Mezzanine Gallery

Siobhan Duggan exhibits Fleeting

On view December 3, 2021-January 7, 2022

Siobhan Duggan’s exhibition, Fleeting, will be on view in the Mezzanine Gallery from December 3, 2021 through January 7, 2022. A free opening reception will be held on Friday, December 3, 2021, from 5-7 p.m. Duggan is the recipient of a 2021 Artist Fellowship in Works on Paper from the Delaware Division of the Arts.

Siobhan Duggan’s work truly could be described as a visual love letter to Coastal Delaware. The artist’s exhibit of pastel drawings purely captures her fondness of the regional scenery, from farm fields to beaches.

“My work is inspired by the varying landscapes and inspiring world that is Coastal Delaware,” she says. “I’ve always enjoyed drawing in quiet, open spaces, recording places I’ve been, connecting with my local community. I find it rewarding to notice those brief moments when the color changes in the landscape around me.”

She enjoys her choice of medium as well. “I love color, and I love to draw,” Duggan says. “Pastels come in the most wonderful array of colors and textures that range from buttery soft to gritty. I like their immediacy and directness, and that they’re like an extension of my hand.”

Duggan’s technique reflects both realistic and abstract interpretations of her journeys throughout lower Delaware.

“I’ve been exploring color, expanding scale, and experimenting with abstraction,” she says. “I’m focusing on fleeting moments of color as I travel Route 1.” But Duggan also loves to draw near water. She continues, “I love the way water reflects and mimics the sky.”

This exhibit, Fleeting, encompasses those moments in between that she aimed to capture. “I strive to maintain the freshness of those moments through freedom of mark-making and color choice,” Duggan notes.

The most rewarding thing for Duggan is watching a drawing progress. She revels in the start of a work — the freedom of color, the shapes that emerge. “Art-making is so personal for me,” she says. “It’s an ongoing conversation with materials. My challenge is maintaining the freedom of a drawing’s bold beginnings through to its conclusion.”

Duggan plans to continue participating in plein air events and traveling to create art. “My goal is always to make art I am proud of.”

Her advice to fellow emerging creators? “Just keep making art,” she says. “The more you engage in art-making, the more art there is to make. Try different tools and techniques; explore until you find something that excites you.”

Images: Quiet Distance, August 2021, pastel, 8″ x 10;” Intersection, Knit Together, June 2021, pastel, 12″ x 23,” and Delaware on My Heart, January 2021, pastel, 12″ x 16″

The Mezzanine Gallery, open weekdays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., is located on the second floor of the Carvel State Office Building, 820 N. French Street, Wilmington. Visitors must wear face coverings and maintain 3 feet distance from other individuals not in their household.

Mezzanine Gallery Application

The Mezzanine Gallery, located in the Carvel State Office Building in Wilmington, features one-person exhibitions of Delaware artists in disciplines including painting, photography, sculpture, crafts, folk, and media arts.

To be considered for an exhibition, artists may submit a Mezzanine Gallery Application before the annual deadline of March 15.

Individual Artist Fellowship Application

Delaware’s Individual Artist Fellowships recognize artists for their outstanding quality of work and provide monetary awards. Individual Artist Fellows are publicly acknowledged and benefit from the additional exposure to their work. Visual artists who receive Individual Artist Fellowships are also given the opportunity to exhibit in the Mezzanine Gallery.

To be considered for a Fellowship, artists may submit an Individual Artist Fellowship Application before the annual deadline of August 1.

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Visit the Gallery

Hours

Monday – Friday
8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m.

Photo ID required after 4:30 p.m.

Parking

On-street and garage parking available

Admission

Free and open to the public.

Visitors must wear face coverings and maintain 3 feet distance from other individuals not in their household.

About the Gallery

The Mezzanine Gallery presents solo exhibitions of work by Delaware artists in disciplines including painting, photography, sculpture, crafts, folk, and media arts.

This opportunity is available to Delaware’s emerging and established visual artists who have won Individual Artist Fellowships, or have been chosen by the Division’s annual Gallery Panel.

Opening Reception

Held the first Friday of the month from 5-7 p.m. Dates are subject to change.

Upcoming Exhibitions

Shari Dierkes

2021 Artist Fellow in Crafts
February 4-25, 2022
Opening Reception: Friday, February 4 from 5-7 p.m.

Colleen Zufelt

Sculpture
March 4-25, 2022
Opening Reception: Friday, March 4 from 5-7 p.m.

Mia Muratori

Painting
April 1-29, 2022
Opening Reception: Friday, April 1 from 5-7 p.m.

Our annual exhibition schedule runs from
September to August, with a new exhibition
every month except in January.