A new exhibition opening this week at the William D. Cannon Art Gallery in Carlsbad puts a playful twist on the gallery’s location inside the Dove Library by highlighting pieces of art created from or inspired by books.
Curator Karen McGuire said she and other members of the city’s Library and Cultural Arts Office have wanted to host such an exhibition for years, believing it would be a perfect marriage of their two worlds.
It turned out even better than they hoped. “We’re really excited to bring it to life,” McGuire said.
The exhibition, Reimagined: The Artist’s Book, opens Saturday, Feb. 26, and runs through May 14. Admission is free. A free opening reception with a live DJ is also being held in the courtyard outside the gallery on Saturday from 5 to 7 p.m., hosted by the Carlsbad Friends of the Arts.
The 14 artists featured in the exhibition took the book theme and ran with it in uniquely creative ways, McGuire said. One artist created a conceptual piece based on the complete works of William Shakespeare, shredded and reassembled in a new form. Another worked with ceramics to connect literary words and phrases. Still others used raw or abstract materials to create book-inspired sculptural images.
“You look at some of these pieces and wonder. ‘How does an artist think of this?’” McGuire said. “It’s really very cool.”
Seven of the artists featured in the exhibit are from Southern California and the rest come from all over the United States.
McGuire has been curator at the Cannon Art Gallery since it opened in September 1999. In that time the gallery has hosted more than 100 exhibitions, ranging from Russian icons to Italian glass to all kinds of media. It’s incredibly fulfilling work, she said.
“The variety is amazing and each artist that we bring into the gallery makes me look at the world in a different way,” McGuire said. “It’s always creative, there’s always great imagination and talent, and it’s a joy to bring that to our community and share it through the City of Carlsbad.”
The William. D. Cannon Art Gallery is at 1775 Dove Lane, Carlsbad. The gallery is open Tuesdays-Thursdays from noon to 7 p.m. and Fridays-Saturdays from noon to 5 p.m.
More information
William. D. Cannon Art Gallery webpage
