Life Preservers: Collaborative works by Liz Maugans & Hilary Gent
(a pop-up at our original location!)
Maria Neil Art Project
15813 Waterloo Road
Cleveland, OH 44110
November 1st - December 6th, 2019
Yes, you've read that correctly. Our final pop-up of 2019 is in our original gallery space on Waterloo road. During the monthly 'Walk All Over Waterloo' festivities you can walk those dozen or so steps down E. 160th street and step into a space both familiar and new.
We are showing two artists that are not new to Maria Neil, nor are they new to the Northeast Ohio area. They are, however, joining forces to collaborate and create a brand new body of work that we are excited to show you. Hilary Gent and Liz Maugans are coming together to deliver us Life Preservers.Infinity and purpose are both key elements of Liz Maugans’ work in this exhibition. “Water takes us to infinity and brings us back. I want to swim towards happiness and lightness. I want joy. I want to find those relationships and people in my life that offer me unconditional love and support,” offers Maugans about this latest body of work. Liz was the very first artist to show with Maria Neil when we began on the walls of the now-closed Dragonfly restaurant in 2012. We’re excited to be working with her again.
Water has frequently been an inspiration for Hilary Gent. For this exhibition, she is expanding that palate to include other images and inspirations. “I’ve been reflecting on water imagery in my paintings, but will also be including medical imagery—particularly ultrasounds—in new works. There’s a similarity in some of the patterns, and they have been subconsciously repeating themselves in my paintings,” says Gent in talking about the work for this exhibition. Hilary has shown several times with us and is always an exciting artist to exhibit.
15813 Waterloo Road
Cleveland, OH 44110
November 1st - December 6th, 2019
Yes, you've read that correctly. Our final pop-up of 2019 is in our original gallery space on Waterloo road. During the monthly 'Walk All Over Waterloo' festivities you can walk those dozen or so steps down E. 160th street and step into a space both familiar and new.
We are showing two artists that are not new to Maria Neil, nor are they new to the Northeast Ohio area. They are, however, joining forces to collaborate and create a brand new body of work that we are excited to show you. Hilary Gent and Liz Maugans are coming together to deliver us Life Preservers.Infinity and purpose are both key elements of Liz Maugans’ work in this exhibition. “Water takes us to infinity and brings us back. I want to swim towards happiness and lightness. I want joy. I want to find those relationships and people in my life that offer me unconditional love and support,” offers Maugans about this latest body of work. Liz was the very first artist to show with Maria Neil when we began on the walls of the now-closed Dragonfly restaurant in 2012. We’re excited to be working with her again.
Water has frequently been an inspiration for Hilary Gent. For this exhibition, she is expanding that palate to include other images and inspirations. “I’ve been reflecting on water imagery in my paintings, but will also be including medical imagery—particularly ultrasounds—in new works. There’s a similarity in some of the patterns, and they have been subconsciously repeating themselves in my paintings,” says Gent in talking about the work for this exhibition. Hilary has shown several times with us and is always an exciting artist to exhibit.
About the Artist:
Liz Maugans is the Director of YARDS Projects, and curator of the Dalad Collection at Worthington Yards in Cleveland’s Warehouse District. She co-founded and is the Former Executive Director of Zygote Press, a non-profit printmaking studio also located in Cleveland, Ohio. She founded the Collective Arts Network, a quarterly journal, online resource and arts consortium that works to promote Northeast Ohio artists and organizations to a greater audience. She is founder of the Artist Trust, an open access collective arts project and artist registry to better connect Cuyahoga County Artists of all disciplines to each other and the greater community. Maugans was instrumental in bringing the Rooms-to-Let Project to Slavic Village and acts as a consultant and participant of the temporary installations that take place in foreclosed houses. Maugans chairs the Community Advisory Committee for FRONT International Triennial and is an active Board Trustee of the Collective Arts Network. She received her BFA in printmaking from Kent State University and her MFA from Cranbrook Academy of Art in 1992. Maugans’ work is included in the Progressive Art Collection, The Cleveland Clinic, the Dalad Collection, BF Goodrich, the Westin Collection and The Riffe Center for Government and the Arts. She received an Ohio Arts Council Individual Artist Fellowship in 2000 and a 2005 Artist-in-Communities Grant. Maugans was awarded an Ohio Arts Council’s International Residency to Dresden, Germany in 2009. She was honored, along with her Zygote co-founder, Bellamy Prints, the Martha Joseph Prize for Distinguished Service from the Cleveland Arts Prize in 2012. In 2013, she was awarded a $20,000 Creative Workforce Fellowship from Community Partnership for Arts and Culture. Maugans lives in Bay Village with her husband, John and three kids, Olivia, John and Will. In 2018, she committed more time to her own studio practice and can be found at 78th Street Studios. She is represented through HEDGE Gallery, also located at 78th Street Studios. |
About the Artist:
78th Street Studios in Cleveland’s Gordon Square Arts District has become known as Northeast Ohio’s most eclectic and engaging arts destination. Its rise in popularity as a cultural attraction is due, in large part, to the pioneering efforts of gallery director, special events entrepreneur and painter, Hilary Gent. Hilary has spent the last 7 years staging public exhibits, launching art walks, and planning elaborate receptions for individuals and organizations – all of which have transformed the way residents and visitors view our region. She was one of the first visionaries to plant roots in a forgotten century warehouse, creating unforgettable art events through her space, HEDGE Gallery. What started as an underground activity attracting a few hundred people every quarter has grown to become a monthly art mob of thousands, called THIRD FRIDAYS, which according to Scene Magazine is “The Best Arts Event” in Cleveland. Because of Hilary’s nuanced leadership in organizing dozens of businesses, creativity in presenting compelling exhibits, and electric personality as a city champion, she has been recognized by Scene Magazine’s special section on People as someone who makes Cleveland the best place in America. Hilary actively serves on the board of SPACES Gallery and volunteers with the Detroit Shoreway Community Development Merchants Association. She has earned awards and grants for her efforts to collaborate with nearby agencies, resulting in programming that has stimulated the entire Gordon Square Arts District. In economic development terms, Hilary’s motivation to present that arts as a vehicle for elevating a neighborhood has provided urban planners with prime elements upon which to build larger community plans. |
