"Nude Truths," a collection of paintings and text on peace and justice issues, will open Sunday, Feb. 4, in the third floor art gallery of Hartzler Library at Eastern Mennonite University.
The powerful poetry of Denise Levertov (1923-1997) inspired sisters, Kristi Ylvisaker of Norway and Mary Ylvisaker Nilsen of Des Moines, Iowa, to create this cycle of art works, an odyssey, described by spiritual director Lucille Winnike as "a descent into and through the dark night of the soul."
Sisters Mary Ylvisaker Nilsen (l.) and Kristi Nilsen at work on their collaborative exhibit.
The exhibit, a cycle of 24 large framed paintings, flows from the idea of spin-offs, which Levertov defines as "a construct, which neither describes nor comments but moves off at a tangent to, or parallel with, its inspiration." All the paintings are spin-offs from lines of Levertov poetry. The prose reflection at the bottom of each painting is a spin-off from both the poetry and the painting.
The artists encourage the viewer to begin with "Innocence" and look at the 24 paintings in the order in which they are hung.
Levertov, who published her first book of poetry in London at age 17, moved to New York City in 1948. During the next decade, she wrote four books of poetry and became caught up in upheavals in the United States, especially the Vietnam War. Later, she took up the issue of nuclear disarmanent.
Levertov became immersed in the waters of mystical Roman Catholicism and filled her later poetry with theological questions, biblical allusions and spiritual quest.
Kristi Ylvisaker did her graduate work in painting at the University of Iowa and studied at the New York Studio School during the late 1960s. She has lived in Norway for more than 30 years. Ylvisaker is a member of the Norwegian Organization of Professional Artists and is widely commissioned and exhibited. This is her third show to travel to the United States.
Mary Ylvisaker Nilsen holds graduate degrees from the University of Iowa in non-fiction writing and from Harvard Divinity School in theological studies. She writes, teaches, edits and manages Zion Publishing from her home in Des Moines.
Mary Ylvisaker Nilsen will be present for an opening reception 2:30-4 p.m. Feb. 4 in the gallery.
"Nude truths, the title of the exhibit, are naked truths presented in a beautiful, artful way," Nilsen said.
The exhibit will be open for viewing during regular library hours daily through Mar. 1. Admission is free.
Hartzler Library hours:
Mon.-Thur. 7:45 a.m.-11 p.m.
Fri. 7:45 a.m.-6 p.m.
Sat. 10 a.m.-5 p.m.
Sun. 2 p.m.-11 p.m.