Two opening night receptions Friday night drew art fanciers downtown on a frigid winter evening. Besides offering a glimpse at the artistic talents of local residents, the receptions also offered insights into an active community of Christian artists that exists in the Madison area.
One reception for a short-running show entitled Repose was at the Lucent Gallery on the near east side, featuring ten artists. Bobbette Rose, one of those artists, was busy at the Overture Center in another reception for a show featuring her work and that of Julie Insun Youn titled Beauty for Ashes.
While the artists share Christian faith in common the variety of styles, especially at the Lucent Gallery, is striking. The art on disply includes watercolors, mosaics, photography, linocuts, drawings, and more. However, to see this variety, act quickly. This show lasts only through Tuesday, January 25, 2011. Lucent Room Studio is located at 305 S. Livingston St.
Barry Sherbeck, who operates Lucent, chose the theme Repose. “I like the surprise of it,” he said, noting that it was a good winter theme with its implication of a certain dormancy.
Artists in this show have displayed in smaller numbers at Lucent on previous occasions, particularly as a part of the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art (MMOCA) seasonal Gallery Nights. But getting all ten of them together is a first for Sherbeck.
One of the artists, Cam Anderson, currently serves as executive director of CIVA, Christians in Visual Arts, a national organization dedicated to helping the arts bridge the gaps between Christian communities and the non-believing world.
Looking at this event from a national perspective, Anderson said, “Madison is not unusual for having a vibrant community of Christian artists but there are many cities that don’t have such a community.” He attributes Madison’s active and inter-connected community to several factors, including the presence of the national office of InterVarsity Christian Fellowship, a campus-focused ministry which values the life of the mind. Several of the artists are, like Anderson, current or former InterVarsity employees. Or they are connected to InterVarsity in some way.
Local churches are not necessarily known for strong support of the arts, although one exception would be Geneva Campus Church, which sponsors the annual Geneva Forum as part of its ministry to the University of Wisconsin community. Last year’s forum featured New York-based artist Makoto Fujimura.
A number of these same artists were involved in a show at the Wisconsin Center on Langdon Street called Between the River and the Sea, which was arranged as part of the Geneva Forum and Fujimura’s appearance.
The artists participating in the Repose exhibit are:
- Cameron Anderson
- Eugenia Sherman Brown
- Betsy Delzer
- Mary Francis Hill
- Kortney Kaiser
- Jonathan Kramka
- Gary Nauman
- Bobbette Rose
- Barry Sherbeck
- Dave Zentner
On Sunday afternoon, January 23, 2011, the Repose artists returned to the gallery to talk about their work.