The Barron Arts Center reminds us about the trials of a wasteful society by hosting Rejuvenate: Recycled Materials as The New Medium featuring the work of Found Object Assemblage Artist, Lisa Bagwell and Fiber Artist Linda Rae Coughlin. The Exhibit will run June 16, 2011 through July 8, 2001. An opening reception will be held June 16, 2011 7:00pm-9:00pm.
This show is part of the Exit 11: NJ Arts Interactive series and includes the opportunity for other artists to partake in workshops devoted to the craft of the spotlighted artists, Bagwell & Coughlin. Lisa Bagwell’s Found Object Assemblage Workshop will be held June 18th 12-3pm at the cost of $15.00. Linda Rae Coughlin’s Recycled Fiber Hooked Rug Workshop will be held July 23rd 10am-3pm at the cost of $25.00. Space is limited. Please call 732-634-0413 for more information.
The participating artists are no strangers to the world of Eco-Art. With her roots in theater and folk art, Lisa Bagwell’s witty found-object sculptures have a dramatic flair while also being highly accessible social commentary. She appropriates the detritus of mass consumerist society in the hopes of drawing attention to social and commercial excesses and shortsightedness. Lisa is interesting in sculpting with found objects like plastic cutlery, bottles, wires, etc. in the hopes of ferrying their meaning over from their previous world to this new one as vital fragments for her art.
With a lifelong history in textile art, Linda Rae Coughlin’s fervor and focus for the past 20 years has been rug hooking/fiber art. All of her pieces exhibited were created from cast off items and discarded clothing, washed, dismantled and hand dyed. Coughlin’s work, while having an environmental voice, is also rooted in feminism. Her pieces look at women and the issues and events that challenge their lives. Say’s Coughlin regarding her work, “you will usually find a . . .word, phrase, or symbol that expresses a feeling about a particular experience: symbolic of my desire for women to always have their own
voice.”
Though the use of recycled materials in art is a familiar concept, we need to be reminded of how important it is to reduce our overall waste. This is what we hope we will produce in the minds of the viewer; new ways to erase images of societal waste by simply taking
trash and beautifying it. The Barron Arts Center works closely to develop and support sustainable green art projects throughout Woodbridge and in our surrounding communities. It is a pleasure to bring people into our community and enlighten them using a visual and hands on artists workshops.
The exhibition is part of the Exit 11: NJ Arts Interactive Series sponsored by The Woodbridge Township Cultural Arts Commission chaired by Dr. Dolores Capraro Gioffre with the support from Mayor John E. McCormac. Funding has been made possible in part by The Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage Commission through a grant provided by The New Jersey State Council on The Arts/ Department of State, A partner agency of The National Endowment for the Arts.
The Barron Arts Center is located at 582 Rahway Avenue in Woodbridge, NJ. Gallery hours are Monday thru Friday 11 a.m.-4 p.m.; Saturday and Sunday 2 p.m.-4 p.m.
About the Barron Arts Center – Woodbridge Township’s Center for the Arts The Barron Arts Center, listed on the national Register of Historic Places, recently celebrated its 130th Anniversary. With the support of the Woodbridge Township Cultural Arts Commission and under the direction of Cynthia Knight, the Barron Arts Center offers programming to the public free of charge.
Donations are appreciated and are essential to the continuation of free quality arts programs and exhibits.
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