You're invited to the Opening Reception of
COUNTERPOISE
Fiberworks by Stacy Elko, Linda Rael & Susie Monday
Saturday, June 1, 5:30-8:30 pm
Dear Friends of Bihl Haus Arts,
Fish Bomb Boats while Vultures perch near by in COUNTERPOISE, the new exhibit of fiberworks opening thisSaturday, June 1, from 5:30 to 8:30 pm, at the Bihl Haus. Poolside blues by Cherry Street Acoustic, and wine and hors d'oeuvres round out this evening of tantilizing tall tales told through fantastical artworks by Stacy Elko, Linda Rael and Susie Monday.
In this exhibit, organized by guest curator by Laurel Gibson, fish become flying bomb-ships embossed with hennaed North African symbols; shamans emerge from embellished skulls and bones that signify rebirth; and La Sirena and other powerful figures emit mysterious messages. Symbols, materials and life experiences create the mythological stories surrounding the viewer.
ABOUT THE ARTWORK:
- Susie Monday’s Grief and Apocalypse #2 are part of a series that utilizes symbolic imagery to explore “the upheaval that accompanies the inevitable death of a parent.” The scale of these works allows the viewer to walk into the life-sized imagery of dismembered arms floating in a mermaid sea above the moon. Chaos erupts in this vividly colored textile ‘painting’ pieced together from dyed, printed, recycled and altered fabrics.
- Fish Bomb Boats by Stacy Elko, constructed of flexible cane and handmade paper inscribed with African iconography, transport the viewer to another world experience filled with wonder, danger and adventure. Reflecting on social conditions through her work with the Peace Corps and the Boys and Girls Club, Elko states, “They engender a mythos that projects fragility of existence with environmental collaboration for survival . . . My art continues the journey of rebirth through building structures that symbolize our ephemeral relationship with the environment and remind us to consider our actions therein.”
- Vulture by Linda Rael, constructed of a vulture’s skull and hand-dyed fabrics, embroidery, beads, feathers, botanicals and glass eyes, embodies sculpture as spiritual totem. These mystical creations, informed by natural surroundings, petroglyphs, and animals and sages, must find their place within the world. “I find this relationship,” Rael maintains, “is more important than ever given the environmental challenges we face this century.” Transported through imagination these powerful works of art move us to confront the universe and fill it with our own stories, mysteries and mythologies, and to weigh the symbolic world against the bounds of reality.
RELATED PROGRAMMING: Fiber Workshops led by Laurel Gibson
- Symbols and Scribbles (fantasy memory pages), June 29 Saturday 1-5 pm. Where have you traveled? Where do you want to go? What do you think it would be like to travel the world? Using symbols of ancient alphabets or your own symbols, we will create travels pages out of mixed media; photos, fabric, paper, glue and paint, thread, etc. All participants will take home the pages they create to apply to a journal or frame on the wall. Feel free to bring scraps of fabric you like, pictures, drawings or memorabilia from previous trips or your favorite places around San Antonio or Texas!
- Fantastical Figures and Mythical Beasts! July 13 Saturday 12-5pm What kind of extraordinary powers would you like to have? Have you ever wanted to be part human and part dragon, or another favorite animal? Using your imagination and dreams as a guide, create a sculpture of a combined human and animal out of air-dry clay and mixed-media objects. All participants will take home a small=scale sculpture. Feel free to bring along ideas, pictures, or a specific material you would like added onto your art creation!
COUNTERPOISE, scheduled to coincide with the Surface Design International Conference in San Antonio, opens with a reception, which is free and open to the public, on Saturday, June 1, from 5:30-8:30, and continues through July 20, 2013. The gallery is open Fridays and Saturdays, 1-4 pm, with extended hours during the conference on June 6-9. This exhibit is funded in part by the City of San Antonio Department of Culture and Creative Development. Bihl Haus Arts (www.bihlhausarts.org), located at Primrose at Monticello Park Apartments, is the only non-profit professional art gallery on the premises of 100% senior affordable housing in the U.S. Bihl Haus Arts sponsors include the WellMed Charitable Foundation, the San Antonio Area Foundation, the Genevieve and Ward Orsinger Foundation, the Shield-Ayres Foundation, and Primrose. For more information, 210.383.9723, or kellenkee@swbell.net