Exhibitions: Current | Upcoming | Past
Exhibitions: Past
BECAUSE IT MATTERS, by Elemental
Debra Claffey, Patricia M. Gerkin, Donna Hamil Talman, and Charyl Weissbach
September 7–October 19, 2023
As a philosophical and spiritual concept, the idea of the interconnectedness of all things suggests that everything in the universe is connected in some way. From the intricate ecosystems of nature to the complex networks of human society, this notion manifests in profound and multifaceted ways. Not only does this remind us that the singularity of our individual selves is informed and defined by connections, it is through these connections that realities are shaped and reinforced.
Because each of us, our bodily presence, our thoughts and actions, our perceptions of reality, our knowledge, our relationships, the natural world, the social systems we’ve created, all of human experience, are intrinsically linked; interdependent upon each other. From the microscopic to the macroscopic, from the individual to the collective, every entity, phenomenon, and concept forms a complex web of interdependence.
By recognizing this concept, we can better understand the intricate relationships that exist between different aspects of the world, and we can appreciate how our actions and decisions can have far-reaching consequences. We can begin to see how the actions we take in one area can have an impact on the entire ecosystem and the welfare of all the living things within it.
Similarly, this idea can help us to develop a greater sense of empathy and compassion for others. We can recognize that our own well-being is tied to the well-being of others and that we all have a responsibility to work towards creating a more just and equitable world.
The exhibition Because It Matters, by Elemental is a call to action that explores this concept: our responsibilities toward our environment, our efforts to recognize the fragility of our Earth, and the need to restore balance to preserve it.
Kathleen Hancock
Director
Elemental
Elemental is an exhibit group of four artists, Debra Claffey, Patricia M. Gerkin, Donna Hamil Talman, and Charyl Weissbach, who met in New England Wax (a professional organization of regional artists working in the medium of encaustic). Building on this shared foundation, the group established an artist collective to engage in critical discourse and art practice that address and raise awareness of current issues in contemporary society, particularly the ongoing environmental crises.
Debra Claffey
I use pattern and repetition to express appreciation and anxieties, and record memories of movement. My paintings—in oil, encaustic, and mixed media—concentrate on plant and foliage forms.
My experience in horticulture offers the plant kingdom as Muse, and it nurtures me and gets me moving. Using plants as a beginning point for drawing provides innumerable opportunities for direct perception of nature, and a deeper understanding of relationship while also sparking a lively discourse toward making a good and satisfying painting. I’m inspired by artists who can transmit direct perception and a clarity of feeling through visual means. We recognize this in the best art from all ages and cultures, though it can be difficult to translate into a verbal explanation. I invite my viewer to share my own message of powerful joy.
Patricia M. Gerkin
Using paint sticks, encaustic, metal leaf, and disparate materials on various substrates, I challenge viewers to note that space in environmental activism that is as yet uninhabited. My process is intuitive, allowing the materials to lead the way. My forms and lines are organic, my surfaces deeply textured as if hiding a mystery. Layer upon layer, I strive for a tactile quality and a sense of something beneath the surface. This series reminds us of the ever-rising sea levels, and the melting icebergs, ice floes, and glaciers. Have you ever witnessed the destruction of one Nor’easter on surrounding beaches, seawalls, rip rap, roads, and houses? Increasingly violent weather patterns are causing destruction to be commonplace.
Donna Hamil Talman
In recent years my attention has been drawn to how we humans affect our planet. My work encompasses paintings, monotypes, and installations, all featuring encaustic which is made from beeswax and tree resin. Using sustainable, non-toxic, and found materials is how I can promote my own commitment to our environment. Early projects were about the land, but my connection to the ocean is strong. Reading about how devastating plastics harm sea animals and plants led me to create art that highlighted the problems regarding this issue.
Highlighting problems, however, became so disheartening that I switched to solutions, particularly biological ones. Viewers’ awareness will be increased by seeing art about potential restorative approaches, such as alternatives to plastic packaging and carbon-sequestering sea creatures.
Charyl Weissbach
Ocean acidification is a deadly threat to marine ecosystems compromising the long-term viability of an estimated one million species that depend on its coral reef habitats. My paintings draw attention to the acidification of coral reefs within warm expansive oceans. Embedded within multiple layers of wax are stenciled and gilded abstract images of Lyre corals in transition between life and death, demonstrating the perilous effects of climate change. Fortunately, current advances in geoengineering technologies are reducing atmospheric carbon dioxide and the acidity within our oceans. Additionally, the production of temperature resistant corals is well underway.
Biographies
Debra Claffey holds a BFA in Painting from the School of the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston and Tufts University and an Associate’s Degree in Horticultural Technology from the University of New Hampshire. In both 2011 and 2020, she received an Artist Entrepreneurial Grant from the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts. Claffey’s work has won several awards, including the Second Place Award at the Monotype Guild of New England’s Fifth National Monotype Exhibition in May 2018 and the Juror’s Award at the Anything But Flat Exhibition at the Truro Center for the Arts at Castle Hill.
Claffey is a past president of New England Wax, and past president of the NH Chapter of the Women’s Caucus for Art. Raised in Connecticut, educated in Massachusetts, she now lives and works in New Boston, New Hampshire.
Patricia M. Gerkin received her BA from Fairmont State College, and she has studied art independently and through the Corcoran School of Art, Arlington Arts Center, NOVA, and The Art League. She is an Associate Artist of the Torpedo Factory Art Center in Alexandria, VA; a member of the Ogunquit Artist’s Association in Ogunquit, ME; a former member of the Copley Society of Boston, and of the Women’s Caucus for Art. She was a founding member of New England Wax; Elemental, the Art Collective (an environmental exhibit group); and of Painters & Poets (an artist discussion group). She is represented by Powers Gallery, Acton, MA; L’Attitude Gallery, Boston, MA; Barn Gallery, Ogunquit, ME; and Art3Gallery, Manchester, NH.
Gerkin was awarded an artist’s fellowship for painting at Vermont Studio Center, 2001, and was chosen to represent the U.S. and exhibit two works in the American Embassy in Kuwait, 2016-2017, as part of the Arts in Embassies program of the US State Department. Her works are included in many private collections in the US, Brazil, and Europe.
Donna Hamil Talman has, in recent years, been drawn to how we humans affect our planet, especially the sea and how we have polluted our waters and sea creatures. Some of her series highlight the problem, but more focus on potential solutions, particularly biological ones. Her art includes paintings, monotypes, and installations. The Snowball Effect Project, which aims to get more people to act to help the environment, is ongoing: thesnowballeffectproject.org
Her art has been exhibited in Art Basel (Miami), Venice (Italy), NYC, Houston, Seattle, Chicago, and throughout New England. It is published in La Fotografa, The Book of Alternative Photo Processes, Photographic Possibilities, Creative Vision, and is in numerous collections. Hamil Talman’s background includes an MA from Clark University and several grants and international residencies.
Charyl Weissbach received a BFA in painting and the history of art from Massachusetts College of Art & Design and an Associate’s Degree in Fashion Design from Mount Ida Campus of UMass Amherst. She is a charter member of the SoWa Artist’s Guild and New England Wax and a member of United South End Artists.
Her artwork is in many private and corporate collections, including Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare, Massachusetts General Hospital, Winchester Hospital, Children’s Hospital, University of Pennsylvania, NovaCare, National Development, and Oracle Corporations. Presently, she is co-founder, exhibiting artist, and presenter of the Elemental Artists Collective, an artist group formed in 2011, with the purpose of exhibiting artwork that informs and restores balance and sustainability to our endangered world. In 2021, Elemental completed its seventh thematic exhibit and is enthusiastically pursuing new venues. Weissbach’s paintings are featured in Encaustic Works 2012: A Biennial Exhibition in Print, 100 Artists of New England, Boston Magazine’s Design Home, and Encaustic in the Twenty-First Century. She is affiliated with Art3Gallery and Gallery Twist and has exhibited in museums such as Art Complex, Danforth Art, Fuller Craft, New Bedford, Saco and the Springfield Museum.
