Artist Books and Photography at Gallery A3 in June
Laura Holland, Left: The Burnt Pan, accordion book, angle view; Right: The Lost Sock, accordion book, angle view. Photo: Gallery A3
Source: Gallery A3
The work of Laura Holland, featuring artist books and photography will be on exhibit at Gallery A3, 28 Amity Street 1D in Amherst in June. The exhibit opens on Thursday June 5 and will run through Saturday June 28. Gallery hours are Thursday–Sunday, 2:00–7:00 p.m. There will be an opening reception at the gallery on Thursday June 5 from 5:00-7:00 p.m. There will be a free, online art forum on Thursday June 19 at 7:30 p.m. Pre-register at www.gallerya3.com
About the Exhibition
With photography and artist books, Laura Holland works inside the sweep of a DOMESTIC RADIUS—a physical and emotional space that circles close to her heart and home. Her subject matter includes a discarded bicycle, wooden matchsticks, over-abundant azalea blossoms, and a missing sock. But an elegiac undercurrent connects the objects she examines, the memories they arouse, and the sense of loss they evoke. The bicycle is abandoned by the side of the road when its owner dies; the azaleas burst into bloom only to be dashed to the ground overnight by wind and rain; the sock that disappears leaves behind a solitary mate.
“Just as there is unexpected beauty in a broken bicycle or a burnt frying pan, there are also some extraordinary stories in supposedly ordinary objects,” Holland says. “The sock may seem all pink and yellow playfulness, but it is simultaneously a symbol of loss—and resilience.”
One section of the exhibit displays the LIBRARY of LOST POSSIBILITIES, a collection of more than 20 tiny Coptic-bound books. “I ‘harvested’ posters for events I knew I would not attend (wrong place; wrong time; or just not interested), and cut, folded, reconfigured, and stitched together those posters into small hand-bound books sized to fit in my palm,” she says. “The books mourn things I did not do but at the same time celebrate possibilities left unpursued.”
Art Forum Online
In an Art Forum online on June 19, Holland will be joined by guest speaker Robbie Moll, Professor Emeritus of Computer Science at University of Massachusetts Amherst, whose short fiction and nonfiction pieces have appeared in the Funny Times, Defenestration magazine, and Colorado History magazine. He is the husband of recently deceased Valley artist Rachel Folsom.
This Art for Community program is supported in part by grants from the Amherst Cultural Council and the Pelham Cultural Council, local agencies, which are supported by the Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency. Preregister at www.gallerya3.com
About Gallery A3
Gallery A3 is a contemporary, fine art gallery located in the Cinema courtyard in downtown Amherst, Massachusetts. Members of the artist-run cooperative include painters, sculptors, photographers, printmakers, and mixed media artists.
Gallery A3 was founded in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. A group of local artists believed art to be essential to the health and healing of a community and began the gallery as a place to share ideas and artistic support. Since that time, the gallery has been home to over 60 artists and is now celebrating 23 years of monthly shows with openings and forums, all free and open to the public, and an annual juried show that supports regional artists.