Tucked away at the back end of Pine Street’s Soda Plant, the S.P.A.C.E. Gallery in Burlington is at the center of the universe during September’s South End Art Hop. But if you’re looking to explore the unknown without thousands of your closest friends in attendance, S.P.A.C.E. is always a great venue. It presents a well-balanced mix of established and emerging artists, particularly during its annual Members’ Exhibition, on view through May 23.
Though the gallery’s identity is rooted in the South End, director Nikki Laxar said its membership extends to artists in all corners of Vermont. “We are at a record high for membership,” she said, with 150 artists, 115 of whom have works in the show.
That makes for some randomness, for sure, but viewing an exhibition such as this is more about finding unexpected treasures and emerging themes than trying to understand a thesis. Some works seem experimental, especially from new members. “I help to kind of encourage them, make them feel safe and ready to share the work,” Laxar said. “It’s a vulnerable thing to do.”
This year’s show includes a number of political pieces. Teresa Celemin of Hinesburg made a large print from tiny carved stamps, each a portrait of a different dictator, from Pol Pot to Bashar al-Assad. They overlap to make a portrait of President Donald Trump, with orange skin and green hair. It’s beautifully crafted, though maybe not what everyone wants in their living room.
For that, turn to Noah O’Leary from Burlington, whose “Young Wensleydale” hooked rug of a sheep will tempt you to bury your face in its soft wool. Nearby, a small sculpture by Susi Ryan of Essex employs fiber in other ways, twisting and looping it, combining dimensional embroidery with beads and ribbons to create a garden of alien plants.
A number of cats stalk the gallery, among them White River Junction artist Mona Elliott‘s ink-and-watercolor “Coping.” Her grid of cat faces is both cute and unnerving, with words such as “love,” “fire,” “ouch” and “WTF” assigned to each feline, creating an ambiguous narrative.
The show continues into the Soda Plant’s hallway, and visitors shouldn’t miss the works there. Jean Kelly of Colchester’s “Flood” is a dramatic oil pastel drawing in which childlike buildings in the background are overtaken not by the river as much as by plant growth; bursting dandelions and scribbled shadows dominate the composition.
Laxar has made some nice juxtapositions in her curation, too. Renowned Jericho illustrator Robert Waldo Brunelle Jr. contributed one of his “Aesthetic Machines,” an intricate, brightly colored kinetic sculpture. Near it on the wall, Daphne Stephenson — undoubtedly the most emerging of the artists, at age 8 — presents an excellent drawing of a rocket ship. It has already sold.