Two unusual art forms have taken up residence in a Johnstown gallery.
“Emerging Spirits,” an exhibit of sculptures by Dorie Sheridan, and “One Time, One Place,” an art exhibit by Carol Brode, will be on display through July 27 at Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center,
411 Third Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.
Opening receptions for both exhibits will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. today.
Sheridan is a self-taught fiber artist, and her sculptures are classified as stylized minimalist, formed from fibers and metal.
Her “Emerging Spirits” figures suggest the human form while really being concerned with the inner spirit being able to emerge.
“When people look at them, I want them to see life and hope and spirit,” Sheridan said. “They are releasing their inner spirit. When I made them, I felt like my spirit was coming out.”
The heads and hands of Sheridan’s creations are made of clay, while the bodies are made of metal, such as pipes.
The seven figures, each 31⁄2 feet tall, are surrounded by metal mesh.
“They all represent different parts of the world, but I want people to feel there is a connection,” Sheridan said.
Sheridan is represented by the Christine Freehard Gallery in Pittsburgh, where her work is featured in the gallery’s summer show.
Brode, an assistant professor of art at Seton Hill University, Greensburg, uses a technique called encaustic for her exhibit.
Encaustic is a technique of painting with layers of hot wax and other media.
“In this series, I am utilizing fragments of imagery and text, memory, thought and emotion,” Brode said in a release.
“The multilayered, mixed media encaustic works evoke the passage of time, and the text and images often refer to choices made at fleeting moments, which then become fixed in time.”
T.S. Eliot’s poetry provides much of the text, and photos from travels to ancient sites in Israel and Greece provide much of the imagery of doorways and passageways in Brode’s pieces.
“The ‘books’ in the exhibit utilize the Braille system to translate the selections of poetry used in the paintings, causing us to visually process what is meant to be tactile,” Brode said.
“This, along with the movement from symmetry to asymmetry through the series, creates a juxtaposition of rationality and order with emotion and obscurity. The idea of recording our own history, of documenting time, place and choices made, is found throughout.”
Brode will hold a workshop, Experiment with Encaustic: The Technique of Painting with Hot Wax, from 1 to 4 p.m. July 14 at Bottle Works.
Participants will explore the use of clear and colored waxes to create multilayered works and learn the techniques of fusing, embedding, carving and utilizing mixed media.
Two small, finished products will be created in the workshop, so participants should bring some mixed media objects such as photocopies, small objects or organic materials to incorporate into their work.
The cost is $55 for nonmembers and $50 for members, plus $25 for supplies.
Payment must be received with registration by Monday.
Brode teaches studio art and art history courses at Seton Hill and is the curator and director of the university’s Harlan Gallery.
Her own artwork is in corporate and private collections as well as the permanent collection of the Westmoreland Museum of American Art.
Brode’s recent exhibitions include a single-person exhibit at the Westmoreland Museum and the
2010 Associated Artists of Pittsburgh Annual at the Carnegie Museum of Art.
Exhibitions
What: “Emerging Spirits” sculpture exhibit by Dorie Sheridan and “One Time, One Place” art exhibit by Carol Brode.
Where: Bottle Works Ethnic Arts Center, 411 Third Ave. in the Cambria City section of Johnstown.
When: Through July 27.
Information: 536-5399 or www.bottleworks.org.
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