Sacred Icons:

A Collective Vision of Symbolic & Ritual Objects

National Juried Exhibition

Ritual transforms the ordinary into the extraordinary. Rituals are created for their symbolic and emotional value. Many are constructed around powerful ceremonies to mark major life transitions while others celebrate seasonal holidays or personal traditions. Symbols often play an important part in the role of ritual. By crafting a symbol or a ritual object the artist is able to impart his own experience and vision into the piece. Sacred Icons, the exhibition, is an opportunity for the artist to share their personal ideology and to inspire others to create work that rises above the mundane and ordinary.

The exhibition was designed to encourage artisans to compete on a national level; to measure their skills and creativity against other artisans across the country. Opening the arena nationwide encourages a diverse and varied response to a theme which is universal in its inception.

Juror Comments:

Though nothing can replace judging an exhibition by viewing the objects themselves, working from a computer disc was an interesting experience! The quality of the entries was quite high. It was a pleasure to review the images as the diversity of the works was notable.

Having made these observations, I want to comment again on the quality of the entries. I found it difficult to eliminate entries from consideration, and I would have liked to have included more items in the exhibition!

The parameters of the exhibition, as outlined in the prospectus and the title, focused on ritual. Iconography, whether it is of a religious or secular nature, does not equal ritual, but it can play a part in how we understand and participate in ritual. In making my selections, I first considered how the artisans used formal design elements such as line, shape, color, and texture in their work. (Craftsmanship is equally important.) Good design (and accomplished execution of that design) can enhance seemingly mundane imagery and elevate a work to a higher level of interest and meaning.

After considering the more formal elements of the entries, I began to think of them in terms of symbols, ritual, and the sacred. Many of the entries followed established formulae for ritual objects of a religious nature while others were more personal in their approach. Some of the works that I selected transcend pure function. Some of the works are beautiful; others are almost disturbing. It would be facile to say that the works are united by their makers' inclination to address universal themes, but that would not be honest. In some cases, the objects are obscure in meaning, if they possess meaning at all. Perhaps it is more appropriate to say that the works in the exhibition invite us to invest them with meaning, bringing our shared and personal experiences to our understanding of what is sacred and ritual.

Michael W. Haga

About the juror:

Michael W. Haga is Program Coordinator at the College of Charleston's School for the Arts. He is responsible in part for the School's administrative activities, special events and projects related to stewardship, educational and cultural programming. Mr. Haga received a Bachelor of Business Administration from Roanoke College and a Masters of Arts and Liberal Studies from Hollins College.

As a member of the faculty, Michael has taught Art History and Arts Management and was named Outstanding Adjunct Faculty in Art History in 1999. He has also been active in the community working with the Lowcountry Arts & Cultural Council, Print Studio South and the South Carolina Artisans Center. Mr. Haga currently serves as President of the South Carolina Arts Alliance and is a member of the Charleston Area Convention & Visitors Bureau Arts Committee.

Michael has written exhibition reviews for The New Art Examiner, Art Papers, Carolina Arts and the Charleston City Paper. He has been invited to act as juror for many exhibitions in South Carolina and Virginia including the Piccolo Spoleto Craft Exhibition. Mr. Haga has served as a Visual Arts Grant panelist for the South Carolina Arts Commission and as a Crafts Fellowship panelist for the Oregon Arts Commission.