Davis YMCA's 5th art show features 9 states, 11 countries

By JORDYN GRZELEWSKI

jgrzelewski@vindy.com

BOARDMAN

The pieces in this year’s FIVE Squared art show at the Davis Family YMCA come from nine states and 11 countries.

The work of an Indian artist is featured, as are several pieces created by a girl from Canada.

There are submissions from Thailand, Iran, and Ukraine.

Most of the 500 or so pieces are made locally, but there is diversity there, too – art by children and amateur artists hangs alongside pieces by some of the area’s most well-known artists.

That’s what makes the show special, says Suzanne Gray, YMCA arts & humanities coordinator.

“Anybody can participate,” she said. “And, the pieces are so reasonable almost anybody can purchase something.”

The pieces will be on sale starting Sunday, when the Davis Family YMCA will host an opening reception for the show from 1 to 3 p.m. Raffle tickets for a place in line will be on sale from 1 to 2 p.m., and general sales begin at 2:30 p.m. Children’s art is $10; all other pieces are $25.

The artwork is sold anonymously; buyers don’t learn who made the piece until after they’ve purchased it.

The reception is free and open to the public. Proceeds from the sale benefit the YMCA’s ARTReach program, which brings free art programs to places such as the Rescue Mission of Mahoning Valley.

The art will remain on display through March 4.

In addition to featuring artists of all backgrounds, ages, and skill levels, FIVE Squared features many different media, too. There are paintings, drawings, pastels, collages, textiles, sculptures, and more. All are made on 5-by-5-inch canvasses.

One of this year’s submissions is a T-shirt, which the artist painstakingly folded so it would fit on the small square.

Other pieces portray a young Elvis Presley and an older Elvis. Another set depicts two sides of a face, one side on each canvas. Another shows a weeping Statue of Liberty.

In all, there are “so, so many stories” represented in the show, Gray said.

“That is what’s really so special about this: Just seeing your art. Seeing your art on the wall,” she added.