Holy Wisdom Monastery is pleased to announce Beth Racette as the featured artist for the 2016 Fall Art Exhibit.
Beth is a visual artist who works in many mediums—acrylic ink paintings, sculpture, and installation. Her work has explored a variety of topics from social structure, such as the prison system, to the web of life.
This fall’s exhibit, the Gaia Series, is taken from the name the ancient Greeks gave to the Earth Goddess, the Creator of Earth, and the Universe. In the 1970s, systems theorists borrowed the name Gaia when they developed the theory that the Earth is a complex, living, self-regulating system with the capacity to maintain the conditions for life.
“My aim in creating these paintings has been to learn about and portray the many systems and aspects of the Earth. I have tried to cast a wide net, explore as much as I can, and synthesize my findings visually. The paintings are partly inspired by my scientific learning and represent an intuitive and impressionistic integration of my exploration.”
This work titled Biosphere will be part of the exhibit at Holy Wisdom Monastery. Attend the reception on Friday, October 7, 2016 between 5:00-8:00 pm.
For years Beth has contemplated the interconnectedness of life through her work. When she learned about living systems theory several years ago, she was excited to find a scientific framework for the concepts she had been intuitively exploring in her paintings. “Living systems theory focuses on relationships, and attempts to understand the underlying principles by which life organizes itself. In the mid-20th century, living systems theorists began to see life as made up of ‘wholes’ rather than ‘parts,’” Beth explained. Many of the paintings in the Gaia Series are simultaneously micro- and macroscopic, meaning that they could represent a cell or a galaxy.
Beth grew up in Wichita, Kansas, and received her Masters of Fine Art in 1989 from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University. She currently administrates community and education programs at Overture Center in Madison WI.
The Gaia Series exhibit at the monastery will run from October 7, through December 30, 2016. The opening reception will be on Friday, October 7, 2016 from 5:00-8:00 pm and includes refreshments and a brief reflection by Beth at 6:15 pm. This reception is part of the Madison Museum of Contemporary Art Fall Gallery Night. All are welcome to come and enjoy the exhibit and meet Beth.
Comments 1
Exquisite!