2008 Woodie Awards
An interview with Adele Wayman
Simon Kelly
Issue date: 2/16/08 Section: Features
Simon Kelly:For Adele Wayman, Hege professor of art at Guilford, the intersection between spirituality and creative expression has always been a compelling subject.
While on sabbatical last year, Wayman was able to explore this territory in depth, producing her latest project, "Artists Make Altars." Currently on display at Raleigh's Long View Gallery, the exhibition includes the altars of four other artists, each employing a unique array of media, including clay, photographs, found objects and paint.
I understand from your "Artists Make Altars" artist's statement that you see art as a meditative tool for achieving a greater understanding of the world and the meaning of life. Has this type of Buddhist spirituality always figured into your work?
Adele Wayman: No, I would say that only for about the last seven or eight years. I've been practicing meditation for 15 years, sort of sporadically. This year, while I've been on leave, I've been practicing it more seriously. I also developed a course at Guilford about seven or eight years ago called "Sacred Images, Altars and Rituals," so I've been interested in altars for a long time. But the connection between the meditation and the altars is a little bit more recent.
SK: Your work suggests a strong connection between yourself and other female artists, such as Frida Kahlo. In what way has she influenced you?
AW: I don't know any women artists who don't love Frieda Kahlo - either for her art or simply by the life she led, which was fascinating. The painting that contains her image (Polish Your Mud Balls) has an interesting story behind it. I think of that painting really as a mixed media collage, and the idea for it came from a Guilford alum named Patty Digh, who has since become a world-recognized worker for diversity training. In recent years, she has been writing a prize-winning blog called "Thirty Seven Days" that she is turning into a book of essays, which a number of other artists, including myself, will be contributing illustrations to. The essay that she sent to me is called "Polish Your Mud Balls," which was great for the theme of my project because in the essay, polishing your mud balls is a metaphor for meditation.
While on sabbatical last year, Wayman was able to explore this territory in depth, producing her latest project, "Artists Make Altars." Currently on display at Raleigh's Long View Gallery, the exhibition includes the altars of four other artists, each employing a unique array of media, including clay, photographs, found objects and paint.
I understand from your "Artists Make Altars" artist's statement that you see art as a meditative tool for achieving a greater understanding of the world and the meaning of life. Has this type of Buddhist spirituality always figured into your work?
Adele Wayman: No, I would say that only for about the last seven or eight years. I've been practicing meditation for 15 years, sort of sporadically. This year, while I've been on leave, I've been practicing it more seriously. I also developed a course at Guilford about seven or eight years ago called "Sacred Images, Altars and Rituals," so I've been interested in altars for a long time. But the connection between the meditation and the altars is a little bit more recent.
SK: Your work suggests a strong connection between yourself and other female artists, such as Frida Kahlo. In what way has she influenced you?
AW: I don't know any women artists who don't love Frieda Kahlo - either for her art or simply by the life she led, which was fascinating. The painting that contains her image (Polish Your Mud Balls) has an interesting story behind it. I think of that painting really as a mixed media collage, and the idea for it came from a Guilford alum named Patty Digh, who has since become a world-recognized worker for diversity training. In recent years, she has been writing a prize-winning blog called "Thirty Seven Days" that she is turning into a book of essays, which a number of other artists, including myself, will be contributing illustrations to. The essay that she sent to me is called "Polish Your Mud Balls," which was great for the theme of my project because in the essay, polishing your mud balls is a metaphor for meditation.
Be the first to comment on this story