The Exchange Gallery

Every month VAE highlights the work of four or five exemplary VAE artists in its Exchange Gallery. This highly visible retail space in the front windows of VAE's City Market Gallery is excellent exposure for artists and a favorite shopping spot of patrons. Artists are juried into the space annually. For more information contact Rachel Berry at 919.828.7834 ex 6854, or rberry@visualartexchange.org.

Click here to learn how to apply for your own featured artist exhibition!

February 2009 Exchange Gallery Artists:

• Rick Bennett
• Charlie Cawley
• Jenn Parrigin
• Kurney Ramsey
• Lisa Stroud

Rick Bennett

Life comes at you in ways that tie us all together in common experiences: the loss of a mother, the beginning of a relationship, when you break free from the expectations of others and our hopes for the future. Like Rorschach tests the interpretation of these paintings is dependent more on the experiences the viewer brings with them than the specific ones from which I painted.

I place photographs on paper. I layer in watercolor with a brush, push it with an old drivers license and scrape out shapes with my pocket knife. People and events are surrounded by abstract elements that suggest struggle but lead to areas of resolution.

Charlie Cawley

One night I had a dream. I was standing on a low hill on a bright clear day with white clouds in the sky. I was surrounded by people and it was a festive time. Some of the people were picnicking, others were flying kites or sailing model boats in a nearby lake.

I held in my hands a device which was releasing clear shimmering bubbles into the air that floated away on the breeze over the heads of the surrounding people. They were looking at the bubbles as they floated above them, and they would point and say "Oh! Look at that one, and that one, and look over there at that one!" I realized that they were seeing the scenes from our lives reflected back at them. Many of the reflected appearances made them laugh; others filled them with awe and surprise. A few of the reflected scenes were contemplative and made them think about the things we see all around us.

I felt very satisfied that I could do this for them. When I woke up from the dream I knew what my photography was for. You see, I had really had that experience when doing gallery shows or displays of my work, and I realized that the dream was letting me know why making these images was important to me. I have not stopped since that dream of many years ago. I think of this as a wonderful gift I have been given - the opportunity to share with others a part of how precious this small spark of life we all have really is.

I love taking my camera for walks in new and strange places and seeing the art that the world makes. I get to keep these scenes in my camera, and when it goes "click" I say "Thank you!" It is a playful voyeurism of the real and often the surreal, and it is, for me, a great deal of fun.

So please realize that the works you are seeing from the "H2Otographs" series is simply to ENJOY!

Jenn Parrigin

In my artwork, I explore human experiences through the use of conceptual imagery. I create pieces that use my own life experiences as subject matter. Although the work is personal, the ideas are relevant to all people which allow viewers to think about how it applies to their own lives.

During my career as an artist, my work has made many transitions from printmaking to the present mixed media. I have since evolved from realism in my prints to more conceptual works in my mixed media. Part of this evolution can be explained by my experience and experimentation with multiple mediums. The subjects of my early work talked about being innocent and young. At that point, I was in college as a young woman and really had no life experience to relay in my work. After college I began to paint. This work had a more humorous tone while experimenting with the movement Pop Surrealism. After my move from Ohio to North Carolina, I had a very difficult transition. I began painting while using elements of sculpture. The themes became much more personal and full of real emotion. My work has become sculptural in a sense but I consider it all mixed media because I do not want to limit my voice. I love to experiment with new materials and techniques but creating thoughtful, emotional work at the same time.



Kurney Ramsey

I'm fascinated by the light that surrounds us. I explore the landscape and the built environment in the artificial light of night. Many of these places I know well. They are my friends' apartments, my high school parking lot, the house I grew up in, the road I drive home from work on every night.

The places I photograph may appear impersonal but in fact are related to personal memories, if only it is from a passing car. Many of these places have a history with me, some of the histories short others deep. The forgotten places of my life have returned in glimpses of light.

Lisa Stroud

As an artist and a writer, I am always looking for the story. I step up to the easel and work intuitively with colors, shapes, and textures, and with time and patience and luck, a story begins to unfold on the canvas. My hope is that, somewhere between the obvious and the hidden, viewers will be enticed to create their own stories.

See previous featured artists:

January 2009
December 2008
November 2008
October 2008
September 2008
August 2008
July 2008
June 2008
May 2008
April 2008
March 2008
February 2008
October 2007
September 2007
August 2007
July 2007