Thomas Sleet, Barry Leibman contribute to benefit for the environment
This Saturday, Nov. 18, the Missouri Coalition for the Environment will host a gala art auction, “eARThworks: art for an endangered planet” at the Gallery at the Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar Blvd.
The work is all “art evolved out of our relationship with the natural world” donated by more than 50 artists.
Coalition board member David Lobbig recently sat down with eARThworks contributing artists Thomas Sleet and Barry Leibman. Sleet is a veteran local African-American artist, and Leibman is engaged in a series of work that has touched upon great black musicians, such as Sun Ra.
David Lobbig: You both work very sensitively with materials, especially textures. Often the materials are found, and it seems you rediscover a life in them.
Thomas Sleet: Materials that have already gone through some sort of process, whether that be weathering or industrial cast-offs or natural materials like bark – there is a story in there. I like incorporating materials that have already gone through an experience. That brings a built-in life to the work.
Barry Leibman: Also, for me it is a real emotional relationship to the materials. I think we all have many layers in our personalities and many layers of experience.
Sleet: I use materials in ways in which I see birds, insects and small rodents use materials. It’s not like I’m using them to build a dwelling, but I’m using them to build something that has a dialogue with nature.
Leibman: It has to do with a depth of experience – an implied movement or texture, or bit of blue that pops.
Lobbig: How do you see the issue of stewardship of our world in relation to what you do in your lives?
Sleet: I don’t see a separation between urban living and the natural world. I see the imposition of barriers, of difference. What I’m always seeing – daily – are those little signs that the natural world still exists and is right here in front of your eyes, if you care to be aware. It may be looking up underneath the eave of your house and seeing a beautifully crafted wasp nest, made out of wood fiber and spit – one of the most beautiful things, and it’s right there.
Leibman: Nature itself was never something that enticed me. My involvement with the environment is being a good citizen: recycling, reusing, listening.
Sleet: My suggestion is for people to walk the alleys, railroad tracks and unseen places. That’s how I get my enrichment. I’ve been living here all my life, and I can still find a place I’ve never been. I’ll be walking and find a cache of electrical motors that some company has thrown down by the river, and which has now weathered for 10 or 15 years. For me, it’s like I’ve found pile of gold. The colors are there, the texture is there. It’s highly refined design by lack of human touch.
We should adhere to the Seventh Generation principal of the Iroquois: We should always consider the future generations. If we produce something, then we should try to use it until it doesn’t exist any more, whether a milk carton or space ship. We should look far into our endeavors and use materials properly in the first place. If you buy a jug of milk, you should rinse it out and use it as a food container until it won’t hold food anymore, rather than simply crushing it and throwing it the alley. We need to get more insightful about what we’re producing. And if we can’t use something again, it doesn’t need to be produced in the first place.
The Gala Auction begins at 7 p.m. Saturday, November 18 at the Gallery at The Regional Arts Commission, 6128 Delmar Blvd. Admission tickets are $25. Tickets are available online at art.moenviron.org or by calling (314) 727-0600. Proceeds will benefit the Missouri Coalition for the Environment.