Waterworks Visual Arts Center

Abundance/Abundance Lost is an exhibition of artworks made by the ARPA 10 Art Collective, a group that came together while they were artists-in-residence at the McColl Center in Charlotte, one of the region’s most esteemed residency programs.  ARPA (Spanish for Harp), a Spanish restaurant located a few blocks from the Center, was the site for many thoughtful discussions which created a lasting bond between these 10 regional artists.  The group’s working relationship became so fruitful that they continued to meet as friends and colleagues long after their residencies had ended, naming the collective after the site of their stimulating conversations.

Working across a wide variety of media and with very little in common in terms of theme or content, these artists are brought together by a dedication to the unique.  As Dr. Peg DeLamater wrote in a statement about one of ARPA 10’s early exhibitions, “These McColl artists constitute an eclectic celebration of multiplicity.  Rather than stemming from a common philosophy or a single approach to making art, the interaction and respect for each other’s work…mirrors the insistence of the contemporary art world on diversity and individual expression.”  David Edgar’s sculptures of reappropriated domestic containers bear little resemblance to Linda Luise Brown’s lyrical abstract paintings but in their juxtaposition they activate one another and encourage an imaginative response to both the individual pieces and their pairing.  The group aims with these non-parallel arrangements to create a harmony between the artists and the works wherein each artist’s individuality enriches the totality of the exhibition.  In this way they emphasize the true potential of relationships and partnership between artists. The group includes Alyssa Wood and Felicia van Bork (Davidson, NC), Linda Luise Brown, David Edgar, Laura Alma McCarthy, and Amy Sanders (Charlotte, NC), Jennifer Parham Gilomen (Clover, SC), Paula Smith and J. Michael Simpson (Rock Hill, SC), and Charles McMurray (Miami, FL—formerly of Charlotte). 

Sponsored by SunTrust Bank