Collective Individualism
A series of 22 paintings on exhibit October 7, 2016 at Noyes Art Gallery in Lincoln, NE
This convex sculpture of barren trees represents a scene were people are crowded in one location without interacting with one another. Being alone together, they are not producing foliage or fruit. As someone purchases a painting for $25 and takes the barren tree home, they will find an ink pad along with a card about the project. The patron is to hang the painting in a special place and use the ink pad to have people place their thumbprints on the tree as leaves. Every time a new visitor enters the space, in which he or she hangs their art, they encourage people to add their mark. This way the tree will begin to come alive and speak to connectedness and moving toward community. The patron is then asked to rename their piece to reflect the journey of its flourishing. Then they are asked to share the progress and growth of their tree by posting photos on Facebook on the “Beyond Collective Individualism” page. Below are the individual images of all the paintings. As of 3 pm October 5, the gallery requested dismantling the sculpture as the paintings were selling fast and patrons wanted to take theirs home right away. This means the sculpture no longer looks like the photo to the left. Ann left the rebuildling of the sculpture in the hands of the Noyes Gallery Staff. As of 5 pm on October 5 - over 10 of the paintings were gone. As of noon on October 7, just 10 paintings remain and the sculpture has significantly changed. With the help of the gallery staff sold paintings were removed and the piece was redesigned. October 7 was the First Friday October reception. By the time the evening was over just 4 pieces of art remained. Though the sculpture of paintings wasn't exhibited in its grandeur, it caused me to proactively interact with people and share the story of the piece. The highlight of the night was meeting a young Korean gal who was a student and had purchased two of the paintings and was super excited to chat. The paintings have now gone to people all over Lincoln, one to Virginia, one to Illinois, and one to the Philippines. |