The Merwin and Wakeley Galleries

Fall Semester 2023: 

MERWIN GALLERY –
Regather: A 10 Year Retrospective of Paper Art at Fresh Press 
WAKELEY GALLERY –
Scattered Lives: Utilitarian Ceramics in Blue and White Albion Stafford 

Reception and artist talk: Tuesday, October 17th @ 3PM 
Ceramist Albion Stafford and CoFounder of Fresh Press, Eric Benson will both give talks

(galleries closed for Fall Break 10/20 & for Thanksgiving recess 11/21-11/26)


MERWIN GALLERY– 
REGATHERRegather: A 10 Year Retrospective of Paper Art at Fresh Press 
Over the last 10 years, Fresh Press has moved to create change in the paper supply chain. The artists in this exhibition worked with a sustainable process and product to create works of art. Each artist was given a workspace for a few days to a year (depending on the proposed project)  to create a body of work using paper or pulp created with Fresh Press equipment. This exhibit highlights some of the creative outcomes of that research.
Aya Nakamura
Steven Kostell
Courtney Cross
Karen J. Spiering
Megan Diddie
Quinn Ferris
Eric Benson
e. ainsley
Veronica Pham
Claire Reynes

Aya Nakamura

Steven Kostell

Karen J. Spiering

Megan Diddie

Quinn Ferris

Eric Benson

E. Ainsworth

e. ainsley

Courtney Cross

Courtney Cross

Claire Reynes

Claire Reynes

Veronica Pham

Veronica Pham

 

 

WAKELEY GALLERY –
Scattered Lives: Utilitarian Ceramics in Blue and White
 Albion Stafford 

This exhibition represents recent work in the continuum of blue on white decorated utilitarian ceramics. Originating in China during the 7th century, the then cobalt decorated porcelain found itself the subject of rich commerce and eventual export to other countries. The beauty and unique character of the wares spurred many emulations and imitations produced in other parts of the world. Persian, English, Italian, and Dutch (among many other) derivatives all similarly found success and proliferation in their time. Portraying often pleasant images of landscape and daily life, the blue and white wares served as a place of solace and ease. As an American maker in 2023, I too have found interest and excitement participating in this tradition. Exchanging the brush driven decoration for the use of ceramics decals, the work invites questions over beauty and its relationship to skill or the technique of the maker. At rest, the objects conjure a fragmented and scattered vision of the floral imagery, marking a parallel to the often scattered and disorderly way lives and livelihood take place day to day. 

Piet Mondrian (1872-1944) and Gerrit Reitveld (1888-1964) are two artists I have always revered and more recently, directly emulated.  On the east wall, Blo-no Boogie-Woogie, a collection of dinner plates together gives us a loosely mapped aerial image of our small metropolis (Bloomington-Normal). The imagined perspective is one I use frequently use to situate myself in new places, being new to the area in 2009. This piece exists as an homage to Mondrian’s Broadway Boogie-Woogie from 1942, finding great similarity in the greatly simplified, map-like image.  Adjacent sits an undecorated version of Reitveld’s Red-Blue Chair, a Destijl beacon from 1919. The chair was originally intended for mass production, although never found footing in the marketplace. Pushing the concept of “social design,” which was meant to contribute to people's well-being and livelihood, the chair employs an alert yet relaxed and supported position for the sitter. I similarly hope for my ceramics to have this alert yet relaxed sensibility, both in aesthetic presence as well as in use. Please feel welcome to sit, enjoy the sensibility for yourself. 

Ultimately, this work comes out of an evolution of making ceramics for the past 30 years. Continually looking and honing my own responsibility for making objects of use for others to live with and enjoy. With a strong dose of familiarity, I hope to in some way offer a new perspective, a new engagement, a new discovery, amongst the “same old”. As it is the “same old” that connects us to one another through the continuum of time. 

 

 

Click here to visit iwuart and see what our students have been making recently.


Gallery Hours 

Monday - Friday 12-4PM
Tuesday Evening 7-9PM
Saturday & Sunday 1-4PM

Location

Ames School of Art and Design
Illinois Wesleyan University
6 Ames Plaza West
Bloomington, Illinois 61701-2900


Artists interested in showing at our galleries click the link below for more information

All events are free and open to the public

About the Galleries

The Merwin and Wakeley Galleries provide exhibition schedules that support our curriculum, the University community and the general public. These exhibitions mostly consist of contemporary artworks in all media. Each exhibition is meant to suggest the variety of visual approaches one may choose to present an idea. Student exhibitions include the Annual Juried School of Art Student Exhibition, the B.F.A. Candidate Exhibition and the B.F.A. and B.A. Degree Exhibition.

About the Galleries / Artist Submissions

This program is partially supported by a grant from the Illinois Arts Council Agency.