"Seeing Music"

The title of the exhibition at the Garden District Gallery is fit for a blog. Music inspires visual impressions, figurative or abstract depending on the artist. Kandinsky wrote about this phenomenon when studying synesthesia.

The works presented at the gallery are another testimony to this theory. Music inspires movement and colors, and most of the works are brightly colored, like the collages of Pamela Marshall.

Too many painters are represented in the gallery, which makes it difficult to appreciate them, each being allowed a small space. Auseklis Ozols is given the front row, with a whole wall in the entrance room.

The sculptures are stealing the show, with birds made from real violins, dissected instruments, spreading their wings, ready to fly with the works from Dennis Parker. Julie Boden chooses to paint the same string instruments with bright colors and lively design like all these were in the violin and the painter just transferred them for us to see. Arman broke the instruments with his Rages and Tantrums, these two artists redesign the instruments making them sing for our eyes.

Just curious, what musicians or piece inspired the artists? What about some music in the gallery during the show?

photographs by the author

"Music to Your Eyes", Pamela Marshall

"Word Bird", Dennis Parker

" Sax in the City Violin", Julie Boden