Gallery in the Loft
The Wagnalls-Jones family appreciated visual arts and included in the Wagnalls Memorial a room in the Tower dedicated to the art of artist, John Ward Dunsmore. In keeping with that appreciation and the desire for the people of Lithopolis and Bloom Township to have opportunities to experience art, the Wagnalls Memorial Foundation has designed a gallery on the second floor above the library, fondly known as the Loft.
The Wagnalls Memorial Foundation opens our gallery to local artists who wish to exhibit their work. Art shows and exhibits will change every six to eight weeks typically. Shows and exhibits can be enjoyed during normal library hours. The gallery also doubles as an event space, so please consider calling ahead to be sure you will be able to visit the gallery when you visit Wagnalls.
Artists who sell their works graciously offer commissions to the Wagnalls Memorial supporting our mission.
Artists interested in exhibiting in our gallery, please email Deb Silvia, Executive Director.
Our Current Art Exhibit
 | Kerry PierceFebruary 10-March 30, 2024Kerry is a former English teacher at Bloom Carroll schools and now is an artist! |
Our Next Exhibit
A Journey of Abstraction with Dana Bower
After many years of painting with oil in a realistic style, I stopped finding joy in the process. I felt pressure to make the paint conform to my preconceived idea of what it was to become and became increasingly dissatisfied. Enter my discovery of oil and cold wax. At first, I just wanted to experiment with how this media flowed as I laid down color. I was amazed at how freeing the process felt! Soon, I ditched the tools and used just my hands. As a licensed massage therapist, this media made sense to me! My fingers loved the texture of the wax and creating different effects. Essentially, I was “finger-painting”! And like my kindergartener-self, I connected with joy, discovery, freedom and living in the moment. There were no preconceived ideas of what it was “supposed” to be. The image emerged and revealed itself and was allowed to just….be. I then started exploring with metal and glass. Using the same approach of playing with the elements, I became fascinated with the juxtaposition of the opaque, yet shininess metal and transparency of glass each using light differently to reflect back or shine through. This process has mirrored my own life’s journey as I learn to let go of concrete expectations and forced conformity and accept the exposed abstract layers of my life and let them shine through.
