America the Beautiful and Beyond During the Summer & early Fall of 2008, Art Saint Louis presented "America the Beautiful and Beyond," our second juried exhibition in our NEW Gallery at 555 Washington Avenue in downtown St. Louis.
Thank you to everyone who joined us on August 9 for the opening reception for this exhibition. Wine hosting was provided by Mary Michelle Winery and Greek food courtesy of Ari's. The reception also featured a live theatrical performance (15 min. excerpt) of the St. Louis Black Repertory Theater's "PORCH LIES, Tales of slicksters, tricksters and other wily characters.” The complete play is part of the Black Rep’s Touring Productions.
“America the Beautiful and Beyond” was a juried exhibit open to artists 21+ residing in the St. Louis area & 200-mile radius. For this exhibition, artists were asked to submit artworks in all media & styles that “explore life in America through our diverse inhabitants, culture, environments & politics. Works that focus on America-the good, bad and the ugly.”
Jennifer Flores, Edwardsville, IL. America’s Food Factory. 2007, Oil, Acrylic Transfer on Panel, 36”x48”. $350. Serving as jurors for “America the Beautiful and Beyond” Roseann Weiss, Director of Cultural Programs and Public Art Initiatives, Regional Arts Commission, St. Louis, and Brian Purlee, Production Director, The Black Repertory Theater, St. Louis. This exhibit was juried from the actual artworks with 93 St. Louis regional artists submitting 152 artworks for the jurors’ consideration. From the 152 artworks, Purlee & Weiss selected 49 works by 44 Missouri & Illinois artists for the exhibition. Works in a vast array of media will be featured, including beadwork, digital media, digital photographs, drawing, mixed media, painting, paper mosaic, photography, printmaking, and textiles. Featured Artists
Installation view: "America the Beautiful and Beyond." Photograph by Robin Hirsch. JURORS' STATEMENTS
“America the Beautiful and Beyond,” perhaps defining beauty as instilled with the feeling of, or the hope of the feeling of, happiness. Regarding “Beyond”, an opportunity to contemplate multiple ways of knowing or even probe into life’s difficulties. Will there be Art that is concerned with actual events or their abstracted significance? How will I respond to the varied ways people choose to express themselves? My choices, for the most part, were subjective responses to the region’s conscious recordings. Works were accepted within a two hundred mile radius. What was the artist’s range of perceptual awareness from this vantage point and what did they choose as essential? I was not looking for the work to have such purposes as to educate, to reform, or to advocate. I was looking for sound craftsmanship, a unique telling of historical experiences or knowledge, and the sense of exploration of the exhibitions title, America the Beautiful and Beyond. Thank you for inviting Roseann Weiss and myself to be the Jurors for this competition. This has been a fun and enlightening process and we hope all enjoy the exhibition.” — Brian Purlee, Production Director, The Black Repertory Theater, St. Louis
“The popular national hymn America the Beautiful, of course, came to mind when considering the work submitted for “America the Beautiful and Beyond.” My co-juror Brian Purlee and I saw some beauty. We saw a few purple mountain majesties above the fruited plain but no alabaster cities undimmed by human tears. We saw much that was beyond—shown as political, documentary or satiric. Mostly we saw in these works a vast America in all our great assortments. Whether it is an industrial urban space, a rural landscape, an iconic symbol or the diverse faces of our people—we see here the dream—perhaps waylaid—for “liberating strife” and for “nobleness.” Each artist here shows their interpretation of what it is, has been or could be, to be American. Will we ever be crowned with brotherhood from sea to shining sea? Is that still the patriot’s dream? My congratulations to all of the artists who submitted work—whether chosen for this particular exhibition or not. In this election year, many artists in the St. Louis region are thoughtfully observing our anxious times and reflecting the wishes all Americans feel for a better future. My thanks to Art St. Louis for inviting me and to Brian Purlee for being a true partner in this endeavor.” — Roseann Weiss, Director of Cultural Programs and Public Art Initiatives, Regional Arts Commission, St. Louis
Highlights from America the Beautiful and Beyond
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Richard Jennings, St. Louis, MO. Where Have You Gone Captain America? (Our nation turns its lonely eyes to you). 2008, Acrylic on Canvas, 36’x48”. $3,700. The jurors selected this artwork to receive an Award of Excellence. |
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