ARTIST’S INSTALLATION TRANSFORMS BLOOMFIELD COLLEGE GALLERY
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March 9, 2001 -- Glen Ridge artist Kellee Hughes has transformed the gallery space at Westminster Arts Center with her site-specific installation of drawings, writings, and found objects: “Trace Elements” of her life. Ms. Hughes’ drawings, transferred onto a floor-to-ceiling curved and gilded wall, represent a two-year journal of moments, thoughts and overheard phrases. “Originally, because I was traveling so often, the format of these drawings was small and portable,” said Hughes. “This also contributed to using materials that were readily available such as a packet of sugar, hair, cardboard, or tape. These elements carried as much validity, or more, as the traditional mediums of pencil, ink or watercolor.” Hughes said that the juxtaposition of intimacy and scale began to fascinate her as she studied her work, inspiring her to push even further.
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“Keeping the spontaneity of the original small drawings, I began to draw in a larger format,” Hughes explained. “I then traced these large drawings. The tracings expanded the intimacy of the large pieces and allowed me to further explore the technical process of drawing. The important aspect for me is the act of drawing itself - doing the work; the final images are a residue.”
It is not the physical art or artifact, but rather the act of living that Hughes considers important.
“As people journey through the gallery and look at the traces of my process of thinking or living or feeling, or yearning, I hope they think about themselves - and the trace elements they leave behind. We are all going through a process and whatever your contribution is, making it visible or at least acknowledging it to yourself is important,” said Hughes.
Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Ms. Hughes earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Moore College of Art in Philadelphia. For the past 15 years, she has been a designer of luxury handbags and accessories for companies such as Calvin Klein and Chanel. Along with designing, she has maintained her own studio where she has worked on developing her language as a fine artist in various mediums.
The show opens Wednesday, March 14, with an artist’s reception from 6 to 9 o’clock p.m. The exhibit is free and open to the public through May 25. Gallery hours are Monday through Thursday, 1 - 4:30 p.m., Friday, 11 a.m. - 2 p.m. and also by appointment. Westminster Art Gallery is located in The Westminster Arts Center at Bloomfield College, corner of Franklin and Fremont Streets, Bloomfield, NJ. For information, call (973) 748-9000 ext. 343.
