Nave Gallery hosts exhibit until July 12

By Jack Nicas

Evolution can occupy many forms. Sometimes it takes billions of years and yields monumental results, such as the development of the human race. Sometimes it takes as little as one year and yields only a slight alteration in an artist’s work, such as a Bert Sterns poem of 2007 to one of 2008. Nevertheless, change is always taking place. 

Somerville artists put their evolution on display Thursday evening at the grand opening of the “Fanning the Flames” exhibit at the Nave Gallery.

Eleven artists who had received grants from the Somerville Arts Council in 2007 collaborated for the exhibit. The show runs until July 12 and will be co-curated by Rachel Mello and Sandra Butler, two artists whose works are showcased.

Butler said, ‚ÄúWhen we were planning the exhibition, we thought ‘2007 was a while ago-who’s going to want to see a show from [year-old] grant winners?’ So, we made it into a show about 2008.‚Äù By featuring the artists’ past works side by side with their post-grant pieces, the theme of evolution emerged. 

Mello said that at first the artists were not sure about their own transformation, “but as we talked about it more, people began to realize they had shifted without even knowing it.”

Each artist had a statement accompanying their art, which discussed their own evolutionary process since receiving the fellowship grant.

Stern’s was insightful: ‚ÄúI’m not sure what to say about the differences between work I did before my artist’s grant and the work I’ve done since. I was 77 when I received the grant and 78 now. That period isn’t usually a time of big changes, though, because I’m alive and writing, my poems inevitably do change.‚Äù

Each artist experienced a unique direction of development since last year. Shaun Lynch moved from macabre drawings that expressed an over-arching commentary on war to models of skull-adorned rotundas, for their representation of government.

Butler was solely making monotypes prior to receiving her grant, which requires a process of printmaking where shapes are painted on and then pressed to paper. After receiving her grant she was looking for a way to alter her work while at a mixed media workshop at Bennington College. Suddenly, she realized her tools were art.

She said, ‚ÄúI had always thought of them as tools, but when the stencils went through the press, they became beautiful.‚Äù Her new works resemble monotypes, but have texture and depth that was never possible with printmaking. ‚ÄúI print like a painter and now I’m collaging like a printmaker.‚Äù

Mello shifted from her usual work with cut panels to wood-block printing, via inspiration from fellow curator Butler. She said, ‚ÄúDuring Somerville Open Studios in 2007, I walked into Mixit Print Studios and wondered out loud, ‘Why are my works not wood blocks?’‚Äù Sure enough, her side-by-side pieces revealed a similar depiction, power lines overhanging a city street, but in two very different styles.

The opening reception on Thursday included two readings and a film screening. Stern kicked things off with several of his poems, including ‚ÄúHospital Double‚Äù, ‚ÄúA Simple Poem‚Äù and two with food themes: ‚ÄúHot Food‚Äù and ‚ÄúLunch.‚Äù Following the latter he said, ‚ÄúI wonder if that poem is about food or war; I hope it’s war.‚Äù

Ethan Gilsdorf, a poet, teacher, journalist, and writer, followed Stern with an excerpt from his book in progress, currently titled ‚ÄúEscape Artists.‚Äù He captivated the audience with his passionate, inflective reading and detailed descriptions. He prefaced his passage by discussing the work’s evolution following the grant process. ‚ÄúOver the course of the past year, I’ve begun to think about telling the story differently; by telling it through me [as a child], I got back into the head of a 12 year-old boy.‚Äù

Finally, Karen Aqua screened her hypnotic short film, “Sensorium” in the adjacent sanctuary of the Clarendon Hill Presbyterian Church. Aqua said the film is “a hand-drawn experimental animation exploring the relationship between music and image.” It will be running throughout the exhibition.
Grants were given to the artists through peer-review panels, said Greg Jenkins, executive director of the Somerville Arts Council. He said the council selects 45 people from the community who are knowledgeable about a certain field of art and educates them on the grant process; then the decision is up to them.

Somerville’s unique blend of artists helped make the night happen. ‚ÄúIt’s an amazing place to be an artist,‚Äù Mello said, ‚ÄúI never thought about submitting my art for anything, until I was directly contacted about it.‚Äù

Stern said he’s been able to take his poetry more seriously since coming to Somerville because of the community atmosphere. ‚ÄúI get together with friends and we discuss and write; poetry has become more of a social action for me,‚Äù he said, ‚ÄúSomerville is my promise land."