VISUAL
A £ T S
There is a con mly held belief that
artists must fer before they can
create truly 2 ingful art. While
this may not be a universal truth,
many artists are defined by their
pain. The hauntingly beautiful
images of Vincent Van Gogh come
immediately to mind.
The show Musings: Four Women Speak,
on view at the Indianapolis Art Center's Clowes Gallery
through Dec. 13, provides four contemporary perspectives on
life's hard blows. But before you get scared away, be assured
that this is not a depressing show. Each artist has uniquely
addressed her own experiences, with surprising results.
All four women have some connection to the Art Center —
two as students and t- 0 as teachers. While the title Musings is
perhaps an underst' ment, the thematic nature of the work
iow. Curator Julia Muney Moore draws
1 their struggle to "maintain their iden-
face of cultural expectations peculiar to
Healing art
Musings' at the Indianapolis Art Center
Painter Caroline Mecklin explores the various roles of
partner, mother, and individual through the self-portrait. Her
neutral if unflattering interpretation of her mid-life self in the
makes for a cohesi
these artists togethc
tities as women in ft
American society...
The textiles of
Jordan stand out, ire
"This Could Kill Me
ground offset by ir
structures. The play
turn on their host at
er beautifully craftec
ic overcoming ofthe
car-old breast cancer survivor Wendy
ily, as the most vibrant, uplifting works.
3 particularly striking, with a black back-
^e neon and jewel-toned amoebae-like
innocent-looking cells appear ready to
iment's notice. "Woman Alive" is anoth-
:ce which can be viewed as a metaphor-
:ase. A softly-curved, minimalist female
figure radiates from the center of the vertical textile. Squares of
dark floral fabric in the border provide a delicate but solid frame
for this iconic woman who overcame cancer.
Michelle Pace's work is her response to pain ofthe psyche,
or what she calls the "tremendous pressure on women ages 16-
25 to achieve at a very high level and to present a facade of
perfection so that American culture can perpetuate itself." The
strongest of her four monotype and mixed media works is
"Ghost at 26," an eerie portrait of a disturbed young woman.
Ellie Siskind's paintings explore the process of bereavement through the use of common metaphoric images such as
a capsized boat, a barren landscape, and a skeleton. In "The
Journey," she has come full circle. The woman stands triumphant, ready with paddle and a boat, no longer capsized,
waiting on the shore below.
"Woman Alive" by Wendy Jordan; textiles, 52 1/2" x 32 1/2".
acrylic "Self Portrait" is countered by the trace
of a smile which seems to say, "I'm at a good
place." Mecklin's well-executed figurative
paintings reveal a skill for composition and use
of color.
While this relatively small exhibition of
just 16 works provides plenty to muse about,
also worth a visit is the exhibition in the neighboring Hurt Gallery.
THE SHOW NEXT DOOR
Sally Grant and Sungmi Naylor, also up through Dec. 13,
examines the status of women in Far Eastern cultures.
Naylor is half Korean by birth, and Grant spent many years
living and working in Japan. This show provides an international perspective on some of the same themes explored by
our Indiana artists next door: What can be said about the status of women in America?, Grant and Naylor ask. Is this different from Japanese and Korean cultures?
Sally Grant's miniature assemblages both memorialize and
question the roles of women. These eclectic pieces include
objects such as old photos, dried roses, tiny pebbles, leaves,
and even tiny plastic babies — some wrapped in twine. One
assemblage features a real braid of hair, enshrined forever in
brocaded fabric.
Sungmi Naylor also likes wrapping things up. Her "Cushion"
and "Pillow" installations are actual photos transferred onto pillows and neatly tied like packages with thick cotton string. The
string connects both like an umbilical cord to tiny Plexiglas-
encased photos with rainbow images on the nearby wall.
Through various media, including a continuously running
VHS video of two women "ironing" with wooden paddles,
Naylor also comments on the "ties" that bind. To both women,
societal roles passed down from mother to daughter to granddaughter appear to be a blessing and a curse.
The Indianapolis Art Center is located at 820 E. 67th St.,
and can be reached at 255-2464.
Attention artful shoppers: The Art Center is holding its
Annual Holiday Sale Dec. 7 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. and Dec. 8
from noon-5 p.m. The sale will include the work of over 50
artists and craftspersons. Admission is $ 1 or a canned good for
Gleaners Food Bank.
— Julie Pratt McQuiston
DANCeW
KHBIDD8CDPE presents
llAd
TREATS
NBD's Holiday Extravaganza
December 14 at 7 p.m. & December 15 at 4 p.m.
Ransburg Auditorium, Universityof Indianapolis
Adults: $12; Under age 19: $6 • Call 317-923-4597
fcf!;", ..
Kl€zm€r Conservatory Band
Boston's international folk music sensation.
A hybrid of Jewish music from American jazz to j/iddish theaters.
Wednesday, December 11 — 8 pm
Clowes Memorial Hall
Tickets $22 $20 $18 $15
For tickets call — (317) 940-64&4 or (800) 732-0804
)-6479 Also availabl
IIAG G3
I CLOWES MEMORIAL HALL■
DECEMBER 5 - 12, 1996 NUVO NEWSWEEKLY
