In the Shadow of the Temple
Thru November 16th

A half-dozen artists, working in as many media, showcase their work at the upcoming "In the Shadow of the Temple" special exhibit at the Ice House Gallery. The artist reception and opening on Friday, October 10 at 7:30pm is centerpiece of the Morgan Arts Council's (MAC) Artwalk which includes three additional downtown stops. Refreshments are provided at the reception and throughout the walk.

From 5-7:30pm, the Art Walk focuses on Mountain Laurel, Youbawtwhat! and River's Edge Woodworks taking art lovers from the square to the north end of town and back to the Ice House. "It's all walkable," said Lynn Lavin, Gallery Co-ordinator for the sponsoring MAC. "People will get a bonus since this is Apple Butter Festival weekend and booths will be setting up all over downtown."

The southern face jugs of West Virginia artist Ed Klimek are featured in Man of a Thousand Faces at Mountain Laurel. Recently named the #7 art and craft gallery in America, Mountain Laurel offers two floors of regional and American art crafts on the main square. Four blocks north is an exhibit of William Kline's wildlife creations featuring old barn wood, turkey feathers and other found items at Youbawtwhat, a firstime participant in the Artwalks. Strolling back towards the Ice House, artwalkers can visit the art center's next door neighbor, River Edge Woodworks which is built around the woodwork of owner Jason Arnold.

Although the six artists in this show have bonded through shared exhbits at a gallery space in the shadow of a Masonic Temple in Washington, DC, they came to the Ice House as near neighbors. Exhibit curator, Sinclair Hamilton, has established his sculpture studio across the Potomac River in Hancock, Maryland. "There is a developing arts council in Hancock," said Lavin, "and we wanted to support its development. This show seemed an excellent way to demonstrate what's happening in MAC's neighborhood while showcasing experienced artists not seen before in Berkeley Springs." The works in the Ice House exhibit consist of ceramics, pique assiette (broken plates), paintings, pastels and sculpture.

Among the artists exhibited are abstract painter Joseph Edwards, painter John Ryan and Norma Ryan, whose imaginative assemblages of broken ceramic pieces evoke magical pasts and stories. Michael Klingerman, who lives in nearby Pennsylvania, will exhibit both scuplture and his color-soaked, Mexican inspired paintings.

Exhibit curator Sinclair Hamilton sculpts portraits and figurative works and recently relocated to the former Peoples Bank Building in Hancock where he is taking commissions at his Riverrun Studio. Hamilton shares the studio with Susan Lothers whose pastels reveal a gardener's eye for plants, light and color. Lothers works is also part of the In The Shadow of the Temple special exhibit.

The show will hang through November 16 and may be viewed at the Ice House Gallery Fridays through Sundays from 11 to 5.