The original line drawings of rural Tomahawk resident Rita Webb will be on display in the current Beyond Books: Community ArtShare showing at T.B. Scott Free Library.
“Each artist we showcase has their own process of developing their work,” said Library Director Stacy Stevens. “This exhibit in particular provides a great opportunity for the public to gain insight into how an artist imagines and creates.”
Rita’s artwork is done through a process called “Mystery Painting,” an art therapy technique to which she was introduced at the Butterfly Peace Garden in eastern Sri Lanka. Rita lived and worked in Sri Lanka for over five years doing unarmed civilian peacekeeping and human rights protection work with Nonviolent Peaceforce, an international peace organization with U.S. headquarters in Minneapolis.
While the war in Sri Lanka ended in 2009 and the peace project ended in 2011, Nonviolent Peaceforce continues to train civilians from around the world and deploy them in regions of world conflict. The organization currently fields teams in the Philippines, South Sudan, and the South Caucasus, and is developing an exploratory project in Myanmar/Burma.
For those interested in learning more about this particular reflection process, the library has Webb’s self-published book titled Travels in Sri Lanka: A View From The Clouds, available for checkout. Rita and her husband Marty plan to continue supporting Sri Lankan educational and humanitarian projects from their home in rural Tomahawk.
Rita’s work will remain in place through May. The artwork is on view during library hours and will be displayed on the second floor in the Carnegie building reading area. Community ArtShare is made possible by the support of the Mead Witter Foundation, Inc. of Wisconsin Rapids.