5 picks for July ArtHop: At Fig Tree Gallery, Jay Scantling looks to her dreams for healing

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A: This is not the first time I have dealt with childhood trauma. It has been something I have struggled with all my life, and it has been a theme in my art for at least 15 years. A lot of these concepts and images spontaneously appear through my dreams, so it’s not completely a conscious choice when I select the theme exactly. (There is also lot of quite conscious editing and developing of my themes and attention to my process, technique, and media — it’s not all like Surrealist automatic drawing. That’s why I titled several works in this show Semi-Automatic.) But most of the work in my past exhibitions focused on the damage done, the fragmentation and splitting of the psyche. This show is different because it also addresses the opposite: healing through creativity. If my previous work was mostly about breakdown, this one is more about breaking through.

Q: I’m intrigued by the idea of recurring characters in your dreams that act as sort of a defense system for your psyche. Can you pick one of these characters as an example and go into detail, including how they protected you?

A: Knifewing is one of the oldest characters and has appeared in my art in media from paintings to plush sculptures since at least 2009. He is my animal ally or alter-ego. He resembles a combination of a horse, dog, donkey and dragon. In dreams, I made him as my guardian out of materials I had around like fabric, buttons, electrical cord and electrical tape and knives and then, like Frankenstein’s monster, I brought him to life. As a recurring dream character, Knifewing is powerful, able to cast lightning bolts and fly. He serves as my main protector, although like creativity itself, he is not always easily controlled. Knifewing has a dark version or manifestation that is activated by traumatic events, transforming into The Guardian. This is a humanoid version of Knifewing who functions to take care of internal problems, like keeping my conscious awareness from going into areas of the mind that are out of bounds, like dissociated memories. He originated as a protector, but he became like a jailor for the psyche. He has the same materials as Knifewing, including a cord tail, patchwork cloth in stripes and polka dots, and a helmet that resembles Knifewing’s head with jagged teeth, button eyes and long ears. He also has a staff sporting the head of Knifewing that is alive and moves on its own.

Q: When were you able to first articulate the presence of this cast of characters?

A: The dreams predate the art, and many of the characters have been with me in dreams since my teens. Some of them joined my dream world later in my 20’s. It was not until grad school that I decided to present them in art intended for an audience besides myself.

Q: I’m also intrigued that you feel the time has come to integrate these characters, to remove the “prison” walls between them. Why do you think this is important?

A: My dreams call my attention to issues or problems that I need to address. This theme in my art has spontaneously emerged in my dream life as of late, a focus that my mind keeps returning to. I’ve been dreaming lately of cells or compartments with characters, representing pieces of myself, locked inside them and wanting to escape. I have also been dreaming a lot about spliced creatures, or hybrids. None of these things are happenstance. Dreams are a communication from other parts of the self that may be unconscious and I take them seriously.

Q: Realizing that the inside of everyone’s head can be absolutely different, and that you certainly aren’t trying to dispense psychological advice, what sort of impact or message would you like to impart to viewers of your show who have also suffered from childhood trauma?

A: You are quite correct that everyone’s experience is different, and I’m certainly not trying to present the specifics of my life in detail or trying to sell my way of coping through art as a specific model for other survivors to follow. What I would like to communicate to others who may have also suffered childhood adversity is a more general point: though it’s not that you can get rid of that trauma or completely undo its effects, you can transform parts of it into something more positive, more manageable, through creative activity. That’s why I use the metaphor from alchemy of the philosopher’s stone turning lead into gold in this show, and why I incorporate some materials that are basically other people’s trash in my work.

Q: As an aside: your “Religious Snare” is absorbing (and also a little scary). Can you talk about it?

A: Sure. It is based partly on a dream I had quite a while ago (2010) that struck me as very important at the time. It refers to my experience growing up in an abusive fundamentalist Christian household and other negative childhood experiences with religion as both attacking and denying aspects of my identity. For me, religion is very sinister in its attempt to dominate people, especially in regard to gender roles and sexuality. I’m returning to the imagery from that dream now because of the current attacks on the transgender and gay communities and women’s reproductive rights, which make this painting mean more for me than just being about a dream I had, or my personal symbolism. The title comes from a short poem by William Blake called Lacedemonian Instruction. I use the quote because Blake expressed similar views on the effects of authoritarian religion and rigid moral laws.he e

Q: Finally, can you talk a little about your trajectory as an artist? 

A: I am often asked how I came to work in so many different materials. I began as a 2-D artist, painting and drawing and writing in a dream journal. Later, I became frustrated as this did not feel like enough to communicate my ideas. The paintings felt like windows that I could see through but not touch what was inside. I decided that I shouldn’t be limited by medium and that I should instead let the visions take me where they will. The paintings started to become more three-dimensional, and I shifted into sculpture and installations and then later into time based works in video. I find it very freeing to be fluid with my medium, allowing the dream to determine the form of expression in whatever medium best fits the concept. This allows me to surpass the limit of the window and truly step through the door into that other place in my head and allow others to see inside, if only in a veiled way.

Other ArtHop picks:

Arte Américas

The cultural center recently opened a touring show, “Librería Donceles,” which is described as “a socially engaged art project created by artist and educator Pablo Helguera out of a desire to address the lack of bookstores that serve the growing Hispanic and Latinx communities in the United States,” according to the Vincent Price Museum in Los Angeles, where the exhibition recently played. (Side note to Arte’s webmaster: It’s unfortunate that updated information about the exhibition can’t easily be found on the Arte website.)

Taking its name from the historic street, Calle Donceles, in Mexico City that is lined with used bookstores, the installation premiered in New York in 2013 and has since traveled to Phoenix, San Francisco, Seattle, Chicago, Boston, Indianapolis, Anchorage and Santa Cruz.

“Libreria Donceles” opened June 21 and will continue through Dec. 22.

It’s a dog’s life at Downtown Artist Gallery

Works by Tim Padilla are featured in “Life of Tai” at the Downtown Artist Gallery, 701 L St. The show is open to the public two times only: at the ArtHop reception; and 1-3 p.m. Saturday, July 13.

It’s a dog’s life, Part 2: Fresno City Hall hosts Val Woodward

Pet photographer Val Woodward presents “Dogscapes: Embracing Central Valley’s Dogged Charm,” an exhibition running through July 31 at Fresno City Hall.

The collection includes dogs in such landscapes as Yosemite National Park, Shaver Lake and more.

“I am so honored and thankful the participant dogs were willing to help bring this project to life,” Woodward writes on Instagram. “Our goal is to bring smiles to those that enter the Fresno City Hall and highlight the vast beauty that is the Central Valley.”

Michael Karibian at Spectrum Art Gallery

‘Soldier’ by Michael Karibian

A memorial retrospective of Karibian runs through July 28.

Described as a beloved and past member of Spectrum Art Gallery, Karibian’s work also was featured at the Fresno Art Museum and Fig Tree Gallery. “Although he has passed on, his amazing work continues to inspire with this retrospective exhibition featuring some of the highlights of his versatile career.”

During his tour in Vietnam in 1969 he served as photographer for “Stars and Stripes.” Afterward, he earned a Master of Fine Arts degree and pursued a long and successful career as a professional photographer.

A reception will be held 1-4 p.m. Saturday, July 13.

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