Art as conversation: Exhibition in Boscobel shows off local artists
Peter Daniels, of Viroqua, displayed four art pieces at the Rural Wisconsin Artists event at Timber Lane Coffee in Boscobel this past Saturday. (Steve Van Kooten/Courier Press)
By Steve Van Kooten
At an art reception held by Timber Lane Coffee in Boscobel this past Saturday, the Rural Wisconsin Artists showcased half a dozen artists operating in Southwest Wisconsin.
According to Kim Mindham, a representative for RWA, the small-venue expositions are a way for local creators to connect with their communities.
“People in small, rural areas don’t have access to resources and exposure,” she said. “I think it’s as important to be seen as an artist and to be witnessed as an artist as it is to make the art because it’s a brave thing to be seen, and I think you can be seen through your art.”
Artists participating in the event included Peter Daniels, Sabina Myszka, Joe Chamberlain, Rick Sanford, Johanna O’Tigham, Stacia Vanderloo and Ashtyn Miles. Several hailed from Boscobel but came from as far as Viroqua to display their pieces.
Smaller venues give visitors and artists opportunities they might not get at an art gallery or large event like the Driftless Area Arts Festival.
“One of the things that appeals to me about small shows is that people who wouldn’t normally see art will see it,” said Daniels. “If you’re in a gallery or some place where art is always existing, then the people who go to those places will see art, but in a small space like this, there are people who are exposed to art inadvertently.”
“Creating a venue and an audience for artists is why we do these events,” said Mindham. “All the arts, whether it’s theater, dance or visual arts, should be constantly accessible. Having shows in the community, having children see people they know displaying art, is going to inspire them to do it themselves.”
The exhibited pieces included paintings and found art accompanied by written work, such as short poems and narratives.
There’s a (very) old attitude that every piece of art provokes the same question: What is art?
It’s a question with millions of right answers and zero wrong ones. Art can be the equivalent of screaming into a pillow: a private moment that needed to come out. It can also be a deep thought that needed to be expressed, a conversation that needed to be had or an opinion that needed to be vocalized. For the artists in Boscobel, communication is an essential part of their work.
“There are really visual people like me, who will activate something looking at art; they will stand in front of it and just start crying. It activates something inside of them,” said Myszka, an artist who submitted several pieces, including “Polar Bear Medicine” and “Owl Medicine.”
“I found myself — in this current state of world affairs — sinking into despair, and I realized I could do art to communicate that, but why not do art to try and just have it be beautiful? That’s where this is all coming from,” said Daniels.
Art, whether it’s a poem or a painting or a collage of found items, is also a small window for the rest of us to peer into the secret worlds every person keeps close to their hearts. It’s a precious, quick glance through their unshuttered windows and drawn curtains into a place no one can go to unless they create a picture or put together words to show it to the rest of us.
“As I painted — there are many layers — I had an experience like the painting was communicating to me, and I responded to that, which led to another layer,” said Daniels. “It becomes a communication back and forth with the painting that everyone can experience.”
