PVCC Gallery Hosts Opening Reception
The PVCC Gallery debuted two new exhibits at its opening reception on Sept. 18. The exhibits, “Gallery Dreams” and “Lost and Found,” drew a steady crowd throughout the evening as students, friends, family, and other art enthusiasts paced the halls, exclaiming over the pieces.
Photography by Elise Hansen
“Gallery Dreams,” displayed in the South Gallery, is a companion piece to “Yard Dreams,” the weekend-long outdoor art event that sprinkled Belmont yards with works by local artists. As the indoor counterpart to “Yard Dreams,” “Gallery Dreams” allows artists to explore the role of location and context in a piece. James Yates, curator of the Yard Dreams event, helped set the tone for the exhibit with his work “Thought Bubbles,” which draws the viewer in and invites him to contemplate the nature of art and the human experience.
In the North Gallery, “Lost and Found” showcases the work of two local artists, Deborah Rose Guterbock and Terri Long. “I am really pleased with how well these two artists’ works go together,” said Gallery Director and PVCC Art Professor Beryl Solla. Both artists, she explains, use a similar palate in their pieces, draw inspiration from nature and use found art as a medium. Or, as Long put it, “We both like to use feathers.”
Photography by Elise Hansen
Long said she frequently draws inspiration from old books. She is fascinated by the moment of throwing away and enjoys the opportunity to honor objects one last time. Many of her pieces are collages that feature old textbooks, encyclopedias, and vintage Reader’s Digest books.
Guterbock’s displayed work includes several richly-colored paintings that combine unexpected features: a toad with a velvet coat or a fox with an Elizabethan-era lace collar. Other pieces are three-dimensional displays of found art. In her piece “Owl – Spirit House,” an owl stares unblinkingly at the audience; eggshells, beaded jewelry, and a timepiece surround it, and all are arranged inside a vintage carrying case that houses the work. When asked about the themes of this piece, Guterberg responded that one of her goals was to create “a piece that would encapsulate the essence of owl and exhibit it with great reverence.”
Overall, Solla said the response to the event was “very positive: people were jazzed by the artwork and they loved the food. It’s always a festive environment in the gallery…people stayed well past closing time.”
Both “Gallery Dreams” and “Lost and Found” will remain on display in the Dickinson building until Nov. 4.
