New Exhibit At Gallery A3 In September: Marianne Connolly and Rochelle Shicoff

Source: Gallery A3

In PIECING, CONNECTING, RE-CALLING, Marianne Connolly weaves a narrative thread through collage and mixed media art while Rochelle Shicoff exhibits a mixed media series that combines painted images, hand-stitched fabrics, and various artifacts of clay, wood, and other materials. The exhibit opens at Gallery A3, 28 Amity Street 1 D on Thursday September 7 and runs through Saturday September 30. Gallery hours are Thursday thourgh Sunday 2 p.m.-7 p.m. There will be an opening receiption on Thursday September 7 from 5-7 p.m. and an online art forum on Thursday September 21 at 7:30 p.m. Both events are free and open to the public. Register for the online art forum and find more information here.

MARIANNE CONNOLLY

Narrative in Language and Image

Marianne Connolly explores storytelling, narrative, and the connections between language and image in her visual art of collage and mixed-media work and in her written work in fantasy fiction. “Rapunzel’s Diary (Revised),” for example, is a mixed-media work pairing an iconic Olivetti Valentine typewriter with a 20-foot scroll of typed narrative. Like the fairy-tale character of Rapunzel, trapped in a high tower and pouring her long hair out the window to connect with the world (and her fairy-tale prince), the typewriter is suspended on the wall above us and a hand-typed story flows down to the floor, from the “window” of an elegantly designed placket. 

Also revealing the artist’s long-term interest in narrative, “Ophelia’s Dive” is a hand-cut-and-pasted collage imaging an alternative turn in the story of Ophelia, from the Shakespearean tragedy Hamlet. The artwork revels in aspects of collage technique, with the convincing incongruity of Ophelia’s feathery boa conjured from meticulously-snipped photographs of octopus eggs.  

ROCHELLE SHICOFF

Lost and Found: To Make Whole

Rochelle Shicoff connects with her maternal grandparents, who were tailors, by the repetitive gesture of sewing fabrics, and with her late mother, who was a master knitter and painter, by using her yarn for the wrapped pieces. The painted images in Lost and Found: To Make Whole, which are enclosed by embroidery hoops and surrounded by pieced fabrics, evoke both the ancient Mimbres culture and the Ewe, which are carved wooden female protector figures.

Shicoff uses acrylic paint to create flat areas of color with sharp edges that vibrate with interactive hues, building on a palette of complementary colors and a balance of asymmetrical shapes. The color combinations draw the viewer in, to look and then to look again, making their own interpretation. “Making art, for me, is solving a puzzle,” says Shicoff. “How to organize all of the elements to fit together to result in a cohesive whole.”

Art Forum Online
In an Art Forum Online on Thursday, September 21 at 7:30 pm, Connolly and Shicoff will discuss their work, and welcome questions, comments, and stories from the audience. See the gallery website www.gallerya3.com to register for this online event, which is free and open to the public. This Art in Community outreach program is supported in part by grants from the Amherst Cultural Council, Pelham Cultural Council, and Springfield Cultural Council, all local agencies, which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency.

About Gallery A3
Gallery A3 is a contemporary, fine art gallery in downtown Amherst, Massachusetts. Members of our artist-run gallery include painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers and mixed media artists. You can find us in the Amherst Cinema complex along with Amherst Coffee, GoBerry Yogurt and Osteria Vespa restaurant.

Gallery A3 was founded in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. A group of local artists believed art to be essential to the health and healing of a community and began the gallery as a place to share ideas and artistic support. Since that time, the gallery has been home to over sixty artists and is now celebrating twenty years of monthly shows with openings and forums. All events are free and open to the public.

Gallery A3 strives to enliven and enrich our community by offering exhibits with public openings and open forums. It established and actively participates in the monthly art walks, Amherst Arts Night Plus, and supports regional artists with an annual juried show. It serves its own membership with conversations and programs that bring established professional and newly-emerged artists together, promoting artistic development and encouraging the creation and exhibition of exciting, new contemporary art work.