Unpacking the Shadow Art Exhibition

Dear Art Lover,

     Last year my friend and fellow sculptor Lorri Acott invited me to create a submission for a project she dreamed up.  I am not really into the whole “women’s art show” thing, but the older I get, the crankier I get about rudeness.  And thus, Lorri caught me at time when my life was starting to get some stability and it was also shortly after I had worked with Artesimia, a battered women’s shelter in Florence, Italy. 

     I think some realities there hit me pretty hard, especially since in my own childhood, it was often women who kept other women “in line.”  I struggled with that a lot as a young adult when I found myself living my first year at university in a female-only dorm.  Having been raised with three brothers and lots of fighter pilots, I once called my mother long-distance and cried to her that I could not understand females and felt out of my element.  Years before, my own well-intentioned mom had actually told me, “Don’t smile so big; your lips get thinner and are less appealing.”  She was probably told that herself by someone when she was a runway model.  Insecurities:  the gifts that keep on giving.

     Opening TODAY:  In any event, my contribution to the “Unpackingthe Shadow” exhibition focused on the above topic.  But not all of the art submissions were so heavy or even traditionally serious topics.    This was an interesting collection of female artists with very human desires in a variety of subjects.  I hope that you may see the exhibition, even if only online.   [In the photo, my piece is the image in the upper right corner.]

Denver, Colorado area:  Lakewood Cultural Center
470 S Allison Pkwy, Lakewood, Colorado 80226

Exhibit runs January 3-31, 2017 in the Corner Gallery
Opening reception is January 12, 2017, 5-7 p.m.

Selected Artwork Unpacking the Shadow Women Art Exhibition

Details

     Please join us for a bold, thought-provoking exhibit that features 50+ original works created by women, presented together at a time that feels especially poignant for female voices to be heard and recognized.

      Lakewood Cultural Center is pleased to present “Unpacking the Shadow,” a collaborative group exhibition conceived and compiled by sculptor Lorri Acott that explores the idea of how women rediscover, explore, and reintegrate important aspects of themselves that, throughout their lives, have been carefully removed and “hidden away.”

      This exhibit features more than 50 miniature pieces—no larger than 3" cubed and accompanied by mini-essays— that were selected from submissions by women from all walks of life and from around the world. These small expressions of intimate aspects represent what each participant hopes to rediscover in her life. The works are as diverse as sculpture, found objects, photography, painting, and mixed media.

      "And if we have put away so many of our angers, spontaneities, hungers, enthusiasms, our rowdy and unattractive parts, then how can we live? What holds us together?” 

- Robert Bly (excerpt from "The Long Bag We Drag Behind Us")

Lakewood Cultural Center
470 S Allison Pkwy, Lakewood, Colorado 80226

Exhibit runs January 3-31, 2017 in the Corner Gallery
Opening reception is January 12, 2017, 5-7PM