Thank you for the privilege of selecting  work for this exhibit. It has been an enriching experience for me. There’s much thoughtful purpose in the work of these Western Michigan artists. For example, one finds the enduring difficult social themes: the search for personal identity, the scars of political violence, the devastation of the environment. Yet much of the art work also features a celebration of life, with rich color and masterful craft:

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The exuberance of childhood: when you need to rush outside to make bubbles and it doesn’t matter which feet the shoes go on;

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Intense sunlight on the beach, delicate muted colors in an English garden;

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Golden fungi on a log and yellow ochre leaves of an autumn fen;

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Jostling rocks at the lakeshore; intricate water waves stretching into infinity;

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Old barns, front porches, a quiet path—echoes of quiet moments when we take time to cherish the natural world;

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Kinship with birds and animals: curiosity of a Barred Owl, startled flight of an Eastern Blue bird, personality of a beloved horse;

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The significance of natural materials—milkweed seeds in a ceramic chrysalis; sweetgrass woven into a tapestry; Blood wood in a chalice-like cup; sassafras root as a medicine for the renewal of the earth and its creatures.

 

These art works come from the heart; they are uplifting to the spirit.

With gratitude to all the artists for their message,

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–Cathy VanVoorhis