When Gerri Sayler first visited the Channeled Scablands in Eastern Washington, she was mesmerized.
The area, once ravaged by violent glacial floods, sits exposed after years of erosion, revealing black, volcanic basalt and carved rocks — a stark contrast from the Palouse grasslands, she said.
“I couldn’t believe it that in the middle of the soft, gentle landscape of grassland and then I turned, entering this place that was like no other place I’d ever seen before. Maybe it was the tile or the texture, but I just went into orbit,” Sayler said. “It was a huge surprise … it’s one of the most unique geological spaces.”
Ideas slowly began to take shape in the Moscow artist’s mind, but remained in waiting until nine months ago — the start of her residency with the University of Idaho Prichard Art Gallery.
Sayler, who uses natural and industrial fibers to create site-specific installations, said she was approached by Roger Rowley, director of the Prichard, to build an exhibit. She agreed without hesitation.
Operating out of a studio in the gallery, Sayler set to work, drawing inspiration from the Channeled Scablands — the black basalt in particular.
Sayler said her art generally references the cycles of nature, as well as the nature of time. She incorporates ordinary materials, such as buttons and hot glue.
“My artwork develops organically as an accumulation of countless body and hand gestures inspired by the material itself,” she said. “I’ve come to think of what I do as time-scaping — abstracting parallel works of humans and nature, both the geophysical and metaphysical.”
Sayler said her work continuously evolved over the course of the residency. She often tries to plan projects before entering a space, but the vision rarely mirrors the end result.
In this case, had she stuck with her initial design, she said she would’ve wasted space with several pieces being out of proportion. Having a studio on site allowed her to truly utilize the gallery.
“I got in the space, and I realized the art needed to command it — it needed more energy, more life,” Sayler said. “Then it got bigger and bigger … the lines stayed the same, but the design changed to be more expansive.”
Her nine-month stint at the Main Street gallery culminated in “Dark Matter,” which will be on display until Dec. 23.
Olivia Heersink | Argonaut
Moscow artist Gerri Sayler makes final touches on “Dark Matter,” a new exhibit opening at the University of Idaho Prichard Art Gallery Friday.
She utilized black aluminum mesh to create various pieces, large and small — a first for Sayler.
“I combined a yearning to make things with my hands and a fascination for the geophysical history of the Northwest,” Sayler said. “Of particular interest was the notion of creating both large and small works that offered potential for making and drawing light from the darkness and shadows.”
But it wasn’t Sayler’s first time using black aluminum mesh, which is commonly used for window screening.
She first discovered its more aesthetic use while sitting at her dining table.
Sayler said she heard her cat, Puka, scratching on the screen door. She went to scold the animal, but stopped after she had seen what it had done.
“The texture that had happened to the black aluminum mesh was incredible, and that’s how I discovered it,” Sayler said. “I went straight away to the hardware store to buy more.”
Sayler then submitted a proposal to Eastern Washington University to create her first piece utilizing the mesh.
Soon, she found the material kept unraveling and fraying further. But Sayler liked the results and decided to do it purposefully.
“I’ve been unraveling mesh since 2009, and finally I get to use some of it,” Sayler said.
The stock-piled mesh was used in Sayler’s current exhibit, which she said speaks to the flow, color and cragginess of the Channeled Scablands. It is also invocative of water, as well as the balancing act between life and death.
Despite creating several, successful site-specific installations, Sayler hasn’t always considered herself an artist in the typical sense of the word.
After graduating with a degree in journalism from the University of North Dakota, she worked with TV station as a news reporter. She later left the field for a marketing career.
Eventually, she found herself working with the Idaho Repertory Theater, and being surrounded by artists within the department inspired her to pursue her own creative spirit.
Sayler went back to school, receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts from UI.
“I loved my job and all the people, but the call of art was so strong. I just up and tipped our little household upside down and went for the art degree,” she said. “I am blessed for the art, and my wonderful husband who supported me 100 percent.”
Now, in addition to her exhibit, she is also teaching four UI art students how to install and create their own — a part of the residency.
Sayler was the Prichard’s first artist-in-residence — a program Rowley hopes to continue.
Olivia Heersink | Argonaut
“Dark Matter,” created by Moscow artist Gerri Sayler, opens at the University of Idaho Prichard Art Gallery Friday.
In his mind, Rowley said Sayler’s exhibit validated the importance of providing on-site studio space for an artist to work and engage with the community, “showing we are not just a place for exhibiting artwork, but for the creation of new work.”
Rowley said residencies go beyond providing a physical space, but an intellectual one, which supports artists’ visions to take life.
“I think it’s remarkable how Gerri (Sayler) transformed the materials, where any sense of its original purpose is completely gone,” Rowley said. “Helping her achieve what she wanted to do, that’s what it’s all been about.”
The “Dark Matter” exhibit opens 5 p.m. Friday at the Prichard. Sayler said Marc La Pointe, a UI graduate, will perform a dance during the reception. A gallery talk will occur 2 p.m. Saturday.
Sayler said she wants viewers to be curious and taken by surprise.
“I hope to see that kind of sense of astonishment, you know, that ordinary materials can be used for things of beauty,” she said. “This has all been an exploratory, experimental process of finding my way as I go … pushing me beyond what I have done before.”
Olivia Heersink can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @heersinkolivia