April 16, from 2 – 6 P.M.
Easter is the most important holiday of the festival calendar for many Mexican Catholics. The abundance of Easter and Lenten season rituals, such as processions, dances, and other observances are evidence of its significance.
To commemorate this season, The Folk Tree’s exhibition includes a wide variety of crosses from Latin America; recycled oil drum art from Haiti; ceramic religious figures by Demetrio Aguilar from Oaxaca; santos (painted and unpainted wood carvings of saints) from Mexico and New Mexico; and milagros (miracle offerings).
Area artists offer their own take on the theme. Silversmith Alba Heredia shows her “Seven Deadly Sins Keys;” paper mache artist Ulla Anobile contributes ancient Finnish spirit masks and the Finnish demon woman Syojatar; mosaic artist Mary Clark Camargo takes inspiration from a classic Robert Mitchum movie, “Out of the Past,” a film noir about a man of violence; Robyn Feeley shows pastel paintings with titles such as “Toucanfucius” and “Lady of Guacamole;” fiber artist Mavis Leahy contributes devil dolls; Janet Olenik’s gouache on paper pieces pay tribute to St. Gertrude; photographer
Liam Sinnott portrays Los Olvidades of Peru; and sculptor Philip Ramirez cast resin piece “The Ins, The Outs, The Up,The Down” presents a very different interpretation of heaven and hell. More traditional religious imagery is displayed by painters Ozzie Carmona,
Kruti Shah, Ricardo Reyes, and Anahit Vart, among many others. The show also includes the work of several jewelers.
Saints & Sinners features Catholic devotional objects, contemporary pieces incorporating multi-cultural spiritual symbols, and work with a touch of irreverence that challenges traditional religious perspectives. Theists and secularists alike will appreciate the variety of work on view.
The Folk Tree is located at 217 South Fair Oaks Avenue, minutes walking distance from the Gold Line’s Del Mar Station (and just fifteen minutes from downtown Los Angeles off the end of the 110 freeway) near the heart of Old Pasadena. Gallery hours are:
M-W, 11-6; Th-Sat, 10-6; Sun, 12-5. For more information, contact The Folk Tree at 626/795-8733 or Gail Mishkin at 626/793-4828.
