Doris Rowe, Northport (LI) artist, shows her latest work – Retablos – at Ripe Art Gallery, Greenlawn NY. Opening – Saturday, July 14th – 4 to 7 PM - running through Friday, August 3, 2012
Each wooden retablo has doors that open to a tiny dress or apron made from handmade printed drawings that are trimmed and woven together with ribbons and attached to a tiny wire hanger. Placed on a table, or wall, a retablo is a fitting and mysterious addition to any dining table.
With candles creating strange shadows a very special mood is in store for those who remember the story. Shirtwaist shapes of the Edwardian style are used as reminders of our last hundred years following that terrible Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire 1911 in NYC when 146 young workers were burned and jumped to their death because the doors were locked. To this day the fight to improve safety in the workplace and advancing the right to bargain for equality and sanity continues. The gently moving mirror elements and added trinkets quietly push the idea of permanence / transcendence perhaps found hidden deep in the closet of your mind.
Come open the doors – witness her angst and resolve – in a little dresses made by an artist who has long been “mad as hell” and frustrated by unsolvable political issues like abuse of workers, pollution, the Patriot Act, war, dishonesty, and malingering cultural bias.
Ripe Art Gallery is located at 67A Broadway, Greenlawn, NY 11740. We are open Tuesday through Thursday, 11AM - 6PM, Friday, 2 - 8PM, and Saturday, 11AM - 5PM.
