BRATTLEBORO — In his detailed sculptures, ceramics and drawings currently on view at the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) – including a six-foot-tall roasted chicken – artist Jude Griebel explores the relationships between humans and the animals we consume.
On Saturday, April 11, at 5:30 p.m., Griebel and BMAC Director of Exhibitions Sarah Freeman will discuss Griebel’s work and his BMAC exhibition, “Elegy for the Consumed.” Admission is free. Advance registration is recommended, but walk-ins are welcome. Register at brattleboromuseum.org or call 802-257-0124 x101.
Griebel grew up on a farm in western Canada and today divides his time between New York City and Calgary, Alberta. In his artwork, Griebel blends uncanny humor with pathos, drawing on anthropomorphism and decorative arts traditions in an attempt to reconcile our emotional connections to animals with systems of consumption, according to BMAC. His figures, grotesque yet empathetic, challenge viewers to consider the lives and agency of the creatures we often reduce to ingredients.
Griebel’s BMAC exhibition includes works from his “Revenants” series, in which commonly consumed species appear animated and self-possessed, stepping away from the table and demanding recognition. Porcelain sculptures Griebel created during a residency at Kohler Co. reference European dinnerware traditions while highlighting the realities of industrial farming and consumption.
“The works in ‘Elegy for the Consumed’ generate myriad questions surrounding lives that often remain hidden from us even as they impact us on an individual, daily basis,” Griebel said in a statement. “While the work does not condemn meat eating, it imagines a system that prioritizes transparency, dignity, and reverence regarding the species that sustain us.”
Griebel’s work has been supported by residencies at Pioneer Works, the International Studio & Curatorial Program, and Yaddo. He has received major grants from the Pollock-Krasner Foundation, the Alberta Foundation for the Arts, the Canada Council for the Arts, Calgary Arts Development, and the Elizabeth Greenshields Foundation.
“Elegy for the Consumed” is on view at BMAC through July 5. For more information, visit brattleboromuseum.org.
The Brattleboro Museum & Art Center is supported in part by the Vermont Arts Council and the National Endowment for the Arts. Additional support is provided by the Brattleboro Food Co-op, Brattleboro Savings & Loan, Brattleboro Subaru, C&S Wholesale Grocers, Holiday Inn Express & Suites Brattleboro, and Sam’s Outdoor Outfitters.
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