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"CUT" curated by Eleanor Spiess-Ferris and Beth Hart "CUT" is a process driven exhibiton. Working primarily with paper and cloth, the artists use materials that are easily altered by cutting to create edges, voids, layers or new relationships. The curators were interested in focusing on the process and the variety of work produced using this ancient technique which harkens back as far as the third century in China. In this exhuberant outpouring of objects and images, contemporary artists use cutting as a starting point to achieve their unique artistic expressions. Traditional collage, two and three dimensional cut paper forms and constructions, digital cutting, pasting and replicating, and an action DVD of cut paper animation are examples of the variety of artwork featured in "CUT". From traditional to non-traditional spplications, from narrative to abstraction, the curators have produced a visual dialog about the uses of this process in creating a wide variety of expressive possibilities. The ingenuity of each of the artists is a delight which we hope will inspire and stimulate the imagination of the viewer , whether artist or casual viewer. Entering the vestibule of the Evanston Art Center,we immediately encounter the spirit of "CUT", in the flambuyant, vine-like twisted and roller paper fantasy of Richard Shipps. In this site-specific piece, heresponds toi the elegant and extravagantly carved wood moldings of the soffit and grand staircase of this 1929 English Tudor style house. Shipps' monumental cut paper piece in the Weinhardt Gallery makes use of the play of light to create subtle changes throughout the day. Cut edges create lines and curled forms cast shadows which change continually with variations in the angle and intensity of light. Shipps' knife draws with extravagant gesture. quoted from the exhibition brochure |
Richard Shipps "Paperika"
| On Sunday, June 5th over 350 attended the opening of the EAC's newest exhibition, "CUT," where the medium of paper is transformed into contemporary artwork in the hands of thirteen talented artists. Exhibition attendees had the opportunity to meet the Artists, Curators and listen to an Artists Talk about the exhibition and their works. Although the making of paper goes back to at least the 3rd century, the oldest surviving paper cut-out originated in 6th century China and has a long world-wide tradition in art that dates at least to the Middle Ages. Traditional collage, 2- and 3-dimensional cut paper forms, digital technology of "cutting," "pasting," and "replicating," and dvd "action cartoons" of cut paper characters demonstrate only some of the contemporary techniques featured in "CUT." Every artist in the exhibition uses the technique of cutting as a starting point to achieve his or her unique artistic expression. The exhibiting artists are: Brian Dettmer, Ling-An Fang, Susan Giles, Jesse Harrod, Jang Soon Im, Bruce Kresnoff, Christophe Roberts, Mark Rospenda, Shawn Sheehy, Richard Shipps, Helene Smith-Romer, Doug Stapleton, and Sarah Steinwachs. Several special workshops in conjunction with this exhibition will be held this summer, taught by the exhibiting artists: one titled "Fabric as Paint" will by taught by Jesse Harrod, and a second workshop called "The Language of Pop-Up Books" will by taught by Shawn Sheehy. For more information please check the Evanston Art Center web site for updated information soon. A related community-wide event, "Re-Create: Recycled Paper Environment," will be held on July 30 from 11 am to 4 pm at the picnic shelter in the park north of the Art Center. This event is free and open to the public. |
Artist Talk - Eleanor Spiess-Ferris, co-curator
Mark Rospenda
Sarah Steinwachs
Jesse Harrod
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