TAG/The Artists Gallery Presents Rhonda Smith Portraits of Persistence and Cathy Wilkin I Shut My Eyes and See

Reception: Saturday, September 3 from 6pm to 8pm

TAG/The Artists Gallery is pleased to announce September’s featured artists, Rhonda Smith and Cathy Wilkin.

Their shows open on September 2 with a reception on September 3 from 6 to 8 p.m. Visitors can meet the artists and enjoy live music.

The 12 monotypes in Smith’s show, Portraits of Persistence, honor the students of Storer College. The linoleum-printed images are not photographic but do strive for individual likenesses. Wallpaper and hand-cut backgrounds add additional texture and color.

After the Civil War, the college in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia welcomed students of all races and genders. Former enslaved people and their sons and daughters of found a welcoming environment on the hills overlooking the Shenandoah River. After Storer College closed, some students sought to complete their education at Shepherd College. Says Smith, “While at Storer, students had been supported and encouraged to be themselves while on campus. Shepherd proved challenging because black students were denied the safety of an educational community. After being refused service in the cafeteria, one such student spent time between classes in her car rather than where other students congregated.

Cathy Wilkin’s intricate collages are also featured at TAG this month with her show I Shut My Eyes and See. “Picasso said, ‘Inspiration exists, but it has to find you working’, and work I did,” says Wilkin. “These six pieces were executed this past year. I felt like there had been a tear in the universe and navigating this world had never been more challenging.”

“I thought, ‘Do ideas have feelings?’ They did for me. I felt I was dredging up emotions that required a deep dive into my thoughts. This journey had me reminiscing about long ago memories, about people and places that have come and gone, about the complex layers going through one’s life and seeing that personal opera play out.”

Another Picasso quote resonates with Wilkin: “The whole world doesn’t make sense. So why should I paint pictures that do!”

Mark your calendars for an artists talk by Cathy Wilkin on Sunday, September 4, from noon to 1.
Rhonda Smith will demonstrate her printing process on the same day from 1 to 3.
Dawne Raines Burke, PhD will give a lecture on the history of Storer College on September 18 at 4.

Portraits of Persistence and I Shut My Eyes and See runs from September 2-25.

Gallery hours:

• Fridays and Saturdays 12pm to 8pm
• Sundays 12pm to 4pm
• or by appointment.

As always, admission is free.

TAG/The Artists Gallery Is located at 501 N. Market St., Frederick, MD.