Farkas, we learn, has recently finished labeling pieces scattered throughout the complex for WAS’ latest exhibit, for which she is curator. WAS is calling it “Dirty, Smelly, Noisy” in a not-so-veiled swipe at the ZBA. The theme is art born out of industrial areas, and a good portion of what adorns the studio’s building seems to have come from the WAS artists themselves. Heather Wang has fashioned jewelry using parts found around the building. Smith has contributed a small collection of photos taken in various areas of the complex, one of them showing a ladder in a vacant, rundown space that looks like the scene in the G-Mill.
Venturing into WAS’ Loading Dock Gallery, Farkas points out a glass case housing a collection of bricks taken from the parking lot. On these, WASer Rebekah Wetmore has painted a series of fractured portraits. The detail work on these bricks is exquisite, really.
“Some of these sold within an hour.” She walks away, then turns back, saying: “So when they say you can’t make art around here . . .”
“I think you’ve made your point,” I reply.
The opening party for “Dirty, Smelly, Noisy” will be held June 7, from 6 to 10 pm, at Western Avenue Studios, 122 Western Avenue, in Lowell. Visit dirtysmellynoisy.com.
Liz Smith of Made In Lowell | SOWA Open Market, 540 Harrison Ave, Boston | June 22 | 617.481.2257 | Boston Handmade Marketplace, Union Square, Somerville | June 28 |bostonhandmade@gmail.com
