The Lincoln Center Art Gallery is excited to announce two new exhibitions opening on January 12, and on view through February 24.
The first is PostSecret (read more about the PostSecret project here), held in conjunction with the upcoming performance of PostSecret: The Show. The second is Stigma Stains, an exhibition by local artist Jennifer Ivanovich who focuses on secrets and mental health.
To create the PostSecret exhibition, Fort Collins community members were invited to submit secrets pending two stipulations: 1) the secrets must be truthful and 2) the secrets had never been shared with anyone before. Provided with a blank 4” x 6” postcard, individuals shared a regret, hope, belief, fear, desire, and any other type of confession. By thinking of the postcard as a canvas, these individuals will take on the role of artist as they utilize creative techniques, such as collage or drawing, to visually express their secret.
Each anonymous postcard contributed to the whole of the exhibition helps tear down societal stigmas on taboo subjects such as mental illness and trauma, while simultaneously facilitating a feeling of human connection between the postcard writer and the viewer.
The PostSecret exhibition is continually growing. Create and submit your own secret postcard using the art supplies in the Lincoln Center Lobby Gallery.
Also on view in the Lincoln Center Art Gallery is Stigma Stains, an exhibition featuring the work of local artist Jennifer Ivanovic. Her paintings correspond with written narratives, illustrating the struggles of real people with different forms of mental illness. Each of the personal narratives give moving accounts of the subjects’ adversity and marginalization living with mental illness and their determination to triumph and live healthy, fulfilling lives. Stigma Stains strives to inspire a personal dialogue, between artist and audience, challenging the audience to examine their own perceptions and prejudices around mental illness.
Artist Jennifer Ivanovic will give a free First Friday artist talk on February 2 at 5:30 in the Lincoln Center Art Gallery. Join us as Jennifer shares how her paintings interpret the personal stories of mental illness that she has collected through interviews and website submissions.
