MacDowell Gallery features women’s collective of artistic expression, healing
Feb. 12, 2024 -- Every Thursday, several women gather in Carol Strock Wasson's art studio. There they share the enjoyment and benefits of painting and support from one another.
The artistic
group is instructed by Wasson. She said they're bonded by their resilience
through life's toughest challenges such as death, divorce, and adversities.
"Despite the
hardships they've faced, they continue to channel their experiences into their
art, painting as both a form of personal expression and healing," she said.
Their artwork
is on display in Reid Health's MacDowell Gallery, now through April 30. The
exhibition is titled "Artistic Expressions of Thursday Art Therapy Group: A
remarkable collective of personal expression and healing."
Wasson is an
internationally distinguished artist. She teaches and works out of Strock
Wasson Studio in Union City, Indiana. Individually, the women have earned recognition
and awards, and display their work in art galleries across the state.
The oil and
pastel paintings displayed in MacDowell Gallery are by:
- Betty Knapp, Anderson, Indiana
- Jenelle Burris, Greens Fork, Indiana
- Sally Alexander, Richmond, Indiana
- Annette Warfel, Richmond, Indiana
- Carol Strock Wasson, Union City, Indiana
- Joanie Paschal, Winchester, Indiana
- Jean Selanders, Greenville, Ohio
As an Indiana
resident, Wasson incorporates the rural landscape into her art, focusing on
color, shape, and design in the plein air tradition as well as in the studio. She
is known for her work in the pastel medium, but she also works in oil, monotype
prints, and watercolor.
In 2019, she
achieved master circle status with the International Association of Pastel
Societies. She is a signature member of the American Women Artists and the
Pastel Society of America. Also, Wasson is a master pastelist member of Chicago
Pastel Painters.
The MacDowell Gallery
is located on the second floor of the Reid Health Outpatient Care Center at
1100 Reid Parkway in Richmond. The gallery is named after Barry MacDowell, who
served as Reid President and CEO from 1988 to 2008. Visitors can use the Grand
Staircase or the outpatient elevators to reach the exhibit.