While we all wait to see the hundred objects chosen to capture the first hundred years of the Woodstock Artist’s Association & Museum’s role as a stalwart of the town’s cultural tides, we might as well consider what’s being planned for the WAAM galleries’ other spaces starting this Saturday, with a reception planned for 4 p.m.-6 p.m. Saturday, May 18.
“Contemporary thinking about art has expanded to include diverse voices, a renewed interest in realism, and the need for artists and art patrons to reconsider cultural appropriation and identity,” wrote New Jersey gallerist Kimberly Camp of the 35 artists she has chosen for the second iteration of the older Far & Wide exhibition since it went from regional to national in scope. “Here is an exceptional collection of artworks that mix digital imagery, blur the lines between craft and fine art, and demonstrate mastery of visual traditions. Some of the works capture a whimsy that is far too scarce in today’s art world. Some use traditional themes and archetypal images in new ways. Others capture movement and mood in a way that is refreshing and enlightening.”
Filling the main gallery will be a culling of nearly 200 artist entries. From what we’ve seen, the work will have a boldness rare among so much of what we’ve come to expect from Woodstock art, albeit with craftsmanship and a lot of humor. And over a half dozen creators from the Woodstock area.
In the Solo Gallery will be a similar show of raw “constructions” by Vassar art professor Christina Tenaglia entitled “A tree is not a pile.” Witty and engaging, the artist noted that, “The constructions I am making are analog, unmediated, using materials that are handled and put together without mystery or coding. At a time when information is both ever present and insufficient, their offering of information is minimal, tied to the day to day of objects and situations. They seem familiar but are not easily placed.”
Also opening this weekend, with that reception and gallery talks scheduled for May 18, will be a Founders’ Gallery exhibit, downstairs, of smaller affordable works juried by Erica Hauser of Catalyst Gallery in Beacon, as well as a show of pieces by Kingston fourth graders who have made mixed media prints inspired by the ecosystem of the Hudson River.
Talk about a lively opening to a florally-full spring. Again, it all opens this Saturday, when the Far & Wide juror Kimberly Camp will speak at 2 p.m., then get feted with opening receptions from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 18, following a gallery talk by Tenaglia at 3 p.m.
For more information, visit woodstockart.org or call 679-2079
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