DELHI - GG Stankiewicz, a visual artist, opened her exhibit Land, Water, Sky Continuum at Birdsong Farm Aug. 5.
Stankiewicz has an intricate understanding and interpretation of the natural world, and this exhibit, explores the continuous sequence of adjacent elements which are not perceptibly different from each other, though the extremes are distinct, much like the planet and humanity.
She strides confidently along the boundary where representation converges with abstraction in this immersive collection which spans her work from the early 2000 continuing through the present - some of which has never been shown.
“It’s abstract with recognizable elements,” Stankiewicz said; where one can see a silhouette of a mountain-scape. The way lines move in another piece, feels like water flowing. Solid shapes have a stationary feeling, she continued. “Visual language is my first language,” she continued and on a deeper level she is concerned about the world we live in and the environment. The way she speaks to the concerns, she said, is through her art.
Stankiewicz captures the essence of the natural world in the delicate medium of paper, some of which she created by using Delaware County grass and a cotton pulp. She comes from a canvas background, she said and had to give thought to work on paper - which is typically framed. Most of the pieces in the exhibit are not.
“I didn’t want there to be glass between the paper and the viewer,” she said.
Each of the pieces, 36 in total, “dialogue” with neighboring pieces. “But each piece has its own voice,” she said. “I like the idea that the pieces are interactive.”
All pieces are for sale with an accompanying price sheet, and she encourages to collectors to frame art however they want.
“Usually when people purchase art, all of the decisions are made for them,” she said. “You can become part of the piece.”
There is freedom in working with paper, she continued. The art was created using printmaking techniques with ink. She created her art monotype “the painterly type of printmaking,” as its referred to in the art world. She works directly on plates to create a composition and at least two pieces were “ghost” prints - a print that appears similar to its neighbor in the 20 foot by 41 foot galley - though they are distinctly different - related in an echo. She reworked the ghost image until she got a second iteration, she said.
With Stankiewicz’s use of paper the collection lends a unique texture to her works and makes the images appear simultaneously ephemeral and enduring, a quality that mirrors the transient yet lasting beauty of nature. This distinctive choice of medium sets her works apart, inviting viewers to engage with the art on a more intimate level.
The exhibit is a journey of nature’s interconnectivity and the timelessness and distinct time frames of Stankiewicz’s evolution as an artist. The exhibit is a combination of subtle hues, bold strokes, and intricate details that elicits a sense of fluidity that mirrors the dance of land, water, and sky, and the interconnectedness of people.
The thematic continuity of the curated pieces stands out. While each piece has its unique essence, the overarching theme of unity and harmony prevails giving the collection a cohesive narrative.
The exhibit is open to the public Friday through Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. On Aug. 27 there will be an artist talk at 1 p.m.
The owner of Birdsong Farm , wanting to incorporate art in the garden, saw the building where the gallery is now located, adjacent to the farm’s flower gardens, as the perfect place to exhibit art.
While curating the exhibit, Stankiewicz was simultaneously curating “Patchwork Landscape” which will be on display Oct. 7 - Nov. 5 at the Walton Theatre Parlor Gallery. That show was made possible by a decentralization grant from the New York State Council on the Arts grant administered by Roxbury Arts Group. The opening reception for that show is Oct. 7 from 4 - 6 p.m.
