PAINTINGS AND POTTERY ON DISPLAY AT BEAR’S MILL

Paintings by Casstown artist Kathy A. Moore and large-scale wood-fired pieces by Bardstown, Kentucky potter Matthew Gaddie will be on display at historic Bear’s Mill August 26 through September 25. This “Art at the Mill” exhibit opens with a Friday night reception from 6 to 9 p.m. where patrons can chat with the artists and partake of hors d’oeuvres and drinks while viewing the artworks.

“We are very excited to be presenting these highly skilled artists,” said Mill spokesperson Julie Clark. A potter herself, Julie has done firings at Matt’s kiln located on his family’s 315-acre farm. “Pairing Matt’s simple, yet elegant pots with Kathy’s amazingly complex, but straightforward still life paintings will broaden points of view and hopefully deepen appreciation for these artists’ excellent work,” Julie concluded.

Matt Gaddie creates unique functional vessels which reflect his appreciation for the simple life of rural Kentucky. He compares his current cyclical pattern of throwing, trimming, glazing, and firing his pots to the life he knew as a farm boy who engaged in the cyclical agricultural practices of planting, cultivating, and harvesting. “I try to live my life slowly and with purpose,” says the University of Evansville graduate. “In a time of mass-produced uniformity, I create pieces with their own tales of creation, success, failure, imperfection, and hope which can take time to create and to fully appreciate,” Matt states.

Since graduating from Wright State University, Kathy Moore has earned many prestigious awards for her work which has not only hung in galleries throughout southwestern Ohio, but has also been shown in juried shows in New York City. Kathy creates still lifes which are approached from many different light-infused perspectives, capturing familiar objects from diverse, sometimes surprising points of view. “My images may appear to be still and quiet, but I aspire to convey a subtle quality of mystique within a luminous environment,” Kathy explains.

Watercolors and pastels painted by Selena Burk remain on display at Bear’s Mill through August 21, along with new pottery by Mrs. Clark, Rita Wiley, and Loretta Wray. “Art at the Mill” is on view during regular Mill store hours: 11 a.m. till 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and Sundays, and Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Bear’s Mill is operated by the Friends of Bear’s Mill, a non-profit organization, and is located at 6450 Arcanum-Bear’s Mill Road about 5 miles east of Greenville. For more information, contact Bear’s Mill at 937-548-5112 or www.bearsmill.com.