The exhibits include painting narratives by Lea Goldman of South Bend in the Williams Gallery; collage art by Box Factory studio artist Fred Holland in the Whitlow Gallery; small assemblages and a retrospective of her watercolors by Box Factory studio artist Elaine Harju in the Sky Level Gallery; and the paintings of John Moga of Berrien Springs and 3-D mosaics of Chris Stiller of LaPorte, IN in the Riverwalk Gallery.

WILLIAMS GALLERY

Lea Goldman is a full-time painter and printmaker who incorporates multi-cultural traditions, legends and folklore into her images. Born in Romania and raised in Russia and the Middle East, she immigrated to the United States in 1975. She lived in New York City, Los Angeles and Chicago before moving to South Bend.

“My paintings, that look like big story book pages, aim to tap the collective unconscious and speak the language of human struggle without the traditional chronicle,” she says in her artist statement. “In my painted narrative I do not strive to achieve correct academic representation. Instead, I use the images to tell my stories authentically, the best I can.”

Lea, now in her 80s, earned an MA in Arts and Education from Columbia University Teacher’s College in New York City and an MFA in Studio Arts from California State University, Los Angeles.

WHITLOW GALLERY

Fred Holland says he has “worn a number of stylish hats” over his more than 40 plus years of working in different mediums. His current work reflects his interest in collage art which was created between 2019 and August, 2022, in his Box Factory studio.

“It’s been a very productive period of time for me as I have been fully engaged in these investigations, Fred says in his artist statement. “If someone were to ask me what the purpose of this new work is, I would say it’s about getting back to a too often overlooked but essential component of Art, entertainment”

SKY LEVEL GALLERY

Elaine Harju considers her assemblage work a combination of pure imagination and a love of small pieces of junk. She says, “My work begins with a saying, song or quote and ends with a product reflecting that pursuit.” It was a new way of creating during the shutdown of the pandemic

Before the pandemic, Elaine considered herself a watercolor artist and her exhibit will include some of that work. She is a self-taught artist who has learned her craft through books and workshops and is now returning to her first love of painting.

Originally from Chicago, she has lived in St. Joseph since 2000 and has been a studio artist since she discovered the Box Factory.

RIVERWALK GALLERY

John Moga is a practicing artist and curator at the History Center at Courthouse Square. His work is about interesting shapes and colors. In his artist statement, he says “the imagery consists of the lyric elements of time and the illusory sense of space through clouded form and color. The application of color and form is automatic.”

John holds a BFA from the University of Michigan and and an MFA from the University of Windsor. He and his wife, Yehudit Newman, share an interest in theater where he often works as a scenic artist for professional and community theaters, as well as film.

Chris Stiller studied art and art history at Valparaiso University. She is a mixed media artist who uses organic materials such as glass, metal, wood and found objects to incorporate into composed art pieces.

For more on this and other Box Factory events, visit the Box online at https://boxfactoryforthearts.org or on Facebook at https://facebook.com/boxfactoryarts.