
By Kaelyn Malkoski
Courtesy of the Carrboro Commons
It all stems from a simple question: What moves you?
To many, the answer is spiritual – a homily, a hymnal, a call to prayer. But is spiritual expression confined to religion?
To Nerys Levy, chair of the Friends of the Carrboro Branch Library Art Committee, the answer is no.
“What deeply moves the local community?†the Carrboro resident asks. “The answer comes from people; what they do, poignant moments in their lives, what moves their spirits.â€
A Christmas parade, a Martin Luther King Jr. Day rally, a Habitat for Humanity project, the Occupy Carrboro movement can all stir one’s spirit, says Levy, a native of North Wales. It’s a beautiful balance of religious and secular activities, she continues.
Photographer David Otto agrees.
After Levy approached him last summer to pioneer an art exhibition on spiritual gatherings, the two knew they had to redefine the word “spiritual†if they were going to truly tap into the human emotion of Carrboro.
Otto, a 16-year Carrboro resident, was at a camera club meeting recruiting volunteers to help with the exhibit when he had an epiphany.
“It was a divine sort of intervention, if you will,†he says. “I thought, ‘How about in the spirit?’â€
His sudden realization redirected the project, lured photographer Sheldon Becker to join the exhibit and provided the title for the exhibit, “In the Spirit.â€
Otto, Becker, Levy and Carrboro Branch Library’s art committee, which decides the theme of the art exhibitions at the library, started work on “In the Spirit†in June 2011.
Funded by the Orange County Arts Commission and the Friends of the Carrboro Branch Library Art Committee, the show provides high impact at a low cost, Levy says, with all of the photos printed at Costco and Staples.
“We wanted to make a statement to the community about the power of people through images,†says Levy. “You can document something and show it without masses of money.â€
The exhibit, which opened on Jan. 20, is displayed at the Carrboro Branch Library – which also serves as the McDougle Media Center – on Old Fayetteville Road.
Inside the library, intimate photographs reminiscent of National Geographic line the perimeter of the room. Most feature groups of people and organizations throughout the community, including the St. Joseph Foundation’s Hayti Heritage Center and North Carolina Arts in Action workshops.
Otto’s favorite picture, however, doesn’t feature a single face. The picture, named “Eid Prayer Ending Ramadan,†shows a group of bodies hunched over performing a Muslim prayer.
“It catches a group of people doing something together – that’s community, that’s spirit,†says Otto.
Betsy Armstrong, McDougle Middle School’s media assistant, says her favorite photographs are those featuring large groups of people. The library has displayed photo exhibits since the media center opened, but Armstrong says this is her favorite.
“We’ve always had local artists, but this is different because the subject matter is local,†she adds.
Armstrong, who has worked for the shared library for 11 years, says the library hosts about six exhibits every year. Levy adds that “every child who has been through middle and elementary school has had a proper art exhibit to look at.â€
The exhibit, which has been successful, ends March 12.
But Levy, who works at FRANK on Franklin Street, says she hopes the artwork will also be showcased at local art galleries, religious organizations and college campuses, like UNC.
Carrboro Branch librarian Anne Pusey says the community-centered exhibit engages local children, who can visit the exhibit and pick out people they recognize from the photographs.
“It’s hard not to recognize a familiar face or place,†says Pusey.
“Everyone shares the Carrboro spirit.â€
Levy says the next show will keep with the theme by exploring outer space, or what she calls the “spiritual space above us.†The exhibition, set to start in April, includes paintings by McDougle students and a scheduled rocket launch on May 7.
“We want to showcase the universe that exists above Carrboro.â€
Kaelyn Malkoski is a UNC student writing for the Carrboro Commons, a bi-weekly online lab newspaper for Jock Lauterer’s Community Journalism class at the School of Journalism and Mass Communication.