On View September 21 – October 26, 2018 in the Community Arts Gallery Opening Reception: Friday, September 21, 6:00-8:00pm
CARRIE BIEGLER
Since the summer of 2017 I have met with and photographed around 120 women in the Philadelphia region for the Strength Source Project. Each woman who participates in the project answers the same question, which is “what have you done in the past, or what are you doing now, that has made you feel strong inside?” The answer to this question is paired with a portrait which captures each woman’s strength. The project is meant to inspire, empower, to foster reflection, and to build connections between us – highlighting our shared resiliency. It is my aim to build women up, shining a light on their power and fortitude.
Part of our Fall 2018 Solo Series. This exhibition has been sponsored in part by Small But Mighty Arts, a program that gives Philadelphia artists a creative spark to pursue their art.
On View September 21 – November 5, 2018 Opening Reception: Friday, September 21, 6:00-8:00pm
ARTISTS
Bill Donnelly, Wax Crayon
By focusing closely on a very small area, Bill Donnelly attempts to create a landscape using wax crayon on black paper that offers a unique way of experiencing what might otherwise be considered an ordinary subject.
Paula Cahill, Painting
Paula Cahill’s paintings strive to extend the conversation around line and shape by mixing and repeatedly laying down up to 100 gradients of color, drawing inspiration from across time as they attempt to contemporize line.
Lisa Fedon, Sculpture
Lisa Fedon’s sculpture emerges from the void where steel and mixed media utilize space to become an integral part of the piece. This play of material and space is allegorical and whimsical as a reflection of life.
Carrie Biegler, Photography (in the Community Arts Gallery; On View until October 26)
Since the summer of 2017, Carrie Biegler has met with and photographed around 120 women in the Philadelphia region for her Strength Source Project. Each woman participating in the project answers the same question, which is “What have you done in the past, or what are you doing now, that has made you feel strong inside?” Sponsored in part by Small But Mighty Arts, a program that gives Philadelphia artists a creative spark to pursue their art.See More
The U.S., more than any other nation, is a melting pot of different cultures. Our modern America was born out of diverse immigration, and has continued to be a destination and safe haven for many in countries all across the globe to settle themselves and their families. There’s a feeling of belonging to one’s own tribe–ethnic, religious, or otherwise–as well as being a part of the overall fabric of America, stitched together by core beliefs of freedom, opportunity, and equality. This diversity of ideas and cultures has been what makes this country extraordinary, inspiring, different, and beautiful, even as we struggle with the division and conflict they have wrought.
Abington Art Center has invited artists to submit their photography that responds to or incorporates this theme. This exhibition will run this summer concurrently to our annual World Music Concert Series as well as a planned Weaving Public Threads community talk focused around the topic of immigration.
Juror Ron Tarver
Ron Tarver received a BA in Journalism and Graphic Arts from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and an MFA from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He is Visiting Assistant Professor of Studio Art at Swarthmore College. Before joining the faculty at Swarthmore he had been a staff photojournalist at The Philadelphia Inquirer for 32 years where he shares a 2012 Pulitzer Prize. While at the Inquirer he was nominated for three additional Pulitzers and honored with awards from World Press Photos and the Sigma Delta Chi Award of the Society of Professional Journalists among others. He is co-author of the book We Were There: Voices of African American Veterans, published by Harper Collins.
Tarver is recipient of the prestigious Pew Fellowship in the Arts. He has received funding and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Pennsylvania Council on the Arts and Independence Foundation. His fine art work has been exhibited nationally and internationally and is included in many museums, corporate and private collections including the National Museum of American Art of the Smithsonian Institution in Washington DC, Philadelphia Museum of Art and The Studio Museum in Harlem.
On View April 3 – June 7, 2018 Opening Reception: Friday, April 13, 6:00-8:00pm
ARTISTS
Bronwen Mayer Henry, Painting
After being diagnosed with thyroid cancer 5 years ago, Bronwen Meyer Henry rediscovered her love for painting. Her work is an expression of prayer, meditation, hope, and joy. Her large scale paintings reflect movement away from perfection and are brave, bold, vivid, and playful.
Christina Orthwein, Ceramics
Art Deco design influences many of Christina Orthwein’s ceramics as she finds grace and emotional impact in things we use in our everyday lives.
Mark Dixon, Painting
Mark Dixon’s paintings explore how photographs shape our thoughts of past experiences. Using his own memories of being in nature and photographs taken in high school as source material, he discovers the beauty in the mysterious ways our minds store and recall the past.
Opening Reception: Friday, January 19, 6:00-8:00pm
The Guild of Papermakers, established in 1991, is a gathering of artists who work in and with handmade paper. Through Paper Awareness 2018, we share our artistic expression, with our unifying medium of artist made paper. Each artist’s voice is expressed in their very individual use of our base fiber, cellulose.
Paper works may be 2 or 3 dimensional, may vary in size from diminutive to grande, or may be combined with other media, such as printmaking, painting or photography. All works are a celebration of paper as an art form.
Opening Reception: Friday, November 17, 6:00-8:00pm
Artists: Vicky Aquino, Alison Cornyn, Bill Gerhard, Martha Kent Martin, Sharon Koelblinger, Sarah Myers, Polakvan Bekkum, and Ger Xiong
This juried exhibit is a reflection on the materials, aesthetics and values of our city, country and relationship to nature. The works include a portrait of Philadelphia seen through Google Earth’s reflection of the world whose images are made up over time by commercial providers and platforms; a Sand Counting Lab that reflects upon the two million people incarcerated in the U.S. penal system; jewelry whose reflection is the “bounce” of light after it strikes a surface; sculptural works that reflect upon nature, where patterns are an ephemeral reference to our environment in flux. A collection of fragments, much like a prism, this exhibition provides a unique spectrum of reflections.
Opening Reception: Thursday, September 14, 6:00-8:00pm
In the Dining Room and Manor Lobby
Friends of Barbara A. Bradley gather together in creativity to celebrate her life in the arts. This small exhibition of works in and of artist made paper is in tribute to the wonderfully creative and innovative spirit of our departed friend, Barbara. She made her expressive marks through both printmaking and papermaking, mostly by combining both mediums. She was a charter member of the Guild of Papermakers and longtime supporter of the arts. Her thirst for knowledge and generosity of spirit enriched many of our lives. The small collection of artists’ work exhibited along with Barbara’s, represents those of us who shared friendship, art adventures, and classes with our dear friend.
On View September 14 – November 11, 2017 Opening Reception: Thursday, September 14, 6:00-8:00pm
Fall Artists: Alan Greenberg, Teresa Shields, Dan Schimmel
Alan Greenberg – Threshold Painting/Sculpture
For over 35 years, Alan Greenberg has created large-scale, site-specific installations and studio-based work. Threshold is a hybrid sculpture linked to painting, composed of thick, built-up plaster pieces. The occasional rough edge, along with the layers of color and texture, strengthen the physical presence of these forms and define them as objects. The relationship between the object, the wall and the floor – as well as to human scale – is a crucial factor. The space behind and between the works, including strong shadows cast on the walls, all become important aspects of experiencing the art.
Teresa Shields – Trending Threads Textile Arts
At the heart of Trending Threads is the element of play. Every element of this work – letters, wood and board – have been painstakingly crafted by hand over a year-long AAC residency. The resulting analog Social Media platform – a pegged wooden board – holds 140 characters, the length of a Twitter post. Approximately three hundred letters were created, each uniquely colorful, made of felt and hand-stitched wool on wood blocks. These letters can then be attached to the board’s pegs, like a giant toddler toy. Viewers are invited to play with the giant board by spelling out words and thoughts and then posting a ‘Tweet’ as an artistic social media intervention. The parameters of this piece are simple, but the options are endless. What will you say? Take a photo of your message and/or include yourself and tweet #TrendingThreads.
Dan Schimmel – Mitochondriac Painting/Collage
Hovering between painting, collage, and three-dimensional assemblage, Dan Schimmel’s work puts spatial position and diverse materials into motion. Through a visual oscillation between multiple perspectives and dynamic flecks of contrasting color, the intensely animated surface ricochets into an unstable state of anti-media. Mitochondriac is a constructed word that links the interior of the energy of the body’s living cells to the exterior world of disturbing physical forces. These lush tapestries mediate inside and outside, micro and macro, personal and social, referencing contemporary events (climate change, warfare, technology, cyborgs, ecocide) through the incorporated commercial packaging that provides each work’s title.
Opening Reception: KIDFEST 2017 | August 3, 5:30-9:00pm
Abington Art Center’s KidFest Exhibition is a display of art from students who have participated in the Center’s kids summer camps and classes. From painting to drawing, prints and mixed media artworks, there is a wide range of art in the galleries for everyone to enjoy created by our talented kid artists.
On View July 3rd – July 21, 2017 Opening Reception: July 7, 6:00-8:00pm
This summer, Abington Art Center is presenting the art work of our Studio School faculty members. On view are paintings, drawings, prints, jewelry, fiber arts and ceramics representing the skill and artistry of our teaching artists. AAC faculty all have degrees in art from prestigious art schools throughout the country, and are highly trained, teaching professionals in their fields.
*We will not be featuring a Coffee Break: Artist Talks event in July or August 2017
Faculty Exhibiting Artists
Maria Albornoz
Mark Dixon
Ashley Ernest
Veronica Kairos
Shannon Rose Moriarty
Julia Rix
Teresa Shields
Jonathan Twersky
Jerry Bennett
Susan Dubrunfaut
Stefanie Fuoco
Patricia Lima
Nicholas Natalicchio
Tony Rosati
Carol Stirton Broad
Andrew Walker
Kim Brickley
Elaine Douds
Danielle Hallman
Martha Kent Martin
Winnie Radolan
Lian Sawires
Diana Trout
Deborah Williams
Visit our Faculty page for more info about these artists
Ron Tarver received a BA in Journalism and Graphic Arts from Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, Oklahoma and an MFA from the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. He is Visiting Assistant Professor of Studio Art at Swarthmore College. Before joining the faculty at Swarthmore he had been a staff photojournalist at The Philadelphia Inquirer for 32 years where he shares a 2012 Pulitzer Prize. While at the Inquirer he was nominated for three additional Pulitzers and honored with awards from World Press Photos and the Sigma Delta Chi Award of the Society of Professional Journalists among others. He is co-author of the book We Were There: Voices of African American Veterans, published by Harper Collins.
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