ART MATTERS: Apexart Welcomes Dorothy Amenuke

What fascinates me most is the way people move brusquely, as though being chased by an unknown force. Probably they are really being chased; but by what? Work? Job? But they seem to be moving forward, probably towards Work or Job. so where stands the work or job to be chasing them? So does this situation leave individuals unconcerned about what goes on around them? (Artist Dorothy Amenuke, Apexart blog)

Apexart is not an ordinary gallery. First, it’s non profit. Second, artists from around the globe are invited to engage in a sort of “seek and you shall find” experience, generously supported by gallery owner, Steven Rand. International artists are selected through recommendation, arrive in a time lapsed sort of experiential tailspin where the stated hope is about stimulating public dialogue about contemporary art and “enriching the cultural landscape of New York City” (www.artingeneral.org). Through Apexart Director of Operations, Kerri Schlottman and assistant, Matt Hackett (Vassar Alumni) the program’s Oct. 07 artist found her way to Upstate New York.

What’s this about - discouraging the promotion of your work in NYC, I wondered, and “oh well” for Dorothy Amenuke that a residency explicitly supports neither work nor it’s promotion, yet brings you into the art hot spot of the world. Moreover how absurd to find on her resume something like:

• Hopelessly isolated, out of sorts at JFK airport without direction or a guide. Leads to profound shift in (assumed) personal strength and cultural boundaries. 11/2007.

• Collided, in Manhattan street, with a moveable rack of clothing in the garment district when ideas of floating textiles, women’s issues and contemporary manufacture practices sparked internal dialogue, informing next body of work. 11/2007.

Dorothy Amenuke is an accomplished artist from Ghana and until October 2007 had never been outside of her home country. She was selected as an Apexart International Resident; broadly, the intention being “to experience the activities and individuals who are both relatable and doing substantial work in an effort to inform their (her) work rather than promote it.” Hence forward she sets about to “inform” herself: Museums, NYC subways and restaurants, galleries and continual string of happenstances, and then - travel to the Midwest. Dorothy finds her way Upstate NY and into my Cragsmoor home searching for camaraderie of fellow artists, visits to studios, art’s organizations and galleries up the Hudson.

We had two days.
Off we went to meet artists, because, in New York City, where could you possibly find them? Firstly, we were led on a guided tour of Women’s Studio Workshop and their artist book production facilities and ceramics studios (including lunch). Next stop was stimulating conversation and tea with Jeff Shapiro, ceramic artist in Accord, a tour of his Japanese style anagama kiln, studio and work. We then traveled South on 209, ending up in the studio/ foundry of local Ellenville artist Matt Pozorski with a generous and frank discussion developed amongst the two artists, including low cost and efficient metal casting techniques, angels, women in art and more. A brief stroll through Ellenville and the upcoming MarketStreet Art Center, exchanges of visions for innovative teaching strategies, community life and the arts, and up to Cragsmoor we went.

Here is where we relax, meander through the Cragsmoor Bleakley house/ hotel, a.k.a. my family home, visits to our painting, sculpture and photo studios. Offering her encaustic wax for experimenting in Ghana, as many issues of Sculpture Magazine as manageable on a plane, she later gifted me the beaded necklace around her neck. Perfect.

The next morning and a speeding ticket later (Dorothy and Judy talking non-stop) we walked into Pollich-Tallix Foundry in Beacon, not simply a fabrication facility, but more resembles a laboratory with shelves and floor space crowded by artists’ work in varying stages of the casting and fabrication process – out of context, gallery-speaking - asking nothing uncomfortable or demanding of the viewer – a situation of pure inspiration for Dorothy. Before leaving, the foundry happened to do a small bronze pour. Perfect. No less perfect was breakfast at Homespun in Beacon, with it’s perfect coffee, delicious home made granola parfaits and ginger scones, where we met up with Jill Reynolds (Ellenvlle's 10x10x10 artist). In the evening, Second Saturday Beacon was full up of opportunities to meet other artists and gallery openings.

We talked endlessly.

Ghanaian artist, educator, and current Apexart resident Dorothy Akpene Amenuke will discuss her work and its cultural context with Judy Sigunick, artist and arts community organizer in the Hudson Valley. The discussion will explore the boundaries between art and life, women's art, and the distinct contemporary art communities of Ghana and New York. (www.apexart.org)

And the talk continued in Manhattan.

Time is an essential component in my work, she states. Because my process is laborious, my sculptures…embody the time taken to create them…and the act of making art painstakingly every day is important to my practice, stemming from my interest in devotion to everyday responsibilities. (D. Amenuke)

She boarded a plane the day after our gallery talk, back to her husband and two children, and her newly appointed faculty position (first woman in Ghana) where she will teach contemporary and fiber art. Next stop for Dorothy was Egypt, Dwayer’s International Workshop for Women that month. Continuing the relation between textiles, Ghanaian culture and women’s issues and it seems that hers’ is not merely a lifestyle of making art, teaching and raising a family, but of detangling complex ideas and social networking, as well.