Wilton’s hidden gem of an art gallery, Sprouting Spaces, is hosting an opening party tonight, Thursday, May 3, at 7 p.m., that will “deliver” some unexpected surprises. The show, and installation titled, “Undelivered,” takes its name from the discovery of an abandoned 35-year-old mail truck and the undelivered mail found inside.
Artist Ben Quesnel, who won the studio space at Wilton River Park Shopping Center (5 River Rd.), found the truck (and one other) in the woods of a property in northern Connecticut. Despite the truck being stuck in about a foot of mud, and the interior crumbling and broken, the discovery of the undelivered mail inspired something in Quesnel.
“I took an interest in these trucks, which once served as a means for people to connect with one another, but now remain inoperable. I wonder how many important messages never make it to their recipient. I not only consider unexpected occurrences disrupting the line of transportation, but I also think about the messages that we never send. How often have we wanted to say something to someone but did not?” he describes.
Using the truck as an interactive space, Quesnel allows visitors to discover an opportunity to create their own letters and mail art that will remain within the installation. People can sit in the truck itself to write, compose, remember and connect to those feelings and messages they may have never delivered themselves.
The opening party for “Undelivered” will feature readings by three local authors, Wilton resident Tara Leigh, as well as Jamie Beck and Wendy Walker. They’ll read from their own works and then open the mic to others who want to contribute their thoughts. There will be music as well as food and beverages.
Quesnel is already opening up the exhibit to local groups. Last week he hosted a class with a Wilton Brownie Troop and is excited to continue sharing his “day job” skills–he’s an art teacher in the Greenwich Public Schools–with the wider Wilton community.
Quesnel won the studio space thanks to the Clementine Arts Foundation (CAF), a newly formed arts non-profit that seeks to build communities by supporting artists’ careers. In December, CAF teamed with Kimco‘s Wilton River Park Shopping Center to donate the space to an artist with the purpose of both helping artists and providing programming for the community through art.