"QUEER: Celebrating Work by LGBTQIA Artists" opens on Friday, June 3rd and runs through Sunday, July 24th 2022 in The Gallery at Stone & Spoon.
Join us & the featured artists on the Opening Night Reception, taking place on Friday, June 3rd, 2022 from 5-8pm in celebration of First Friday & Pride Month. It takes place at The Gallery at Stone & Spoon, 110 W Michigan Ave., Ypsilanti MI 48197.
QUEER: Celebrating Work by LGBTQIA Artists: This celebration of work is a clear example of how varied the work among our local LGBTQIA community is, and how unaware we are of the multitude of creative processes taking place daily. Whether it is handwritten in journals, painted on canvas, sewn into fabric, typed into Notes app, sung into a microphone or whispered into each other’s ears, our community of artists are out here, ready to put their work into the world, and we are here for it.
Opening reception on Friday, June 3rd from 5-8pm will include three live performances.
10% of artwork sales made at the opening reception on June 3rd will be donated to Ypsi Pride to help secure its future in our community.
*Mobility note: Our beautiful 19th century building has no elevator, so all attendees will need to take a flight of stairs up to The Gallery. If you are unable to do stairs, but would like to see the exhibition, we will be posting a live video of the exhibition alongside the artists for an insider's perspective. This will be another great way to see this exhibition!
A Note from the Curator:
"This exhibition, “QUEER: Celebrating Work by LGBTQIA Artists,” holds a dear place in my heart. As a queer artist, business owner and curator, I have a deep passion and feel a special responsibility to provide a platform for others to show their work. To submit artwork for an exhibition is not only a risk which carries with it the chance of rejection (a fear all too familiar for someone who is queer), but it is an exercise of intimate vulnerability. One’s work is direct access and exposure to what makes the artist tick, feeding their life, their mind and their soul. For a queer artist, it is this very public gaze that can be a beautifully validating experience as well as a potentially dangerous one. Again, this real risk that may result in pain or pleasure is a familiar gamble…a familiar “coming out” to the world and growing into ourselves.
Much of this work has been created within the last two years, which has been a strangely isolated time. Many took this as an opportunity to reflect, and look deeply into what it means to be happy - peaceful - connected - fulfilled - authentic…what it means to just “be.” Art is, of course, transformative in many ways, and always will be for so many reasons, but I have found that through art, people can show the world who they really are…who they have always been..and, for them, what it means to “be.”
Join me in celebrating this collection of eclectic work, and the brave LGBTQIA artists who created it.
Queerly,
Jen"
The Gallery at Stone & Spoon is Downtown Ypsi's newest creative epicenter which will include rotating art exhibitions, workshops, classes, meet-ups and more! This space is on the second story of a beautiful 1850 historic building (above the shop), which you will enjoy as you make your way through Stone & Spoon that still showcases the building's original wood floors, tin ceilings and exposed brick walls.
For more information about The Gallery visit our website here: https://www.stoneandspoon.com/thegallery
