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The Bottle Works is excited to present the paintings of Patrise Henkel in an exhibition titled - "Everyday Miracles". Join us for our 3rd Thursday on 3rd Avenue Gallery Night on November 20, for the opening reception of from 6-8 pm.“Weeds push through gravel, empty industrial buildings stand as haunted monuments, divine light shimmers on the river constrained to a concrete ditch. An abandoned downtown, once crowded, yet history still hums in the air.
Using oil and acrylic paint, graphite, collage, and monoprinting techniques I make images of where I live. From portraits of our rustbelt towns painted en plein air, to larger impressions of mountain and sky, abstracted into forms of energy and presence, my work reflects the deep reverence I have for the places that nurture us. Our cities hold layers of stories, and the ancient earth grounds us even as it opens to the infinite. The massive forms of northern Appalachian ridges hold deep time and literally put us in our place.
In these lines from William Blake I find a prayer, and advice for the seeker:
To see the world in a grain of sand and heaven in a wild flower; hold infinity in the palm of your hand and eternity in an hour.
William Blake, from Auguries of Innocence
Our places are not static but alive with potential: grounds where we can imagine and create new stories. Making art is my way into stories, reminding us that the miraculous is always close at hand.
My paintings explore our deep connection to the places we live. I am drawn to beauty often overlooked: weeds pushing through gravel, empty mills standing as monuments, the shimmering river constrained to its concrete channel. The mountains of the northern Appalachians inspire me with their massive forms, holding deep time and reminding us of our place within it.
These places are not static but alive with memory and possibility—grounds where we can imagine and create new stories. As William Blake wrote, “to see the world in a grain of sand, and heaven in a wild flower.”
I hope my paintings invite viewers to pause, to look deeper, and to come away seeing the everyday world—not as ordinary at all, but as radiant, miraculous, and alive.” – Patrise
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
411 Third Ave., Johnstown, PA, United States, Pennsylvania 15906
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