volumes 2: women bound by art opens at the Curtis R. Harley Art Gallery

 

volumes 2: women bound by art, an altered book exhibition, will be on exhibit at the Curtis R. Harley Art Gallery, University of South Carolina Upstate (USC Upstate), at 800 University Way, Spartanburg, SC 29203 from January 17 - February 21, 2014. This show will be exhibited in conjunction with selected works from volumes: women by by art which was created in 2012 and was exhibited at the main branch of the Lexington County Public Library, Lexington, SC and at Portfolio Art Gallery in Columbia, SC.  The women featured in the exhibition will participate in a panel discussion at 4:30 p.m. on January 30, 2014, which will focus on their respective creative processes. A reception will follow the discussion.  All Gallery events are FREE and open to the public.

The art exhibition includes a collection of 17 altered books created by 18 women artists: Eileen Blyth (Columbia, SC), Cynthia Colbert (Columbia, SC), Jessica Cruser (Columbia, SC), Heidi Darr-Hope (Columbia, SC), Janette Grassi (Charlotte, NC), Tonya Gregg (Columbia, SC), Mary How and her young daughter Macy How (Columbia, SC), Doni Jordan (Columbia, SC), Susan Lenz (Columbia, SC), Susan Livingston (Orangeburg, SC), Gina Moore ((Columbia, SC), Yukiko Oka ((Columbia, SC), Kay Reardon (Columbia, SC), Liisa Salosaari Jasinski (Newberry, SC), Virginia Scotchie (Columbia, SC), Kathryn Van Aernum (Columbia, SC) and Katie Walker (Greenville, SC). The group includes art therapists, art professors, potters, fiber artists, graphic designers, illustrators, mixed media artists, painters and photographers.

Conceived and curated by artists Susan Livingston and Doni Jordan, each artist was given a volume of an encyclopedia and complete creative control.  volumes 2:women bound by art is the result of that creativity. The Standard International Encyclopedia,1954, was donated to the artists by Hal McIntosh, thanks to help of artist Cynthia Colbert. Encyclopedias, the forerunners of todays electronic search engines, where first written by an ancient Roman scholar and focused on grammar, rhetoric, logic, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy, musical theory, medicine, and architecture.

ABOUT THE CURTIS R. HARLEY ART GALLERY

The Curtis R. Harley Art Gallery is located at 800 University Way, University of South Carolina Upstate, Spartanburg, SC 29203 and is located on the first floor lobby of the Humanities and Performing Arts Center (HPAC). The gallery showcases nationally and internationally established artists and exhibitions that support the academic mission of USC Upstate. Most recently the University was the recipient of 5 original screenprints by The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts to enhance the current collection of 150 Polaroid photographs by Andy Warhol. Hours: 9am-5pm /Monday - Friday.

Tapp’s Art Center and Hidden Wounds Present “The Art of Healing” -- byKarla Turner, Jasper intern

“Not everything around me can hurt me now,” says Jim Dukes.

He has a powerful weapon.

A survivor of 12 concussions and two suicide attempts who is living with Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and depression, he learned to “turn the world around and see it through the lens of [his] camera,” and then he began to heal.

He is sharing his healing journey with the community in collaboration with Tapp's Art Center and Hidden Wounds, a non-profit dedicated to providing creative and artistic healing therapy for military personnel battling postwar challenges.

“The Art of Healing,” at Tapp’s Art Center is a unique exhibit which will feature Dukes’ work and include art by Columbia artists Heidi Darr-Hope, Lyssa Harvey, Sandra Carr, Mary How and others who have “found the benefit in using art to heal in their lives,” says Dukes.

As Tapp’s artist-in-residence from July through September, Dukes will assist ongoing efforts to promote healing arts programs by working with local organizations and individuals who utilize art-healing techniques.

Steven Diaz, a USMC veteran, and the Director of Strategic Partnership for Hidden Wounds explains, “Not everyone responds to psychotherapy. Everyone is different with their healing process.”

The exhibit is not limited to individuals with PTSD or TBI. “People use art to heal from a variety of things. There is a wide range of people who are actually putting work in the exhibit,” says Diaz.  They are living with cancer, depression and other life-changing conditions. Work will represent a variety of mediums; including photography, mixed media, drawing, writing, and painting.

The exhibit opens Thursday, August 1st as part of First Thursdays on Main. It runs through the 31st.

Selected artwork from the exhibit will be complied into a book of photos to be released and sold at a fundraiser that closes the show on August 30 at 7 p.m.  The photo book will include the participants’ experiences, as told by area writers.

Proceeds from admissions and artwork sales will benefit both Hidden Wounds and the Friends of the Tapp’s Arts Center, to advance healing through art.

“We see Tapp’s as a community center and we’re excited about the possibility to serve those individuals who seek and lead recovery through art and share examples of these proven technique with our community,” says Brenda Schwarz, executive director of Tapp’s Arts Center.

Those interested in healing through art and participating in the program should contact Steven Diaz at Hidden Wounds at (803) 873-6540 or steven@hiddenwounds.org or Jim Dukes at (704) 840-9008.

-- Karla Turner, Jasper intern