The Tiny Universe of Women’s Studio Workshop

May 15, 2014 by

1981773_10201802518163369_8921078019019109749_n

Five months ago (or eleven, if you’re a certain admin intern), we stepped onto Binnewater Lane, feeling excited but disoriented. We moved into the Anne Atwood house, a Women’s Studio Workshop-owned property just two doors down from the studio. Before long, WSW became our home away from home. We celebrated Easter with the founders, discussed our current projects over pizza from Antonio’s, and spent our evenings obsessing over popular culture.

Of course, there was lots of work to do, too. As studio interns, Liz Cunningham and Emily Ritter have had their hands full the past few months working with resident artists, assisting with our Art-in-Education program “Hands-On Art”, and keeping the studio running smoothly. Currently, Emily and Liz, along with studio manager Chris Petrone, are assisting Artists’ Book Resident Sarah McDermott in the production of her edition Channel & Flow. It’s the first artists’ book of the year, and the girls are excited to be helping. “My favorite part of working here,” says Liz, “has been forming relationships and working with the artists-in-residence.”

It’s been a busy eleven months for Administrative Intern Janelle Sandefur up in the office. She’s been assisting with preparations for event after event (WSW’s Gala, Chili Bowl, Wikipedia Edit-a-thon, and more!), processing applications, managing WSW’s database, and handling registration for our  Summer Art Institute workshops. Janelle has also been mastering the world of social media–and she’s the voice behind the WSW emails delivered fresh to your inbox.

Now, with the weather warming up and a chorus of peepers (read: tree frogs) filling our ears each night, our internship is nearing its end and it’s time for WSW’s annual intern exhibition! When the workday is done, we take full advantage of our 24 hour access to the studios; somehow, despite our busy schedules, we’ve managed to create a body of work for our exhibition Tiny Universe.  The show explores living and working in the small, close-knit community of the Women’s Studio Workshop.

Drawing inspiration from Zen Buddhist texts, Liz has created a series of etchings and suminagashi monotypes (Japanese marblings) that focus on stillness and emptiness. Her prints and marblings are quiet, using minimal imagery, poetic texts, and muted colors.

Maps From Memory uses WSW’s surroundings as its content.  Over the course of one month, Janelle attempted to record her daily paths directly from memory. The resulting maps are an abstract representation of her day to day life at WSW.

liz

Emily’s work deals with human consumption and waste, specifically using the trash she creates each day. In Consumption, she creates striking, high contrast digital prints by layering scans of trash and Xeroxes of her face. And in Cycles, Emily uses the garbage itself as the base for a group of silkscreened fish silhouettes, referencing the negative effects of waste on marine life.

On Friday, May 9th, we celebrated our hard work at the opening reception for Tiny Universe. We had a fantastic turnout with friends, former interns, and of course, some WSW founders!

With our opening behind us, we have just over a month left here at WSW. And while we’re excited for our next adventures, leaving Binnewater Lane–this special, tiny universe–will certainly be bittersweet.

DSC09032

Tiny Universe is on display until May 26. Learn more about our internship program here.

View more images from the exhibition opening on Flickr