Molly Sawyer @ Mars Hill University Opens Tonight

by | Feb 10, 2016 | Uncategorized |

Where Do We Go From Here?
A sculptural observation of time’s passing
February 10 – March 4, 2016
Weizenblatt Gallery at Mars Hill University
Artist’s Reception on Wednesday, February 10, 2016 from 6-8PM

www.mhu.edu/art/weizenblatt-gallery
Gallery hours: Monday – Friday, 10am – 4pm
Directions: www.mhu.edu/about-mhu/location

(The Weizenblatt Gallery is located inside of the Moore Auditorium)
(Bldg #9 on the campus map found on the University website)

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For Immediate Release 
January 26, 2016

MEDIA CONTACT:
Teresa Buckner
Assistant Director of Communications
828/689-1304

Weizenblatt Gallery to Feature Asheville Artists Julie Miles and Molly Sawyer

Weizenblatt Gallery, in the Moore Building of Mars Hill University, will feature the work of painter Julie Miles and three-dimensional artist Molly Sawyer, beginning February 8. The artists will be present for an opening reception for the exhibition, on Wednesday, February 10, from 6 to 8 pm in the gallery.

 Sawyer, whose studio is currently located in Asheville, NC, describes her current work as “the creation of ‘nurturing forms and spaces.’”  Moving between figurative and abstract forms, she creates her work by collecting found objects from the natural world and reinterpreting them through the process of assemblage.  These found materials include ephemeral materials such as rust, moss, bark, raw sheep wool and salvaged wood.

 Sawyer said her work has been affected by multiple, life-threatening traumas in her life, including most recently, a bout with breast cancer. As a result, her art, she said, deals with moving through life and then into death.

“So much of the material [for my work] comes from nature and the common element is that it is already in some stage of decomposition,” she said. “Like us, the organic materials have a life-span.  By assembling found and created materials, I am exploring a conversation about the natural preciousness of things.  The work is the pursuit of a peaceful state of being and the process is that of forever working to trust in my own intuition and instinct.”

 Sawyer’s sculptures can be found in both private and corporate collections throughout the east coast including the New York Mandarin Oriental Hotel, Mohegan Sun Casino, and the Ritz-Carlton Boston collections.

 Julie Miles’ latest series, titled, “At the End of the Road, in the Middle of Nowhere,”is a collection of paintings about 1940s farm life on a peppermint farm in the thumb of Michigan. Considered a contemporary folk artist, Miles has spent a lifetime observing how emotion manifests in the gestures of human form; the special roles light and topography play in composing a landscape; and how all of this can be used to express the deeper story. The far-reaching topography and vast sky of her Michigan roots shape the backdrop for the figures in her work.

She said: “My latest series peers in on the rare moments of contemplation and self-reflection found during a time when rising with the sun, working until dusk and surrendering to the task at hand was the way of life. It is my hope that you will find a camaraderie with these figures and discover the universal tie behind each piece, stretching beyond place and time.”

Weizenblatt Gallery is free and open to the public from 10 am – 4 pm each weekday. It is located in the Moore Building of Mars Hill University on Cascade Street in Mars Hill.

Mars Hill University is a premier private, liberal arts institution offering over 30 baccalaureate degrees and one graduate degree in elementary education. Founded in 1856 by Baptist families of the region, the campus is located just 20 minutes north of Asheville in the mountains of western North Carolina.www.mhu.edu.