Three artists perspective on a hidden world

(Photo of work by Sri Prabha)

By Rachel Galvin

A melding of past and present, from natural to surreal, the three new exhibits currently on display at the Boca Raton Museum of Art invite the viewer to experience the world in a new way. The VIP Preview Reception of the exhibits, collectively titled “Three Artists | Three Visions – One Spirit” was held on June 13 and introduced guests to the artists in question by showcasing their artwork.

Matthew Schreiber: “Orders of Light”

Matthew Schreiber, who was in attendance at the reception, is known for his work with lasers as well as holograms, which were on display. Peering at one of his works is like taking a step into something both sacred and surrealistic, looking through space and time into a moment captured and never to be seen again… each time you look at it, you see something different, and trying to take a photo of it is futile. The art is temporary, fleeting, like a ghost, and looking upon them gives you an eerie feeling as if you have just seen one. 

The locations exhibited in his holograms on display lend to that theme … since they were spiritualist camps in Lily Dale, NY, and Cassadaga, FL. He has one piece taken there of his wife almost staring across the space on the wall to another piece taken in the other location years later, as if she is looking at herself across time and space. He also has a piece showcasing a strangely bent spoon that once belonged, he said, to occultist Alistar Crowley, or at least it was found in his home. In addition, he had a vibrant and equally eerie hologram series showing outstretched hands. He was inspired to do these, he said, following the death of legendary singer David Bowie and after seeing the documentary “Moonage Daydream” about Bowie’s life, in which the last shot features a fan reaching to the singer. Schreiber said the piece made him think about reaching out to Bowie’s ghost. Also, the way in which it was formed, blocking the light by miniscule movements in the artist’s hand when putting it in the lasers, was like the creation of a ghost hand.

Schreiber has an undergraduate degree in Fine Art Painting from the University of Florida where he also began his study of holography and physics. He went on to complete his MFA in Art and Technology and Experimental Film from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago with a specialization in Holography from the Royal College of Art, London in 1994.

Sara Dienes: “Incidental Nature”

Bringing to our attention what is normally beneath our feet, unseen, is something that artist Sara Dienes has often focused on. Her colorful rubbings of sidewalks, manhole covers and other trodden upon surfaces shows the beauty of the ordinary. After all, she said, “Spirit lives in everything.” This exhibit focuses on her 1950s street rubbings, work inspired by her several trips to Japan, and portraits of her peer group. The method of making the art is just as important if not more important than the work itself.

An original member of the Neo-Dada movement (1950s-1960s), Dienes, who has since passed away, is an under-represented artist who was a mentor to Robert Rauschenberg and inspiration to Jasper Johns.

Sri Prabha: “Resonator – Reanimator”

Fantastical and futuristic, the world created by artist Sra Prabha takes us to outer space and beyond while emphasizing togetherness with the universe and how we are all made of the same stuff. Utilizing a multi-layered multi-dimensional approach, he brings together sculpture, video, paint, found art and more to create a unique new plane of existence to remind us of the interconnectedness of everything. He brings in ideas from Vedic philosophy and science, the chanting of monks and more. Within his psychedelic vision, you are seeing the world from the miniscule to the monumental.

Benn Mitchell: “Photographs: Hollywood to NYC”

After you see the work of the three new exhibits downstairs, make sure to venture upstairs, where a lot of their collections reside including a new exhibit of Benn Mitchell’s photographs. These black and white gems give an inside look at some people in front of the camera and behind back in 1943 at Warner Brothers as well as people on the street in New York City from the 1940s through the 1960s.

Mitchell sold his first photograph to “Life” magazine as a teenager before heading to snapshots at the sound stages. He also worked as a photographer for the Navy and went on to work in the Big Apple in a large commercial studio before starting his own in 1951. Eventually, he became a local here in Boca Raton and donated many of this works to the museum.

All exhibits are on display until Oct. 22. For more information on all the exhibits, visit www.bocamuseum.org. More photos soon on Facebook page!

Pictured: Former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords & artist Bonnie Lautenberg. Photo courtesy of News Travels Fast.

By Rachel Galvin

Gun violence continues to be an everyday occurence in this country, and activists continue their fight for gun reform. Among those activists is former Congresswoman Gabby Giffords and her Giffords foundation. Giffords knows about this issue personally. She has been struggling through the years to recover after being shot in the head in 2011 at a constituent event in Tucson. The shooting also killed six people and injured 12 others. 

Giffords, who has been actively touring the country to get her message across, stopped on March 11 in Miami at the Miami Jewish Museum for a special private event, which kicked off the 10th anniversary of the foundation. At the event, artist Bonnie Lautenberg unveiled her latest piece entitled “Guns Kill,” which she created for Giffords.This piece was part of her Lady Liberty: A Bonnie Lautenberg Retrospective, which was already on display and will be up until May 14. 

Within the exhibit, there is also a piece called “Tears of Roe,” which looks similar to “Guns Kill” and was used as a model for it basically. The pieces both have the Statue of Liberty as the focal point, but the background of “Guns Kill” is filled with AR-15s and the words “Killers.” The Statue of Liberty holds a tablet and upon it is written the names of towns who have experienced horrific gun violence. This was created before places like Nashville suffered this type of tragedy. Upon the statue’s crown are the words “Guns Kill.” And like “Tears of Roe,” the Statue of Liberty has tears streaming down her face.

“It saddens me deeply that the list of so many places keeps growing where Americans continue to lose loved ones to gun violence,” says Lautenberg. 

She created the new piece when she saw how moved Giffords was by her “Tears of Roe” piece when she visited her home, with husband Mark Kelly. Now, the artist’s newest piece has been chosen by the foundation to help with fundraising. Prints sold go directly toward their efforts.

Giffords had a chance to greet everyone at the event, which included local dignitaries. Florida Representative Debbie Mucarsel Powell talked about how her own experience with gun violence led her to seek a position within Congress, as her father was killed by shooting when she was 24 years old. Others who were also personally affected by gun violence were also in attendance. 

Giffords spoke briefly about how her experience had a profound impact on her life. “Our lives can change so quickly. Mine did when I was shot,” she said, adding, “But I never gave up hope. I chose to make a new start, to move ahead, to not look back. I’m relearning so many things: how to walk, how to talk and I’m fighting to make the country safer. It can be so difficult. Losses hurt. Setbacks are hard, but I tell myself move ahead. I’m finding joy in small things: riding my bike, playing the French horn, going to the gym, laughing with friends. The small things add up.”

She continued, “We are living in challenging times. We are up for the challenge. My own recovery has taken years. Many, many people have helped me along the way and I learned so much. I learned when people care for each other and work together, progress is possible. The world is possible. But change doesn’t happen overnight. And we can’t do it alone. Join me. Let’s move ahead together.”

Taking a stance against gun violence is more important than ever as violence seems to happen every day, but also because of a bill that just passed the Florida House of Representatives and is headed to the Senate that will eliminate the need for people to take a class, prove competency or need a permit before carrying a firearm. Many, like Giffords, feel this is a step in the wrong direction.

Lautenberg’s art exhibit included some pieces that were recently displayed at the Boca Raton Museum of Art in an exhibit called “Art Meets Hollywood” that showed a thematic connection between two seemingly unrelated photographs, of a film and of a piece of art both created within the same year. In addition, she also had photographs of celebs like Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus, and more.
For more information on the new exhibit and the museum, visit www.jmof.fiu.edu. For more information on the Giffords Foundation, visit https://giffords.org.