There are always good reasons to visit the Art Complex Museum at Duxbury and the annual “Duxbury Art Association 52nd Winter Juried Show,” which continues through April 19, is one of them. Add a magnificent display of ceramic pottery by Needham, Massachusetts, master potter Steven Branfman, who works in the tradition of Japanese Raku and your pleasure will be complete. If you are unfamiliar with Raku, the museum’s permanent collection will supply you with first-hand knowledge of the ceramic teacups invented in 16th century, Kyoto, Japan. Branfman’s ceramics are discussed in detail at the end of this review.
Juried exhibitions are fun to look at for their widely varied media, styles, subject matter and artist’s degree of skill and this year’s display has a few surprises.
Breaking away from traditional use of these media, several artists explore art materials in unusual ways, some more successful than others. My criteria of “great art” includes the requirement that it must have some human emotional content or meaning. Andrea Tishman fulfills this requirement with “Walk Quite Softly,” using colored inks to draw insects on discarded tea bags. Twelve creepy-crawly insects fill 12 small squares, each a perfectly drawn chinch bug, moth or bedbug. Inventive material and novel subject matter, combined with excellent drawing skills, makes it a winning combination.