09/04/2026
Got folks coming in to town for the holiday weekend? Or maybe you lost your power in the storm? Come in to WSG Gallery and distract yourself with our new show, 'Every Flower', by Valerie Mann. Here's her artist statement:
Every flower I’ve painted or drawn is ingrained in my memory. Where it came from or who it came from are equally as vivid.
I have been a gardener since I was a kid. Growing up on a large, family farm in Indiana, one of my jobs was taking care of the gardens and landscape. My earliest memories at the farm are all connected to growing plants, the specific growing seasons and the changing of the light through those seasons. Light affects the feeling of what it’s like to be in a certain place with the things that grow there. Light also creates the shadows that I love to capture! The shadows become characters in the pieces that are almost equally important to the flowers.
I aim to represent my feelings of being with the flowers when I’m painting. There is a sense of urgency when I paint, as it is often from life. Each piece takes hours of study - I develop a relationship with the flower or bouquet, knowing all the while it is ephemeral.
Kerrytown District Association Creative Washtenaw Destination Ann Arbor
