IN THE WINDOWS: SANDRA BRICK

FEBRUARY/MARCH

all?

(white shirts from second-hand stores, hand-dyed thread and clothes pins)

Sandra Brick
2020

The U.S. Declaration of Independence begins with the assertion that all are endowed with “certain unalienable rights.” Specifically, the nation’s founders listed, “Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness."

The last three words of the Pledge of Allegiance, an expression of loyalty to country and flag, promise, “justice for all”.

With these shirts, I wonder if the US Government is protecting these “unalienable rights” for ALL. Is our government truly providing justice for all?’

I ask the viewer, “Are you a bystander just waiting to see if the promise of the Declaration of Independence is upheld or a upstander making sure everyone’s unalienable rights are protected?

Bio

Working with my hands has been an integral part of my daily life since childhood. Being a textile artist is, for me, an ongoing activity. I dye and stitch and invent new ways to embellish fabric. By sculpting with fiber, I incorporate space and texture into my designs. Creating art involves solving problems, discovering possibilities, merging ideas, and sharing who I am.

Over the past 20 years I have developed a diverse body of work including a set of 42 embroidered pieces that visually interpret haikus written by a local poet, 24 visual “translations” of memories written by a local Holocaust survivor, ten separate works of art depicting different themes for an interfaith artist circle.

Embracing ambiguity is the start of my process. Knowledge is part of the process. Yet there is room for discovery and confusion. For me, art is really about being open to surprise.

Recently I have started aiming my work toward exploring social justice. Can the needle be used as a call to action?

Learn more at: www.texturedelements.com

IN THE WINDOWS- ART QUILTS

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I have known Gwen for over 40 years.  She and I were roommates late in our college years.  She got a degree in Interior Design while I got mine in Fine Arts. She went on to a varied career including institutional interior design and, ultimately, library science.  In the last few years she has returned to her first love: color.  Using the skills of quiltmaking, she investigates how color and form influence each other.

2018-2019 Art Quilts

By

Gwen Schagrin

These works were inspired by a variety of situations: a guild challenge, workshops with art quilting gurus, techniques in books that I wanted to try, improvisational reworking of patterns combined with a new approach to three dimensions, and scrap piecing.

As always, I am motivated to create and explore by improvisationally manipulating color, form, composition, and balance.

The teaching and works of Rayna Gillman, Pam Beal, Jean Wells, and Cindy Grisdela have inspired and guided me.

WINDOWS ON CEDAR-Alice Savitski

The Price We Pay

by Alice A Savitski

The price we pay to keep a secret
The price we pay to stay silent
The price we pay to look the other way
The price we pay to say, "It’s not my business."
The price we give to hold back
The price Christ gave for us to be forgiven
The price that was paid for us to feel grace
The price that is given to all of us (Psalm 16:8 AMP)

The price we ALL pay.

This body of work has been created to illustrate the heavy price paid by victims of domestic abuse. Even after the abuse has stopped, the suffering continues for many. For some the pain is permanent. Speaking as a victim of domestic abuse, I must work through my memories, emotions and endure the psychological disorders I have as a result.

I currently live a peaceful, calm and balanced life - but some days my past will haunt me. In 2012 I was committed for attempted suicide. Treatment helped me greatly and gradually I began to feel safe again, but the psychological burden of the violence I suffered will still rear its ugly head and I will start to remember these harrowing events in a “flood of emotions.” This body of works began in June 2015. The first memory arose on a warm summer morning where I found myself panicking from the ghosts of my past. I felt like I couldn’t breathe. For ten short minutes, in the clutches of sheer terror, I had no idea where I was. This body of works I hope will display those feelings and the recovery progress.

Glitter: The unconscious mind
Circles: Cycles of abuse
Bird(s): One bird signifies victims of abuse being set free, or the knowledge of hope. Two birds signify partnerships (for good, bad or indifferent). Three birds signify the Holy Sprit, God and Christ.
Lines: My and/or abused victims’ experience of post-traumatic stress disorder, mental illness, limited finances and psychological problems after leaving the abusive relationship.
Splatter paint: My feelings of entrapment, isolation and shame

I am an emerging mix media artist who is creating body of works that educates the public about domestic abuse and how it impacts all of us. As a victim of domestic abuse, I have been able to overcome violence through prayer and the Holy Spirit. I work through past experiences by creating beautiful healing sprit-driven bodies of work to display my physical and mental emotions. In 2012, an unknown donor gave me a gift of self-awareness and self-love treatment at North Memorial Mental-Health Clinic. Because of this donor, I have a new outlook on life, and I know that I AM WORTH it. NOT Worthless. Within weeks I’d learned many amazing life skills such as boundaries, to forgive others and myself, how to work through my feelings without committing suicide by talented compassion therapists.

Over the past five years, I have made great gains in my personal life; I have exhibited at Healing Art shows at hospitals and clinics in Southern Minnesota, HealthPartners Hudson Hospital, WI and art galleries in Minneapolis, MN. Presently prints of my work are being sold through Art Force, located in Minneapolis, please contract for items sale

LEARN MORE about Alice

IN THE WINDOWS: Blythe Davis

ARTIST STATEMENT – BLYTHE M. DAVIS

My Wild REcycleD bike pieces are inspired by Pablo Picasso's 1942 work, Tête de Taureau ive_(Bull's Head), and are created using collected bike components heading for reuse, recycling, scrap, or landfills. The parts I use have been found or purchased from Twin Cities bike shops and local community members.  Some of the wood bases are created from thrifted game boards, old signs, cabinet doors, cutting boards or purchased raw wood plaques.

Visually, I am often inspired by the rough and ragged aspects of the world - those that have withstood the battle against time, space and weather. Bike sculpture allows me to visually experiment with the conflicting states of harmony and struggle, finding beauty in what others might deem ugly. These bike components have seen many miles and maybe some better days, but I think the unique wear, tape, rips, scuffs, and scratches add visual interest and appeal to each one-of-a-kind art piece.

Though not a proponent of hunting for sport, I find the concept of using trophies to display one's achievements an intriguing social practice. With these pieces, I aim to whimsically celebrate our incredibly vibrant Twin Cities bike culture while finding a new creative life for these bike parts.

If you have bike parts you would like to donate or bike components you would like turned into a commissioned art piece, please contact me. Additional work can be seen at www.blythemdavis.com or on Instagram at blythemdavis_art.

Blythe also works in encaustic. While not on display in the windows, you can see a few examples here and many more examples at the Women's Art Festival.

TO PURCHASE:

Please email at blythemdavisartist@gmail.com.