Homage
What: More than 50 local artists paying tribute to those that have inspired them.
Where: River's Edge Gallery, 3024 Biddle Ave., Wyandotte; 734-246-9880; artattheedge.com.
When: Displays through March 17.
River's Edge Gallery put out an open call to artists for Homage, asking artists to pay tribute to the artists, places, things and people that have inspired their own work. Their only guide was the definition of the word homage as "a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration, but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic." More than 50 established and emerging local creators rose to the challenge with sculptures, paintings, found art collages and work in a wide array of media that honored their personal muses. Some references are obvious, such as Bruce Gerlach's painting of author Kurt Vonnegut, while others reference their inspirations in more subtle ways, such as Patricia Izzo's tribute to photographer Diane Arbus and Audrey Pongracz's nod to Vincent Van Gogh, which features her own version of "Starry Night" swirling through the lovely locks of a crying damsel. In all, the display features 166 pieces that honor the inspirational, including household names to obscure artistic figures to other local creators. According to gallery director Jeremy E. Hansen, the non-juried, open call format resulted in a wide variety of mediums and approaches rarely seen together in one show, with the participating artist list reading like a "who's who" of the Detroit art scene.
