Like a String Full of Knots | Pattie Chalmer

Join us for a solo exhibition of Pattie Chalmer's sculptural installation, objects, and functional ceramic work. Although the various bodies of work in this exhibition may appear visually distinct, Chalmer's practice is linked by narrative and memory. Chalmer's work depicts some of life’s complicated experiences. For example, Every Day I Think of You is an installation that catalogs the recollections of a lifetime of relationships and loss through 365 terracotta objects. She is a storyteller, and through the narrative nature of her work, we encounter these stories as vignettes or visual poems. Chalmer's work offers the viewer a conduit to consider their own memories and commonalities - transcending individual stories towards shared human experiences.

About the Artist:
Pattie Chalmers received her BFA in printmaking from the University of Manitoba in Canada, and her MFA in ceramics from the University of Minnesota. She has exhibited in group exhibitions on five continents, in six countries and thirty-six states and has had eight solo exhibitions in the past seven years, most recently Conjugating the Inevitable at the Quincy Art Center in Quincy, Illinois. Chalmers engages in a variety of approaches of making, resulting in the appearance of a somewhat frenetic studio practice.  The suggestion of a narrative is the linchpin.  Pattie is inherently an explainer and a storyteller and through her work attempts to map her experiences to give better understanding to others and herself. Chalmers is a Professor at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale where she is also the Head of Graduate Studies and runs the ceramics program.

Artist Talk: Thursday, February 19th at 6pm in the NEW Lake Valentine Room, CLC Building Room 109, Ground Level         
Reception: following the talk in the Olson Gallery (CLC, 2nd Level) from 7-8pm
Virtual Viewing: Instagram @bethelgalleries

Gallery Hours:
Monday - Friday: 9am - 8pm
Saturday and Sunday: 11am - 6pm

Image information: Pattie Chalmers, Every Day I Think of You (detail)