It’s not always obvious why a particular group of artists seems to fit together. Sometimes it’s a matter of looking at the works in front of you, and searching for the way they communicate with one another. The artists chosen for this show share concerns with the way space is addressed in their drawings, paintings and even sculptures. In many of these works, the negative space – those areas of the surface left untouched – carries as much weight as the rest of the work. When they talk about their work, the artists mention recently vacated spaces, abandoned houses, and awkward compositions. Keri Mortimer and Matthew Hunt are equally concerned with manipulating surfaces – marking, scraping, dripping, scratching and obliterating marks. Lynn Bennett-Carpenter draws images of abandoned houses overtaken by vegetation, and repeats them to create mirror-image compositions. The complexity of her architectural settings transforms into surface pattern.
Lynn Bennett-Carpenter: Abandon 2
Lynn Bennett-Carpenter (Bloomfield Hills) is an artist in residence in the Kingswood Weaving and Fiber Arts Studio. She earned her MFA at Cranbrook. She has exhibited her work all over the United States. Lynn is a co-founder of the Namtenga Soundo Babisi weaving studio in Burkina Faso, West Africa. Through the studio, over 30 women have been learned to weave unique and beautiful cloth.
Matthew Hunt (Hamtramck) is currently enrolled in the graduate program at Wayne State University. He was awarded third place in the Detroit Artists Market Annual Scholarship Exhibition in 2013. He has shown his work in the Detroit area, and has participated in performance works with Cabaret Black Eye.
Keri Mortimer (Southfield) is a graduate of the College for Creative Studies. She has shown her work throughout the United States, and was one of the artists selected for the inaugural exhibit at the Red Bull House of Art in Detroit, Michigan.
Please join us in welcoming these three artists at an opening reception on Friday, January 17 at 7:00 pm. We will host a gallery talk with the artists on Saturday, January 18 at 2:00 pm.
The opening reception and gallery talk are free and open to the public. Visitors will enjoy an opportunity to meet the artists and gain some insight into their works.
This exhibit is supported by the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs, the National Endowment for the Arts and the Kresge Foundation.
About Sarah Hovis