Stacy-Lynn Waddell's new exhibit, From That Point On, tackles one of the hardest concepts in artistic representation: capturing the essence of someone's life. And this someone is not just any commoner off the street-the muse at the heart of her works happens to be prominent Civil Rights historian John Hope Franklin, professor emeritus of history.
Crafting a diverse exhibit using the primary medium of heat, Waddell has turned one man's experiences and philosophies into an intriguing visual dialogue. The showcase succeeds in both shedding light on Franklin's journey as a humanist and the central elements that has shaped him into who he is today.
Sponsored by the John Hope Franklin Center for Interdisciplinary and International Studies, From That Point On is only the second exhibit at the Franklin Center to ever explore the life of its namesake. Although Franklin himself is renowned for his modesty, Gallery Coordinator Kathy Hudson feels the personal life of Franklin deserves more attention.
"I don't think enough people know about him," Hudson said. "He's a historian [and] it's interesting to know what affected him, his childhood and what he did. Not a lot of people know about the bio of a historian. They're more interested in what they're writing about."
Additionally, this is the first time the center has chosen a local artist to display. From the inception of the exhibit's concept to the continual interchange of ideas, the entire process has been daunting because of its organic nature, but Hudson feels that faith and communication has paid off.
"[This exhibit] was different because it was more of an idea that materialized over time, and Stacy went to her studio and made work, and I didn't see it until very recently," Hudson said. "We talked constantly about the concept of the show, but it was an unusual project. Yes, it was scary, but the results are just amazing."
The end product: an eclectic collection that spans from the power of single words to overwhelmingly complex landscapes. All this is accomplished through the unique technique whereby Waddell uses fire to burn inscriptions onto paper and composes pieces out of burned material. Hudson was initially captivated by Waddell's art because she was able to construct such a wide variety of works through just one means of articulation.
"I think one of the most radical things about [Waddell's] work is, if you see one or two of her pieces, you might think, 'How far can you go with burning?' And she really does [go far]," Hudson said. "To me that would be a limiting, crude thing, but the results are highly sophisticated and aesthetically beautiful."
Beyond the beauty, Waddell utilizes heat because of its ability to transform materials.
"[The fire] really does a lot of the work for me," Waddell said. "As an artist, I'm sort of deconstructing paper or canvas and reconstructing it into something else."
Just as fire allows her to restructure the original form of a desired medium, Waddell herself had to carefully sift through the vast experiences of Dr. Franklin and decide what she wanted to highlight in her pieces. For her, this was one of the hardest tasks of the whole artistic process.
"You have a lot to work with when John Hope Franklin is your muse, you could make work for years [with] just the subtle nuances," she said.
Not everyone may be well-acquainted with Dr. Franklin's life, but the elements that Waddell chose to represent draws upon elements that arise from a common American backdrop.
"I wanted to use universal symbols that everyone could approach and kind of jump from there," Waddell said. "There's no hard and fast meaning to any of the imagery in the show. You can come at it from any direction, from any background, from any place, because his experience has been American and so anyone who is the very least American should be able to have some sort of impulse."
For example, Waddell incorporated the salute of the Boy Scouts in one of her pieces because Franklin himself was a member during his youth.
Also, Waddell incorporates a lot of Franklin's own words into her exhibit. "Hope," which coincidentally is Franklin's middle name, appears singularly on three different canvases. Each embodies the struggles that Franklin has faced and simultaneously represents the different meanings of the word, as conveyed through the varied methods of flame application. Waddell feels that words themselves serve great meaning in his contributions to the world.
"Language is important, [and it] is the way he communicates as a historian," the artist said. "But the verbal expression is how I have gotten to know him as well."
Whether it is through words or images, quotes or landscapes, Waddell attempts to capture that which is John Hope Franklin. She is taking history and injecting her own impressions and value of significance associated with Franklin.
"The work is historically based," Waddell said. "I'm dealing with somebody's life, but he's also been a major part of American history, being a historian and having lived through lots of major social and political eras. For me, coming from a different place, I tried to blend the historical with the emotional and some of the social stuff as well."
History is the basis for the exhibit, but at the core lies the spirit of a man, and that essence is not forgotten. The exhibit is, through all its complexities, simply an expression of his great humanitarianism.
"When you meet him, you don't meet all the accomplishments-you meet a compassionate person," Waddell said. "I can't look at his life lived and not pay homage and not be grateful."
From That Point On is currently on display in the New Media Space of the John Hope Franklin Center.
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