Category: Exhibitions

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Stories in Paper

Commuters by Megan Coyle
“Commuters.” Collage on paper. 18″x24″
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July 8th – August 2nd, 2010
The Art League Gallery; Alexandria, Virginia
Map and Gallery Info

Opening Reception & Meet the Artist: Thursday, July 8th, 6:30 – 8:00pm

Artist Talk: 8:00pm following the opening reception

Megan had her second major solo exhibition, “Stories in Paper,” at the Art League Gallery in Old Town of Alexandria, Virginia. The show featured work that depicted narratives of individuals and groups of people.

The work on display was entirely different than the series shown at the Fisher Gallery.

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Stories in Paper Exhibition

Stories in Paper by collage artist Megan Coyle
Stories in Paper by collage artist Megan Coyle

If you click on one of the images above, you can view a larger image of the front and back of the postcard for my upcoming solo exhibition. Before you know it, July 8th will be here. I’ve got quite a bit of exhibition prep work to do, but I’m excited that the artwork is completed, framed, and ready for the opening reception.

Below is the press release that the Art League Gallery sent out about my exhibit:

At a glance, Megan Coyle’s images deceptively appear to be slightly abstracted paintings. But upon closer inspection, the viewer can see the surface of the “painting” dissolves into bits of paper. Her images are not paintings, but collages carefully crafted from small pieces of magazine photos. Stories in Paper, Coyle’s solo exhibit at The Art League Gallery, explores images and scenes of day-to-day life using an unconventional medium and method to create sophisticated images.

Coyle reconstructs the picture surface by breaking down the human form into different planes – the body, face, and the folds in the clothing. She builds up the surface and texture by layering different shapes of paper, or peels away pieces to let previous layers shine through. “Utilizing this method allows me to create artwork that captures the essence of a painting, but broadens my palette to include textures, pattern, and fragments of photographs from magazines.”

“My process is pretty straight forward. First I sketch out the composition while using multiple photographs as references. I pour through piles of magazines and tear out pages that have the colors and patterns that I have in mind. I cut out shapes of color and affix them where I want them. I block in the color bit by bit, eventually layering shapes, and finally creating a finished piece. Lastly, I paint a matte varnish on top of the collage as a UV protectant.”

Coyle graduated in 2008 from Elon University in North Carolina with a BA in painting and creative writing. Her work has been exhibited throughout the region in venues including the Smithsonian Ripley Center, Fisher Gallery, Nicholas Colasanto Center, and The Art League Gallery. She was recently accepted into the Visiting Artist program at the Torpedo Factory Art Center for the summer of 2010.

In The Art League Gallery:

Stories in Paper: July 8 – August 2, 2010
Opening Reception and Artist Talk: Thursday, July 8, 6:30 – 8:30 pm
Artist Talk: Blogging for Artists with Megan Coyle: Thursday, July 15, 7:00 – 8:00 pm

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"Local Scene" Exhibit at Scene Gallery

Washington Monument by collage artist Megan CoyleAbove is one of the flyers Scene Gallery is using to promote their “Local Scene” exhibit that opens tomorrow. You’ll notice that it features my scape collage, “The Washington Monument,” and if you click on the flyer image, you can see a larger version of it.

I was invited by Scene Gallery to participate in this group exhibition which features the work of local artists. The exhibit is showcasing artwork depicting sights of the Washington, D.C. area. Aside from my “Washington Monument” collage, the show also features my “Lincoln Memorial,” “Masonic Temple,” and “Torpedo Factory.”

I’m excited to participate in this show. Scene Gallery is a fairly new gallery – it opened not even a year ago at National Harbor in Maryland. The opening is on Saturday, June 12th from 6 – 9p.m. I’m looking forward to spending the day in the studio at the Torpedo Factory before heading on over to National Harbor for the reception.

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Local Scene

The Lincoln Memorial by Megan Coyle
“The Lincoln Memorial.” Collage on mat board. 5″x7″
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June 4th – July 20th, 2010
Scene Gallery; National Harbor, Maryland
Map and Gallery Info

Opening Reception: June 12th, 6 – 9 p.m.

Megan was invited to display her work in a group exhibition at Scene Gallery located on National Harbor. Four of her ‘scapes collages were on display, “Lincoln Memorial,” “Washington Monument,” “Torpedo Factory,” and “The Masonic Temple.

Washington Monument by collage artist Megan CoyleThe exhibition, “Local Scene,” featured artwork depicting scenes around the Washington, D.C. area. It showcased the artwork of local artists.

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Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage Reception Photos

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

Aside from posting the video of my reception, I thought I’d add a few pictures from the event. The one above is an action shot of my artist talk.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

The audience during the talk.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

Yet another angle.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

I realized that, gasp, I hadn’t shown any images of the food during the show. The day before, as well as the morning of the reception, we were hard at work putting together a few platters. The one above is the cheese platter.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

This is an unfinished platter that had a mix of food – tortellini, tomatoes with a salmon spread inside of them, and a goat cheese spread on some veggies.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

The fruit platter minus the yogurt dip that we put in the center.

Piece by Piece Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle

And the veggie platter minus the dip in the center. We also had a dessert platter and a few other items that I didn’t photograph while I was working in the kitchen. It was quite the experience planning everything for this show – from PR to planning the menu, I was grateful for every bit of help I received.

So one solo opening down, one more (at the moment) to go. And later today I get to go to work at my temporary studio after I move in. I can’t wait!

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Fisher Gallery Reception Video

My brother, Brendan Coyle, put together a video of the reception for my solo show “Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage” at the Fisher Gallery. Here you can get a good idea of what the show looked like when you walked into the gallery. The exhibit features sixteen of my collages created this year.

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Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage

The New York Diner by collage artist Megan Coyle
“The New York Diner” Collage on paper. 24″x18″
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May 14th – June 13th, 2010
Fisher Art Gallery; Alexandria, Virginia
Map and Gallery Info

Opening Reception: May 22nd, from 3-5p.m.
Artist Talk: 4p.m.

Megan had one of her first major solo exhibitions, “Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage,” at the Fisher Art Gallery in Alexandria, Virginia. The Fisher Art Gallery is located in the Rachel M. Schlesinger Concert Hall and Arts Center, on Northern Virginia Community College’s Alexandria Campus.

The show featured Megan’s latest artwork that was made specifically for the exhibition. Her work explored the figure with depictions of various figures interacting with the environment around them.

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Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage Exhibit Postcards

Yesterday I worked on installing my first solo exhibition, “Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage” at the Fisher Gallery. The show opens this Friday, although the reception isn’t until the 22nd. Below I’ve included images of the exhibit postcard – you can click on the front and back view to see a larger image of the card.

Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle
Front view

Piece by Piece: Figurative Collage by Megan Coyle
Back view

After loading and unloading artwork all day yesterday, it felt great to see the work up on the gallery walls. Now all I need to do is get organized for the reception. Then it will be time to prep for my Visiting Artist work. Yep, there’s never enough time in a day to get everything done…
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"What’s Your Bag?" Exhibition

I hope everyone had a happy weekend. I spent my Saturday gallery sitting at the Del Ray Artisans for their “What’s Your Bag?” exhibition. The show features artwork that depicts bags in our culture as well as art made from recycled bags. A lot of handmade bags were also included in the show.

Photo by collage artist Megan Coyle

Here’s the piece that I had hanging in the exhibition, “The Reader.” There’s a book bag resting on the ground next to the figure spread out on the park bench.

I thought I’d have a productive art-filled weekend, however I was feeling pretty sick and had to spend half my weekend either sleeping or laying in bed. I love keeping busy, so it was pretty difficult for me to force myself to rest up so I could recover. Now I’m feeling much better, and I’m glad I took it easy instead of working away.

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The Art of Food

Chow Time by Megan Coyle
“Chow Time.” Collage on paper. 18″x24″
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April 2nd – 30th, 2010
Arlington Central Library; Arlington, Virginia
Map and Gallery Info

Two of Megan’s latest works, “Chow Time” and “The New York Diner,” were on display in Arlington Central Library’s “The Art of Food” exhibition. Both pieces will appear in two of her upcoming solo exhibitions.

“The Art of Food” was a juried exhibition that featured art that used food as a theme or aspect of the artwork, and explored the ideas of “you are what you eat,” what we eat, where/how we eat, who/what eats, the nature of food, where it comes from, how it sustains us/the land, and so on and so forth. Artists were encouraged to use recycled material in the creation of their artwork.

The show was held in conjunction with the Library’s annual Arlington Reads program. The book chosen for Arlington Reads 2010 was The Memory of Old Jack by Wendall Berry. Berry’s book is about the musings of an elderly farmer on the “truth and integrity of the land.” “The Art of Food” exhibition was inspired by the book and explored different ideas and views on food consumption.

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