Many people think that collage is an easy art
form to master. With nostalgic kindergarten memories of construction
paper, blunt-tipped scissors, and edible paste, it is deceptively simple
to adapt a "my kid could do that" attitude about collage, and dismiss
it as a lightweight craft hobby, akin to scrapbooking.
The
reality is that a successful collagist has to have a particular and
refined skill set: a strong sense of composition, the ability to use
layering as a drawing and/or painting tool, the patience of a saint, and
the manual dexterity of a surgeon.
"Collage 02740," an exhibition of work by
Trinidad-born artist Alison Wells, currently on display at the Colo Colo
Gallery, is a showcase on how to do collage right. Wells, who has lived
in the United States for eight years, is an accomplished painter and
art educator. The theme of the exhibition, as is referenced by the
postal zip code in the show's title, is a select section of downtown New
Bedford, primarily the area east of Sixth Street, down to the
waterfront.
"Rooftop Gazing" is a particularly
sweet and beguiling work. Shards of torn paper, in shades of aqua, teal
and cream, define a fanciful sky, delineated by fine slivers of paper,
representing boat masts, projecting upward from the harbor below.
Elements of the elevated view of rooftops and waterfront include
materials as diverse as shimmery copper foil, graph paper, green foliage
torn from a magazine photo, and miniscule snippets of text, far removed
from their original sources.
Vibrant pink
blossoms bring lusciousness to Wells' image of New Bedford City Hall, a
study in terra cotta red and deep gray. The steeple of the First Baptist
Church, farther up the hill on William Street, is clearly visible in
the background of "City Hall in Bloom." Another work, "Red Sky at
Morning ... Sailor Warning," features three brilliant red boats, afloat
on choppy, deep blue water. A sky of rich yellows, speckled with greens
and crimsons, envelop all.
"Star Store" is an
elegant representation of the old department store, now home to both the
UMass Dartmouth College of Visual and Performing Arts, and a number of
classrooms of Bristol Community College. Slate gray dominates the color
scheme, and a weave of paper alludes to cross-hatching technique.
With
a few exceptions, Wells' downtown New Bedford is devoid of people. In
"Ollie Over Cummings," a young skateboarder in a bright red wool cap
hovers mid-flight over the street. The sky is as pastel as a roll of
Necco Wafers, and the rich velvety blue rectangular windows of the
Cummings Building solidly anchor the piece.
Wells
make visual reference to the great abolitionist Frederick Douglass in
several works, including a collage of his Seventh Street home, but most
notably in "I had little to Fear in New Bedford"¦they stood aside and
let me pass." The image is decidedly more illustrative and less loose
than much of the other work, and it is a dignified and effective
portrait.
Wells' exhibition is strong, but a
bit too safe. Her downtown New Bedford is beautiful, highlighting
bethels and cupolas and statues and scenic vistas, but there is none of
the underbelly that most New Bedford residents know. There are no
abandoned storefronts, no smokers outside the National Club, no idling
buses billowing exhaust. Perhaps that will be the subject for another
show.
"Collage 02740" will be on exhibit at the Colo Colo Gallery, 19 Centre St., until May 21.
No comments:
Post a Comment