By: Camela Guevara
Press Release
The City of North Charleston's Cultural Arts Department is pleased to announce that concurrent solo exhibitions of mixed media works by Camela Guevara and photographs by Stephanie J. Shank will be on display at Park Circle Gallery from March 2-26, 2022. A free reception hosted by the artists will be held at the gallery on Friday, March 25, from 5:00-7:00pm. The public is invited to attend.
render – Mixed media works by Camela Guevara
In render, Charleston based artist Camela Guevara contemplates the intersection of art and craft, activating ordinary art materials of canvas and plaster with fiber art and her distinctive painting style. The works evoke the tension between ephemerality and permanence, encasing knots within plaster like built up scar tissue. She contemplates our stubbornness and intractability in the face of change, and whether we can meet the needs of our society in terms of care and climate reality.
Camela Guevara graduated from the College of Charleston in 2010 with a Bachelor of Art in Studio Art with a concentration in sculpture, printmaking, and painting and in 2016 she attended the Penland School of Crafts for weaving. She has been teaching embroidery, sewing, and mending in workshops and one-on-one lessons since 2012 and served as the City of North Charleston's 2017-18 Artist-in-Residence, as well as the Gibbes Museum of Art Visiting Artist in May 2021. Her work has been displayed in several solo and group exhibitions in local and regional venues, including Greenville Center for Creative Arts, North Charleston City Hall and City Gallery, Virago Gallery, the Gibbes Museum of Art, Public Works Art Center, and Redux Contemporary Art Center. Camela is currently the Sculpture Studio Technician at the College of Charleston, in addition to freelance sewist and graphic designer. Learn more about the artist at camelaguevara.com.
June – Photographs by Stephanie J. Shank
In her exhibit, June, Stephanie J. Shank of Summerville presents a series of photographs that collectively represent a surrogate portrait of her grandmother's domestic life, rich with tradition, southern craft, and feminine daily ritual. June is an investigation of memory, chore, and emotion, found through what remains of the feminine and material culture of the early 20th century. The featured photographs, presented in both pairs and grids, document the artist's process of disentangling her grandmother's narrative through her carefully collected and well curated belongings; the belongings that tie Shank's family together as a whole. Through these intimate images, the photographer aims to explore and celebrate the life of her beloved relative, while also preserving part of her own history.
Stephanie J. Shank received her BFA in Photography from Clemson University in 2007, and quickly transitioned to Savannah College of Art and Design where she received her Master of Arts in Teaching in 2008, followed by her MFA in Photography in 2020. She has served as Program Director for Sea Island School of the Arts, was a former Photography Instructor at Chapin High School, and has been a Photography Instructor at Summerville High School since 2018. Working as a freelance photographer since 2008, Shank has a portfolio of varied accomplishments, including numerous print publications and solo and group exhibitions throughout the southeast. Learn more about the artist at stephaniejshank.com.
The Park Circle Gallery is located at 4820 Jenkins Avenue in North Charleston. Admission is free and free street parking is available on Jenkins Avenue in front of the gallery, as well as on the adjacent streets and in parking lots close by. The gallery is open 10:00am-6:00pm Wednesday-Friday, and Noon-4:00pm on Saturday. Staff and all visitors must wear a face covering while they are in the gallery. Hand sanitizer is provided upon entry. For more information about PCG, call 843-637-3565 or email culturalarts@northcharleston.org. For information on other Cultural Arts programs and artist opportunities, visit the Arts & Culture section of the City's website at www.northcharleston.org.
