Warwick, RI—The Rhode Island State Council on the Arts (RISCA) today announced new art exhibitions have opened in the galleries at Block Island and Rhode Island T.F. Green International airports. The galleries are a partnership between RISCA and the RI Airport Corporation (RIAC).
GREEN SPACE at T.F. Green International features works by three Providence-based artists, Marjorie Hellman, Keri King and Wesley Sanders. Bristol-based artist Kevin Calisto's artwork is on display at the Block Island Airport. Both exhibits will close on Jan. 15.
Additionally, RISCA is currently accepting applications for artists for 2022 exhibits at both airport galleries. The entry deadline is Sunday, Oct. 10, at 11:59 p.m. The call for artists will consider artists who work in all media and applicants must be Rhode Island residents. No students, please.
"By highlighting RI artists, RISCA's airport galleries provide travelers a vision of our incredible creativity. It's a treat for first time visitors and residents to discover RI's thriving and diverse arts community, a key economic driver, representing more than $2 billion in economic activity," said Randall Rosenbaum, RISCA's Executive Director.
About the artist at Block Island Airport Kevin Calisto is an artist and educator whose work explores fragmented nature, imaginary landscapes and investigating memories of the past and present. He works in a variety of media including painting, printmaking and drawing, which traverses the worlds of brilliant color and enigmatic monochrome. His work has been exhibited through galleries in the New England region and at TF Green International Airport. A passionate educator, Kevin has taught at the K-12 and college level for several years. He is currently a teacher of art at Tiverton High School.
About the artists at T.F. Green International Airport Marjorie Hellman grew up between Philadelphia and New York. Her passion for looking at art led her to study at Rhode Island School of Design, (European Honors Program, BFA Painting, 1971) and Cranbrook Academy of Art, (Graduate Painting Program). After completing an MFA at Syracuse University, she remained in upstate New York for over 25 years, teaching studio art on the college level, and exhibiting throughout the Northeast. In 1999, she moved to Asheville, N.C., where her studio practice and exhibition opportunities continued until they were interrupted by a serious cervical spine injury caused by a car accident. In 2012, she moved to Providence.
Keri King is an artist, designer and storyteller based in Providence. With her whimsical, picture book-ready characters that pop up on city buildings to greet each viewer on a human scale, she uses public art as a forum to elicit play and to reflect community narratives. King's multi-media murals and installations have been featured at the Providence Public Library, AS220, Dirt Palace, PVDfest, and Pawtucket Arts Festival. King also translates her love of visual world-building into stage design at the Wilbury Theatre Group, where she is an ongoing artist-in-residence. Keri King graduated from the Rhode Island School of Design in 2005. King recently joined the faculty at the Gordon School.
Wesley Sanders is an interdisciplinary artist and designer whose work seeks to rethink our assumptions of the built environment. Through painting, sculpture, installation, furniture and exhibition design, he centers space making as the primary vehicle for stimulating imagination, building community and creating change. He was born and raised in Shepherdstown, W.V., before receiving a BFA from Brown University. He holds a Master of Design in Exhibition and Narrative Environments from the Rhode Island School of Design. He currently lives and works in Providence.
Exhibitors for GREEN SPACE and Block Island Airport were chosen by panelists Kathy Hodge, Viera Levitt and Frank Poor.