The SILAS KENYON GALLERY
At The SCHOOLHOUSE CENTER
Presents
SPIRAL OF HOME II
A COLLABORATIVE INSTALLLATION INITIATED BY KATHE IZZO

APRIL 26 - MAY 22
OPENING RECEPTION FRIDAY APRIL 26 6-9 PM
ARTIST'S TALK SATURDAY APRIL 27

A large scale installation, initiated by Kathe Izzo, built from the collaboration of 33 men and boys born and raised in Provincetown.

Kathe has collected objects from 33 men and boys, all born and living a significant part of their lives in Provincetown, interviewing and filming them as they were asked to contribute a personal object of their own holding significant sentimental value or childhood memory, particularly, if possible, in regards to Provincetown. They were also asked to contribute a
small piece of writing on the object's significance. Meeting first with a 6th generation father of a baby boy, Patrick Patrick, of the famed Marine Specialties Patrick family, as the "zero" year, she continued through each age group chronologically collecting words and trinkets from toddlers, teenager, 20 and 30 somethings, and so on with the final collaborator well into their 90s.

An effort has been made to include multiple participants from families, if possible, including siblings, parents, uncles and grandparents. Indeed, one of the final participants planned is the legendary Uncle Powerful, uncle of first participant Patrick Patrick, once known as one of the strongest men in town, now in his 90s.The objects, complete with their accompanying Poloroids, videos and writings will be on display for the duration of the
show. In addition the Poloroids, video and writings of the original Spiral of Home 2000, chronicling girls and women in town, will be available for viewing as well.

"According to Izzo, the resonance of the piece lies not in the objects themselves but in the dynamics they represent. 'The thing that makes the objects really beautiful is the content they embody, which is their relationship with these different women and girls in town,' she says. Because of the cumulative nature of the project, with Izzo gathering items over time and showing each new participant the things that preceded them in the spiral, Izzo was able to see an almost palpable "energy" forming in the piece . . . and because of the parameters of the project, partially funded by a grant from the Provincetown Community Compact, required her to highlight Provincetown's history and include local youth, a cross generational dynamic emerged as well. Grandmothers, mothers and daughters, as well as sisters, from the same family are scattered throughout Izzo's
constellation"

"For the most part, Izzo encourages the women to go with their first instincts when they . choose their objects, asserting one of her beliefs about art-making . . . an obedience to the first, pure artistic impulse or bloom of thought, that quickens the artistic process, 'The bubble that comes up in the mind is an art from itself, it is available to all of us, all the time, it is true democracy. We just have to learn how to respect it.'
(Kathe Izzo) "

-Kaimi Lum
PROVINCETOWN BANNER 6/1/2000

Kathe Izzo is a poet and conceptual artist whose preferred mediums are the ties that bind: childhood, motherhood, sex, love and community. Her poetry, memoirs and short fiction have been published in numerous journals and anthologies including the recent AROUSED, edited by Karen Finley/Thundersmouth Press, and well as the AMERICAN BIBLE OF OUTLAW POETRY, BLOOD AND TEARS/poems for Matthew Shephard, and THE BEST OF THE BEST LESBIAN EROTICA. In the past, she has been the recipient of consecutive Massachusetts Cultural Council awards for her Shadow Writing Project, a collaborative writing program for youth at risk, and it's nationally acknowledged journal of teen writing, FLICKER.

Kathe is represented by the Silas-Kenyon Gallery at the Schoolhouse Center in Provincetown. Currently she is participating in THE FREE BIENNIAL, with her TRUE LOVE PROJECT. 200 ARTISTS IN THE FIRST FREE BIENNIAL, APRIL 2-30 NEW YORK CITY
(www.freebiennial.org) is a conceptual exhibit originated and developed by
fellow Schoolhouse artist, Sal Randolph.

 

SPIRAL OF HOME II IS A PROJECT OF THE PROVINCETOWN'S COMMUNITY COMPACT'S CENTENNIAL INITIATIVE:

Provincetown Centennial Initiative 100 Artists in the Community
It takes a community to raise an art colony.

The Provincetown Community Compact is celebrating Provincetown's Centennial as America's oldest continuous art colony, 1899-1999, by commissioning artists to create multi-disciplinary public artworks in collaboration with the community and the public schools. It takes a community to raise an art colony. Provincetown is an authentic American success story. It is a community that has 6sustained and nurtured this creative environment for over 100 years. Any definition of community must include students and the younger generation, and this project highlights the cultural and economic importance of both the schools and the artists.

The first round of funding for 100 Artists in the Community (2000) included nine projects, with contributing artists Laurel Brooke, Karin Cook, Mary Alice Johnston, Kathe Izzo, Rex McKinsey, Dianna Morton, Oona Patrick, Traven Pelletier, Maebush Stevens and John Thomas.

FOR MORE INFO or an interview with the artist PLEASE CALL: 508.487.6341. The Schoolhouse Center is located at 494 Commercial Street in Provincetown’s Historic East End Gallery District.

Contact: Michael Carroll at 508.487.4800 X 105