GRAND RAPIDS -- The MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids will feature Bemidji fiber artist Blair Treuer's "Portraits: An Identity Exploration" in its July exhibitions.
Treuer describes herself as a storyteller who paints with fabric and draws with thread. While she has enjoyed and played with many forms of artistic expression throughout her life, she has only recently become active in the art world. Her pieces have been featured in over two dozen exhibitions, including four solo shows, and have received awards or recognition in multiple juried exhibitions, a release said.
The pieces included in this exhibit depict Treuer, her husband Anton and their nine children. Through her work she explores the role that Ojibwe traditional cultural practices and beliefs have played in shaping her family both as a collective and as individuals, the release said.
“As a white woman, the only non-native person in my immediate family, my work is about my reflections as an outsider and about the emotional rollercoaster I often ride as I stand fixed on the outside, but privileged enough to look in,” Treuer said in the release. “This portrait series is not just about the pieces of Ojibwe culture I’ve been allowed to see, but also what it’s allowed me to see within myself, and even to recognize what cannot be found there.”
The public is invited to experience the new exhibitions opening July 2 at the MacRostie Art Center in Grand Rapids, 405 NW First Ave., or online at macrostieartcenter.org . July exhibitions at MacRostie Art Center are sponsored by SCG Nonprofits and Northview Bank.
