(Casper, Wyo.) – Visions of public and private space in Turkey, seen through the eyes of native artist Gabrielle Reeves, will begin with this month’s First Thursday Art Walk opening at Art 321.
![Sketches and works in progress on display at Art 321 from featured artist Gabrielle Reeves.]()
- Sketches and works in progress on display at Art 321 from featured artist Gabrielle Reeves.
Her paintings, drawings and rubbings go inside the homes of Turkish people to show the roles of the sexes and their day to day views of the world.
“Women are mostly staying at home or working in the garden… tending to children,” said Reeves. “Men will spend a lot of time in the public square or town stores. It is very very separate.”
She has been living in Turkey on and off for a few years and the contrast of home and public life has influenced her work significantly two years ago. Using architecture and the role of public and private space in her work shows through vibrantly, with color and texture.
Reeves uses her connections with the women in the small village of Cappadocia, centrally located in Turkey and southeast of Istanbul, for some of the textures in her paintings. She uses their hand-crafted lace doilies to incorporate their artwork with hers.
“I was looking for a way to use pattern, but that is perfect because it is a ready-made stencil,” said Reeves. “I wanted to do a little bit of a collaboration. Have the women help me in some ways because they don’t get the opportunity so often. This seemed like the perfect way to do that.”
![Gabrielle Reeves' image of Cappadocia, Turkey.]()
- Gabrielle Reeves’ image of Cappadocia, Turkey.
Mostly seeing men in the architectural paintings, because of the public space, but she saw some of the spaces mirroring public and private space. Finding the genders segregated but having this connection of spaces and blending them together with examples from certain parts of the country.
“Being from such a small community, I felt so comfortable in this particular village (Cappadocia),” said Reeves. “I can see the similarities between there and here, but also the extreme differences.”
She describes both Wyoming and Turkey with rich in history and she focuses on that when she bounces between the two places. With the differences being Turkey is rich in human history and Wyoming is rich in geological history.
“Always when I come back here, I recognize things in Wyoming that I didn’t see before, because of my travels,” said Reeves. “When you’re home, you just don’t see these things… until I come back as a visitor. That evidence of history.”
“History there is deep, but it is deep here in a different way,” said Reeves.
Reeves will be teaching a workshop at Art 321 Friday, July 17 from 11:00am – 4:00pm.
July First Thursday Art Walk