COLUMBIA — Since 2013, the ArtFields festival has taken over Lake City, with a host of artists from the Southeast converging in one celebration of art. Now, a piece of the festival will make its way to Columbia in the exhibition “Taking Root: The ArtFields Collection” at 701 Center for Contemporary Art.
The exhibition features art from every year of the festival, ranging from large-scale paintings to smaller, quirky sculptures. Curated by Jamison Mady Kerr, ArtFields’ director of Art Town development, there’s beauty and there’s pain, attitudes and issues representing a broad vision of the Southeast and its art.
Ken May, chairman of the board at 701 Center for Contemporary Art, said the exhibition represents the beginning of a partnership between 701 CCA and ArtFields.
“'Taking Root' really refers to the theme of fields and growing things. You know, seeding the fields then waiting to see what comes up,” May said. “(ArtFields) decided to do some planning and see what had taken root and what they should try to grow beyond that. And so that's what this plan is about.”
The connection between the two came about accidentally, as former executive director of 701 CCA Caitlin Bright took over as director of ArtFields last year. With that preexisting relationship, May said it made sense to start looking to see what the two groups could do together.
“It's not like it was a big strategic thing that was developed intentionally," she said. "It's just that human relationships have kind of made it possible, and we said, ‘Well, let's explore this.’”
The connections between the two groups extend into their missions and goals. Both 701 CCA and ArtFields are elevating the works of contemporary artists and deepening the connection between artists and the surrounding community. May believes the public has a real curiosity and desire for art, and CCA and ArtFields can help bridge the gap.
"Thanks. No Thanks." from MyLoan Dinh, 2020. Provided
“Both 701 CCA and ArtFields are really devoted to contemporary art, essentially,” May said. “701’s mission really is to develop meaningful dialogue between a diverse pool of artists and the diverse communities that we serve, and ArtField’s is similar … so we have a common mission in that way.”
Although nothing is set in stone, May said there have been discussions of future collaborations between ArtFields and 701 CCA, and the different ways the two groups can support each other.
Developing a consistent artist-in-residence program is a priority for ArtFields, which 701 CCA has experience in from their long-standing program. Both ArtFields and 701 CCA need curators who can help develop their exhibitions, and they’re interested in creating a program where curators could be shared between the two galleries. And ArtFields sharing its collection for “Taking Root” is an example of how future traveling exhibitions between the gallery space at 701 CCA and the galleries in Lake City could work.
For now, “Taking Root” serves as the start of a new relationship, a way to draw attention to the art Lake City has to offer.
“Taking Root: The ArtFields Collection” opens at 701 CCA on Thursday, March 28th with a reception and closes on May 18th.
