CHICAGO HEIGHTS—(ENEWSPF)—June 5, 2018
By: Prairie State College Communications
Prairie State College (PSC) is hosting “Studio Conversations,” a new exhibit of mixed media works by Mary Bookwalter, Janice Meister, and Carol Weber, in the Christopher Art Gallery, located on the college’s main campus at 202 S. Halsted St. in Chicago Heights. The artists’ work will be on display through July 19. An artists’ reception will be held in the gallery from noon to 2:30 p.m., Thursday, June 14.
The exhibit will feature both collaborative and individual work by the three local artists, who are friends that say they “have continually and collectively discussed and critiqued their artwork. Knowing that artists work in the vacuum of their own studios, they found that sharing input to the actual art-making process is an invaluable part of that usually solitary venture. They also saw that their processes of mixed media collage, printmaking and assemblage were common ground for an exhibition.”
“Thus was born a collaborative show around the interaction they have with each other as artists and the sharing of thoughts, ideas, and methods pertaining to their creative ventures,” the artists said.
According to Gallery Director Beth Shadur, the artists’ work with the concept of “building” an image, “combining images from found objects, written materials, various papers and then altering them with paint, printmaking or assemblage. While each artist’s work looks individually created, these works relate to one another in sensibility.”
Shadur continues, “Bookwalter, Meister and Weber share a creative gift of sharing dialogue, information, generous conversation, and evaluation with one another… Artists who collaborate have to be willing to submerge their own ego to be open to new ideas, challenges and discussion. What is most exciting is the opportunity to expose their own vulnerabilities and ideas to the influence of another artist. It takes bravery on the part of the artist to trust the judgment of an “other.” But the benefits far outweigh the risks, as artists enhance their creative practice by new opportunities, visions and growth.”
The Christopher Art Gallery is open Monday through Thursday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., and Wednesday and Thursday from 5 to 7 p.m. PSC will be closed on July 4, in observation of Independence Day. The gallery may also be visited by appointment. For more information, visit www.prairiestate.edu/artgallery or call 708-709-7738.
Source: www.prairiestate.edu
