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Walking into The Station Art Gallery’s latest exhibit, visitors will encounter small wooden houses embellished with moss. Situated under strings of warm fairy lights, the art gallery hosts a myriad of sculptures, sketches and statues centered around faeries in its latest exhibit, Faeryland.

“The only limitation (is) the limitation on an individual’s imagination,” said Peter Svoboda, curator for The Station. “I, as well as anyone who has been involved in making (faery) dwellings, have been delighted by whatever we have ended up with.”

As a nonprofit organization, The Station aims to “connect the community through art” by hosting showcases and workshops, providing a space for artists to learn and grow. Their goal for organizing Faeryland is to foster a greater sense of community throughout Syracuse, Svoboda said.

In Faeryland, the art ranges from surrealistic paintings of mermaids to reimaginings of Disney characters. Matthew Thomas, a member of The Station’s board of directors, presented animated pencil sketches of Tinkerbell in various moments of action. Thomas illustrates the small pixie grappling human-size objects, like scissors and spools of string, and uses hatched lines to animate the character’s movement.

“It’s very whimsical,” said Kai Scott, a freshman majoring in creative writing. “It’s very reminiscent of that early 2000s animation style, and it feels very nostalgic.”

In addition to appreciating the sentimentality of the twinkling Disney character, Scott enjoyed how The Station presented an interesting perspective on community art, especially by creating a unique pocket of fantasy elements in the real world.

Glinting lights frame illustrations set in forests and otherworldly creatures adorned with mushrooms decorated the walls and floors of The Station. The depth of faery imagery and woodsy themes reminds junior Maia Ontiveros of her childhood.

“(Faeryland) reminds me of my summers in upstate New York,” Ontiveros said. “Being in the woods, where it’s so thick with trees, it feels like you’re in another world. I love it.”

Surya Vaidy | Staff Photographer

The exhibit displayed the idea that an artist’s only limit is their imagination. The exhibit brought artists together to share their fantasy work.
Surya Vaidy | Staff Photographer

Last year, The Station held a Faery Extravaganza, which garnered over 70 attendees, as well as a Faery Tea, which attracted over 30 costumed guests, according to Svoboda. In its lifetime, the art gallery has produced over 120 faery dwellings, but curator Svoboda is far from done.

“Last year, and continuing this year, we are looking to expand the Faeryland concept into the creation of faery stories based on the artwork submitted,” Svodoba said. “In addition to making this an exciting and imaginative community undertaking, we are hoping to eventually create a large faery dwelling display that might be the cornerstone of a new cafe.”

Upon walking into the gallery on the corner of Catherine Street and Burnet Avenue, exhibition viewers could come face-to-face with a sketch of an ogre sitting near a marsh sprite made of silk. The piece, titled “Ogre,” was made by retired school teacher Izzy Duggar. Her large, two-dimensional ogre is juxtaposed by a small faery, hovering just beyond the point of its curved tusk – the ogre peers at this faery with a human-like gaze.

Next to “Ogre” is Bronwyn Porter’s “Marsh Sprite.” Porter is the exhibit’s youngest artist and just entering high school, according to the exhibit’s website. Dressed in a small burlap bag, the sprite’s green hand clutches a cattail stalk as it stares forward. These two outlandish creatures presented together exemplify the variety in the age and experience of The Station’s artists.

Like the spectrum of creatures that can be seen in The Station – faeries, sprites, ogres, mermaids and more – Svoboda holds faith that the art can appeal to a wide audience.

“We feel that Faeryland is a concept that can bring diverse audiences together,” Svodoba said. “We were hoping that all groups and all ages, including college students, will be encouraged to…take part in the creation (of) Faeryland.”

Published on November 6, 2023 at 9:59 pm