Woman's trip to France inspires show at Main Exhibit Gallery

Local artist Alexis Dillon will feature a photography show, "A Tour de France," and "The Red Chair" at Main Exhibit Gallery beginning Friday.

Depicting images from a recent trip to the village of Ambialet, France, the exhibition will begin with an opening reception slated for 6 to 8 p.m.

"While there, I was drawn to a red chair located in one of the rooms of the Franciscan monastery," Dillon said. "At first I just liked how the complimentary color made the greens of the landscape pop. Later I began to read into the chair's moods as I carried it from place to place. Was it disinterested when its back was turned? Was it enthusiastic when placed on an overlook? I had a lot of fun as I lugged the chair in the July heat. When I returned home, I made a book of my red chair in all its locations. Since I couldn't bring the real chair home, I had a model made that is similar to the original which will be included in the show."

Refreshments with a French theme will be served at the reception and guests are invited to interact with the "Red Chair" exhibit, which will be in the upstairs gallery, a more intimate space, according to Mandy Sirofchuck, owner of Main Exhibit Gallery.

"The red chair photos will be featured with a red chair and a beret, inviting visitors to pose with the chair and take selfies," Sirofchuck said.

When Dillon mentioned the trip to Ambialet, France to her, Sirofchuck said she thought it would be a good idea to put together a show specific to her trip.

"Main Exhibit is such a great facility to showcase art," said Dillon, a resident of Greensburg. "It's such a beautiful place and Mandy and Paul are great people."

The show will contain over 60 pieces that have not yet been released to the public.

The images are from Dillon's visit to the Franciscan monastery, owned by St. Francis College.

"The relationship between my photo images and the viewer is an extremely personal one," Dillon said. "Although primarily void of human subjects, the mood of my work is expectant and joyful; images waiting for a human response."

"A Tour de France" and "The Red Chair" will run at Main Exhibit Gallery through Sept. 20.

"Whenever I see Alexis's work, I'm always impressed by it," Sirofchuck said. "We've known her for almost 20 years; she was one of the first artists we had in our gallery when we opened."

A graduate of Indiana University of Pennsylvania with a degree in visual arts and photography instruction, Dillon is a member of the Associated Artists of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh Society of Artists and the Silver Eye Center of photography.

She taught art and photography at Hempfield Area Senior High School for 25 years and now is concentrating on her own work.

"It is my vocation to share with the viewer, in the time allowed, that glimpse of something more which is often forgotten in the daily battle with minutiae," Dillion said. "I never feel more connected than when I'm involved with my images be it shooting, printing or applying colors."

Sirofchuck said she is amazed by the work that Dillon does.

"She works with infrared prints that she hand colors," she said. "She also does something called manipulated Polaroid, where she moves the emulsion around on the Polaroids before it sets and the prints look like paintings.

Aside from altering photos, Sirofchuck said she feels Dillon has a great eye for setting up her shots.

"She knows how to work with light and mood, creating her art on site with the camera without alterations later on," said Sirofchuck.

Dillon said the ethereal qualities of infrared film best express the lyrical nature of her vision.

"The techniques and idiosyncrasies of infrared photography have become a comfortable tool for me, allowing my imagination and aesthetics to dominate the vision I 'see' with my camera," she said. "Whether it is a film camera, infrared digital, or a Polaroid manipulation, I use whatever fits my concept."

Cami DiBattista is a contributing writer for Trib Total Media.

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