Waffle Frolic Logo upstairs

Lisa Holt's work is on the walls of our store, but also scope out our bathrooms. They were thoughtfully designed and created by two more local artists.We thank both Heidi Brown and Outlaw for their great energy and the truly unique flair that they added to both bathrooms.


Featured Artist

Reintroductions


drawings by Mara Baldwin


The English noun, souvenir, comes from the French verb meaning "to
remember." But the French verb, souvenir, more literally translates to something
like 'to come from under' which suggests for me a submersion into the depth of
memory and resurfacing in a place of familiarity. It implies a re-visitation, not the
original experience, but that experience done again. Stories and possessions
are souvenirs, evidence of passage through time. But found at a flea market,
an object once a souvenir from a particular family narrative becomes a part of
a social and phenomenological landscape. The wealth of memory is that it is
fluid and resourceful, with no scarcity in its infinite alteration. By teasing objects
and stories out of the singularity of their original possession we can open up the
possibilities of belonging/s, where we defy the conventions of autonomy to foster
greater notions of collective consciousness. The photograph is one example
of a prop that aids us in this shape-shifting process of discovery, essential to
defining and then redefining who we are. As Roland Barthes writes in Camera
Lucida, "I am the reference of every photograph, and this is what generates my
astonishment in addressing myself to the fundamental question: why is it that I
am alive here and now?" I'm interested in objects and histories that speak of the
tension between simultaneous absence and presence, as evident in the wear
and breakdown of belongings, the fading and reinterpretation of memory and the
conflicting truths of contemporary and historical experience.
Mara Baldwin is an artist, writer, and amateur historian living and
working in Ithaca, NY. For more information on works, please email
grayandgrey@gmail.com.

 

If you are interested in booking an upcoming show please email art@wafflefrolicking.com