The surrealist, sometimes absurd, artwork by Salvador Dalí stirred something.
Though Evan Morrow Rogers had always been interested in creativity, he had made up his mind to study law in college. But his career trajectory changed paths after an impromptu visit to the Salvador Dalí Museum in St. Petersburg, Florida.
Though he knew basic facts about Dalí, he did not understand the artist’s genius. That changed as he absorbed the work inside the museum.
“I couldn’t believe how amazing his artwork was, and how detailed. Just what a great painter he was. He could have done anything with his artwork,” he said. “That was a huge stepping stone for me.”
Rogers has brought his imaginative approach to multi-disciplinary artwork to the public this month. He is the guest artist for the month of April at the Southside Art League’s Off Broadway Gallery, displaying a wide range of colorful and sometimes whimsical pieces.
The show will hang until April 30 at 299 E. Broadway St., Greenwood. Gallery hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday.
For the first time since last year, the Southside Art League will host a reception for the exhibition, where people can meet Rogers and learn more about his work, from 6 to 8 p.m. Friday.
His hope is that his artistic journey lights the spark of creativity in other people.
“I’d love to inspire somebody to paint or someone to find their calling. I wasn’t searching for this, it came to me. Before art, I didn’t know who I was,” he said.
In anticipation of the reception, Rogers provided some thoughts about his background in art, developing his style and the role that travel has played in his maturation as an artist.
<strong>On gravitating toward art in the first place:</strong>
“It was just a natural thing from day one. If you put the materials in my hand, I would create. It can be anything from fabric paint to acrylics, watercolor, oil, object assemblages. It all comes really natural; the important thing is getting the materials.”
<strong>Developing his style as an artist:</strong>
“You go through several phases of doing bodies of work. Then you kind of hit the peak and can say you did one thing, and all of the sudden, something new will appear. When I’m working on a painting, I’m always thinking, I can’t wait to get this one done to move on to the next thing.
“One piece leads to another, and I just know in my mind where I’m going next, which areas I want to explore."
<strong>The eye-opening effects of studying in London:</strong>
“I received a scholarship to study there, and part of that involved taking an art history class. We’d go to country houses, galleries, the National Gallery of Art. I was one of those people who would show up two hours early, and the guards would have to tell me they were closed. It was falling in love with what I was really here to do on this planet. When I got home, all I did for the next year was paint.”
<strong>The importance of travel in his development:</strong>
“Art has really informed my travel. You soak it in. You can’t not let it soak in. It was osmosis. I went to Tunisia for one reason, because (artist) Paul Clay went there. He said that’s where he discovered light. People have always compared my work to Paul Clay, so I was so excited to go there and paint.”
<strong>Describing his artwork:</strong>
“It definitely falls into pop, surrealism as far as signature style goes. But I’ve ventured out into abstract, expressionism. Just recently, I ventured out into doing a series of, say, ‘creatures.’”
<strong>On the importance of this Southside Art League exhibition:</strong>
“I was reading something about Picasso, about the paintings that he kept for himself. I realized I never wanted to sell the work that I’m showing at SALI; it had been on my walls for so long. It’s really good to have it out there so the public can see it. It’s interesting, when you’re younger, you think, ‘Oh, I’ll never sell that one.’ I just want to bring people together and maybe find their calling to create artwork.”
<strong>What he hopes people take away from his work:</strong>
“I hope they take away a sense of joy and peace. We’re such a divided country right now, but art and music have the ability to bring people together. I hope they come away with a sense of purpose and freedom. The use of imagination is so important.”
[sc:pullout-title pullout-title="If you go" ][sc:pullout-text-begin]
<strong>Evan Morrow Rogers</strong>
What: An exhibition of Indianapolis artist and his multi-dimensional work
When: Through April 30
Where: Southside Art League Off Broadway Gallery, 299 E. Broadway St., Greenwood
Hours: 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday through Saturday
Reception: 6 to 8 p.m. Friday, with light refreshments
Information: southsideartleague.org, on Instagram @musicartwords
[sc:pullout-text-end]
