'Peaceful Assemblage'
BUTLER TWP — Butler County Community College is showcasing the creations of a BC3 alumna through Feb. 28.
“The Right to Peaceful Assemblage” by Carol Griffiths is being displayed in the Mary Hulton Phillips Gallery.
Griffiths' work is called assemblage art, said David Ludwick, curator of the Mary Hulton Phillips Gallery and a BC3 fine arts instructor.
The genre is an inverted form of sculpture, in which material is added rather than subtracted, he said.
The Erie resident collects the driftwood and rusty metal that washes ashore on Lake Erie near her home.
Griffiths, who has created up to 400 such pieces, didn't know such a genre of art existed until after she had moved to Erie in May 2009, to within 100 yards of the shore, and began to shape such works.
Her works also include items salvaged from thrift stores and other shops.
Thirty-four pieces of Griffiths' work are being exhibited, including “Tall Ships,” “Winter on the Bay,” “Harbor,” “Sun,” “Moon” and “Asteroid.”
Griffiths, a 1976 graduate of Ford City High School, earned an associate degree in general studies at BC3 in 2001 before going on to receive a bachelor's degree from Geneva College, Beaver Falls.A member of the Northwest Pennsylvania Artists Association, Griffiths was awarded “Best of Sculpture” at the Ruth Jageman Panorama Juried Art Exhibition during the Erie Summer Festival of the Arts for her assemblage artwork called “Elephant,” constructed with aluminum and a discarded faucet.Her work is represented in several Erie galleries, including a commissioned installation at The Brewerie at Union Station. Some of her sold work has been sent to Portland, Denver, Pittsburgh, Boston and Tampa.Griffiths' exhibit at BC3 will be followed by that of Eileen (Tyke) Vaughn's traditional oil paintings in March, and BC3's second student art showcase since 2011 in April.The Mary Hulton Phillips Gallery is open 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Mondays through Fridays.For more information, call 724-287-8711 or visit bc3.edu.
