response to poem "Dew From Heaven" by
Catherine Wang Hsu
Start with one work of art and allow it to grow and transform into a completely new piece in a different medium. This is the idea behind "Lines Connecting Lines," the new exhibit in the MATV Gallery orchestrated by local artist Lisa L. Sears. In this case the original art was poems written by local poets that then inspired new works of visual art.
"Grotesque Mask" by Stephanie Stigliano in response to same-titled poem
by Jason Fitz-Gerald
Poetry & Visual Art
From a pool of 30 submitted poems, curator & artist Lisa L. Sears and writer David Chia selected 18 works for their strength, engaging message and visual appeal. These poems were then given to 10 artists who made selections from 14 of the submissions to create original photographs, drawings, prints, collages and paintings during the cold and dreary months of January and February.
"LEAVE" by Maria Tiro in response to poem entitled "Leaving" by Sheila Foley
Inspiration & Challenge
"I really enjoyed this project because I've never had to focus on a piece of poetry as inspiration for a collage before," explained Melrose artist Jen Moltoni. "I found it to be challenging...it is important to stretch and to try different processes as an artist."
In the exhibit poems hang side by side with the art made in response to the poets' words. In a few instances two artists selected the same poem for inspiration with striking differences between the resulting artworks.
Connections between artists
"Glory of War" by Yana Lapaix in
response to same-titled poem
by Carl Wood
Each artist was attracted to a particular poem for very different reasons. Artist Yana Lapaix, of Malden, purposely selected two poems for their topical importance, thanking poets Carl Wood (who wrote "Glory of War") and Jason Fitz-Gerald (creator of "afro angels") for "verbalizing these issues and sparking a conversation." Photographer Alan White was moved to select two poems. He explained that both "evoked powerful images," but inspired very diverse photographs that were created in different ways. Alan described his process thusly, "One piece was systematically planned and executed and the other composed through a more free-form process."
"Treasure Box" by Alan White in response to poem "Fastened" by Justin Shatraw
EXHIBIT
HOURS &
INFO
The MATV Gallery is located at MATV, Malden's Media Center, 145 Pleasant Street in Malden. The facility is handicapped accessible and admission is free.
