Whether it is paint splashed across
canvas or something more definitive,
abstract art holds personal meaning
for local artists
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By Yael Menahem
Oregon Daily Emerald
The definition of abstract art can be as abstract as the art it
self.
fgjf “PutftingJ things together in a different way,” is artist Rakar
West’s simple definition of the art form.
West is part of a local group of artists who are exhibiting
HI their current works in the Springfield Museum under the
name Women Artists’ Marketing Cooperative, or WAMCO.
The exhibit is part of the museum’s series “Moving Forward:
HI Art for the 21st Century. ”
WAMCO is made up of abstract artists Pat Arrera, Ruth Ann
Howden, Natalie Shifrin Whitson and West.
West discovered abstract art many years ago on a trip to New
York City where she visited the Museum of Modem Art and
mm read about the movement in several art books.
“I responded emotionally and physically [to the art],” West
says. “I felt like this was something that I wanted to do. ”
Through her art, which mainly involves landscapes from
across Oregon, West is trying to emulate the definition of the
art through her own interpretation.
“I’m trying to paint something that you really can’t see, like
relationships, changing weather, emotional needs of people
[or] moving water,” she says.
Throughout her work, West uses different materials such as
acrylic on a hard board and some metal parts. For instance, on
two separate pieces currently on display, she bolted down alu
minum strips to the hard board and then painted on the metal.
Her works should look familiar to Oregonians, who will rec
ognize her references to Crater Lake and coastal sand dunes.
“I love Oregon so much and there’s such varied landscape,”
West says, although she admits that a recent trip to Scotland is
conjuring up new images for future abstract pieces.
Each of the four artists in the show holds a fine arts degree
and also draws upon their varied life experiences from all
around the world.
Arrera lived on the South Pacific island of American Samoa
for several years, and her experiences of living by the jungle
comes through in her work. She uses more traditional materi
als such as oil paintings on canvas to express her art. Arrera
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says that abstract art is a
challenge, which is why she’s
attracted to the style.
“It’s a way to express what I
want to do in a way that works for
me,” she says. “It’s more difficult to do that
with realistic images.”
To Arrera, realistic images are photographs and other still
images that don’t involve the stroke
of a brush, but she wants to take
things a step further.
“If I want to express something
else, something beyond what a [re
alistic] image tells me, I go to ab
stract art,” she says.
The abstract style was introduced
to the art world a few decades ago,
West says, and it uses shapes that
are not necessarily recognizable in
nature. Many people may not know
about abstract art, and West be
lieves that a new art form is not al
ways automatically accepted.
“It takes an art media decades to
be accepted or to influence the art
world and for people to understand
it and get used to seeing it,” she
said.
The WAMCO art-ists have exhib
ited their work locally, nationally
and internationally in an attempt to
enlighten more people about the art
style. Arrera and West encourage other art enthusiasts to visit
the Springfield Museum to experience this art form as they
experience and promote it.
The Springfield Museum is located on the corner of Sixth
and Main streets. The show is currently open and runs
through Jan. 29. The museum hours are Tuesday through Fri
day from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday from noon to 5 p.m.
Artwork on display is also for sale.
(above) Pat Arrera’s “jungle Dance IF’ is an oil paint
ing on birch, (below) Rakar West’s “Steens Mountain- ft
Afvord Desert” is acrylic paint on aluminum, mount
ed on masonite. Both pieces and others can be
Come in out
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