Art by Gabriella Boros, Lauren Stevens + Dani Wallace

On view May 5 - June 23, 2024

Artist Talks + Opening Reception: Friday, May 24th at 7:30pm. Doors open 7-9pm. 

The three printmakers in this exhibit create work inspired by Christianity and Judaism. Their different expressions of faith are as varied as their printmaking techniques– copper etchings, woodblock prints, linocuts, and screenprints. 

Gabriella Boros’ woodblock prints and books draw upon the Torah and Talmud as she processes and applies the text to life. Lauren Stevens’ detailed copper etchings are filled with Old Testament stories and prophecies of creation restored. Dani Wallace’s prints explore the ways God works in our lives, finding spiritual meaning through imagery drawn from life.

Gabriella Boros, born in Jerusalem, Israel to Holocaust survivors, immigrated with her family to the US for her father’s career during her formative years. 

 A graduate of the University of Michigan School of Art, Gabriella has been exhibiting her art nationally and internationally since 1986. Since 2012, she has explored woodblock printmaking, and in which she has completed three artist residencies. She is a recipient of a State of Illinois Artist Grant. She has also participated in two fellowships. Her work is included in both private and institutional collections. Her three handmade books Esh: Sanctity in Fire, Symbiosis and Eighteen Stones are in the permanent collection of the University of Michigan Libraries Special Collections. 

Her themes range from the intersection of plants and humans to gender and spiritual commentary, sometimes in the same work. Most of her prints are created as thematic series, which she researches and develops into visual narratives. See more of Gabriella’s work at www.gabriellaboros.com.

Lauren Stevens was raised alongside car engineers and Bible scholars in the desert terrain of Chandler, Arizona. A young love of pen and ink drawing easily translated to the linear nature of copper etching when she studied at the Kansas City Art Institute. There, she earned her BFA with a specialized emphasis in printmaking. Now, she is furthering her research as the Fall 2023 printmaking candidate at Arizona State University. See more of Lauren’s work at www.laurenstevensart.com. 

Dani Wallace is a visual artist and graphic designer living in Louisville, KY. She studied Studio Art & Marketing at the College of William & Mary. There, she discovered relief printmaking and fell in love with the medium for its graphic, illustrative quality and the ‘happy accidents’ that can occur. She enjoys creating works infused with narrative and symbolism that explore the presence of God in people’s stories. The medium of printmaking also brings with it unpredictability, which Dani finds challenging yet appropriate for works involving storytelling, as stories themselves are never straightforward. In addition to printmaking, Dani works full-time as a brand manager for several companies. She also freelances on the side and has produced artwork for Sojourn Midtown and other local businesses and individuals. See more of Dani’s work at www.daniwallace.myportfolio.com.

On view August 25 - October 27, 2024

Exhibit statement:

Why would Native Americans believe in the religion of the invaders? This is a question the artists in this exhibition have been confronted with many times. As Native people who are Christians, we sense a deep paradox when asked this question.

Why DO we believe in the Gospel of the invaders, the so-called “white man’s religion”? This is the internal struggle that this exhibition chooses to address. Told within the context of a history of deeply ingrained Christian practice among generations of Native peoples, we face the tensions created in our lives by the faith we practice. In Altars of Reconciliation, viewers experience contemporary, Native-themed altarpieces of sacred art, personal in their stories but universal in their struggle with eternal questions.

Our intent for this show specifically is to explore a theme rarely confronted in the art world: the practice of Christianity among Native peoples. There is and continues to be a long, rich and layered history of Native churches and Christian tradition, but there is an equally long sense of tension and conflict among tribal peoples about questions of faith. Often framed as a “Christian vs. Traditionalist” dichotomy, the real story is not nearly so clear-cut. By facing our own faith struggles and transformations through these ‘altarpieces,’ our desire is to bring about healthy discussion and awareness of how Christianity has played a historic (and continuing) role among our Native peoples, and in the bigger picture, to engage people in thinking about the role of faith in their own lives.

— Bobby C. Martin, Erin Shaw, & Tony A. Tiger

Bobby C. Martin is an artist/educator/facilitator who works out of 7 Springs Studio in Oklahoma. Martin’s artwork is exhibited and collected internationally in group and solo exhibitions, the most recent being a one-person exhibition entitled But You Don’t Look Indian… His current project, Altars of Reconciliation, is a three-person show featuring Martin, Erin Shaw (Chickasaw-Choctaw), and Tony Tiger (Sac & Fox-Muscogee-Seminole). The works focus on the experiences of the artists as Native Americans and as Christians. An enrolled citizen of the Muscogee (Creek) tribe in Oklahoma, he holds a Professor of Visual Arts position at John Brown University in Siloam Springs, Arkansas.

Erin Shaw is a painter of borderlands, the spaces between worlds. As a visual storyteller, the child of an Oklahoma farm, Shaw tills the rich soil of dichotomy through her masterful use of color, iconography, and story. A Chickasaw-Choctaw artist, she creates in a state of tension, where both solemnity and humor pervade and truths are revealed in unanticipated ways. She earned a BFA in studio art from Baylor University and an MFA from the University of Oklahoma. She is an Assistant Professor of Visual Arts at John Brown University and a featured artist in Visual Voices: Contemporary Chickasaw Art, among other exhibits.

Tony A. Tiger is an artist, independent Indigenous art curator, and art educator. He earned a Master’s of Fine Art degree from Oklahoma State University Stillwater. Tiger is the former Director of the Bacone College Art program in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Speak: Speak While You Can is Tiger’s current curation project. The exhibition focuses on the revitalization of Indigenous languages. Tony’s art is in private and public collections in North America and abroad. He is represented by the Exhibit C Gallery in Oklahoma City and the Rain Maker Gallery in Bristol, UK. He supports community events and is active in the local Indigenous church.