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In her second exhibition curated for the GaUery(S>Hotel
Indigo, Didi Dunphy gathers six Athens-based artists to pres
ent "The Flower Show," Each of these women, working in dif
ferent media, explores a single theme to transform the space
into a garden of blooms. Photographer Rinne Allen docu
mented an early spring day in "March 9, 2012," a collection of
photographs in different sizes and arranged on the wall as hazy
fragments of memory that reminded me of the cinematography
in Terrence Halide's film The Tree of Life. An overcast sky is the
neutral canvas for pink and green redbud branches just com
ing into bloom, fuzzed-out cherry blossoms and bright yellow
forsythia. One photograph shows a dandelion that has already
been wished on, a symbol of the hopefulness that spring
brings.
Carol John’s paintings are part of the exhibition on view at the Gai!ery©Hotei indigo through June 1.
In sharper contrast are Susan Hable's striking black-and-
white drawings in ink on paper. These larger-than-life-size
images are simplified silhouettes of a fiddlehead fern or poppy,
allowing us to appredate the graceful forms as pattern rather
than primarily as flora. Abstracting the form of flowers, Carol
John's "Chrysanthemums" series is comprised of four paint
ings (each 4'X4') that are brightly painted in purple, pink,
turquoise, green and black. The paintings become something
other than depictions of flowers at this size. Instead, the
dozens of florets transform into a mandala, drawing you into
a meditative gaze as you trace every petal. John's smaller
"Drangsong" series is also a part of the exhibition.
Chrysanthemums are also a favorite of Lou Kregel, who has
covered Athens homes and businesses with her huge flower
murals, like the one on the tin roof of the Jittery Joe's Roaster.
Kregel notes that these flowers are symbolic of longevity and
happiness, and she wanted to festoon our town with this
image to "surprise or inspire" us as we go about our day-to-day
lives. For this exhibit, Kregel has covered one wall with Pop Art
flowers on medalb’ons and decorated Michael Oliveri's "Look
for Light" installation-in the Glass Cube gallery at Hotel Indigo,
adding a bevy of flowers to his danring butterflies.
One of my favorite paintings, "Foxy Lady" by Kim Oeakins,
returns to public view in Dunph/s show (lauded in Art Notes
Nov. 9, 2011). Next to it is "Blue Braid," another intricately
composed and colorful work full of mysterious symbolism.
Framed in a black, carved neo-Victorian frame, this painting
is a good example of Deakins' love of both the "florid and
romantic" and "myth and science fiction." Pink-and-black-
striped horns emerge from the mouth and eyes of a blue figure
as a blue braid wound with pearls and entwined with pink-
and-purple flowers twists up to reach the top of the frame. I
can't profess to know what it all means, but it is as beauti-
0 fill as it is fascinating.
Another favorite of mine
is Inti Hwangbo's three-
dimensional drawings cut
into translucent mylar.
First drawing the flow
ers—which she explains
are images from Korean
wrapping cloth called
"pojagi*—Hwangbo cuts
into each sheet of mylar b
hand and builds the flow
ers' dimensions by stacking
multiple sheets on top of
each other. This process
creates an effect that is
part drawing and part
sculpture and a unique
approach to depicting
these iconic images.
The image of flowers
has been a part of femi
nist art historical context
for some time; think
Georgia O'Keeffe's flowers
as celebrations of female
sexuality or Judy Chicago's
"The Dinner Party" instal
lation of the 1970s. In
correspondence with the
curator, I asked what she
thought the subject of
flowers meant for the con
temporary female artists
in her exhibition. Dunphy
said, "While the bloom
is married to the female,
whether a metaphor for
the life process, the histor-
ized feminist context or a
critique of the male gaze,
I am more apt to think
the current interest in the
flower form to be more
from design ... and the
process of the art show.*
[Tattoo artist and painter] Kim Deakins adorns men with her
floral style in tattoos, Carol John clocks in at her studio every
morning as a laborer might. Imi Hwangbo's process certainly
can be looked at as Tabor.' Susan Hable utilizes authentic ges
tures ending in the textile industry, Lou is a 'house painter' as
the town of Athens is becoming rather populated by the flower
murals she is painting on properties*" She also noted how flow
ers are all around us in design or in nature; this is what seems
to inspire the artists in "The Rower Show." Exptore this garden
of artistic delight at Hotel Indigo, on view through June 1.
This Weekend: Visit the Athens Indie Craftstravaganzaa to
find your own masterpiece to wear or add to your art collec
tion. Touted as "the most diverse and largest handmade arts
and crafts market of its kind in the area," the two-day market
will include jewelry, pottery, fine art and fashion. See our story
on p. 8 or visit www.athensindiecraftstravaganzaa.com.
Caroline Barratt arts@flagpole.com
Athens' Sandal Center
Since 1975!
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APRIL 25,2012 FLAGPOLE.COM 11