January 20 - February 27
With its symbolic, dreamlike focus, the MATV Gallery exhibit “Waking Dreams,” on view from January 20-February 27, allows artist Lisa L. Sears to share her explorations of some of her recurring themes. One is “the elusiveness of recapturing or reactualizing one’s own personal past,” which readily ties into such related themes as the journey, memories, discovery, communication, and understanding one’s history. Walking through the gallery may create a larger sense of entering a dreamscape, richly populated with symbols and colors, but each individual piece is itself a narrative. The works often suggest a human presence, whether through the appearance of the human figure or perhaps just the inclusion of items used in daily life.
Acknowledging the daydream quality present in her works, the artist says that, in a way, she creates her “own subjective mythology,” but she believes that it’s one that the viewer “can at least in part intuitively comprehend.” Sears welcomes this opportunity to exhibit her work en masse—and arranged relationally—because she believes that seeing many of her paintings and drawings together assists the viewer in further understanding her mythology. The repetition of certain imagery and colors among the various artworks reinforces her artistic vocabulary, and viewers can make connections that not only increase their understanding of Sears’ perspective but also foster an emotional reaction that allows them to relate the works to their own experiences.
Sears, a mixed media artist, loves to work on paper, creating both drawings and paintings, but her pieces range greatly in terms of both size and media used—just about everything except oil paint. Pieces may incorporate, for example, photos or sewing on canvases, and the work on them may be ongoing. The current exhibit, for example, will include some photo collages derived from original images that Sears cut up to reinvent as part of new works.
Her love of the arts is evident through her sources of inspiration—books, conversations with people, the title of a poem she’s seen, writing by another artist. Often she will jot down notes to save, waiting for the right moment to translate ideas into physical form. Sears characterizes much of her work as “whimsical depression,” pieces that elicit tension and drama but are also expressionist, with a Chagall-like use of colors and layering. She is also influenced by Expressionist artists, and the German Expressionist movement in particular. Delving into her subject matter, she searches for what lies beneath the surface, “be it vulnerability, a gentle beauty, a humorous nature, or a more sinister side.”
The artist, currently self-employed as an artist and editor, was born in Massachusetts but grew up in Texas. She comes from a family that encouraged involvement in the arts from a young age, and she went on to earn a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the School of Visual Arts, University of North Texas. She continued her painting and photography studies at the University of Texas, Austin. Sears eventually returned to Massachusetts, living in Allston, Arlington, and Medford before landing in Malden in 2006, just in time to learn about and participate in the first Window Arts Malden. Since then she has participated in a wide variety of solo and group shows, including continued involvement in Window Arts Malden and regular appearances at Arlington Open Studios. In addition, her artwork has been featured in and on the cover of such publications as the Mystic River Review and The Harvard Book Review.
The public is invited to attend the exhibit reception on Wednesday, January 28, from 6:30 to 8:30pm. Viewing hours are Monday–Thursday, 10am-9pm; Friday, 10am-6pm; and Saturday, 10am-2pm. Handicapped accessible, Malden Access Television is located at 145 Pleasant St. in Malden Square.
Gallery Spotlight: Waking Dreams - View the 18 minute video program below, featuring an interview with the artist in her studio.
