When: September 29 – November 27, 2009
Reception: First Friday, October 2nd 5-9pm
Where: Grants Pass Museum of Art
229 SW “G” Street
Grants Pass, OR 97528
I will be exhibiting a project specially designed for the museum. The project is a “loose-leaf book” of eleven pages. Each page is a painting done in watercolor and gouache depicting lines of a poem I wrote titled, Camping alongside a River. Memories of playing in the Rogue River along with various creeks in southern Oregon were accessed to inspire the imagery and poem. This project was partially funded by a grant from the Oregon Arts Commission and with an in-kind donation from Perceptual Intent. Also showing is New Mexico artist Marietta Leis. I will be giving an artist talk on October 2nd at 5:30pm.
Below is the poem written for this project:
Camping alongside a River
Descent to the river is tricky,
rocks pushed aside like random thoughts
clogging the way as the
blood of the earth pumps
downhill, nourishing, cleansing,
swelling with the courage to reach the sea.
Submerged in a cool eddy:
fingers pursed as prunes,
color drawn from lips,
goosebumps raised on young skin
pushing the threshold of nerves,
forcing the mind to retreat to the
comfort of the campfire;
grilled trout, the catch of the day.
By Lorna Nakell ©2009