VISUAL ARTS

Two keen observers, one a painter with mad skills, the other a photographer with the ability to draw subjects out of themselves are offering Transformation Play at the Loading Dock Gallery from May 25 to June 26. A reception for the artists, Rebekah Wetmore and Meghan Moore will be held on Friday evening, June 3rd from 6 to 9pm.

Wetmore, a painter with more than 20 years of experience created a series of translucent masks which allow the viewer to see both the veiled face of the wearer and the painted face of the mask at the same time. The masks were designed to be worn by children, as each experiments with the mask, the viewer is allowed to watch the movement from self to character. Wetmore says that “these masks are my venture into sculpture in a life time of painting” and is “ inspired by the look of masks and puppets, by the rough mechanics of these hand-built things, their strings and joints, costumes and wigs, their paint jobs and repairs.” She is “entranced by how these constructions come to life, concentrating emotional expression in play and in performance.” And says that “the meeting place of papier mache, wood and string, with role play, mimicry, and dramatic expression is a particularly human place, inhabited by children, shamans, and buskers in every generation.”

Moore, an event and portrait photographer with more than 12 years of experience was intrigued by how people would react to Wetmore’s unique masks, which she feels ‘have personalities of their own”. She wanted to see how children would change their body language, how they would respond to the camera, to see what kind of portraits would emerge and go beyond the personality of the subject. She says “ I like that you can see through the mask to the child’s face. I’m interested in what an overlay does to a subject, design-wise it gives more depth and meaning.” Moore enjoys letting people be themselves, encourages them to be themselves, in her portrait sessions she will ask people to do silly things, lots of actions, asking people to temporarily assume a rather silly role to try and draw a true reaction. She says “ I’m playful, darnit, and I like to invite others to be playful, too. I find it to be a fabulous part of the human condition”. In Transformation Play Moore hopes to introduce the viewer to the place where art meets play.



Transformation Play at the Loading Dock Gallery, 122 Western Avenue, 2nd floor of the A Mill from May 25 to June 26, with a reception for the artists on Friday evening June 3rd from 6 to 9pm. The Loading Dock Gallery is open Wednesday through Sunday from 11am to 4:30pm. For info go to www.theloadingdockgallery.com