Professor Charlton is the Director of Graduate Studies at the School of Art at George Mason University and a master of the collage technique with works in important public collections including Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art and The Phillips Collection. At the workshop, she spoke of her family roots, and how her recent practice had paid homage to her Grandmother and referenced her Grandmother’s house and property in the Florida Panhandle.
For the subject of their workshop collages, Professor Charlton prompted the participants to explore what belonging means to them. The word “belonging” bears within in it two overlapping stems: “belong” meaning to be attached or bonded, and “longing” meaning to think of or wish for something that is not present. In their collages, the artists have expressed both roots of the word. They are describing feelings of home and genesis, but also that of needing to find new sources of grounding on unfamiliar terrain in a foreign city. Their artworks ultimately pay homage to those outside themselves who have contributed to their own composite sense of self.
Each of the works is a unique combination of different textures, shapes and colors associated with the authors’ themes of identity, origin and belonging. The works, reflecting the deep personal experiences of the authors, are characterized by a variety of creative approaches, non-trivial thinking, and a wealth of imagination.
The exhibition is available to the public until April 1 at the address: 17 Savičiaus Str., Vilnius; EHU, 2nd floor of the academic building.
