BARBARA M. BERK

Barbara M. Berk’s pedestal-supported sculpture “For Reva” has been selected for Women Create Space at the Olive Hyde Art Gallery in Fremont, CA.

A collaboration of the Northern California Women’s Caucus for Art (NCWCA) and the City of Fremont’s Olive Hyde Art Gallery, the exhibition celebrates sculpture and 3-dimensional works – including ceramic, assemblage, fiber, metal, and glass – by Bay Area women artists. Jurors Elizabeth Addison, NCWCA Exhibitions Chair, and Leah Andrews, Olive Hyde Art Gallery Curator, and Karen Gutfreund, artist and independent curator, selected work by members and non-members of the NCWCA, and members of the Olive Hyde Art Guild. The 57 selected works by 47 artists are installed throughout the gallery.

Barbara M. Berk’s sculpture embodies the interplay of metal with traditional fiber techniques. She makes bobbin lace by hand, and then curves, loops, twists, interweaves, layers, sews, embroiders, welds and polishes the flat lace “fabric” into 3-dimensional forms.

To create “For Reva”, Berk shaped an armature, and designed bobbin lace patterns to fit its curves. Using 16th century Torchon Ground stitches with 40 strands of twisted stainless steel wire, 21” to 90” long, she made 2 lace crescents by hand. She sewed both to the armature with wire, then wove the ends of the wires into the lace, ornamenting the surface with filigreed spiral motifs.

The exhibition runs from Thursday, August 15th through Saturday, October 5th. The Opening Reception is Friday, August 23rd, from 7 – 9pm. A Curatorial Tour and in-person artist talk is scheduled for Friday, September 13th at 12 noon, and an Online Artists’ Talk will be held on Thursday, September 19th, 7 – 8pm. The Virtual Exhibit is live through October 5, 2024.

The Northern California Women's Caucus, formed in 1973, is a networking organization for women in the arts. They offer a broad range of events and programs, including member forums, exhibitions, art-making, art activism and community.

Owned by the City of Fremont, CA, the Olive Hyde Art Gallery offers the community a diverse range of gallery exhibits throughout the year that introduce an array of traditional and contemporary art. The Olive Hyde Art Guild, a not-for-profit organization, supports the Gallery through volunteer activities and funding for special exhibits and projects. The Guild sponsors art education programs in the schools and provides art scholarships and awards for local students.

 

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Information about the exhibition

is courtesy of the Northern California Women’s Caucus for Art

and the Olive Hyde Art Gallery.

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About the work in the Exhibition: