Art Gallery Opening – Center On Halsted – August 7, 2026 at 6:30 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Join us for the opening reception featuring art by James Schenck on our 2nd floor and Erica Holman on our 3rd floor. Read artist statements below:

James Schenck (he/him): Flower Power

James Schenck’s newest series of flower drawings considers the connections between the body, the bloom, and the page. Drawn on newsprint with marker and gesso, the works transform familiar floral forms into portraits—studies of vulnerability, resilience, and care.

For Schenck, flowers are more than symbols of beauty. Like bodies, they age, bruise, flourish, and fade. The newsprint itself becomes an extension of this metaphor. Delicate and ephemeral, the paper yellows over time, recording its own passage through the world. Together, flower, body, and page become interconnected vessels, each carrying traces of experience, memory, and transformation.

Working from his personal archive and photographic references, Schenck creates images that hover between observation and remembrance. Layers of marker and luminous gesso obscure and reveal forms, echoing the ways we preserve, revisit, and reinterpret our own histories. The resulting drawings celebrate the beauty found not in permanence, but in attention—the ways living things thrive when tended, cared for, and allowed to evolve.

Erica Holman (she/her)

I am always observing people, places, and especially nature as I move through my life. Strongly contrasting elements and themes catch my eye and draw me in. Something rusty inside a lush garden, water droplets splashing off scratchy concrete, or shiny materials woven into a mixed-media piece—these are the kinds of details I enjoy exploring and playing with in my photography and artwork.

This creativity evolved through my professional work as an early childhood teacher, where I brought art, exploration, and collaboration into my classrooms. Now I continue my journey of joy and discovery by working with photography, watercolors, acrylics, and many other mixed-media materials. My work seeks to capture joyful, playful exploration and a deep connection with the world around me. I am very happy to share it with you!

Fee
Free (donations are accepted)