Intern Talks: Melinda Rosenberg's Works in Wood Exhibit

If you've been at the MAC at all since March 7th, there's no way you've missed our current main exhibit: Works in Wood by Melinda Rosenberg. Simple, yet magnetic woodwork made from found woods like barn siding as well as pine and poplar, Rosenberg's pieces amaze me. I'll do my best to explain why after letting you know a little bit more about the artist.

Melinda Rosenberg is a Worthington resident who has shown her art in Chicago and all over Ohio. She's studied at The Ohio State University and Fu Jen University in Taipei, Taiwan where she studied Chinese Language. Based off what I've read on her website, Japanese culture influences her work, especially the use of visuals tricking the viewer's perception in order to make them stop to look again.

In the statement section of Rosenberg's website she discusses her work and inspiration in a way that is as compelling and stimulating as the art itself. She reveals the intention behind her work's "quiet yet interesting" shape and specific arrangements. Many of her pieces are part of a set and arranged with its sister pieces.

Bear Torso (2013)

When it comes to perceiving the art, the arrangement is as important as the details within each separate artwork. Rosenberg explains, "when comparing two similar things, perception becomes more acute. Differences become noticeable. The more subtle the difference, the more nagging the similarities."

It was great to read what her intentions are because even without her language and ideas to frame it, I've experienced that shift in my perception when looking at them.

Except for her more whimsical sets in the lobby (which still contain her creative use of found material, and attention to shape, texture, and color), Rosenberg's exhibit is geometric and shape driven. In some of my favorite sets, she creates sharp, uniform shapes and subtly, or not so subtly, defies them.

Raw Edge - Group 2 (2012)

The piece at the bottom of this set, is one of my favorites, mostly because it bothers the crap out of me. The symmetry of the reddish barn siding, the strip of poplar, and two black triangles is disturbed by the jagged edges thrusting from the side. While my desire for symmetry is flared, I love that raw edge and how the asymmetry strikes me.

Rosenberg does beautiful things with texture and color. In the arrangement below there are so many different textures, patterns, shapes, and details going on. Far from overwhelming or overstimulating me, the display simply captivated me with the many ways she constructed a book's cover spread like wings, the pages fluttering.

Books 1-9 (2012)

This exhibit is my first experience with woodworking as an art form and I'm hooked. Her pieces are disruptively simple and fully engaging. If I had the hundreds of dollars necessary to keep one in my home I would.

Sunday, April 14th, 2-3pm, she will give an Artist Talk that is FREE to the public. I want to hear more of what she has to say about her works shape, arrangement, and what she hopes the viewers notice.