a shared experience
Posted on 25. May, 2010 by Sarah Nieman in culture
words > SARAH NIEMAN
Artists sharing gallery space is nothing new, however, finding two artists whose work not only compliments the other but also speaks of a sincere camaraderie is infinitely rarer. Jodi Lightner and Emily Brookover have both just graduated from WSU with their Masters of Fine Arts (for which they both shared a collective sigh of relief) and have just recently been sharing gallery space for their respective MFA Thesis Exhibitions. And never has shared experience translated into such a subtly beautiful display.
Their exhibits have been on display since May 10, but if you haven’t seen it yet, never fear! Closing reception is this Final Friday, May 28, 2010, from 7-10 PM at the Shopkeeper’s Gallery, at 228 North Market Street. Even the names of their individual exhibits evoke a sense of togetherness: Emily’s “pencil me in,” and Jodi’s “Concurrent Lines.” Their friendship was evident from the first moment we spoke; forgiving my tardiness, they explained that they had arrived early simply to gossip. They also confessed that they wished they had thought to write the other’s bio, which, they assured me, would have made the bios much more interesting.
Jodi has wanted to be an artist since third grade, but she struggled with a little bit of doubt: “I thought maybe I should be a doctor or something important, but I realized in grad school that this was what I wanted to do; I also decided that I wanted to teach art in order to share what I loved.” Jodi draws and paints on pieces of mylar, creating luminous, multi-layered works of art that lend to their overal ethereal, almost eerie feel. Jodi describes her process as “using a lot of linear elements to talk about place and our experiences within a place.” The layers that I love so much in her art, which work together to create a very deceptive sense of light, are there for a deeper reason than to simply produce a particular design: “I like how layers can represent the way we perceive places, as one whole experience. There are many layers, but you can’t tell them apart, just like in our lives: the emotional, the mental…it all bleeds together.” And the underlying structure, the architecture of her work, truly blends effortlessly with the delicate colors, bringing to mind the transcendent connections hidden just behind our experiences with the physical world.
The delicacy of Jodi’s work is mirrored just as significantly in Emily’s, although her medium of choice is graphite on paper. While Jodi’s work focuses on our relationship to place, Emily has chosen to concentrate on our relationships with our things; she explained: “My work is about the things that we love to have around, and the things that we detest: the things that we connect with experiences and other people. I really draw from the personal relationships that I have with my objects.” Her deceptively simple illustrations, and drastic use of negative space is almost a subterfuge for the weighty musings behind her art. She considers that “no object, space, or body is significant on its own.” “Most objects gain their power because of a particular moment or circumstance in which they come into a person’s life.” And the emptiness, the almost starkness of her work, places the focus of the piece entirely on the objects. The captivating pieces catch your eye and beckon you closer; and the closer you get, the more you come to realize that her pieces truly bloom when you examine the details. While it may be “less familiar to consider objects as companions to our emotional lives,” you’ll certainly feel connected to the objects on exhibit after seeing them.
Emily and Jodi are both Kansas natives; Emily received her bachelors from KU and Jodi from Sterling. Their friendship blossomed during their MFA program at WSU, and they have definitely impacted and influenced each other during the course of their relationship. Jodi told me a little about grad school: “We had a great group of grads. Even though we all use different mediums, we throw things around and bounce ideas off of each other; we really have this great community. And Emily agreed: “Unless you’re in grad school, it’s hard to understand what it’s about. We couldn’t go to our friends or family to talk about our experiences; the only ones that really understood what it was like were our friends there.” Their friendship sparkled as Emily finished Jodi’s sentence. “As we moved through the experience with our grads, we helped to prep each other and teach each other,” Jodi said; Emily cut in with, “and hug each other after critiques!”
Head out to the Shopkeeper’s Gallery this Final Friday to experience an exhibit with a delightful blend of symmetry and individual distinction.
Check out www.emilybrookover.com and www.jodilightner.com to check out more of their work, or shopkeepersgallery.blogspot.com for more information.
One Response to “a shared experience”
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carolyn bell (cb)
26. May, 2010
WOW—what a delight to see both works—i’m glad to know we have incredible artists here in doodah—emily–your mom would be the most proud mother in the world–betsy is too!!!–cb