Maggie Evans solo exhibition “Parallel Narratives”
Brenau University will showcase Parallel Narratives, the work of Savannah-based artist Maggie Evans, at Leo Castelli Gallery in the John S. Burd Performing Arts Center beginning Thursday, Aug. 31. An opening reception will take place that same day, starting at 5:30 p.m., featuring an artist’s talk by Evans, along with jazz music by the Bourbon Brothers Band and light refreshments.
Evans will discuss her process, the content of her work, her music and a life journey that changed drastically when she was struck by a vehicle while cycling. Her work uses painting, drawing and installation to examine human social structures and the internal struggle between the need for individuality and the need for inclusion.
“It’s Evans’ sheer grit and resilient spirit to push forward, to heal, and to come back from such incredible odds that are so inspiring,” Gena Brodie Robbins, Brenau’s director of galleries, said. “Her drive and talent are impressive, not only her drawing and painting mastery, but how brilliant she was at juggling her academic responsibilities as a professor at the Savannah College of Art and Design with her many other talents, such as playing bass and being a lead singer in a jazz band. She is a true Renaissance woman.”
The day before her show opens, Evans will speak to Brenau students, faculty and staff on Wednesday, Aug. 30, at 11:45 a.m. in Thurmond-McRae lecture hall about her experiences with art and recovering from her accident.
Evans has shown her work in 16 solo exhibits, more than 50 national group/juried shows and has received a number of awards including the 2017 Western Bureau Art Prize and the Best in Category for Installation/3D at Artfields 2018. Reviews and publications include The Washington Post, New American Paintings and the upcoming INPA 10 International Painting Annual by Manifest Gallery Press.
Evans’ artist residencies include the Hambidge Center for the Arts and Central Trak, as well as a full fellowship to the Vermont Studio Center. In 2011, she was awarded a government scholarship from China that granted her 10 months to develop new work at the China Academy of Art. She has been invited to lecture on her work at a number of institutions including Indiana-Purdue University and the University of Texas, Dallas. Evans earned a Master of Fine Arts in painting in 2008 from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
This Savannah artist was nearly killed in a cycling accident. Now, she’s having a solo art exhibit at Brenau
In April last year, Savannah artist Maggie Evans was struck from behind by a speeding pickup truck while bicycling back from Wilmington Island along a marshy stretch of road. She was flung 130 feet from her bike and woke up several days later in a hospital with no memory of what had happened. Her lungs and liver had been lacerated. Both of her wrists had been crushed. Her collarbone, hip and toe were broken.
Several vertebrae in her spine had been fractured or ruptured.
“They weren’t sure if I was going to make it or what sort of condition I would be in if I made it,” she told The Times.
Now, Evans — a professor at Savannah College of Art and Design, a competitive cyclist and a singer and bass player in a jazz band — is back in the saddle, back on the stage and back in the gallery.
She debuted her solo exhibit, Parallel Narratives, last year at Brenau University’s Leo Castelli Gallery in the John S. Burd Performing Arts Center, which was on display until Nov. 16, 2023.
Like much of her artwork, which straddles the line between contemporary realism and surrealism, Parallel Narratives explores universal aspects of human nature from a detached perspective, focusing in particular on the tension between “individuality versus the need to be part of a group,” she told The Times.
Despite Evans’ focus on human nature, you won’t see any humans in her artwork.
“You’ll see chairs in different arrangements, and it allows us to kind of look at our social interactions from a broader perspective,” she explained. “By keeping it kind of vague, it allows everyone to bring their own experiences to the piece, and kind of like realize that we’re all doing the same things even though they feel very personal to us.”
Evans holds a master’s degree in fine arts and has completed residencies in Georgia, Texas and China. She has displayed her art in 16 solo exhibits, over 50 national shows, and has received a number of awards, including the 2017 Western Bureau Art Prize and the Best in Category (installation/3D) Award at Artfields 2018.
Parallel Narratives will feature oil paintings, drawings and an installation piece made of about 300 tiny chairs painted with a gradation of values.
Brenau Galleries hosts rotating exhibitions featuring works by local, regional, national and international artists, as well as the works by Brenau students, faculty and alumni.
“It’s Evans’ sheer grit and resilient spirit to push forward, to heal and to come back from such incredible odds that is so inspiring,” said Brenau Galleries Director Gena Robbins. “I met Maggie while enrolled in (Savannah College of Art and Design’s) painting MFA program, and admired her drive and impressive talent for not only her drawing and painting mastery, but how brilliant she was at juggling her academic responsibilities with her many other talents, such as playing bass and being a lead singer in a jazz band. She is a true Renaissance woman.”