“Standing in the Light,” by Amy Ferron, will be among the works on display in the new Confluence show.
Two new exhibits opening Saturday (June 10) at The Confluence: Art in Twisp will turn gallery visitors’ eyes toward the natural world just in time for summer.
In the Main Gallery, “The Healing Garden” draws on the ancient design concept of Feng Shui — a thoughtful arranging of elements to create balance in the natural world. Feng Shui “applies the study of working with nature, not against it,” a press release from The Confluence said. “In this exhibit of ‘The Healing Garden,’ works from the contributing artists reference the five universal elements: wood, fire, water, earth and metal exemplifying living in harmony with nature.”
Exhibit curator Theresa Miller said, “Historically, healing gardens were created by monks as a space for solitude and meditation. Initially, the Zen space was just for viewing and utilized one or more of the five natural elements believed to direct the flow of energy. ‘The Healing Garden’ is set on the idea of utilizing these universal elements to bring attention to our admiration for the beauty of nature.”
Miller chose a healing garden theme for the exhibit due to a sense of loss resulting from the pandemic. “We lost so much to COVID,” she said. “So many lives, so much connection with other people.”
In her call to artists for the exhibit, Miller asked contributors to “identify one or more of these Feng Shui elements in creating their body of work for this show.” She found that the call resonated widely with artists. “We got one of the biggest receptions ever,” Miller said. “We’re going to be using art from almost 40 artists.”
Miller thinks the robust response is due to artists’ interest in offering a sense of solace to a troubled planet and society. “We all have something to say about healing. In order for us to heal we also have to feel,” Miller said. “We need to look at what we want respite from in order to seek it.”
Other gardens
A longtime key player in the Methow Valley arts world, Miller has curated exhibits for The Confluence for 25 years. She is also a master gardener and certified arborist, so is uniquely suited to design an exhibit that unites art with gardens.
Miller addresses the concept of a garden being something the viewer can be immersed in and observe from the inside, or something that can be observed from the outside. A frequent visitor to Thailand, Miller shares a memory of a healing garden whose size belied its harmonious impact.
“During my time in Bangkok I would often walk down a rugged alleyway with an old house on the corner,” Miller said. “An old man tended a tiny garden on the corner. It was just a few square feet, but he was obviously very wise in the use of universal elements.”
“Sight dominates our perception in any garden. It is a mixture of light, form and color that can evoke an emotional experience. For many of us, just being in the presence of trees, plants and water is an instinctual pleasure that gives us the peace we look for in a garden. It is a sort of pathway towards healing as our eye seeks a sense of balance and harmony,” the press release said.
Miller emphasizes the role of sight lines in healing gardens. “One of the key elements in a healing garden is no straight lines,” she said. “When you utilize straight lines, the eye is drawn to the end of the line. When you use curved lines, your gaze will flow and find the harmony.”
With the upcoming exhibit, Miller’s challenge is to display the artwork in a pleasing manner, in a way that looks natural and which places each piece of artwork in harmony with the others. “As a curator, you don’t always know exactly what you’re going to get,” she said, noting that she was fascinated by the amount of abstract art that was submitted. “My challenge will be to utilize the expression of the artists to create the healing garden that gallery visitors will enter and observe from within, as participants.”
‘Swiftly Turning Time’
Throughout “The Healing Garden” exhibit, the work of Seattle-based artist Tara Kraft will hang in the Community Gallery, a press release from The Confluence said. “Swiftly Turning Time” features new paintings by Tara Kraft drawn from her tenure as artist-in-residence at Capulin Volcano National Monument. Her intimate portraits of these lichenous, volcanic rocks capture a sense of geologic time, earthen energy, and quiet contemplation.”
The Confluence will host an opening for “The Healing Garden” and “Swiftly Turning Time” on Saturday from 5-7 p.m. The opening and the exhibits, available through July 15, are free to the public. The Confluence is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m., Wednesday-Saturday. For more information visit www.confluencegallery.org or call (509) 997-2787.
