The Maude Kerns Art Center presents “Singing the Animal, Singing the Earth,” featuring the work of Eugene artists Shelly Fredenberg and Christopher St. John. The exhibit, which is a collaboration between Fredenberg and St. John, opens with a public reception on Friday, February 22, from 6 – 8 pm. “Singing the Animal, Singing the Earth” is on view through Wednesday, March 27.
The exhibit includes ceramic pieces and ink drawings that explore different two-dimensional and three-dimensional expressions of form made possible through the use of animal imagery. All the artwork has been created specifically for the exhibit at the Art Center. One wall is dedicated to a large drawing installation of unframed, unmounted works on paper. Both artists, who believe in the “transformative potential of art to make the world a better place,” hope with their installation “to create a beautiful site of celebration and awe that praises the quiet voices of this earth.”
Shelly Fredenberg is a member of the Art Center’s onsite ceramics studio, Club Mud. She has shown her ceramic work extensively throughout Oregon and Washington and was the “Featured Artist” at Lake Oswego’s Art in the Park in 2018. Fredenberg focusses on form, line, and texture. She works in an intuitive way, starting with a loose idea and forming each ceramic piece by hand, letting the clay do most of the “leading.”
Christopher St. John paints, draws, sculpts, and works in ceramics. He has an impressive history of solo exhibitions nationally and internationally and has a longstanding relationship with the Biz’ Art Biz’ Art gallery in Le Vaudioux, France. St John’s work is the collections of the Hawaii State Art Museum among other museums and galleries. St John says that he is “interested in creating work that encourages gentleness and compassion with regard to our place in the biome on this planet.”
