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For the new ‘Wings’ show at The main Gallery, four artists, Ginger Slonaker, Elizabeth Noerdlinger, Susan Wolf and David Baltzer, have explored the concept of wings - sometimes literally, sometimes metaphorically – sometimes both at once.
For Elizabeth Noerdlinger wings bring to mind all that is airy and atmospheric, floating or flying around. Often her paintings involve the study of the sky, the clouds and their shapes and colors. This is where she began for this show. Some of her paintings for the Wings show were influenced by all the grasses growing in the local hills this spring, and the idea that as things dried up the seeds would begin popping and dispersing. Then came the thoughts about all the natural bits of life that are floating around in the air—pollen, dust, insects, and seeds. Finally, she is showing some small paintings that are more psychologically focused, although the subject matter is literal—creatures with wings.
Bright pastels, pencil and acrylics combine in Ginger Slonaker's most recent works to evoke a whimsical mood that invites the viewer in. The viewer that ventures in, however, might be surprised and taken off guard by the sobering significance of the piece. Slonaker's work examines dysfunctional, though sometimes also humorous, sociological and psychological relationships. "The creative process can be a form of therapy," she says, " in which deep seated issues come to the surface and find a voice through the work." Slonaker suggests that “Wings” represents confidence, both innate and willed. The trust that gives us the freedom to pursue our future and the strength to overcome our struggles with grace can be shaken by unforeseen events and by the changing demands at different stages of life. Slonaker's work examines those times when confidence is tested - be it from bullying, discrimination, an overbearing sense of duty, or simply from personal stubbornness - and gives the viewer an opportunity to do the same. Ultimately, it's by remembering their “wings” that her subjects regain their agility and faith in themselves to meet life's challenges head-on.
Ceramic artist Susan Wolf takes on wings in their metaphorical sense. She sees them as conferring a sense of strength and nobility. Even the smallest sparrow or canary has enormous grace and purpose. Wings have been a recurring theme in her work. Many years ago they were feathers springing from the latissimus dorsi of male busts. Later they were short stubs pinched from the shoulders of powerful female figures. This time around she started with the idea of winged horses. Several Pegasus’s into the project, she began to wonder why a horse with wings needed legs at all. Then came the natural step to focus on the wings themselves. Needing something to attach them to, she began using small bird bodies, small birds with great, grand wings. “We should all be so lucky,” she says.
David Baltzer's three paintings have only the idea of wings as a common denominator. The first is a diptych with stones as an elegy to winged migration. The second is a little something inspired by Headlines of Sexual Predators. And the third presents the entirety of his existence in a single painting. It is about paint and frustration and a hint of redemption.
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