Next in our lineup of First Friday artists is local painter, Wendy Bowers Lam. We are looking forward to hosting Wendy on Friday, October 7th from 5:00-7:00PM, and invite everyone to visit the event page here. Get to know Wendy before the gallery opening by checking out her biography below.
Wendy enjoys painting with bold colors and whimsical subject matter. She is drawn to curious cow expressions and gentle sheep she photographs while hiking in Scotland. She finds inspiration for subject matter in an African safari, or a trip to Key West seeing strutting roosters. Wendy also photographs rural barns, garden flowers, Blue Ridge Mountains and vineyard fields for local inspiration and beauty. Watercolor paintings are intricate depictions of bees, fish, and insects among other animals.
Wendy grew up on Paul Street in Old Town Harrisonburg. She graduated from Harrisonburg High and then the University of Virginia. She taught middle school language arts in Augusta and Rockingham County until staying home with three children. Always interested in artistic pursuits, Lam took some classes at The Beverley Street Studio School in Staunton as an adult and began to paint in oils. She is a juried member of the Co-Art Gallery in Staunton and has exhibited professionally there for over 10 years. Wendy also exhibits in state juried shows such as the VMRC Art Show, Art at the Mill, the Bath County Art Show, Blue Ridge Community College and Two Rivers Colony Country Club (Williamsburg). Lam’s solo shows include the Smith House Galleries at the Arts Council of the Valley, Ox Eye Vineyards (Staunton), Aioli Restaurant, Shenandoah Pizza (Staunton), and Clementine’s Restaurant.
She currently teaches some watercolor/mixed media classes at JMU’s Lifelong Learning Institute. Wendy is very active in the community as a CASA volunteer, a board member of both the Explore More Children’s Museum and Kerus Global Education, and is active in the Spotswood Garden Club. She is a lifelong runner and reader.
University of Miami life has included a few fun days at Key Biscayne, a lot of late nights in the architecture studio, and a ton of thinking about my future career as a licensed architect. Despite only being a rising third year at the University of Miami’s School of Architecture, I have found myself frequently wondering what it is like to be a real architect. Throughout my two years of school, I have learned software after software, great design skills, and how to make a snazzy layout for a final pinup, but I had not exactly grasped what day-to-day life is like for a licensed architect working in a firm. I wanted more information and experience so I started looking for opportunities.
A job shadowing position at Gaines Group Architects was the perfect answer to my question. I met with my mentor, Charles Hendricks, for two and a half months over the summer. I currently live in Miami, so going to the Virginia-based firm in person was not an option. Charles and I worked out an option to do a virtual job shadowing position where I could get a glimpse of his current projects and design a new project of my own. I met with Charles on Zoom (link to zoom website) once a week and was able to receive invaluable feedback on my design while gaining insight into his responsibilities as the principal architect at Gaines Group Architects.
I have been interested in architecture since I was young. Whether I was designing houses on Minecraft and The Sims or printing out blueprints and drawing over them, I was always finding ways to create and design. The first time I met Charles was over two years ago when I was deciding whether or not to major in architecture in college. Charles told me getting an architecture degree would not be easy and is accompanied by a lot of late nights, but it is worth it if architecture is what I truly enjoy. After that conversation I knew architecture was the major for me, even knowing it is challenging.
Now, speaking as someone with two years of a degree under her belt, architecture school is the hardest thing I have ever done. I have Studio, my main class, for three hours every other day. Honestly, studio controls my life. Once the class is finished, I stay in the studio and continue to work all day, otherwise, there is no way I will get to bed before 4 a.m. Weekends are reserved for projects, not partying. Getting an architecture degree takes discipline, but I am able to make it through because I love the work I am doing. If I could give one piece of advice to someone considering going to architecture school, it would be to only go into this degree if it really captivates your interest and is something you could work on consistently for hours every single day. Yes, architecture school is hard, but it is the only way to become an architect, so it is worth it to me.
When Charles offered me a virtual job shadowing position for the summer, I was very eager to take advantage of the opportunity to learn more about architecture post-college. College architecture is all that I know, and although the degree is designed to prepare me for life after graduation, I still was not sure what it was like to be an architect working in a firm. A lot of the designs we do in college are not geared toward real-life clients, so it was hard to imagine designing catered to others’ wants and needs versus my own. For the job shadowing position, I decided to design my parents’ future home that they will be constructing in around five years. This project was the perfect way to experience designing something with real clients, but the clients are my parents, so it is okay if I mess up. I also took on the task of learning and using software I had never used before. Charles informed me that at his firm they use #SketchUp for 3D modeling. At the University of Miami, we use either Rhinoceros 3D or #Revit for digital model making, but I had heard before that Sketchup is a more commonly used software in firms, so I figured this summer would be a great time to learn, especially with Charles assisting me along the way.
Charles suggested the first step in this project be a #Zoom meeting with both of my parents, where I interview them as the “principal architect” and ask questions regarding their vision for their future dream home. Charles was very helpful in this process; he gave me a list of topics to discuss with my clients that allowed me to understand what sort of questions I will be asking my clients in the future.
My parents wanted a Pacific Northwest-style home with three bedrooms, three and a half bathrooms, an open floor plan, large living spaces, and kitchen, and most importantly, a giant covered porch. The house is going to be built on my parents’ land, so my next step would be to visit the site in person to get a feel for the topography and areas with the best views. Since I am in Miami, I could not visit the site myself. Thankfully, Charles was able to meet with my parents and visit the site, so then he could explain to me where and how the house should be positioned to warrant the best possible views of the property. The site is sloped, so I had to overcome the challenge of designing a home on a hill, which is obviously not a design issue I experience in Miami. Additionally, because I was unable to see the site in person, it was difficult at times to understand important design-affecting elements, such as how steep the incline of the land is and the location of the existing driveway in relation to the site. Charles helped me through these challenges and gave me great insight as to how to design a home with a sensible layout that is also in-budget, structurally sound, and up-to-par with my parent’s stylistic requirements.
I started my design process with sketches and drafts of floor plans and elevations. Through the drafting stage, I learned a lot about how to stay on budget and how particular elements like having a lot of angles, too spread out of a floorplan, or a complex roof can quickly make the cost of the building increase. I learned to simplify and condense design elements to fit my parents’ budget, which is something I have not had to do in college architecture due to the fact that we are not designing for a real client with a real budget.
After I had a more solidified floor plan, I used AutoCAD to further its development. I found it very beneficial to have “clients” to reference when I had a particular design question. In architecture school, the student makes all the design decisions and caters the project to his or her own desires, but for this project, I got a taste of what it is like to design for somebody else rather than myself. I was able to ask my clients what they exactly wanted, so essentially the clients were making all the tough decisions for me.
Next, I brought my floor plans into SketchUp and began 3D modeling. SketchUp was far more user-friendly than any other 3D modeling software I have used, so I had a great time playing around with the form of the house and making changes to the floor plan accordingly. I found it to be much easier to quickly go from an incomplete model to a finished model with materials and landscaping in SketchUp than it is in any other 3D modeling software, so I am very grateful Charles suggested I learn the program. Additionally, I now have another skill to add to my resume and another unique design piece to add to my portfolio.
As part of this job shadowing experience, I also got an inside look at what Charles is working on and the sorts of projects he receives at his firm. It was very interesting to see the grand scope of projects he is juggling all at once, from a giant book warehouse to a bagel store to a gorgeous home. I realized that architecture can be whatever I want to make it in the future, and I can specialize in literally any field of architecture I desire. I also realized that it gets better. Architecture is not an easy profession by any means, but at least it seems that the all-nighters will stop after college.
Getting an architectural degree can feel defeating at times, but this job shadowing experience gave me hope for my future as a licensed architect. I would recommend anyone considering majoring in architecture, or even already working on their architecture degree, to job shadow an architect. I gained so much from my job shadowing experience: I learned new software, received amazing feedback on my own work, gained insight into the work and daily life of a busy architect, and designed a dream home for my parents. Thanks to Charles and Gaines Group Architects, I can now picture my future as a working architect and I am looking forward to it more than ever.
Janine Aberg’s art will be featured during the First Friday Gallery Opening on September 2nd.
In September, we are excited to share another talented local artist, Janine Aberg. Janine is one of two artists who will be featured during our First Friday gallery opening on September 2nd, from 5-7pm. To learn more about the event and RSVP, visit the event page here.
Janine (South African) and her husband Simon (Sweden) met in Hawaii. They lived in Harrisonburg for a number of years and now they own a small farm in Keezletown, VA where they run River Mountain Farm And Life Center (See more at www.artbyJanine.com). Janine and Simon have three beautiful girls Arowin, Katanyah and Soercha.
Janine is a passionate artist. She processes life through art and finds true solace in her times in front of a fresh canvas or wall. Art is a form of meditation for Janine and gives her time to connect the spiritual and physical aspects of life. Janine gives herself fully to whatever she sets her mind to and she finds satisfaction in a life fully lived.
Janine is a fine artist, muralist, and dancer. Her art is strongly influenced by color, light, and by her love for dance, movement, and animals. Her work expresses the wealth of beauty and feeling that is born out of the confluence of suffering and the joy of life. This coupled with complexity in design makes Janine a truly unique artist. She is deeply influenced by her country of origin (South Africa), living in Hawaii, and travelling around the world.
In their time in Harrisonburg Janine painted murals in every room in their town house, creating a taste of different countries and otherworldly places. She has also painted murals in a number of Harrisonburg homes and businesses including Dick Myers, Sentara RMH wellness center, J. Frank Hillyard Middle school to mention a few. Janine loves to connect her many passions, like her passion for psychology, peacebuilding, animals, and dance. She has found joy in her art being used on the cover of books especially “to stir &” by Nikia Chaney. Her art also hangs in Eastern Mennonite University.
Her preferred mediums are oil and acrylic. She loves to experiment with the intersectionality between fine art, dance, theater, music, and healing. She does portraiture, landscape, murals, body painting (especially for pregnant mothers), and social justice pieces.
The artist holds a BA in Performing Arts from the University of the Nations, and an MA in Conflict Transformation from Eastern Mennonite University, Center for Justice and Peacebuilding. Janine has won prices at fine art competitions on the Hawaiian Islands, including the Kona Coffee Arts Festival and the Waimea Arts Council. She has worked for a summer with Philadelphia Mural Arts and has exhibited with a group of fantastic artists at the Olympic games in the UK 2012.
Her art hangs in many countries including the USA, South Africa, China, Germany, Sweden, and England.
Our second artist we are excited to feature in September is Saloma Furlong. To learn more about the First Friday art gallery opening, visit the event page here.
Saloma Furlong was born and raised in an Amish community in northeastern Ohio. With the eighth-grade education of her childhood, she acquired her GED, enrolled in community college courses, and became an Ada Comstock Scholar at Smith College. She studied at the University of Hamburg in Germany for a semester. At fifty, she graduated with a major in German Studies and a minor in Philosophy. Furlong is the author of three books, and her story has been featured in two PBS American Experience films, “The Amish” and “The Amish: Shunned.” She is the mother of two grown sons and lives in Virginia with her husband, David.
Saloma will share her book, Liberating Lomie at the gallery opening. In this personal and moving memoir, Saloma (Lomie) traces the genesis of her desire for freedom and education and chronicles her conflicted quest for independence. She recalls her painful childhood in a family defined by her father’s mental illness, her brother’s brutality, her mother’s severe punishments, and the austere traditions of the Amish—traditions she struggled to accept for years before making the difficult decision to leave the community. Eloquently told, Liberating Lomie is a revealing portrait of life within—and without—this frequently misunderstood community.
Also available at the gallery opening will be her book, Bonnet Strings: an Amish Woman’s ties to Two Worlds. In this poignant coming-of-age memoir, Saloma’s freedom allows her to thrive in her new life in Vermont. Then late one night, her freedom comes to an abrupt end when members of her Amish community arrive to take her back into the fold. Thus begins a years-long struggle of feeling torn between two worlds. Bonnet Strings offers a universal story of overcoming adversity and a rare look inside an Amish community. Readers will find a story of competing desires between freedom and belonging.
Aside from writing books, Saloma is also the creator of handmade rugs. These beautiful works of art will be available at the gallery opening.
First Fridays at the Depot are a special time to gather in celebration of the arts and have become a bit of a tradition around our office. We love opening our doors to celebrate the arts and artists who share their talents with our community. After far too many months in isolation over the pandemic, these past few First Fridays of the Valley gallery openings have reminded us how much joy can be found when we prioritize lifting up the diversity of our community’s artists. From authors to painters, photographers, musicians, and craftsmen; we are grateful for the creativity each artist shares.
We still have a few more spots available for artists this year and are making reservations for 2023. If you or someone you know is interested in showcasing their work at the Depot Gallery, don’t hesitate to reach out! We love having first-time exhibitors as well as seasoned pros. Artists can expect to leave the party planning up to our team as we are happy to tackle the details and provide food and refreshments.
Anyone interested can give our office a call or email Annie at [email protected]. We look forward to continuing this tradition into the future and showcasing the talent held within our community!
Aaron Zook will feature “Method in Madness” during this month’s First Friday gallery opening.
Mark your calendars for another First Friday art gallery opening at the Depot! This month’s show “Method in Madness” is presented by local artist, Aaron Zook. He is a self-taught photographer, born and raised in Harrisonburg, Virginia.
The Method in Madness show focuses on the small, quiet moments that punctuate our daily grind. Moments of professionalism, thought, care, routine, and wisdom gained from years of experience are what continually inspire Aaron. In his words, “the world is madness, held together by the fascinating methods of the human mind. This one is for the craftsmen.”
This free event will be held from 5:00-7:00pm on August 5th and is open to everyone. The Gaines Group will provide snacks and refreshments and encourage everyone to RSVP on the event page here.
