Open any newspaper today and, regardless of where you call home on planet earth, at some point you'll read a headline about an ecological disaster often produced at the hands of man. It is a form of that all too familiar adage that history is 20/20 vision, and if we only had a time machine we could prevent it.
Kendall College of Art and Design of Ferris State University presents artists Sarah Lindley and Steve Nelson, who will be attending the closing reception exhibition of
Ripple Effect: From Industry to Environment in the Kalamazoo River Basin.
This special closing event enables attendees a final chance to see this art exhibition but also provide access for one to ask questions in developing creating understanding of their powerful works.
Both artists’ works ask the viewer to consider as individuals what happens when something is placed on the land and what becomes of it once decommissioned.
Working across a variety of genres, Sarah Lindley and Steve Nelson turn their gaze to the site of the former Plainwell paper mill and the watershed of the Kalamazoo River, exploring their impact on the environment and its surrounding community.
Lindley’s installation is constructed entirely of paper found in the mill, and Nelson’s photographs document the site’s industrial architecture and surroundings from an intimate perspective that is beautiful and haunting at the same time .
In the case of photographer Steve Nelson, what becomes very clear is what happens when we abandon our infrastructure within natural settings. Sometimes the earth will absorb it, but other times what is absorbed raises deeper issues, like should it be abandoned there to create havoc for future generations? Lindley’s art focus has recently moved from being an interior look at space to embrace a bigger picture field of vision taking on the landscape and asking us to consider the environment.
As an added bonus, and since you are heading down to KCAD anyway, please consider attending artist Katherine Sullivan’s 5 p.m. slide presentation on her creative practice and how it relates to her work featured in her solo exhibition (also at the Fed Galleries) titled
Darshan | Seeing.
The duty of art can be to show us our world in a fresh way sparking dialogue. This is one of those fine examples of the power of art to get us all talking. Get there...if you can.
Admission: Free