From our review of “Valentined” at Craftland in Providence:
These missives don’t have the swooning, steamy, bodice-ripping passion of romance novel covers. There are no salacious double entendres. The one-of-a-kind and limited edition valentines in “Valentined” at Craftland (235 Westminster Street, Providence, through March 3) are sweet, a bit nerdy, cute, funny, kind of chaste, kind of cozy, affectionate, and adorable. This is about geek love, about wooing you with demonstrations of endearing smarts. They had me at hello.Or maybe it was the puns. Alec Thibodeau’s pen drawing “I Wanna Give You a Squeeze” [pictured above] depicts a little boar being squeezed by the coils of a python. Morgan Calderini and Arley-Rose Torsone, the married ladies behind Ladyfingers Letterpress, offer a white card that appears blank at first, but look closely and you see it’s embossed by letterpress printing with the line: “You’ve Made an Impression on Me.”
Craftland’s Deb Dormody and Jen Corace’s roundup of 30 artists — a mix of locals and national folks — is a perfect match of concept and artist community. Craftland has ended up one of the liveliest local galleries because, in addition to good taste, the store’s crafty bent aligns so well with Providence’s do-it-yourself, handmade style.
Read the rest here.
“Valentined” at Craftland, 235 Westminster St., Providence, Feb. 2 to March 3, 2012.
Jill Colinan “Pine”
Deb Dormody “Organ Donor”
Lois Harada “Ishihara Heart”
Jen Corace “Paper Doll”
Delia Kovac “Flag”
Mark Pedini “Rad Valentine”
Pippi Zornoza “Double Sided Valentine Print”
Jason Tranchida “On Fire 1 (Be Mine, Madonna),” “On Fire 2 (Be Mine, Dolly Parton)” and “On Fire 3 (Be Mine, Blue Oyster Cult)”
Hilary Treadwell “An Anatomy of Love”