“This is the best show we’ve had in the gallery.” and “I’ve been a cop all of my adult life, but I get this show!” were comments made to me during the opening of the first Pilgrimage Exhibition at the Hallie Brown Ford Gallery in Roseburg, Oregon. These visitor statements on January 22 calmed my fears about sharing my interior universe with strangers.
While I’d like to take some credit for the receptive response, it was really the gallery manager, Aleta McGee, who had the vision for how to make my colorful symbolic works accessible to the Roseburg audience. She asked me to provide photos (black frames, please) and artifacts from places represented in my paintings. Aleta’s request put me in a bind; I never owned a camera during the years that I lived and worked in villages around the world. And those were years of poverty, so I assumed I didn't own any artifacts.
But you, my friends and colleagues, enabled me to realize Aleta’s vision. Upon receiving my request for photos, many of you took time to dredge through your archives, scan your pictures according to my specifications, and send them to me digitally so I would receive them in time for the show. I received photos from villages in Australia, Egypt, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kenya, Malaysia and Peru. You were awesome!
I soon discovered I was wrong about having artifacts. In my studio I found a small Egyptian bird plaque given to me by Anne Yallop, an Australian Aboriginal Wandjiru picture from Katrin Ogilvey, and a carved Kenyan woman’s bust from Alfrieda Wilkins. In my bedroom I discovered a blue butterfly scarf from Japan given to me by Joan Knudson, a red purse from China given to me by Katrin Ogilvey, Indonesian Batik cloth from Diane Dunlap, and a Chinese silk scarf with calligraphy - a gift to me from Phil and Nancy McCullum. In the living room I found a small Mexican pyramid from Rose Worden, a Filipino wicker handbag from the Bengals (now my sewing basket), and an Indian cloth painting given to me by my daughter after her semester in Gujarat. My penchant for all things Indian was revealed in Pier 1 purchases strewn throughout the house: silk scarves, pillows, napkins, and table runners made from old saris.
Day by day as I prepared for the show, I would turn around in my home and find another of these treasures. I had never really thought of them as cultural artifacts. They are simply the warp and woof of my daily life. In my jewelry drawer are other gifts that I am unwilling to risk in a public space: a silver necklace from India given to me by Kamala Parekh, an Australian Boab tree pin from Katrin Ogilvey, silver bracelets purchased on my honeymoon in Mexico, and the black Filipino bracelet given to me by the nuns from St. Mary’s School where I taught “new math.”
A number of people generously loaned things for the 2010 shows. Nancy Golden and Roger Guthrie and Joel and Terri Narva allowed me to borrow back village paintings from their art collections. Phyllis Hockley loaned me her precious Indonesian Tjangkul man statue.
Preparing for the Roseburg exhibition was a month-long marathon. (Remember, I still work full-time. Thankfully, the holidays gave me extra time.) When I finished framing all my paintings and getting them digitally documented, I turned to composing and framing photo collages. Aleta wanted brief descriptions for all 29 paintings to use as wall tags. So I wrote those. Then I collected, cleaned and tagged all the artifacts. Finally I packed everything so Wesley Lachman could help me transport the show to Roseburg. (In an earlier blog I shared why I do not own a vehicle.)
Am I tired? I am exhausted! My brain is so fried that I can’t remember the four-digit ATM pin code I’ve been using for years! But more than that I am grateful - grateful for the experiences that have made me who I am, grateful to Aleta for her vision, and grateful to each of you for your role in my life. Thank you.
PS 1
As some of you have noted, I’m behind on updating my website. Hopefully it will be ready before the end of February. I’m also working on a Pilgrimage gift pack of 17 art cards that will be available for sale. Inserted into each card will be an anecdotal story that celebrates the wonder I experienced in that place, embraces the self-revelation that happened in that place, or honors the courage and ingenuity of the ordinary people of that place. Giclee prints of the Pilgrimage paintings will also be available.
PS 2
On Saturday Feb 6 the Umpqua Valley Arts Association will open at 2:00 for a special showing of Pilgrimage for people from out of town.
