michaelene walsh : bound

'FIRST WEDNESDAY' OPENING: 5/2, 7 - 9 P.M.
ARTICULATE ARTIST TALK: SUNDAY, 5/6 AT 4 P.M.

Bound, Michaelene Walsh's latest Baton Rouge Gallery exhibition, is an exercise in appreciation that invites participation from the audience. An installation comprised of more than 100 ceramic bows, presented in a wide array of colors and patterns, are intended to be gifts of gratitude for a few select individuals of the artist's choosing and for visitors (who choose to make a $30 donation to the gallery, while supplies last).

Walsh, inspired by a desire to express her own gratitude for where she finds herself at this point in her own life, found the word "bound" prescient. She set out to give of what she does: make meaningful objects with her hands. "Much in the way a plumber fixes a sink or my daughter's teacher explains fractions, creating is one facet of how I contribute to this community," said Walsh. 'Bound' stemmed from a simple desire to give of what I know and value, as much acknowledgement and appreciation for what others do and bring."

According to the artist, "Colored ribbons serve as symbols within our culture, visual reminders of what people support, value, or believe in. This project embraces that idea, my hope is to create a veritable constellation around our community - one suggesting the many ways in which we all are, or can be - bound." 

A BRG artist member since 2004, Walsh received her Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The University of Illinois and her MFA from The New York State College of Ceramics. Walsh has held teaching positions at the Massachusetts College of Art, the University of Georgia, the University of Washington, Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of California-Davis. Additionally, Walsh has served as an instructor at numerous alternative-learning venues such as Haystack School of Crafts, Anderson Ranch Arts Center, Arrowmont and Santa Fe Clay. Currently she is an Associate Professor of Art at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. 

This exhibition is presented alongside the latest works from Leslie Friedman, Kelli Scott Kelley, and David Scott Smith. All works from these four artists are on view, free of charge, during normal gallery hours (12 - 6 p.m., Tue - Sun) through May 31, 2018.