Local Art Seen: Artists Share the Philosophical Underpinnings of Their Work at the Duluth Art Institute

Tuesday evening there was an opening for three shows at the Duluth Art Institute: Strata, I Am What's Wrong With The World, and Popular Opinions: A Cultural Discussion. Monsoon-like rains fell as gallery visitors made their way from home or workplaces to the opening, and one could be forgiven for not being present.

Detail from piece by Natalie Salminen Rude.

This review will be about the four artists who were part of the Strata exhibition in the John Steffl Gallery on the fourth floor balcony above the Great Hall.

The artist talk began with Exhibitions Director Amy Varsek welcoming us and sharing how she reached out to these four artists to produce work that expressed the show's theme. Strata, in the culinary world, is a bread comprised of layers. The stratosphere is a layer of the atmosphere that is wedged between the troposphere and the mesosphere. It takes its name from the notion of being stratified or layered. In music, Bach's fugues were assembled from exquisitely layered interwoven themes.

How these four artists conceived their work and what they produced was amplified by the similarities and contrasts in each of their works.

Russell Prather  (L) discussing with Ms. Salminen Rude her
coffin-shaped design before the artist talks began.

Fade by Susanna Gault

Susanna Gaunt was introduced and shared details about her three-dimensional piece titled Fade. She said she was experimenting with materials she liked to work with, and found it exciting to see the connections between what she had created and what the others had done. The materials she used included thread, hat pins, semi-transparent paper, among other things. Her concept had to do with the relationship between humans and nature and the balance between the two.

The piece is a humanesque sculpture of stitched together encaustic paper boxes. At the feet of this "person" were piles of wasps or some other kind of insects.

Russell Prather shared next. At some point during the past year one of his pieces was in a show here (the Biennial if I remember correctly). Prather paints semi-transparent images on clear acetate and mounts them so as to create fascinating effects based on the manner in which they are viewed and illuminated. "I'm not sure why I am so obsessed with layering," he said.

He seems drawn to creating foods with interesting interiors, like sausage, for example.

"I like paradox," he explained. "I'm trying to create an experience that doesn't make sense, but you're OK with it." The works have a sculptural feel, but they are actually comprised of paint on 2-D surfaces. Ambiguity is another feature of the work. "If I can see through it, why can't I reach through it?" This series of photos is an attempt to convey what his work looks like. It's better to engage it in person.

Same piece as above but at a 45 degree angle, showing striations.

This Prather piece is same as the one above but with yellow rather than white
coloration. Photo at 90 degree angle shows the the painted spots on clear acetate.

* * * *

Detail from one of the structures by Natalie Salminen Rude.

Salminen Rude with two daughters alongside, discusses concept
behind the coffin-shaped piece to her right. (viewer's left)

Natalie Salminen Rude has taken her encaustic explorations into new directions, but it wasn't till I heard her talk that I could fully appreciate what was behind her 3-D structures using plat maps.

She began by sharing how Mayans used gold for beauty and decorative purposes, but when the Conquistadors came they took all the gold and melted it down to carry back to Spain in bricks. For her, this wasn't just robbery, but a decimation of culture. In our modern world we have a parallel thing happening in which "efficiency" is the highest cultural value, decimating the arts and our humanity.

The encaustic and paper surface had the appearance of fish scales.

The hand-drawn plat maps are thus a symbol of this decimation. In the old days plat maps, which as used to depict legal property lines, were hand drawn. When she learned that the old plat maps were being discarded by the county she acquired them and has been producing work using them in various ways.

She asked questions like, "What makes us human?" and "What do we need to fight for as a society?"

As she spoke about these things, Jacques Ellul's book The Technological Society (1954) and Charlie Chaplin's last silent film Modern Times (1936) came to mind. Ellul's book shows the insidious negative impact of efficiency upon our humanity.

The process in her work is connected to the earth in an interesting way. Encaustic is an ancient process that uses resin made from Malaysian beeswax. By multiple layers and embedding it producing some remarkable effects.

The titles of the pieces are also important, words woven into haiku.

Julainne Shibata discusses her multi-media Winter piece. 

Juliane Shibata was the fourth presenter. She also had a massively meticulous piece in the Biennial and her work shown here conveys the same attention to detail, interweaving ornamental patterns and natural elements.

The two works here displayed represent winter and summer. She loves multiples and loves nature. And until now she hasn't worked this much with color.

The paper on this piece was from five different countries. She noted that paper comes from plants, which we sometimes forget about. The colors correspond to seasons and the overall image involves 2-D elements and 3-D elements, with rhythmic juxtapositions. Some of the pieces are fired clays, and some are plants that slowly change over time because they are no longer alive. "The plants are a whole new element for me," she said, and speak of "temporal experience."

"Solstices: Winter" by Shibata

Detail from "Solstice: Winter"

* * * *

In short, as the artist's briefly discussed their work and the ideas behind it, all who were present saw that in each case there was "more than meets the eye" in nearly everything they were producing.

Strata will be on view through August 11 in the Steffl Gallery, fourth floor at the Depot.

Detail from Shibata's "Solstices: Summer"

"Solstices: Summer" (It's coming soon.)

A final thought to close on might be haiku title of one of NSR's pieces:

human flourishing

are we paying attention

extermination

* * * *

Post Script for Locals: Don't forget tonight's opening at Duluth Pottery. COLOR, Paintings of the Lake Superior Watercolor Society will be on display. Details Here.

Mark Your Calendars

For most of us this is a bit too busy time of year, but  it can bet easier if you write things on your calendar and plan ahead. Is it because December falls at the wrong time of the year? Maybe we should move it up a little. Or add a few weeks between Thanksgiving and the day we celebrate the holy birth. At least we're not getting bored. If you need a breather from shopping, here are some upcoming events to put on your calendars.

The ArtCracker

On Saturday, December 8th Washington Studios Artists' Co-op will i opening its doors and inviting the public to an event they call The Artcracker. It's essentially a large open house involving the dozens of artists who live and work there at the co-op, with  live performing arts, member open studios and arts and crafts for sale in the halls from 11:00am - 5:00pm. It would be a good idea not to spend all your money at the big box retailers until you have checked out the ceramics, crafts and other locally-created goods that will be on display here and elsewhere. When I say elsewhere I mean...

Phantom Galleries 

Nightmarket

Nightmarket is tonight and every Thursday till Christmas at 1412 Tower Ave and 1112 Tower Avenue in Superior. 1112 Tower Ave is featuring the Phantom Painters group, presenting their works for both show and sale. Kathy Kollodge, Teresa Cox Kolar, Lori Franklin, and Anita Curtis. The work of 11 local artists and artisans will be shared at 1412 Tower, in the New York Building. The hours are from 4 till 9, and yes, it is starting to get dark around four, which is why it's called the Nightmarket.

(in)VISIBLE GIFTS: Celebrations of Community

The Opening Gala for all Phantom Gallery Superior locations will be next Thursday, Dec 13. In addition to receptions at 1112 and 1412 Tower Ave, there will be walking tours (weather permitting), and artist talks starting at 6pm. The artists in this team of exhibits are all inspired by the resonance that happens working together in the same space.

Duluth Art Institute Biennial

As always, the DAI Member show is something to look forward to each January. But every other year the DAI conducts a juried show and it should be stellar. The opening reception for this event, which features works by 39 artists, will be Monday from 5:30-7:00 pm in the John Steffl Gallery. Three awards will be announced, with a check for $1000 going to the winning entry, which is nothing to sneeze at, though I suspect it's like a Super Bowl ring, with greater importance on the achievement than on the cash. Best of luck to all artist friends who passed the first hurdle by being accepted into the show. I will see you there.

PROVE, Ochre Ghost and more

As noted, you will need to mark your calendars in order to schedule all these goings-on around your other Christmas parties and such. So while you're doing that be sure to set aside Friday December 14 for the Under $100 show at the PROVE and Mauro Alves (Mau Ro) will be showing his paintings two blocks east through the alley, with live music by Minneapolis singer/songwriter Jaw Knee Vee who has been compared to a punk version of Charlie Parr. All that at the Ochre Ghost.

I'm only doing a skim here. The Polar Express, the Nutcracker, Bentleyville and assorted Christmas choir programs are all waiting for you here. The Twin Ports doesn't need to be solely a summer vacationland. The lights are fantastic and there's a lot of great things to see and do. And let's not forget the music.

Keep that song going strong.