The PEG Center for Art & Activism Kicks Off 2023 with “Through These Eyes: The Many Faces of Patriotism” Exhibition
Public is Invited to Opening Reception on March 16 from 6-8 p.m.
Newburyport, MA, March 1, 2023 – The PEG Center for Art & Activism is proud to present “Through These Eyes: The Many Faces of Patriotism,” an art exhibition that explores the meaning of patriotism in the United States today. Through a variety of mediums, including paintings, drawings, photographs, textiles, mixed media, neon and sculpture, the exhibition examines what it means to be an American from a personal and collective perspective. This is the PEG Center’s first art exhibition of 2023 after its January pause and community art project “Heart to Heart: Newburyport Remembers Uvalde Families.”
“Through These Eyes” features artwork from six renowned and emerging artists from New England and Virginia. Each artist has created artwork that reflects their own interpretation of patriotism and its relationship in a divisive America. From traditional images of flags and symbols to more abstract representations of what patriotism can mean, “Through These Eyes” offers a diverse look at the ways patriotism is experienced and expressed in America. The exhibition will be open to the public from Friday, March 10 through May 17 at the PEG Center, 3 Harris St. in Newburyport.
Visitors are welcome to see the artwork at the PEG Center on Tuesdays through Thursdays from noon to 5 p.m., and Fridays through Saturdays from noon to 4 p.m. There will also be a series of artist talks, workshops, and other special events throughout the exhibition’s run. The opening reception is from 6-8 p.m. on Thursday, March 16. A separate artist talk on April 13 from 6-8 p.m. is on a reservation-only basis. Email paulaestey@thepegcenter.org to reserve your space.
“This exhibition uses the power of art to illuminate the ongoing struggle to realize America’s democratic ideals and model the commitment to act for the common good. While some may try to lay claim to the mantle of patriotism, there is no one set way to define what it means to live as an engaged American citizen,” said PEG Center Executive Director Paula Estey. “The melting pot of culture, age, race, and gender is challenged by echoes of colonialism and systemic oppression, while trying to define a way to achieve a brighter future,” she added.
The artists in “Through These Eyes” include Adrienne Sloane, Annielly Camargo, Keith Francis, Ashley Page, Robert Shetterly, and Carlos Walker. More information about these talented artist/activists can be found below and on their websites:
- Adrienne Sloane: A contemporary fiber artist with a political focus, Adrienne Sloane has deeply explored all forms of sculptural knit structures out of her Lexington, MA studio. Her work addresses timely but universal issues. Sloane has exhibited and taught internationally and worked with indigenous knitters on economic development projects in Bolivia and Peru. Her work has been published in magazines and books. Sloane has work in the Philadelphia Museum of Art, The Fuller Craft Museum, the Goldstein Museum of Design, The Kamm Collection and The American Textile History Museum as well as private collections.
- Annielly Camargo: Annielly Camargo is a queer photographer and mixed media artist. Their creations live through a variety of mediums ranging from video, installation, or alternative photographic processes. They have been shooting digitally for the past 8 years and recently started shooting on Polaroid and medium format film cameras. As a visual artist and art activist, they hope to use their creative eye and methods of expression to address important matters. Camargo currently resides in Boston, MA and has a BA from Hampshire College. They are currently documenting the ongoing racial equality movements that are happening locally and nationwide in a series of Protest Polaroids – documenting protests and questioning opinions.
- Keith Francis: The artwork of Keith Francis examines contemporary social, political and environmental issues. Based out of New Bedford, MA, Francis holds a Bachelor’s degree in Photography/Visual Communications from the University of Massachusetts–Dartmouth and a Masters of Fine Arts degree from the Massachusetts College of Art and Design in Boston. His work has been seen in solo and group exhibitions across the U.S. and in Italy and is included in many private and corporate collections. When not creating art, he is a visual design and communications instructor at the Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High School.
- Ashley Page: Ashley Page is an interdisciplinary artist living and working in Portland, ME. She holds a BFA in Sculpture and a minor in Public Engagement from Maine College of Art & Design, where she was a Warren Public Engagement Fellow. Page is presently the Studio and Programs Coordinator at Indigo Arts Alliance, where she works within the intersection of art and activism. Her curatorial and studio practice has been seen in the Center for Afrofuturist Studies, The Abyssinian Meeting House, The Portland Museum of Art, Congress Square Park, Able Baker Contemporary, New Systems Exhibitions, and more. As a maker, a curator, a woman of color, a community member, a sister, and a daughter, she strives to create space for dialogue, representation, intergenerational exchange, and creative expression.
- Robert Shetterly: From his home in Brooksville, ME, Robert Shetterly has created more than 260 portraits with quotes etched on them in his “Americans Who Tell the Truth” series. He graduated with a degree in English Literature from Harvard College, where he was active in Civil Rights and in the Anti-Vietnam War movement. Robert´s paintings and prints are in collections across the U.S. and Europe. “Americans Who Tell the Truth” has traveled to 26 states around the country since 2003. The portraits have given Shetterly an opportunity to speak with children and adults about the necessity of dissent in a democracy, the obligations of citizenship, sustainability, US history, and how democracy cannot function if politicians don’t tell the truth, if the media don’t report it, and if the people don’t demand it.
- Carlos Walker: Carlos Walker is a self-taught African American artist. Born and raised in Halifax County, VA, Carlos began drawing at the early age of eight. At the age of 24, Walker found himself facing a 20-year mandatory minimum sentence for selling drugs. After serving 13 years, Walker was released and found his way back to art. While incarcerated, he curated 5 exhibitions, in addition to writing a book “WHAT IF? The prison drawings of Carlos Walker.” The 48 oil pastel drawings offer racial role reversal as a provocative antidote to the prejudice, systemic violence and unsustainable economic inequality that has once again brought African American protesters onto the streets of major cities across the country.
About the PEG Center for Art & Activism
The mission of the PEG Center for Art & Activism is to provide our clients and visitors with the transcendent beauty of contemporary art and to be a catalyst for conscious change. We seek to elevate the quality of our community and lives through creative expression, engaging conversations, and committed action. We create and nurture programming to address human rights, social justice, and the environment. Visit the PEG Center at 3 Harris St. in Newburyport, MA or follow us at www.thepegcenter.org for events, programs and more. Paula Estey can be reached at 978-376-4746 or info@thepegcenter.org.
Photos/captions:
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- Adrienne Sloane, The Unraveling
- Annielly Carmargo, Don’t Shoot
- Keith Francis, Subtleties of Indoctrination II (2022)
- Ashley Page, Modes of Confinement (detail view)
- Robert Shetterly, Stacey Abrams (Portrait from Americans Who Tell the Truth)
- Carlos Walker, Lady Liberty
