the entire structure appear to flutter like a mass of dark birds. The title is "Flock."

Teresa Annas, (757) 446-2485, teresa.annas@pilotonline.com

ArtGallery

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

MARCH 12, 2010

BY: MICHAEL NORTON

Arts & Exhibits newsletter

Any environmental movement seems to ultimately gravitate towards some conception of the earth mother, and so it is especially appropriate that an exhibition focused on ecological concerns should feature the works of two women. Cross-References, currently on exhibit at ArtGallery, juxtaposes the works of two local artists at the vanguard of environmental art, May Britton and Manuela Mourão. Curator Lorrie Saunders brought Britton, the daughter of Filipino immigrants, and Mourão, a native of Portugal who teaches Comparative Literature at Old Dominion University, together for an extraordinary exhibition of new ways of creating as well as looking at art.

Walk into the gallery and you are welcomed by the wonderful aroma of cedar from installation pieces by May Britton, who produces art which represents "formal aesthetics expressed through the use of natural materials." Her work Foundation is the first piece that captivates as one enters the exhibition and, appropriately, lays the conceptual foundation for a series of sculptures representing the female form. Although largely realistic, the exaggerated elements of the female form, the breasts, womb and derriere, stretch the works to the point of abstraction. One could spend a lifetime looking at these captivating objects contemplating the line between abstraction and realism. The final piece on the tour is dissected horizontally, not unlike the classical divisions of the human body taught by the ancients to arrive at perfect proportions ("man is the measure of all things").

The most compelling of Britton's works, however is the second one encountered in the gallery: a natural sculpture of cedar which has been cross cut and reassembled at slightly different angles than the original log, leaving a spiraling work which invokes the double helix DNA, or the twisting of natural materials that forms so much of our manufactured world, the thread of life. The work has a magical effect, evoking different sensations depending on the angle viewed.

This work is complemented by a hanging of cedar crosscuts, Growth Pattern III, and two paintings by Manuela Mourão which evoke wood, a naturally decaying substance. The theme of Mourão's work for the show is the slow decay and degradation of nature. Her works Global Erosion and Blue Erosion II are the next objects encountered on the gallery two, confronting the viewer with a disintegrating globe and waters not teeming with life but cold and barren. Unlike the accusatory taunting of many environmental works, Mourão presents the inevitable atrophy. The sun will die. Wind and dust are natural corrosives. Red Lands, a collaborative effort between Mourão and Britton, evoke a world both bathed in warm sunset and parched by merciless rays.

On the opposite wall is Cross-References, another collaborative work from which the exhibition derives its title. Britton's clay appropriately appears to decay into Mourão's paint. Below Cross-References is one of the delights of the show, three statues of the Foundation female form. Although these are for sale individually, it will be something of a tragedy if this trio is separated: the effect is exponentially more satisfying with the three of them together.

On the edge of the divider above the three lovelies are three more hanging female nudes, reliefs, fragmented, exposing different perspectives of the female form. These also adorn the opposite edge of the divider, as one enters the gallery. These works are easy to overlook, but reward greater scrutiny as they contribute to the overall conversation created by Britton on the female form, or, more accurately, on form itself. The artist ingeniously fragments each piece, and what is missing says as much as what remains, creating nuances of shape and figure. Beyond, a wall-to-floor installation piece by Britton decorates one corner, hanging pieces of crosscut cedar identical to those in Growth Pattern III, complemented by stenciled decorations of clay on the floor. This creates a delightful oppositional effect with the hanging crosscuts "reflected" as shadows in the pool of clay on the floor.

Speaking of opposites, Britton flips the entire nude motif by presenting two empty dresses of coiled clay, both hinting at the same female form exhibited in the nudes. Instead of smoothing out the coiled clay, like most sculptures, Britton has left the coiling visible, creating a queer effect, as if the dress were a body wrinkling with age, reinforcing the "decaying nature" thesis of Mourão's work.

Opposite the empty dresses are two stunning red paintings by Mourão, Red Strata II. The coloration here is equisite, and the pictures are balanced by a vertical stripe created by the texture of painted sand. These must be seen live to be appreciated. They are the kinds of paintings that one could stand in front of and reflect for hours. Perhaps it is the sand, but they have an absorbing quality. Another of Mourão's works that grows on you is juxtaposed against the final female nude, an abstract in blue. This is another painting that must be seen, for the real effect of the painting is produced by the brush strokes, vertical against horizontal, which define something reminiscent of a waterfall feeding a pool on which floats the red fields reminiscent of leaves on a pond. This is another painting which will induce endless reflection.

Cross-References is yet another important and educational exhibition from ArtGallery that richly repays the short drive from the Chrysler Museum of Art. This is environmentalism beyond simply going "green", mature thought about the nature of nature itself. There is a form to the giving of life, and a color of its ultimate dissolution. If our planet is indeed alive, then it is also dying. Despite the transgressions of man, this is natural.

Cross-References will be showing through March 20, 2010, at ArtGallery, 424 W 21st Street, Norfolk, Virginia, 23517 (map). Gallery hours are Wednesday through Friday, 12:30 to 5:30 PM and Saturday, 12:30 to 4:30 PM.

Video Cross-References 2010 from Lisa Suhay on Vimeo http://vimeo.com/9264086.