SHOWCASE – July 2014

A pop-up exhibition by Mary Barnes explores the coming together of visual art and poetic expression

Held outside the conventional confines of a gallery or museum, this “pop-up” event at Pascal Hall in Rockport combines art, poetry, music, and criticism in a focused conversation about the written word and visual art—and the tension between them. The exhibition comprises three visual art projects by Mary Barnes as she presents her artistic response to the challenge of three great poets.

The idea for the show came about when Barnes wanted to do some large drawings but needed to find a space to exhibit such work. After seeing a photo of the inside of Rockport’s soaring Pascal Hall (which was once a church), she contacted owner Donna Parratt and toured the building. “Such wall space is not easy to find outside of a museum along the coast of Maine,” says Barnes. “I loved the space and was challenged by it. Even though it is very large, I felt I had the work to fill it.” Barnes measured the space, and then thought about whose poetry she could tangle her creative muses with.

Barnes says she likes working with poetry because it brings a third force into the studio. “Now there is the poetry, the art, and me—a trio,” she explains. “The experience is very different than just me and my art, which is how I typically work. Another voice adds another level of dialogue, expectation, and commitment. I attempt to work on the edge of the unknown meaning not knowing exactly what I am doing or where the image is going to go. This idea of being ‘on the edge’ keeps my work vulnerable, alive, and discovered.”

MH+D presents a preview of Barnes’s work, as well as her inspiration.

Thirteen Ways

Thirteen Ways is comprised of thirteen 42” x 30” drawings on mylar suspended in the open space enabling the viewer to walk through the poem Thirteen Ways of Looking at a Black Bird by Wallace Stevens. Says Barnes, “Moments. Wisdom. Spirit. Nature. These dynamic directives pull me and toss me around through each verse. I am compelled by the intimacy of this poet’s voice—such poetic power through simplicity and tangible imagery. Each verse acts as a haiku. Words hang on a wing. Words bump into the next. My imagination is captured. Stevens’s visual imagery fills my head and I begin to draw, thirteen ways.”

Maps of Love

Maps of Love is based on 24 sonnets from 100 Love Sonnets by Pablo Neruda. Says the artist, “Many years ago, I discovered Neruda’s poetry, and was stunned. Here was an individual who embraced nature with the intensity of my own. The physical imagery, the emotive voice, the vibrant colors, the deep sensibility—all coalesce into one moment within his words. With Neruda’s 100 Love Sonnets, the experience amplifies. I am now caught, reflecting upon my moments of love and not love. My response becomes these ‘maps,’ abstractions that embrace the depth and tension of feelings shared.”

Tapestries­

Tapestries consists of four 8’ x 10’ drawings on mylar, hung on the walls like tapestries, based on four poems by Emily Dickinson. “Reading Dickinson is to know mystery,” says Barnes. “The abstract vortex into which I am drawn by her poetry leaves me wandering and simultaneously fulfilled. I am pulled to the poetics that convey such contradictions. These large tapestries are intended to express the ambivalence of nature, the wonder of the world, the solitude of living, and the intimation of death often caught and held by a shadow, a bird, a light of the moon.”