Strong Spirits
ART WORK BY BEVERLY GORDON, DIANE HUGHES AND ANDREA MUSHER
Madison Senior Center
August 4-September 18, 2015
Art-making strengthens our spirits. It brings discovery, delight and connection, as well as a deeper engagement with both the light and dark of our world. It allows us to be more truly in the moment and to see more clearly.
While the three of us use different media and different forms, we all experience the power of making tangible something that didn't exist before. As you experience this work, we hope your spirits are also strengthened.
ART WORK BY BEVERLY GORDON, DIANE HUGHES AND ANDREA MUSHER
Madison Senior Center
August 4-September 18, 2015
Art-making strengthens our spirits. It brings discovery, delight and connection, as well as a deeper engagement with both the light and dark of our world. It allows us to be more truly in the moment and to see more clearly.
While the three of us use different media and different forms, we all experience the power of making tangible something that didn't exist before. As you experience this work, we hope your spirits are also strengthened.
Beverly gordon
Kelp eye
Assemblage made from Pacific bull kelp bulb, palm stem, kelp cording, silk cording, glass rings
15”h x 7”w x 4”d
BIOGRAPHY
Beverly Gordon is an artist, writer and teacher who has long been passionate about “deep seeing” and helping people appreciate both the material and inner, intuitive worlds. She was a professor in the Design Studies department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for nearly 30 years (her academic credentials include a Ph.D. in Design History and an M.A. in Textile Arts). She is a prolific writer, having authored numerous articles and books including Textiles: The Whole Story--Uses, Meanings, Significance (2011); The Saturated World: Aesthetic Meaning, Intimate Objects, Women’s Lives, 1890-1940 (2006); Bazaars and Fair Ladies (1998); Shaker Textile Arts (1980); and Feltmaking: Traditions, Techniques and Contemporary Explorations (1980). In retirement, her art practice is increasingly vibrant. Her work has been exhibited in such venues as the Ruth Davis Design Gallery, the Overture Center, the University of Wisconsin Hospital, the Farley Center, and the Madison Art Hunt.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My artwork is an ongoing adventure involving re-contextualization and a deep engagement with material and form. Much of it draws on the detritus of nature–materials such as bone, shell, kelp, bark and driftwood—which is given new life as it is re-imagined and refashioned into two- and three-dimensional assemblage. The work involves looking closely and continually seeing with “new” eyes. Many of my creations have a mythic quality that suggest a deep spiritual language. I hope that viewers who engage with the work are able to share the sense of engagement, deep seeing, and mystery.
Beverly Gordon is an artist, writer and teacher who has long been passionate about “deep seeing” and helping people appreciate both the material and inner, intuitive worlds. She was a professor in the Design Studies department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison for nearly 30 years (her academic credentials include a Ph.D. in Design History and an M.A. in Textile Arts). She is a prolific writer, having authored numerous articles and books including Textiles: The Whole Story--Uses, Meanings, Significance (2011); The Saturated World: Aesthetic Meaning, Intimate Objects, Women’s Lives, 1890-1940 (2006); Bazaars and Fair Ladies (1998); Shaker Textile Arts (1980); and Feltmaking: Traditions, Techniques and Contemporary Explorations (1980). In retirement, her art practice is increasingly vibrant. Her work has been exhibited in such venues as the Ruth Davis Design Gallery, the Overture Center, the University of Wisconsin Hospital, the Farley Center, and the Madison Art Hunt.
ARTIST STATEMENT
My artwork is an ongoing adventure involving re-contextualization and a deep engagement with material and form. Much of it draws on the detritus of nature–materials such as bone, shell, kelp, bark and driftwood—which is given new life as it is re-imagined and refashioned into two- and three-dimensional assemblage. The work involves looking closely and continually seeing with “new” eyes. Many of my creations have a mythic quality that suggest a deep spiritual language. I hope that viewers who engage with the work are able to share the sense of engagement, deep seeing, and mystery.
