The bookstore is full of tiny books on tiny shelves, with titles inked finely onto covers and spines. The detail in this diorama — a scale model by Williamsburg artist Judith Abraham, aka Iris Bloom — is impressive, and the art gallery visitors standing around the piece study it carefully.
A bird’s-eye view of the work gives it a sort of timeless charm — an achievement in mini-architecture. But bend down to peek in through the front windows of this little store, as some viewers do, and the moment feels more immediate, captured on the faces of the two model characters inside.
This piece, “Madwimmin Books,” is based on the comic Dykes To Watch Out For by feminist cartoonist Alison Bechdel. Seven other local artists have exhibits at The Diorama Show at A.P.E. Ltd. Gallery on Main Street in Northampton. The exhibition runs from November 7, when this photograph was taken, through December 7.
It’s opening night, and a sizable crowd has appeared. People step in from the cold rubbing their hands. A few minutes later, most are sipping from plastic cups of wine and chatting over plates of cookies, cheese, and fruit. Occasionally a child or two wanders under an installation of three white dresses, which hang a few feet above the ground. They peer up under the dresses, where mobiles of geometric shapes hang.
The dresses are Florence artist Elizabeth Stone’s take on the diorama. Stone curated the show, which means she’s spent the past year gathering and organizing her seven collaborating artists. She was looking for a fun group that would take diverse approaches to making art inspired by the diorama.
“It came to me very organically,” she says. “I’ve always loved dioramas, all the way back to second grade, when I made an aquarium in a shoebox.” Stone felt compelled to do a show like this after seeing a similar one in 2011 at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York. “There were three floors of dioramas by different artists. I was enchanted and enthralled by it. Such a variety, from teeny-tiny stuff to huge floor-to-ceiling pieces. I thought: Wow. We could do that here.” Near the gallery’s entrance, Sally Curcio’s piece Milk and Eggs features eight small glass jars. Within each are microcosms of daily life. A mannequin the size of a thumb; a cat the size of a pinky nail; a set of silverware even smaller than that, laid out on a tiny table.
Artist Lindsay Palermo has turned bark, sticks, and other materials into five wall-mounted scenes ringed in wood. Jane Lund’s little scenes are even wackier: a nightmarish house full of plastic monsters; an adorable homicide at a teddy bear’s picnic.
Beckie Kravetz has animated the insides of masks. Michael Tillyer has used video projection. Kathy Couch, the gallery’s technical director, is exhibiting a model interior that draws from her theatrical experience with set design.
“Everyone’s had such different ideas,” says Lisa Thompson, Associate Director at the gallery. “It’s been so interesting to see it come together. I think everyone did a great job.” “It’s been a fun show,” agrees Couch. She compliments Stone’s work as curator. “Elizabeth gave us a lot of room to interpret. Different scale, materials, mediums. She really wanted us to mix it up a bit.”•
