Join public art installation Nov. 5 at Baker Community Center
The St. Charles Arts Council, American Legion Post 342, AMVETS Post 503, Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 5036, People for the Arts/East High School and Community Unit District 303, announces the Inaugural Celebrating Veterans Through Art Event. It runs from Saturday, Nov. 7 through Saturday, Nov. 14, featuring concerts, an art gallery, a public art installation project, veteran interview videos, and more.
Artist Rita Grendze has designed and will be installing on Thursday, Nov. 5, her site-specific artwork entitled "Surfacing." This public art installation is a centerpiece of the Celebrating Veterans Through Art event, Nov. 7-14. Grendze's event installation was commissioned by the St. Charles Arts Council and is sponsored by American Legion Post 342 and VFW Post 5036.
Elizabeth Bellaver, president of the St. Charles Arts Council, in announcing Grendze's commission said, "We chose Rita Grendze for this installation because her work is always stunning and it always tells a story. A perfect fit for an event that is about telling the stories of veterans. Surfacing is, as usual for Rita's work, a beautiful and sculptural design, but it is also an extraordinarily meaningful one, which she has dedicated in memory of her nephew, Navy veteran Brandon Lee Grendze. We encourage everyone to drop by the Baker Community Center front lawn on Thursday to see her install it."
Holly Cabel, director of parks and recreation for the St. Charles Park District, said, "We are pleased to have Surfacing installed at the Henry Rockwell Baker Memorial Community Center. This is an especially fitting location for the installation, as the Center was a gift to the community from Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Baker, dedicated in May 1926, as a "living memorial" to their son, Henry Rockwell Baker, and to veterans of World War I. Special thanks to the Baker Community Center Board and the park district board for allowing the Arts Council to utilize the center's front lawn to tell Surfacing's story of service.
Grendze explains "Surfacing." "Surfacing is defined as a rising or a coming-up to the surface. In nature, surfacing is synonymous with emerging, and often can be foreshadowed by something as simple as a bubble rising up to the top of a body of water. Similarly, when waking from sleep or figuring out a problem, we recognize incomplete thoughts: clear, but fragmented. These bubbles often get tucked into our subconscious, only to later re-surface as more complete ideas.
My site specific art work "Surfacing" is recognition of incomplete thoughts on and by those in military service. Drawing on veterans' discussion groups and on writing by my nephew who served in the Navy for 9 years, I have created word clusters to acknowledge the complexity of a life of service. For some it provided structure, for others purpose, for still others it was a vocation. While my informal research was in no way scientific or comprehensive, it was enlightening. I found, overwhelmingly, that gratitude prevailed. Gratitude from civilians to those that serve, of course, but also from our military to each other, for the camaraderie, for the trust, for their safe deliverance home.
Just as my research is incomplete, this artwork is too: Surfacing is intended to provide a place for more ideas to rise up, for more to be shared. Please take some time to see yourself reflected in the words inscribed on the bubbles. Feel free to simply be here, amongst the bubbles, to tithe a yellow ribbon to the trees in this yard, to be part of this emerging and necessary conversation.
I dedicate this art work, with all of my love, to the memory of my nephew Brandon Lee Grendze (July 26, 1986- Sept. 9, 2015). Brandon's time in the Navy taught him many technical skills, enhanced the strength and perseverance inside of him, and helped him create parameters for a full and joyful life after his time of service. For this I am forever grateful."
The public is invited to watch the installation on Thursday, Nov. 5, and to come back at any time during the following week to walk along the paths created by the "bubbles" (reflective silver hemispheres sited around the lawn), see themselves in the hemispheres' shiny surfaces, consider the words inscribed into them, and "tithe" one of the yellow ribbons left at the site to trees in the yard. The public is invited to come to the installation and be a part of the conversation, and perhaps tell their own stories of service.
About Rita Grendze:
Grendze has made several large-scale site specific art works to date, including a 150-foot fence in rural Wisconsin and, most recently, a collaborative installation American Spinner (1903-2009) created with Diana Gabriel at Water Street Studios in 2015. She has upcoming installation work in Joliet, Chicago and Riga, Latvia. Much of her inspiration for the Surfacing project has grown from participating in a photo project created by artist/film-maker Mara Pelecis. Details on the 8030 Project can be found at 8030project.com. For more information about the artist, her website address is ritagrendze.indiemade.com.
About Celebrating Veterans Through Art:
All veterans served our country, whether or not they fought in a war, were drafted, or volunteered. That service deserves our respect and admiration. It also demands that those of us who benefited from that service learn about it, and art plays a crucial role in that education. Art shares veterans' stories of service and sacrifice. Artists are a voice for veterans and provide us all with vehicles for remembrance.
Event Purpose: to give veterans an opportunity to tell their stories of service through the arts - the written and spoken word, visual art and video, and the performing arts - and to give the community a chance to learn more about veterans and their experiences through art.
About the St. Charles Arts Council:
The St. Charles Arts Council is a 501(c)(3), registered not-for-profit Illinois corporation whose mission is to create an organization that serves and promotes the arts and cultural activities in St. Charles, to the mutual benefit of the arts and the community. The SCAC is staffed entirely by volunteers. Contact the SCAC for information at 630.443.3794 or at info@StCharlesArtsCouncil.org.
About the Baker Memorial Community Center:
The Henry Rockwell Baker Memorial Community Center was a gift to the community from Mr. and Mrs. Edward J. Baker. The building, dedicated in May 1926, was conceived as a "living memorial" to their son, Henry Rockwell Baker, and to veterans of World War I. A bronze plate bearing the veterans' names is located on an exterior wall adjacent to the main entrance. The building was planned to be a central meeting place, a site for civic festivals, and municipal inaugurations and receptions, and a facility for educational, artistic, and recreational programs for the entire community.
The Baker Community Center Board and the St. Charles Park District have worked together to implement the Baker family's intent. In 1966, the BCC board of trustees signed an agreement with the Park District to provide office and recreation program space in exchange for management services, with each organization retaining its own separate identity and financial structure. This cooperation between the two agencies has benefited the community for the past 40 years.
About the American Legion:
The American Legion was chartered and incorporated by Congress in 1919 as a patriotic veterans organization devoted to mutual helpfulness. It is the nation's largest wartime veterans service organization, committed to mentoring youth and sponsorship of wholesome programs in our communities, advocating patriotism and honor, promoting strong national security, and continued devotion to our fellow service members and veterans.
Hundreds of local American Legion programs and activities strengthen the nation one community at a time. The American Legion's success depends entirely on active membership, participation and volunteerism. The organization belongs to the people it serves and the communities in which it thrives.
About AMVETS:
AMVETS is one of the nation's foremost veterans service organizations. It stands as a strong and influential advocate for America's veterans on important issues such as employment and training, mandatory funding for government-provided health care and other benefits to which they are entitled. AMVETS is a 501(c)19 organization. Membership in AMVETS is open to anyone who is currently serving, or has honorably served, in the U.S. Armed Forces from World War II to present, to include those in the National Guard and Reserves.
About the Veterans of Foreign Wars [VFW]:
The VFW traces its roots back to 1899 when veterans of the Spanish-American War and the Philippine Insurrection founded local organizations to secure rights and benefits for their service: Many arrived home wounded or sick. There was no medical care or veterans' pension for them, and they were left to care for themselves. In their misery, some of these veterans banded together and formed organizations with what would become known as the Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States.
The VFW's voice had been instrumental in establishing the Veterans Administration, creating a GI Bill for the 20th century, the development of the national cemetery system and the fight for compensation for Vietnam vets exposed to Agent Orange and for veterans diagnosed with Gulf War Syndrome. In 2008, VFW won a long-fought victory with the passing of a GI Bill for the 21st Century, giving expanded educational benefits to America's active-duty service members, and members of the Guard and Reserves, fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan.
About People for the Arts [P-ARTS]/East High School:
P-ARTS (People for the Arts) East is a Fine Arts Advocacy and Booster group for the visual and performing arts and humanities that works for and with students and faculty to promote and support the arts at St. Charles East High School. P-ARTS supports activities at East and in the community.
About Community Unit School District 303:
Community Unit School District 303 is a high-achieving, pre-K-12 system covering 57.4 square miles in the picturesque Fox River Valley, 40 miles west of Chicago. District 303 serves about 13,800 students (August, 2009) from the City of St. Charles and portions of West Chicago, South Elgin, Wayne, Campton Hills, Wasco, Elburn and unincorporated Kane County.
In July 2011, Family Circle Magazine named St. Charles the Best Town for Families in the United States. Among the reasons why the City of St. Charles was given this honor is the involvement of District 303 in the community and the fact that District 303 works closely with the City of St. Charles, the Park District, the Public Library and other civic organizations to benefit the residents of the community.
The district operates 12 elementary schools, three middle schools, and two high schools.
About the City of St. Charles:
St. Charles, Illinois, located in both DuPage and Kane County, is 35 miles west of downtown Chicago. Over 2,100 businesses employ over 34,200 people, consisting of a balanced mix of retailers, restaurants, and manufacturing facilities. The City of St. Charles was recently named one of the "150 Great Places in Illinois" for the combined architectural work of the City Municipal Center, the Main Street Bridge, and the historic Hotel Baker.
The City's recently completed 2014 Strategic Plan includes the following Action Plan: Market and promote St. Charles as a friendly, appealing destination, characterized by activities, events, arts, and culture. Capitalize on artistic and cultural resources by supporting local talent and lively venues and activities. Encourage collective civic endeavors to broaden the variety of attractions and events.