MILLVILLE, NJ (November 8, 2018)  – WheatonArts welcomes visiting Tibetan Master Artist, Losang Samten, and Creative Glass Fellowship artists, Mollie McKinley and Wil Sideman to the campus! Losang Samten will be visiting WheatonArts as part of a special five-day residency with the Center’s Folklife Program* to create the “Wheel of Life” mandala, November 13 through November 17, from 12 p.m. to 5 p.m. This image in colored sand is both a visual aid to interpreting the cycle of life and a symbolic comment on the consequences of life choices. Visitors are invited to observe the artist at work and to discuss with him the creative process while learning about the meanings behind the mandala elements. A special station will be available for those who want to try the technique. The “Mandala Dismantling Ceremony” will take place on November 17, 2018 at 5 p.m.

The final two WheatonArts’ Creative Glass Fellowship recipients of 2018 have arrived for their project-based experimentations in glass. Mollie McKinley (Newburgh, NY) and Wil Sideman (Vineyard Haven, MA) will be on campus through December 12, 2018. Mollie McKinley is an interdisciplinary artist based in the Hudson Valley and New York City. Her large-format photographic tableaus and salt sculptures speak to relationships between mysticism, ritual, alchemy, and ecology through camp poetics. Wil Sideman’s work is a sculptural approach to analyzing the world around him. Through glass and mixed media, Sideman investigates ideas dealing with identity, location, community and time. Additional information and bios for the artists can be found at wheatonarts.org.

To be considered for a Creative Glass Fellowship, artists must submit an application, which includes a description of intended projects and examples of prior work. During the fellowship, artists are provided with access to the Glass Studio, studio support, housing, and a stipend for a six week to three month stay. Applications for 2019 Creative Glass Fellowships are due by December 2, 2018. For an application, check out “Opportunities for Artists” at wheatonarts.org or contact Pam Weichmann at pweichmann@wheatonarts.org.

WheatonArts is open Tuesday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Year’s Day. For more information about WheatonArts, call 1-800-998-4552 or 856-825-6800, or visit online at wheatonarts.org. Please submit requests for press images to wheatonartsnews@wheatonarts.org.

WheatonArts strives to ensure the accessibility of its exhibitions, events and programs to all persons with disabilities. Please provide two weeks notice for additional needs. Patrons with hearing and speech disabilities may contact WheatonArts through the New Jersey Relay Service (TRS) 800-852-7899 or by dialing 711.

Funding has been made possible in part by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts and the New Jersey Cultural Trust. WheatonArts receives general operating support from the New Jersey Historical Commission, Division of Cultural Affairs in the New Jersey Department of State, and is supported in part by the New Jersey Department of State, Division of Travel and Tourism.

*The Down Jersey Folklife Program at WheatonArts brings Losang Samten to campus as part of the “Near and Far: Arts and Cultures of East Asia” project,  presented in partnership with Cumberland County Cultural and Heritage Commission and Atlantic County Office of Cultural and Heritage Affairs. Major support for this partnership project has been provided by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. 

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