We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Vera Gierke. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Vera below.
Vera, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.
An organization with which I recently started volunteering is Farm Fresh Rhode Island, which was started by Brown University students to bring farmers and their products to the city and various state-wide locations. Through my new connection with Farm Fresh I had the opportunity to expand upon my recent interest in printmaking. When Farm Fresh began excavating for their permanent location in 2017, they unearthed a significant supply of marble and determined that it was left over from the building of the RI State House in the late 1800’s and into 1900’s. At that time Rhode Island was a wealthy state and wanted a grand State House to reflect that. Farm Fresh was planning a sale of the unearthed marble and wanted to “enhance” some of it for added value. I had just then become aware of printing on stone and was curious about printing on marble. I used a few of the smaller marble pieces and started printing with various linocuts, using printing ink. Each marble piece was unique: a variety of sizes, shapes, textures and to some degree color, so I planned which linocuts to use on which pieces. The results were varied in color and design, and quite effective. The marble sale was extremely well attended and a successful fundraiser to which I donated my printed marble pieces. Not only did I have the opportunity to explore further the printing process, I also contributed to the mission of Farm Fresh RI.
Through this adventure into printmaking not only did I learn more about printmaking, I became acquainted with other very talented artists and I developed a close connection with Farm Fresh Rhode Island.
Vera, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?
Doing creative projects was always a part of my life – I was never good at or interested in sports, so being creative fit well. I grew up in a frugal environment so I naturally turned to sewing for my dolls and for myself. Gradually into adulthood it expanded into sewing window treatments, some upholstery and fiber arts. When I moved to Rhode Island I took advantage of Continuing Education classes at Rhode Island School of Design and that opened a more inclusive world of art. I soon joined the Providence Art Club and took part in many of the classes. I took abstract, watercolor, drawing, oil, acrylic, photography, photoshop and probably several others too. While I enjoyed them all, and learned from all, the one medium that really stuck with me was the collage. My collage is realistic, not abstract, and I often spend way too long on each artwork, but I try hard to find just the right pieces for the image that I want.
Since I’ve worked in many different media, my small studio sometimes looks in disarray. I have some of most of my various art forms displayed both on the walls, on shelves and in bookcases. My studio is rarely neat and tidy and often difficult to navigate especially when I’m working on a collage. Then I have paper pieces that I’ve torn from magazines and other sources spread in piles on surfaces around my studio, arranged by color or theme. I usually know where the materials are that I’m seeking at any point in the process.
When I tell people that I’m an artist, the usual response is: “do you paint?” Painting is something that I’ve not thoroughly enjoyed doing, and although I occasionally do paint, it doesn’t usually warm my soul. A while ago an artist friend stated “I don’t paint”, (she doesn’t), and I found that so refreshing! As I move through discovering and exploring so many areas of artistic expression, I find it very comfortable and freeing to say “I don’t paint”, and that leaves me open to try the many new and constantly evolving areas of the art world.
Do you think there is something that non-creatives might struggle to understand about your journey as a creative? Maybe you can shed some light?
We all need to know that art is around us all the time, even though we may not be aware of it as art. It seems that the world is becoming so much more visual, especially with the diminution of writing, as we turn to emojis to express our thoughts. We spend so much time now on screens, and there we are bombarded. What we see there has been created (curated?) following many of the rules for good artwork, unbeknownst to many. Advertisers utilize the many art rules for creating those ads that grab us. The proliferation of social media is all about how to make the posts most artful, how to make posts to grab the viewers’ attention. Especially with changes wrought by the pandemic, there is a little less personal contact and more visual on a screen. Being able to use good art becomes increasingly important and effective.
Are there any resources you wish you knew about earlier in your creative journey?
One of the resources that has been most useful to me is social media. I sometimes say, tongue in cheek, that everything I know is from social media. But there is a modicum of truth to that. I can say that a much larger world has opened up to me because of social media. By having social media that’s around the world, we can more easily see art forms that we want to see, we can exchange messages with receptive artists, we can see where and how other artists are expanding their craft, and we can explore new areas of art. Fortunately for us, it’s available now, so I can’t really say that I wish I knew about it earlier. But I see the difference in how my world has expanded by being on social media as compared those who aren’t.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.veragierke.com
- Instagram: @veragierkestudio
- Facebook: @veragierkestudio
Image Credits
Annette Dunkleman