an exhibition at Domareki Gallery, Columbia High School, Maplewood, NJ
September 2-30, 2016
The title of this exhibition was deliberately ambiguous. We often find ourselves inhabiting a common place, this leads to the question, what do we have in common? Visitors were invited to feel free to mix and match the words while the three local artists explored the commonplace in uncommon ways. Investigating the sense of place uniquely portrayed by each of these artists as they engaged in their work and examined their recurring themes, visitors were encouraged to recognize and appreciate our commonalities and differences.
Sybil Archibald: The expansiveness of an inner spiritual place, independent of physical losses, is explored in this monotype series, The Inner Life of an Artist. Sybil touches upon the timeless internal landscape that supports the practice of art and the experience of listening on a very deep level without expectation.
Terry Boddie: Memory, identity, and globalization are examined as he invokes the experience of migration in this series Residual Memory. Memories of a former home merge with the changes and challenges of the new place and culture. As a photographer and multi-disciplinary artist, Terry blurs the distinctions between photography, drawing, and painting.
Russell Christian: With both dark humor and playfulness, Russell populates his spaces with contorting characters, experiencing the confines of a particular place, time, or situation. He comes from a perspective of drawing cartoons and performing, and we are witness to his alter egos’ efforts to fit in, or get out, of the imposed grids.