“Lay of the Land” group exhibition
M Contemporary
205 East 9 Mile Road, Ferndale
Through February 15
If I could sum up the Lay of the Land exhibit at M Contemporary Art in one sentence, it would be — the land holds memory and emotions in colors.
The Ferndale exhibit includes photography and paintings that ask us to connect with the natural world conceptualized through monochromatic paintings, mandalas of trees, and abstract landscapes. It features work by Ashley Marie, S. Kay Young, Carla Andeson, Marceline Mason, and Rick Vian.
I was an instant fan of Marie’s ethereal monochromatic green paintings the first time I saw them. The ghostly figures in her pieces always feel like they are trying to lure me into another dimension, and I want to follow them. Mason’s moody blue paintings give off similar vibes and their work compliments each other well in this show.
Where Marie’s work feels like a warm hug from a blanket of moss, Mason’s are cold as ice.
Mason’s paintings of waterfalls and spindly, bare trees feel desolate as fog floats over a full moon. Both artists are great examples of how to change the atmosphere with color.
Anderson’s work, on the other hand, has an eerie calm to it as a hazy desert sky reflects on the water below. She has a way of making the ordinary seem extraordinary. Rather than teeming with life, a photo of Iceland’s West Fjords looks barren with seaside ridges feeling like a scene from an abandoned planet. Tranquil blue waters and cream sand put me at ease with warmth that grounds me.
Then Young’s photos of trees are like being in a kaleidoscope. Her piece, “Cathedral,” is aptly titled as old growth trees hold ancestral knowledge that they will share with us human beings if we would only ask, and approach them with respect. The more we spend time in nature, the more we may realize that the plants, trees, and water are sentient beings who have lived much longer than we. And they deserve our reverence more than any idea of god, imagined by man.
While it makes the most sense that the work in the show is divided with paintings on one side, and photography on the other, the older generation of artists are also opposite the younger artists.
You have Anderson, whose work spans from 1970s street photography to her abstracted landscape photos in the 2000s, and work from Young’s over 40-year photographic career on the left side of the gallery. Then Vian, who’s been painting since the 1970s provides a bridge to the younger artists, Marie and Mason, on the other side.
While a show so small in scale is nothing to go out of your way for, if you’re around Ferndale and are seeking connection to the earth, Lay of the Land is worth your time.
May we look in awe at the splendor the land holds and take better care of her before it’s too late.
Lay of the Land is on display at M Contemporary Art; 205 E. Nine Mile Rd., Ferndale; mcontemporaryart.com. Show runs through Feb. 15 with an artist talk scheduled for that same date from 4-6 p.m.
Published in conjunction with Detroit Metro Times.
