On Exhibit July 2020

… and then the art galleries reopened …

My community gallery will reopen to the public Friday, July 26 with the local art club’s fine art exhibit. The next town over reopened its gallery a couple weeks ago, so I guess we can say public art is back on display. No public receptions at either venue – wear a mask when you go. We could argue all day whether these openings are too soon, whether masks should be required (they are not), whether it will all necessarily shut down again this fall, so on and so forth. We are not out of this by any means. Will the re-emergence of art make a difference? Who knows?

I’ve always loved exhibiting. There’s something about seeing my work on public display, surrounded by the creative brilliance of the community. That my work is so very different, that so many art groups including this one seems to prioritize brush and ink arts, those are things I simply avoid recognizing. The joy comes from having my work included as part of the public discourse. During the quarantine, galleries tried virtual exhibitions with, I felt, limited success. Like everything else ‘virtual’ there is a loss of intimacy and subtleness. Besides, arguably I do a virtual exhibit twice a week through this blog.

A third gallery at which I’m often exhibiting looks to be closed indefinitely, and a fourth shut down after Christmas before the pandemic hit. One of the things people stop doing in the lead up to a recession is purchasing art, so I knew a year ago that something was coming down the pike at us. Art sales simply seemed to be drying up everywhere – it was clear that claims of an economic boom were lost in the illusion.

There is a temptation to blame everything happening on the pandemic. But that ain’t it.