Mars Hill University’s Weizenblatt Gallery will host two exhibits from February 13 through March 10, 2017.
One features the textile art of Laura Ball and clay art of Bill Dale; the other features altered photography by Lydia See. An opening reception will be held Thursday, February 16, 2017. The gallery is located in Moore Fine Arts Building and is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Admission is free.
Laura Ball is an Asheville artist who uses vintage, commercial and repurposed materials, creating art quilts, soft sculptures, and book arts. She applies dressmaking skills, appliqué, quilting, trapunto, embroidery, thread painting, and beading in creating her textile works, even painting, dyeing, and printing much of her own fabric. Ball says, “I often represent images as seen from a photographer’s viewpoint. The themes in the representational pieces are inspired by my own photographs and drawings of subjects I encounter in my environment.”
Bill Dale, is a Nashville, Tennessee, artist who grew up in Asheville He began working in clay more than 40 years ago, drawn by the pace and rhythm of working the clay by hand. Dale says, “I came to love the elusive beauty of the asymmetrical form. Asymmetry is the constant companion of the hand builder. It is the flirt and the tease between what is and what might be.”
Lydia See is artist-in-residence with the Spartanburg County (S.C.) Public Library System and the Spartanburg artists’ community HUB BUB. She primarily works with photography and fiber, and describes her work as, “rooted in history: literal and conceptual, local and global, intimate and environmental, personal and anonymous.” Her exhibit at Weizenblatt is titled, “Family Vacations I Have Never Taken,” and features photographs altered with embroidery.
Established in 1991 as a gift from the estate of Dr. Sprinza Weizenblatt, Asheville physician and philanthropist, the primary function of Weizenblatt Gallery at Mars Hill University is to educate through art. Weizenblatt Gallery hosts exhibitions of work in a variety of styles and mediums by artists of local and national prominence. The gallery’s operational hours are Monday through Friday 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. during the academic spring and fall semesters. The general public, school classes, and other groups are welcome. More information is available at (828) 689-1209.
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. Visit www.mhu.edu
