Artist Statement

113 Portraits ~ There but for the grace of God go I

By Maria Partridge

He was driving his classic Harley Davidson when he hit a curb and he and his wife, were ejected. He lived. She died.

She was driving along when she struck a man as he put gas in his car on the side of the road. She was 18. He died.

He was driving drunk when he hit a car with a woman, her husband and their 3-year-old son. Also knocked out cold were two other little boys in the car. This was his 4th DUI.

He was 72 years old, driving home, one block from his apartment complex, when he hit his neighbor in a crosswalk. DUI causing death

This exhibit is meant to surround the viewer with images of people in various states of emotions brought on by an unfortunate event that can touch any one of us at any time; as a driver, a family member of the victim or the offender, as an empathetic non-judgmental human being. The portraits are haunting. The soundscape sets an everyday tone to the overall experience. There will be a sculptural element using glass and reflective materials representing the 45 victims, which I am still designing. Participants will be encouraged to create panels for the Wall of Hope commemorating either victims of DUI’s, those effected as either family members, friends or as individuals. A Cathartic Wall created by the audience in workshops and as an ongoing project. Boards will be available at all times for participants to take and bring back to be added to the show. I am doing a panel workshop for the show at the Sierra Arts Gallery and if this is successful will offer the same option.

Portraits:
This body of work was inspired by the mug shots in our daily paper of DUI offenders who were in accidents that ended up with severe bodily harm injuries or death. There were 113 from 2000-2010. These images haunted me and inspired the title, “There but for the grace of God go I”. So many looked like a neighbor, a family member, a student…the list goes on and on. They all ended up in jail. Hours before there was a party, a social occasion or maybe an addiction but then it all went wrong. This installation is intended to be both personal and a social statement.

Soundscape:
A soundscape will be continuously played during the exhibition. It is to be a subliminal surrounding of everyday sounds: nature…rain, wind, music and children playing…parties and traffic/automobile sounds.

About the artist:
Maria Partridge has been teaching art; drawing, painting, watercolor and graphic design at Truckee Meadows Community College since 2002. Her recent solo exhibit at the Sierra Arts Gallery – Portraits ~ There but for the grace of god go I, features over 50 watercolors of DUI offenders – March 7 – April 28, 2011. This project is funded, in part, by a grant from the Nevada Arts Council, a division of the Department of Cultural Affairs, and the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency."

Partridge has exhibited throughout the United States. Solo shows have included the Nevada Museum of Art, Sierra Art Gallery, Truckee River Gallery and the Agora Gallery (SoHo) in New York City. She received her Masters of Arts degree from California State University, Sacramento in 2004. Her work is represented in national and international private collections. She was nominated for the prestigious Joan Mitchell Foundation Grant in New York in 2007.

MARIA PARTRIDGE