The Law of Conservation of Energy states that energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transformed from one form to another.
It’s a key theme in The Source Never Diminishes, the newest exhibit at the Galleries of Contemporary Art Marie Walsh Sharpe Gallery at the Ent Center for the Arts, aka GOCA. And the creative energy of that work will fuse with fashion in the shimmering, avant-garde, wearable art fashion show and performance House of GOCA: Stardust on Feb. 20. It’s a creative pairing of the contemplative and cosmic.
At the Source
Created by transdisciplinary artist, writer and educator Nina Elder, The Source Never Diminishes bridges art, science and social justice. Our relationship with the natural world is the focus, and Elder uses drawing, writing, sculpture and video to illustrate her exploration.
Elder is a Colorado Springs native and Palmer High School graduate who has since migrated around the country for various creative projects. Her 20-plus year career in photorealistic drawing has often focused on scenes of environmental degradation or disasters. The Source Never Diminishes features all new or unshown work, save for one set of drawings.
That set of drawings, crafted from wildfire charcoal and chainsaw grease, was inspired by visits to an area that experienced a forest fire. Exploring the post-fire landscape, Elder found a strap that had broken off from a firefighting helicopter. She wanted to lend a new use and perspective to the strap, so she made it the subject of her drawings.
“When we think of ‘nothing’ in a place, there is always something,” she says. “I’m trying to find ways to presence the absence. There’s always something that is emerging, and it’s imperative to try to embody that.”
This same approach inspired the pieces that draw your eye upward in the exhibit. They look a lot like wind socks, but these are made of repurposed erosion control fabric.
“We don’t really hear wind until it touches something else,” she says. “It’s one of those invisible forces in our lives.”
Elsewhere, a book stretches across the middle of the exhibit. On one side is a letter Elder wrote to a friend from Mount St. Helens — years after its 1982 eruption — when everything seemed settled. But she realized the world hadn’t paused, that things were still changing, shifting and moving. That feeling is reflected on the book’s other half in lithograph prints of her exhaled breath mimicing the volcano where she wrote the letter.
“We don’t get to get rid of things, they just transform into something else. It’s that consistency of energy in the universe.”
Transforming Energy into Fashion
For the second year, a GOCA gallery show will be interpreted in a corresponding House of GOCA wearable art and fashion event. On Feb. 20, designers, artists and performers will converge to present Stardust, transforming the runway into a living gallery inspired by The Source Never Diminishes.
After the success of last year’s event, which sold out 200 seats in the main corridor of the Ent Center weeks in advance, this edition will move into the 750-seat Shockley-Zalabak Theater. Ten designers — half local and half from Denver or beyond — will showcase their work to an audience that will be both on stage and in the seats, as a livestream projection provides more detailed views.
GOCA Director Joy Armstrong foresees designers connecting with Elder’s sense of interconnectedness and exploration of space.
“Artists and designers responded with collections that are cosmic in different ways, literally or conceptually,” she says. “But that spirit of oneness with each other is present in all of it.”
The collaborative and interdisciplinary experience for House of GOCA is a compelling way for artists to leverage each other’s expertise for greater impact, says Armstrong, making a project like this exciting and inclusive.
“House of GOCA presents an opportunity to creatives of all varieties,” Armstrong says. “All you need to know how to do is make something someone can wear down a runway. That encourages people to think past their self-imposed limitations.”
Fusing visual art, fashion and performance into a single event encourages different audiences, Armstrong says.
“It allows us to build and expand the community around contemporary art to include people who may not usually attend a gallery event or a lecture,” she says. “Whether you’re a fashionista or not, we all express who we are with what we put on our bodies.”
Exploring Interconnection
For the second year, multidisciplinary artist Aaron Graves is one of the designers for House of GOCA. Graves participated in similar events with Armstong during her time as Curator of Modern and Contemporary Art at the Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center at Colorado College. This event feels different.
“This is a way more amped up version, with much more designer participation,” he says. “I love that it merges art and fashion.”
Exploring Elder’s exhibit brought Graves to the concept of outer space.
“I like the concept of playing with the idea of not just the cosmos, but the interconnectivity of it,” he says. “You get to be a little more narrative instead of referential or even just vaguely inspired by it. That’s the art side of it — you can present the collection almost as if it’s on a gallery wall.”
Part of House of GOCA’s impact comes from the gallery artist seeing others interpret their work. Elder anticipates common threads between the exhibit and runway to include sewing, the fact that many of the designers upcycle or reuse material, and the concept of space — though she does think the runway will feature more sleekness and bling.
“My first thought was, Oh dear, I’m like the least fashionable person on the planet,” she says. “But I love that I’m not in control of how people interpret my work. The fashion show will give real time feedback on how it hits people.”
And, yes, she is planning to make her own outfit.
Enter the House of GOCA
House of GOCA: Stardust is Friday, Feb. 20 at 6-10 p.m. in the Shockley-Zalabak Theater at the Ent Center. Attendees are encouraged to ignite their imagination and embrace the Stardust theme in their attire — whether cosmic, futuristic, ethereal or boldly expressive. Following the main show, you can dance the night away at the post-event party. Tickets are available starting at $20, though on-stage and tier 1 tickets are already sold out. Discounts are available for blocks of 10-25 people if you call the box office.
The Source Never Diminishes runs through March 7. The gallery is open Thursday through Saturday, 1-6 p.m. Admission is free.
