Past Exhibitions

While at PlySpace Adam Stacey and Makenzie Goodman created The First Guide, an installation focused on the past, present, and future of the White River that runs through Muncie. Through alternative and analog photography, slip-cast mold making, and an 8mm video projection they consider the historical, psychological and ecological significance the river provides to Muncie’s residents.

During their residency at PlySpace in August 2020, Ashley Beatty and Jeff Schofield installed sustainably themed artworks along the south shore of Prairie Creek Reservoir where the Mid-Indiana Trails (MINT) are located. Visitors to the MINT hiking and bicycle trails saw a series of artworks made from natural materials and found objects that investigated human transgressions of natural settings. Signage was posted along the trails identifying the locations of the work.

Open Curiosity: An Exploration of Material as Metaphor, a four part online workshop, invited participants to release their expectations about “Art-making” and embrace process-driven, open-ended inquiries. Participants used simple basketry techniques to consider relationships- both physically/structurally and metaphorically/philosophically. The sessions included discussion and interaction among members of the group, with facilitation by New Mexico-based artist, Carrie Dickason.

In May and June 2021, Brood X of 17 year cicadas emerged throughout Indiana. Inspired by the buzzing, whirring, and chirping of cicadas and other insects during the late spring and summer, Erin Mallea, PlySpace Artist in Residence, collaborated with Muncie community members to listen to and observe insect noises in the area and develop a performance as a choral insect cacophony.

At Plyspace, Anna Lublina has explored dough as a sculptural material and performance partner through their multidisciplinary project Leavening Agents. Their creative research has drawn from local bread recipes and the wetland ecological systems prominent in Muncie. Guided by the idea that dough is a living organism (a bubbling combination of flour, water, and yeast!), Anna has investigated the way dough responds when in relation to other ecological systems, like grasslands, riverbanks, and skin microflora. This exhibition highlights their journey.

In February of 2020, Skakun and Spadine joined PlySpace as the 2020 Spring Fellows. Little did any of us know that this would be a spring to remember, and not for the right reasons. Despite being in quarantine at PlySpace throughout the Covid-19 epidemic, the artists were able to make progress on their studio projects and collaborative work. This exhibition highlights what they have done, and hope to do in the future!