{"id":188753,"date":"2022-08-16T07:30:10","date_gmt":"2022-08-16T11:30:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=188753"},"modified":"2023-07-06T11:09:35","modified_gmt":"2023-07-06T15:09:35","slug":"outdoor-sculpture-exhibit-open-air-2022-intends-to-spark-conversation-at-avery-point","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2022\/08\/outdoor-sculpture-exhibit-open-air-2022-intends-to-spark-conversation-at-avery-point\/","title":{"rendered":"Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit, Open Air 2022 Intends to Spark Conversation at Avery Point"},"content":{"rendered":"

Step back a few feet from artist Margaret Roleke\u2019s sculpture along the brick walkway at UConn Avery Point<\/a> and the flakes of color inside a white rectangular steel frame make the piece look like a stained-glass window, giving way to Long Island Sound on the other side.<\/p>\n

Now step closer to the work that\u2019s on display as part of Open Air 2022, and those colorful remnants that once evoked beauty take their actual shape \u2013 spent shotgun shells strung on vinyl cable in hues of blue, pink, red, yellow, and green.<\/p>\n

\u201cSTAND UP\u201d<\/a> is just one of nine works in what\u2019s become an annual outdoor exhibition for the Alexey von Schlippe Gallery of Art<\/a> at the campus and is the first official show for newly appointed gallery Director Jeanne Ciravolo \u201919 MFA, who served as interim until late this spring when her hire became permanent.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was looking for a diverse approach to sculpture,\u201d Ciravolo says of the show. \u201cWhen I\u2019m planning exhibitions, I am thinking about the public who is not conversant with art and of those who are educated artists. I want to make sure with each of my exhibitions that I include work that is accessible, to draw people in so they have a meaningful experience.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"
Steven Harris takes a photo of the “Silent Vanishing” sculpture on display in the Open Air Art Exhibition at UConn Avery Point during the exhibition’s opening reception on July 14, 2022. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The message of \u201cSTAND UP\u201d is straightforward, prompting consideration of guns, gun control, and gun violence. The CoyWolf Collective\u2019s \u201cSilent Vanishing\u201d<\/a> \u2013 fixed to look like melting icebergs with two snowy owls in midflight \u2013 also has a literal statement, one of environmental doom.<\/p>\n

During the exhibit\u2019s July 14 opening, Ciravolo says one group of attendees commented on how they didn\u2019t understand one of the other sculptures but related to and made sense of \u201cSilent Vanishing.\u201d That feedback was valuable.<\/p>\n

Were that same group to return to the exhibition, they\u2019d see a changed version of Thomas Pilnik\u2019s \u201cAnd Only Its Hands Are Left Pleading for Life.\u201d<\/a><\/p>\n

Sculpted on-site the day of the opening from 400 pounds of locally sourced clay, and with water from the Sound and sticks from the Cognitive Garden where it sits, Pilnik \u201923 MFA wanted the work to break down in the elements, much the same as hands age during one\u2019s lifetime. Today, the piece that once looked like two hands in prayer, has lost a pair of pinky fingers that collapsed to the ground during the first two weeks of the show.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe artist told me it\u2019s meant to crack and split; the rain will wash off the paint. It means to go back to its elements and into the Earth,\u201d Ciravolo says. \u201cAt least one other work is starting to rust. It, too, is interacting with the air and the elements, and it\u2019s changing.\u201d<\/p>\n

Helena Chastel\u2019s \u201cChameleon,\u201d<\/a> a pair of hollowed out geometric orbs welded together, indeed is rusting, almost in cooperation with its surroundings.<\/p>\n

\"Molly
Molly James, a marine science and oceanography graduate student at UConn Avery Point, writes on one of the orbs included in the “For There is Always Light” portion of the Open Air Art Exhibition at UConn Avery Point during its opening reception on July 14, 2022. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The clime of the campus at the edge of the Sound where the Thames River spills, means at least a constant breeze and often the heavy feeling of humidity and sea spray in the air. Ciravolo says she advised artists of the potential for harsh weather \u2013 the show extends until Sept. 29, running during Connecticut\u2019s storm season.<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing we talk about in the MFA graduate program is this idea of process, and how it\u2019s very engaging to create work that you can\u2019t control or that degrades with time. That\u2019s an exciting way of making art,\u201d Ciravolo says.<\/p>\n

Catherine Nelson \u201923 MFA plays with that principle in \u201cThe Edge of Things,\u201d<\/a> which was installed for the 2021 show and kept on for a second year in a pair of three-sided concrete structures near Avery Point Light. They show an accumulation of things that drift to the edges and accumulate.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s Open Air exhibit is the third in what\u2019s become a series that former Director Charlotte Gray started in 2020 during the pandemic, when indoor shows weren\u2019t possible. Ciravolo, who also is an assistant professor in residence who\u2019s been teaching studio art at Avery Point since 2019, says Gray asked her to put together open-air workshops to engage the public around the same time.<\/p>\n

\u201cI really want to continue Open Air and plan to make it one of the five shows the gallery puts on each year,\u201d she says. \u201cOur site is specifically created for an art experience because there\u2019s an existing pathway and the exhibition unfolds as you move along the water\u2019s edge. I think that is what many people are looking for in the way they consume art. There is a desire for immersive and interactive experiences. Our beautiful setting and our path are made for that kind of unfolding.\u201d<\/p>\n

And she\u2019s eager to spread word of not just Open Air, but also next season\u2019s exhibits in the gallery\u2019s indoor space in the Branford House.<\/p>\n

\"Walkers
Walkers on the trail along the coast at UConn Avery Point walk past painted candle holders created by artist Beth Reitmeyer when she arrived on campus during the Open Air Art Exhibition’s opening reception on July 14, 2022. (Sydney Herdle\/UConn Photo)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cWhen I first began curating here, people didn\u2019t know we had exhibitions in the gallery,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019d see people walking on the path from my office, and I\u2019d run down and hand out flyers. I really want everyone to know about this wonderful space that is not just for UConn but also for the public. The gallery has an educational mission and a mission to create community.\u201d<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Open Air 2022 is open seven days a week and can be seen by walking along the path at UConn Avery Point\u2019s<\/a> southernmost edge from parking lot B to the lighthouse. Description cards at each installation include a QR code for more information about the artist and the work. It will close Sept. 29. From September to June, the Alexey von Schlippe Gallery of Art<\/a> is open indoors 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Thursdays through Sundays, but check the website for closures due to installations.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Gun violence, environmental catastrophe among the themes explored by artists in diverse exhibition of artworks<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":160,"featured_media":188929,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[147,1711,2466,2199,1914,2235,173],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2368],"class_list":["post-188753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-video","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-alumni","category-arts-culture","category-marine-sciences","category-new-london-county","category-sfa","category-today-homepage","category-uconn-avery-point","post_format-post-format-video"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-23 11:58:02","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/160"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=188753"}],"version-history":[{"count":9,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188753\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":189072,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/188753\/revisions\/189072"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/188929"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=188753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=188753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=188753"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=188753"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=188753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}