CANOPY | AVA’s 5th annual exhibition supporting mental health awareness | The Linda Roesch Visual Arts Gallery
Please join us on Friday, May 9, from 5-7 pm as we celebrate the participating artists.
For the fifth annual exhibition supporting Mental Health Awareness in collaboration with West Central Behavioral Health, we chose the theme and title Canopy. Canopy reflects the healing qualities that nature offers us– comfort, protection, and support. Each leaf on a tree symbolizes growth and individual experiences, including the struggles we have overcome. Artists may depict a tree, a leaf, or even a group of trees; or maybe a bridge, umbrella, or tent. Artists were encouraged to think in their unique way, as the term can imply several meanings and interpretations of what it might mean to feel strong, brave, and supported. We hope visitors will feel welcomed into the gallery and experience a peaceful and uplifting group exhibition We hope visitors will feel welcomed into the gallery and experience a peaceful and uplifting group exhibition supporting Mental Health Awareness happening throughout the Month of May.
Each year since we started this important exhibition, we have chosen themes and titles that inspire, uplift, and present a hopeful narrative. The first year we held the exhibition was during the COVID-19 pandemic. The title, Tethered by Light, suggested connection through creative means, as the world’s population was restricted from physical contact— allowed only at six feet apart. In 2022, we titled the exhibition The Thing with Feathers, borrowing from the Dickinson poem “Hope is the thing with feathers.” We included poetry in the exhibition, displayed on the walls, and organized a public reading. In 2023, the exhibition was titled An Assemblage of Breaths; “assemblage” implied collage and assemblage artworks, as well as community. The phrase “just breathe”, is something we say to each other in times of stress, utilized as a calming practice. To emphasize breath, we invited a spoken-word musical group to perform at our opening reception. Finally, the 2024 exhibition was titled The Lift of Blue, which drew inspiration from a line in the poem “Sea Church” by the talented Aimee Nezhukumatathil. The title flipped the metaphor of feeling blue to a positive, looking up or outward, suggesting that gazing at the morning sky or bodies of water can improve our mood (a scientifically proven practice).
Participating artists: Riley Adams, Steve Arcone, Deborah Barnwell, Carolyn Begley, Seth Brooks, Joe Carton, Carole A. Centre, Olivia Christian, Annabelle Cone, Deirdre Connelly, Gillian Cook, Cynthia Crawford, Gaal Shepherd, Amber Rose Crowtree, Thia Daniels, Jennifer Davey, Bonnie Dedrick, Richard Fedorchak, Claire Geno, Stephanie Gordon, Kristina Gosh, Matthew Greenway, Judith Hawkins, Tess Holbrook, Elizabeth Humphreys, Grace Huntley, Janet Hutchens, Melora Kennedy, Stephany Komen Hasse, Jillian Lauren Lisitano, Susan McCarthy, Suzanne Mosaliganti, Rebecca Padula, Travis Paige, Marybeth Patterson, Phyll Perry, Kathryn Peterson, Candy Qu, Arbor View Residents, Jonathan Rose, Kate Ruddle, Chris Scott, Kelly Smith, Richard Stamelman, Laura Tafe, Anastasia Tambakis, Tim Ward, and Susan Wilson.
Please join us on Friday, May 9 from 5-7 pm as we celebrate the participating artists. AVA Gallery is always free and open to the public.
Image credit: Kelly Smith, Apple Tree in Spring, Linocut, 8×10, $120
