As visitors contemplate this year's annual invitational art show at the Fort Smith Regional Art Museum, there's more to see than ever in the 75 years of FSRAM's existence. Submissions from 77 artists include photography, stained glass, acrylic, watercolor, oils, woodcut, pastel, fiber, rayon, and a medium new to FSRAM this year -- chocolate sealed in resin and titled "Think Like a Man" by Zuleyma Payan.
A large ship constructed of stained glass and tree roots by Cheri Bohn centers the largest section in the gallery and embodies the ship voyages depicted in Homer's book "The Odyssey," says FSRAM publicist Laura Wattles. A nearby work features the traditional media of acrylic paint on canvas, capturing reflected light on two dogs in a field in "Best Day" by Suzanne DesMarais. A wearable crochet sculpture by Madison Deen weaves the shapes of fossilized coral; "Evidence (Time/Place): After Cole" by James Volkert uses dramatic color and lighting in oil paint to depict a boat journey; and first place was awarded to Tammy Harrington, a professor of art at the University of the Ozarks in Clarksville, for "Whisper," inspired by the Chinese folk art of paper cut.
"I am thrilled to present our newest exhibition, which showcases a diverse and thought-provoking collection of contemporary art," says Michael Hall, FSRAM's new executive director. "The works on display push the boundaries of artistic expression, inviting our visitors to engage with different perspectives and explore the themes of journey, through life, through circumstances, and through navigation of our world.
"We hope that this exhibition will inspire dialogue and encourage visitors to reflect on the power and potential of art to shape our understanding of the world around us."
Harrington's world, like her art, is multidimensional. She was born in South Dakota, a child of immigrants from China, and says art was always her passion.
"One of my earliest art memories is from preschool when we worked on a tiger drawing with crayons," she says. "I can't imagine doing anything else."
Harrington earned a bachelor of fine arts in graphic design/printmaking at the University of South Dakota and a master of fine arts in printmaking at Wichita (Kan.) State University. Her work was accepted into the 29th annual International Photography Exhibition at FSRAM in 2005, and she was one of the jurors for the invitational in 2013.
"In between those times, it was a bit hectic working and raising a family, so I never entered work into this show," she explains. "When I saw what the theme was this year, I thought that my work fit and decided to enter. It is a great exhibition to be a part of, especially with the new location and building. Plus, it has entrants from Arkansas and across the United States.
"The exhibition showcases the variety of interpretations of the theme," she says, "giving the viewer different perspectives to interact with and think about. I see the world in very much of a visual way, and what I enjoy is seeing content, emotion and/or meaning in an artwork that I hadn't seen initially.
"Plus, since I have lived in the state for over 20 years, I know many of the exhibition artists. The reception gave me a chance to meet new artists and lovers of the arts."
Harrington's work blends "interpretations of traditional Chinese designs and patterns into personalized figurative compositions."
"The combination of printmaking, decorative paper, and paper cut shifts the idea of space to be dimensional and flat at the same time, a place between reality and the mystical," she says. "These patterns represent the duality of my existence as a Chinese American. Depending on the moment, I teeter between how Chinese and how American I am perceived by others."
Also honored by judges Don Lee, gallery director at the University of Arkansas in Fort Smith; Ernest Cialone, art professor at UAFS; and Bethany Springer, associate professor of art at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, were:
Purchase award -- Susan Chambers, acrylic on canvas, "In the Garden."
Second place -- Amy Scoggins, oil on canvas, "Motherhood: Death by Homeschool."
Third place -- Cheri Bohn, stained glass, "Bohn Voyage."
Honorable mention -- Elizabeth Weber, "Forest Sanctuary"; Thomas Richard, "Danger, Danger: From Lifesavers to Chicken"; and Neal Harrington, "The Fish Lady of Toad Suck Holler."
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FAQ
FSRAM Invitational:
'Odyssey'
WHEN -- Through July 30; hours are 11 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Saturday & 1-5 p.m. Sunday
WHERE -- Fort Smith Regional Art Museum
COST -- Free
INFO -- 784-2787 or fsram.org
On The Cover:
Tammy Harringtons first-place entry in the Fort Smith Regional Art Museums 2023 Invitational exhibition is titled "Whisper." It "has a quietness and contemplative feel based on the colors used and the pose of the figure," the artist says. In addition to a $1,000 prize, Harrington will have a solo exhibition in 2024 at FSRAM.
(Courtesy Image/Tammy Harrington)
"Floatie and Lane Divider," 2022, is an oil on canvas by PJ Mills of Miami, Fla. It is, she says, "about finding courage. I stopped swimming laps and left the safety of the pool to swim in 'open' or ocean water. It was and still is the most frightening thing I have ever done." Mills' work is based on 17th century paintings by Dutch and Flemish artists who created still lifes with 'everyday items that were given important symbolic connotations.'"
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)
"Cicada Whirl" by Barbara Satterfield of Conway is hand-built white earthenware with oil paints and encaustic. "For over 30 years," she says, "my ceramic work has referenced what I have observed and found in nature. Nests, stones, seed pods, exoskeletons, lichen and fungi are signifiers of a miraculous web of activity and interdependence. ... I create work inspired by that web."
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)
"Log Cabin, Boxley, Newton County" was created by Fayetteville artist Sabine Schmidt. "For my photography and writing series 'Rememorials' (started in 2021) I construct paper models of Arkansas farmhouses, schools and businesses that were sites of racial injustice. Based on extensive historical research, the models give physical shape to the fading knowledge of what happened in those places."
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)
"Bird-Homer" 2023 is a 12x12x12 mixed media work by Tyler Rideout of Clarksville. "The work is a chimera, a combination of a hummingbird and a peacock. The colors of the bird were inspired by both. This work represents the theme 'Odyssey' by showing the viewer the in-motion action of takeoff and flight." At left, "Our Journey," a mixed media work by Lisa Jan-Bohne Clay of Greenwood has 124 birds "representing our journey to many destinations and our adventure along the way."
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)
A set of four artworks by Katerina Frantzikinakis of Fort Smith "is meant to represent my journey using art to battle mental illness."
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)
"In the Garden," acrylic on canvas by Susan Chambers of Little Rock, won the RAM Purchase Award for the 2023 Invitational. "A new aesthetic has emerged for me as the purpose of the garden changed from a prescribed 'beauty' to a home for living things. This odyssey has opened me up to new possibilities."
(Courtesy Photo/FSRAM)